Do you love me? Will you love me forever?

[geoviki]

With the erratic nature of our archives - Skyehawke's problems and Arithmancy's before that - I decided I'd better archive my stuff in two places just to beat the odds. So I spent the morning tarting up my web site and posting all my fics there:

Geoviki's web page

I still need to address the squished image on the home page, but as a bonus, you can access all the art and images made for my fics.

I don't have a program to autogenerate web pages; instead, I directly code most of it with tags the hard way. This is akin to hand-whittling a Buick and expecting to drive it to Texas.

Speaking of archives (God, what an elegant segue!), I've now posted that crack!fic parody at 1) Pornish Pixies, which is the forum I had in mind when I wrote it 2) my LJ 3) Skyehawke, and 4) Fiction Alley (FA). (What a pimp I've turned out to be).

When I first emerged from obscurity, FA was my archive of choice, mostly because it was the only one I was really aware of. I posted my first 3 fics there. Then my subsequent fics superceded their ratings (bodily fluids involved, you see), and I hadn't posted there in yonks. So I thought, why not? I thought there might be a 50/50 chance they wouldn't accept it - the parody does include some pretty...odd..things. But they did. Still, now that I'm getting comments, I'm noticing quite a different audience than two years ago. The fic's rated R there (who the hell knows what to rate this stuff, you know what I'm saying?). But a large proportion of feedback seems to be from underage readers; or at least, some squeeful, smiley-prolific members. And I've seen several reviews that find the fic "confusing", which stuns me. I mean, it's crackfic. Either you get the joke or you don't. A few try to praise the characterization (which is obviously OOC in spades), and one suggested I try to write it "straight". So, ah, who out there in LJ-land wants to beta my next Veela!rentboy!crossdressing!vampire!Draco fic, hmmmm?

So what are your experiences with various archives?

Okay, put me in the column of "dreading HBP", for awkward reasons. Some of my RL friends know I like HP, but they don't know details why. So they mention the upcoming book to me, and the conversation grinds to a sand-in-the-gears stop when I inwardly want to enthuse about my writing, but can't, for the obvious reasons. Do I go to the midnight party at the bookstore? Who knows.

I've decided to upload my "current music" to YSI.com, where the link will be active for a week. This entry's song was something I heard one single time when it first came out in the 70's and not again until about 2 weeks ago. I think it would make a great fic! What a funny plot. ("We were barely seventeen, and we were barely dressed")

Paradise by the Dashboard Light - het warning - first-time, commitment-phobia, baseball/sex metaphors, crack!song

Comments

[painless-j.livejournal.com]

Viki, in ATBT everything has " " between lines of text

[painless-j.livejournal.com]

sorry [!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--] [!--[endif]--] between lines of text, only with usual tags brackets instead of square ones.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Oh, shit.

You realize that it looks fine in Netscape - yeah, I'm old school.

And those files have been posted nearly a year!

Working.....

[anehan]

And I've seen several reviews that find the fic "confusing", which stuns me. I mean, it's crackfic.

I think it's because it's a crackfic that they find it confusing. I mean, if they don't catch the jokes and the references (which propably is difficult if they haven't read that much fic or if they are so young that they don't really catch what's so funny in all those clichés you make fun of) the fic is probably going to seem rather weird. Which is what makes it such a hilarious one, I think. They've got to understand the jokes or otherwise it seems like you, the author, were on... well... on crack when you wrote it. :-)

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I always thing of "confusing" as something like: I didn't follow the plot, or there was a time switch or a POV mistake or something. And the comments of "confusing" were back to back, just to drive the point home! Hahahaha.

So I was left thinking that maybe a lot of these cliches are peculiar to LJ and not to FA.

Not that I expected readers to catch every one - some are pretty obscure.

[anehan]

Oh, that kind of confusing. I was thinking more what-the-hell-is-the-author-getting-at kind if confusing.

So I was left thinking that maybe a lot of these cliches are peculiar to LJ and not to FA.

Or perhaps it's the talking about those clichés that's peculiar to LJ. (I haven't visited the FA discussion boards so I don't know.) I imagine it's easier to catch the clichés if one has talked/read about them. I mean, I don't read much veela!fics, but even I know it's a cliché to write veela!Draco, because other people have talked so much about it.

[perseph.livejournal.com]

A few try to praise the characterization (which is obviously OOC in spades), and one suggested I try to write it "straight". So, ah, who out there in LJ-land wants to beta my next Veela!rentboy!crossdressing!vampire!Draco fic, hmmmm?

Oh my. I absolute loved your crack!fic, and I laughed my ass off, but I am seriously scared now.

