Snowflake day 7 and 8
Snowflake the seventh: In your own space, share something non-fannish about yourself.
I'm learning Chinese. I tried joining a class but it was too much with my schedule the mess it is now. Between work, PhD and all the student stuff I've been sucked into, it's pretty impossible.
So I found memrise.com, through the Guardian of all places. It's a free website full of quizzes that uses 'mems', silly memory tricks, to get you to remember. You work on it for a few minutes, when you have a few minutes, and then go back to your day. You come back in a few hours and work on them again and it's surprisingly effective. Instead of drilling and drilling or needing a huge chunk of my day, I can just learn, a bit at a time.
My current favourite? xia4 yu3 (Xià yǔ) 下雨 (pronounced shy-you where the shy has falling tone and the you goes up and down).
It's neat because the first character (xia4) means under, below, underneath, etc. See how the third stroke is underneath? I imagine this worm saying, "look, I'm under". Then I remember. Yu3 looks like a sprinkler, with lots of rain, or looking out at a rainy day through a window. Together they make the verb "to rain". Yu3 on it's own is a noun, rain, or can be used as part of other characters as 'rainy' (don't know any of those yet.
I know about 80 characters now and I get them right 90% of the time. I try to learn five a day, but now that it's making more sense to me, I'm going for ten.
Snowflake the eighth: In your own space, talk about setting yourself a fannish goal.
I'm not even sure when I started writing it. July, maybe June, but I have the sneaky suspicion it's been longer than that. I signed up for
scifibigbang with this fic because I wanted a deadline, but my artist dropped late and I let it go, which saved me from having to find an ending and it just sat for a long time. I tried to find a beta, but it's a crossover and I asked someone who was really busy. Which is fine. I understand being busy. I don't really mind.
I waited a few months and tried another beta, whom I don't know very well, and she read a bit, wanted me to change two big scenes in the beginning and really differed from me on characterisation and I stopped again when I got really busy. I agree with her changes for the most part, I think I've made them now and I'm actually moving forward again but it's slow work.
Part of me wants to write it as a completely different story, weaving in things I enjoy, even though they don't really belong. So I'm being good, trying to stick to what I'm meant to, but the rebellious part of me resists. I don't like being stuck.
I'm not as good of a writer as I like to think either, because pieces of other stories keep sneaking into this one. I promised myself I'd stick to canon-ships, and since it's a VOY/TNG crossover, I get Kathryn Janeway/Chakotay, Kathryn Janeway/Mark Johnson and Kathryn/Kashyk. I get Beverly/Jean-Luc and Deanna and Will too, and they're a bit easier to hold to. Deanna and Will are the easiest ship for me. They love each other, it's uncomplicated and when they decide to be together, they will be.
Beverly/Jean-Luc are a bit more difficult. They hold off more, fight more to not fall into being together because they're both not ready to get hurt. Many years of guilt. In this fic, I wrote them into a place where they work, and it's the distance.
Short version: Jean-Luc asks Kathryn to take Beverly on Voyager so she can work on a science project. Voyager is thrust into the Delta Quadrant, which has been overrun by the Borg, with the Kazon holding out only because their technology isn't of that much interest. Our intrepid crew runs from the Borg, Beverly and the EMH only sort of get along, but they're getting better. Beverly and Kes get along great; Beverly and Kathryn become really good friends. Beverly's longing and patient, stubborn desire to get back and stop putting off her relationship with Jean-Luc leads her to help Kathryn realise she does want to be with Chakotay, even under the circumstances.
Kes starts sharing the Borg Queen's experiences as her telepathic powers develop, and the Borg Queen planning to invade the Alpha Quadrant (as she will in First Contact) makes Voyager realise they have to do something to stop this. (and sneak home, if they can) They contact the Devore Imperium, one of the last hold outs of independent power in the DQ, and ask for help, while hiding Kes, Tuvok and Vorik. The Devore hate telepaths because of reasons, which in this fic include the Borg Queen's telepathic powers (which I've increased, because why not).
Kathryn has a bit of a fling with Kashyk, working out her self-hatred with him, making a hot mess of what she was building with Chakotay. Beverly, Kes and Tuvok work out that Kes can communicate with Jean-Luc in the AQ through the Borg. (yay!)
In the end, Voyager follows the Borg cube on their invasion of Earth. Voyager and the Enterprise-E take it on together, in the past, save the timeline and all is good.
I keep frakking up poor Voyager (which is kind of fun, it didn't get trashed enough during the seven years of the show). There are parts of it I really like, this scene where B'Elanna saved Kathryn from the Borg. Beverly and Jean-Luc get a flashback sex scene. Chakotay and Kathryn need one but I keep putting off writing it. Kathryn and Kashyk get a pretty violent one.
