I'm *not* being defensive, really!

[emmagrant01]

I've seen several people remark lately that the H/D side of the HP fandom is on the downslide, that no good fic is being written anymore, and that the 'ship lost its sails after OOTP came out.

As a writer who came into this fandom after OOTP and fell in love with H/D anyway, this continues to baffle me! I see wonderful H/D fic being written all the time by many, many talented people. It could be because I wasn't around during the halcyon days of the 'ship and just don't know any better. It could be that I have a different perspective on the role of canon in fandom, coming from a fandom in which one member of the OTP was dead before the fandom even started (which forced people to be loose and creative with canon from the start). Yes, I've read all the "classic" fics. I don't actually think they're fundamentally better than the fic being written today, though that could be because of my post-OOTP mindset and my preference for post-Hogwarts fic (in which the writer has a lot more leeway and creative freedom, IMHO). There were many more novel-length fics a few years ago than there are now, but I'm not sure that's what people mean when they bemoan the decline of "good" H/D.

I can't be the only one who doesn't understand the source of this claim. Is it a case of "shiny new toy getting old" for the older fandom folks, or is it really true that something fundamentally changed about H/D after OOTP, something that will never be recovered?

*wonders why she always misses the "golden days" of every fandom by arriving two years too late*

Comments

[wonapalei.livejournal.com]

Ay-men, sister. I've been reading H/D for years now, and some of my favourite writers started up long after I did. Not to mention all the writers that are still writing, and whom people seem to be indirectly insulting when they say H/D's not as good as it "used to be". All right, so people like Aja and Rhysenn aren't as active as they used to be (in HP writing, that is; Rhysenn seems to have simply moved on into other fandoms, and Aja's incredibly involved in lots of RL stuff that I wish I had the guts and time to work with). But what about beren_writes? What about frulie's Amalgam? What about LMH? What about all the steady flow of good stuff coming from people like willysunny, zionsstarfish, novembersnow, dorrie6, olivia_lupin--the list goes on and on. (And if I've left you off the list, don't take offense; I'm simply tired of typing in LJ tags. :D )

And then there are the recently-started communities that are already doing quite well: almost_hd and hd_falling, to name just a couple. As well as seekertoseeker, which is serving the double purpose of reminding people of old-but-really-good fic and showcasing more-recent-really-good fic.

Maybe it's just that I know how damn lucky I am to be able to read this stuff. I am in no way, shape, or form a creative person, and am thus in the unenviable position of getting bitten by imaginary plot bunnies, i.e., plots whose possibilities I can only imagine, not work out fully. And not being creative, they're not always the greatest plots, and I don't realise them nearly as fully as I'd like. I'm in sheer awe of the talented few that can do this--although, quite frankly, I probably should let them know that more often. In any case, anyone lamenting the supposed lack of "good H/D" gets no sympathy from me. Count your blessings, people, and don't look a gift horse in the mouth! (Yeah, so I think in platitudes. I said I wasn't creative. :P ) They're not doing it for the money, and there's nothing even saying they have to share it with anyone.

[bookshop.livejournal.com]

*raises hand*

Aja isn't involved for lack of trying! I wrote a fic a month ago! *points to it* And, uh, some drabbles! Yeah! And, um, a--oh, look over there! It's Sirius Black!

*runs*

[wonapalei.livejournal.com]

*laughs* Wasn't meant as criticism, I swear! I know you're still involved with HP, but honestly, I think I respect you a great deal more for the way you're always so passionate about human rights issues than for any fics you've written. Some of the most thought-provoking LJ posts I've ever read have been yours, and I'm glad that your new journal setup will allow me to join in the comment discussion!