Big Damn Scribblers Question: Do you fudge the timeline? And what about alternate timelines?

POSTED BY: KayleeGirl
UPDATED: Wednesday, March 21, 2007 19:12
VIEWED: 9080
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KAYLEEGIRL

Saturday, March 17, 2007 11:19 PM

We all agree that there weren't enough episodes of Firefly to satisfy, which is why we're writing them on our own. My question to you is...

How many of you fudge a bit on the actual timeline in the settings of your fanfic? How many stick to the the actual episode-to-BDM time frames? And the big question, does it really matter? (playin' devil's advocate, here, fellow BDSs)

For example: I tried my best to work within the actual timeframe for my first fanfic, but I just had to have a Christmas celebration so, bye-bye actual months that should be between "Objects in Space" and the BDM and hello, Christmas time! (Although...I could argue that people who "need a little Christmas now" don't necessarily have to celebrate in December...)

If I'm gonna dream, I'm gonna dream big.

ALLIETHORN7

Sunday, March 18, 2007 12:09 AM

Try as night... ya can't always stick to the timeline. I tried... failed... miserably, I might add.
So, in the end... I guess (read, HOPE ferverently) that one can sacrifice the timeline if it makes for a better story. At least, that's what I think... I could be wrong.
Just wantin' to put in my own 2 cents.

-Danny

I wanna take the Bullet,
The one aimed straight for your Heart;
I wanna meet the wolves halfway,
And let them Tear me APART,
But that's not the way they do it here...
THRICE RULES!!!!!!!!!

KAYLEEGIRL

Sunday, March 18, 2007 4:28 PM

Thanks for weighing in, Alliehorn7. That's what I've been thinking but I wanted to know what others' thoughts were on the matter.

Is anyone out there doing alternate timelines of Firefly? You know, like writing an alternte BDM to keep Wash and Book alive? Or alternate Firefly, like...what if Kaylee didn't become the ship's mechanic? What if Wash and Zoe didn't marry? What if Simon had been raised in the government academy and River had to rescue him?

If I'm gonna dream, I'm gonna dream big.

SPACEANJL

Sunday, March 18, 2007 7:52 PM

Going to answer the timeline question. Alt-fic is quite common. I just can't get my head round it.

I've only written post-BDM fic, so the timeline hasn't been an issue. But it is possible to work out where to put events. The dialogue gives a few pointers, and they obviously still use the same months and methods of measurement.

Christmas would have fallen sometime mid- to late series, since OMR was late October.

Time relating to travel between planets, though - that's an ever-changing issue, since everything has a varying orbit. Sometimes a journey could take a few weeks, sometimes a lot less, depending on the relative positions. That can mess with things nicely. My view is that there is a central time (probably Londinium) and every planet takes it's cue from there.

NBZ

Sunday, March 18, 2007 8:16 PM

Not a part of the big damn scribblers, but with writing I would say it is writers perrogative as there are bits of timeline we are not sure of.

Christmas would probably coincide with the Ariel episode.

I do however have an issue with christmas fic, and I am probably gonna get slaughtered for it. The devil is in the details.

Simon and River are probably buddhist. Their parents are. So is Inara.

Having fic say otherwise can throw me right out of a story even if it is lighthearted like most xmas ones are.

/Hides...

SPACEANJL

Sunday, March 18, 2007 8:26 PM

Where does it say the Tams are Buddhist? What did I miss?

Mind you, Joss did say that the main religion on Sihnon and Londinium was Buddhism. I would guess the same might hold true for Osiris, as it's the next rank of Central planets.

Still, it's Mal's ship and Mal is big on Christmas. (OoG) Also...'Ariel', River says 'they took Christmas away...' so I think the Tams may have celebrated it. And I don't think anyone would have an option if Kaylee realised it was an excuse for food and presents and mistletoe.

SpaceAnJL. Research obsessive.

NBZ

Sunday, March 18, 2007 9:10 PM

In Safe, look at the backdrops for the flashback scenes. It is not explicitly stated, but hinted at with the statues etc.

There is a chance they may have celebrated christmas especially if it continues to go down the road to become a mass market event with no link to religion.

There is even the question of wether Kaylee would celebrate it, but this is too serious an analysis for xmas fioc, and i would not post this around that time.

There are normally too many assumptions in christmas fic for my liking, but there are writers who want to write it and readers who want to read it.

I do not get your OoG reference.

SPACEANJL

Sunday, March 18, 2007 9:13 PM

Neither do I. I meant Our Mrs Reynolds.

Mal wakes up - "Is it Christmas?"

NBZ

Sunday, March 18, 2007 9:28 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAnJL:
Neither do I. I meant Our Mrs Reynolds.

Mal wakes up - "Is it Christmas?"

But this does help illustrate a point. There is alot of christmas fic out there where he is anti-christmas. (Which he may well be - I just don't know...and have not seen a reason I actually buy)

Back to the topic of timelines, there aer places where a person has to take liberties. Especially the time betwen OiS and the BDM.

How long was it?

Then there are the periods of time between the Pilot and the train Job, and between other episodes.

The time between The Train Job (Been here 8 months) and Bushwacked (In
a few weeks it will be a year.) can be calculated depending no how literally Inara's words are taken.

That time period could be anything from 3 and a half months (she has been there exactly 8 months in the first instance and has to weeks to make it a year in the second...) to less than two (been there just under nine months, and in 7 weeks it would be a year).

To get the BDM to take place 8 months from Serenity, the Pilot, such things have to be estimated at the lower level. Otherwise the BDM is between a year and 18 months out. Gotta give Inara time to teach the girls 2 years worth of stuff...(even if Sheydra was massively exaggerating in the deleted scenes - which she probably was.)

ALLIETHORN7

Sunday, March 18, 2007 10:11 PM

Granted, there's a pretty damn good chanc that the Tams are Buddhist. Stand to reason, though, that Christmas survived- Book's a Chritian, Mal was a Christian, and Don't forget that it's the Anglo-Sino Alliance; one does not simply discard the worlds largest Religion easily.
Plus, in Five Hundred and some odd years time, Religion will have undoubtedly changed. Five hundred years back, we were burning witches at the stake and basicaly kowtowing to the Popes'. Religion is ever changing to accomadate an ever changing populace; it contorts, wthers, splinters; parts of it die out, others are born anew. It really isn't so inconcievable that some parts of Buddhism and Christianity merged together, creating some place where Christmas and Buddhst practices intertwine.
Christ is not so easily sworn off- two billion followers, and more each day. And, while technicaly atheist, Buddism is largely practiced in China- and add to that many other Asian countrys- India, Japan, Korea- albiet with less of a population, but, STILL!!!
After all; Buddha never said that there were as many Gods and Godesses as Buddhsts today worship- they were added on after he died!
So- Christmas out in the Black? Probable, just not so much on Serenity- "You're welcomed on my ship, Shepard. God ain't."

-Danny

I wanna take the Bullet,
The one aimed straight for your Heart;
I wanna meet the wolves halfway,
And let them Tear me APART,
But that's not the way they do it here...
THRICE RULES!!!!!!!!!

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