Dear Yulemouse

[larryhammer]

(Context: Yuletide is an annual fanfiction gift exchange for very small fandoms, notable for its large number of participants and the high average quality of stories. Last year, I received this lovely Kokinshu fic and wrote a swords-and-sandals adventure about young Agamemnon. I'm participating again this year, once more offering and requesting only public-domain fandoms.)

Thank you for offering to write a story in one of these fandoms. In general, I'm not picky -- when I say "any" I mean *anything* would delight me. Just the fact that you have offered to write in one of these indicates that you are a person of excellent taste, which means I'm sure I'll be delighted with anything you come up with.

On the off chance that it might be more useful than the above, here's some notes on my requests.


1. Ramayana

An epic poem in Sanskrit, one of the two national epics of India.

I want to see how Sita's abduction by Ravana would play out if she was, or were replaced by, a ninja. (Where by "ninja" I mean an actual ninja, not a functional equivalent.) I mean, obviously she'd still lose and be abducted -- because, well, Ravana -- but at least she'd lose INTERESTINGLY. And not be so stupid in the lead-up.

Context for this request can be found here. Context for the idea of replacing characters with ninjas is here. The public-domain translation of the Ramayana I've been reading is here -- the abduction takes place in Book 3.


2. Kokinwakashuu (Kokinshu)

A poetry anthology compiled around 905 C.E. of 1111 mostly short poems arranged in 20 thematic books, which set the tone and topics of Japanese poetry for the next thousand years (minus a few decades).

Anything would be good. Possible prompts include:

• A story elaborating any poetry exchange, such as #782-783, or #62-63, or #938.
  
• A story about Ono no Komachi, including her poems.
  
• The progress of a love affair as documented through various anonymous poems of books 11-15.
  
• The year's seasons as refracted through the first six books.
  
• Modern life if poems were still used socially as they were in the Heian era.

Or anything else the collection might inspire you to write.

The most readily available modern translations are by Rodd & Henkenius and by Helen Craig McCullough -- both are reasonably accurate, with McCullough's being slightly more readable but way under-annotated. I've translated the first two books starting in this post (ebook version), with book III ongoing in my other journal. I've also posted poems at random, including Komachi's complete works, under my translation tag.


3. Journey to the West

A picaresque Chinese novel about the (mis)adventures of a T'ang dynasty monk who traveled to India to retrieve clean copies of the Buddhist sutras, accompanied by a Monkey, a Pig, a River Demon, and a dragon disguised as a horse, all of whom are only in it to get shortened sentences for past misdeeds. Everything that could possibly go wrong does, at entertaining length. One of the few works of classic literature to include canonical m-preg.

Again, anything, as long at it has Monkey. (Marvelous Monkey!) Possible prompts:

• A "lost" episode from the journey.
  
• "Worst Journey to the West" - a Worst Journey in the World crossover (context)
  
• "Song of the Journey Southwest" - in which Monkey meets the Tarbaby (context)

Or something else. Surprise me!

There are two English translations currently in print -- I read Jenner's, which is available in paperback and online, but Yu's also has a good reputation. Waley's older Monkey is an abridgment.


---L.

Comments

[sovay]

An epic poem in Sanskrit, one of the two national epics of India.

Have you seen Garin Nugroho's Opera Jawa (2006)? I wrote it about it rather incoherently here; it doesn't have ninjas, but I think you might still want to see it.

[larryhammer]

Not yet. I think I need to finish reading the Ramayana for the background before going on to later responses, especially as densely layered as that one sounds.

---L.

[janni.livejournal.com]

Modern life if poems were still used socially as they were in the Heian era.

If someone else doesn't write this, you need to. Seriously.

[larryhammer]

Maybe.

---L.