sholio | Dead WIP roundup

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Dead WIP roundup

(Icon chosen for my poor baby WIPs, and because it's a pretty icon that I don't have very many opportunities to use!)

I'm looking through my WIP folder and calculating the possibility that I'll finish them. It's not looking good. Look under the cut if you want to be frustrated. *g* There are a few shorter stories that I still intend to finish, which are left off the list because, in general, talking about a story while I'm actively working on it runs a high risk of killing my interest in it. And quite a few of my other WIPs have never made it past the idea stage. There are 25 files in my WIP folder, but when I open up quite a few of them, it's basically a handful of disconnected story notes and scraps of dialogue.

Title: Cyberia
What is it? John finds himself in 2002-era Siberia with a young, arrogant Rodney McKay who doesn't know him, and no memory of how he got there. He begins to suspect that all is not as it seems.
How far along is it? 25,000 words (:sob:)
Chances of completion: Very slim
What happened? The &:$%@# Replicators. I started writing this during the Season 2 hiatus, and as soon as Progeny aired, I realized that I was going to have to radically rework my plot because a) It's way too similar to Progeny, and b) unless I set it pre-season 3, John would immediately tumble to what was happening to him and why everything was a little bit off. Also, I haven't really been interested in writing John-and-Rodney solo adventures lately, and this one, for obvious reasons, is pretty strictly focused on them.

Title: Nor Iron Bars a Cage (tentative title)
What is it? The obligatory John and Rodney in prison story.
How far along is it? 12,000 words
Chances of completion: Probably slim unless I get inspired
What happened? See above re: John and Rodney solo adventures. I kinda suspected all along that this one would probably never be completed, because it was mostly just shamelessly poking at the characters for h/c purposes. However, at some point I actually came up with a plot, regarding the two of them getting drawn into a civil war on this planet. The problem is that, if I develop it as I'd like, it would be novel-length, and I'm not sure if I'm up to getting sucked into another novel-length fic right now, especially when it really wouldn't cover any new territory for me. (What interests me about fanfic, mostly, is the new and unexplored; as much as I love John and Rodney, I'm starting to feel that there's very little left for me to explore there.)

Title: The Great Atlantis Boat Race
What is it? A moral-building idea on John's part gets out of control and results in a boat race around Atlantis in homemade, not particularly seaworthy craft. Hilarity ensues.
How far along is it? 2500 words
Chances of completion: Slim, but possible
What happened? The idea is terribly fun, but it relies heavily on the Season 2/3 era cast (in particular, I'm not sure if I could do it without Elizabeth -- at least, I'd have to replot drastically). And there's not much written on it yet. It's a really fun citywide, ensemble-cast idea, though.

Title: The Devil You Know
What is it? NCIS crossover. Gibbs' team investigate a truly bizarre murder that just keeps getting weirder, involving crop circles and apparently "alien" artifacts.
How far along is it? 3600 words
Chances of completion: I'm honestly not sure
What happened? Frustratingly, I have this one almost entirely plotted out. Except for some fuzziness at the end, I know what happens. But it's almost entirely NCIS (basically the NCIS team in the Stargate 'verse), and I'm really having trouble getting the voices down. Also, it relies heavily on SG1 canon knowledge that I just don't have; the amount of research that I'm having to do is offputting, and I'm worried about getting something wrong. The only way I can see this one being resurrected is if I sit down and have an SG1-a-thon sometime soon.

Title: untitled Keller story
What is it? Set early season 4, John and Rodney escort Keller on a humanitarian mission that ends with all of them stranded in hostile territory and injured.
How far along is it? 4400 words
Chances of completion: Probably none, without major changes
What happened? The idea was to use Keller for an outsider POV on John and Rodney. I kinda already wrote this plot for

astridv's requested Keller/McKay story, though, except this one would have been gen. And, again, the John/Rodney relationship hasn't been that exciting to me lately. If I'm going to do this one, I think I might do it with a slightly different subset of characters. I do like the idea of writing Jennifer doing doctory things offworld (vaccinating kids, helping out with plague victims, stuff like that).

Title: Island in the Sea of Time
What is it? Sequel to "Old Soldiers Die Hard", set about ten or fifteen years in the future, after Stargate declassification.
How far along is it? 1800 words
Chances of completion: Not sure
What happened? No plot. :D It's really just a series of disconnected vignettes and notes, dealing with Annie from "Old Soldiers" and with the canon cast adjusting to the changes of the last fifteen years. If I could figure out a plot to tie it all together, I'd like to finish it, but I don't really have any ideas that work with what I've got.

