[Anon refers to this post] Oh gosh, I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but Festivus is not a real holiday! But it is endearing, and I think there are ppl who practice it anyway.
Wiki explains it better than I can, and you really should try to watch the
Seinfeld
episode about it:
Festivus is a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. Originally a family tradition of scriptwriter Dan O’Keefe, who worked on the American sitcom Seinfeld, Festivus entered popular culture after it was made the focus of the 1997 episode “The Strike.”
The customary practices are:
1) Festivus pole 2) Festivus dinner 3) Airing of Grievances
4) Feats of Strength 5) Festivus miracles
And I would love to see a VC fic/fanart with any of that involved 😉
Well, given that she’s not in their lives now, and there is some canon that they’re a ship, I would say yes. Louis still would have stayed with Lestat, he was the only vampire Louis knew. Although he did threaten to leave Lestat before Claudia appeared, I doubt he would have followed through with that.
Are childless couples any less committed to each other because they never had a child? Or couples who have lost a child, does that destroy the relationship they had that existed before the child was there? I don’t think so.
Kids can heal a relationship, or strain it, it’s all in the chemistry of the parents and kids involved. Claudia did bind Louis to Lestat for a time, and then she drove a wedge between them. Maybe if she hadn’t been brought into their lives, they might have been better off ;A; She got rather pointy near the end…
♛You know, it took me some time to embrace having a tree indoors at all, you have to remember that it was immigrants who brought that tradition over to the New World; it was probably the early 1800′s that it was widespread enough that we simply had to have one, too.
Having a living tree indoors, shedding pine needles and sap and possibly serving as a Trojan horse to spiders and such, was not something I wanted! All that kindling, it was the same fire hazard that it is today. But Claudia wanted it, and so we started having them for her. In those early years, we made ornaments by hand to go with those given us as gifts by friends and neighbors: crystals, blown-glass baubles, figurines… Our own handmade ones were always more valuable to us than the finest artisan ones, Louis still has a few of them, and we handle them with great care.
…Got a little distracted there.
Fake trees were a thing in the mid-1800′s, I recall some that were made with goose feathers dyed green. Other artificial tree methods followed, but we continued with the real thing. The scent of pine was endearing to us by that time.
Currently? I would think that Claudia would lose her shit, as they say, over the myriad synthetic versions of the holiday tree, the LED lighting running cleverly through the branches.
So to answer your question, it varies on the year, but I think there’s something to be said for getting an artificial tree that’s flame-resistant, and can be easily recycled after use. There’s something deeply depressing about walking the streets the month following Christmas and seeing all the corpses of trees that were invited into people’s homes, loved briefly, and then tossed out on the curb like so much trash.
I suppose that puts me on the side of artificial, so there’s your answer.
♛Well if it were up to him, he’d wrap gifts in brown paper or newsprint and twine, as he likes to recycle. What a waste of an opportunity to add a little flair! His gifts are always perfectly chosen, and I suppose it’s what’s inside that really counts, with gift-giving.
… but if you must know, I prefer it when he’s unwrapping~me~.
Oooh that’s a good question! Idk if phobias count as “irrational,” per se, bc you can have an irrational fear of anything, but phobias at least have categories that are common? Right?
These stories are open enough that you could make an argument for more than one irrational fear or phobia for each character, but for the sake of brevity I’m going to focus on one or a few for each, and keep my support brief.
(TBH I started drafting this and just one character got really lengthy, so I’ll do a series of them.)
1) Louis
A) Claustrophobia –The fear of small spaces like elevators, small rooms and other enclosed spaces.
Canonically, the first one that comes to mind is Louis’ claustrophobia. Idk if Brad was aware of that character trait, but I see it in his face when Lestat closes him up for his first night in a coffin. He has his hand on the lid at first, and then lets it go kind of reluctantly I don’t have that giffed out so you’ll have to believe me on that.
