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The Shipping News (October 22, 2012)

Hi! I'm Catherine, your friendly slash columnist for this week's edition of The Shipping News. We'll take a closer look at bisexual spies, Vulcan baristas, kinky lawyers and incestuous ghost hunters. (No, really.)

Fandom News Roundup:

  • Last week was Samifer Week on Tumblr--that is, an annual week-long celebration of Sam/Lucifer from Supernatural. The pairing usually receives its fair share of criticism (which, funnily enough, has nothing to do with the fact that it involves Satan) but the only things to be found last week were some truly great fanworks, notably art by user aegidoll.
  • artist: aegidoll

  • In a recent interview with The Insider, Teen Wolf's Dylan O'Brien (Stiles) explained the popularity of Sterek as a positive reaction to the characters' dynamic. He also commented on the possibility of Stiles being written as bisexual.
  • Still on the topic of bisexual characters, Movieline reported that the latest installment in the James Bond franchise, Skyfall, will contain a scene with homoerotic undertones between 007 (Daniel Craig) and Silva (Javier Bardem), as well as the implication that our beloved secret agent might be bisexual. Craig and Bardem both discussed the scene.
  • Daniel Craig and Javier Bardem in Skyfall

    Slash Dictionary: AU

    Sometimes, reading about Kirk and Spock's intergalactic sexual exploits isn't enough. Sometimes, we want to read about Spock the condescending barista and Kirk the Anthropology major with a lactose intolerance. (I got slightly carried away, but you get the idea.) For cases like this one, we have AUs: alternate universes.

    The term "AU" was apparently coined by fanfiction writers. The concept is simple: The characters stay, but the universe changes. The changes in question can affect the setting, the events, the characterization--anything is fair game. John and Sherlock aboard Serenity? AU. Thor and Loki as a frat boy and his nerdy stepbrother? AU. Sam and Dean never managed to stop the Apocalypse? AU. The possibilities are endless.

    The first question that comes to mind is always, "Why write AU fanfiction when it's a few names away from being an original story?" (Actually, that's the second question. The first question would be, "Why would anyone want to read that many fics set in high school?") Ultimately, it's a matter of picking one's readers. As everyone knows by now, Author E.L. James originally wrote Fifty Shades of Grey as an AU Twilight fanfic, changed the names and a few descriptions here and there, and had it published. In the slash fandom, we are much prouder of Louise Blaydon's book, The Time of Singing, which was originally published as a Destiel fanfic titled The Voice of the Turtledove.

    In the form of a fanfic, a story will always have an audience limited to the fandom itself--the readers care about the characters, the pairing. For a story to be publishable (and most importantly, lucrative) it needs to start as a blank slate, without the assumption that the reader will know anything about the characters before opening the book. Only very few fanfiction writers seek to make their stories available to a wider public, instead preferring to share their work with a smaller community they will get encouragement and constructive feedback from. Similarly, many fervent AU enthusiasts will avoid reading original stories due to a lack of interest in the characters. I can't say I blame them--at this point, the only way I can sit through The Notebook is by mentally substituting the protagonists for the first slash pairing I can think of.

    M/M Pairing of the Week: Harvey/Mike (Suits)

    If there is one slash pairing that can restore anyone's faith in good BDSM fanfiction, it's Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) and Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams) from the USA Network series Suits. In a nutshell, Harvey is the emotionless yet incredibly charming senior partner of a law firm, and Mike is the brilliant yet completely inexperienced college dropout he hires. Harvey has, let's put it this way, a very dominant personality. Mike, for his part, is eager to please. One is giving orders, the other is being a, direct quote, "good boy". While this should be more than enough chemistry for any self-respecting slash fan, the fandom takes it a step further--and kinkier.

    Harvey/Mike fanfiction is Boston Legal meets Secretary: ties are used as makeshift restraints, safewords are established but seldom used, and we get to find out just how much of a "good boy" Mike really is. While certain fandoms have well-intentioned but misinformed writers who couldn't differentiate a crop from a cane, the vast majority of Suits fic writers actually know what they are writing about and don't make the mistake of depicting a D/s relationship as unhealthy, unsafe or abusive.

    The pairing has a soft side, too: The summer finale brought Harvey and Mike closer, and the slight change of dynamics might turn the strictly professional relationship into an actual friendship when Suits comes back in January 2013. In the meantime, you can visit these sites for Harvey/Mike fanfiction and other fanworks:

    AO3 | Livejournal | Tumblr

    Featured Fanfic

    Once upon a time, before Destiel captured the hearts of the most passionate Supernatural fans (whether or not they collectively constitute a majority is debatable), Wincest reigned over the slash-oriented fraction of the show's audience. The incestuous pairing of Sam and Dean continues to inspire a plethora of amazing fanfiction writers.

    [...] He can see the way it should be. They will gravitate together, he and Dean, walking shoulder to shoulder. Dean will have the remnants of his grin in the corners of his mouth and the curve of his cheeks. Sam will be fondly exasperated. Dean will complain about walking and Sam will cite Dean's blood alcohol level and the iced up roads. They will tumble into the hotel room stripping off gloves and coats: Dean will give Sam the first shower and when he comes out his boots will be damp but clean, stuffed with newspaper and set side-by-side in front of the heater. Ten minutes later, Dean will come out of the bathroom already wearing his boxer shorts and T-shirt, and he'll sleep on his belly, snuffling. [...]

    In June 2011, author Jay Tryfanstone [Livejournal, Dreamwidth] posted The Allegory of the Cave--a haunting and intricately weaved story set in the New York subway, in which the two brothers are forced to confront their feelings for each other. While the splendid writing filled with vivid imagery (no, not only that kind) could easily be the fanfic's strongest point, it's the characterisation and structure that keep the readers hooked. Were it not for the romantic tension and development, the case featured in the story could easily have been the focus of an episode or one of the many existing Supernatural novels.

    The fanfic can be read on its own website, where PDF and EPUB versions are also available for download.

    Artist to Watch: lelelego

    Le Min (lelelego), 16, is the Singaporean artist behind Ask Derek and Stiles, one of Tumblr's many slash-oriented ask blogs where artists respond in-character to the questions and requests they receive. Le Min has also drawn Supernatural art (Wincest and Destiel) and created several interesting original characters.

    (source)

    Parting Gif

    That's all for this week, folks! I hope you enjoyed the column. Don't hesitate to leave feedback in the comments and suggest topics, pairings or artists you'd like us to write about.

    (source)

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