there is one outstandingly good thing about s4 and that is that they specifically wrote in a memory altering drug and therefore i can say whatever the fuck i want about anything i want and be like, well you don’t know that that’s not actually true
umbrellaswordgun (mycroft’s obvious jealousy over sherlock’s fieldwork skills resolved in fantasy)
the urge to see 221b blown up (i.e., did they have sex on this piece of furniture? It Must Go)
literally the entire eurus character is “caring is not an advantage” wrapped up in a hideous personified package
which mycroft must then unwrap as he comes to terms with john and sherlock’s new relationship
and then in the end he relinquishes his creepy overbearing possessiveness and allows sherlock his freedom
sherlock got the play the cool travel handy violin while mycroft was stuck learning the extremely inconvenient to travel with piano. more jealousy, of course.
the molly thing, and this actually is serious, could be because mycroft views molly as easily manipulated and therefore a better partner for sherlock – he would be able to manipulate her the way he cannot manipulate john.
see? literally the more you think about this the more sense it makes.
the fade to black/sexy cutaway in tld is because mycroft walks in as they are kissing. it’s perfect timing!! and then mycroft is like, i’ll take that td12 straight to the vein, lads, and he wishes, in order, that he could: cope by eating cake, cope by shooting himself, cope by blowing himself up, cope by throwing himself down some stairs, and then cope by being someone else entirely
It’s now
been a year and a half since I first posted “To A Stranger”, based on Mad Lori’s Performance in a
Leading Role, on Archive of Our Own. The response was phenomenal and the
comments and kudos from the Sherlock Fan Community have been heartwarming. I
talk about the process of writing the script/ fanfic here, if you’re
interested.
(I’m currently
struggling with the rewrite of one of my non-fic novels, and sometimes when I’m
really bummed about it, I go back to the TaS comments and read through them all
again to remind me that my work is loved and that people can be generous and
kind, and that the hard work is worth it.)
It’s now also
been just over a year since I decided, with Lori’s permission and the
encouragement of Kelley, Random
Nexus, and the rest of the Sherlock Community, to tighten the fanfiction up
into an original script and start submitting it around to film festivals and
screenplay competitions.
Yesterday,
I heard back from my final competition, so I thought I would give everyone a
snapshot of what has happened with the script.
Here are the
competitions I submitted to:
Toronto
International Screenwriting Competition
The Carmesi: International Screenwriting Contest for Diverse Voices.
2016 Launch Pad Feature Competition
Depth of Field International Film Festival
Vail Screenplay Contest
California Women’s Film Festival (Summer)
Hamilton Film Festival – Canadian Film Market
2nd Annual Stage 32 Happy Writers Feature Script Contest
Shore Scripts Screenplay Contest
Neu World Studios International Film Festival
Script Pipeline Screenwriting and TV Writing Competition
Toronto Independent Film Festival
Slamdance Screenplay Competition
Vancouver Lift-Off Film Festival
Canada International Film Festival
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting
Now, what
happens when you submit is that someone – usually an intern, a volunteer, or a
jury member – sorts through the submissions and organizes the selections for
the first-round readers to take a crack at.
At that point they either reject the entry for being incomplete or
incorrect, or at the next stage, decline to include it in the
festival/competition. The screenplay (or finished film if it’s a film festival)
is then moved out of consideration.
But if they
select it for consideration in the competition, then the screenplay is called an
“Official Selection” and you get laurels to use on posters, on your website,
and in media packages. Like this:
To A
Stranger was named an Official Selection / Finalist of the four festivals above.
However,
only three of those announcements were made public as it turns out that the Canada
International Film Festival had accidentally included and judged categories
that it had intended to eliminate. We finalists were informed and shouldn’t
have been. (You
can read more about that small disaster here.)
From there
the judges read the scripts and suggest their winners. Rejected scripts often,
at this point, receive notification that they weren’t selected as a winner, and
sometimes get suggested editing notes. My notes were… wildly contradictory. One
reader said they loved the distinct voices of the characters, and another said
they were unrealistic and that people never have such distinct voices. Some
were mad that it was a gay love story where gay issues weren’t the central
topic of the film, and some were relieved that it was a gay love story where
gay issues weren’t the central topic of the film. Some loved the mood and tone
of my descriptions, and some said there was too much “authoring” happening in
the descriptions.