“All my life I’d feared closed places. Born and bred in French houses with lofty ceilings and floorlength windows, I had a dread of being enclosed. I felt uncomfortable even in the confessional in church. It was a normal enough fear. And now I realized as I protested to Lestat, I did not actually feel this anymore. I was simply remembering it. Hanging on to it from habit, from a deficiency of ability to recognize my present and exhilarating freedom.” – Louis, IWTV
^And then post-trial at the Theatre des Vampires, he gets nailed into a coffin and walled up, UPSIDE-DOWN. It’s a bad time. It’s a pretty bad punishment on its own, probably a standard one for the TdV, but I can’t help but think they had some idea that this was one of Louis’ fears specifically that they read in his thoughts and capitalized on.
B) Atychiphobia – fear of failure, specifically re: a fear of confrontation/decisions, because it so often ends in the death or pain of those he loves, particularly Paul and Claudia.
There is a more elaborate meta post out there about this, and I can’t find it, anyone can reblog this and add the link. @wicked-felina and I were discussing Louis and his fear of confrontation/decisions last night, here’s what we came up with:
Louis tends to refuse to engage, except when he physically has to fight people to save Lestat in TVL ❤
Re: Paul, imagine you having a fight with a family member and mocking them (being confrontational) and then they die right in the middle of your argument, and you’re blamed for it, and you blame yourself for it ;A;
Claudia wanted him to choose between her and Lestat, “Now’s time to end it, Louis.” And Lestat ends up dead ;A;
And he has to stand by and watch Lestat (debatable, but I consider Lestat to be his lover at the time) be hurt, lay there suffering as he appears to die on the carpet, then Louis has to help Claudia finish him off.
“The numbness which had protected me since the carriage left the Rue Royale threatened to lift and leave me flayed suddenly, staring, thinking: This is Lestat. This is all of transformation and mystery, dead, gone into eternal darkness.”
^This suggests to me, plus the pull he felt to go down with Lestat, that he absolutely cared for Lestat, more than just for what secrets he took with him in death ;A;
Armand wanted him to choose between him and Claudia for him, and Claudia ends up dead ;A;
People really put Louis in terrible situations and he’s frozen with indecision. Anne Rice has compared him to Hamlet, there’s so much weight on whatever he chooses.
“ …`That passivity in me has been the core of it all, the real evil. That weakness, that refusal to compromise a fractured and stupid morality, that awful pride! For that, I let myself become the thing I am, when I knew it was wrong. For that, I let Claudia become the vampire she became, when I knew it was wrong. For that, I stood by and let her kill Lestat, when I knew that was wrong, the very thing that was her undoing. I lifted not a finger to prevent it. And Madeleine, Madeleine, I let her come to that, when I should never have made her a creature like ourselves. I knew that was wrong! Well, I tell you I am no longer that passive, weak creature that has spun evil from evil till the web is vast and thick while I remain its stultified victim. It’s over! I know now what I must do. And I warn you, for whatever mercy you’ve shown me in digging me out of that grave tonight where I would have died: Do not seek your cell in the Theatre des Vampires again. Do not go near it.’ ” – Louis, IWTV
C) Autophobia –fear of one’s self – Not sure if this is the right type of fear, but I would add that Louis’ fear of his own vampiric nature in IWTV was a thing, too.
I never revealed to him half my powers, and with reason, because he shrank in guilt and self-loathing from using even half of his own. – Lestat, TVL
^It has to do with wanting to remain human, and exerting his vampiry gifts was a glaring reminder that he’s not; having grown up a Christian, he felt that being a vampire was monstrous and evil. This was something he struggled with more during IWTV-era than later, as we see in much later canon he uses his powers without explicit canon complaints about it.
Louis has grown in canon, and he doesn’t seem to have these fears any longer, but we seldom know what’s going on with him as we don’t revisit his POV until the most recent books, and he doesn’t mention these things specifically. There’s probably still traces of them, though.
Aw, thanks! Re: the braided hair, I think there’s some fanon about the braids symbolizing smtg, too. Can’t find it. But hair in general was a big deal… CONVENIENTLY I just saw this post with this comment on it:
See the thing is in Norse culture long hair was a sign of status. When the vikings brought back slaves they would cut their hair off. It was a symbolic loss of freedom. For Thor, royalty, the crown prince to have his hair cut off it was a sign of loss and humiliation.