Then again, I shouldn't be so surprised that someone out there would actually wish for such a thing, given all the wonders on ff.net.

Off to search out the reveiws on FA now. They sound hillarious.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

To be fair, I think it was probably in the spirit of "I wonder if it could be done".

And no, I don't think so! At least, not by me.... You'd have to have humor, or your readers would click away after the second line.

[perseph.livejournal.com]

Oh, well that is a bit of a relief then.

I don't think it could be done either. But then, have you read the one really good skateborder!Hermione fic? I'd come across the idea done absolutely horribly before and thought it was aboslutely impossible that it could ever be done. And then there was this one (http://www.livejournal.com/users/annakovsky/116540.html) where she takes up skateboarding, listens to Greenday, and bleaches her hair in all seriousness, and it is absolutely gorgeous. After that I started to think maybe anything can be good in the right hands..

But this? I take back the part about anything because just no, no way. Definately needs the humor. Although perhaps that is part of the "right hands" since the right hands would know that humor was needed...

Eep.. and sorry for rambling in your comments. I really shouldn't be allowed near a computer after midnight.

[perseph.livejournal.com]

And was looking at ATBT in IE to see what everyone is talking about and eeeh, that is terrible. Those things shouldn't be showing up since they are commented out; stupid IE. It should just take a simple search and replace to get them out.

Perhaps it's not in all versions of IE though, and that is why you haven't heard about it before? I'm pretty sure I originally read it on your site, and that would have been back when I mostly used IE because my old computer and Firefox did not get along.

It looks like you created that page using MS Words save as HTML function, and that always adds a ton of garbage. I can't afford Dreamweaver either, and I hate frontpage with a passion (it puts in a lot of the same garbage as Word) so I've spent an insane amount of hours just putting paragraph tags in long text documents I've coded by hand before I learned a few tricks to make it go faster.

Anyway, did you want some help with your code? 'Cause you have about a million-and-ten extra/redundant tags in the code for your main page, and I think you would have a much easier time with it if most of them were gone so the code was cleaner.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Oh, I know and am discouraged by all that redundant code, because I am a very anal computer person. I toyed with the idea of cleaning it up, but I just knew I'd miss one of the pairs and really hose things up horribly, so I kept telling myself "transparent to the user and they'll never see it..." Yeah.

I guess my main goal for this weekend was just to get it up. Er, in the computer sense, I mean. I will fix ATBT, though, right away.

[snottygrrl.livejournal.com]

i hand code everything on my personal pages, as well as a few sites i deal with. it is getting impossible hard to deal with these days. sometime i will give in and get dreamweaver. [*le sigh*]

and here in nz, because of the time difference (and the fact that we aren't allowed to get it before the brits), our hp is available at 11.01 am on a saturday. [*is smug*] i'll be at dymocks, where i have pre-ordered and where cute little children will be dressed in hp!costumes.

and fortunately for me, most of my colleagues are involved in the arts, so they don't bat much of an eye at my odd habits. not that most of them know that harry is doing draco in most of my reading/writing, but some do (and some have become converts. [*evil laugh*]

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Apparently my skilz aren't all that great, because all the ATBT files are hosed. The funny thing is, those files have been there untouched for over a year! So much for the mad rush to this site. Still, its nice to have alternates. I mean, besides the Czech translation, that is.

[parthenia14.livejournal.com]

Totally with you on the HBP uncertainty - just trying to decide whether to order it on Amazon (but will it arrive on Saturday, she frets), or buy it in town next day.

My family know I'm embarrassingly into Harry Potter, but they have no idea quite how embarrassing; a few friends are keen-ish, don't know anyone in RL (apart from my son) who's into it to the same extent. I did have a thought about going down at midnight but that would raise awkward questions..plus I'd start reading it and get no sleep.

Be interesting to see if I knew anyone who turned up, though.

good job we've got a fic support group.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Oh, sometimes I wear a hole in my tongue trying to keep quiet...

I preordered the book anyway, just for grins. I get to read it first in the family; my daugher will be a camp counsellor for two weeks starting that morning, so she's out of luck. My son will eventually read it - he was a big fan for the others, but now he's a really, really cool 14. I should get him the "adult cover" version.

[balfrog.livejournal.com]

so, were you kidding with that Veela!rentboy!crossdressing!vampire!Draco fic? because toying with a fangirl's bad taste is not kind!
I would beta, cheerlead, so read something like that. Darn.

:D

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I could probably pull off two of the four modifiers - especially love to read rentboy, although I've never attempted one. But it ain't happening, I am afraid! I have two or three others in the pipeline instead.

...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[primroseburrows.livejournal.com]

You only heard this song ONCE in the 70's? And not again until two weeks ago?

