Remetan

Holy crap that was hilarious! Thanks for sharing that link!

While I agree that a fluffy Draco makes me squick, I do not agree that changing the nature of someone else's character is verbotten. I think it is part of the challenge of fandom to work within the confines of someone else's rules and take it to a new place. I've read some remarkable Draco/someone stories that do exactly that. They take the evil git who is just that and turn him into a fantastically self-centered but not quite so evil git, and I've loved them. I haven't written Draco yet, but I have written Snape. And I have attempted to do that exact thing. The beauty of writing fanfiction is that we get to create the deep internal struggles and motivations for characters that don't have it in canon, while at the same time playing with those personality traits that made us want to write them in the first place. We get to explain why they do what they do. We get to decide where they go after canon story lines end. And then, we get to write another story, in which nothing of the like happens and they stay the same evil gits they are, and those are fantastic as well. A well written fanfiction, in my opinion, is one that is written in such a way as to make you truly believe that the original character would do exactly that, for exactly those reasons. That's why it's so fun! And, to quote Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, "Because Allah loves wondrous variety."

Hello! I am a 30 (almost 31) year old female. I am a new (though old, I was on the forums for a hot second back when it originally started and then POOF! no more internets) member of the forums. I haven't much found my niche in the fanfiction realm, a few HP's, some CSI, and attempt at Riddick. Most of my stuff is in original fictions. I read mostly original works or HP stuff, and pretty much like all the pairings there. I have a small dog, water plants for a living, and hope to one day be a crazy grandma with braids down to my bum and rubber galoshes and the best hot cocoa and coastal garden on the planet. I'm so excited about coming back to AFF!!!!

I'm a ghey, queer, gender-bending/breaking lesbo dyke with a boyfriend. And I am not heterophobic because I have several straight friends. I don't want to offend anyone, but I kinda hate that cop-out. I'm not racist because I have black/asian/latino/native american/enter-your-favorite-ethnicity-here friends. I'm not a feminazi because I have male friends. I'm not a classist because I have rich friends (used here because I'm po, yo!). I think one of the main problems is that we do, as a species, have a bit of an inherent fear of the other. Originally a means for survival, US vs. THEM. My tribe, your tribe. My clan, your clan. We label as a consequence of evolution. Fear, as I understand it, stems from the unknown, psychologically. Or the already known to be harmful. Therefore, in an effort to eradicate fear, we stay away from the known evil and educate about the unknown possibly but probably not evil. So, I think anyone who refuses to look at/learn about/educate themselves to the experience of something that is other is making a decision to continue the idea of "other" thus perpetuating the unknown, thus perpetuating the fear. So, refusing to watch BBM because it portrays gay love falls into the realm of homophobic, whether or not it is because you "just aren't interested". I think that refusing to watch BBM because Heath Ledger is now dead and it will be just one more movie I can't experience him in for the first time is valid. (I'm saving it, see...) Overcoming phobias only works through exposure, education, cognitive behavior modification. And I don't know that I have the wherewithal to get into a discussion about linguistics. Homophobia is a fairly accepted term used in reference for those who don't outwardly hate, but still have issues with, the idea of the ghey. Anything more than that turns into a lot more ugly terminology, like bigotry, etc. But, it may eventually change, as language and culture have a tendency to be fluid, evolving cohesively through time. I hope that wasn't too much ramble, I'm just getting back into the swing of forum debate after a four year hiatus.

"Fuck those labels"! This is something I have very recently been dealing with. I used to live as straight and was married to a man but thought of myself as bisexual. Then I fell in love with a girl, got a divorce, and spent the next two years earning my dyke membership card. Now I am in love with a ftm and am kinda dealing with that whole "But I am a real lesbian, I swear!" thing. But, then again, he doesn't really think "male" about himself all the time either. The way he describes it is that he sits firmly on the fence, but we live in a society that makes him check a box, and the m feels more comfortable than the f. So, if gender identity can be fluid and unstereotypical, then why not sexuality? I completely agree with the scale thing. Or at least that we should have more than just an either/or situation. Oh, and in regards to zoophilia, just my opinion, consenting individuals only. Until we learn to speak goat, or sheep, or dog, or they learn english....I'm pretty much against it. Hot in fantasy/fiction land, not hot in reality. Just sayin'...

I voted "I Don't Know" before I read the thread, but I still think that's valid for me. My understanding of polygamy is as currently/historically practiced, and I am not a fan. I do, however, believe in polyamory. I have known several palyamorous tri's, one of which had fifteen years strong. So if we are talking about that sort of situation, then yes, I do think it can work. However, marriage brings in a whole slew of cultural, religious and governmental issues that I think are very difficult. The gay marriage thing aside, I don't know how much I actually believe in marriage as either a religious entity or as something to be regulated and/or rewarded by the state. The status of my relationship with someone should be our business, and not need ceremony or legal paperwork or for god's sake blood tests to make it valid. Adding more people into the mix doesn't change that for me.