Originally, Kathryn and Jean-Luc had a flashback sex scene to when they were together, years ago, but I've taken that out because Beta didn't like it. I'm pretty fond of it so I might work it a bit and use it somewhere else. I like Kathryn/Jean-Luc as a pairing. They have much in common and I like having them talk. I don't need to have the scene, the fic works without it and I know it's there. I've written it into my head for the story.
It's hard to remember how Beverly and Kathryn would talk to each other when they've just met. I'm so used to them being lovers or friends already that it's tough to reach for that "I've just met you, but you're rather interesting". How close do people get after only meeting a few times? Maybe they need to bond over science first, then later over taking care of the crew. I think the scenes later, on Voyager after they're trapped are pretty good.
It's already such a long fic I can't leave it, but it needs another 20k to finish and I feel very alone working on it. It's not quite 'me', because I'd run off and make it Beverly and Kathryn take Voyager and save the Quadrant, if I could, but I've promised.
I think this whole experience is reminding me that it would be nice to have a go to beta. I fly beta-free so often that I'm getting too accustomed to flying solo. Not for lack of wanting, more impatience and unwillingness to ask. People are busy. Things that I write are in old fandoms (Trek that's not AOS), small fandoms (part of me REALLY wants to write more Morticia/Gomez Addams fic), involve pairings I made up (Beverly/Kathryn), or cracktastic AUs of small pairings in a big fandom (Catelyn/Ned in Space, which so must be written).
I do need help with this one. I'm not sure who to ask. Beta I have now is a really strong Kathryn/Chakotay OTPer and I have moments of guilt because that's not really the endgame. Yes they'll be together(ish), and have moments together, but that's not why I'm writing this story. It's not Kathryn fights the Borg and loves Chakotay. It's Kathryn, Beverly, B'Elanna and Kes fight the Borg, talk about sex a little, and find their way home to save Earth.
Jean-Luc has faith, and pines really poetically for Beverly while Deanna and Will get married because space is dangerous and time is short.
It's almost gen with background pairings. Which is even harder to get a beta for and I'm not really sure if I need a beta or a cheerleader to help me work out my ideas. Yes, I'll probably get it set on my own eventually, but it'll drag.
So I'll finish it. Before snowflake time this year. I'm also going to write Westeros in Space because seriously, castles in space. How could this be anything but awesome.
Posted in the mirror verse at http://oparu.dreamwidth.org/323664.html with
comments.
I'm learning Chinese. I tried joining a class but it was too much with my schedule the mess it is now. Between work, PhD and all the student stuff I've been sucked into, it's pretty impossible.
So I found memrise.com, through the Guardian of all places. It's a free website full of quizzes that uses 'mems', silly memory tricks, to get you to remember. You work on it for a few minutes, when you have a few minutes, and then go back to your day. You come back in a few hours and work on them again and it's surprisingly effective. Instead of drilling and drilling or needing a huge chunk of my day, I can just learn, a bit at a time.
My current favourite? xia4 yu3 (Xià yǔ) 下雨 (pronounced shy-you where the shy has falling tone and the you goes up and down).
It's neat because the first character (xia4) means under, below, underneath, etc. See how the third stroke is underneath? I imagine this worm saying, "look, I'm under". Then I remember. Yu3 looks like a sprinkler, with lots of rain, or looking out at a rainy day through a window. Together they make the verb "to rain". Yu3 on it's own is a noun, rain, or can be used as part of other characters as 'rainy' (don't know any of those yet.
I know about 80 characters now and I get them right 90% of the time. I try to learn five a day, but now that it's making more sense to me, I'm going for ten.
Snowflake the eighth: In your own space, talk about setting yourself a fannish goal.
I'm not even sure when I started writing it. July, maybe June, but I have the sneaky suspicion it's been longer than that. I signed up for
scifibigbang with this fic because I wanted a deadline, but my artist dropped late and I let it go, which saved me from having to find an ending and it just sat for a long time. I tried to find a beta, but it's a crossover and I asked someone who was really busy. Which is fine. I understand being busy. I don't really mind.
I waited a few months and tried another beta, whom I don't know very well, and she read a bit, wanted me to change two big scenes in the beginning and really differed from me on characterisation and I stopped again when I got really busy. I agree with her changes for the most part, I think I've made them now and I'm actually moving forward again but it's slow work.
Part of me wants to write it as a completely different story, weaving in things I enjoy, even though they don't really belong. So I'm being good, trying to stick to what I'm meant to, but the rebellious part of me resists. I don't like being stuck.
