nickelmountain

I started listening to podfic in autumn/winter 2009. Most of what I listened to then was in SPN fandom, and my listening introduced me to writers and readers whose work I've followed ever since. I started recording my own in 2010, posting the majority of it in 2011. Engaging more fully in podfic fandom opened all kinds of doors for me. It encouraged my multi-fannishness, especially when it comes to small fandoms. I listened to and recorded SPN podfic in 2011, but the vast majority of my listening and recording happened in other (mostly smaller) fandoms. Some of them I knew well, others I had almost no familiarity with. That's one of the things I like best about podfic - when I really trust a reader's skill and taste, I'll follow them anywhere. I've discovered more than one new fandom and/or pairing that way, and it's always such a pleasure.

Listed below are ten of my favorite podfics from 2011. That's podfics I listened to in 2011, not necessarily podfics that were posted in 2011. I really struggled in picking just ten - I picked up a lot of new favorites last year, and this list is by no means comprehensive. Most of these podfics exemplify what I've been talking about - they're mostly in smaller, under-podficced fandoms, and in several of them I only sort-of knew the canon, but didn't care because the reading transported me. I highly recommend all of these, whether or not you're familiar with the canon.

Here goes:

( Recs posted below the cut )

I need to get in the habit of posting podfic recs. Not to mention leaving comments. Why is that so hard, y'all? *shakes head sadly* If you listen to any of these - which you totally should, they're all awesome - be stronger and braver than I am and leave some feedback for the readers. They deserve some serious love.

So, a few weeks ago over on the Twitterbessyboo and cantarina1 started talking about how awesome it would be to have sort of a Secret Santa thing for podficcers. Lots and lots of other podficcers agreed. So bess and ca'rina organized the #InformalTwitterPodficExchange and assigned us all recipients. I got fire_juggler; my gift to her is posted below.

It turns out fire_juggler also got me. The links were delivered on Christmas, but due to travel and inadequate technology, I wasn't able to listen until last night. Oh my god, you guys, I cannot flail hard enough. Her picks for me were PERFECT. She chose two short SPN fics, both of them pre-series and by writers I really enjoy. And her reading? Fantastic. She reads with such a clear, pleasant voice, and her pace is spot on. The longer of the two podfics features Jessica and Dean, and I loved the dialogue between them. Both podfics are incredibly awesome.

Thank you to fire_juggler for the wonderful gifts, and thanks to bessyboo and cantarina1 for putting this whole thing together!

 I haven't read nearly enough Dean/Cas, but these three make me happy:

1) And I Wake Up Blind, Like My Dreams Were Too Bright, by strangeandcharm , read by pandarus . This was one of the first Dean/Cas stories I read/listened to, and it makes for a good intro. It's actually a Jimmy fic - Castiel has amnesia, doesn't know he's an angel, and is institutionalized, all while Jimmy is awake and powerless within him. Jimmy is wonderful in this story - even when Castiel surrenders to circumstance, Jimmy continues to fight. Fayjay hops easily back and forth between Jimmy and Castiel's voices, and reads with wonderful energy.
2) See The World in Green and Blue, by parenthetical , read by pandarus . Castiel spends a day as a human in an effort to understand the human experience. This story is lovely - Castiel does laundry and eats pie under Dean's gleeful guidance, and has some really wonderful moments alone with each brother. I really enjoyed parenthetical's interpretation of the angelic experience - the way Castiel has to train himself to look at people's faces instead of reading their souls. Fayjay's reading is fantastic, as usual. She's another favorite of mine.3) Make The Man, by trinityofone , read by cath . Set during the 4th season ep where Zachariah rewrote Sam & Dean's lives and sent them to work at Sandover. Castiel decides that it's still his job to protect Dean, even if Dean isn't really being Dean. He introduces himself to Dean as a human, and is immediately out of his depth as their first conversation leads quickly back to Dean's apartment. The relationship that follows is lovely, as Castiel cares for Dean Smith and longs for Dean Winchester. cath reads with a really nice energy - a real pleasure to listen to.
Next: Pre-series

 First: Wincest is not my favorite thing. I'm not by any means opposed, but it's not what I look for in a fic. And when it does appear, I really like it to make sense.

The following three stories are all around awesome, and if anything is going to sell me on Sam/Dean, it's the h/c and the intimacy and the general hotness found in these three fics.

1) Last Outpost of All That Is, by eighth_horizon , read by rhea314 . Last Outpost is one of the first podfics I listened to, and it blew me away. It's an apocafic, influenced (if I understand correctly) by "The World Without Us." The story is quiet and claustrophobic, and the first incident of Wincest is so dead-on perfect, so believable and so exactly how it would happen, that it was surprisingly easy for the part of my brain that always says yeah, but they're brothers to just shut up for a little while. rhea314  gives a good read - her voice is clear, pitched low, and she reads with a calmness that serves this story so well.
2) Old Country, by astolat , read by pandarus . This one is a crossover with Harry Potter, and also among the first podfics I listened to. I had no idea that a crossover like this could work so well or be so much fun. Dean is perfect and hilarious as a Hufflepuff, and the portrayal of Hogwarts in the year following The Deathly Hallows is so good - all the students struggling to find their ground while mourning their losses and processing their grief. It was nice to spend some time among the Hufflepuffs, seeing the world from inside their House. And Sam the Slytherin, searching for a way to spring Dean from his deal...perfect. Fayjay reads with an animation and energy that brings all the characters immediately to life, and her musical selections are wonderful. As a podfic, Old Country still ranks high as among the most pure fun to listen to.
3) Song of the Treadmill, by tabaqui , read by twasadark . Song of the Treadmill is AU in more ways than one - it breaks from canon, and Sam is moving between realities due to a deal with an angel. He finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world in which demons walk the earth in their true, terrifying forms, and that world's version of Sam was killed by the shtriga. The world-building in this story is excellent, and the relationship that develops between Sam and Dean is so beautiful and so sweet. I listened to this story the same week I was reading "Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet" - in particular, at the same time as I was reading the essays on One True Pairing and Intimatopia, by Catherine Driscoll and Elizabeth Woledge, respectively. It gave me a lot to think about. twasadark is one of my favorite readers - she has a good, clear reading voice, and her dialogue is always animated and engaging. Sam sounds like Sam and Dean sounds like Dean. Not an easy feat, but as usual, she nails it.
Next up: Dean/Cas

 I spent all winter walking to and from work listening to podfic, largely courtesy of recs by nwhepcat and spnroundtable . I didn't de-lurk until Spring, so I never left comments for all the amazing writers and readers whose talent and creativity persuaded me to keep walking long after the ice melted and the roads were safe for bicycling again. It's time for me to fix my mistake. I'm going to break up my recs into four posts, very loosely categorized.

And, of course, I'm going to seek out the original posts, story by story, and comment.

Yay, fandom!