Because I haven't polled in a while, and I may be going into withdrawal

[bauble]

I think it should not come as a surprise to anyone that I find fandom endlessly fascinating. Like most things I love in life, I engage both directly with said thing and indirectly with it on a meta level. Another thing that I've learned is that the way I engage with fandom, personally, is quite different than the way many other fans do. These

Comments

[copperiisulfate]

I too find fandom quite fascinating and I'd love to hear about how you engage with fandom. I honestly don't know what the 'mainstream' view is these days but I'd be interested to hear how your approach differs :)

as for the poll, I'm not big on the h/c unless it's an episode coda or something where I feel something went very wrong and I need a fix-it. the kind of stuff that takes me out of fic is so varied that I can't really list it all but I would say that generally if it's characterization that I don't feel the author is selling well or if there is nothing unique or gripping about a story almost immediately, I will probably be reluctant to carry on. Of course, this applies more for big fandoms where there is so much fic that I have to be very selective about what I read for time constraints alone. Also, for shippy fic, unless it's established-relationship, I need a lot of build up to accept the romance as believable. I'm also probably unusual in that I'm not a fan of sex thrown into fics for the hell of it. If it feels organic and like it belongs then great, but I get annoyed when people throw in a token sex scene just because sex sells (even though I'm completely aware that it's true). Another selling point for me is setting and background characters and how tangible they are. If a story sounds like it is just about character A (and B) in a cardboard cutout universe then I find it hard to stay invested.

[bauble]

I think I'm unusual in that my wants/likes for fanfic and original fiction and art are more or less the same: I want art that makes me feel, and makes me think. That is also my writing goal: to create works that inspire readers to think and to feel. I'm aware that most fans draw a clear distinction between what they want/expect/will accept in fanfiction versus what they want/expect/will accept in original fiction. For example, I have some friends who won't read my fiction if it is too sad or ends unhappily or etc.

A lot of fans are deeply invested in their favorite characters in fanfic, and a lot of them identify very strongly with one or more characters. On the one hand, this is good for me as a writer because I start with a reading audience that already cares about the characters and what will happen to them, as opposed to in original fiction, where I have to earn the affection and interest of an audience in my characters. It also presents a set of restraints as well, in that fanfic readers will often view stories through a shippy lens, and strongly want/expect the pairing of the story to ride off into the sunset together, which usually entails a happy ending. As a writer more interested in inspiring my readers to think about the themes that I'm writing about in my stories, I choose whether to write a happy/sad/ambiguous/bittersweet ending based on what I think will serve the story best, and not based on whether it'll make fans feel happy at the end. This will lead some readers to feel betrayed by certain endings, and lead some of them to wish they had never started reading the story in the first place. This will also lead to some readers avoiding reading my stories in the future if I develop a reputation for that kind of writing in a particular fandom.

Also, for shippy fic, unless it's established-relationship, I need a lot of build up to accept the romance as believable.

That's interesting, because I am the same way too. I'm a pretty strong OTPer, but a lot of stories elicit a lukewarm reaction from me re: the romance because most authors don't put in the time to sell it to me.

Another selling point for me is setting and background characters and how tangible they are. If a story sounds like it is just about character A (and B) in a cardboard cutout universe then I find it hard to stay invested.

Also interesting. I tend to label the phenomena you describe as "floating head syndrome" wherein the main characters talk at each other, flirt, all while having no particular setting or context. I love vibrant settings and an author who exhibits some kind of clear worldbuilding, or at the very least has done some research on the place they are setting the story in, but that is a bit rare to find in fanfic.

[copperiisulfate]

I think our mental approach to fandom (or at least wrt fanfic) is very similar then. I generally read fanfic like I would read an original piece of fiction and more or less look for the same things in both. I also find that pretty much all of the stories I have enjoyed and remembered from every fandom have been ones that have made me feel and make me think, happy ending or not. It's what I try to aim for in my own writing of longer plotty pieces, putting the storytelling first, often in favour of wish-fulfillment and I can understand the feeling of it not meeting people's expectations in terms of what they set out to read. I think the happy-ending phenomemon is an interesting one and it says a lot about fandom mentality and fanfic as a medium, how people write it and read it and use it. To be honest, I like some semblance of a happy ending and they are especially nice to have when canon treats my favourite character(s) badly so I cannot say that I am completely detached, but I guess I am a bigger fan of believable endings, those that fit the story. I prefer being left with a sense of hope over full-blown sunshine and flowers, because that gets to me in a bigger way? That said, some of my favourite pieces of fanfiction ever have been downright tragic but visceral and real, and it is that what gets me.

And actually, I'm kind of glad you brought these things up as I've been having a bit of crisis over these things in my head. I am still trying to work away at writing for myself and not worrying about where I'm going to post it and who is going to read it, which is, admittedly, much more difficult because it's a playground that a lot of people are invested in and have opinions about. It's a good reminder for me to keep writing the kind of things I would like to read.

[bauble]

Yeah, I can totally understand why people feel very strongly about happy endings and having good things happen to a beloved character (or pairing)--much like it's hard to have our loved ones in real life suffer, it's hard to watch a character we've come to care about suffer as well. So I understand totally why a reader wouldn't want to put themselves through that, but you know, I can only write what I want to write.

I am still trying to work away at writing for myself and not worrying about where I'm going to post it and who is going to read it, which is, admittedly, much more difficult because it's a playground that a lot of people are invested in and have opinions about. It's a good reminder for me to keep writing the kind of things I would like to read.

It really depends on your goals and priorities for writing and participating in fandom, I think. There's nothing wrong with wanting lots of feedback, or writing stories that will reach a lot of people and make them happy and entertain them.

But if your goals are slightly different--improving as a writer, writing the ideas that interest you, and so forth, it's important adjust your expectations for the reception your fic will receive accordingly. There are going to be some readers that will take a chance on unconventional things (and like them), but there are going to be far fewer of those readers than the ones who won't. I write some stories knowing full well that very few people are going to read it, and even fewer are going to comment, and sometimes, that's the price you pay. There's always tradeoffs, in the end.