I'm not as good of a writer as I like to think either, because pieces of other stories keep sneaking into this one. I promised myself I'd stick to canon-ships, and since it's a VOY/TNG crossover, I get Kathryn Janeway/Chakotay, Kathryn Janeway/Mark Johnson and Kathryn/Kashyk. I get Beverly/Jean-Luc and Deanna and Will too, and they're a bit easier to hold to. Deanna and Will are the easiest ship for me. They love each other, it's uncomplicated and when they decide to be together, they will be.
Beverly/Jean-Luc are a bit more difficult. They hold off more, fight more to not fall into being together because they're both not ready to get hurt. Many years of guilt. In this fic, I wrote them into a place where they work, and it's the distance.
Short version: Jean-Luc asks Kathryn to take Beverly on Voyager so she can work on a science project. Voyager is thrust into the Delta Quadrant, which has been overrun by the Borg, with the Kazon holding out only because their technology isn't of that much interest. Our intrepid crew runs from the Borg, Beverly and the EMH only sort of get along, but they're getting better. Beverly and Kes get along great; Beverly and Kathryn become really good friends. Beverly's longing and patient, stubborn desire to get back and stop putting off her relationship with Jean-Luc leads her to help Kathryn realise she does want to be with Chakotay, even under the circumstances.
Kes starts sharing the Borg Queen's experiences as her telepathic powers develop, and the Borg Queen planning to invade the Alpha Quadrant (as she will in First Contact) makes Voyager realise they have to do something to stop this. (and sneak home, if they can) They contact the Devore Imperium, one of the last hold outs of independent power in the DQ, and ask for help, while hiding Kes, Tuvok and Vorik. The Devore hate telepaths because of reasons, which in this fic include the Borg Queen's telepathic powers (which I've increased, because why not).
Kathryn has a bit of a fling with Kashyk, working out her self-hatred with him, making a hot mess of what she was building with Chakotay. Beverly, Kes and Tuvok work out that Kes can communicate with Jean-Luc in the AQ through the Borg. (yay!)
In the end, Voyager follows the Borg cube on their invasion of Earth. Voyager and the Enterprise-E take it on together, in the past, save the timeline and all is good.
I keep frakking up poor Voyager (which is kind of fun, it didn't get trashed enough during the seven years of the show). There are parts of it I really like, this scene where B'Elanna saved Kathryn from the Borg. Beverly and Jean-Luc get a flashback sex scene. Chakotay and Kathryn need one but I keep putting off writing it. Kathryn and Kashyk get a pretty violent one.
Originally, Kathryn and Jean-Luc had a flashback sex scene to when they were together, years ago, but I've taken that out because Beta didn't like it. I'm pretty fond of it so I might work it a bit and use it somewhere else. I like Kathryn/Jean-Luc as a pairing. They have much in common and I like having them talk. I don't need to have the scene, the fic works without it and I know it's there. I've written it into my head for the story.
It's hard to remember how Beverly and Kathryn would talk to each other when they've just met. I'm so used to them being lovers or friends already that it's tough to reach for that "I've just met you, but you're rather interesting". How close do people get after only meeting a few times? Maybe they need to bond over science first, then later over taking care of the crew. I think the scenes later, on Voyager after they're trapped are pretty good.
It's already such a long fic I can't leave it, but it needs another 20k to finish and I feel very alone working on it. It's not quite 'me', because I'd run off and make it Beverly and Kathryn take Voyager and save the Quadrant, if I could, but I've promised.
I think this whole experience is reminding me that it would be nice to have a go to beta. I fly beta-free so often that I'm getting too accustomed to flying solo. Not for lack of wanting, more impatience and unwillingness to ask. People are busy. Things that I write are in old fandoms (Trek that's not AOS), small fandoms (part of me REALLY wants to write more Morticia/Gomez Addams fic), involve pairings I made up (Beverly/Kathryn), or cracktastic AUs of small pairings in a big fandom (Catelyn/Ned in Space, which so must be written).
I do need help with this one. I'm not sure who to ask. Beta I have now is a really strong Kathryn/Chakotay OTPer and I have moments of guilt because that's not really the endgame. Yes they'll be together(ish), and have moments together, but that's not why I'm writing this story. It's not Kathryn fights the Borg and loves Chakotay. It's Kathryn, Beverly, B'Elanna and Kes fight the Borg, talk about sex a little, and find their way home to save Earth.
Jean-Luc has faith, and pines really poetically for Beverly while Deanna and Will get married because space is dangerous and time is short.
It's almost gen with background pairings. Which is even harder to get a beta for and I'm not really sure if I need a beta or a cheerleader to help me work out my ideas. Yes, I'll probably get it set on my own eventually, but it'll drag.
So I'll finish it. Before snowflake time this year. I'm also going to write Westeros in Space because seriously, castles in space. How could this be anything but awesome.
Posted in the mirror verse at http://oparu.dreamwidth.org/323664.html with
comments.