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Okay, a friend of mine, being a dutiful reader and replying to a fic they thought was well written and entertaining, told a pair of authors that they did a great job with characterization in their fic. The pair of authors - very well known in the GW writing community, wrote back saying that while they appreciated the compliment, any characterization that seemed in character was entirely accidental - because all their fics were AU and by definition, they didn't have to be in character.
Now, I do appreciate the candidness there - but what the hell? Since when did AU imply OOC? AU merely stands, as was my understanding for the past 7 years, for Alternate Universe. This means that characters in the fanfic are found in situations/environments that fall outside of the canon. It doesn't mean, and never has, OOC or Out of Character. In fact, it's always been my opinion that AUs actually need to be in character more so that the readers can identify who the characters are. It should not be by name alone. An AU with OOC characters is an original piece of fiction. It's not fanfic. If nothing is there to reflect the characters or the plot of the show - there is nothing there that a fan would recognize. Authors need to have a little confidence and post that stuff to original fiction sites/list which are found all over the net.
What are the opinions of others on this matter?
While I'm ranting - comedy/humor writers. . . OOCing the characters does not a comedy make. The humor is more appreciated when you nail the characterization. Also, the more plausible the situation, the funnier it is. Few people can get away with out and out slapstick. Great when it's done well, really, really horrid when it's not. 3% of the writing population does slapstick well. Please, please, please, stop.
Today's Send a Hug: A friend of mine is having a horrible few days. Those of you that know her, please send a note of encouragement. *HUG*
Now, I do appreciate the candidness there - but what the hell? Since when did AU imply OOC? AU merely stands, as was my understanding for the past 7 years, for Alternate Universe. This means that characters in the fanfic are found in situations/environments that fall outside of the canon. It doesn't mean, and never has, OOC or Out of Character. In fact, it's always been my opinion that AUs actually need to be in character more so that the readers can identify who the characters are. It should not be by name alone. An AU with OOC characters is an original piece of fiction. It's not fanfic. If nothing is there to reflect the characters or the plot of the show - there is nothing there that a fan would recognize. Authors need to have a little confidence and post that stuff to original fiction sites/list which are found all over the net.
What are the opinions of others on this matter?
While I'm ranting - comedy/humor writers. . . OOCing the characters does not a comedy make. The humor is more appreciated when you nail the characterization. Also, the more plausible the situation, the funnier it is. Few people can get away with out and out slapstick. Great when it's done well, really, really horrid when it's not. 3% of the writing population does slapstick well. Please, please, please, stop.
Today's Send a Hug: A friend of mine is having a horrible few days. Those of you that know her, please send a note of encouragement. *HUG*
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Unfortunately the teenage part usually only refers to their mental age. =P
well, if they *behave* like teenagers, I'm going to call them teenagers.
GW seems to be a specialized kind of fandom: sitting in it's own little corner, with definitions that are just slightly different that what you'd be used to when you come in from either pure slash or pure yaoi...
From:
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GW seems to be a specialized kind of fandom: sitting in it's own little corner, with definitions that are just slightly different that what you'd be used to when you come in from either pure slash or pure yaoi...
They want to claim both - which is fine, except most of the writers think that yaoi means a fic just needs graphic sex to fit the definition. I actually think that yaoi is best suited for doujinshis/comics only - crossing the term over to fics is just confusing to people - and "yaoi/shonen-ai" fall into use so that non-native Japanese speakers can feel more culturally alert about themselves. PWP works fine for yaoi and shonen-ai - add a rating to it to distiguish the level if you want.