From there,
To A Stranger was given two awards:
(The latter
being the “Rising Star Award” at the Canada International Film Festival that I
was informed I had won, and then immediately told that actually, they were
eliminating the category. Oops, sorry.)
In summary,
I entered 16 competitions over the length of one calendar year, was made an
official selection four times, and won two awards (sort of).
However,
what I really wanted out of the competitions – a producer to contact me to
discuss options – never happened.
The
producer who DID contact me about it, though… well, that’s a story for later.
Once the discussions that are happening can be made public and contracts are
signed.
I’ll keep
you appraised of what’s happening there. My hopes are up, but as they say in the
world of film:
Everything
is nothing until it’s actually something.
Thanks for
taking this journey with me, Fandom. I can’t wait until I can tell you about
what happened next.
At least once, Sherlock has jolted awake during the night looking scared and John’s sat up quickly next to him like “oh God are you okay was it a nightmare was is Serbia what was it love are you okay can you talk to me??” and Sherlock just shook his head a bit dazed and was like “no I just dreamed there was a really big spider in the room, will you check under the bed?”
At least once, Sherlock has jolted awake during the night looking scared and John’s sat up quickly next to him like “oh God are you okay was it a nightmare was is Serbia what was it love are you okay can you talk to me??” and Sherlock just shook his head a bit dazed and was like “no I just dreamed there was a really big spider in the room, will you check under the bed?”
At least once, Sherlock has jolted awake during the night looking scared and John’s sat up quickly next to him like “oh God are you okay was it a nightmare was is Serbia what was it love are you okay can you talk to me??” and Sherlock just shook his head a bit dazed and was like “no I just dreamed there was a really big spider in the room, will you check under the bed?”
Fanon Mycroft:
– controls the entire British government
– is omni present
– can single-handedly make jerks who are mean to Sherlock disappear without a trace
– can get Sherlock out of literally ANY sticky situation
– can make any crimes/killings/drug charges that Sherlock made go away
– always has everything under control
– is god
Canon Mycroft:
– can barely control anything
– struggles to keep Moriarty locked up
– can’t take down Magnussen
– is barely able to control sociopathic sister to stay in prison
– has to whore around to ensure Sherlock doesn’t get incarcerated
– almost got himself and/or Sherlock killed in sherrinford
– has a sad fridge
Don’t forget to add, ‘throws up at the sight of blood/murder
feel free to add more x’D
and also
fanon john: – always kind – the only one to appreciate sherlock – always compliments sherlock when sherlock is being brilliant with his deduction skills – the only one who treats sherlock like a human being with feelings – has infinite patience and is eternally kind forever and can never get angry or do sherlock any wrong – always wears ugly-cute jumpers
canon john: – kind of a douche, laughs at people – blames sherlock when anything goes wrong – always stops sherlock from explaining his deductions because sherlock “is a show off” – overlooks 1001 things sherlock has done for him and calls him a “machine” or “cock” or a “serial liar” – only wears ugly jumpers twice in the entire show and is eternally trying to change his fashion statement to run away from the shadows of ugly jumpers
meanwhile,
fanon molly: – either completely nonexistant – or is single-handedly the central most important human in the entire universe in sherlolly fics
canon molly: – occasionally appears for rare but important scenes to progress the story narrative – tries her best but almost always gets screwed over – eternal pining
These are too funny.
Fanon Moriarty: -thinks about sex more than crime -is secretly a soft, precious muffin -frequently uses foul language -gaygaygaygaygay -says “dear” and “darling” every other scene -strangely archaic dialogue -keeps reusing things he already said in the show -had a deeply tragic past -loves Glee and Doctor Who -is high-key in love with Sherlock
Canon Moriarty: -flirtatious personality -unapologetic king of crime who would not fall in love with OCs or cry in front of anyone without shooting them afterward -basically never uses foul language -is not Andrew Scott; flirts with both men (Sherlock, helicopter henchman) and women (Molly, Kitty Riley, girl who gave him gum), described his time as Jim from IT as “playing gay,” which implies he was acting a part -says “dear” once and has never said “darling” -actually said the word “doofus” before (I burst out laughing the first time because it was so childish) -delightfully unpredictable, never does or says the same thing twice -might have had a dark past, but clearly doesn’t give a crap -watched Glee once while attempting to seduce a woman to get to his enemy -desperately wants to kill Sherlock and destroy his reputation for the sake of relieving boredom *Bonus – has been implied as a cannibal twice??? What the frick, Mofftiss O.o
LOL, accurate. Somebody please do this for Sherlock, Greg, Mary, and Mrs Hudson. I tried to think of something but I just finished traveling for one week with barely enough sleep.
