The Whomping Willow Is So Real For Beating People Up Just To Keep Remus Lupin Safe

Remus canon hair length doodle

Hi yes can any hp fans who are trans friendly and anti jkr give me advice on how to deal with the insane hate us hp fans get on here for simply just being fans of hp..you know the posts and type of comments I mean. I have moral ocd and it makes me feel like the worst person ever 🙃

i don't really think i have a right answer for this, honestly. When you still like hp and interact with it you have to come to terms with the fact that you are adding to the general harm jkr is causing, because whenever you talk about it, even when it is in the context of fandom, you give her attention and might consequently make more people join the fandom who don't yet know about what a terrible person she is and therefore don't have the same understanding that you cannot profit her in any way whatsoever. No buying merch, no streaming the films, no going to the studios, no seeing cursed child, no watching the reboot. I used to think that we're at a point of saturation where everyone already knows about harry potter anyway so me talking about it won't give her more attention, but the fact alone that i've had a couple comments telling me that one of my fics was the introduction to the fandom for them tells me differently.

My general approach is that i make everything about my fandom interaction as easy to block out for other people as possible. On tumblr this means every time i mention any harry potter related things i tag it 'hp', if it mentions jkr i also tag her, so people can easily blacklist these tags if they want to avoid seeing the content at all. I've made new social media accounts to talk about hp because i didn't want to subject my friends, many of whom i know do not want to have anything to do with hp, to seeing anything about it. I don't talk about hp with non-fandom friends without heavily checking the vibe first and even then i attach a bunch of disclaimers to make absolutely certain they understand that i interact with this fandom as harm reducing as i can and very much do not support jkr, despite me myself being trans and that therefore probably being obvious.

You can be trans or be an ally and still like hp. Liking hp doesn't make you an inherently bad person. But you have to be aware that whenever someone looks at you and they see that you like hp, they don't have the knowledge that you are a safe person. Their first reaction will most likely be to assume that you support jkr and her views and are therefore not a safe person for queer people to be around. I myself have that same thought whenever I see people in public wearing harry potter merch. If you wear hp merch in public i will instantly mistrust you, despite very clearly also being in the fandom, because you're carrying hp outside of the confined space of a fandom in which people know not to support her.

You deal with the hate you get by acknowledging that these people have a reason for mistrusting and hating you, and by presenting yourself in a way that clarifies your stance regarding jkr while giving them the possibility to distance themselves from any mentions of her or harry potter. You deal with the hate by acknowledging that while initially it is not your guilt and not your harm, feeling some guilt over it is needed regardless, because you are, inadvertently, adding to the harm. You deal with the hate by supporting trans people, by informing yourself about what jkr is doing and what impact she has, by counteracting that impact as much as you can and by talking to people and raising awareness whenever you're able.

Disability in fiction

This was a tough post to write. 

I saw a post about disability rep, and I kept thinking about it, and wanted to share my own takes on the topic. 

I thought about it for days, trying to figure out how to word it. Then after drafting it, I stuck it in a file for a couple of weeks, trying to decide if I could even post it. This is not a topic that can be boiled down to a simple yes/no kind of answer.

Let’s start with two examples.

1 - I have a short story I started writing (it wants to grow up to be longer, so it’s waiting for time) where my original concept was to write about an older woman who is short and has major chronic pain, and I wanted to dig into fantasy reasons why this pain exists, but at the same time, have her be able to kick ass despite being exhausted and dealing with excruciatingly painful issues.

2 - I once drafted a portal fantasy storyline wherein a young man was transported into a fantasy world, and when he was given a horse to ride, he approached it very warily. He was encouraged to mount, did so, and sat there and exclaimed in shock, “My brain isn’t exploding with snot!” because his allergies hadn’t come with him into the body he had in the fantasy world.

Both stories were designed to be fun, a bit light, maybe even cozy.

So.

In one case, the disabled character remains disabled and kicks ass anyway. And in the other case, the character is magically “healed” and no longer has debilitating allergies that had wrecked his way of life.

This is the difficult part to express: I think both storylines are valid.

Bear with me while I dig into this.

First and foremost: I completely agree that we need more representation in all forms of fiction, especially when it comes to disabled people being able to live their lives. Characters with missing limbs, or non-neurotypical brains, or anxiety & depression, or hearing issues, or sight problems, or chronic pain, or… or… you get the idea. We need all of it, and we need it to not need to be magically healed in order for a story to be considered happy and cozy. Disabled people can be happy, too.

I’m all in for this, and I wouldn’t write the stories I do if I weren’t.

However, there are also moments where I am so exhausted by my body and by everything I deal with inside of it where I do wish for that magical ability to forget that my pain exists. Or for the ability to actually process information in a straight line, or make decisions without writing a hundred lists and accomplishing nothing from them. Or to be able to lie down in a field of grass without regretting it for days while I drip snot and fight sinus-pain-induced migraines.

Sometimes I want to imagine that my life is different.

And that is one of the joys of writing. I can choose to write a story where people like me or the people I know are the heroes/heroines exactly as they are, different abilities and all. Or I can choose to write a story where the problems magically resolve.

Both can be cozy, sweet, and adorable. I can give the character with chronic pain the ability to kick ass, take names, and have a sweet reunion with her ex-girlfriend. I can show all the ways that my disabilities may define how I handle my life differently than someone else, but do not define what I can and cannot do.

