rionaleonhart | A Beautiful Combination of Love and High Explosives.

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A Beautiful Combination of Love and High Explosives.

Okay, this has got to be one of my favourite news stories ever.

A SPICY sausage known as the Welsh Dragon will have to be renamed after trading standards’ officers warned the manufacturers that they could face prosecution because it does not contain dragon.

Thank God for trading standards, eh? That could have been really confusing.

I have been playing a game lately with Certain Members Of My Friendslist. It is a very enjoyable game, and I would recommend it to all of you. The aim is to come up with the most bizarre, ridiculous fanfic concept ever, and then persuade someone else to write it. This can be quite dangerous, as, if you come up with a particularly loony idea, a skilled opponent can use it against you.

My point is that I have now written a semi-serious man/car fanfic, and it is all dracothelizard's fault.

Also, I have now seen a serious Top Gear fanfic in which Jeremy Clarkson wept a single tear.

Now, complaining about anything in the Top Gear fandom makes me feel like a horrible person now that I'm actually a part of said fandom, because it is absolutely the most friendly, welcoming fandom in the world, and the feedback is fantastic - you can always tell that at least some thought has gone into the reviews you receive - and, when you make a mistake ('JEREMY OPENED THE BACK DOOR OF THE PORSCHE 911 LOL,' Riona wrote thoughtlessly), the reviewers will point it out politely and gently. You'll still feel like an idiot, but you'll feel like an idiot because you are an idiot, not because anyone's trying to make you feel like an idiot.

There are people who read through and give a thoughtful review to every fic posted to the community. I would never be able to do that. There are no pairing wars. If you want to write, say, man/car, people will give it a chance and read it and not chase you out with flaming torches. There are some truly fantastic fanfics.

Still. Jeremy Clarkson wept a single tear.

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I second everything you've said about the TG fandom. I absolutely love it. I was a bit nervous posting my first ficlet yesterday, but everyone's been really nice. I've been writing for ages, but just not in this fandom (newbie omg!), so it was a bit daunting leaping into the new stuff.

I've been reading through a lot of the fics there, and the feedback is good, I have to agree with that. It's nice to see decent feedback that is actually useful and coherent.

The fandom is ridiculously nice. Every so often I'll click on 'Update Journal' with the intention of complaining about something-or-other in Top Gear fanfic, and then I'll think of the fandom, and it's such a happy and friendly place, and all it wants to do is be loved and make you feel loved, and I can't do it! I can't! It would be heartless!

Also, hello! I should probably explain why I friended you: basically, I saw that you associate with various awesome people, and reading over the entries you've been making during your introduction to Top Gear has made me remember why I love it so much all over again. Also, your 'Technical Issues' icons made me giggle an awful lot. It's nice to meet you.

When it comes to fanfic (and actually movies/books/stories too), I hate fluffy stuff. When I read fluffy/soppy stuff in my other fandoms, I can't. I end up abandoning it because it's all too cheesy. TG is completely different. I love the whole fluffy thing in the TG fandom (and there's lots of it), it's just great. That's probably my only problem with the TG fandom, but I can't really bring myself to properly have a moan about it because it's just cute.

Nice to meet you too! I love falling in love with the TG fandom, it's been so much fun. And obviously I'm dying to see the new series next year. I can't even think where I got the idea for the icons, but I'm quite chuffed with them :)

You see, I'm sort of the opposite: I can't stand fluff in the Top Gear fandom. Or, indeed, heavy angst. I have ridiculously specific fanfic tastes when it comes to Top Gear, actually: it can't deal with serious themes (injury, death, infidelity), it can't have sincere declarations of love (if there's anything heartfelt, it has to be hidden behind insults and irritation) unless it is for a car (look, I didn't say that my tastes made sense), it can't have graphic smut... it's definitely the one fandom I'm most picky about. I suspect that this may have something to do with my horrendous feelings of RPS-related guilt.

Wow, very specific tastes in this fandom! Normally angsty stuff or first-time stuff is my favourite (I love a fic when someone finds out someone else fancies them).