Title: The Sound of Silence
What is it? Started writing this for the Wordless Challenge at

sga_flashfic. A horrible misunderstanding offworld leads to Rodney's tongue being cut out by the locals. (Yeah. I know.) It's basically about the psychological adjustment post-healing, though.
How far along is it? 3100 words
Chances of completion: Probably none
What happened? Too much bloody difficult research, because I realized that I know nothing whatsoever about the physical effects (can you swallow? Eat? What sounds can you make?) and Google is very little help for researching that particular ailment. I'd intended this to be a fairly realistic, perhaps fairly dark story, but was finding it a total slog because I was having trouble finding the resources I needed and having to make everything up as I went along. I love researching things if I'm interested in the topic, but researching this particular disability was like walking uphill through mud. Also, I very much dislike using "nonsensical offworld alien superstition" as the basis for an entire story, and that's pretty much what we had here. And, on top of that, I really don't like wallowing in angst and the whole situation is tailor-made for angst, which meant I had to keep dragging the story out of the Angst Pit. Mainly I wanted to write this for the whole idea of a Rodney who was much less physically standoffish, communicating with others by touching them, but it's not really worth it for what I'd have to go through to get there.

Title: The Family Way
What is it? Between "Missing" and "Seer", Keller and Teyla discuss her options for her pregnancy, including abortion.
How far along is it? 2500 words, and technically done, pending a rewrite
Chances of completion: Hate to abandon it, not sure if I want to post it
What happened? This is actually done, except for some parts that really should be expanded and rewritten somewhat. I even ran this by a friend to see if she thought it was too controversial, which she didn't. I'm just ... reluctant, for reasons that are difficult to define. I felt as if the show brushed too easily over Teyla's apparent decision to keep and raise the child in light of everything that was happening, and I wanted to deal with that from a perhaps more pragmatic standpoint, especially since it would give me an opportunity to examine Western Earth values vs. Athosian ways of doing things. But I'm worried that it might come across as grandstanding on my part, especially since, in canon, it doesn't appear that Teyla even considered not keeping the child. So ... still hanging onto this one.

Title: Closure (tentative)
What is it? This is a sequel to the fairly dark sequel that I wrote to

rhymer23's "Types of Intelligence". This one is darker yet.
How far along is it? 1600 words
Chances of completion: Depends on how depressed I want to be, really, and how much she minds me mucking about with her ideas, especially given what I tend to do with them.
What happened? I'll be perfectly honest here: After reading one too many stories (in a number of fandoms) in which a character is rescued from horrible torture and is back on to shiny canon-standard quality after a few months of therapy, I wanted to write a story in which they're so profoundly messed up that they can't even cope with normal life, let alone life in the Pegasus Galaxy (sort of a la River Tam). It's hard to write an idea that's so profoundly depressing, though.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

This is so sad to see. What makes you stop writing a fic, esp if you've written a few thousand words of it?

I'm really curious because although I have a lot of plot bunnies in my head..I start a fic then finish it before I go to the next..or maybe do two at time. What makes you go from idea to idea..or do you just get bored after a little while?

I'm just curious to see if I'm some odd bird when it comes to WIPS since I don't have a file and I see so many other writers who do.

In your notes it seems you're 'burned out' on John and Rodney plots. Have you ever thought of exploring John and Ronon friendship....or are you just burned out on Sheppard in particular?

I really don't think there's anything wrong with working the way you do -- actually, I envy you your focus. The amount of time and energy that I've poured into stories I never finished is really depressing to me at times. I'd have so much more accomplished if I'd focus on one thing at a time!

What makes you stop writing a fic, esp if you've written a few thousand words of it?

Hmm ... I think a lot of it is simply that I'll start writing something new at the drop of a hat. I don't wait until I really know where the plot is going or even what the plot is; if a scene comes into my head, I'll write it down. Sometimes this really works for me, but other times it leads to stories that dead-end or just don't ever come together.

It also means that I have difficulty sticking to something if I'm having trouble getting past a rough patch; I'll just jump to something that's more fun to write. Now, a lot of times this actually works for me -- after leaving the problematic story alone for awhile, I can come back with fresh eyes and figure out where I went wrong. It's very much how my creative process works. But it also means that there are quite a few times when I just can't come back -- the spark is gone, the story is no fun, and I'm not really compelled to go ahead and slog through it. Fairly depressing when it happens 20,000 words into the story, though ...

My tastes change quickly (I'm a voracious and omnivorous reader, as well) but they can also change *back*; I will frequently put down a story for weeks or months and then find that I'm once again in the mood to work on it.

Have you ever thought of exploring John and Ronon friendship....or are you just burned out on Sheppard in particular?

To be honest, the John/Ronon friendship is not one that really resonates with me very strongly. I'm not sure why; I'm totally thrilled to see people writing it, since I love seeing more variety of fic than just the usual John-Rodney or team, but it's just not really something that I enjoy reading (or writing) all that much. Lately I've been more interested in Teyla/Ronon, Teyla/Rodney, or the team members combined with characters from outside the team. (That's a gen slash separating the character names, there, for the most part. *g*)

*laughs* I could do one of these for every fandom I've been in (though I think YGO might win the prize for the most long stories gone uncompleted). My incomplete SGA list is already 5-6, I think, though most of those were the first stories I started, before I had a good handle on the chars (and also getting into writing during s4 when so many details were in flux makes things tricky...)