Fanon Sherlock: – able to solve every case easily every time – very eloquent, uses long ass complex sentences with fancy words – can deduce anything and usually always gets it exactly right – always has a clever trick and is always ten steps ahead of the villains – talks in formal archaic mannerisms – always refers to Mycroft as “brother mine”
Canon Sherlock: – struggles to solve cases. Nearly gets killed in almost every case – almost always gets it wrong or outwitted by his enemies – thinks he’s a step ahead of his foes but actually overlooks some things and is actually losing – not as clever as he wishes to be – says things like “laterz” or “who he” – “hey bro” – “um sis” – hides his smoking habits from mummy and blames Mycroft if caught
OMG this: “-might have had a dark past, but clearly doesn’t give a crap”
I’m not going to suggest we take life lessons from Moriarty, but we should all definitely be this.
Fanon Mrs. Hudson:
Flits about making tea.
Is a scatterbrained old lady.
Has no life outside of John and Sherlock.
Clucks about making disapproving noises.
Constantly needs rescuing.
Canon Mrs. Hudson:
Is a sexually active old lady into kinky shit that’s none of your business.
Blazes it on the regular.
Used to manage a drug empire in Miami.
Can drive a sports car like Mario Andretti.
Used to strip.
Is smart enough to hide a secret mobile phone from an international assassin even while being beaten and threatened because she ain’t no snitch.
Can steal shit off famous detective Sherlock Holmes without him noticing.
Can stuff Sherlock Holmes into the trunk of her car when he annoys her.
Tells off Mycroft Holmes all the time and he still gets her off scot-free with the police simply because she called him.
Hired Sherlock Holmes to make sure her husband got the death penalty for his crimes and she got all his money – in process, had Sherlock Holmes fall in love with her and treat her like his surrogate mother.
Is only person allowed to cuddle Sherlock Holmes.
“Is only person allowed to cuddle Sherlock Holmes” THIS IS SO TRUE
Fanon Greg Lestrade:
Mr Good guy
Always ready to help Sherlock
Quite normal actually
Finds Sherlock slightly annoying but puts up with him.
Cool Calm and Collected
Not half bad at doing detective work
Canon Greg Lestrade:
Puts feet up on desk and eats donut
Is the personification of Do no Harm but Take No Shit
Kicks his car in frustration
Actually thought Sherlock moaned when kissing Molly, instead of it being his phone. (How was he made a detective?)
Will say what he thinks
Enjoys poking fun at Sherlock and John to some degree. (”Can you lower your vioce?” “NOT REALLY”
Don’t forget “records video of Sherlock when drugged by anaesthetic”
I would be happy if even a few people responded to this to contribute stuff they love about BBC Sherlock canon. Just stuff they enjoy without the need to think about it or justify it, etc. Happy things. Here, I’ll start.
John is so cute. Just looking at his face makes me happy. It’s fun to watch him get quietly angry, or pull rank, or look at Sherlock the way he does.
I also like to watch John sprain people.
Sherlock is also cute and makes amazing facial expressions, and sometimes he’s got at least a dozen chins. Particular bonus for Sherlock pouting and/or being drunk, and Sherlock making the oh-face.
Extra extra bonus for Sherlock’s really ridiculous jokes at John’s expense. Oh god. It’s kind of cute though.
Should I mention that time when Sherlock was fighting people and it was like slow-mo and his ass in those pants…. Actually, anytime Sherlock’s fighting people. Definitely worthwhile.
Everything is so pretty, shiny, with a great soundtrack, creative camera work, etc. Fun to watch even when you want to scream at the characters.
Mycroft being droll and smiling that little smile that says he’s humoring you but also imagining ruining your life in 1238 different ways. He’s like so catty. He’s the apotheosis of cattiness, to the point where Gatiss might have written a self-insert.
Sherlock’s little joke about how he imagines multiple ways to murder Mycroft, and actually anytime they’re together and are having that super-catty sibling Dynamic (although not *that* Dynamic… this is a different dynamic, okay).
Anytime Moriarty is on-screen, swishing and snarking his way to eternal glory, but specifically the immortal comment about shoes. And, I have to say, the lip-syncing.
Remember that time he swished his way to the crown jewels? Yeah. Foxy.
That time John held on to Sherlock’s sleeve, carefully, as they ran.
