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snowflake_challenge #7: In your own space, tell us about 3 fandom resources, spaces, or communities you use or enjoy. (One or two is fine, especially if you're in a smaller fandom!)Let's see if I can keep this one short…
I've been enjoying listening to podcasts on Spotify lately. The ones that I've enjoyed include:
• DIRECTIONALLY CHALLENGED WITH CANDICE KING AND KAYLA EWELL. If you know me, you know I absolutely love The Vampire Diaries, so it should be predictable that I'd listen to these two. I prefer their episodes that are about lifestyle and mental health. They're great interviewers and have a great dynamic.
• DRAMA QUEENS WITH SOPHIA BUSH, BETHANY JOY LENZ, AND HILARIE BURTON. This has been such a wild ride listening to these three women recount their experiences on a toxic work set, how they stood up for themselves at such a young age, and breaking down storylines. I appreciate how they break down some very concerning storylines and character decisions. Some fans don't appreciate it because it tears into their favourite show from time to time, but I think it's important to look at old media we once consumed and that did impact people shaping their identities and question it. They, of course, bring up many positive things and praise the series as well.
• INSIDE OF YOU WITH MICHAEL ROSENBAUM is fun to listen to. I listen to it solely for Smallville deets and he does interview some of my favourite actors, like Sophia Bush and Charisma Carpenter.
• THE SHIT NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT WRITING WITH BIANCA MARAIS, CARLY WATTERS AND CECE LYRA has been so interesting to listen to. I know writing is completely subjective, so not every piece of advice works, but I enjoy listening to Bianca's accent (she's South African and so easy to listen to) and really enjoy how prepared she is in asking her questions. I've gained some useful information that I use now when writing.
• SO YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER WITH VALERIE KHOO AND ALLISON TAIT is an Australian podcast that I enjoy listening to. They have great Q&As and do readings of new releases. I like listening to it especially because it's Australian!
And then some blogs for those who don't like podcasts or may have their podcast calendar already full…
These are not all the writing resources I follow, but they're the ones I can find easily on my Tumblr posts rn:
•ao3commentoftheday is a great resource for community advice on writing, although I can sometimes take it or leave it. I do appreciate that community members do give each other advice and validation, and that the blog does reblog this. It's a great starting point imo.
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Last, but not least, mental health accounts that I've really valued finding include:
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Other great accounts include…myselflovesupply •
I follow a lot of great positive mental health accounts on Instagram, but those are just the ones I've recently saved posts from. I find that their posts are great reminders and conversation starters, and find that they validate my experiences and even some of my tactics in trying to overcome my own mental health woes. By no means are these accounts fix-its, but they provide great explanations and thought starters for people to do their own research and may help them begin a conversation with their mental health providers.
I know that they're not fan communities per se, but I always find that fandom is a great space to find mental health resources and tactics because a lot of people are so kind and generous in sharing resources and posts that helped them get through a tough time and also their own personal stories. I've had a lot of people over my 10+ years in fandom share their stories with me in the hopes of helping me work through my own mental health struggles, and I can only hope that I can pay it forward and this helps someone else.
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I see some of the AO3CommentOfTheDay if it's reblogged but never considered following myself. I'll have to look at it again. No one source is perfect for everyone but what I've seen is generally entertaining and/or useful.
My podcast calendar is full but all of those look good.
Thanks for some great recs! That's an amazing list.
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AO3COTD has great topics of conversation. Sometimes it's not an overly positive blog, but I just take what I want from it. I think I get a lot out of the search function since I've found advice and learned a little more about AO3 from the blog. (I do wish the tagging system was a little more logical.) So, if there's anything you want to find, I'd definitely rec using that search box and seeing if it has any posts that might be of assistance.
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The self care ones sound very helpful.
Thanks for all the recs!
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The MR podcast is a hit and miss imo, but if you like Michael and some of his guests, I think it's worth listening to. He can be great when he's switched on—and the conversations I've listened to so far with the SV cast have been a lot of fun!
And I can only highly recommend listening to the OTH one. I've started rewatching the show so I can see what they're talking about. It's so good if you're into the BTS stuff.
They do go in hard on Lucas solely because it's warranted imo. His two-timing of Brooke and Peyton and slut shaming of Haley definitely gets dragged for filth (and rightly so), but they always praise Chad's performances and do speak of positive things about Lucas, too! (I think a lot of fans think Sophia talking shit about Lucas' genuinely shitty behaviour is her talking shit about CMM, but she has praised his performances wholeheartedly.)
