#socknonny

Why Stranger Things?

I’ve played D&D since I was a teenager, and always love a good horror/suspense, so the show itself was well up my alley from the start. But in terms of fic creation, it was Billy that drew me to Stranger Things. He’s an angry, traumatized metalhead, dealing with his issues by lashing out at anyone who gets too close, and I could relate to those feelings even if I couldn’t relate to the actions themselves.

What's your favorite ship (platonic or romantic) to create for?

It’s Harringrove for this fandom, but I’m a multishipper at heart and I love seeing any number of combinations. I thoroughly enjoy Steddie, Mungrove, and all three of them together (can’t remember what we’re calling that? Metal sandwich?). I also enjoyed some Keg boys when that was popular (Tommy, Steve, Billy). 

What's your typical writing process like?

Depends on if it’s fic or OF. If it’s fic, I find it a bit like poetry. I’ll have a feeling I want to illustrate, and I’ll kind of just sit down and meander through some scenes, led purely by vibes. I’m usually trying to explore some aspect of character, or sift through different situations to understand them better. I like to hear the character’s voices in my head as I’m writing. If it’s OF, I’m quite regimented these days. I plot out story beats, climaxes, character arcs, etc, and then dictate out a first draft (it’s much easier than typing for me). Then I have a whole set of worksheets I created to go through and edit. 

How did you get started with PodFics?

I…. honestly can’t remember? Oh wait, yes. The first podfic I ever recorded was on my phone and it was a little tumblr ficlet for a different fandom. It had a really lovely response, with the writer inspired to make a part two, and so I kept going. Like with all fandom stuff, it was the community aspect that made it so wonderful. You’d narrate something, and people would chime in with commentary and share it around. Even if it’s only one or two people, it always gives me such a boost and I just want to do more.

What's your typical PodFic process like? Is there a tool you especially like?

Before I begin a project, I need to play around with voices a bit. I’ll adjust each voice according to different variables (how fast/slow, how nasally, how rough, what emotion/tone?) until I get one I like, and then I can start. I do a small singing warmup before recording, and then I can usually only get through about 30 recorded minutes before I’m fidgety. Editing afterwards takes about double the recorded length, for now. But I’m hoping to improve that as I get better at breath control and don’t need to edit out so many mouth clicks!

Is there a tool you especially like? 

I often use Audacity, but I think Studio One has a better sound? I’m still working it out!

What has been your favorite project so far? Why?

Aaahhhh that’s so hard! For my fics, I probably enjoyed Ride the Lightning the most, because it’s one of the few times I wove spice into the plot, and so felt I could really dig into it. But I also reeeeally loved making ‘two-faced son of a bitch’, because it’s weird and emotional and poetic, which is my jam. For podfics, I would genuinely pick ihni’s Notes. I know ihni recced it here, so it feels like I’m following that, but I really loved recording that one. It has lovely emotion in the words, and because it’s a poem I got to put soothing music to the back of it. It’s one I can happily listen to again, which is kind of rare with my podfics. Even my later ones, I know I would record them better/different these days and so I struggle to listen.

What has been your hardest project so far? Why?

I wouldn’t say I have a particularly hard project, but I had a hard period when I was experiencing undiagnosed asthma and allergies. My voice stopped sounding right, and it was too hard to record in a dusty cupboard, so I had to stop altogether. I’ve sort of got that under control now though! 

Have you ever had a creative block? How did you get over it?

Oh definitely. But imo creative block is just a problem you can’t identify yet. There’s something wrong with the work, and you need to sit on it for a while until you can resolve it. Which is frustrating at first, because your taste is better than your skill! You can see the problem, but you’ve no idea how to fix it. But I find the more you write and the more comfortable you get with your own style, the less of an issue those blocks are because you start to pick the problem apart with more intentionality. It might still take weeks or months to fix, but it doesn’t worry you the same, I feel, because you know it’s just part of the process.

Is there a big source of inspiration for you? Books? Art? Games?

Music and Science :D I love flowing through the emotions of a song, like ‘the price we pay (the promise we made)’ or using the same root inspiration as the jumping off point for a story. And I also love reading scientific articles or non fiction books, and discovering something interesting about the natural world, and then incorporating that into a ‘what if’. Even if that ‘what if’ is just a very small component of world building, like that species of flower that’s shaped/colored to attract a bee that went extinct ages ago. That could be magic, you know?

Is there an upcoming project you're particularly excited about?

I haven’t been active on this account for a while, so I don’t have anything big planned, but I would like to come back and finish my Billy x Dean crossover. I had just committed to continuing it when Destiel went canon, and ended up just kind of staring at the screen like, well what now XD Even though I’m a multishipper and it doesn’t bother me, that time was so wild it felt strange to continue. But I think I’m ready now.

Is there anything we didn't ask that you'd like to add?