That person might know more about the meaning behind braids specifically in Norse culture, and is invited to comment on this post 😀
To make this a VC-related answer too bc you know I can’t help myself… Claudia is shown with her hair up when she is trying to look more like the adult she is inside, and cutting it won’t do in movie!IWTV bc it would instantly grow back.
[X I went to the trouble of giffing out FOUR clips for this memeything it behooves you to at LEAST check it out]
BUT ANYWAY I loved Ragnarok! All the not-Thor characters were great, too. The Grandmaster, Valkyrie, HELA OMG, Hulk, LOKI, Heimdall! So much humor and a lot of heart. Of course, as a child of the 80s the film spoke to me aesthetically, too.
The Thor fandom ppl are some of the kindest and most welcoming fandom ppl I’ve met on this site! I could never abandon my VC ppl but… Thor… *dreamy sigh*
As a fellow writer I’d say to just write and practice as much as you can even if you never publish it! As for length I’d say whatever it takes to get to “the thing” as Bukowski would say. Some people need 2k or more words while some need much less. It’s all about finding your own style of writing, the people who want to read your work will show up regardless. In my opinion, as a reader I like at least 1k words but I have read really short fics too. Just find what suits you and get good at it! Sometimes I read really long fics, and when I’m done it felt short because it was that good. Just do what feels right. You say you’re new to writing fanfiction, but if you’re new to writing for enjoyment in general my suggestion would be to try to make the goal of setting up the first chapter solidly if it’s going to be a long one(multiple chapters).
YOU SAID IN YOUR TAGS TO JUMP IN WITH THOUGHTS SO HI, HERE I AM.
One of the things I love about fanfiction is that it’s the fucking Wild West and there’s so much out there and it’s so subjective. Everyone has their own standard on lengths and such and I guarantee you that no matter what the length is that someone will want it. Like yeah we all wanna read a nice novel length fic that’ll keep us occupied for a week and rip our hearts out, but there’s a huge value in finding tiny fics that you can read real quick while you’re on your lunch break or waiting in a line somewhere. I promise there is an application for all lengths of fics. 😀
I did wanna say though, as a writer, I find it super fucking distracting to worry about how long my fic is while I’m writing it. I use TextEdit to write a lot cause it’s really plain and doesn’t have a wordcounter and doesn’t show you page breaks, so you can like smash away and not have to worry about it. I try to think of my stories as having a beginning, a middle, and an end, and it takes as long as it takes to get there. Don’t let the number bug you. If you’re telling a good story it truly doesn’t matter.
♠ (Louis) *sighs* “Lestat cries far more than I do, it’s been thoroughly accounted for in his voluminous memoirs… his “wahmbulance” treatment consists of an enormous amount of ego stroking and retail therapy. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.”
Hello and welcome to our gift exchange! Not a strange question at all, no need to apologise 😉 Don’t be nervous, it’s all for fun!
I totally get where you’re coming from tho, we are definitely experiencing a surge of talent in the fandom, and it’s been wonderful to see such great response to #InktoberVC!
(^Claudia would totes join if she could, but she wouldn’t draw anything for the Louis/Armand ship lol)
From what I’ve seen over the years, ppl participating in the @vcsecretgifts exchange are happy to get any gift at all that relates to their prompt 😀 Even the best fanartists and writers talk about needing improvement in their work, and they know that we all have to start somewhere ^______^
Personally, I feel like the concept of a fic can make it great even if the writing style needs improvement, and similarly, I feel like great dialogue in a fan comic can elevate a piece even if the drawing itself needs improvement. I actually prefer to buy commissioned fanart in black & white bc I don’t always feel like a more “finished” look with color is necessarily better. There are some beautiful WIPs that stand up without being “finished”!
It’s all subjective, too, what I think is a “good” drawing or fic and what someone else thinks is “good,” but I prefer to think of all of it as being different styles. Some ppl dislike Jackson Pollock bc they see his art as splatter paint only (and therefore, totally unskilled), some ppl dislike Photorealistic painting for being too much like a photograph, despite the fact that it takes an enormous amount of skill.
