hugo notes, and firefly fic
Aug. 30th, 2006 10:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rivendellroseBecause everybody in sf fandom is talking about it... the Hugos. First off, I'd like to note that Browncoats have reason to celebrate - Serenity won whatever-the-heck the Hugos call the film category! Go us. Oh, and if you search YouTube there's a great video of Morena delivering Joss' acceptance speech on behalf of the cast/crew. It's very cute.
Unfortunately, something else that happened at the event kind of ruined my good feelings about this. There's a ton of other wonderful posts about what happened (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sigelphoenix in particular, out of people that I know personally), but that one is a good summary, although I somewhat disagree with the writer on what should be done. Internet censuring is not the answer. The answer is a swift and unequivocal response from the professional science fiction community, telling Ellison and the rest of the community that this kind of shit is just not acceptable. And that's exactly what I'm not really seeing, and it makes me unhappy. I know there are a lot of good, well-known and respected male writers of sci-fi out there who are usually on the front lines against this kind of shit, and I'm honestly pretty angry that none of them have said a thing yet. What the fans say, in the end, isn't really an issue here. Ellison is hardly at a point in his career where he gives a flying fuck what the plebes on the internet think of his behavior, if he ever would have (and some vague impressions of his general demeanor give me the sense that he wouldn't have). One would hope that the opinions of his professional colleagues might mean something.
(Also, is it just me or is Connie Willis saying that Ellison has "done worse" even more disturbing than anything else in this whole disaster? If you'll excuse me, I'll just be over here being very glad that I've never read any of his books... and devoutly wishing that he had nothing to do with other things that I love. Ugh.)
Anyway. Fic. It's a bit abrupt and unedited, and I'm sorry that it took me so long!
Quite a while ago, I put out an offer for story requests, andstorydivagirl asked for Mal/Kaylee, no bashing of Simon or Inara, and the quote "Why do you put me on a pedestal, I'm so high I can't see the ground below..."
Why do you put me on a pedestal? I’m so high I can’t see the ground below...
“Kaylee? You in here?”
The mechanic leaned her head back against Serenity’s smooth metal skin. It was Mal’s voice, at least, not Simon or, worse, River. “Yeah, Cap’n. I’m here.”
He poked his head around the corner to peek into the little hidey-hole she’d found. She figured he’d probably come looking for her with a mind to getting her back to work, but as soon as he saw her something in his expression seemed to soften out a bit. “Hey... mei mei? You okay?”
She sniffed, tried to smile. Probably failed miserable bad, too. It was hard to make herself smile if she didn’t feel it, but it’d be worse if she didn’t - Captain and Simon were just starting to get along without punching each other all the time, and she didn’t want this turning Mal off him again, getting him angry for no reason. “Just shiny, Cap’n,” she lied, knowing full well he’d see through it. “Just... y’know. Wanted to be alone for a bit, that’s all.”
“Oh.” He looked kind of put out, and she realized maybe he’d wanted to talk to her for some other reason than getting her back to work, after all.
“Not like not talkin’ to you,” she amended quickly. “Just...” Oops. “Just not to Simon is all, I guess.”
“You two fightin’?”
Kaylee snorted. “Ain’t nothin’ like that - can’t imagine Simon doin’ anything as rude as fightin’, not like anybody else I know would, anyway. I just... I can’t be around him right now, is all.”
Mal knelt down in front of her, his expression turned deadly serious. “He... you two...” He swallowed and tried again. “He’s not hurtin’ you. Your feelings either, mei mei. Doesn’t have to be bruises... You say the word...”
It wasn’t a question, really, but Kaylee shook her head vehemently, just to be sure. “He’s a perfect gentleman. Treats me like a lady and all, just like something out of a vid when I was a kid.” She was surprised at how bitter her voice sounded when she said that.
And the captain, good man that he was, nodded his head like he actually understood.
“I just can’t... that ain’t me! I like thinkin’ about all them frilly things and bein’ a lady like Inara, but I muckin’ around in the engine, too, and I like livin’ out here on the Rim. I don’t think... I couldn’t breathe in all that fine stuff in the Core, I know I couldn’t. It wouldn’t be me. And he’s so shuai and so nice, and he tries to understand, but...” She struggled for more words, was certain that there was more to say, but she couldn’t seem to find it.
“But that’s not who he is,” Mal offered.