Siiiigh...the McShep ones sound so much fun, though (don't get me wrong, I entirely understand why you're tired of them, I'm just not at that point yet! And much as I enjoy the slash, slashy gen h/c is even more my kink, y'know, and there's only a handful of writers out there to scratch that itch...)

Heh, I thought you'd understand! I have one in every fandom, too, although SGA is probably the fandom I've been in the longest, therefore the one that's seen the most waffling (with DBZ as a runner-up; I still can't believe that I wrote 70,000 words of a fic that I never managed to finish!).

It strikes me that there hasn't been a whole lot of John/Rodney friendship fic around lately in general, which means that I may wander back into that particular kink eventually. Paradoxically, the best way for me to get sick of a favorite character or trope is to have it super-popular, either on the fandom or the show itself! Hence my general tendency to gravitate to less-commonly-written characters and pairings over the last year or so (and my fondness for unpopular ships, as well, because there's much more uncharted territory to explore!). But if I get an opportunity to let the John/Rodney part of my brain "rest" for a while, I may well come back to them. :)

Ahah...I have 15K words of an unfinished DBZ epic myself (...hey, for me that's a lot. I've only written like two fic that broke 70K words, your prolific-ness astonishes me sometimes!)

Heh, yeah...I don't get sick of my favorites, but my interest will decline and I'll flitter away to other things, fandom butterfly that I am. If I lose interest in my favorite relationship(or the fandom/series loses interest in it) I'm more likely to just leave the fandom for the next shiny thing. (I hadn't consciously realized until recently just how essential my OTPing is to my fanfic life; I've practically never written or read in a fandom that I wasn't OTPing. My OTP (or OTR? because I do get gen OTPs) is not necessarily the only thing I'll write or read, but it's a requirement.)

You could always write some Teyla-Rodney cuteness, I've been craving that lately, and we don't get nearly enough in show or fic!

You know, I had honestly never realized, prior to being in SGA fandom with you, that you're an OTP'er, because I'm most emphatically ... not. It usually takes one particular relationship (almost always a friendship) to get me hooked into a fandom, one friendship that I appreciate above the others -- but once I'm there, I like to explore the ensemble and the minor characters just as much, and I don't really have a problem with writing scenarios that adversely affect the friendship. I sometimes describe myself, with tongue somewhat in cheek, as a friendship OTP'er, but seeing how other people treat the meaning of OTP, I really don't think it's true. (It's probably had an effect that both the fandoms in which I spent a lot of time, and wrote long stories, were ones where the "friendship OTP" was largely in my head -- in Trigun, one-half of it was dead, and in DBZ, there was only the most tenuous sort of canon evidence that the characters even liked each other!)

I've also just recently realized about myself that I really, truly love writing a "two guy friends plus a female best friend/girlfriend" dynamic. Most of my previous fandoms have had this: a major love interest for one or both of the guys, and I find that particular dynamic at least as interesting to write as the friendship by itself -- the friendship as tested and described by their relationships with people outside the friendship. I think DBZ is still the most emotionally satisfying of all my fandoms to write for, because there was such a huge range of canon relationships to play with -- friends and rivals and enemies and lovers and children and grandchildren ... just a hugely varied tapestry of possibilities to explore.

Whereas, say, Supernatural has never really managed to grab me as a fandom because, while there's a potentially interesting and fic-worthy character relationship, there just aren't enough character-relationship possibilities for me to explore. (Not to mention the whole thing with the show already going there in pretty much every conceivable way.) The relationship between the two boys was pretty thoroughly plumbed as far back as mid-season 2, when I started watching, and rather than expanding into a network of friends, allies and recurring enemies, they've whittled away their supporting cast and tightened up to just the boys, for the most part.

I suspect SGA would probably have lost me as a fandom in much the same way if it was just John and Rodney. I still squee and flail happily when they're onscreen together, but, like with Sam and Dean, I'm starting to feel as if their relationship has been pretty thoroughly explored, and I'm ready for other characters to have screen time. For me as a writer, the romance angle to the show couldn't have happened at a better time, because it hit just as I'm starting to get a bit bored with the possibilities on the show as they exist. And ... extra-canonical relationships have never been something I'm all that interested in exploring, really. I've actually become much more open to them through my time in SGA fandom because in most of my previous fandoms, there have been canon options to explore if I wanted to write or read about that; in SGA, though, there wasn't, which has led to me being a lot more open to the possibilities and willing to consider throwing the characters together in weird combinations. I'll probably take this increased openness with me to other fandoms, and, hey, I think it's a good thing! But given the choice, I'd still (mostly) rather play with the canon options or write gen.