(if there's anything heartfelt, it has to be hidden behind insults and irritation)

I quite like that too, especially when it comes to Jeremy; I don't want to sound mean, but I just don't see him as the sort of person to come out and say how he really feels about someone.

RPS-related guilt? I do understand a bit, but it's odd for me because that's pretty much the only stuff I read/write. I adore the Sharpe and Hornblower fics, but I prefer RPS. No idea why lol!

Oh, I adore it when relationships first start. 'Preferably any shift in the relationship occurs during the course of the story' can go onto my stupidly long list of Tastes In Top Gear Fanfiction. It's very difficult to think of how it gets started when you're writing it, though - or, at least, that's what I find. You may be blessed with the amazing ability to write first-time fic effortlessly.

Have you come across any Top Gear fic that you'd particularly recommend? I haven't done that much looking through the archives yet.

I used to be one of those people who thought that RPS was bizarre and disturbing and that I'd never get involved in it. I was a fool.

"I used to be one of those people who thought that RPS was bizarre and disturbing and that I'd never get involved in it. I was a fool."

So was I, but I reckon we were right. Because I have seen some of the RPS from the Lord of the Rings fandom and they were quite insane at times.

Well, er, we weren't right about the 'never get involved' part, were we?

Well, no. But I still we're right in the whole 'RPS is bizarre' thing. But at least the Top Gear RPF fandom isn't as insane as others.

OH COME ON. Renaming a dragon?! I mean, if they had to name snacks after what was REALLY in them, no one would eat them.

"This can be quite dangerous, as, if you come up with a particularly loony idea, a skilled opponent can use it against you."

*grins* It's certainly being worked on. C'mooooon, you know you want to :D. Just like I want to do proper Doctor Who/Top Gear and Stig wooing a car. I think he'd woo the Koenigsegg.

I think the Top Gear fandom is too small to have proper shipping wars. Plus, nothing is canon (except for Clarkson/Bugatti) and nothing will ever BE canon either.

proper Doctor Who/Top Gear

How can you not consider the Captain Jack one 'proper'? (PLEASE NOTE THAT I AM NOT OBJECTING TO ANY MORE DOCTOR WHO/TOP GEAR FIC. DOCTOR WHO AND TOP GEAR IS AN AWESOME COMBINATION.) And I would love to see the Stig wooing the Koenigsegg, and what on Earth his co-presenters will think he's trying to do.

It was because of another girl on my f-list who would like to see the TARDIS reacting to Jeremy Clarkson reviewing it and I figured the Doctor could swing by for a visit to Stig after saying goodbye to Rose, because obviously he can't take Rose with him because it'd ruin the whole 'lonely god/last of his race' thing.

"James," Richard said, peering out of a portakabin window, "don't you think Stig is behaving a bit strangely?"

"He always behaves a bit strangely," James replied, not looking up.

"Stranger then." Richard continued to eye the man who was walking up to the Koenigsegg, and then seemed to stroke the bonnet lovingly. "He's never petted a car before, has he?"

Hee, Jeremy Clarkson reviewing the TARDIS sounds like it has a lot of potential. And the Doctor abandoning Rose just because he's been a dirty liar and doesn't want her knowing that he's not the last Time Lord! ~~ALSO, I OBJECT TO THIS SNIPPET ON THE GROUNDS THAT I BET THE STIG STROKES CARS ALL THE TIME.~~

"Rose, wouldn't you like to spend some time with your mum?" the Doctor asked innocently.

"Why?" Rose replied, immediately suspicious at the Doctor volunteering to visit Jackie. "D'you want to get rid of me?"

"No! No, not at all," the Doctor hastily said. "I just thought it might be nice, that's all. But if you don't want to see your poor mum who's been so worried about you then I suppose -"

"It's not that I don't want to see my mum, I'm just wondering why you're desperate to get rid of me." Rose folded her arms. "Just tell me."

The Doctor fiddled with one of the TARDIS controls. "I'm not trying to get rid of you, I'm just trying to be nice. The TARDIS needs some check-ups, so I need to take her to, er, a garage and those are always so boring so I thought you might as well spend some time with your mum then."

"An intergalactic garage?" Rose asked. "Does it need an intergalactic MOT?"

