(no subject)
New icon. That's the beautiful Indian actress Kajol you see in it.
Nothing particularly interesting going on. There was a strike among public transportation drivers today, so I was late from school. Glad it'll be over by tomorrow.
There's been some talk about motivations for writing fanfiction, because apparently some people consider it the easier form of writing (as opposed to writing original fiction). So I feel a need to comment.
(This is not a rant or a ramble of any kind. It's more like notes - thoughts I needed to put down about this whole thing.)
I can only talk about myself here, because I don't know all possible reasons for writing fanfiction, but I'm pretty sure some writers will agree with some of my reasons for writing it.
One thing that can be said about fanfiction's "easiness" is that it's true that you've already got your audience when writing it. You're a fan writing for other fans. How to reach that audience is a trickier part. Not everyone's going to read it just because they're a fan of the same thing you're writing about. You have to pull them in with your characterization, with your plot. Overall, there's a lot of convincing to do when writing fanfiction.
You can look at it like this: someone created a world, created the characters, now all you have to do is write them and use that world, use those characters. Piece of cake, right?
Not quite. The thing that Steve Kelner and other people who look down on fanfiction seem to miss is that while you're working with someone else's world and characters, you have to work within those limitations. You have to keep the characters in-character while still bringing out new, interesting aspects about them. You have limitations, but you still have to expand inside them. Whenever you try to work your way out of those limitations, your fanfiction becomes OOC - this is a fanfiction term, it means "out-of-character" or "out-of-canon" (canon being the original work you're writing fanfiction about). And OOC is what your fanfiction shouldn't be. OOC is the easy way out. Keeping your fic in-character, making your fic work within the world and the limitations of the original source material, that's the challenge, that's the hardest part about writing fanfiction.
And I'm not saying there isn't atrociously written, horribly out-of-character fanfiction out there. There is too much of it, in fact, but I'm not talking about that, because that's not really what I think of myself as. There are writers who write just for the gratification, just to get some feedback that says, "Hey this wuz gr8 pls write mor!". These people aren't really very appreciated in circles of fanfiction writers who can actually write.
Back to talking about the world that's been created for us fanfiction writers. Not only does it have its limitations, it also offers a lot of possibilities and opportunities. All of these are very inspiring. Writing some of my favourite characters is very inspiring - it helps me get inside them, think about their motives.
I really disliked Kelner's idea about writing being something everyone does to get published and become a pro-writer. Some fanfiction writers don't write original fiction at all, they just have no interest to. I wouldn't call them less creative than the people who only write original fiction or who write both original and fanfiction. Fanfiction can be a challenge people enjoy, but it doesn't have to be a writing exercise just to reach that one goal - publishing your own novel/poem/article/story.
It's most likely just a hobby (as you can't really sell your fanfiction or publish it commercially), a fun, neat hobby and I don't see why it should be anything else. Just like writing original pieces can be a hobby.
As much as it is "just" a fun hobby, some writers invest a lot on their stories. They make huge, complicated plots for their fanfiction stories, they write for months and re-write and write and work on their fics until they feel the story is ready for publishing (ie. being posted on some websites). The best writers take the writing itself seriously. They use a spellcheck, they use beta readers (ie. editors), they read the story over and over, work on their characterizations and try to make it as good as possible. Like I said, there ARE writers who write something in 30 minutes and then hurry to post it, but the best writers aren't like this. And all fanfiction writers certainly don't just "whip up a short piece", publish it and get the feedback. That generalization is so dumb.
Fanfiction is also very tied to web communities. I probably write all my fics to myself, but in hopes of someone else enjoying them as well, of course. Sometimes I write specially for someone who's requested certain type fanfiction from me. Sometimes I just dedicate a fic to someone who I hope the writing might cheer up or something similar. And the audience-thing I mentioned earlier. But the only thing I really have is the possible audience, who will read the first paragraph of the fic, because they're fans of the original source material. This doesn't mean I have to aim lower than when writing original fiction. I still have to pull my readers into my story. I still need to get their attention, make them want to read the rest of it.
I got off-topic there... So. Web communities. I probably wouldn't be writing if I was only writing for my own amusement. But to have friends, who comment on my writing and seem to enjoy it, is really what makes fanfiction so much fun. Also, I love most things to do with fanfiction - I like discussing it. More than anything I enjoy reading it, if it's good. At best, it's probably what fanfiction is - sharing ideas, stories, views of the characters and the world. I could basically talk about what a certain character is like in my opinion, or I could write a story about said character, portrayed the way I see him/her. If I'm inspired, I'll probably do the latter.
Well, this was random and didn't really have one point and I think several of my original points were lost in all the blather. For better chosen words, read this post.
In a related story, this is claibe imitating me:
Claibe: so yesterday my friend vitnu ravitsemustoimintaa ilmoitusvelvollisuusötä and I got into this huge argument because I criticized her HP fanfic.
Claibe: I mean, it really sucked ass. she had no character development and she had hermie use a past participle, which she'd never do.
Sanni: ...
Claibe: plus, she didn't have harry and ron hooking up, or as we finns would say "ulkmaarterpoozinyt".
*snicker*
eta & This is me being Claibe:
SanniMakesSense: I'm Claibe and I am an epitome of American coolness wrapped in Hollywood sexiness, with a studly cherry on top.