If I lose interest in my favorite relationship(or the fandom/series loses interest in it) I'm more likely to just leave the fandom for the next shiny thing.

See, this strikes me as more psychologically healthy than to stay in the fandom just to complain about the show and/or the fic no longer living up to your standards; I often see people doing that, and I really don't get the appeal, to be honest. Maybe for fannishly monogamous people, the idea of striking out for a new fandom is less appealing than staying in a fandom that's making them unhappy, but it's a difficult concept for me to emotionally grasp.

Hah...yeah, I think I confuse a lot of people because I'm a gen OTPer, which is practically unheard of. Well, not so much in smarm's heydey, but now that smarm's gone back to being a negative word, I'm a rare species. Most gen fans tend to be more favorite character types, or else no favorites, but I latch onto that one special relationship and won't give it up. I can hang around with slash OTPers because they're closer to my fanning style, but some things that bother most of them don't affect me, and then other things that bug me tend to be fine for a lot of slashers (like, John & Rodney always dropping their shared geeking for sex drives me nuts...I don't want them to be boyfriends *instead* of best friends, I need them to be both!)

I've been sitting on a long-ish essay explaining how I OTP, because I think it's something that some fans do, and other fans don't (even though they might use the phrase) and those who don't, who aren't "true" OTPers, kind of have a hard time understanding where the heck we're coming from. Which is different for different people anyway, but... The thing is, I don't like isolated OTPs either - I get weirded out by a relationship that is such a hothouse flower that it can only thrive in the absence of other relationships. Hence SPN doesn't draw me in (the brothers' dynamic was more interesting when played off their dad, and such) and my absolute favorite SV fanfic is all about how Lex becomes close to the Kent family, not just Clark. (And heck, one of the problems I have with Keller now is that she only has her romantic relationships, nothing else significant.) And it's not like I don't love plenty of other relationships in SGA besides McShep (I haven't written Ronon-Rodney just to get reviews or something, I adore their relationship! Or Teyla-Rodney, or Zelenka-Rodney...okay, yes, slight Rodney-fixation, but...) I don't want my OTPs to be each other's *only* one...but I want them to be number one, and, yeah, once I elevate a relationship to that level of specialness, I can't really bear it being broken.

(...which means, um, please to be disregarding my comment on your latest fic? You basically wrote my worst nightmare and I tweaked out and commented when I really shouldn't have, I'm sorry...I can edit/delete it if you'd like ^^;)

The other reason I might have caught you off-guard is that I don't always OTP - you've heard me talk about my Type A fandoms; in a lot of them, I don't have any OTP, I love all the chars and relationships pretty much equally - I'll have particular chars and relationships I especially like, but not ones that get marked in quite the same way (in, say, Babylon 5, or Avatar, I can, if I struggle, tell you my favorite chars, but I might change my mind tomorrow. And in Doctor Who, the Doctor's my clear favorite, but I don't OTP him with anyone. I might say that Doctor-Donna or Doctor-Master is an OTP, but I don't mean it in the same way.)

But I don't read or write fic for my Type A's...I hadn't realized it fully myself until recently, but every fandom I've written more than a couple fics for, I have had a clear OTP; it's usually my motivation for seeking out fic to begin with, wanting to see that particular relationship explored. Once I'm into the fic, I might wander around a bit, but my original reason for being there doesn't tend to change. (The one exception to this rule is One Piece, which grabbed me by masquerading as a Type B fandom - Luffy-Zoro was my initial OTP, I believe? - but then metamorphized into Type A; I honestly don't have any favorite character or favorite relationship in the series. And the fic was much fun while it lasted, it's the only fandom I've ever had that I was perfectly content to read any possible pairing. But I lost interest in the fic, as I tend to do with Type As, because the canon is more satisfying than anything the fic offered me...)

Maybe for fannishly monogamous people, the idea of striking out for a new fandom is less appealing than staying in a fandom that's making them unhappy, but it's a difficult concept for me to emotionally grasp.

We might differ when it comes to OTPs, but this I entirely agree with...! I can understand how people become entrenched in fandoms, I'm not big into change myself. But my fangirl heart is fickle, and when I get wearied of something I just drift from it (which might be why I never really get to the point of disliking fandoms, either. I've had friends who start to hate something they used to fan on, because they basically burned themselves out; once I fan on something, I pretty much never lose my affection for it, it just gets stashed away in a safe corner while I happily polish my latest idol...)