They also go hard on their own characters—Hilarie and Sophia question a lot of what Peyton (especially that webcam) and Brooke do, so I think fans misrepresent a lot of what happens solely to feed that CMM/Sophia narrative.
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Interesting about the One Tree Hill podcast. I understand where the fans are coming from in a way. It's kind of like the manager of your favourite team coming out and calling them shite - it might be true, but you'd still like to maintain the illusion. They should just avoid it if it bothers them that much, though. It's not worth getting upset over, lol. Especially if they mention the positive things as well!
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I wish the fans would avoid it tbh! I liked the show, but I really enjoy hearing about their perspectives a lot more. (I guess I prefer the BTS stuff—I'm super nosy.) They mention so many positive things—so many! And not once do they try and discourage fans from enjoying the show despite their personal horrible experiences. There's a lot of intense discussion about how they feel they were treated on the set and the issues they faced, but it's not all storm clouds. They praise performances, characters, talk about how excited they are, how much they love certain lines, etc. If fans expected it to be a podcast praising the show for every minute, I think it's their own fault for setting that expectation.
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And yeah that was one of my pet peeves, too much about his therapy, too much insisting the show was therapy, too many interruptions (this was the final straw! I just wanted to hear what Erica had to say but he kept on cutting her off, lol). I think because I listened to it as opposed to watching the video it was worse, but yeah. It left a mark, lol!
It seems like it's more a podcast for them to reflect on their experiences and not for the fans per se, and that's perfectly fine. The fans should respect that!
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For real! I love hearing the BTS so them expressing how they don't like how X will leave the opposite impression to what they want on a young viewer of today is totally fine imo. If you can't critically analyse your work to discern what you did great and what you could do better... I think I would be more worried if they didn't do that.
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The BTS comments and how they address the way they were treated during the show and how much they had to fight against certain story lines break my heart, but I also think it's important for them to share what happened and the trauma they went through while still discussing all the ways in which the show brought them closer and all the positive things that came from it. I also don't understand some fans being upset by those discussions.
And! It's so fun to listen to them because Hilarie, Sophia, and Joy do seem like such great friends and like they're having a blast rewatching the episodes and recording their impressions.
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Seriously! I wasn't planning on rewatching the show as I listened, but I found it on a stream and started to catch up on season one and... it's different watching it back and knowing how they felt while filming. It doesn't ruin my experience watching the show. I watched it when it was airing and loved it, but I don't feel like it's ruined for me at all. Rewatching gives me those "Ah-ha! This is the scene they fought for or lost against" and I usually feel uncomfortable watching the scene knowing that it's not one that they're proud of... but they never said anything about disliking the development of their characters.
I have a deeper appreciation for their performances and how they tried to work with the material they couldn't change. Fans are so sensitive about criticism. They never said fans should hate the show.
And I love that Hilarie is so pro-Peyton/Jake. OTP, baby!
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Right?? It's obvious how much love they have for it despite everything and they're very much aware of how much it means to people.
LOL SAME! We were all robbed.
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I think a lot of fans forget that Hilarie, Sophia and Bethany are proud of what they've created, too. I don't think they would be doing this podcast and rewatching the show if all they felt was disgust and shame over this project. Sophia took control of Brooke and turned her from a vapid caricature into a multifaceted woman, for one! She's so proud of the character and what she means to others. I'm sure Bethany and Hilarie feel the same way about Haley and Peyton. I think fans just forget that they're allowed to hate episodes and be triggered, too.
I did do some reading on Hilarie's experience with He Who Shall Not Be Named and I am honestly surprised that she has any kind words to say about OTH. It's very clear to me that Peyton Sawyer means a lot to her beyond Voldemort.
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It did break my heart during one of the DQ episodes when Hilarie talked about how much Peyton suffered, all the time, and the kind of toll that took on her own body/mental health and how she came to associate her years on the show with trauma because of that. And yet it's so clear that she loves the show and what it brought her.
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I originally came to your journal to read your Snowflake Challenge post 8, but if you are shy about talking yourself up, please know that I think this post proves that you have the awesome fandom reflex to collect and share the good stuff. It’s a good instinct to have, that unconscious desire to help and to share, but most people who have it don’t even realize they do. It’s hard to label your instincts from inside. The urge toward mental health/self care/personal growth is also a bigger deal than you may think. Thank you for having two major building blocks of being a good person. I may not know you yet, but I approve of you all the same.
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And thank you so much. ♥ Your words are so freaking kind.