"Something like that," the Doctor said. "It's very boring, so I thought I'd spare you the technical details and the mechanics."

Rose thought this was quite nice, since she never quite got what men saw in cars. Mickey was disturbingly fond of his old rusty Toyota Whateveritwas, and she always zoned out whenever he went on about its magnificence. "I think staying with mum for a bit would be best, yeah," she said.

the Doctor asked innocently.

I laughed at this for about five minutes, and I have no idea why. Such deviousness! (Also, the mention of Mickey made me inordinately gleeful, and I think you've got Rose's voice very well here.)

Hehe, well, I may have Rose's voice down but much like Sam she will be spending her fic-time at a place far more pleasant that the vicinity of the Top Gear folk. I didn't put Sam through that, and I am not putting Rose through it either!

And the Doctor is VERY devious :D

When Ben & Jerry's ice cream went to take things to China, they had to completely change a few of the names, like "Chunky Monkey," since there were worries about it being mistaken as "chunks of monkey."

Don't feel too bad about the man/car thing. XD I see it over in the Transformers fandom often enough (well, kinda. Robot cars, anyway).

Also, I thought sane (er, speaking in terms of the people there) fandoms were extinct. Yay for being wrong!

You mean that Chunky Monkey ice-cream doesn't have any monkey in it at all?

...I wonder if I could sue?

Also, I thought sane (er, speaking in terms of the people there) fandoms were extinct.

So did I, actually. It's such a nice fandom that you really have no choice but to forgive the occasional bizarre fanfic. (I'm a bit wary, because I once found a reasonably sane fandom that exploded into complete lunacy a couple of months later, but the Top Gear fandom looks fairly safe at the moment.)

Well, not chunks of it, no. More of a ... monkey puree, but that's not got quite the same ring to it. (And all those silly people think that flavor is from bananas!)

Hopefully it stays sane! Seems like it'd be on the smaller size of things, and smaller fandoms usually go crazy less often.

So normal fandoms exploding into lunacy shortly after you find them is a regular occurence for you, is it? I shouldn't find that as surprising as I do. (bytheway, I'm reading through your journal because of the people who post blatant crack in your comments. What will it take for me to drag you back to the TG fandom and write more crack for the list? Because I've made it all the way through what's available and now have nothing insane to read.)

And you're so right about the TG fandom, it's the friendliest fandom ever. The last three fandoms I was in, (Doctor Who, Naruto, and X-Men Evo) were really not all that great as far as the people went, because Narutards (*snorts*) are as scary as Potterheads when it comes to the shipwars, and the people in the Who fandom tend not to be that nice to you when they find out that you regard Rose as a useless tart with borderline Mary-Sue tendencies, and nobody really does the X-Men Evo fandom anymore either, so you have to build a following over a five year period just to get anyone to read your work.

Sorry, that ran a bit long, didn't it? (I was going to put this at the bottom, but then I spotted the bit in the previous comment and couldn't resist.) Anyway, what I really want to ask is how you get people to spam your comments with fic (sometimes without even asking), because I want people to do that to my journal and I can't get much response even when I do ask. I've only had one entry get any response at all.

Hee! Well, I think the main key is to have friends who like writing random ficsnippets. Making a few ficsnippet request posts makes it clear that you're open to having people write things in your comments, and then if you're enthusiastic when people do they'll be encouraged to write more. Mostly, though, I think I'm just lucky. (Also, if you leave ficsnippets in your friends' journals, they may reciprocate.)

Well, I've posted one basically begging people to over here: http://bubbles-san.livejournal.com/16492.html ~~what do you mean trying to lure you over there?~~ which is having a nice turnout.

On a completely unrelated note, have you had a look at my post from yesterday? I found one of my favorite fandoms ever on youtube yesterday and am now trying to drag as much of my flist as possible into it. It's got aliens! And talking monkeys! And telepathic brain eating mutant German spiders! ~~and I so want to cross it over with Top Gear but haven't yet worked out how.~~)

I saw that poll-post, but I didn't respond because I knew I would not be able to resist pairing you up with a Pokémon.

