sholio | Gen SGA ficathon -- thoughts?

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Gen SGA ficathon -- thoughts?

I've been dinking around for awhile with the idea of running some kind of gen or team ficathon. I realize that NOW is not a good time because everyone is thoroughly ficathoned out, but there have been so many wonderful, long, meaty stories coming out of the recent ficathons that my to-read list is booked up for quite some time. Not that this is a bad thing. *grin*

But, as many ficathons as this fandom has to offer, there are very few that are not pairing-focused, either towards a specific pairing like

mcshep_match or the various rare-pairing ones, or offering several pairing options like

sgabigbang did. Again, not necessarily a bad thing, but my own proclivities lie in the gen direction and I know I'm not the only one. It was

mcshep_match that really got me thinking about this, because I really liked some of the stories but I'm not generally familiar enough with specific slash writers' styles to participate in the author-guessing polls, whereas for gen I'd love to get to do something like that. So that got me wondering, hmm, why not test the waters and see if there'd be enough interest to make a gen ficathon worthwhile?

So, I have created a poll:

[Poll #1058414]

Feel free to pimp this around -- I'd like to get as many responses as possible.

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I would love to participate in something like this, but am currently swamped with schoolwork. And will probably continue to be so until graduation in May. I might be able to manage it over Christmas break, but even that would be tricky.

I don't mind if you use any of the 'game' elements mentioned in the question about them, and having a theme might help inspire the writers (which is why I like sga_flashfic). Only thing with a theme is not to make it too specific as sometimes the theme won't spark interest (the plot bunnies went on strike for the last two or so on flashfic for me for some reason they aren't willing to share!). Offering two or three themes sounds good to me. Just a few thoughts.

Of course, I haven't done or come across a ficathon before (only read stories inspired by them), so only have a vague idea what it entails (something along the flashfic line?)...but I'd like to join in as it sounds lke fun!

Well, for me, now would be a great time. Right now I'm working on an AU Rodney-centered and need some inspiration for it and another story I want to write. So yeah! Let's do this baby!

I didn't understand the 'pairing' question if this is gen, or I'm just too tired from packing :-P

I don't mind themes if they are broad, but 'something' to kind of spark an idea like the other game elements. I'm thinking winter, because I know I will be beginning a long fic soon and there's the HC Sheppard Secret Santa coming up for those who are in that com.

Cool idea and have def interest in.

This is an awesome idea because there really isn't a lot of push for gen stories (i.e. ficathons, requests, etc.) I think this is an excellent way to get more gen stories out there.

I've never participated in a ficathon before -- but I think it would be good for me! And it sounds like fun.

Now I feel like a total newbie all over again, because - I don't quite know what a ficathon is, for all that I've seen the word thrown around a lot. I mean. How it works.

And if I can get over being TERRIFIED to try writing for this fandom, I'd love to participate. If newbies are eligible, that is.

I started out as a gen author who's been sucked into slash for awhile now and I'm feeling the need to work on gen stories again ;-) I've never really signed up for a ficathon before (I'm always afraid my muse will whimp out mid fic), but I'm trying to push some of my limits. And there can never be enough gen fic!!

Yes, yes, yes! I'd love an excuse to write a sga fic with more than one or two scenes.

I haven't really participated in ficathon (well, not successfully) so I don't really know what I'd like best.

- Helen

As you know, I've never done a ficathon and am not *really* sure what one is, but, because I trust you (and how did that happen?), I'd love to try! I totally don't know what the game thing is though. I'm all for themes, though...as you know. Hee.

I love the idea of an all-gen ficathon, because that's something this fandom could really, really use, I think. And I think I would definitely find the time and wherewithal to write a story for something like that.

Thanks for the response! Yeah, that's the tricky bit ... I've seen several ficathons and challenges lately that I would have liked to write for, but there's just no *time*.

Yeah ... I think it'll need to have *something* to get the writers kick-started, but I agree with you about too-restrictive prompts and/or community rules; I've noticed some recent challenges on various comms that have left my plot bunnies cold and dead (ewwwww...) because they're just too restrictive and I don't feel like I can let my imagination out to play. I'd like to try to make this fun but with the maximum amount of room for the writers to play; with gen being somewhat smaller than pairing-based SGA fandom, I don't want to exclude anybody if possible!

All ficathons have slightly different rules, I think; the only common denominator is that a bunch of people get together and agree to write and post stories by a certain deadline. As you say, it's kinda like sga-flashfic.

Yay!

