catherineldf: (Default)
catherineldf ([personal profile] catherineldf) wrote2010-03-27 04:29 pm

Corset fittings and public personas

I went to Scoundrelle's Keep this morning to get fitted for a new ensemble. This will consist of a black silk corset, black ruffly/steampunky blouse and a black waterfall skirt with some lace trim when it is complete and I will look something like a middle-aged Victorian vampire with an excellent dressmaker. Not sure what I will end up doing with my hair but no doubt inspiration will strike when things are further along. Why I'm doing this now, after generally being a con goer/filthy pro not known for either garb or costumes, is a different story.

Some of it is that I am turning 47 on Tuesday. I've been contemplating getting an interesting outfit of a steampunky variety for awhile and I like to schedule big, flashy things around Occasions. I have also been assured that my back will be happier when corseted, which I look forward to finding out. In addition, I will also admit to vanity; I am a gal who likes her outfits and they are harder to come by when one is of a certain stature and build, particularly when one also has strong feelings about looking silly (variously defined). And I'm feeling a bit frumpy. I do not like feeling frumpy. It is bad for my self-image.

At the same time, there are interesting and prevalent opinions about Writers Who Dress Up. One school of thought is that a filthy pro must never, ever do this. The price of anything resembling is a costume is that you will immediately get taken less seriously by the numerous roving agents/editors/publishers/other writers and miscellaneous flora and fauna assumed to roam through every con.  This is less of a concern for me than it might have been once. My experience is that flamboyance generally doesn't make much difference, but that may be because I am published and have begun to receive my tiny modicum of fame, rather than still trying to sell something, anything. I might also add I am aware that there are "hip and cool" fandoms to dress up in and suspect that may also make a difference in how the costumed author is perceived - steampunk good, Star Trek dubious and so forth. I have also observed that while the occasional pro may sneer, fans generally love it, especially if it looks good. And they're the ones who usually buy the books, run the cons and generally make fandom function.

There are, of course, plenty of writers who ignore the mortal terror of Being Taken Less Seriously, and wear whatever they please. In my experience, this group is often a lot of fun to hang out with. Dressing up and knowing you do it reasonably well (even if only by your own standards) is fun and often confidence-boosting. The clothes make the writer in this sense, and you can take your shy, socially-inept self out and become someone else, even for a little while. One of the beauties of fandom in its many guises is that there is such a remarkable range of things to experiment with.

Your thoughts? And yes, when it's ready, I will try and post a decent picture. :-)

[identity profile] rm.livejournal.com 2010-03-27 09:35 pm (UTC)(link)
You know, I bump into this ALL the time. I spend most of DragonCon being intensely miserable every year because I Cannot Dress Up.

Gallifrey One is like the only con where no one gives a shit about the lines on these things, but the Whoniverse is like that. No lines. None at all.

Do I have a firm opinion on it? Not really. Do I loathe people lecturing me about it as if I'm particularly slow? Oh yes. Clothes are always costume and it's annoying to be instructed on the subject from those who don't know that.

I think your ensemble sounds fine.
Edited 2010-03-27 21:36 (UTC)

[identity profile] sartorias.livejournal.com 2010-03-27 09:37 pm (UTC)(link)
I've always loved dressing up, from the time I was a teen and designed and hand-sewed all my own costumes.

The one time I listened was when someone told me that Readercon pros never dress up, never never. Since Readercon totally ignored me as C grade anyway, I realized it doesn't matter what I do: people will have their preconceptions, so why not do what I like and have fun?
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[identity profile] mmerriam.livejournal.com 2010-03-27 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
Figuring that I'm a "D List" pro at best, I am assembling a steampunk costume for CONvergence. I have a steampunk/weird west novella coming out this year, so what the hey. My wife is an award winning costumer, so anything she helps put me in will look good.

And if someone give me a line about professionals not dressing up, I'll just tell them "This is my professional image."

[identity profile] lee-martindale.livejournal.com 2010-03-27 11:54 pm (UTC)(link)
The new ensemble sounds luscious. We should talk about hair to go with it when we cross paths next.

Normally, I don't do costuming when on the panel participants' list. And, yes, part of that *is* a matter of pro-think. However, there are exceptions. If I have a Musketeer demo immediately before or after a panel, I will be in my fencing finest for the panel. (Also sweat, if it's an after the demo panel and I haven't had time to grab a quick shower.) Likewise for any panel immediately before or after a scheduled performance. If MCing the Masquerade, working an SCA demo, or hosting a costume ball, I'll likely be in appropriate costume. I consider all of those ways to indulge my love of doing costuming and not going too far beyond dressing "pro."

[identity profile] jean-roberta.livejournal.com 2010-03-28 01:28 am (UTC)(link)
I look forward to the photo - and yes, I think you must do something fabulous with your hair to complete the look. My only pet peeve on this subject is folks who dress in bizarrely inconsistent ways - e.g. my fellow-actor in an amateur production of Victorian one-act melodrama who willingly wore an ankle-length dress for the part but no makeup and no coiffure because: (& I quote) "It's not me." Re being Taken Less Seriously, this might apply if you wrote textbooks for law students, for instance, but anyone who wouldn't take you seriously in the black silk corset prob. doesn't read your fiction anyway. :~)

[identity profile] skogkatt.livejournal.com 2010-03-28 02:38 am (UTC)(link)
Personally, I'm all for it.
deakat: (supreme)

[personal profile] deakat 2010-03-28 04:34 pm (UTC)(link)
That sounds fabulous. I'm hoping that by the time Gaylaxicon rolls around this year my financial circumstances will allow me to indulge in something along those lines myself.

[identity profile] queenofillusion.livejournal.com 2010-03-28 08:23 pm (UTC)(link)
I must admit I went as a published author (albiet in the non-fic field) to several panels at CONvergence and was the only one dressed up...as a pirate, no less. At first, I got funny looks, mostly from the other writers on the panel, but when I said things that made sense to them and gave good advice, they tended to look past the Dressing Up in Costume Thing. For the main part.

I agree that Steampunk is probably dandy or anything of that ilk. Dressing up as Spock, on the other hand, might be harder to pull off. Still, showing a bit of cleavage is always a goodly and useful thing, I've found.

Can't wait to see your outfit!!!!!! I agree. Frumpy is BAD. I have this mortal terror of ending up frumpy someday. Being the strange old lady around town is more my goal.

Personally, I'll either wear a costume at a con or dress up as funky-cool-sexy as possible...which is a sort of costume, anyway.

Veronica (who also likes the Victorian look)

[identity profile] thaedeus.livejournal.com 2010-03-29 05:52 pm (UTC)(link)
Writer's get to dress how they want, whenever they want.
It's a perk.

If anyone gives you any trouble, just unleash a Lovecraftian rant in their general direction. And if it's a publisher, make fun of THEIR clothes.

They should consider themselves lucky that they ran into a
verbally-abusive, and yet non-violent, non-smoking, non-alcoholic writer in the first place.

I like it when sexy vamps dress up as writers... um, I mean....