Seriously though

[clevermanka]

Real talk.

How does one write fic about a character in a fifteen-second ad? The long, sorta plotty ones (like ZYL's Time Engraver), sure. But fifteen seconds of splashy ad, half of which is product showcasing? ?? ? I want to do this! I think it sounds great! But. How????

I am dedicated to finishing Sad Shen Wei and the Pillow (aka Accidental Voyeur) this morning so might be slow to respond but I really am very interested in hearing from people because time's running out on sundial_exchange .

Comments

[asya_ana]

You might think of the pic as inspiration, but then you get to create your own character and scenario from it (and carefully ignore the product placement lol). Like does ZYL seem sweet? cheeky? shy? Why is he like that? What would it be like if BY met him? Where would characters like them meet? etc. Basically, you get to write original fiction :D Or you could have it be RPS and ZYL is literally modeling for the shoot. Or perhaps something in the ad can be a metaphor or prompt for a canon AU fic with Shen Wei? (How did Shen Wei end up in all that red water?) Yay for signing up!!

[clevermanka]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh, I think I get it. This helps, thank you!

[glymr]

I really like the idea of making it RPS - what is ZYL or BY actually thinking? What does the other think when they see the ad? What if they'd never done Guardian together and first saw each other in different ads? The possibilities are limitless! XD <3

[clevermanka]

Yay! Glad my question is helping you, too! Did you sign up?

[glymr]

I'm a mod! XD

[clevermanka]

Oh. Well. Never mind then. I am oblivious. *laugh-cry emoji*

[glymr]

Hahaha, no worries! We're doing most of our exchange-related posting from a mod account, so it's not immediately obvious. I'm just so happy that people are talking about it and excited about it!!! <3

[ranalore]

I just commented to asya_ana that I personally consider them separate fandoms from RPF, or why list them separately at all? So getting RPF for them would be like requesting the Guardian drama and getting RPF. Which is not a problem if you've also requested RPF, because your creator can use any of your requests, regardless of what you matched on. For those people who don't request RPF, though, I would not be surprised if they also consider the ads and photoshoots separate fandoms when requested as such.

[clevermanka]

Oooo. Good point. Yes, if I requested a Time Engraver fic (which I might), I definitely wouldn't want RPF.

[ranalore]

Exactly. I need to write a letter, so everybody's going to know I requested Magic Cottage, and I definitely don't want RPF if my creator decides to use that request.

[glymr]

You make a good point - we probably shouldn't conflate the photoshoots with RPF, etc. I was thinking about it specifically in the context of the original question about a very short ad with very little other context, and how one might play around with that. Even then, though, we'll want to take care. Thank you for your input!

[ranalore]

You're welcome! I mean, I think the chances are extremely slim that anyone's requested one of these tiny fandoms who hasn't also requested RPF. That said, in my case—and I'll need to clarify this in my letter—I'd prefer my creator not do anything BTS of Magic Cottage if they decide to give me RPF. Because I requested Magic Cottage as a separate fandom unto itself, and I'm actually less interested in what went into its making, as a result.

(The Schwarzkopf commercials, yes please, somebody show me Bai Yu recognizing his own mannerisms during the shooting of "Color," and realizing ZYL is teasing him, or even coaching ZYL via seduction prior to shooting, just, please tell me I'm not the only one who saw that.)

[clevermanka]

Well I'm gonna go see it NOW that's for sure.

ETA: Yeah, no, you're not the only one. Nope. Uh. Wow.

[ranalore]

Right?! I watched it in blank astonishment, and then thought, "That is Zhu Yilong playing Bai Yu playing Zhao Yunlan. Holy FUCK."

[clevermanka]

What's the timing on this coming out? Obvs after Guardian bc he's got My True Friend hair... another strong selling point.

[ranalore]

It's not one of the ones with the date of the campaign helpfully in the title, but the date of upload is April of this year, so my guess is probably around the time he was filming My True Friend. I mean, he's on record as not liking the hair, so I can't imagine he'd worn it that way before, and he didn't keep it for long after production wrapped.

[ranalore]

Or you could have it be RPS

Hmm. The thing is, for me at least, I'm requesting ad-based fandoms separate from RPF/RPS because I want something "in-world," if you will. For my RPF request, I'd love something exploring what was going on while shooting an ad (or magazine spread). But for, say, Schwarzkopf "Extra Care," I'd want something about the character. So getting RPF for that one would be like requesting Guardian and getting RPF.

Granted, this is all a moot point when one has requested RPF, because your creator can create something for you from any of your requests, no matter what you matched on. :D But for those people who don't request RPF and do request something ad- or photoshoot-based, I wouldn't be surprised if at least some shared my view that they are separate fandoms from RPF.

[starandrea]

Vast imagination I think?! :) Writing down the things you assume when you see something inexplicable or without context and then explaining those things with a story (or other art form), maybe?

(These are less suggestions and more me genuinely wondering, with you, where the "rest of the story" comes from when I watch Zhu Yilong walk into a house that has an entire countryside inside it. PS, awesome. Whatever that story is, I mean. It's guaranteed awesome. ♥)

[clevermanka]

a house that has an entire countryside inside it
Please tell me someone else saw that and thought "I want to go to Zhu Yilong's Narnia."

[ranalore]

The super-short ones are trickier, because they don't give you as much character and story to work with. Still, there's a lot of freedom in that. They're basically jumping-off points for original fic, in which you get to cast BY and ZYL as your main characters. The ad gives you a glimpse of a world (sometimes; sometimes it's just a soundstage with some light effects going on), a scenario (again, sometimes), a brief sketch of a character (always, you at least get a feel for a certain attitude). You get to take it from there. And especially if you sign up offering crossover requests, you get the chance to match up two of these short fandoms, so you could bring in one of the longer, plottier ones to help give you more scaffolding, if you want it, or pull in another fifteen-seconder, and see what the combo of the two mood pieces gives you.

[clevermanka]

especially if you sign up offering crossover requests, you get the chance to match up two of these short fandoms, so you could bring in one of the longer, plottier ones to help give you more scaffolding, if you want it, or pull in another fifteen-seconder, and see what the combo of the two mood pieces gives you

[ranalore]

I try. ;-)

[clevermanka]

omg your icon <3

[ranalore]

Also, don't forget that if you're truly running dry of inspiration for fic, this is an exchange where you could see what the source inspires in terms of a playlist, if your recipient is welcoming of audio fanworks (I assume; you'd have to verify that with the mods, but I'm pretty sure it's an allowed audio type). You'd probably need to include some meta connecting each song to the fandom/explaining why you chose it, but sometimes I find that comes easier than fic.

[clevermanka]

Oh, this is a great idea and if nothing else would be a fun companion to a short fic!

[bonibaru]

You just let your imagination RUN WILD!

[clevermanka]

Ugh, my imagination is too structured for that! *laugh-cry emoji*

Srsly, I think this is why I fell pretty easily into writing fic. I'm just running with someone else's ideas. I'm, uh, not a terribly imaginative person on my own. And I don't mean that as an insult to myself at all, it's just how my brain works. I like playing with other people's templates but I'm not so interested in making my own. (this is also probably why I'm good at navigating bureaucracies--very good at figuring out how I want to play with other people's rules Yay surprise!introspection in fandom discussions)