At the very least, it'll need a couple of months to pull it together, though. We're heading into the holiday season, when all its attendant secret santa and yuletide ficathons, exchanges and challenges; right now I'm thinking that the best time would be after the holiday season and the first half of season 4, which should have everybody's imaginations flying along happily.

Well, what I was aiming for with the pairing question was whether people seem to prefer a "strict" definition of gen or a looser one; in other words, if I were to write a future apocafic in which Rodney is married to Carter, but the story itself is all about the team fighting zombies with his relationship relegated to a few brief scenes ... is that still gen? According to def. 1, the answer is "no", but it's "yes" according to def. 2.

There are a ton of challenges and ficathons associated with the holidays, so I'm definitely thinking it would be best to wait 'till it's over before starting anything new.

Yeah, I was just noticing that SG-1 seems to have more of this sort of thing in the gen area, so I thought we might take a cue from them. :)

Cool! :)

Well, different ficathons have different rules. Probably, rather than trying to describe it, the best thing is to point you to some of the existing ones --

sgabigbang,

mcshep_match, and

atlantis_basics are some recent ones that come to mind -- and read the rules and userinfo; that'll give you a general idea. Although different ficathons are different in their specifics, the basic idea is that people sign up to write stories by a certain deadline. Usually there is some sort of theme or prompt involved as well. And there is no reason why a newbie can't write for it; I'd love to see you join in! :)

I was scared stiff of writing for SGA at first, because the fandom is so big, but it's actually turned out to be quite a nice place. And we can always use more gen and h/c writers. *grins*

Er, that's actually

atlantisbasics. *headdesk*

Versatility is always good. :) I know what you mean about the fear of not being able to finish (I have a number of long stories languishing in WIP hell on my hard drive) but I like your writing and I'd love to see you give it a go!

Yay!

I've never tried to run one, so I have no clue what would work the best, actually. I'm just kinda looking at other ficathons and cherry-picking the ideas that seem to produce good stories or a fun sense of community.

I'm not sure exactly how to define a ficathon, but it's basically just a bunch of people agreeing to write stories following a certain theme or prompt by a certain date. At least that's what I think of it as being.

The "game" thing .... I'm not sure what to call it, maybe "gimmick" would work as well, but it'd just be whatever the ficathon's hook is -- like, with some I've seen, the stories are posted anonymously so that readers can guess who wrote them until the big writer reveal at the end. Something to make it more interesting and encourage a sense of community.

Wonderful! I'd love to see you join in. :) (And for that matter, I'm happy to see you back around LJ, as well!)

Well, you know me. I write gen and het and slash, and while I'm best known for certain pairings, they're not the be-all and end-all of what I write.

I guess my main concern in this is that it would basically turn out to be "another set of McShep stories masquerading as genfic." I don't particularly care to read or write that.

I've been thinking for awhile now that I wanted to try one and see what happened just to put a little pressure on myself and my muse. I've never written for anything that I had to finish or with a deadline. So, yeah, you do this one, and I'm there ;-)

There is never enough good fics around. I would love to see a gen pairing ficathon anytime!!
Also, I thought there wasn't going to be a long winter hiatus. Which is why they had the ridiculous one last year, so that S4 would start with the other premieres and run right through the usual stop after October... No?

Thank you! Yep, that makes it much more obvious to me what it's all about. I should probably try to stretch my writing muscles a bit more before before I join some kind of challenge, but - it really is tempting! Not just the challenge, but the fandom, too. From my limited experience with it, it really is a lovely place. ♥

I describe myself as "bitextual" - I'll read gen, het, or slash stories equally, depending on quality. Of my SGA stories, my gen stories http://thepouncer.livejournal.com/371190.html>outnumber () het and slash combined, but the latter two are a not-insignificant roster.

I'd love to find a Gen Challenge of some sort. So, yeah, this sounds great. I don't have a set schedule of when I'd be less busy (no winter hiatus for me!), so whenver you feel like starting it would work for me.

Do it!

Yay! If we do this thing, I hope you join in.

I guess my main concern in this is that it would basically turn out to be "another set of McShep stories masquerading as genfic." I don't particularly care to read or write that.

Er ... I don't know if you meant it this way, but it sounds like you're saying that I and others who write about the John and Rodney friendship are closet slashers who aren't honest enough to admit it. That's kind of presumptive, I think. But maybe I'm misreading your meaning.

