Vegetarianism and Fandom
Sep. 23rd, 2012 10:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kiki_engThere's this fic I've been slowly working on for the past six months or so- just occasionally pulling it out and adding in some detail. I'm still figuring out what story I want to tell. There's not even a proper draft yet - just notes, really - but it makes me really happy because I love the tropes in it. It's a story about growth and feelings and I'm not quite sure yet, but I like it. It's also, as of today, a story about vegetarianism.
That's something that I am: a vegetarian. I think this is the first time I've ever written about it, but I've been a vegetarian for longer than I've been in fandom, more than a decade. It's probably a big part of the reason I like bakery AUs better than chef AUs. I read a great fic last week that wasn't either of those things but was filled with all of these glorious descriptions of food, which I skimmed because none of the dishes were stuff that I'd eat. (I have very little interest in reading about someone cooking a turkey or whatever; that is really boring for me.)
Late last week I read a different fic, wherein confusion was expressed about what a vegan could eat for breakfast and I snorted. I'd had a piece of apple pie for breakfast that day, which, while not strict vegan, I hadn't used any eggs or milk to make. (It was delicious.)
Right now I've got two Teen Wolf stories open in my tabs and they both have a kind of vegetarian food is terrible; there should be meat line near the end. That's a coincidence and those lines feel pretty typical for Teen Wolf; real wolves eat a lot of meat and Sheriff Stilinski is seen despairing of his son's attempts to make him eat healthy on the show. I am sort of waiting for the fic where the werewolves express a preference for raw vegetables as well as raw meat, because that will amuse me.
The sort of recurring meme that vegetarian food is terrible I find less amusing, basically because there's this whole slew of anti-vegetarianism embedded in North American culture and I'm tired of it. I'm going to let you in on a little secret, though: when vegetarian food sucks it's for the same sorts of reasons that food with meat in it sometimes sucks. Often this reason is the cook doesn't really know what they're doing. I think that there are a lot of meat-eaters who aren't really incredible cooks and don't know how to compensate when they take the meat out of a dish and lose that fat and flavour; that's something that could contribute to that meme.
So essentially I hit a point today where there was a lot of glaring and grumbling and cursing and then I decided that I was going to write a fic where I described vegetarian food in loving detail because that is clearly the best sort of revenge, and, oh, isn't that character vegan; that is even better. I'm happy with this plan, basically - I like descriptions of food - I just really wish that there was less ridicule of vegetarianism in general but especially in fic; Fandom is my happy place.
That's something that I am: a vegetarian. I think this is the first time I've ever written about it, but I've been a vegetarian for longer than I've been in fandom, more than a decade. It's probably a big part of the reason I like bakery AUs better than chef AUs. I read a great fic last week that wasn't either of those things but was filled with all of these glorious descriptions of food, which I skimmed because none of the dishes were stuff that I'd eat. (I have very little interest in reading about someone cooking a turkey or whatever; that is really boring for me.)
Late last week I read a different fic, wherein confusion was expressed about what a vegan could eat for breakfast and I snorted. I'd had a piece of apple pie for breakfast that day, which, while not strict vegan, I hadn't used any eggs or milk to make. (It was delicious.)
Right now I've got two Teen Wolf stories open in my tabs and they both have a kind of vegetarian food is terrible; there should be meat line near the end. That's a coincidence and those lines feel pretty typical for Teen Wolf; real wolves eat a lot of meat and Sheriff Stilinski is seen despairing of his son's attempts to make him eat healthy on the show. I am sort of waiting for the fic where the werewolves express a preference for raw vegetables as well as raw meat, because that will amuse me.
The sort of recurring meme that vegetarian food is terrible I find less amusing, basically because there's this whole slew of anti-vegetarianism embedded in North American culture and I'm tired of it. I'm going to let you in on a little secret, though: when vegetarian food sucks it's for the same sorts of reasons that food with meat in it sometimes sucks. Often this reason is the cook doesn't really know what they're doing. I think that there are a lot of meat-eaters who aren't really incredible cooks and don't know how to compensate when they take the meat out of a dish and lose that fat and flavour; that's something that could contribute to that meme.
So essentially I hit a point today where there was a lot of glaring and grumbling and cursing and then I decided that I was going to write a fic where I described vegetarian food in loving detail because that is clearly the best sort of revenge, and, oh, isn't that character vegan; that is even better. I'm happy with this plan, basically - I like descriptions of food - I just really wish that there was less ridicule of vegetarianism in general but especially in fic; Fandom is my happy place.
Thoughts
Date: 2012-09-24 06:42 am (UTC)Re: Thoughts
Date: 2012-09-24 03:42 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 01:31 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 03:35 am (UTC)Does Teen Wolf discussion mean that you're watching or reading?