SanniMakesSense: I am also King of the Universe.
Nothing particularly interesting going on. There was a strike among public transportation drivers today, so I was late from school. Glad it'll be over by tomorrow.
There's been some talk about motivations for writing fanfiction, because apparently some people consider it the easier form of writing (as opposed to writing original fiction). So I feel a need to comment.
(This is not a rant or a ramble of any kind. It's more like notes - thoughts I needed to put down about this whole thing.)
I can only talk about myself here, because I don't know all possible reasons for writing fanfiction, but I'm pretty sure some writers will agree with some of my reasons for writing it.
One thing that can be said about fanfiction's "easiness" is that it's true that you've already got your audience when writing it. You're a fan writing for other fans. How to reach that audience is a trickier part. Not everyone's going to read it just because they're a fan of the same thing you're writing about. You have to pull them in with your characterization, with your plot. Overall, there's a lot of convincing to do when writing fanfiction.
You can look at it like this: someone created a world, created the characters, now all you have to do is write them and use that world, use those characters. Piece of cake, right?
Not quite. The thing that Steve Kelner and other people who look down on fanfiction seem to miss is that while you're working with someone else's world and characters, you have to work within those limitations. You have to keep the characters in-character while still bringing out new, interesting aspects about them. You have limitations, but you still have to expand inside them. Whenever you try to work your way out of those limitations, your fanfiction becomes OOC - this is a fanfiction term, it means "out-of-character" or "out-of-canon" (canon being the original work you're writing fanfiction about). And OOC is what your fanfiction shouldn't be. OOC is the easy way out. Keeping your fic in-character, making your fic work within the world and the limitations of the original source material, that's the challenge, that's the hardest part about writing fanfiction.
And I'm not saying there isn't atrociously written, horribly out-of-character fanfiction out there. There is too much of it, in fact, but I'm not talking about that, because that's not really what I think of myself as. There are writers who write just for the gratification, just to get some feedback that says, "Hey this wuz gr8 pls write mor!". These people aren't really very appreciated in circles of fanfiction writers who can actually write.
Back to talking about the world that's been created for us fanfiction writers. Not only does it have its limitations, it also offers a lot of possibilities and opportunities. All of these are very inspiring. Writing some of my favourite characters is very inspiring - it helps me get inside them, think about their motives.
I really disliked Kelner's idea about writing being something everyone does to get published and become a pro-writer. Some fanfiction writers don't write original fiction at all, they just have no interest to. I wouldn't call them less creative than the people who only write original fiction or who write both original and fanfiction. Fanfiction can be a challenge people enjoy, but it doesn't have to be a writing exercise just to reach that one goal - publishing your own novel/poem/article/story.
It's most likely just a hobby (as you can't really sell your fanfiction or publish it commercially), a fun, neat hobby and I don't see why it should be anything else. Just like writing original pieces can be a hobby.
As much as it is "just" a fun hobby, some writers invest a lot on their stories. They make huge, complicated plots for their fanfiction stories, they write for months and re-write and write and work on their fics until they feel the story is ready for publishing (ie. being posted on some websites). The best writers take the writing itself seriously. They use a spellcheck, they use beta readers (ie. editors), they read the story over and over, work on their characterizations and try to make it as good as possible. Like I said, there ARE writers who write something in 30 minutes and then hurry to post it, but the best writers aren't like this. And all fanfiction writers certainly don't just "whip up a short piece", publish it and get the feedback. That generalization is so dumb.
Fanfiction is also very tied to web communities. I probably write all my fics to myself, but in hopes of someone else enjoying them as well, of course. Sometimes I write specially for someone who's requested certain type fanfiction from me. Sometimes I just dedicate a fic to someone who I hope the writing might cheer up or something similar. And the audience-thing I mentioned earlier. But the only thing I really have is the possible audience, who will read the first paragraph of the fic, because they're fans of the original source material. This doesn't mean I have to aim lower than when writing original fiction. I still have to pull my readers into my story. I still need to get their attention, make them want to read the rest of it.
I got off-topic there... So. Web communities. I probably wouldn't be writing if I was only writing for my own amusement. But to have friends, who comment on my writing and seem to enjoy it, is really what makes fanfiction so much fun. Also, I love most things to do with fanfiction - I like discussing it. More than anything I enjoy reading it, if it's good. At best, it's probably what fanfiction is - sharing ideas, stories, views of the characters and the world. I could basically talk about what a certain character is like in my opinion, or I could write a story about said character, portrayed the way I see him/her. If I'm inspired, I'll probably do the latter.
Well, this was random and didn't really have one point and I think several of my original points were lost in all the blather. For better chosen words, read this post.
In a related story, this is claibe imitating me:
Claibe: so yesterday my friend vitnu ravitsemustoimintaa ilmoitusvelvollisuusötä and I got into this huge argument because I criticized her HP fanfic.
Claibe: I mean, it really sucked ass. she had no character development and she had hermie use a past participle, which she'd never do.
Sanni: ...
Claibe: plus, she didn't have harry and ron hooking up, or as we finns would say "ulkmaarterpoozinyt".
*snicker*
eta & This is me being Claibe:
SanniMakesSense: I'm Claibe and I am an epitome of American coolness wrapped in Hollywood sexiness, with a studly cherry on top.
SanniMakesSense: I am also King of the Universe.