And I saw yesterday's post, too, but at the moment I'm neglecting my work and Things I Should Be Watching and pretty much everything because my LHC-induced anxiety is making concentration difficult. Perhaps I shall check it out when the world hasn't ended?

You could copout like everyone else and pair me with the Stig... Weedling? Moi?

And I have to admit, when I reread the description my first thought was 'Well, if no one else, at least Riona will watch it because it involves concepts she may or may not have considered for fanfic.' (Go on. TELL me you aren't intrigued by the German mutant spider thing.) But it can wait, because if you're all anxious, then you won't get the full enjoyment. (but the spider's in a different episode. I'll have to post that one today. And it, er, may actually be my favorite episode. That and 'Blob, Thy Name is Envy,' which I can't tell you how awesome it is without spoilers, and since I know you don't like spoilers and I fully intend to drag you into this fandom to make up for you sparking my interest in Silent Hill, Supernatural, and LoM, none of which I have access to.)

oops, that one got away from me too.

I play this game on occasion. X3 I have been told I'm supposed to make you write Top-Gear-boys-as-cars carsex fic. Really. I was told you were the one to come to. You're famous. XD <3<3

Er, what? Who told you this? When? I CANNOT BELIEVE I HAVE A REPUTATION FOR CARSEX ALREADY.

AH BUT THAT WOULD BE TELLING.

Oh, please do tell. (I BET IT WAS DRACO BECAUSE EVERYTHING I HAVE WRITTEN FOR THE PAST COUPLE OF MONTHS HAS BEEN COMPLETELY HER FAULT. ESPECIALLY THAT CLARKSON/VEYRON FIC. I KNEW THAT NOTHING GOOD COULD COME OF MY FRIENDS ASSOCIATING WITH EACH OTHER.)

*shifty eyes* I ADMIT NOTHING.

OKAY THEN MAYBE YOU CAN TELL ME WHY YOU WERE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE WHO COULD WRITE TOP-GEAR-BOYS-AS-CARS CARSEX FOR YOU, HMMM?

not that I hadn't already considered it, but I thought that you were marginally more sane

There was discussion of Top-Gear-boys-as-cars fic, and carsex merely seemed the logical place to go with this. The natural progression of things, and all that. Really. =D

I HAVE TRACKED DOWN THE CONVERSATION. YOU CANNOT HIDE YOUR SCHEMING FROM ME.

(Also, I do not know whether you're interested in the daft Top Gear fanfiction I've written so far (a crossover with Harry Potter, a little OT3-ish trilogy and That Man/Car Fic), but if you'd particularly like to see any I'd be happy to send them to you.)

ALSO I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'D REQUEST CARSEX NOT BECAUSE YOU WANT IT BUT BECAUSE YOU WANT TO FORCE SOMEONE TO WRITE SOMETHING THEY SHOULDN'T. I AM EXTREMELY SHOCKED. ~~Let us ignore the fact that this is the entire aim of the game and that I am trying to get Draco to write genderswap fic for exactly this reason.~~

LIES, ALL LIES. =O I AM A PERFECTLY INNOCENT PERSON WHO WOULD NEVER DO SUCH THINGS. YOU IMAGINED THAT CONVERSATION. YOUR HEAD IS DAMAGED. I THINK YOU SHOULD WRITE CARSEX AS THERAPY.

I believe I read the HP crossover, possibly in a conversation thread, and absolutely adored it. I haven't seen the others, but I would more than just particularly like to. =D

and also I totally want to write it

I knew I could count on you. X3

WOOHOO!

Hang on, it this going to be 'Oh, well, I'm so busy writing carsex, I couldn't POSSIBLY also do the genderbender thing, you do it instead'. You FIEND.

I'm still looking forward to the carsex!

WTG THERE IS NO DRAGON IN TEH SAUSAGE?!? I WILL BRING LAWYERS DOWN ON THEIR HEADS. ~~and be laughed out of the courtroom~~ And, sadly, will not be laughed out of the courtroom.

I was horrified to discover that the sausages contain no dragons. Horrified.

Also, I am finding it very difficult to stop watching your icon.

XD here, have one that doesn't move.

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A Beautiful Combination of Love and High Explosives.

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