CI5 hq

Hi

You are ahead of me! I took your offer of "The Anniversary" as being for now, and your suggestion of a fic by Heliophile for another week (I have not yet made up a schedule for the next few weeks but I will certainly include that one. Would the week after next - 4th March- suit you?).

I should explain myself more clearly - at the beginning of every week (usually Tuesday), I post with a reminder of the fic for that week, to give people a chance to read it (plus a list of fics scheduled for the week/s ahead if there are any). Later that week (usually Thursday) the reccer (or me on their behalf) does a post here at

ci5hq about the fic, which gives us a few days and the weekend to talk about it - in comments to that post.

Then, on Tuesday, I post about the next week's fic, and invite more fics to be recced for future weeks, and so on and so on.

Initially, I used to do it week by week. Whoever suggested a fic on Tuesday, did the recc on Thursday and that was that. But it seems to work better having fics suggested and scheduled a few weeks ahead.

There is more to

ci5hq than the Reading Room, too. If you want to post a recc about a fic at this comm at any time, feel free.

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I should come clean at this point and admit that I was sorely tempted to recc "The Anniversary" if no one else did!

I was browsing for fics with an anniversary or birthday theme, but eep - Sebastian? Friends will know I have a low tolerance of serious, long-drawn out angsty fics of the type I associate with Sebastian and M. Fae Glasgow, but increasingly I'm finding another side to Sebastian - short, bewitching and attractively lacking in angst. This week I've read (and enjoyed!)"Army Games" and "The Jungle Book", and here's another.

It's all rather wonderful but the most hauntingly beautiful image is of the swans, paired for life. aaaah.

With "Army Games" fresh in mind, I was also struck by Sebastian's apparent kink for the lads enjoying their first time in a tight situation with a high risk of being caught in flagrante.

BTW, I'm sure there are numerous fics that involve the lads celebrating a birthday, or "their" anniversary, or maybe talking about how they will celebrate in future years, but not usually as the main plot line - and could I find any? no.

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I’ve said before that one of my reasons for loving a story is whether or not it’s made up of 'unforgettable, magical moments', moments which can stay in my head for days and I think The Anniversary definitely qualifies as a perfect example of this. From the moment when:

Bodie's guts knitted in response, his breath catching. Doyle continued to look at him, eyes gleaming a little; he tilted his head slightly, his curls shining bronze-tipped in the erratically dancing light of the candle and chandelier. Not knowing what else to do, Bodie smiled at him, quite an impersonal smile, then looked down at his plate.

Christ.

His heart was kicking fast and furious at his ribcage. He scythed the remaining cheesecake into wedges with his fork, then pushed it aside.

.....I’m hooked....…line and sinker and the rest of the story could have been written in braille or Chinese for all I cared, I would still have loved it just for that scene alone.

Friends will know I have a low tolerance of serious, long-drawn out angsty fics of the type I associate with Sebastian and M. Fae Glasgow

It’s funny but I don’t think I’ve ever thought of Sebastian’s stories as being drawn-out (November, possibly?), angsty yes, but not too long. I suppose that’s the difference between liking a writer or not? If you like certain writers their stories probably aren't going to be long enough and if you don’t like them, then they’re probably too long.

but increasingly I'm finding another side to Sebastian - short, bewitching and attractively lacking in angst. This week I've read (and enjoyed!)"Army Games" and "The Jungle Book", and here's another.

Sounds as if you probably like what's often been described as her 'earlier period'? (Sounds like Picasso!) Though I don't think it's always possible to draw a line between her writing which will hold because I think stories such as First Night, Last Night contain as much angst as later works and something like Pantomine is light on one level but deceptively light on another level and does a good job of mixing the two.

Sorry, I digress! I loved The Anniversary and should go and read it again.

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Just checked to remind myself and found that November (1991) was actually written slightly earlier than I'd remembered and First Night, Last Night and Pantomine (1996) were written later. But I suppose you could argue that they were all written in her later-middle -> late period so that sort of supports what I was saying and also reinforces my belief that it's almost impossible to achieve hard and fast categories!

Edited Date: 2010-02-19 09:47 pm (UTC)

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"If you like certain writers their stories probably aren't going to be long enough and if you don’t like them, then they’re probably too long."

