Fanfiction Meme
May. 20th, 2008 12:06 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
awanderingbardSomething I stole awhile back from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
joonscribble.
How about a brief introduction?
I'm Taylor. I'm 21, almost 22. I'm a girl. I'm Canadian. That's really all you need to know, I think.
What got you into fanfiction to begin with?
Ever since I was very little, I would always 'write' characters into my favourite movies for me to 'play'. I always thought that women characters were stupid and so I needed to 'fix' the stories by making one who was 'good'. Of course, they were mostly Mary Sue's, but they were just in my head and I was little. I was first introduced to fanfiction through the Lord of the Rings fanfiction, I think, and I started writing things down, things that never were or will be posted, but just to get the ideas out. I was also an obsessive rpger for a variety of fandoms in my teens but am currently retired.
What kind of fanfiction do you like to write?
I think my stories tend to be about relationships and interactions. The dynamics of a group or how two people relate to one another. I don't know if many of them have a Point, or Message, really, but I like exploring characters. My fandoms tend to be in the sci-fi/fantasy sort of genre.
Do you find writing easy? Hard? What are the aspects of writing you struggle most with?
I write in bursts. I write until I stop writing and then I take a break and come back to it later. I find certain characters easy to write. Harry Dresden I never have a problem with. His internal monologue is something that flows from my fingers. Characters like Mal Reynolds I need to have watched recently to get their patter down. Usually once I know who a character is and how he or she talks, I can work with them fairly easily. My greatest challenge in writing is plotting. I don't plan, I write what happens as it happens and sometimes I get stuck. I'm not good with villains, either. I tend to go for the 'crazy' or 'misguided' motives.
Write a few sentences or so of your favorite pairing or character.
Here's a bit of Harry/Murphy banter from a fic that died a horrible death:
Are there any fanfiction clichés or trends you're sick of or just can't stand?
OOC-ness. Not the occasional 'I'm not sure he would have said that', we're all guilty of a little wishful thinking about our favourite characters. I mean life-changing, completely ridiculous actions that aren't the character at all. I think that might be why I'm not big on slash. It has nothing to do with same sex action and everything to do with whether or not I can believe those two characters would be together.
Are you guilty of any fanfiction clichés you hate? Or any other ones?
I hope not. I try to be as IC as possible, unless it's crackfic. In terms of other clichés, I do love a good meetcute and tend to let my OCs take the spotlight a lot.
What was the first fandom you wrote for, and do you still like/participate in it?
Um, I don't know. Dresden Files is the first stuff I've posted, except for a few very bad Nero Wolfes I wrote when I was 14 or so and hope no one ever discovers. I am not active in Nero Wolfe anymore, but DF and I are good buddies.
Name your OTPs or most frequently written pairings/characters and explain what it is about them that you love to write.
The only OTP I have is TV!Harry/Murphy. I have no idea why. They just have this wonderful mix of approach-avoidance and obvious affection that isn't very well expressed because they are both so very internal. I obvious love writing Harry on his own, too, he resides comfortably in my head most of the time. I love the bumbling hero types.
What would you call your writing style?
Stream of conciousness. I tend to have a specific narrator who is either telling you what's happening as it's happening or what happened as it happened, with several asides as they come to me. Which isn't so much a choice on my part as how my brain works.
Do you read other people’s fanfic? If so, what do you find yourself reading the most?
Yes, I do. I have a few people who I would read whatever they wrote, whether I knew the fandom or not. I wander the Dresden Files fic community a lot. I don't read for the more 'popular' fandoms, like DW, TW or Firefly. There's so much wank among those fandoms that it makes me nervous. :-P Sometimes, if I'm in the mood, I'll see what's been written for some random fandom I'm interested in, like NCIS or CSI or something.
Name one thing you'd LOVE to write, but have been too afraid or shy to do.
I'd like to do something of length in the Firefly 'verse. Mal is a character I'd love to explore in depth and I have ideas, but I'm afraid my OCs will fall into the Mary Sue category.
Do you have trouble taking criticism? Or worse yet, do you have the dreaded bloated ego?
I rely very heavily on my best friend/sister-in-law-to-be Ama to tell me when something isn't working or doesn't sound right. Girl can spot a plothole from fifty paces. So, I suppose that I'm cool with criticism. Constructive criticism. Don't tell me it sucks, tell me why it sucks.
When you write, is there anything that helps? Music? Quiet room?
I wouldn't say there was one specific thing that helps. I like to work on the computer because I can type as fast as I think. I don't like to listen to music if it has words, because I find it distracting. Usually I just get myself into a zone and block everything else out.
What inspires you?
Life, anecdotes, music. I usually just see or hear something and go 'oh, I could write about that'.
Lastly, how would you sum up your fanfiction experiences and yourself as a writer?
Exceptionally wonderful. Dresden Files fans, as I have mentioned in the past, are very nice people. I have never received a mean comment about a story I've written and I was fully expecting to be told I sucked when I posted my first story. As a result, I've gotten confidence to write different POVs, genres and elements and that's been very cool.
joonscribble.How about a brief introduction?
I'm Taylor. I'm 21, almost 22. I'm a girl. I'm Canadian. That's really all you need to know, I think.
