I've typed this post several times over the last few years, and deleted it every time because I decided it was better not to involve myself at all in the wanky gossip that happens in fandom. But lately, a few epic wank threads have started to swerve a little too close to home, and I want to make sure my opinion is out there for the world to see, just so there's no misunderstanding.

I. do. not. care.

I don't care if XXX's Cloud, or Mello, or Byakuya is out of character. I don't care if XXX's plots are cliche. I don't care if XXX never played the game, or read the manga, or watched the anime that he/she is writing fic for. I don't care whether someone from Manchester would say 'frosting' or 'icing' and I don't care if you have a PhD in baking, or if your grandmother was a pastry chef for 100 years and taught you everything she knew (I'm looking at you here, Harry Potter fandom). Yes, I know: you played Final Fantasy VII when you were two years old, and you've been reading Bleach for twenty years, and your fifth cousin was one of the lead animators for Cowboy Bebop. Very impressive, hooray for you, I still don't care.

Because the truth is this: we write fanfiction, most of it pornographic, about other people's characters. This is not serious business, people.

I appreciate fanfic as a creative outlet for those times when I don't have the energy to focus on my own original plots and characters. I value it as a tool for me to hone my skills and experiment with different styles. I make every effort to polish my stories to the best of my ability before posting them. I try to keep my characters as true to canon as possible (well, most of the time, anyway). But do I expect everyone else to do the same? Absolutely not.

There are some people who just want to have fun writing, post the finished product, and go on with their lives, and I don't understand why so many fandom wankers find that so offensive. For fuck's sake, leave these people alone already. If you take writing seriously, and you want your writing to be the best it possibly can be, then by all means, pursue that goal. But stop expecting everyone else to do the same, and stop whining when someone else's work fails to meet your personal standards for what fanfic should be like.

It's very simple: if you don't like the way XXX writes your beloved characters, or XXX's plots, or XXX's incorrect use of semicolons, then don't read their stories.

Now, I'm not saying that no one should offer constructive criticism, especially if the author asks for it. I personally appreciate it when people call my attention to errors in my stories that I might have overlooked. But there is a huge difference between constructive criticism and blatant trash-talking, and I'm sick to death of seeing nasty comments being made in public forums about writers who, as far as I know, have never once done anything to insult, harass, or otherwise bother anyone.

Anyway, the basic point I want to make is this: some of us take our writing very seriously, and others don't take it seriously at all. Some of us want to be published authors, and others just write fanfic because it's fun. But there's no point in either side trying to tell the other "ur doin it rong" because there is no right way.

I know this post isn't going to change anything. There are always going to be wankers and whiners, no matter what anyone says. All I ask is that you keep it away from me-- keep it away from my email, keep it away from my journal, keep it away from my phone. Sorry, but I just can't find it within myself to care enough about adverbs to be personally offended when someone abuses them.

And above all, please remember... being praised for being a good slash writer is like being asked to be a guest speaker at a Star Trek convention: it's flattering, and your peers will applaud you, but to the rest of the world, we're still nerds.

Title: Even in Hell
Fandom: Death Note
Pairing: Mello/Matt
Rating: PG
Warnings: Angst

Summary: “Do you think there’s a special place in Hell for us? For good men who have done evil things in the name of justice?”

Notes: Ugh, so much angst. Sorry.

( Read more... )

Title: Adaptation
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Hints of Rufus/Reno
Rating: PG
Warnings: Reno + tequila = unrepentant butchering of classic rock lyrics.

Summary: “No, Sir. This is a relatively tame night, all things considered. It’s much worse when he’s had whisky.”

Notes: A short apology for not having updated with any real substance for awhile.

( Read more... )

I finally gave in and decided to start a Sims legacy. A lot of my townies came from a bin of Sims that a friend gave to me, some of which she made and others which she downloaded but can't remember where they came from. So if you spot any of your Sims, or know who the Sims belong to, let me know so I can give credit.

WARNING for gay sims, murderous sociopaths, ass-babies, language, and fail.



( Everybody get psycho )

Once more, with failing...

( ...and cat fights, and fires, and drinking problems... )

So instead of working on writing projects, I've been playing The Sims. I'm sure you can see where this is going.

First, let's meet the cast...

( A tale of hot dogs and infidelity... )

Hi everyone,

I know I haven't been around much lately, and I do actually have a reason for it (and no, it's not due to lack of interest). The short story is that real life caught up with me. The long story is that shortly after the holidays, the bad economy started to take its toll on my company, so we were all working our arses off to try and keep everything running. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, and they let thirty employees go yesterday. I was one of them. The bad news is, of course, that I'm now unemployed. The good news is that between sessions of papering the city with my resume, I have more time to write.

So to those of you to whom I owe fic, I'm sorry and I haven't forgotten about you. For the maybe two or three of you who are wondering where the next installment of the Legendary Series is, I haven't forgotten about you either.

-Nishi

Title: The Price of Captivity
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Rufus/Reno
Theme set: Epsilon
Rating: R

Notes: Written for 1sentence

( Read more... )

Title: Breaking Tradition
Author: nishi_shinji
Universe: Bleach
Characters: Byakuya/Renji, Ukitake/Shuuhei (implied Byakuya/Renji/Ukitake/Shuuhei)
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Sadly, they aren't mine.

Summary: To their credit, they'd been drunk at the time.

Author's Notes: Requested by ldybastet whom I adore more than chocolate, brie, and cigarettes combined. Also, this is unbeta'ed, so please feel free to point out any mistakes.

( Read more... )