![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
100 days of enemy recs: 9. Bone Wars RPF
The recs list for this one will be pretty easy because, despite the fact that this has become a perennial yuletide nom, there is only one fanfic over 1000 words (And half of what's left is deliberate badfic). Luckily the one we have is a very good one!
Cope and Marsh were two 19th Century American naturalists who mostly studied fossils (Marsh especially; Cope did a lot more other stuff too.) They are the RL best-friends-to-nemeses. They started out working together with fulsome compliments and ended up, like, dynamiting each others' camps, and they both died mad about it.
There is 0 evidence there was any romance but it's the internet! And even without the internet their relationship over the years is fascinating and reads like an adventure novel. (I would say I am amazed that Mary Anning got a queer historical before they did, but then again, if Hollywood has taught me anything it's that the only queer people around before Oscar Wilde invented gayness were pretty white lesbians with class issues.)
Anyway! Here is the fic! There should be more.
Cope and Marsh were two 19th Century American naturalists who mostly studied fossils (Marsh especially; Cope did a lot more other stuff too.) They are the RL best-friends-to-nemeses. They started out working together with fulsome compliments and ended up, like, dynamiting each others' camps, and they both died mad about it.
There is 0 evidence there was any romance but it's the internet! And even without the internet their relationship over the years is fascinating and reads like an adventure novel. (I would say I am amazed that Mary Anning got a queer historical before they did, but then again, if Hollywood has taught me anything it's that the only queer people around before Oscar Wilde invented gayness were pretty white lesbians with class issues.)
Anyway! Here is the fic! There should be more.
- Monsters Cuvier Did Not Dream Of (4781 words) by CenozoicSynapsid
Fandom: 19th Century Paleontology RPF, 19th Century CE RPF
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Edward Drinker Cope/Othniel Charles MarshAdditional Tags: Paleontology, The Bone Wars, Love/Hate, stagecoach robbery, Human Trash Fires
Othniel Marsh regrets.
no subject
Not queer that I recall, but there's been at least one straight-up SF novel about the Bone Wars. The one I read was by Brett Davis (and titled, of course, Bone Wars), from Baen back in '98; it's been a long time, but I recall having rather liked the book (and that it felt pretty solidly researched).
no subject
Oh, that does sound fun! Enemies team up against an outside foe! (How did I know there would be time travels.) And it looks like it's still up on the Free Library...
no subject
Because Ao3 treats the "Bone Wars RPF" fandom as an untaggable subset of "19th century", I wonder if you saw the companion piece I wrote at the same time. It's not technically a Bone Wars fic, but does involve the head of Edward Drinker Cope. Both stories felt a little unbalanced on their own: the other one is all tragic melodrama, and this one is a screwball comedy.
Coping Strategies (5663 words) by CenozoicSynapsid
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 19th Century Paleontology RPF
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Characters: Original Characters, Edward Drinker Cope
Additional Tags: Paleontology, Skull Theft, Mormonism, Internalized Homophobia, Caper Fic
Summary:
Edward Drinker Cope left his skull to Science. Science should have taken better care of it...
no subject
I saw that one and it definitely went on my "read later" list. Trying to do a recs list in a different fandom every day for three months means I have time to rec but not read or comment like I wish I could!