Review Envy

[rhetoretician]

I'm disappointed with myself for caring so much whether people review my posted fan fiction or not.

It seems to me that, given that there's no money in fan fiction, the only reasons to do it are (1) to have the creative experience itself, (2) to touch other people, and (3) to get to indulge yourself in the characters and the settings you love.

Comments

[rhetoretician]

Well, I've already told Mary she should "get out of JKR's shadow and start working without a net." "Roger & Lisa" is essentially an original piece of fiction and could easily be redone outside the potterverse with no real damage. Antosha, I'm pretty sure, has other literary pursuits and I think he does this for fun. Viridian has written at least four original novels (they're pretty good, and if you ask him he'll send some of them to you) but can't find a publisher.

I don't have any original fiction yet. (Well, that's not entirely true; I have some fragments I've written for stories that were never completed.) I have written journal articles on the constitutive rhetoric of legal texts (hence my user name), but almost nobody reads them. I've written classroom lectures (I'm a college teacher) and a lot of annual "light humor awards" that are pretty funny (if I do say so myself). Really, I'm hoping that the fanfic will give me the confidence and the experience to let me write some original fiction someday. Maybe I'll post some of my old stuff and my fragments here and see what you guys think.

While you're flattering everyone, let me say that I like reading Antosha for his passion, his sense of humor and the sheer guts behind some of his narrative choices. I like reading St Maggie because of how deeply she understands human relationships and how she stirs my romantic heart. I like reading Viridian because of his character development and the primacy he gives to human intimacy.

Rachel honey, I hope you'll forgive me for saying this, but I get really sad when someone says something like you've said about not having the talent to write and being envious of those who do. If you yearn to write I wish you would. I think you should write something and post it -- heck, just post it on your LJ if you're shy, and let us read it. I mean, in Mary alone you have one of the most supportive writing coaches I've ever run across, and while I get cranky sometimes, I'd be willing to put in my two cents too!

Ken