So many interesting ideas. Several of them made my heart sink when I read the chances for completion. Needless to say, I honestly hope most of these get written :D

No Iron Bars a Cage - I'll be honest, when I saw "The obligatory John and Rodney in prison story." My reaction was, "Noooooooo! I want to write that" ;) Not just write it but leaning toward writing it as my next chapter fic, unless I can scrounge up enough motivation mojo for the one I recently started (which I seem unable to at the moment). I've been wanting to get into more team or buddy fics, especially Sheppard and McKay buddy fics. I've done so many John-centric peices where John is pretty much by himself that buddy fics (writing them) is still pretty new for me.

The Great Atlantis Boat Race - That sounds too darn cute. Hope you're able to finish it.

The Sound of Silence - Maybe what you need to do with this one is go slightly the opposite. Instead of Rodney losing his tongue, maybe tone it down to losing his voice permanently (or something). The angst would, at first, be toned down by a little humor, maybe up until the realization that Rodney may never be able to speak again. Just a thought. I love the concept, because Rodney relies on his voice so much that it would be intresting to see how he copes/overcomes no longer having it. I love stories that explore such things - whether permanent or not (Sazz's The sky is Not Less Blue comes to mind, and there's another story where Sheppard no longer has the gene and can't fly, but Rodney finds a way to help him. Can't remember the title, though...)

Closure - again, another concept that intrigues me. It's something I've wanted to explore myself, and have in bits and pieces, but always tempered enough for eventual healing. Major irrepairable trauma, though, would be very intresting.

I'll be honest, when I saw "The obligatory John and Rodney in prison story." My reaction was, "Noooooooo! I want to write that" ;)

Everyone writes one, that's why it's obligatory. *g* No, seriously, I think it's a rite of passage every h/c writer has to go through at some point, though not necessarily with John and Rodney specifically, of course. (Though, in this fandom? Probably.)

Team/buddy stories are my stock in trade, as well my preferred thing to read, so I hope you're able to get that particular line of inspiration to work out! :D

Maybe what you need to do with this one is go slightly the opposite. Instead of Rodney losing his tongue, maybe tone it down to losing his voice permanently (or something).

Hmm ... not a bad idea, really, since the adjustment was what I wanted to write about, and the overwhelming angst was actually distracting from that. I think it may be awhile before I go back to that one, since there are other ideas I'd rather explore at the moment, but it might be a good thought if I ever do want to get it off the to-be-done list.

I've read stories in which he loses his voice (including quite a few for that particular challenge!), but none that I can remember in which it's permanent with no magic alien tech solution.

I think in general, part of the problem I've been having lately, with both writing fic and finding stuff to read, is that I'm more interested in realistic scenarios and believable solutions to problems with long-term effects and permanent fallout, as opposed to the less realistic (but more fannishly satisfying) happy endings. Unfortunately, that sort of story is a) difficult to find, and b) complicated to write!

Yes, yes...listen to Friendshipper! You really want to write this John and Rodney in prison story!!! You do. You really, really do! (look at the pretty necklace swinging back and forth, your getting sleepy, sleepy....now when I count to three.............)

Seriously though:

Within - sounds very intriguing. I'm watching for this to be posted.
Do Not Go Gentle - Please, please do this. I know it will be awesome when you do!
Synchronous Reality - You have my complete and undivided attention here. I WILL BE WATCHING FOR THIS. This is going to be sooooo gooooooooooooood!!

The NCIS/SG1 one sounds really freaking awesome. Any chance that offering to help with research/bribing you with cookies/chocolate/whatever would do any good...?

...no?

*sigh* XP

ETA: Also, the Old Soldiers sequel sounds pretty nifty, too. Annie was one of my favorite of your OCs; it'd be nice to see what happens to her.

Edited 2008-10-14 06:37 (UTC)

I would LOVE to finish the NCIS one, if I could just get past the fact that I can't get the characters to sound right! And in order to write it, I'm definitely going to have to hit up an SG1 fan for answers to canon questions; if you're relatively familiar with SG1 canon, especially canon from the season 7-9 area (which is the part of the show I never saw, and exactly the part that I need to cover for this fic, doh!), I might take you up on that. :D

p.s. Thank you for the Old Soldiers comment! A lot of people responded very well to Annie, and there seemed to be a good reception to the idea of a sequel; I just need to be able to wrap it in some kind of plot!

Edited 2008-10-14 06:47 (UTC)

I would be more than happy to help. :D I started watching SG1 again after a couple year break in about the middle of season 7, so I'm not as familiar with that season, but I've seen all of 8 and I can quote chapter and verse of season 9. And I've seen all of NCIS as well. So feel free to hit me up at any time!

It's always sad to see lists of abandoned WIPs that could have been such cool stories. I'm really surprised about the difficulties with the tongue one though. You'd think there was more information about this, I mean, don't get tongues cancer and such?

It's possible that I was just experiencing Research Fail, but I was really coming up blank on anything that dealt with what a person would go through, having to deal with an injury of that nature. I can certainly think of circumstances in which it would happen (cancer; accident involving jaw trauma; stuff like that) but maybe it's just that uncommon.