This song helped define my teenagehood. Sogoodsogood.

Oh, it's cold and lonely in the deep, dark, night...I can see Paradise by the dashboard light...

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[isiscolo.livejournal.com]

I totally agree. Viki, you must have grown up on Mars.

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

It's one of those odd "I nearly heard this again but..." events, because I should be able to trade it in for the 2,387,549 times I heard each and every Fleetwood Mac song during the same period.

And it's not as though I didn't like it and was avoiding it. It's just - the universe failed to converge for me. Or something.

Got your email, BTW, and will coordinate flight plans (does that sound vaguely military?)

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[isiscolo.livejournal.com]

GOOD because I phoned you while I was making them and you weren't home, and then I called a few times after I saw your post and the line was busy, and then I got pressed into home remodeling handyman duty, so you BETTER LIKE THOSE PLANS because that's what I got!

EEEE!

AM EXCITED!

And am going to bed now. Have a nice night.

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

The flights are perfect, my dear! You done good.

(Of course I was home nearly all day except for when you called!)

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[primroseburrows.livejournal.com]

I did the Fleetwood Mac thing, too. I think I wore out Rumours at one point. Or close.

Re: ...and we're glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

It is! Such a fun song! Maybe it was too long for the stations I listened to. Er, I also was living in Utah at the time, and I can't imagine them being all over themselves to play it there, especially given the content.

The only time I heard it was at a party.

I'm making up for lost time, though.

[djin7.livejournal.com]

It doesn't really qualify, but the last FQF story I did was inspired entirely by the Meatloaf album Bat Out Of Hell. *g*
not a songfic btw.
If you want to read it, it's called For Crying Out Loud. It's Snarry, though. Cheers!

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Will read, thanks. I can't even imaging what it'll be like!

[parthenia14.livejournal.com]

Oh, it was the Meatloaf one! I had it remembered as 'Heaven'.. I haven't listened to that album in years. Yes, it is crack! - I used to think of it as camp but that's entirely the wrong word.

psst - I have just bought Dreamweaver and I just did a course on it. Shame I'm dreadful at icons really.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I am so tired of learning new things! I just did the Acrobat class and am hacking thru being a pdf-knowing nerd.

[parthenia14.livejournal.com]

I'm horrified by quite how interested I am in your Acrobat course. I think I'm beome a sort of nerd's nerd.

Dreamweaver is very cool. I've got a cheap academic version and when when work cools down again I'm going to make over my work-y website.

My local college also offers Basic and Advanced html, and Photoshop (steps away from Photoshop carefully).

[mereol.livejournal.com]

*loves paradise by the dashboard light*...the ultimate in wedding reception songs. i think this song actually started american line dancing.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I'm the only one I know who remembers this, but I learned to line dance in 1964 from my sister and her friends (and in the way of those things, I can still remember the steps to that particular dance!) Perhaps it was a Detroit/Motown thing....

[mereol.livejournal.com]

well as i was just a twinkle in my daddy's eye in 1964 (actually no, but one of the previous four siblings before me must have been) i can only agree with you that it must be a detroit/motown thing.

...and to bring things full circle to the above (age-reference wise), there's a cute little intern in my office who was musing earlier how she could remember when she got her first cell phone. she said it all waxing nostalgic like "those were the days"..... after resiting the urge to choke the ever lovin' snot out of her (she is a cute little thing after all) i sat back and reflected. i can remember the 8 track sterro in my mom's old ford ltd. ah, now THOSE were the days.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

And I can remember the first car I got that had FM radio, not just AM...

8 track was just...odd. Having the track cut out in mid song was never going to be a keeper for long.

[mereol.livejournal.com]

tell me, what was your first car? mine was a nissan sentra hand me down from my sister. it was shit brown with vinyl seats, wicked hot in the southern sun....no a/c but it had a tape deck, four wheels and a seat. i was stylin'.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

My first car was an off-white, 1967 Dodge Dart, with the manual gear shift on the steering column, that cost me all of $325. I drove that car from Michigan to California and many, many points in between for a couple of years. I had a tape deck added. It was fairly reliable, although I did once lose the brakes coming down from Bryce Canyon and had a leaky radiator driving through Nevada in June.

[mayflo.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I just know about this new site of yours!! (Haven't been around for quite a bit, I see.)

*goes to look*
OMG!! Boyd!!! *squeee*
*thud*

*GAH* What do I see there!! My sketches!! And they look darn crappy ;_;

I still owe you one. I haven't forgotten it!! It's in the colouring process!

Oh, btw, if you need a hand in your web site design, please consider me? Or can I give you one as a gift? (or something :P)