Hearing him say the words she’d been searching for gave her a feeling that reminded her of the bullet that’d shot into her belly. It was worse than thinking it, knowing that somebody else thought the same thing, and worse still that it was Mal. She trusted Mal. “Yeah,” she agreed softly, trying to keep the grudging out of her tone. “He tries, though.”
“So do you.”
She nodded and swallowed thickly. “You think it can work?”
He sighed and sat down all the way, scooting back into the corner with her and putting one big arm around her shoulder in a way that made her feel a lot less alone, if not any less sad. “Honest truth?”
“Honest truth.”
“I don’t know, mei mei. Got the same kind’a problem myself, really, and I don’t know where that’s goin’, either.”
“You and ‘Nara?”
He nodded, and she could tell by the way his eyes went kind of distant that he was thinking about her. Thinking about the way they’d tried to make things fit together, tried to make being together work, ever since Wash died and Inara seemed like she’d just kind of... forgotten to leave Serenity. Like she didn’t really want to make the decision, but didn’t want to admit that she didn’t, either. “It ain’t her,” Mal said softly. “And it ain’t me to make a woman do what she doesn’t want to do.”
“She might want to... if...”
“Not as much as she wants to stay free. She doesn’t need somebody who can’t give her what she wants. Neither do you.”
“Or you,” Kaylee offered.
Mal snorted and shook his head. “Don’t you worry ‘bout me, li’l Kaylee. I got everything I need right here.” He kissed her forehead, and they both settled back against the metal that thrummed with yearnings and dreams that didn’t remind them of anything they couldn’t give or do or be, no matter how much they wanted to. Serenity sang with honest, plain hopes that they could all live with, and maybe if they all learned to listen to her, they’d all come out alright in the end.
Unfortunately, something else that happened at the event kind of ruined my good feelings about this. There's a ton of other wonderful posts about what happened (
sigelphoenix in particular, out of people that I know personally), but that one is a good summary, although I somewhat disagree with the writer on what should be done. Internet censuring is not the answer. The answer is a swift and unequivocal response from the professional science fiction community, telling Ellison and the rest of the community that this kind of shit is just not acceptable. And that's exactly what I'm not really seeing, and it makes me unhappy. I know there are a lot of good, well-known and respected male writers of sci-fi out there who are usually on the front lines against this kind of shit, and I'm honestly pretty angry that none of them have said a thing yet. What the fans say, in the end, isn't really an issue here. Ellison is hardly at a point in his career where he gives a flying fuck what the plebes on the internet think of his behavior, if he ever would have (and some vague impressions of his general demeanor give me the sense that he wouldn't have). One would hope that the opinions of his professional colleagues might mean something.(Also, is it just me or is Connie Willis saying that Ellison has "done worse" even more disturbing than anything else in this whole disaster? If you'll excuse me, I'll just be over here being very glad that I've never read any of his books... and devoutly wishing that he had nothing to do with other things that I love. Ugh.)
Anyway. Fic. It's a bit abrupt and unedited, and I'm sorry that it took me so long!
Quite a while ago, I put out an offer for story requests, and
storydivagirl asked for Mal/Kaylee, no bashing of Simon or Inara, and the quote "Why do you put me on a pedestal, I'm so high I can't see the ground below..."Why do you put me on a pedestal? I’m so high I can’t see the ground below...
“Kaylee? You in here?”
The mechanic leaned her head back against Serenity’s smooth metal skin. It was Mal’s voice, at least, not Simon or, worse, River. “Yeah, Cap’n. I’m here.”
He poked his head around the corner to peek into the little hidey-hole she’d found. She figured he’d probably come looking for her with a mind to getting her back to work, but as soon as he saw her something in his expression seemed to soften out a bit. “Hey... mei mei? You okay?”
She sniffed, tried to smile. Probably failed miserable bad, too. It was hard to make herself smile if she didn’t feel it, but it’d be worse if she didn’t - Captain and Simon were just starting to get along without punching each other all the time, and she didn’t want this turning Mal off him again, getting him angry for no reason. “Just shiny, Cap’n,” she lied, knowing full well he’d see through it. “Just... y’know. Wanted to be alone for a bit, that’s all.”
“Oh.” He looked kind of put out, and she realized maybe he’d wanted to talk to her for some other reason than getting her back to work, after all.
“Not like not talkin’ to you,” she amended quickly. “Just...” Oops. “Just not to Simon is all, I guess.”
“You two fightin’?”
Kaylee snorted. “Ain’t nothin’ like that - can’t imagine Simon doin’ anything as rude as fightin’, not like anybody else I know would, anyway. I just... I can’t be around him right now, is all.”