(Also, because I am obliged to ask: the cow.)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 03:23 pm (UTC)The cow is from Tiny Titans which is all sorts of happy-making adorableness. They like to poke fun at DC story-lines so shortly after Batman: Battle for the Cowl finished, Tiny Titans did Battle for the Cow. (http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/2473357.html#cutid1)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 04:05 pm (UTC)Also, um, thanks, and, still: what. What is that? (Is that official? Does DC have a department of random adorable somewhat mocking wee person shenanigans?)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 04:30 pm (UTC)It's their "all ages" comic series (which in comic book terms apparently means for young children) It's finished now but here's the official website (http://www.artbaltazar.com/tinytitans) their new children's series is Superman Family Adventures which is by the same artist so the characters who would be in both (Superboy, Supergirl, Krypto the wonder dog, and Streaky the super cat) are continuing their adventures in the new series. There was a preview of it in DC's free comic book day thing.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 04:41 pm (UTC)(Also, randomly: who is your favorite batgirl?)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 05:06 pm (UTC)Streaky was apparently Supergirl's cat way back in the silver age (http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/367965.html#cutid1) (at the time DC was in a rush to copyright every iteration on Super_____ or Bat____ etc before Marvel stole it. Marvel wasn't as good at that strategy which is why Captain Marvel is a DC character and for a while Marvel was stuck with Captain Mar-Vell). More recently Powergirl had a cat, but I forget what it's name was. It may have been Streaky too (as a call back/way to have a silver age character in contemporary comics sort of) or it may have been named Stinky. In Tiny Titans the sidekicks start a pet club which eventually results in the pets forming their own super-team. Streaky has the krypton power set (strength, speed, flight, heat vision, x-ray vision, super breath, super hearing etc) but in the scans I've seen he's mostly interested in taking a nap, teasing Krypto, or chasing mice and/or birds. http://scans-daily.dreamwidth.org/3828479.html#cutid1
Favourite batgirl? hmmm... that's actually pretty hard because I really liked Barbara Gordon as Batgirl in the early 90s animated series, but prefer Stephanie Brown in the comics, but haven't read any with Cass Cain to make a fair comparison. I guess I'll say it depends a bit on the medium/time setting, but I like the continuity of Barbara being Batgirl then passing on the role to a younger generation when she becomes Oracle. Why do you ask? (do you have a favourite?)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 05:48 pm (UTC)I have curiosities about these things. I don't really have a favorite? I'm not really that in DC in general, so I'm lacking all kinds of exposure. I like Barbara as Oracle and I like the idea, sort of, of Cass, but haven't actually run into her at all. I would need to go on a comics binge to be able to answer that.
Do you have a favorite character, or exchange, or moment, in, um, bat-verse, I guess, unless this is easier to answer outside of that?
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 06:02 pm (UTC)Favourite comic character right now is either Ultimate Kitty Pryde or Kid Loki from Journey Into Mystery, but both of those are Marvel characters so probably not what you're looking for?
Favourite in the Bat-verse... I like the idea of Oracle more than I've actually seen her in action, but there's an "It's all in your head" fight she has with a villain in Stephanie's Batgirl run which is really cool (her mind/memory manifests as a library, so she forces all the books to be blank so the villain won't learn anything). For exchanges, I love Stephanie working with Damien Wayne. Stephanie is this indomitably cheerful ray of sunshine, and Damien is the world's most cynical and violent ten-year-old. So after they beat up the bad guys she takes him to a bouncy castle.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 06:17 pm (UTC)So... your favorite character types are basically happy bouncy sunshine ray and hilariously emo kid? Is that at all accurate?
(I've been working on an exchange sign up, which... I am sort of waiting for one of my assignments to come in before I commit, but am working on filling it out, and there is basically a "stuff wot I like" section, and that is interesting to fill out. I have been thinking about types and tropes lately.)
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 06:22 pm (UTC)I like character interactions, and when the characters are dramatically different from one another but play off each other well anyway it's a thing of beauty. (I've been jotting down ideas for yuletide letter and it has so far been a lot of "character interactions! Dialogue! Unique personalities!")
You're working on femslash12 I'm guessing?
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 06:34 pm (UTC)The
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 06:52 pm (UTC)So Michael Buble is being stalked by a velociraptor, what's his other fandom? Also, dinosaurs would be sweet.
I'm requesting Max Overacts and the Jean Little story, but I haven't decided on the third yet.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 07:32 pm (UTC)His other fandom is Hamm and Buble, which is an SNL skit. Dinosaurs would be amazing, yes. I... have looked now, and am reasonably certain that an all-dinosaur yuletide is achievable. (I, um, am pretty sure that would make my yuletide letter this year, essentialy: Ahahahahhaahhahahahhahahahaahha! DINOSAURS!)
Do you have leanings for your third and optional fourth fandoms?
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 10:22 pm (UTC)I haven't gone through the list except in the "OMG yuletide list is up? This is a fandom this year! and that's a fandom this yea! lol THAT is a fandom!" I have a couple of leanings but I want to look at the full list to get a better idea.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-10-07 10:35 pm (UTC)This is reasonable. Also, also, I got my