svgurl

Challenge #12:
Create a Rec Countdown.

My 5 Favorite Songs of 2024:

1. Bad Dreams - Teddy Swims
2. Too Sweet - Hozier
3. Stargazing - Myles Turner
4. Down Bad - Taylor Swift
5.Die With a Smile - Bruno Mars & Lady GaGa

4 Dreamwidth Communities:

1. halfamoon - a comm hosting a fourteen day fest celebrating women annually, starting on February 1st
2. fancake - a thematic multifandom recommendation community
3. fandomcalendar - a comm to promote fests, big bangs, memes, cons and any other fan-related activity
4. comment_bingo (yes I'm self recc'ing) - a bingo challenge that focuses on using provided prompts to comment on other fanworks rather than creating your own

3 upcoming exchanges/events

1. highadrenalineexchange - where ou have two weeks to write 10k (or draw a 25-panel/10-page comic) and one week to edit; currently in nominations
2. space_swap - an exchange for space related fandoms; nominations open on January 26th
3. valentines_boxes - a multifandom gift giving event running from Jan 22 - Feb 29; currently open for sign-ups

2 Websites:

1. Forever Dreaming - has transcripts of various media
2. Home of the Nutty - has TV/movie screencaps

1 show:

9-1-1 - because I got into it last year so why not? Everyone can keep hearing about my newest obsession. It's a procedural about first responders on ABC, currently in its 8th season (and on mid season hiatus till March). And yes, there is some unavoidable copaganda but it can be both fun and chaotic and emotional at the same time.

Bonus: My Adventures with Superman is a cute animated show! I only saw the first season out of the two, but I really enjoyed it. :D

Challenge #10:
In your own space, talk about one of your fandom firsts. This could be your first fandom, your first fandom friend, the first fanwork you created, the first fanwork you interacted with... The options are endless!

I checked my AO3 and I realized that it has been two years since I posted a Smallville fic, the fandom that got me to actively participate in fandom and the one that somehow still brought me back so I'm going to talk about that. I had read fic for other fandoms before - Sailor Moon was my first - and I'm pretty sure Harry/Draco was my first slash ship (something about their interactions in the Half Blood Prince made me go "huh"). I only vaguely remember the fansite I found that introduced me to fic and I have absolutely no idea what the first fanfic was, even for Smallville, though I'm assuming it was a Clex one on the Smallville Slash Archive. I got into the show late (surprise surprise) and into fandom even later (middle of season 6, after half the ship I was into had already left - I was lucky enough that the actor came back two seasons later as a regular).

I created an LJ for Smallville (I've said it before but that is what the SV in my username stands for). I vaguely remember who my first friends were, and while the very first few are people I don't talk to anymore, there are still people I was friends with in my earlier LJ days that I've know here (hi bradygirl_12 ♥) and on Tumblr too, which makes me happy. I was definitely awkward back then and like a lot of people, said/did some embarrassing things, but being in a large fandom, even though I got there for a rare pair (I looked and apparently I've written 1/3 of the fics in the Clark/Oliver tag on AO3!) was an experience, with good and bad aspects.

Yes, there was drama and I joke that I stay on the edge of fandom nowadays for a reason, but I also learned how to start communities, be apart of a newsletter team briefly with the sv_ledger, and I even ran a Smallville exchange during their last season (I'm always embarrassed that I kinda failed at the end - should've had a co-mod but what can you do now). And I got to interact with a ton of lovely people! Someone even made the icon for me on this post and sent it to me 'just because', from one of those cute generators that were popular back then. It's a little funny that the Smallville season 11 comics had a very similar scene years later:



Of course comics Oliver looks understandably more distressed than my cartoon one lol But like I said, even though I would've done certain things differently, I'm happy to have been apart of it. Since I was so monofandom back in the day (with writing/participating, not reading), I did drift off a year after the show ended when I got distracted with other things. Yet, when I felt the urge to write again in 2020, it was Smallville that I wanted to write for. It's Smallville I did write for. And I still have a soft spot (and a ton of ideas) for it so maybe in 2025, I will end up finding the inspiration to go back to my original love. Here's hoping! :D

Challenge #8:
In your own space, write a promo, manifesto or primer for a beloved character, relationship or fandom.

So my newest favorite character is Eddie Diaz from 9-1-1, the procedural about first responders that used to air on Fox and is now on ABC, currently in their eighth season. I only started watching early last year so I joined late and as much as I got attached to basically all the main cast, it didn't take me long to love Eddie, who showed up in season 2, episode 1. Then again, his introduction scene was him putting on his shirt in slow motion while "Whatta Man" by Salt n Peppa played in the background and how could you beat that?



I even made 50 icons of him for a lands_of_magic challenge, which you can find here.

( will contain spoilers )

Challenge #6:
Share your favourite piece of original canon.

Of course Smallville is my forever fandom and there are a lot of shows/books/movies I could go off of and state my favorite scenes, but I'm going into something that I got into last year (late to the party as always): 9-1-1, the firefighter procedural formerly on Fox and now on ABC.

That's a show that was on my watch list forever, but I'm terrible about watching/reading ... well, anything. I'm definitely one of those "yeah, I will add it to the list" and never actually get to the list, letting it grow forever. What can I say? Scrolling on IG is easier than trusting a new canon.