We have ppl who participate who are unable to write or draw, but they are music buffs and make excellent playlists of songs for the characters/ships, or there are fans who do aesthetic photo sets, etc. Everyone participating is doing it more for the fun of giving a gift and receiving one, rather than one-upmanship.
(While some gifts do get more notes/reblogs/comments than others, well, I feel like the only comments that really matter are from the specific recipient, so it’s very important to show gratitude for the gift you’re given no matter what it is! Bc smne made it for you!)
All the gifts on that blog are for all of us; it’s true for me that I’m more likely to actually MAKE a fanwork when there’s a deadline and someone(s) expecting it, so I think that’s what it’s more about ;D
Btw last chance to join! Sign ups close at 11:59 pm CST!
Thank you for appreciating that [post is here]! It always feels like I’m going out in front of a firing squad when I say that “creating/consuming dark fiction is not endorsement of it in real life” because people who do conflate those will insist that I’m an x,y,z-apologist. No. That’s incorrect.
ANOTHER WALL OF TEXT™ what is happening to me? I just miss you guys a lot, that’s what 😉
“Why did this person say/do this thing?”
I support the creation and consumption of dark content in media, in fic/art/music/etc. as a means of exploring it, as a means of unpacking it, as a means of trying to figure out where it comes from and how to recognize it. Sometimes it’s not so easy to pick out the “bad guy.” Sometimes the “abuser” seems to be a “good” person. Sometimes the “abuser” is reenacting their own trauma. Finding reasons for a behavior are not excuses for that behavior, but it can help provide answers for those of us who want them.
~Story time~
My grandmother was a tough old lady, what we call a “battle-axe.” She was blunt and tactless, and downright MEAN most of the time. She raised her children through terror and bullying, held grudges for decades, was short-tempered with her in-laws and grandchildren.
She was also very smart in her role as a professor in a college, and had a sweetness to her that very few people in my family experienced bc they were so deterred by her tough exterior. I was one of the few who got close to her, and I wanted to know why she behaved the way she did to others.
Seeing movies like Mommie Dearest, in which Joan Crawford was portrayed as somewhat of battle-axe to everyone in her life, too, I could see similarities between her and my grandmother.
Could my grandmother have had the kind of pressure in her life that Joan did, competing with the misogyny in her career? I thought so.
Both of these women set incredibly high expectations for themselves and others, and then reacted badly if reality didn’t meet their expectations. They were not good at handling disappointment and would take it out on others.
In other media, I would see “only” children worshiped by their parents and then these women were dissatisfied, bitter adults, who would never get that kind of attention again. (Not sure about Joan Crawford, but that was my grandmother’s childhood.)
^What I’m saying is that media (fic/movies/books/music/etc.) gave me insights as to why my grandmother behaved the way she did. It provided reasons for the behavior. I didn’t take these as excuses, but it increased my empathy for her and others I met who were like her. Rather than do as the rest of my family did, by writing her off as “a mean old lady,” I could understand her and navigate my way into a better relationship with her. They missed out on her good parts because of her bruises.
^The first time I saw this graphic, I felt that expression in my soul. These are fictional characters. They are not real.
Writers write them. What is “writing” anyway, but speculative reality? We used to call fanfiction “specs,” short for “speculative fiction.” It’s thoughts. Not all writing is for idealized versions of life and/or wish-fulfillment.
I’ve heard from VC fans who are survivors of child abuse, sexual abuse, etc. who said that VC helped them in some way,
whether it was recognizing that the abuse they suffered really was abuse (and not normal!),
or whether they have since made fanworks with VC characters that helped them explore their own past and examine it from a place of safety,
or in consuming other fanworks, they got some closure on their own experiences in some way and were able to heal or begin to do so,
or just in making friends here that have helped them through difficult times,
I could go on and on… there is enormous value in creating/consuming dark fiction.
Whatever Anne Rice’s agenda is/was in writing the Vampire Chronicles, it doesn’t matter to me, because of how much good I have witnessed that has come from it. If some of her inspiration for certain aspects seems relevant to me, I consider it, but it doesn’t really matter as far as I’m concerned.
It all really boils down to the old adage “Live and Let Live.”
I-want-my-IWTV 