Woah, some of them are already so long! Though I don't write that much myself, I have some "thousands of words done, not going to finish" WIPs as well. They're so frustrating! Maybe there should be a comm where you can post what you have (with the understanding that that's it, no begging for more in the comments) and then anyone who wants to adopt the wip can take it and play with it (and even break it beyond repair, if they want to). Or maybe there already is? Considering fandom, there probably is *ponders*.

The Devil You Know: sounds like you just need a beta who's up with SG1 canon. Or maybe once SGA is done this year you'll get the itch to check out those last seasons yourself... I'd offer my services, but I'm only up to around season 6, and not all of it either. If you want an NCIS sound-board though, I'm all caught up with that :)

The Great Atlantis Boat Race: oh, that sounds awesome. Woolsey wouldn't do?

The Sound of Silence: I'm with Kriadydragon, tounge cutting isn't the only means to lose one's voice, if the research is so frustrating. Though I'm not sure how much easier any other affliction would be to research... aphasia is one of the consequences of brain tumor I think.

Cyberia sounds like fun. Stupid Replicators!

The Great Atlantis Boat Race Because they live in a city, in the middle of an ocean, and the only boat we've seen is Rodney's dream row boat from "Doppelganger". We couldn't persuade you to write it with Sam or Woolsey? Sam took part in a race herself (because it was fun) in "Space Race"....

the Family Way I understand your reasons for holding on to that and not letting it out there. Not knowing what you'd have as the Athosian view and Western Earth values (because there are many as you know) I'm not too sure what this fic would be like. It's a sensitive and extremely uncomfortable issue for me as I come from a standpoint that is the opposite of most of my flist, probably fandom in general, and I know is very different from yours. So, not sure if I'd want to read it....

PS - your WIPs are longer than my complete stories. Writing really isn't my thing even though I try.

If nothing else, the cheerleading for the unfinished stories is turning out to be quite flattering and helps get me in a writing frame of mind. :D

I think there *is* a community like that; I ran across it a little while back. I'm not sure if I really want to entrust my babies to it, though; they may be dead babies but I still love them! (Ewww. Okay, that metaphor came out REALLY sick and wrong!)

I actually have the unwatched seasons of SG1; I just need to find time to watch them! The NCIS story might get written at that point -- I have a number of ideas that I really would love to develop in the story, but just need to get that canon grounding first.

I'd love to see the boat one because the idea of it cheered me up (job sucks today) but if you haven't got the inspiration, you haven't got the inspiration :D

Everyone seems to like the idea of the boat one! I need a boat icon...

I wouldn't bother replotting the boat race without Elizabeth, nor any of the stories that need to be set in a particular time to work - fun is fun and people don't mind reading a story set earlier in the series. (They better not, as I'm never up to date...) Anyway the boat race seems fun!

(Also, possibly because I had the majority of my slash-reading free time during seasons 1 and 2, I think of stories set then as "classic". I say, go with it!)

To be honest, I've actually been finding myself liking the idea of going back to the early days of the expedition when the character relationships were just starting to gel, and writing about that! Reading stories that were written at that time, the characterizations sometimes feel a bit off, but looking back with the vantage that we have now, there are lots of possibilities for playing with the developing character relationships.

I second, third, fourth the Great Atlantis Boat Race. A moral boosting team competition is always a fun read (and I'm extremely curious to find out why Elizabeth is essential for the plot). :)

*laughs* Well, it's not so much that she's completely essential; it's just that I needed a character who could have sailboating expertise and be very comfortable on a boat and but basically downplay their skills so no one else realized until it was too late. *g* It's true that there's no canon support for this whatsoever, but of all the characters to have this ability, Elizabeth seemed by far the most likely and I enjoyed how it worked with the other character dynamics. Some of the characters are too competitive, some are not competitive enough, but Elizabeth was just right!

Edited 2008-10-14 18:49 (UTC)

Google is very little help for researching that particular ailment

I really hate Google as a research tool sometimes, because it just fails at times. There are certain questions you just can't find an answer to, no matter how hard you try. (Plenty of websites that talk about hypothermia. But what about hypothermia + untreated broken leg? How cold does it get on an iceberg? Etc, etc.) I'm not sure if you've heard of it, but

little_details is actually a pretty good resource tool when Google-Fu fails.

Also, I haven't really been interested in writing John-and-Rodney solo adventures lately

*sob* I understand this completely and totally (especially since I get to that point occasionally as well), but 25K... *sniff* I think the longer ones just hurt more, and the older they get, the harder they are to pick up. 27K+ WIP that I started back in '05 that just sort of... sits there, eyeing me sadly for the most part.

