Brian and Justin in character (for Queer As Folk purists everywhere)

[fictionbycereza.livejournal.com]

(I tried to find a similar post but there is no such tag. The closest thing was somebody asking if some specific fanfics are in character and this is what actually gave me the idea to file such request.)

There are many fanfics out there - epic in proportions, well-written, with great plots. But I have to admit that many of them, even those considered must reads and classics - give me a feeling of OOC-ness. There's Brian - nice and affectionate in a schmoopy way, not afraid of commitment. There's Justin - pliant and a completely damsel in distress-like, letting others abuse and manipulate him. There's evil and plotting Michael that actively tries to break Justin and Brian up... No matter that according to canon!Brian, there's nothing to break up. There's even more evil Ethan, Mel and Lindsay being such bad mothers that their children have to be taken away and even though all of those plots are fun to play with, they're not very much true to the characters from the show.

So I was thinking about compiling a list of stories and authors, that could be considered QAF purists when it comes to characterization. No matter if it's a gap-filler, or an AU story, I just need something to sooth my QAF withdrawal, something that will really feel like the show.

I trust your judgement, even though I'm aware that people can feel very differently about some stories. It doesn't matter, I still want your opinion! (After a while, I'll compile your recs into a nice list and put it in this post, under the cut).

Here are all authors and stories mentioned in the comments. I personally do not choose from them, leaving it to you to decide if you think they write in character or don't:

myrna1_2_3 (with caution that the author herself does not consider her portrayal of Brian as being in character, but it is perceived that way by some readers)
ragingpixie (see her site)
vamphile
suzvoy
justvisiting (visitingagain)
bdeviled (especially her A Love That Will Never Grow Old)
Jealous Lover by kinwad
Not My Boyfriend by lindtti
The Break-Up by moonbrightnites
kachelofen
Only Time series by xie_xie_xie (which include Plans, Decisions, Desires, Risks, Famlies, Bieliefs and Directions)
justinlovesart
besame_bj (and beyond_besame, semi-locked, to read some fics you have to be added to the community or friended at the main journal)
severina (especially her Gold and Silver Shines)
netfics (locked, requires being friended)
yoursweater (her stories can be found at queerasfandom, which is locked)
Glowing Rooms by ohmyjetsabel
not-yet-defined
jule1122
testdog65
luceononuro (see her memories; unfortunately, her stories are f-locked)
bigboobedcanuck see her memories
adoringaudience
Sesto's Aria by seperis
darksylvia (see her memories)
In Paris by scoobygang8
Work Inside Out by Keewick
Metamorphosis bynightvision55
So We'll Go No More A Roving by... Author unknown! (If you do know who wrote that one, please, comment below and I'll edit this link.)
windtossed
gradiva
The Untitled Straight!Brian Fic or Conviction by alantie
ellyrianna
burnitbackwards
josselin (see her site, thanks to the Wayback Machine)
xhaleslowly (also known as Ethan, who has his own site)
Brian Like Me by sweetestdrain
flashfly (especially her Catching Fire, Live Action Short and Reliquary; more can be found in her memories)

And my contribution:

soundczech (see her site, thanks to the Wayback Machine)
etharei at rei_of_writing
mojokid (see her tags)
throughadoor (see her site)
sakesushimaki
museme87

Hopefully, to be continued!

Comments

[swallow79.livejournal.com]

Great idea. I like to read stuff that is canon based and in character too. I'm not a big fan of anti-Michael fics, even when he's annoying he serves a purpose. That being said, anti-Ethan fics can be fun sometimes since he did turn out to be a dick. I think Xie's Only Time series is really great for being in character, I'm really looking forward to it being finished.

[fictionbycereza.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad to see that people get involved in making such a list :) Somebody made a similar post, compiling all Other Character POV fics - which are one of my biggest kinks - in a neat list with links and all, and it was extremely helpful. I think that in character fics deserve something similar.

I have to admit, I actually hate most "anti" stories, but anti-Michael are one of those that piss me off the most. I know that Michael tends to be prissy and petty and generally annoying, but underneath it all, he's such a good and caring person. He's also like, the only one from the gang that felt even a little responsible for Justin at the very beginning of the show, and that was when he was crazily jealous of him. I think that speaks more about him than everything he ever said.

Anti-Ethan stories... It depends. I've read quite a few, but I didn't enjoy them as much as I thought I would. In the end, I found myself wanting to read something where Ethan and Justin break up not because of the out-of-blue cheating (like, huh?) but just because. I really wish that the writers handled Ethan differently. He was a very big break-through for both Justin and Brian, but I believe there could be much more interesting, angsty material when he was involved.

Sorry for the rant, I get like that a lot :) And thank you for the rec! If you have a link to this story somewhere, it would make it much easier for me to later put it on the list :)

[rinmonsterer.livejournal.com]

Re: Ethan. Have you read Sesto's Aria (http://www.queereyes.net/fanfic/bj-fanfiction/sestos-aria/)? I usualy assume that if it's on queereyes, everyone knows it, but there. It's a great Ethan POV post-308 story that's sympathetic without being apologist.

