A Note on Fanfiction
I strolled over to Fanfiction.net today, just for kicks and giggles, and I thought now would be an appropriate time for a rant on fanfic, seeing as I have absolutely nothing better to do.
To me, fanfiction seems despicable. How? How could someone trash the work into which the actual author put so much bloodandsweatandtears? How could someone actually write novel-length pieces in those worlds when they know less than half as much of the world the real author has worked out in their head?
Why? Why wouldn't they just go off and write original fics? Just...why?
This rant will focus mainly around Harry Potter, as that's by far the most popular fanfic topic. Fanfiction seems like something I might have done when I was younger, more immature; when my life evolved around the books I read, and I would give anything to be in them. While I still feel that, I've interpreted the feeling to learn from those authors and come up with material of my own.
Okay, let's take this from a different viewpoint: the original author. Yeah, I know they have to license it and give permission and all that jazz...But honestly - how would you feel if you saw this? It's a piece I saw mentioned in another fic, and it disgusts me (as I'm sure it does to many) - or at least, what I can read through the dense laziness in grammar and content does. How would Jo Rowling feel, should she come across it? I'm fairly sure this kind of thing doesn't exactly reflect the purpose of her Harry Potter series.
I understand there are good fics, too. I don't know...I guess the topic confuses me more than angers me. If you're going to spend so much time writing, why not on something you can say is completely yours?
Another astounding comparison between original fics and fanfics is the amount of reviews. When I first saw that people crowded to review fanfics, where on the other end of the spectrum thousands of original pieces were left in the dust, I couldn't figure it out. Why would people take the time to read and critique so fervently on one site when there was another better one waiting a click away? Then it hit me: Chances are, original fics aren't going to be as good as the published stuff out there--so readers can just head to Barnes & Noble at any time to purchase better ones than that, and get more enjoyment out of them, plausibly. Whereas fanfiction takes place in a world the original writer may no longer revisit; they've already made it best selling, so readers will crave more. They can't get it anywhere else, so they have to read what others have just...made up.
Some fanfic writers are really good. And I guess that bugs me. If you've got real talent, start something of your own, so you can one day work up to being publishable. Some have done this (probably most famously, Myrika), so that gives them a BIT of credit. I suppose I understand if people use fanfiction as a gateway to doing their own stuff, but somehow, it still doesn't tick with me.
Hmph.