There is much truth in that! Some writers or fics you just don't want to end and would happily read through more and more episodes that portray particularly appealing characters and setting.

oh, I did wonder about 'earlier period' - I could imagine an author like Sebastian starting carefully, with shorter, lighter pieces, and then gaining the confidence to write longer and more serious fics.

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I could imagine an author like Sebastian starting carefully, with shorter, lighter pieces, and then gaining the confidence to write longer and more serious fics.

Yeah, though I think that poignant and insightful moments are dotted throughout her earlier works and conversely her later, more complex stories contain some of the wittiest characterisations and observations of any writer I know. But yes, I think I'd agree with you that there does seem to be some kind of evolution in her writing style and more than I've seen in any other writer.

Edited Date: 2010-02-21 12:25 pm (UTC)

From:

jgraeme2007.livejournal.com

It’s funny but I don’t think I’ve ever thought of Sebastian’s stories as being drawn-out (November, possibly?), angsty yes, but not too long. I suppose that’s the difference between liking a writer or not? If you like certain writers their stories probably aren't going to be long enough and if you don’t like them, then they’re probably too long.

I have to say that when I fear my own writing is too repetitive or too prolific, I remind myself of how I feel about writers I love -- Kate MacLean and Sebastian in particular because both wrote relatively little and re-explored the same themes again and again. And yet I never get tired of re-reading them. I would be joyful (and I use the term in all seriousness) if a cache of Sebastian stories were to be uncovered (MacLean I keep working on, so maybe one day she'll take pity and write again).

So while I might pick critically at bits of Wonderful Tonight or November, I still love them and they could have been three times as long and drawn out, and I'd have been perfectly happy.

Edited Date: 2010-02-21 05:28 pm (UTC)

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And yet I never get tired of re-reading them. I would be joyful (and I use the term in all seriousness) if a cache of Sebastian stories were to be uncovered (MacLean I keep working on, so maybe one day she'll take pity and write again).
So while I might pick critically at bits of Wonderful Tonight or November, I still love them and they could have been three times as long and drawn out, and I'd have been perfectly happy.

And I think sometimes being really critical (or objective) about a story is the highest compliment you can pay it. I love dissecting favourite films, turning them inside out, talking about them ad infinitum, watching them again and again and it’s the same with favourite stories (and music) – it’s great just letting the (loved) familiar wash over you. If the writing was boring, indifferent, failed to move the reader and left little impression you probably wouldn't give it a second glance or thought. And, as you implied, it doesn’t mean those favourite stories or writers are without fault. Take a story such as Heat-Trace, on the first couple of readings I thought it was perfect, then I began to see why others might not like it even though I still loved it. I was just about to completely contradict myself and say that maybe it's a bit like falling in love - love is blind and you can't see the faults until.... you begin to see the faults, but then that's not being objective, so perhaps a better analogy to describe the process between a reader and a favourite writer is that of having kids: you love them warts an' all.

Edited Date: 2010-02-21 10:15 pm (UTC)

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jgraeme2007.livejournal.com

I think this is a great choice for an anniversary fic, and I nearly recced it myself, except I seem to keep reccing the same authors, so...

Anyway, I'll look forward to seeing the results of the challenge!

From: (Anonymous)

@ jaycat92 - now I understand why the same story is posted twice a week: the first post to read it and the second for comments. Your date for posting the story I suggested is fitting / suitable / convenient / properly - oh bloody dictionary *g*.
"Serious, long-drawn out angsty fics of the type I associate with Sebastian and M. Fae Glasgow" ?? Oh no, not always, only sometimes! There are four stories by M Fae.Glasgow which are funny, light, and emotional without sugar. Brigitte.

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I love your expression "without sugar". It says a lot in two words, like this is fic for mature adults.

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"There are four stories by M Fae.Glasgow which are funny, light, and emotional without sugar."
Exactly four? I would say Jingle Balls is one of them!? - which are the others? I like her writing, but there are 'some' stories I didn't finish...

(still looking for a LJ pseudo? ;-))

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Oh what a night… The whole situation is dreamlike. Fifty sleeping agents, the servants' quarters of a big estate, the moonlight through dormer windows, the air cool, everywhere seemed quiet… Bodie can’t sleep, and then there is Doyle outside… like some wild creature of the night…

Hehe! I really could go on quoting favourite parts of the story! :-)

Just one another – …Doyle's hand reached out and took him gently by the wrist. His heart storming thunderously in his chest, he slid in under the sheets, into a different world. It was strange and sweet and frightening…
Hey Doyle, guess what I dreamed last night…

Well, normally I’m not much into such flowery phrases. But this all sucks you into that special mood...
*happy sigh*
Thanks Brigitte, for that suggestion!

