Sam Starbuck

Fan
Name:	Sam Starbuck
Alias(es):	copperbadge, Sam Vimes, samvimes, sam-storyteller, sam_storyteller
Type:	fanwriter, icon maker
Fandoms:	Doctor Who/Torchwood, Discworld, Good Omens, Harry Potter, House, M.D., Lord Peter Wimsey, Sherlock (BBC), Stargate Atlantis, White Collar etc.
Communities:	userpicks [1] jack_and_ellis [2] (original fiction) i_defeated_sga [3] (sga fics)
Other:	Pretty Little Oojahs [4] (website) Extribulum Press [5] (profic blog)
URL:	copperbadge at AO3 copperbadge at DW sam-storyteller at DW samvimes at FFN samvimes at Fiction Alley copperbadge at LJ Sam Vimes at Skyehawke copperbadge at Tumblr ouija_sam at Twitter
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Sam Starbuck aka copperbadge is a famous prolific fan author who has been publishing fanfiction in several fandoms since around 2003, with a relatively large public following her journals. Sam co-wrote various works with LadyJaida. In 2013 she was featured in an article at the Daily Dot entitled "How author Sam Starbuck shapes online fandom (and vice versa)."

The author does not correct people when they assume her to be male, but she is in fact a cis woman.

Blanket Statemant

Transformative Works policy: Please feel free to podfic, translate, fanbind, or create fanart related to any of my works. However, please do not charge money for streaming, download, or distribution of these works. Please DO send me a link (or on AO3, list it as a related work) so that I can see it and link back to it. Thanks!

Collections policy: After several incidents where adding my fic to a collection allowed other people to anonymize or hide my work, I no longer allow my work to be added to any collection I don't have control over.

Comments policy: I receive a high volume of comments on a weekly basis. In the past I have tried to reply to all comments, even if it's just with a simple "thank you", but it becomes very overwhelming very quickly. If I don't reply to your comment, it's nothing personal! I do read every comment and appreciate them.

LiveJournal Shenanigans

Circa October 2008, copperbadge's livejournal was hacked and five years worth of journal posts were deleted. Most of the posts were restored, but the comments were not.

Due to the 2017 LiveJournal TOS changes, copperbadge announced the fate of her many LJ accounts:

• sam_storyteller, theoriginalsam, i_defeated_sga, gta_of_doom would be deleted.
• sam_storyteller, copperbadge, and ask_aboutcoffee are backed up at cblj_backup.
• theoriginalsam is backed up at originalsam_backup.
• i_defeated_sga is backed up at sga_backup.
• gta_of_doom is backed up at gtaofdoom_backup.

As of April 2017, the copperbadge account on LJ had 7,611 posts; the account was created on 12 April 2003.

Controversies

In 2003 copperbadge wrote a Sam Vimes/Angua von Uberwald Discworld fanfic called Transformations. The fanfiction has plenty of dialogue and scenes lifted straight from the Discworld novel ‘’Men at Arms’’. About a month after originally posting the story it had a notice saying how some lines were lifted from Men at Arms. It is unknown if the original version posted to Fanfiction.net contains this warning as that version is no longer available.

Tabby recommends that you look elsewhere [than Transformations], and editorializes that she doesn't understand why this fic is so popular. It reads like canon because it is canon, with just a few extra paragraphs thrown in here and there and Vimes taking Carrot's place.

Tabby on TV Tropes

Essentially, this is the story of Men At Arms, with a twist. This means that occasionally, the original story slips in. Maybe more than occasionally. But don't think of it as plagiarism; think of it as recycling, or homage.

Sam’s note on Fanfiction.net

As Sam Storyteller, the author garnered interest by saying she was male. Her motivation for this is unclear.

Fan Comments

Pretty Little Oojahs - Sam Vimes' site, with fics of various fandoms. Don't know what the title means, but some great stuff is there, including Stealing Harry, a wonderful WIP (AU) about two men (yup, our Remus and Sirius) and a black-haired little boy with a strange scar. His pairings also vary, from straight to het, from Remus/Tonks to Remus/Sirius, and all is interesting and wonderful. Sam's writing is descriptive yet direct, and it's the perfect example of what you'd expect from a male fanfiction author. You won't regret taking a look!

