15 March 2013

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Readalong: Better Late Than Pregnant

Okay, so I've been lurking for these last four weeks 'cause work has been busy and I've had to travel to Kansas City and interview candidates for a job opening at my store. Oh, and also my computer died, which means it's hard to budge my husband off of his computer, which he uses for work, just because I want to look up Snape gifs.

All of which basically adds up to my sadness at being unable to participate in Alice's HP Readalong. But because I don't want to be the only kid not playing in the sandbox this week, I'm joining in for a belated post covering both GoF and some of the greatest HP fanfiction you've never read.

If we're going to get technical about it, I haven't read GoF for this post. I last read it a few years ago and last listened to it about two years ago, so the finer points aren't exactly fresh in my mind. Thus I will just say two things:
(1) I cried buckets the first time I read about Harry & Voldemort's duel and then I was emotionally wrung out to the point where I couldn't enjoy my visit with my then-partner.  Too bad, as he was living in Louisville for the semester and I only got to see him once every 4-5 weeks.  
(2) I read a first printing of the book, where there is a tremendous editing gaffe in the end, where James emerges from the end of Harry's wand before Lily does.  I was torn between indignation for such a terrible gaffe and wanting to believe that it held important textual significance. 
What about y'all?  Any of you read a first printing, either US or UK or Canadian or Australian? And did it totally mess you up to see Lily and James emerge in the wrong order?

Oh, wait, I have to say a third thing.
(3) Snape. Can you imagine the kind of bravery it must have taken him to go back to Voldemort two hours later, and what kind of torture he must have endured to prove to Voldemort that he wasn't the Death Eaters who had left him forever?  It makes me shiver just thinking about it, and not just because I read fan fiction. He had to have known he was facing death and that only tremendous luck and occlumency could save him. And poor Dumbledore, to know that he was asking that of Snape. I like to think that when Snape returned from his meeting with the newly-recreated Voldemort that Dumbledore did some extra dumblin'. I know I sure would have. 

Anyway...on to the fanfiction discussion.  Harry Potter fanfiction has existed almost as long as Harry Potter, but it really exploded between the releases of books four and five, a period of time known as the "three year summer." That's when I discovered fanfiction for the first time, and may I just say that in my world there has never been a better procrastination tool than reading HP fanfiction.

My very favorite pairing is Hermione/Snape.  Now, don't get all ewwwww on me. Fanfiction is about being open to the unexpected. The very best Hermione/Snape stories, IMO, are the ones penned by Anna on Witchfics: She has written a trilogy that surpasses all other fanfic I've read, with really good writing (much better writing than JKR's, actually), great plotting, and some pretty fabulous lemony bits. ("Lemony bits" is fanfiction speak for smut. Don't ask me why. Google it for yourself.)

There's also the great site dedicated solely to Snape/Hermione fic called Ashwinder.  The site ranges in quality from the terrible to the sublime, but one really fun one is called His Draught of Delicate Poison, written by Subversa, playing off the Marriage Law meme and loosely based on the wonderful Georgette Heyer novel, The Grand Sophy. It's funny and plot-filled and with some fun original characters, but not especially lemony. More like lemon-scented.

My second favorite pairing is Harry/Draco. Yeah, I've got a Slytherin thing, for sure. The very best Draco/Harry fics are no longer available on the internet.  They were penned by a woman named Maya, who is actually Sarah Rees Brennan, and once Rees Brennan published her first real book, she pulled  all of her fanfic from the interwebs. She made it available for a one time download, which I availed myself of, but my computer has since died and those stories are now irretrievable.  I would pay good money to get my hands on them again.  Seriously.  Contact me if you have these stories and I will make it worth your while.

Then there are those stories that, overall, are too wordy or meandering to be good in their entirety, but which have wholly interesting bits that I go back and read occasionally.  One of them features Harry/Snape and it's called The Mirror of Maybe by Midnight Blue--this writer created the concept of wizarding tattoos and Life Ink, and the scenes where Harry is getting inked, and later when he shares  his tattoos with Snape, are great.  Harry is also a tremendously good DADA teacher in this story.