But I can also daydream about a life where it’s different, the same way I can daydream about having wings, or being able to teleport. For me, imagining a day with no pain is the same as a day where I can walk through walls. It is absolutely a fantasy, and about as likely to happen.

Here’s the thing: It’s okay to be angry to see what looks like disability being erased. It’s okay to wonder why the author did that, why they magically healed someone instead of letting them be who they were. But at the same time, maybe ask why, and what point of view it’s coming from. Or look a little deeper into the story and how the resolution occurs, and the effect it does have on the character (I suspect that were I to suddenly have a day of no pain, I’d be intensely reckless, given what an idiot I am while IN pain, y’know? And WOW would I regret that later…).

And for authors, think about what you’re writing. WHY is this particular event (keeping disability, erasing it, whichever or both) happening, because the reader will take note of it. They may see things that weren’t intended, but are there as unintentional biases.

Make conscious decisions for why things happen.

Someday I want to get back to both of those examples from the start of this post; I still like both concepts. But I’ll be writing them for very different reasons, and both will be healing my soul in different ways. Different kinds of daydreams. And again, I think that’s valid, too.

Sirius, slamming a piece of parchment in front of Remus: That’s it! Sign here, and first thing Monday, I’ll see you in court!

James, Lily, and everyone else, frozen in horror: WHAT?!

Remus, calmly shaking his head: He means at the marriage registry. Babe, that’s the worst way to tell our friends we’re getting married.

Everyone: YOU’RE ENGAGED?!

Sirius, smirking: Not after Monday I’m not. I’ll be married.

Playing w Remus like he's a Barbie doll but in the way where I'm cutting his hair off and drawing all over his face with markers before flinging him off the balcony

chapter 4 of Becoming Remus this Christmas is up now!

In which Remus opens many presents and Sirius opens a few.

It will probably be a few days now before the next chapter’s out. I was cranking it out trying to make sure this particular chapter was up on Christmas day, and now that it is I’m going to take a tiny break :)

also something i will say but obviously i am one voice here and i am one person and you do not need to take anything i say into consideration if you do not want to but,,, wait with your initiatives in this space.

i know i'm a massive hypocrite, i am in this space. i write for this space. i've also lost many trans friends for being in this space.

and i get the sentiments, i get that these come from a good place. but right now, Harry Potter fandom initiatives aren't what we need.

we don't need a fundraiser where people pay for a prompt and the money is donated - share the donation link on your fandom accounts and pray that, if this fandom is as inclusive and supportive as it claims to be, people will donate anyway.

i'm one person you do NOT have to listen to me, but there is a Pit in my Stomach at the idea of trying to combat this ruling by producing more art for this space.

what we need right now is discussions about reach. what we need right now is discussions about tiktok. what we need right now are big, heavy, uncomfortable discussions about what we are doing within this space, if we are going to keep doing it, and what we need to do to reduce further harm if we decide to stay.

the wounds from this ruling and so raw and even as someone in this space, seeing initiatives designed to help raise money for trans charities being rooted in the creation of fics and art? something that gives her even more traction? salt salt salt.

and i cannot imagine how heartbreaking it would feel to be a trans person NOT in this space and see that this is how people decided to combat it.

people are allowed to hate us for being here. we can't argue against the fact we keep her relevant or give her traction. we can do the best we possibly can, but people can still hate us for being here. they are completely within their right to. and trans people outside of this space? they will not feel supported by this. not at all. heck, even i don't.

i just,,, again. one person's opinion. but,, share donation links absolutely! but right now my efforts are entirely focused on formulating and eventually having discussion about what we do from here on out, and not on the creation of a wide-spreading initiative in which people need to receive Harry Potter art to donate.

donate anyway:

switchboard donation

amnesty international donation

trevor project donation

gendered intelligence donation

all out donation

hey!!!!! it's super uncool to reblog art from people who are stealing it from other artists!!

I've seen more and more accounts posting other people's fandom art and putting "credit to artist" in the tags -- that isn't real credit, especially if the artist doesn't know!!!! that is scummy behavior!!!

reblogging that stuff happens on accident sometimes for sure (I've done it myself without realizing!!) but I think we should all try to take some more care to make sure that the actual artist is getting credit and appreciation for their hard work and not someone who is ripping down other's art, reposting it, and de facto passing it off as their own!!

Just some food for thought because I too have been seeing lots of posts about Remus being mean/not being mean, and my main thought is that there's a big difference between snapping at your friends when you're angry or tired or upset, and being degrading and verbally abusive!! I think 100% Remus could and probably would be snappy or sometimes a little unintentionally mean/maybe even intentionally mean when he's super tired or in pain or hurting. And yes, sometimes I think he could very well be capable of causing harm to his friends! But I do think he would feel really bad immediately, and would either apologize or avoid the person he was rude to for a bit out of guilt. I do not think remus is the type to be degrading and horrible to his friends—or to his partners—and then use his pain/exhaustion as an excuse. If anything, I think he would internally feel that the wolf makes him angry or mean, and that would outwardly cause him fight tooth and nail to be in control/not lash out at people

hiii here’s a little peek at my christmas fic featuring trans remus! (he’s disabled as well but it’s not mentioned in this bit)

i’m aiming to have it all posted by christmas :)

ok i’m gonna go hide and not check tumblr for a while now