I just, once again, tried to explain what tenlark is to my partner (my third attempt, I think, over the past couple of years).
And it's just impossible lol.
I literally pulled out a notebook to map it out. Like fully became that meme of Charlie from It's Always Sunny with the corkboard and red yarn.
"It's a ship within a movie within a fic about a ship within a fandom."
"What movie?"
"That--no--that doesn't matter. You don't know the movie. The movie is also fictional. Like it's a made up movie. Based off a made up book series, and also maybe a strategy game?"
That's basically how it goes each time. And I haven't become any less passionate about trying to explain this beautiful Russian nesting doll of fandom lore/culture you've created.
🤠💜
“It’s not canon the actresses are just in love, except it basically becomes canon when they go public, and also maybe there’s a fourth movie where it’s canon, and then a different take on the fourth movie where it’s still canon but even sadder, and don’t forget the dozens of pseudo-canon novelizations—well no those aren’t in the fic but you can just assume they’re part of the universe”
I mean, what’s so hard to understand about all that? ;)
sometimes I sit here and think about how the original cfdau notes doc literally has a note I wrote reminding myself that people would find tenar and lark confusing or boring and that I should only use them when absolutely necessary so readers didn’t get annoyed. now we’re out here with aus within aus, and art and fic and head canons, and natalia dyer in fantasy queen dresses, and I have no idea how we got there but I truly am having the time of my life