Guess that's about it for now.  So, yeah, back to GoF:


Just kidding.  I meant back to Snape. And by that, I mean I'm finished here.  My husband needs his computer back. 

29 comments:

  1. Wait... wasn't Lily supposed to emerge from the wand before James because she was killed after him? That's how it is in my book anyways, and I bought that copy of the book a couple years ago.

    As for Snape, I never really thought he was tortured or anything... I thought that Voldemort was thinking that he was HIS spy and was supposed to be at Hogwarts. Part of that whole double-agent thing.

    And I never got into the fanfic. I didn't have a computer back in the days these books were just coming out, and now... ehh. It makes me uncomfortable. If I was an author I'd definitely be one of the ones that are like "Hey, that's flattering...but don't please."

    Yay on to book 5! :-)

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    1. You're right--I need to go back and edit my post. But in the first printing of the US edition of GoF, Lily and James emerge from the wand in reverse order from what they should have, and it was corrected in the paperback version that I have.

      Snape must have endured something upon his return to Voldemort, as he was the Death Eater that was the "one, who, I believe, has left me forever...he shall be killed, of course." If a loyal death eater who returned on time when called was crucioed, then surely Snape was, too.

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    2. I DID NOT KNOW that it was an editing gaffe! That.... makes so much more sense. I guess I always assumed that it was because Voldy went straight for Harry, so maybe Lily was in the room, got smoked, and then James came in and then Voldy hit Harry.

      "Editing screw-up" is so much better.

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  2. I am SURE Dumbles did some extra Dumblin' for Snape when he returned. Cos oh man, Snape, you are a secret badass. Still an asshole but also BAMF

    I have not read fanfic and I'm gonna go eww on this. I can be open to the unexpected but less open to the age difference in a Snape/Hermione pairing. That said I may give some of this a try.

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    1. I've been hoarding a BAMF Snape gif for books 6 & 7 discussion. I suspect many folks will use the same one.

      I admit, the first time I read Snape/Hermione, it made me uncomfortable. But in the fics I read, she had either come of age before any shenanigans OR it was a time turner meme and it was school age hermione back in the days of school boy snape. Also, my husband is 30 years my senior, so I've gotten pretty comfortable with age differences when it's a marriage of true minds, as fanfic Hermione and Snape always are.

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    2. Yes, same. I'm curious about Snape/Hermione, but I think I'mma have to wait till the RAL is over because 1) I will miss it when we're done, and 2) I want to continue my love/hate relationship with Snape without picturing him naked. Much.

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  3. I've never read fan fiction..of any book. But it seems like such an interesting way to pay tribute to characters that you really adore.

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    1. I've never written any fanfic, but for me, reading it is all about paying tribute to a world I love reading about so much that I don't want to stop with just the canon.

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  4. Ok, so I have to do this: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww for Hermione and Snape. I don't want to think about that. BUT (consolation part of comment) Harry and Draco I can totally get behind. On a related but also not matter, I don't know if you're familiar with Les Mis, but I sort of want to write Jean Valjean/Javert fan fic. Oh yeahhhh.

    Anyway! Snape was TOTALLY SO BRAVE to go back to Voldy. I mean, I can't even... But yeah. Ohhhhh Snape...

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    1. I love Les Mis, though I don't know it nearly as well as know HP, but I would totally read Javert/Valjean. Please write some NOW. Pretty please?

      Yeah, I get the ewwwww factor when it comes to any non-canon fanfic pairing, but once you read it, and it's good, it feels perfectly natural. See above re: my comment to Alley.

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    2. "Harry and Draco I can totally get behind."

      Heheeeeeee.

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    3. If Snape and Hermione end up together one day, that puts a whole new spin on all the times he calls her an insufferable know-it-all and makes fun of her big teeth. Boys.

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    4. One of my husband's favorite nicknames for me is Insufferable KNow-it-all...

      I once read a fanfic that had Hermione ask Snape why he said that about her teeth and it was nicely explained away by Snape saying that outward appearances are of so little importance and that he could truly see no difference because her interior substance remained unchanged. Clearly a stretch, considering the canon context, but fanfic writers can explain away any little thing...