Actually, I've had a big yearning to read more Ronon/Teyla buddy fic, so I will happily make encouraging noises for more of that. (Actually, a Teyla/Ronon buddy adventure is on my pipe dream wish list for the rest of the season.) I'd love to write some, but every single time I open up a notepad I just stare blankly.

There's no doubt in my mind that -- providing I stay in the fandom, of course, which seems very likely at this point -- I'll cycle back around to Sheppard/McKay friendship eventually. *g* They're just too much fun not to! It may just be that there aren't too many good Sheppard/McKay friendship stories coming out right now, though I absolutely loved yours. :)

I didn't know about that community -- thanks! I'll check it out!

SPOILERS FOR FIRST CONTACT/LOST TRIBE (SEASON 5)

Thought I'd better put a spoiler warning for anyone reading your blog and comment section who haven't seen them yet!!

Anyway, loved most of the ideas but fully understand about problems getting them finished...just looking at my own WIP folder I wonder if some of them are ever going to get finished myself! I haven't given up on any of them as yet, but suspect a few won't make it to the finish line!

The recent episodes have given me a slight problem with one story I am wanting to get finished (I promised

greyias I would try to finish it one day!) where part of the story explores Rodney and Daniel's relationship (in a purely gen way, of course!) in Season 3/Season 10 respectively. I was going for something a little more friendly/easy with each other than what we see in First Contact/Lost Tribe (which, btw, I loved - the sniping and snarking, lol!!) and now I have to decide whether to try and rewrite a couple of scenes or just put a note at the beginning saying that it was started pre-Season 4 (let alone S5!) and to rewrite the friendship to S5 would have damaged the story - and that it is to be considered very slightly AU because of it!).

Argh! Loved what the writer's did with the two of them, but darn, I should have got this story finished ages ago and then it wouldn't matter!!! And I can't move it from where it is, it HAS to be after Tao of Rodney/The Shroud for plot reasons! And I can't let go of the idea of them being sort of friends from Antarctica, and I'm not sure I could get it to work if I changed that dynamic!

Maybe I should do a WIP list? On second thoughts, I suspect I'll get some 'you must finish it' posts - and feel guilty that I can't!!

Btw, you must finish them!! *vbg*

Heh. Yeah, boy, I can sympathize with that! Having canon move on without me is one of the big story-killers; in fact, I think the reason why the John-and-Rodney stories are looking kind of flat to me right now is because I think the show itself has generally emphasized the overall team bond above the John-Rodney bond over the last couple of seasons, and makes me want to use them in the story rather than writing them into the background.

All of those look really good!!!

Especially that last one!

Thank you! :) (p.s. you saw the manga recs post, right?)

Yea, I did...thanks!
Those helped out a quite a bit...I'll definately have to see about getting at least a few of them for M.
Thanks again! :D

Oh that is so, so, soooooooo sad to hear. You write great stories so it's very disheartening to see fics that are already into the thousand+ range 'incomplete'. (Of course I know it's frustrating to you on a much larger scale)

I wouldn't mind reading these, complete or not. There were a couple of authors about a year ago that decided to just go ahead and post their WIP under a WIP folder.

Author A added the disclaimer that the stories may or may not be finished. If they are, they may be reworked to the point that they are totally different from what they started out to be and to please not 'take' or 'play with' any of the stories or plot lines.

Author B threw up their hands and said I quit. This is what I've got. I'm not going to finish it so don't ask. Take it if you want and play with it.

I also totally understand those who do not wish to post their material until complete. However, if it's for-sure-never-to-see-the-light-of-day-otherwise, it would be a shame to see all that work go into the virtual waste basket.

I didn't have the Sci-fi channel until about a year or two ago, I've only seen half, if that, of the SGA episodes and soooo out of order it's not even funny. So if you have a slight problem with your story going a little AU because of one episode it doesn't bother me.

If you post a disclaimer at the beginning saying "hey, slightly AU as of (insert ep#)" I don't see a problem with finishing the story.....erm, unless it just peeves you too much.

I know there are some authors who do NOT under any circumstances like to deviate from canon. I prefer canon, but am also fairly flexible as long as it doesn't stray too far off, or if there's an Author's Note warning of the slight deviation.

Cyberia sounds really interesting (Progeny or not) I wouldn't mind reading it just as it is.

Nor Iron Bars A Cage is also high on my list of 'please finish this at some point' *begs*. Obligatory, or not (it's obligatory for a reason. *Heehee* they're so much fun to read) Sometimes you've got to step back and have some mindless, shameless and ever indulgent h/c/whump. Or if you chose to, in the FUTURE, *wink* The civil war idea and novel length fic would not cause me to shy away (of course, I'm not the one who has to write it though am I? *g*)

Great Atlantis Boat Race sounds like some light-hearted fun! (Elizabeth being there or not, is NOT a sticking point with me. Neither is the time in which it's set)

untitled Keller story: This sounds like an interesting idea. I haven't seen any with Keller, John and Rodney off-world and I haven't seen her really do any field triage either. That would be new. (other than the sick girl in Tracker) I prefer your idea of it being gen as I'm not real wild about reading 'ships' of any kind other than friendships.

