Wow, I cannot believe I have just read this. I've only discovered ship_manifesto a week ago and i was surprised to find no femslash manifest, and now, I read this oh-so-sweet-and-true essay. Thank you.
See, I read the books for the first time not looking for homoerotic subtext of any sort (“It’s a kids’ book series!” my brain cried out. “Get your mind out of gayland for five minutes!”) and finished Goblet of Fire thinking, “right, I’m going to go and write a Hermione/Ginny fic now, because it needs to be done. Oh yes.” This was with no exposure whatsoever to the fandom. It was based entirely on the text, which is why I’m inclined to believe that a lot of femmeslashers – and fic writers in general – don’t just pair off Hermione and Ginny randomly. They’ve picked up on the subtext, too. This is very true in my case too. The first slash 'ship I've written was Hermione/Ginny and that was before actually discovering the fandom. I just saw it as natural (that may relate to my lack of originality also, being too big a coward to try anything else>,<) and even though, later on, I discovered other femslash 'ships, I still think of Hermione/Ginny as my OT(f/f)P.
Some people are drawn to the sort of pairings where the two characters in question spark off each other. They bicker and argue and snipe at one another, and the reader interprets this as unresolved sexual tension. I identify myself in this also (such a duplicitous little girl I am), as i fancy Harry/Draco a lot (but that's another story), but like you, I prefer the sort of relationship that has its roots in friendship, and progresses towards something of a more romantic nature, when it comes to femslash. I just like the cuddly, gentle girl/girl stories more than the love/hate girl/girl (although, when it comes to girl/girl, I like mostly anything ^_^)
Also, you've come up with so many arguments that I forgot or never paid attention to (that's what happens when you read a book carelessly, without searching for the homoerotic subtext) and the Neville one (And while we’re on the subject of the Yule Ball, Ginny’s statement about Neville asking her “after Hermione said no” is rather ambiguous. The general reading of it is that this means after Hermione said no to Neville – and I have no doubt that is the preferred interpretation – but it’s a little moment to consider when thinking about this pairing) was very ingenious.
Anyway, I could rant above my OTPs for a long while, but that wouldn't belong here. My point was that I'm so very proud to have as OTP a 'ship with demonstrators as articulate and passionate as you. There, i've said it.
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Date: 2004-09-19 10:17 am (UTC)See, I read the books for the first time not looking for homoerotic subtext of any sort (“It’s a kids’ book series!” my brain cried out. “Get your mind out of gayland for five minutes!”) and finished Goblet of Fire thinking, “right, I’m going to go and write a Hermione/Ginny fic now, because it needs to be done. Oh yes.” This was with no exposure whatsoever to the fandom. It was based entirely on the text, which is why I’m inclined to believe that a lot of femmeslashers – and fic writers in general – don’t just pair off Hermione and Ginny randomly. They’ve picked up on the subtext, too.
This is very true in my case too. The first slash 'ship I've written was Hermione/Ginny and that was before actually discovering the fandom. I just saw it as natural (that may relate to my lack of originality also, being too big a coward to try anything else>,<) and even though, later on, I discovered other femslash 'ships, I still think of Hermione/Ginny as my OT(f/f)P.
Some people are drawn to the sort of pairings where the two characters in question spark off each other. They bicker and argue and snipe at one another, and the reader interprets this as unresolved sexual tension.
I identify myself in this also (such a duplicitous little girl I am), as i fancy Harry/Draco a lot (but that's another story), but like you, I prefer the sort of relationship that has its roots in friendship, and progresses towards something of a more romantic nature, when it comes to femslash. I just like the cuddly, gentle girl/girl stories more than the love/hate girl/girl (although, when it comes to girl/girl, I like mostly anything ^_^)
Also, you've come up with so many arguments that I forgot or never paid attention to (that's what happens when you read a book carelessly, without searching for the homoerotic subtext) and the Neville one (And while we’re on the subject of the Yule Ball, Ginny’s statement about Neville asking her “after Hermione said no” is rather ambiguous. The general reading of it is that this means after Hermione said no to Neville – and I have no doubt that is the preferred interpretation – but it’s a little moment to consider when thinking about this pairing) was very ingenious.
Anyway, I could rant above my OTPs for a long while, but that wouldn't belong here.
My point was that I'm so very proud to have as OTP a 'ship with demonstrators as articulate and passionate as you. There, i've said it.