Hi cori! I've been following you for a while and I'm very curious to know, what does it take for you to fall in love with a show? And do you always write fics for shows you love or is it just when you think something might be missing in it?
the first question is by far the hardest to answer, so let's table that for a moment.
in terms of fic, i've written for shows that live deep, deep in my heart (never have i ever) as well as shows i consider to be some of the greatest examples of the art form (buffy the vampire slayer, community, crazy ex-girlfriend despite our epic falling out) but i've also written fic for shows that i have positive-yet-fleeting feelings for (julie and the phantoms, superstore) or don't actually like that much at all, even at the point of writing the fic (the 100, the witcher, glee). there are also shows that stay with me for years after i've watched them but for which i could never see myself writing fic (greek, psych).
so, no, i don't always write fics for the shows i love, and the reason i do write fic is almost never because i watch something and find it lacking. for example, season one of never have i ever is a near-perfect season of television in my opinion, and it made me prolific af. it's a good example of the main reason i'll write fic in a fandom: "watching this is not enough, i need to lick it".
a slightly more niche motivation for my writing fic is that i don't actually want to get involved in a fandom, but i'm watching a show and it's all i can think about and i need an outlet for all my feelings. that's where we get stuff like the dawson's creek and don't trust the b---- in apartment 23 fics on my ao3.
and sometimes i write fic for a fandom because i have a friend that got me into the show, and the best way i know how to be social in fandom is via fic. the 100 was like this for me, as is nancy drew.
so. back to your first question: what does it take for me to fall in love with a show? this may feel like a bit of a gossamer thread to pluck out of all this, but i think the basics necessary for winning my heart are a) infectious joy for the art of spinning a story and b) insatiable interest in making sense of life. no matter the style or the premise, if a show manages to effectively convey both these things to me, i will be gone on it forever.