Mal knelt down in front of her, his expression turned deadly serious. “He... you two...” He swallowed and tried again. “He’s not hurtin’ you. Your feelings either, mei mei. Doesn’t have to be bruises... You say the word...”
It wasn’t a question, really, but Kaylee shook her head vehemently, just to be sure. “He’s a perfect gentleman. Treats me like a lady and all, just like something out of a vid when I was a kid.” She was surprised at how bitter her voice sounded when she said that.
And the captain, good man that he was, nodded his head like he actually understood.
“I just can’t... that ain’t me! I like thinkin’ about all them frilly things and bein’ a lady like Inara, but I muckin’ around in the engine, too, and I like livin’ out here on the Rim. I don’t think... I couldn’t breathe in all that fine stuff in the Core, I know I couldn’t. It wouldn’t be me. And he’s so shuai and so nice, and he tries to understand, but...” She struggled for more words, was certain that there was more to say, but she couldn’t seem to find it.
“But that’s not who he is,” Mal offered.
Hearing him say the words she’d been searching for gave her a feeling that reminded her of the bullet that’d shot into her belly. It was worse than thinking it, knowing that somebody else thought the same thing, and worse still that it was Mal. She trusted Mal. “Yeah,” she agreed softly, trying to keep the grudging out of her tone. “He tries, though.”
“So do you.”
She nodded and swallowed thickly. “You think it can work?”
He sighed and sat down all the way, scooting back into the corner with her and putting one big arm around her shoulder in a way that made her feel a lot less alone, if not any less sad. “Honest truth?”
“Honest truth.”
“I don’t know, mei mei. Got the same kind’a problem myself, really, and I don’t know where that’s goin’, either.”
“You and ‘Nara?”
He nodded, and she could tell by the way his eyes went kind of distant that he was thinking about her. Thinking about the way they’d tried to make things fit together, tried to make being together work, ever since Wash died and Inara seemed like she’d just kind of... forgotten to leave Serenity. Like she didn’t really want to make the decision, but didn’t want to admit that she didn’t, either. “It ain’t her,” Mal said softly. “And it ain’t me to make a woman do what she doesn’t want to do.”
“She might want to... if...”
“Not as much as she wants to stay free. She doesn’t need somebody who can’t give her what she wants. Neither do you.”
“Or you,” Kaylee offered.
Mal snorted and shook his head. “Don’t you worry ‘bout me, li’l Kaylee. I got everything I need right here.” He kissed her forehead, and they both settled back against the metal that thrummed with yearnings and dreams that didn’t remind them of anything they couldn’t give or do or be, no matter how much they wanted to. Serenity sang with honest, plain hopes that they could all live with, and maybe if they all learned to listen to her, they’d all come out alright in the end.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 06:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 04:05 pm (UTC)And haven't read Ellison's reply yet, but mean to today.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 06:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 09:14 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 04:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 02:10 pm (UTC)Me, I'm staying out of it. I wasn't there, I didn't see it, and I don't know the people involved except by reputation. Hell, even the people who were there can't agree on exactly what happened. While the larger issue--sexism in the SF&F community--is a worthy topic and needs to be addressed, I'm just not convinced this particular incident is worthy of the wank it has generated.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 04:12 pm (UTC)You're probably right about it getting blown out of proportion (gods know I've only gotten one side of things so far, and a pretty general side at that), but I do think it's good that we're all talking about these issues. There's already been some intelligent discussion of this as a subject that needs attention in the field, and hopefully there will be more once the wank settles.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 07:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:32 am (UTC)You're totally right, both on Ellison and the danger of this argument spinning out and totally missing the point. I wish things didn't work out that way.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:41 am (UTC)This issue, like many others, is getting lost in the ensuing OMG OUTRAGE!!!!!111!!!1oneoneone!!! Happens all the damned time, and it annoys me to no end. There's a point where all the yelling and waggling fingers overshadow the event itself, and the thing we should be discussing just kind of vanishes amidst all the hoopla.
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 02:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 04:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 03:58 pm (UTC)One little edit: "but I like muckin' about in the engine"
no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 04:15 pm (UTC)Oops. That's what I get for writing too fast... Thanks for catching it!
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Date: 2006-09-01 04:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 06:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-31 11:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-01 06:59 am (UTC)BRAVO!
no subject
Date: 2006-09-04 03:28 am (UTC)