There has been a flood of 'shippy' or romance stories out there (which I don't read) and it's getting so hard to find what I want. *sigh*

I read a lot of John - Rodney friendship h/c stories. I like them. However, I'm sort of leaning toward wanting to read more John - Ronon h/c friendship stories. There aren't many of them out there so it's kind of 'new' for me.

Really AWESOME John - Ronon H/C fics, like Sudden Jolt and Ties That Bind by kristen999, Siren and Finding Peace of Mind by kriadydragon and Under A Bridge by ? *aahhh* I can't remember! Sorry) that have left me craving more.

I understand a new dynamic being more alluring. I still like John-team, John-Rodney friendships but John and Ronon is a seldom explored combination so I'm on the prowl for more.

I guess what I'm saying is, I do understand your problem. I just hope it gets better for you. Because, when an author suffers, readers loose-out; BIG. (Yes, I know I'm greedy...*hangs head in shame*) For the loss to be in stories that have surpassed the thousand mark (and then some!) is tragedy. Plain and simple.

Hopefully you just need to take a break from them. Then come back at a time you feel good and take another crack at it. It may not work out, but just know interested readers are ready and waiting for when you do. And as I said before, I wouldn't even mind reading what you've got if that's all there ever is.

Good luck!

Posting the stories unfinished ... that just feels wrong to me. I've done it occasionally in the past (usually by accident, a side effect of starting to write something and then losing inspiration) and I really hated the feeling; it felt like I was letting people down by doing so. And I've generally found unfinished WIPs more frustrating than anything else ...

At least getting them out in the open gets me thinking about them again, which might be useful for finishing them! :D

Yeah, kind of figured. Most people don't and I understand why. Just hoping that you are able to finish them at some point because they sound awesome. If not, then that's the way it goes.

Hoping for the best;D
Good luck.

Seriously, i have the same folder with the same unfinished stories. I think i'm the same. When i get an idea i get obsessed, write loads and then i lose steam and get distracted by other ideas and then they're abandoned.

I also sympathise with your feeling as though the John/Rodney relationship has been burned out. I've been trying to expand my horizons and write for Ronon and Teyla a bit more and include OC's for outside points of view. I've also tried going to the more realistic fallout way too.

I've got a fic at the moment told from the point of view of Teyla...practically done...but i'm not sure i want to post it because it explores a slightly icky/uncomfortable situation that occurs off-world with her team. It's a little dark and i worry that others will find it disturbing......so it's sitting there.

The good thing about having folders filled with stories is that find i cna use a particular scene from one in another story and steal ideas from myself that are partially written.

you could always post it with a warning... that way if some one thinks it'd be distrubing they won't have to read it.
Me... I find very little disturbing which is why I'd love to get my eyes on the fic you're writing :)

Hmmm......yuuuuuummmy icon! Sorry, I digress.

Man! That's just not fair! Most of those sound really good and very worth reading.
I understand though... my WIP folder is almost overflowing! Sometimes an idea just dwindles away to nothing even as I'm still writing it. The most frustrating thing though, is when I get almost all the way done before it dies! No matter how hard I try to get that last page or even paragraph... it doesn't fit the rest of the story :(

I created a group that is not doing very well since I'm the only member so far :( that would help with this very problem... it's a place to pick up and drop off plot bunnies... I figured just cause I can't finish something doesn't mean someone else wouldn't be able to pick it up and take off with it... but sadly no one seems interested so the group will probably end up being deleted soon :( Oh well...
But, in case you're interested or know someone who is... http://community.livejournal.com/plot_bunny_hop/

That's a mouth-watering post. Well, if fic were edible.

Some of those do sound almost too dark for me to read, and I can understand that you don't want to go there.

But what I'd give to see that Keller/John/Rodney fic finished... *covets*

Wow! Is amazed at word lengths on your WIPs. *sobs* at unfinised John & Rodney ones. You write the best friendship fics with them.. and great h/c too, so I'm sad to see you are bored/uninspired to write John & Rodney adventures.

Thank you! It's not that I've lost interest in the boys; it's more that I've been more interested in working on team/ensemble stories lately (plus, I'm finding John/Rodney fandom a fairly hostile-feeling place lately, so I'm not that interested in working on stories that would bring me into more contact with that particular segment of the fandom).

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Dead WIP roundup

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Long comment is long!

Long reply is EVEN LONGER HOMG (1/2)

Why am I not in bed?! (2/2)

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Spoilers for First Contact/Lost Tribe S5

Re: Spoilers for First Contact/Lost Tribe S5

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