If you simply mean that gen in SGA fandom is disproportionately focused on the two male leads, then yeah, I agree with you ... and even though I lean that way myself, I would love to see more writers get involved (like you!) who prefer to write the other characters.

I'd think a ficathon is always going to end up heavy on the most popular characters and themes in the fandom, though, unless it's specifically targeted to something else (like the rare pairing ones). It sounds like you're worried about being forced to write something you don't want to in order to participate, which isn't my intent; if this thing happens, I'd like to see it as inclusive as possible to people who write different sorts of gen.

Oh really?? I know nothing about it, so hope you're right -- that would be simply awesome if they go straight through with all the episodes!

"Bitextual" -- I like that! I think it's pretty neat how many people in this fandom read and write both, actually. I've been in fandoms where the slash and gen camps were much more entrenched than they seem to be with SGA.

Whee! I'm excited -- it looks like there is quite a bit of interest.

Prompt swaps would be good - people get a prompt to work with, or several prompts, depending how many things people get to ask for, but there's not an overarching thing that people get stuck on. If that makes *any* sense!

If you simply mean that gen in SGA fandom is disproportionately focused on the two male leads

Yeah, pretty much. Sorry for the confusion - and any insult tendered. It wasn't intended.

The "McShep stories masquerading as genfic" is a reference the stories where Rodney is the only character that John responds to emotionally. He laughs and jokes with Rodney, but doesn't with Teyla or Ronon, and doesn't seek them out to hang out or interact with them beyond "being team-mates" and going out on mission.

I've read a few stories that were recced to me as gen, but in which I saw absolutely no care or thoughtfulness from John for anyone but Rodney. Sure, he interacted with the other characters, and there was no outright slash or over-emotional thoughts about Rodney, but it was pretty much pre-slash dressed up as 'gen'.

I would definitely be interested, but it has been a long time since I participated in a challenge, other than sga_flashfic.

Well, I'm an all gen writer, and, frankly, that's what I most enjoy reading as well, so that's how I voted. I also voted for anonymous authors, so that little read or known authors won't be automatically outshone by the bigger names. I voted other for the timing, because frankly, I have no idea what time would be good, but... I will write if I have the time, no matter when.

Yeah, I'd like to do this in a way that would be as inclusive as possible, if that makes any sense -- I don't want to end up with such a restrictive theme that it would make people feel like they can't write anything for it, since the pool of SGA gen writers (and potential gen writers) is small enough that I'm a little worried about getting enough people to make for a big enough ficathon. However, the response to the question has been encouraging. :)

Ah, but that would make it a good way to get your feet wet again! *beckons* :)

Yes, I really like the idea of anonymous authors for several reasons, but one of which is the one you gave -- it would mean that people would get to judge the stories on their own merits and not so much on the name of the author.

No offense taken. I do know the sort of fannish monomania you're talking about, and I'm also aware that I'm about as guilty of it as a person can be -- but I guess where I got confused with the original comment is that I just don't see anything *sexual* in it, which to me is the basic dividing line between slash/ship and gen. I certainly DO notice when the writer plays up a particular relationship or the team OT4 to the exclusion of the other relationships in the characters' lives, and maybe it does read as ship to people who lean that way, but through my "gen goggles" the story still looks like gen; it just looks to me like the writer's either too focused on one relationship to *see* the rest of the viewpoint character's inner life, or that they were making a deliberate authorial choice to deal only with one character relationship rather than all the available options.

I understand focusing on one relationship, but the stuff I'm thinking of isn't just focusing on one relationship, but actively negating the impact of all other relationships in a character's life except for The Chosen Character.

When all other friendships are made negligible to the point of indifference with the exception of this One Speshul Friendship Between Two Perfectly Matched People, it might as well be ship/slash, to my thinking. Sex doesn't have anything to do with it, the uniqueness of emotional attachment does.

As I said in my first comment, that's not particularly what I want to read or write in my gen fics - not even John and Teyla caring only about each other. I can't excise all their feeling for the other characters in the show, and I don't particularly want to read the work of people who can and do.

But that's all a bit of a diversion.

As far as the ficathon is concerned, I'll write for it. I just hope there are other gen-fans involved who want stories that are more about Teyla or Ronon.

I'm not sure as I can't find the news item on GateWorld, but if I remember correctly they will be having a short break for Christmas (both US and UK), but not for very long. Just a couple of weeks or so (and a one week break in the US due to Thanksgiving - which gives the UK more chance to catch up as we're only starting two weeks behind you this time anyway - for a change!!).

Hope this helps.