Anyway, I finally got into the show. I shouldn't have been surprised that Eddie Diaz ended up being my favorite - there are traits that he shared with characters I've loved in the past - but I was surprised at how much I did end up shipping Buck/Eddie, since, as much as I love friends to lovers, the "best friends" ship has never done it for me. I figured I would prefer them as friends. And I do adore their friendship too. Which is why, even if it isn't the most unique option, I had to go with the will reveal in season 4, episode 14.

Context (and spoilers): Eddie got shot at the end of the previous episode by a sniper targeting first responders, right in front of Buck, who ended up being the one to pull him to safety, and into the engine as they all made to safety and get Eddie to the hospital. It was rough on Buck, who ended up having a breakdown in front of Eddie's son, Christopher, when he told him the news and felt guilty. Eddie lived and Buck told him that it would've been better for Chris if Buck had been shot instead.

Leading to following scene, where Eddie admits that after he got into a life threatening incident the previous, he changed his will to make Buck Christopher's legal guardian.



He told Buck he's not expendable, which is so meaningful because Buck found out earlier that season that he was a savior baby (yeah this show can get wild) and had some real doubts on his own existence. And it was the first (and only) time Eddie has called Buck (a nickname off his last name "Buckley") his first name, "Evan".

Yes, it was crazy that he waited a year but man, just how much Eddie trusts Buck, the phrasing "no one will EVER fight for my son as hard as you will", because it implies he couldn't imagine anyone in the future as well, and the depth of their bond and Buck's place in Christopher's life.

It just gets to me every time.

Challenge #4:
Since this is the start of a new year, this challenge will be to set your own goals!

I looked over the goals I set from last year to see where I was and then set them accordingly. A lot of repeats, but some amendments too. :)

Fannish:

Write fanfic again and find joy/inspiration in doing so. Last year, I wanted to participate in less exchanges and write for myself more and I ended up doing way less exchanges, but that was because I just wasn't inspired at all/slightly becoming detached from fandom. So I'm hoping this year will be more positive

Complete my ficcish obligations - there are some way overdue ones that haunt me and I would like to actually get them out of my head.

Try to write for a new fandom. I think I would like the challenge.

Be more present and active, in both my DW and in my chosen fandom spaces. I think I get tied up to one spot (I drifted off to Tumblr for a brief period) and forget about the rest and I would like some balance.

Non-Fandom:

Travel. I said this last year too, but somehow it got away from me. This year, I would like to get out of my city and preferably the state.

Get organized. Another repeated goal. I have finally started parting ways with clothes and things i don't use, and I need to continue with that.

Be a better cook. I love to bake and I do enjoy cooking what I know, but I want to try new recipes. My mom is a great cook and I need to take advantage of that and have her teach me, especially my favorite foods that she makes.

Learn a new skill. I tend to get stagnant and comfortable and I'm pretty bad about being ... bad at things/not good immediately. I'd like to test my comfort zone.

Exercise consistently. I go through periods when I'm good and then weeks where I just fall off and I want to stay active on a regular basis in some way, even if that means just taking walks around the neighborhood.

Challenge #2:
In your own space, talk about your fannish origin story.

I started reading fanfic on and off starting at 12/13 after I discovered a Sailor Moon fansite on accident. I started actually participating in fandom when in early 2007. I was watching Smallville (that's what the SV in my username stands for) and while I had other ships, I really fell hard for this rare pair, Clark Kent/Oliver Queen, after Justin Hartley had a minor role in the show for the first half of season 6. Only a few people were writing it (there was maybe less than 10 fics?) and I was so desperate for content that one day, I figured "maybe I'll write some". So I created a Livejournal, wrote my fic, and the rest is history. I liked other fandoms/ships but I was mostly mono fandom back then.

I was there for a few years, took a year break, and then was back for another couple of years. I drifted away from LJ/fandom/writing fic about a year about Smallville ended, having lost my motivation. I was into Tumblr RP for a while and mostly got away from fandom after that. I was reading fic now and then in the years that followed, but it took the pandemic to get me back into it. I was working from home and I suddenly felt the urge to start writing fic again. So I did and got onto Dreamwidth when it felt more comfortable than LJ and began to participate in fandom and later on exchanges. I've stuck around ever since. :)

Challenge #15:
Fandom Snowflake Challenge's 2023 Fandom Wrapped!

Your top 5 fandoms for 2023 were:
1. MCU
2. Gilmore Girls
3. DCEU
4. Power Rangers
5. Smallville

( rest here )

Challenge #13:
Make a rec list!

Recc'ing some fics I received as exchange gifts and art I liked on Tumblr in 2023:

1. Normal by LearnedFoot (Suits, Mike/Harvey, Teen, 9784w)
Or: Amnesia fic. It’s amnesia fic.

( 4 more fics and 5 art )

Challenge #11
In your own space, create a fanwork.

Here are 7 stock icons. I started making these for something else before I realized they didn't fit and figured I can just use them here. :D

Challenge #9:
Rec Us Your Newest Thing.

I'm admittedly not the greatest at keeping up with new things - my to watch/read list is very long and never gets shorter. The last show I enjoyed and would rec is 'My Adventures with Superman', which is an animated Superman show that came out last year. Superman has always been my favorite hero, and of course I love Clark/Lois relationship and they did a good job with both. As fun as live action can be, animation really works for the superhero genre, since you can clearly do more with it. It is only one season so far and while I was surprised at how fast certain plots have developed, the show is cute and has heart. I love the characterizations and relationships between Clark, Lois, and Jimmy and I'm looking forward to seeing what they do in s2.