And a happy anniversary to the Reading Room!
I really enjoyed this year, and there were a few brilliant stories among that I would never have read without the RR.
Thank you all – but especially Jaycat92!

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gosh, thanks.

I love doing this, so I'll keep on doing it as long as people like you keep on being enthusiastic.

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miwahni.livejournal.com

I love this fic, it's one that I've read over and over again.
The anticipatory atmosphere of the dinner party, the meeting in the night while the house sleeps around them, and then the next morning surrounded by the other agents again, it's all magic. And the "swans mate for life" comment gives me the nicest kind of shivers.

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Oh yes! How could I forget about the swans? :-)
No long talking, just Doyle's: "Everyone knows that," came Doyle's gentle voice behind him. "Dumb crud."
And everything is clear! Sigh...

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miwahni.livejournal.com

So much of the emotion is unsaid, understated, but it comes through as clearly as if it were written in letters ten feet high.

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And another 'understated' moment is Bodie's "I think I'm in love," at the breakfast table among all the other agents. Bodie is very brave saying that to Doyle! He trusts him that it wasn't just one 'magical night'...
Yes, definitely a story to read 'over and over again'!

From: (Anonymous)

@ firlefanzine - my expression with the four stories was apparently not exact (not easy when it is not the native language *sigh*). Four of my own five favorite M Fae.Glasgow (aka Cally Donia) stories are light and funny:

"Beating Around The Bush" (hilarious slapstick moments of silence and noise), "Footbridge" (a somehow drunken Cowley and wandering feet), "My Beautiful Launderette" (sharing pants and soap powder - but no curtain fic) and "Permanently Attached at the Hip" (wonderful pun in the title and a Doyle with awful hair problems).

Her fifth story is dark and wonderful and touching and heartbreaking: "Sunday Bloody Sunday". Brigitte.

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Cally Donia - I didn't know THAT aka...
But I will try these stories!
Do you know 'Wish I Wasn't Here'?
http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/113436.html
I love it!

Edited Date: 2010-02-20 01:06 pm (UTC)

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I think Edi N. Burgh and LA Scotian are also alternative names for M Fae:

http://hatstand.slashcity.net/aa/authors-l.html#scotian

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Aaaaaand Gael X. Ile aaaaaaaand Emma Scot!
A lady with many different personalities...

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Oh, yes! I completely forgot those two. Thanks.

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jgraeme2007.livejournal.com

This is a just a little gem of a story. Sweet without being cloying, understated (as several have mentioned) but still packing an emotional punch. It has a magical element to it -- the castle at night and the grounds the next day with the lake and the swans -- but it's also centered in the small but real details: Doyle waiting to use the bathroom, Bodie squeezing into the musty bed beside the sewing maching...the details are great.

She beautifully captures the illicit delight of the risky sex. And the fact that she can imbue such a simple, uncomplicated story with so much -- so many lovely layers -- really speaks to her skill.

It's one of my favorite stories and I reread it often.

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sc-fossil.livejournal.com

Late to the party... This is the first time I've had to read!

Oh, I liked that story. The sweetness of it; the meeting in the dark; the idea of getting found out. Really nice. I almost didn't get past the first bit since I found the beginning not very Bodie-like. I think Bodie would revel in showing his posh manners in a situation like that, and play it to the hilt. He'd like the good food an freely flowing alcohol. After all, he seemed to like playing up in Untouchables, and since he dressed in a tie in many eps (seemingly of his own choice as Doyle was scruffy), I don't think he'd find the tie awful. But it was a delightful read. Made me smile and love the lads even more.

It's quite sentimental to be talking about celebrating their anniversary next year, so I'm surprised a lot of folks like that much mush. Me, I loved it.

Thanks for the rec.

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I don't know if you've read:

http://www.thecircuitarchive.com/tca/archive/3/througha.html

but if you liked The Anniversary then you might enjoy this one, too, because for some reason these two stories have always reminded me of each other and I love them both.

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sc-fossil.livejournal.com

Thanks! I'll definitely give it a go.

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