OKAY WELL first off why do you write/read fanfiction?
(if you do neither, WHY ARE YOU AT THIS THREAD, click away before you catch this illness)
I'm having trouble re-entering new fandoms as far as fanfiction community corners go, because i only have so much time to really engage in and absorb media content that is, like, really great.
I used to read and write fanfic to fill in the gaps of stories and characters that limited media narratives couldn't fully expand on; but lately I don't have ANY notes on the shows I watch or the comics I am reading, the representation is *chef's kiss* and the characterizations are all fantastically 3D and compelling. (Won't list the IPs, taste is subjective and I trust we all have fandoms like this, properties that do exactly what they say they're going to and then also hit on what you weren't expecting to love.)
I almost want to find less good and less complete medias just so I can participate in the shared worldbuilding and re-characterization that fanfic writers get to bond over. It seems my fanfic heyday was when my household had limited access to entertainment -- we had what was free on public access TV and whatever DVDs and comics were at a friend's house --
So not only were my IP options limited, but also I never got the full depth of the IP's history of character evolution, like in the case of book-to-cartoon-to-several-movies that happened with Lord of the Rings (that I had full access to, and thus never wrote or read fanfic about).
I was part of a small but prolific Reservoir Dogs fic prompt forum when that was the ONLY tarantino movie I had access to; and now that I've been able to watch every single film I just... don't write or seek out to read that anymore!
Is fanfiction the layman's access to fandom, when we can't afford merch or release-date pre-orders or even our own physical copies of media entertainment? When we can't travel to the cons or buy some simple cosplay craft items, do we instead create our own community performance bonding through free forums and galleries of unofficial (fan) art?
And.
Is media consumption an opposing force to media creation, after a threshold of time spent in either? Like I know there's a balance at play, yadda yadda only so many hours in a day, but does quality and depth of an IP affect your 'urge', I guess, to create and/or consume fan content of that IP?
For instance: some of the most dense, quality writing has come from banal daytime TV show fandoms wielding AU like a bottled star to beat back the darkness. I know I've been that broke and that bored that I left some truly awful homogenized something or other on the TV for company at chores and am surprised to recognize the title is... actually a fandom of content that i follow on tumblr and really admire?? shows that i wouldn't have otherwise -at all- inflicted on my own eyeballs? BUT? THE FANFIC IS STR8 FIRE MODERN ODYSSEY AND THE FANART BELONGS IN THE LOUVRE?????
(if you do neither, WHY ARE YOU AT THIS THREAD, click away before you catch this illness)
I'm having trouble re-entering new fandoms as far as fanfiction community corners go, because i only have so much time to really engage in and absorb media content that is, like, really great.
I used to read and write fanfic to fill in the gaps of stories and characters that limited media narratives couldn't fully expand on; but lately I don't have ANY notes on the shows I watch or the comics I am reading, the representation is *chef's kiss* and the characterizations are all fantastically 3D and compelling. (Won't list the IPs, taste is subjective and I trust we all have fandoms like this, properties that do exactly what they say they're going to and then also hit on what you weren't expecting to love.)
I almost want to find less good and less complete medias just so I can participate in the shared worldbuilding and re-characterization that fanfic writers get to bond over. It seems my fanfic heyday was when my household had limited access to entertainment -- we had what was free on public access TV and whatever DVDs and comics were at a friend's house --
So not only were my IP options limited, but also I never got the full depth of the IP's history of character evolution, like in the case of book-to-cartoon-to-several-movies that happened with Lord of the Rings (that I had full access to, and thus never wrote or read fanfic about).
I was part of a small but prolific Reservoir Dogs fic prompt forum when that was the ONLY tarantino movie I had access to; and now that I've been able to watch every single film I just... don't write or seek out to read that anymore!
Is fanfiction the layman's access to fandom, when we can't afford merch or release-date pre-orders or even our own physical copies of media entertainment? When we can't travel to the cons or buy some simple cosplay craft items, do we instead create our own community performance bonding through free forums and galleries of unofficial (fan) art?
And.