I should NOT sign up for another ficathon. I really shouldn't. It always ends in a frantic scramble when I realise OMG is that due NOW?!?!?

But yeah, way off in the distance, when things are quieter *snort*, maybe...

I do like the idea though. As a SGA genfic-READER. I can see absolutely no downside to such a ficathon.

The logistics though... I found

tielan's comments quite interesting and I have to agree with what she says, that it can't be something to be made into "another McShep ficathon masquerading as gen".

I ticked the "team-fic but allow side pairings" box, but now I do see the potential for that to be hijacked by the McShep side of things. After all, there is that example of a famous McShep-oriented story which the author "perceives as gen" winning a "Best Gen Fic" award (or something). If that can happen, then I fear that authors can wank their way out of any "pairing restrictions" by saying, "Well *I* see it as gen!"

Maybe, there could be the restriction of "no non-canon pairings", but then there is the argument that "well, *I* see them as a couple on the show" - y'know, from the "they are SO doing it!" crowd.

And while I like the idea of exchanging prompts, you'd have to find a way the authors don't gets saddled with prompts that they can't write (or really object to writing). Y'know like

tielan getting saddled with the prompt "John and Rodney get lost offworld. Rodney is hurt. John looks after him. Teyla and Ronon try to find them." That's a McShep (slash or friendship) prompt masquerading as gen. And if participants are allowed to offer their own prompts, how to prevent such prompts being thrown into the mix becomes a problem.

So, in summary, I think it's a good idea but the guidelines might need to be finely tuned to prevent "abuse".

I understand focusing on one relationship, but the stuff I'm thinking of isn't just focusing on one relationship, but actively negating the impact of all other relationships in a character's life except for The Chosen Character.

I'm so glad that you brought this issue up - because I initially didn't consider it, but now see that it really could be a considerable problem. The arguments "Well, I see it as gen" or "I don't think this pairing as intrusive and/or non-canonical" have been used before to have shippy fic (slash and het) classified as gen. And people's definition of "pre-slash" varies enormously (it would seem that for some people, if there isn't actual m/m anal penetration describe during the course of the fic, then it's not really slash).

I don't like the exclusiveness of OTP fic either (whether it be "one true friend" or "one true lover"). But on the other hand, I do think that each of the relationships between any pair of charcters is unique. John's friendship with Rodney IS unique (and IMHO it's a close friendship) - no one else has quite that same "boys and their toys" vibe when they get together. But by the same token, Rodney and Radek share a "geek geniuses with rivalry but also respect" vibe that no one else has and John and Ronon share a "soldiers and mavericks (maybe even outsiders) likeness" vibe that no one else has.

Striking the balance between celebrating the uniqueness of a "pairing" and sacrificing/stifling all other relationships because of that "pairing" would seem to be the challenge.

Just saying. ;-)

The logistics are gonna be the tough part, all right.

What I'm leaning towards, right now, is having people supply a list of prompts and then letting writers pick what they want from the list. That way, it's *somewhat* constrained, but no one would get saddled with a prompt they just couldn't work with.

I'm really gratified that the poll got as many responses as it did -- and even though I realize that many people who offered to write for it might not be able to, it still looks like there should be enough to get a decent showing.

I'm still torn on a few things. I should've thrown a question in there about fic length, because I would love to encourage long stories but I don't want to scare people off by having the minimum word count too high. And I'm not really sure if my question about having a "theme for prompts" was just poorly worded, or if that many people really *do* want that, because what I meant was for the whole ficathon to have a theme (like, all the stories would be post-apocalyptic) and I really wasn't expecting it to be that popular as an option. Not that it's bad ... but ... I just wonder if I phrased it badly and some of the people who chose that option didn't know what it was supposed to be.

Anyway, it looks like there *is* interest, so maybe I'll start a new discussion thread to talk about the details...

You could argue that the relationship dynamic between any two individuals is unique.

But unique isn't the same as "speshul" - at least, not to me. Every individual is different and so the things that one person brings to a relationship are different to the things another person does. So John's friendship with Rodney is unique, but different to his friendship with Ronon, which is unique and different again to his friendship with Teyla, which is also unique.

I see all those relationships as special in their own way, and try to write all of them as significant, even if my focus is most commonly on the relationship between John and Teyla.

Striking the balance between celebrating the uniqueness of a "pairing" and sacrificing/stifling all other relationships because of that "pairing" would seem to be the challenge.

Exactly.

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Gen SGA ficathon -- thoughts?

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When I say other . . .

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