"I have found myself inexplicably drawn to these books, the complex world Collins has created, and the people she has placed in that world"

o.0.o

Both of us found ourselves drawn to one specific franchise while we were coping with what happened to us. For Gay, it was The Hunger Games. For me, the TV show Firefly. Although Gay discovered her series much later in her life, I discovered Firefly while I was still spending a lot of time with my father, and it struck a chord with me.

...

"I identify with Katniss because throughout the trilogy, the people around Katniss expect her to be strong and she does her best to meet those expectations, even when it costs her a great deal" (178)

o.0.o

Gay identified with Katniss, who she related to on a deep personal level. Both of them went through ordeals and were crushed under the weight of expectations, Gay as the "good girl," Katniss as the chosen one. In Firefly, I identified with River Tam, who was broken but still strong; who was surrounded by her family and loved ones; who worked her way through her trauma to become, if not happy, at least more content than she was when her story began.


A/N: genre selected shows the transition that fanfiction had on me, from sadness and a pervasive feeling of loneliness to the "hurt/comfort" of beginning to work through my emotional turmoil.