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crack_van2009-04-09 08:28 pm
espresso-addict.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2009-04-09 08:28 pm
Entry tags:
Sparkweed by Minerva McTabby (PG-13)
I have the pleasure of introducing readers to fanfiction of Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea series this month. Apologies for the late start, but I have my first selections lined up so it should be smooth sailing from now on! It's a small fandom, but the quality of the fanfiction is exceptionally high, and there have been some fantastic stories written by very well-known authors from larger fandoms. If you're not familiar with the series, my fandom outline gives a brief primer, but I do wholeheartedly recommend getting hold of the original books (still in print in many parts of the world), as I can't do justice to the beauty of Le Guin's writing nor to the complexity of her philosophy.
Fandom: EARTHSEA
Pairing: Ged/Jasper
Length: ~2750 words
Author on LJ:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mctabby
Author Website: Archives at Skyehawke & ff.net, but I'm not aware that she's written any more in this fandom
Why this must be read:
Ged (also known as Sparrowhawk) is the central character in much of the Earthsea series, and he also dominates fanfiction. The majority features him as an adult, master of himself & his powers, but Le Guin paints a rich picture of the long path to that dual mastery in A Wizard of Earthsea, and a few stories have explored this era. When Ged first enters the Roke School of Wizardry (read boys-only Hogwarts) as an arrogant 14-year-old, his humble background -- a goatherd from an outlying farming island -- draws some teasing. Jasper is a handsome & suave older student, the son of one of the Lords on the Archipelago's large central island, and the bitter rivalry that develops between them is at the heart of A Wizard of Earthsea. It's just crying out for a slash reinterpretation.
'Sparkweed', like much Earthsea fanfiction, is a missing scene, set early during Ged's school days. Minerva's characterisations in this encounter are absolutely spot on, and the wonderful tense dialogue twists & turns rapidly enough that the reader is kept almost as unsettled as Ged. Despite the slash, the story has a very canonical feel.
"Well, well," Jasper drawled. He leaned against the wall with easy grace, his arm a barrier trapping Ged against the pillar. "Following me about, Sparrowhawk? Spying? Oh, for shame!"
Whatever he said would be turned to mockery. Ged bit back the first heated denial that rose to his lips; striving to match Jasper's poise, he straightened his back, folded his arms, and countered his enemy's accusation with another.
"The shame is yours. I know who has that chamber, I heard her... What were you doing in there?"
"Come, that's clear enough, surely," said Jasper with a sly smile. "Are you a child, that I must explain it?"
And clear it was, all too clear, though Ged had no words for it other than the coarse speech of a mountain village; nothing to match the radiant lady in the Hearth Hall. He stood mute for a moment, glaring at Jasper, and it came to him that he had forgotten this: the way Jasper could force him to silence, so easily, with no more than a raised eyebrow or a cool smile. He had sought to forget it, so during the year in the Tower his memory of Jasper had dwindled to an almost comfortable thing, a goad to his ambition, a rival he would certainly put to shame some day. Now the illusion wavered and broke in the presence of the living reality who stood so close, too close, looking down at Ged and silencing him all over again.
Sparkweed by Minerva McTabby
Fandom: EARTHSEA
Pairing: Ged/Jasper
Length: ~2750 words
Author on LJ:
mctabbyAuthor Website: Archives at Skyehawke & ff.net, but I'm not aware that she's written any more in this fandom
Why this must be read:
Ged (also known as Sparrowhawk) is the central character in much of the Earthsea series, and he also dominates fanfiction. The majority features him as an adult, master of himself & his powers, but Le Guin paints a rich picture of the long path to that dual mastery in A Wizard of Earthsea, and a few stories have explored this era. When Ged first enters the Roke School of Wizardry (read boys-only Hogwarts) as an arrogant 14-year-old, his humble background -- a goatherd from an outlying farming island -- draws some teasing. Jasper is a handsome & suave older student, the son of one of the Lords on the Archipelago's large central island, and the bitter rivalry that develops between them is at the heart of A Wizard of Earthsea. It's just crying out for a slash reinterpretation.
'Sparkweed', like much Earthsea fanfiction, is a missing scene, set early during Ged's school days. Minerva's characterisations in this encounter are absolutely spot on, and the wonderful tense dialogue twists & turns rapidly enough that the reader is kept almost as unsettled as Ged. Despite the slash, the story has a very canonical feel.
"Well, well," Jasper drawled. He leaned against the wall with easy grace, his arm a barrier trapping Ged against the pillar. "Following me about, Sparrowhawk? Spying? Oh, for shame!"
Whatever he said would be turned to mockery. Ged bit back the first heated denial that rose to his lips; striving to match Jasper's poise, he straightened his back, folded his arms, and countered his enemy's accusation with another.
"The shame is yours. I know who has that chamber, I heard her... What were you doing in there?"
"Come, that's clear enough, surely," said Jasper with a sly smile. "Are you a child, that I must explain it?"
And clear it was, all too clear, though Ged had no words for it other than the coarse speech of a mountain village; nothing to match the radiant lady in the Hearth Hall. He stood mute for a moment, glaring at Jasper, and it came to him that he had forgotten this: the way Jasper could force him to silence, so easily, with no more than a raised eyebrow or a cool smile. He had sought to forget it, so during the year in the Tower his memory of Jasper had dwindled to an almost comfortable thing, a goad to his ambition, a rival he would certainly put to shame some day. Now the illusion wavered and broke in the presence of the living reality who stood so close, too close, looking down at Ged and silencing him all over again.
Sparkweed by Minerva McTabby
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NTL have you read Tehanu, also in the same series but not part of the trilogy?
D
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Like all pre-industrial societies, I expect one would miss antibiotics & contraceptives rather quickly! But that's the joy of fiction.
NTL have you read Tehanu, also in the same series but not part of the trilogy?
Indeed, the trilogy that's now got six books... now that's real magic! There's quite a lot of fanfic set in Tehanu, and a little in the later books; I thought I'd start with Ged because that's where Le Guin starts.
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I've only just discovered this, since I was absent from LJ for months. Lovely surprise - made me squee in flattered pleasure. :)
*waves, throws chocolate*
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