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  5. Re: point 2 - YES MINE HAS THAT TOO AND IT'S THE WEIRDEST. I stopped and read that part like six times, trying to make it make sense. So it's been revised in the more recent editions? Is the dialogue new? In my edition, James says, on pg 579, "Your mother's coming ... She wants to see you ... it will be alright ... hold on ..." Ah man, I know it's a gaffe but it's still so sad. People with the new edition, does James even say anything?

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    1. In the corrected edition it's basically the same, just with Lily/James and mother/father interchanged. I don't read my first printings of books 1-4 any longer because I'm deluded that they might be worth money. I read a beat up paperback (US and UK 'cause I don't have a matching set) of all of them now. James is the one who tells Harry to get to the Portkey in the updated edition.

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  6. I always notice the Lily/James switch when I read the end of GoF, too! I have my same first printing that I bought in the eighth grade. It's so beat up now but I would never trade it for a new copy.

    And I have to say that I find Snape/Hermione (and really Snape/anyone) totally creepy but I completely loved Lupin/Hermione as a teenager... *hangs head*

    Basically teenage me just wanted Hermione to be with someone besides Ron, because he is not remotely good enough for her and I needed justification in believing this.

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    1. I could totally get behind some Hermione/Lupin fic. Er, pun intended? If you know of any good ones, let me know!

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  7. My copy was always correct, but I remember that editing blunder when it happened. I know there was a lot of conspiracy theorists out there who thought it wasn't an error but some signpost about things to come.

    I am going to bookmark all those fan fic links and read them when I have time. I've seen plenty of the Draco/Harry fan-fic art, but never read it. And the Snape/Hermione pairing is mental and I'm super intrigued to see how it works.

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    1. Yeah, I yearned for the gaffe to be a signpost, too. In between major indignance over the magnitude of such a mistake. I'm such a dork.

      If you have any good HP fanfic recommendations, I'd love to hear them!

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    2. I've always avoided fan fic because I know what a black hole they open up - but I'm sure the ones you posted will lead me down a rabbit hole and if I find some good ones I will definitely share!

      Also, I completely missed the Snape 'Bitch I'm fabulous' gif the first time (how?!) and now I never want to look at anything else.

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  8. "I read a first printing of the book, where there is a tremendous editing gaffe in the end, where James emerges from the end of Harry's wand before Lily does. I was torn between indignation for such a terrible gaffe and wanting to believe that it held important textual significance." - Did they fix this in later editions? I too have a first edition and it never occurred to me that they might change it. My problem with this part is that Cedric comes out of the wand at all - he was killed by Wormtail.

    I've never read any HP fanfic but Hermione/Snape...that's just...eurgh. I'll give it a shot if I have some time but...they're 20 years apart in age, which is enough to make me a little uncomfortable. Also, he verbally abuses her throughout the series! NOT COOL!.

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    1. Maybe Wormtail used Voldie's wand to kill Diggory and thatis why? I am riding in a car now and cannot verify whose wand was used.

      Re: fanfic. Maybe it isn't for everyone. But there are good fics out there with a pairing to suit anybody. Hagrid/giant squid, anyone?

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    2. I just checked and Voldy takes his wand out of the pocket of his robes - nothing about Wormtail handing him a wand. I suppose one could justify Voldy's wand killing Cedric and then Wormtail putting it in the robe pocket when he dresses him? I vaguely recall that at the end of book 3, Wormtail definitely does not have a wand of his own.

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  9. Just listened to that bit on the audiobook and it was fixed. Never realized the discrepancy before, though the order did both me in the book. Hmm....

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  10. Thanks for an amazing look at fansites and fan fiction. Is it superficial of me to just say I'm loving 'everyday I'm dumblin'" Your DH should appreciate your computing skills:) you have unearthed some truly fun stuff. I didn't know about Harry and Draco but of course, it makes sense someone would go there.

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    1. Wish I could tak e credit for the Dumblin' gif, but it's been usesd roughly 1,000 times already in this readalong. But I do love it, so I had to use it.

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  11. Better late than pregnant? I knew I liked you. :)

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    1. I had a coworker say that to me many years ago and I've appropriated the phrase for my own use. Hey, maybe I'll see you in April at the Harper dinner?

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Please, sir, may I have some more? (Comments, that is!)