–Vixenette's Midnight Musings

Notable Fanworks

Doctor Who and Torchwood

• Trying to Communicate - PG. Recommended as the story that breaks fandom boundaries and pulls in folks from everywhere to read it. It's funny. It's pop culture. It's Torchwood, so it just might happen. ...read it because the dialog is witty, charming and touching; the plot is solid and plausible; the characters are spot on. Be warned, drinking beverages while reading this may be hazardous to your keyboard. At the time of this edit (4 Dec 2010), the story has 29 pages of comments at its main URL. [story link]

• The Theory of Two Centres - R, Jack/Ianto, Amnesia. One recommender described it as a thrilling take on an old Torchwood villain, Sam's skills with characterization combine with a fast-paced plot to make for, more or less, the perfect fic. Sexy, heartrending, pulse-jumping, mysterious, funny, and more, this is really the best of what fanfiction can be. [story link]

Harry Potter

• Registration - PG, Gen, Marauders Era. Registering a child for Hogwarts is a big deal. [story link]

• Stealing Harry - R, Remus/Sirius, Alternate Universe. Stealing Harry grabs canon by the throat and disembowls it. If Lucius Malfoy got to Peter Pettigrew before Sirius could, Sirius would be a bookshop owner, Remus would have a steady job, and one day, when Harry Potter was eight-and-a-half years old, they might kidnap him from the Dursleys... [story link]

• Laocoon's Children - R, Remus/Sirius, Snape/Tonks, some canon ships. Laocoon's Children follows the Stealing Harry alternate universe through Harry's school years, paralleling the canon. Please be aware that this story is unfinished and unlikely to be completed; years 1 and 2 are complete, year 3 is nearly complete, and I have posted notes regarding years 4-7. [story link]

• Cartographer's Craft - R, Harry/Sirius, Remus/Tonks, Ron/Hermione. When a young Sirius Black is resurrected from the Marauder's Map, the Order has to decide what to do with him -- and Harry has to decide how he feels about it. Alternate Universe version of book seven. [story link]

• The Rules of Being A Godson - PG-13, Teddy/James. Teddy Lupin never gets too close or feels too much; his godfather's son never does anything else. [story link]

Sherlock

• Lab Book - Sherlock/John first time. Aliunde writes: Beautifully written, gorgeous characterization, clever and easy and wonderful from start to finish. [story link]

Stargate Atlantis

• The Difference Engine - R, McKay/Sheppard, robot-fic. Recommended as [...] an incredibly well-written robot!John story with great characterization of the main and supporting characters. The writing is a on the minimalistic yet effective side; some characters may only a few lines but you will like remember them for a long time. [story link]

• My Home And Native Land - PG, Gen with light background McKay/Sheppard. Ronon-centric story about his acclimatization to Atlantis and his friendship with Chuck the gate-tech. [story link]

Marvel's The Avengers

• Arms and the Man - R, Steve/Tony. His best friend keeps cockblocking him, his relationship guru is a computer, and he might be gay. The future is very complicated. [story link]

• Homefront - R, Steve/Tony. Steve Rogers is a capable leader, a kind and cheerful man, a good friend, a strong role model, and a loyal soldier. He's also teetering on the edge of suicide. [story link]

• Ironsides - R, Steve/Tony. Antonia Carter Stark takes no shit and no prisoners. [story link]

• A Partial Dictionary Of The 21st Century By Captain Steve Rogers, US Army - R, Steve/Tony. Steve is adapting well to the new millennium, and he has the dictionary to prove it. [story link]

• Foodieverse - T, Steve/Tony. It's an AU where everyone works in the food industry. That makes total sense and is definitely not wildly irrational on any axis One fic in the series written with scifigrl47. [story link]

Other

• Don't Read The Comments is a fannish original work where the protagonist has the ability to delete any comments from the internet. The work is also tagged as queer themes.