That time Sherlock looked at John across the cop cars, and said to himself: ‘oh my god’, because. Oh my God, right?
That time John called Sherlock an annoying dick, a cock, and a drama queen… but you know he meant I love you.
That time in Mrs Hudson’s kitchen. John’s face.
The times in the taxi. All the times.
That time Sherlock winked at John in that hugely exaggerated way, like, you *know* what I mean, Jooohhnnn.
That time Sherlock woke up and his first word was ‘John’, and then when he was out of it and a pretty lady he’s supposed to have been into was trying to hit on him, but he started and said, ‘where’s John?’
That time John was just kinda asking whether Sherlock was single, licking his lips like, ‘good’. That’s what he said.
That time Sherlock blinked a lot and John was like, okay now this is getting kind of intense…. 😳
More, anyone?
Every time Sherlock stopped off at a cafe in the middle of a case because John might be hungry.
That time they bumped into each other in front of the place that sold happy cats in Chinatown and John looked up and went heeeeeyyyy before he realized it was Sherlock.
That time John was getting them a room at a cute little B & B for the weekend, and Sherlock walked in and undressed him with his eyes
That time Sherlock was stoned and John put him to bed and patted his butt on the way out
That time Sherlock went on about the thing John made with peas, and the depth and breadth of John’s jumpers as a part of a best man speech
When John got up to hug him in the middle of his speech, and Sherlock wanted to give the rest of the speech with John’s arm around his neck
That time John and Sherlock were eating breakfast together and Mycroft came in and said something rude about Mrs. Hudson and all three of them gave Myc the stink-eye and he scrunched up his face and apologized
That time John was wearing a blue onesie at a crime scene and looking at Sherlock like he was ice cream wrapped in gold flake, and said “fantastic” and Sherlock looked all blushy and blinky
Some mornings, now, Sherlock leaves his hair
ungelled, silky and loose, to savor the way John runs a careless hand
over it, passing by. He’ll let his stubble remain until he gets a chance
to rub his face roughly in John’s neck and hear his surprised giggle.
After a shower, he stands in front of the mirror and smooths his hands
over his naked belly, feeling the softening, and smiles, because John
cooks for them every night, magnificent food, and it’s good; it’s more
than good. They’re home.
Meanwhile something’s happening to John
as he settles into the fact of Sherlock-and-John: he’s becoming clearer
around the edges, visible, vivid. His jeans hold him closer and his
shirts get brighter; jewel tones that set off the silver of his sculpted
hair. He steps out with wildly patterned socks peeking above his
sensible shoes. Sherlock never mentions the layers of John’s
self-protection coming off; but he looks his fill.
One night
they’re reading together in the quiet of the living room when Rosie
peeks her head in; on her way out to meet friends. Sherlock reminds her
to take her pocketknife, and not to take drinks from people she doesn’t
know, and John asks her to text him in two hours and tell him how it’s
going. She smiles her reassurances, Yes, of course, yes, I will; asks
Sherlock if he likes her nail polish (teal with a subtle sparkle) and he
says he does. It goes nicely with her top. She leaves. It’s quiet.
“I liked her polish too,” John says. “I wish she’d ask me what I think of her outfits.”
“She knows which of us has taste.“
“Hey!”
“All
right, your taste is fine. But no one would expect you to have a
passionate opinion on nail polish, John.” Sherlock’s tone is indulgent.
“What if I do?” John’s blushing, but his chin rises bravely.
Sherlock gives him a good long stare and then starts to smile. “John. Do you?”
John’s
blush deepens. “I used to sneak into Harry’s room and try hers on when I
was six, seven years old.” He sighs. “Not stupid enough to leave it on
more than five minutes. If mum had caught me there’d have been hell to
pay.”
“Your mother,” says Sherlock, clearly, “was an idiot. And
Rosie has an excellent array of nail colors in the catchall next to the
sink.”
Rosie comes home at half ten to find her dads in the
kitchen, spiking their mugs of hot cocoa with the Christmas liquor, with
the third Star Wars movie on pause in the sitting room. Sherlock’s
nails are a deep, rich red, and John’s are a shimmery, starry blue, and
they’re both mussed and blushy enough that she says promptly, “Hi dads.
Bye dads,” grabs a tin of biscuits and heads straight upstairs. She
knows very well when to get out of their way.
Downstairs, the Star Wars theme song starts up, and almost covers the sound of their laughter.
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