Is media consumption an opposing force to media creation, after a threshold of time spent in either? Like I know there's a balance at play, yadda yadda only so many hours in a day, but does quality and depth of an IP affect your 'urge', I guess, to create and/or consume fan content of that IP?
For instance: some of the most dense, quality writing has come from banal daytime TV show fandoms wielding AU like a bottled star to beat back the darkness. I know I've been that broke and that bored that I left some truly awful homogenized something or other on the TV for company at chores and am surprised to recognize the title is... actually a fandom of content that i follow on tumblr and really admire?? shows that i wouldn't have otherwise -at all- inflicted on my own eyeballs? BUT? THE FANFIC IS STR8 FIRE MODERN ODYSSEY AND THE FANART BELONGS IN THE LOUVRE?????
I read the occasional fic but a lot of my experience in the field comes from fandom RP. I've been writing Asuka from NGE for years at this point and I've carved out a lot of headcanons in order to make the character my own. (I tend to find that really important in fanfic and fandom RP-- Respecting a character but also putting your own spin on it to make your take more original)
On your first point, I do kinda agree. I think a lot of us can relate to that experience of making up stories about your favorite shows and games as a kid because you couldn't get access to a bigger sample size for that franchise.
My stance on the second point tends to be that consuming more media from an IP can actually EXPAND your creativity and help you iron out an interpretation of a character. More to work with means more things to fuel that headcanon list for a character and do it in a way that makes sense. I like writing blank slate characters that don't have a lot to them in canon as well, don't get me wrong, but having more stuff involving the characters and universe can also help.
On your first point, I do kinda agree. I think a lot of us can relate to that experience of making up stories about your favorite shows and games as a kid because you couldn't get access to a bigger sample size for that franchise.
My stance on the second point tends to be that consuming more media from an IP can actually EXPAND your creativity and help you iron out an interpretation of a character. More to work with means more things to fuel that headcanon list for a character and do it in a way that makes sense. I like writing blank slate characters that don't have a lot to them in canon as well, don't get me wrong, but having more stuff involving the characters and universe can also help.
Why?
Because I want to explore 'maybes' that were not facilitated in the original. Whether that be relationships, alignment choices, game strategy choices, and more. It is the glorious open field of potential to delve into whatever 'what if's arise, inspired by the writer's dedication and creation. Inspiration building on inspiration, in many respects.
Because I want to explore 'maybes' that were not facilitated in the original. Whether that be relationships, alignment choices, game strategy choices, and more. It is the glorious open field of potential to delve into whatever 'what if's arise, inspired by the writer's dedication and creation. Inspiration building on inspiration, in many respects.
Sohrryu wrote:
My stance on the second point tends to be that consuming more media from an IP can actually EXPAND your creativity and help you iron out an interpretation of a character. More to work with means more things to fuel that headcanon list for a character and do it in a way that makes sense. I like writing blank slate characters that don't have a lot to them in canon as well, don't get me wrong, but having more stuff involving the characters and universe can also help.
ooooh yeah yeah yeah
come to think of it, the new fandoms that i am in are... fully new, like i have access to their realtime updates and am full up on curiosity and not yet met the end of their canon. in some ways, that limit or finality is the border needed in order to sort what else could be done with the characters.
i might just have this completionist hesitation to enter a fandom community before it's all laid out in canon, and preferably dusted free of its most reactionary discourse, lol
FadedTapestry wrote:
Why?
Because I want to explore 'maybes' that were not facilitated in the original. Whether that be relationships, alignment choices, game strategy choices, and more. It is the glorious open field of potential to delve into whatever 'what if's arise, inspired by the writer's dedication and creation. Inspiration building on inspiration, in many respects.
Because I want to explore 'maybes' that were not facilitated in the original. Whether that be relationships, alignment choices, game strategy choices, and more. It is the glorious open field of potential to delve into whatever 'what if's arise, inspired by the writer's dedication and creation. Inspiration building on inspiration, in many respects.
oh heck yeah i love fabdoms as their own... idk language i guess? mood language, character language, setting and genre as languages? switch a few of the languages but not all of them and hey presto that is CULTURAL EVOLUTION BAYBEE
8D
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