What got you into fanfiction to begin with?
Ever since I was very little, I would always 'write' characters into my favourite movies for me to 'play'. I always thought that women characters were stupid and so I needed to 'fix' the stories by making one who was 'good'. Of course, they were mostly Mary Sue's, but they were just in my head and I was little. I was first introduced to fanfiction through the Lord of the Rings fanfiction, I think, and I started writing things down, things that never were or will be posted, but just to get the ideas out. I was also an obsessive rpger for a variety of fandoms in my teens but am currently retired.
What kind of fanfiction do you like to write?
I think my stories tend to be about relationships and interactions. The dynamics of a group or how two people relate to one another. I don't know if many of them have a Point, or Message, really, but I like exploring characters. My fandoms tend to be in the sci-fi/fantasy sort of genre.
Do you find writing easy? Hard? What are the aspects of writing you struggle most with?
I write in bursts. I write until I stop writing and then I take a break and come back to it later. I find certain characters easy to write. Harry Dresden I never have a problem with. His internal monologue is something that flows from my fingers. Characters like Mal Reynolds I need to have watched recently to get their patter down. Usually once I know who a character is and how he or she talks, I can work with them fairly easily. My greatest challenge in writing is plotting. I don't plan, I write what happens as it happens and sometimes I get stuck. I'm not good with villains, either. I tend to go for the 'crazy' or 'misguided' motives.
Write a few sentences or so of your favorite pairing or character.
Here's a bit of Harry/Murphy banter from a fic that died a horrible death:
"Why do you have a motorcycle on your ceiling?"
I shrugged. "Chicks dig it."
"Really?"
"...I don't know. Some client gave it to me and it broke right away and I don't have the money to fix it, so I put it up there so it didn't go to waste."
She looked up at it again. "It's weird."
"Murphy," I said, seriously. "I'm weird. You did notice that, right?"
Are there any fanfiction clichés or trends you're sick of or just can't stand?
OOC-ness. Not the occasional 'I'm not sure he would have said that', we're all guilty of a little wishful thinking about our favourite characters. I mean life-changing, completely ridiculous actions that aren't the character at all. I think that might be why I'm not big on slash. It has nothing to do with same sex action and everything to do with whether or not I can believe those two characters would be together.
Are you guilty of any fanfiction clichés you hate? Or any other ones?
I hope not. I try to be as IC as possible, unless it's crackfic. In terms of other clichés, I do love a good meetcute and tend to let my OCs take the spotlight a lot.
What was the first fandom you wrote for, and do you still like/participate in it?
Um, I don't know. Dresden Files is the first stuff I've posted, except for a few very bad Nero Wolfes I wrote when I was 14 or so and hope no one ever discovers. I am not active in Nero Wolfe anymore, but DF and I are good buddies.
Name your OTPs or most frequently written pairings/characters and explain what it is about them that you love to write.
The only OTP I have is TV!Harry/Murphy. I have no idea why. They just have this wonderful mix of approach-avoidance and obvious affection that isn't very well expressed because they are both so very internal. I obvious love writing Harry on his own, too, he resides comfortably in my head most of the time. I love the bumbling hero types.
What would you call your writing style?
Stream of conciousness. I tend to have a specific narrator who is either telling you what's happening as it's happening or what happened as it happened, with several asides as they come to me. Which isn't so much a choice on my part as how my brain works.
Do you read other people’s fanfic? If so, what do you find yourself reading the most?
Yes, I do. I have a few people who I would read whatever they wrote, whether I knew the fandom or not. I wander the Dresden Files fic community a lot. I don't read for the more 'popular' fandoms, like DW, TW or Firefly. There's so much wank among those fandoms that it makes me nervous. :-P Sometimes, if I'm in the mood, I'll see what's been written for some random fandom I'm interested in, like NCIS or CSI or something.
Name one thing you'd LOVE to write, but have been too afraid or shy to do.
I'd like to do something of length in the Firefly 'verse. Mal is a character I'd love to explore in depth and I have ideas, but I'm afraid my OCs will fall into the Mary Sue category.
Do you have trouble taking criticism? Or worse yet, do you have the dreaded bloated ego?
I rely very heavily on my best friend/sister-in-law-to-be Ama to tell me when something isn't working or doesn't sound right. Girl can spot a plothole from fifty paces. So, I suppose that I'm cool with criticism. Constructive criticism. Don't tell me it sucks, tell me why it sucks.
When you write, is there anything that helps? Music? Quiet room?
I wouldn't say there was one specific thing that helps. I like to work on the computer because I can type as fast as I think. I don't like to listen to music if it has words, because I find it distracting. Usually I just get myself into a zone and block everything else out.
What inspires you?
Life, anecdotes, music. I usually just see or hear something and go 'oh, I could write about that'.
Lastly, how would you sum up your fanfiction experiences and yourself as a writer?
Exceptionally wonderful. Dresden Files fans, as I have mentioned in the past, are very nice people. I have never received a mean comment about a story I've written and I was fully expecting to be told I sucked when I posted my first story. As a result, I've gotten confidence to write different POVs, genres and elements and that's been very cool.
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