Also, a fic with awesome Justin characterization, where Ethan leaves on a world tour and Justin stays behind, but doesn't want to run straight back to Brian: So we'll go no more a roving (http://web.archive.org/web/20081017073720/http://home.cinci.rr.com/gsinc/fanfiction.html). I don't even know who the author is! All I have is this link and a fondness in my heart.

[fictionbycereza.livejournal.com]

Sesto's Aria i certainly one of my favourites! And I don't know about reading everything that's on Queer Eyes, I think I might have skipped some stories if the summary didn't caught my eye or something, so one should never assume! :)

I've never heard of the second fic, though. Off to read, thanks! :D

[rinmonsterer.livejournal.com]

Ha, I realized two minutes after I commented that you already mentioned Sesto's Aria :)

Oh, oh! You must add windtossed to the list! Oh my god. Her fics made me exstatic (sometimes with grief, but the best kind). And gradiva, definitely. Actually, I have my own rec list prepared just for occasions like this, so here: http://www.diigo.com/user/Rinning. I don't have a tag for IC, because for me it's either prerequisite for even being included in the rec list, or the story must have something great to offer in exchange. Like: I don't think you've mentioned Straight!Brian fic (http://community.livejournal.com/_meansfallen/2276.html) by alantie? It has some problems, but it is IC in such a unique way for most of the story and it gives you tons of delicious angst and beautiful imagery for your trouble. Oh my. Yes, your list is very remiss, in many aspects - such as: where's ellyrianna? Haha, I joke. But no, seriously, ellyrianna, where is she? If you haven't read her Thee or Thy Ship, or her doctor!fic do it now now now! Okay, you're right, those are all AUs, but they're perfect examples of *getting* the characters so right they're even recognizable in totally different realities.

Oh man. I always get so worked up by rec posts.

[fictionbycereza.livejournal.com]

I'm so awfully selfish. Right now, all I care is that there are authors I haven't checked out yet, hee! :) I think this list will always be lacking many authors and many stories - this is why I hope it will be kind of an ongoing project. Of course, a few weeks from now this post will be lost somewhere in the depths of getithere, but there's always a chance someone will stumble upon it and add something new!

And thanks for linking to your own rec list :) I'm bookmarking it right now and will go through it later!

If you don't mind, I'll answer your other post here as well (so that our conversation isn't all over the place :) - how did it happen there was no josselin on list? When I'm reccing soundczech below, linking to a site Starla actually shared with Joss? I do amaze myself on occasions :)

I think it doesn't matter if an author is already known - there are always new people joining and they have to start somewhere, right? I always start looking for fanfics through somebody else's rec lists and I hope to find that way everything that's worth reading :) Unknown authors are of course great, it's always a treat to find someone whose work you don't already know, but I like things to be in order so if we're making an IC!Rec list for QAF (and I really think that In Character specification is an important filter while looking for different types of stories), let's put there every author we can think of!

Whew, that was long! If you think of anyone else, comment and I shall add ;)

[rinmonsterer.livejournal.com]

You know, the thing is that rec requests like yours happen here roughly every four months or so. Yes, also particular requests for IC fics (although, as I said, if I took that as criterium, I'd still rec all of my favorites, maybe excluding three or four and five would come with asterisks). I just wonder why they aren't organized into one entity, at least one distinct tag that's linked in the top regions of the sidebar, because 90% author names appear in every single one of those posts and it'd be just more handy to add new authors to one existing post than rehash the same topic over and over from the beginning. Maybe because there are already tons of rec lists out there and mods think there's no use in multiplying them? Or maybe because the community could use some additional traffic from time to time, that those lists generate :p I've actually wanted to make a comprehensive list in the past, but it always boils down to my fear that it'll end up including every single writer in fandom, which would defeat the purpose, or in a wank, because I'm adamant about my standards and eventually I'd tell someone "I'm sorry, but I can't include your favorite author X.Yz, because her fics suck and you must be joking when you say they're IC." Yeah, so maybe the potential wankiness is one of the problems. Pretty sure, though, that there have been posts in the past where people submitted their own rec lists.

Actually, I have another problem with the general idea of one big rec post: they're usually just lists of names with no explanations attached. I only pick blindly from those if I'm very desperate, then give up by the third fic when they're not what I was looking for. I only have use of those if it's by a person whose taste I completely agree with. And when it comes to the 'fandom classics' amelialourdes made a comprehensive list a few years ago, so I think instead of recounting those, we could just link it :) (Part 1 (http://amelialourdes.livejournal.com/321795.html), Part 2 (http://amelialourdes.livejournal.com/347122.html#cutid1), etc.)

[rinmonsterer.livejournal.com]

Also: no burnitbackwards or josselin? This can't be right!


Yeah, yeah, rin, get all up in arms about authors everyone knows anyway. Uh. Sorry :)