Intermission - Venting, and a fic challenge if anyone wants to take it up.

[kriadydragon]

My gosh I hate slash. I've been scrounging around for some good Sheppard torture, H/C stuff lately - stuff that isn't easy to find because it isn't located at a site like FF.net or Wraithbait. I've even sent out requests for such fics. But all I can find that I haven't read already is slash, slash, slash (or Rodney centered stuff but we won't go there). Now, if you read or write slash, I'm not trying to dis you or anything. I neither read nor write slash, so get frustrated when I stumble on a story that looks good, only to have it end up being slash. I have a bit of tolerance for pre-slash because sometimes the writer leaves it up to interpretation, and many of such stories can be just as easily seen as a freindship piece. But straight up slash - no. Same with Romance. Both genres tend to involve very explicit scenes either involving make-out sessions or sex scenes, and I don't go for that.

It's getting kind of depressing. I've read everything there is to read John, non-slash or romance related in pretty much every SGA fanfic site I could find, and now - barring WIPs - I have run out. I'm also pretty sure I'm not alone in the boat on this one either.

So if any who read this don't mind, I'm issuing a bit of a challenge. I'd put this in the Sheppard H/C community but it felt a bit presumptuous and I don't know if I have to ask permission or what, so am playing it safe and posting it here. If anyone knows if it's okay to post this challenge in Sheppard H/C, please let me know.

Challenge - A John centered torture fic. Lots of physcial and mental abuse. Preferably a slave fic involving no slash and/or rape (though attempted rape is fine as long as it's nothing explicit - Example; his shirt was removed but not his pants before something interrupted what was about to happen.) Romance is fine as long as there are no explicit sex scenes. There's no deadline, so feel free to take up and post where ever and whenever you want. I'm not the only non-slasher out there, so this challenge isn't just for me. It can be a one shot or chapter fic.

I'm writing a slave fic myself, but it's on hiatus until I work out some problems with it. I'm tempted to scrap it and try a different approach, but refuse to give up on it. Slave fics are an interesting concept with lots of angst potential, but they don't have to all be slash.

Please do not burn me for this. Like I said, I'm not the only non-slasher out there in need of some goos non-slash Shep whumping.

Comments

[kodiak-bear.livejournal.com]

You're more than welcome to post a challenge for this on the Sheppard H/C! :) And I won't "burn" you -- I know what you mean. It's kind of weird for me, I can read John/Rodney slash without it getting to me if it's a good story. I'm not into the PWP stories that are just smut, but the long, plotty ones with sex I can handle. But, I completely understand where someone is coming from that can't because in any other fandom, I have a hard time reading it. I've tried to read Jack/Daniel just for the above, to get more yummy h/c fics with lots of plot and fun, but it's much harder to put the blinkers on there.

For Shep and McKay though, I don't know, it works for me with those two!

Anyway, post away your challenge and anytime you want to post something and you're not sure, just drop a line to me anywhere (email, or recent post on my journal, or on the h/c admin posts because those will be emailed to me so I'll get it).

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I think I will post it up there. I was also reluctant because you already had another challenge going, and I didn't want to overwhelm people with challenges. But since there's no due date or anything with mine, I suppose it doesn't matter. It's more of a way to produce ideas than an actual challenge anyways.

I just hope I don't get burned by others for saying no slash. Some people can get down right nasty about such things.

[ch1pper.livejournal.com]

I have to agree. The slash seems to be omnipresent everywhere.

Thankfully, Atlantis has just started eating my brain so I'm still getting new stuff. But, dang, the slash is annoying.

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Slash is taking over!

What frustrates me the most isn't so much the slash but how so many writers try to push slash at the reader. There are a lot of stories out there that are labeled as pre-slash, and can either be seen as slash or not. Some are open to letting readers see it as either slash or not, but others try to get you to see it as slash even though it can be easily interpreted as non-slash. In fact, I've read several open pre-slash fics that - personally - would have been much better if labeled as a freidnship fic rather than slash.

People are free to write what they want, but it's getting so there's less and less for us non-slashers to read. Well, non-slashers who like Shep whump. If you're open to anyone getting whumped then it's all good.

[sarievenea.livejournal.com]

So, um, yes, answer to my prayers to the fanfic gods, I would love it if you could beta my stuff!! I am so glad you offered because I know you already read my stuff and I've gotten feedback and everything from you before. Do you have an email address that I could use? I'll try not to dump a bunch of stuff on you all at once, so let me know how much you want at any given time and I will start sending things to you! Thank you SO MUCH!!!

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

It's storyteller.melissa@gmail.com.

You can send whenever. Two stories at a time would be fine. Three as well but that might take longer depending on how long the stories are.

So start sending them over. I mean, seriously, have you checked out FF.net lately? We are in dire need of good fics. There have been a few good ones, but updates have been taking their sweet time with those. Everything else has been okay, and the rest - well - less than okay to put it politely.

[nat-am-drachen.livejournal.com]

I actually have several stories I have been working on for a while. Eons is more like it. I can't ever finish them. They were all gen'ish, but I keep getting stuck. One story in particular was actually a Sheppard and Beckett whump story. I still can not figure out how to get from Point A to Point B in the storyline. Like you, I may have to scrap the idea and start over. I am trying to get up the nerve to actually let someone see it so it can be ripped apart. Maybe then it can be put back together in an actual story.

BTW, adore your stories. I always mean to comment, but you know how that goes. *ducks head in shame*

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

Don't be ashamed. I have a hard time commenting because I never know what to say *shrugs*.

I'm totally in the same boat as you. The reason I did the whole slave request thing is because I'm working on a story that involves Sheppard as a slave, but I've been having such a hard time with it. I put it aside for a time and began work on another fic. At first I was going to chuck most of the chapters then start over, but after some careful thinking I realized what needed to be done while at the same time allow me to keep the chapters written. Fixing the fic is going to involve a massive overhaul. But I've already started and I'm already liking the results.

Sometimes you just need to step back and avoid writing the story for a while. Leave it be for a bit, then read over what you have, see where it's going or trying to go. If you have to start over, then start over, but with the plot outlined either on paper or in your head. Sometimes stories go in an entirely different direction than where you wanted it to go, and the best thing to do is give in and follow where the story's trying to lead.