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catscradle Jul. 26th, 2002 01:04 pm)
catscradle Jul. 26th, 2002 01:04 pm)I heard this debate come up yet again today and I have to wonder why. There are those that claim that fanfic writers just aren't talented enough to write their own stuff, so they steal someone elses material.
Now, on the surface, I guess I can see part of the point (I'm going to look past the part about stealing, since fanfic writers are just out to have fun and share their hobby, not make money). Here's a group of people that take established characters with histories and traits and all those things already built into them. I can see where some would think that the hard work has already been done for them. But it's not quite so easy as just sitting down and making the characters move now. The author has to nail the characterization of something that's been pre-established. That's not an easy task. They can't make just anything up as they go, they have to make sure that the dialogue and plot of the fic fit the characters they're writing about. They need to stay in the margins on characterization, setting, plausability, et cetera. They have more restrictions, and that's not always easy to write around.
In fanfic, the writer is simply faced with different challenges than someone writing original fiction. I really don't think it's easier or more difficult, per se. Whether the author has more or less trouble with it really depends on the type of writer they are. If they need more freedom when they write, then fanfic can actually be much harder than original stuff. If a writer has trouble working with a blank slate, original fiction can be a bitch.
Think of it in terms of television - you watch shows where people are being paid to write pre-established characters. Most shows have a slew of writers that alternate on episodes - their entire job is to make the characters look consistant, even though seven different people might be writing them. It's not so easy to do, as most of us come into things with our own interpretations. Hell, sometimes it's hard to keep a character consistant with the same writer (Anne Rice and Mercedes Lackey, I'm talking to YOU!).
Anyway - that's my view on the original fics vs fanfic debate.
Now, on the surface, I guess I can see part of the point (I'm going to look past the part about stealing, since fanfic writers are just out to have fun and share their hobby, not make money). Here's a group of people that take established characters with histories and traits and all those things already built into them. I can see where some would think that the hard work has already been done for them. But it's not quite so easy as just sitting down and making the characters move now. The author has to nail the characterization of something that's been pre-established. That's not an easy task. They can't make just anything up as they go, they have to make sure that the dialogue and plot of the fic fit the characters they're writing about. They need to stay in the margins on characterization, setting, plausability, et cetera. They have more restrictions, and that's not always easy to write around.
In fanfic, the writer is simply faced with different challenges than someone writing original fiction. I really don't think it's easier or more difficult, per se. Whether the author has more or less trouble with it really depends on the type of writer they are. If they need more freedom when they write, then fanfic can actually be much harder than original stuff. If a writer has trouble working with a blank slate, original fiction can be a bitch.
Think of it in terms of television - you watch shows where people are being paid to write pre-established characters. Most shows have a slew of writers that alternate on episodes - their entire job is to make the characters look consistant, even though seven different people might be writing them. It's not so easy to do, as most of us come into things with our own interpretations. Hell, sometimes it's hard to keep a character consistant with the same writer (Anne Rice and Mercedes Lackey, I'm talking to YOU!).
Anyway - that's my view on the original fics vs fanfic debate.
