Fanfiction
Friday, December 5, 2008 @ 6:00 AM
Recently, I was introduced by a friend to the world of fanfiction. Yes, the world of fanfiction. I was skeptical at first, thinking of all the lame stories with OOCness(out of character-ness), absolutely unbelievable AU(alternate universes), unbelievable powers and easily defeated enemies and, horror of horrors, desperate writers who write OCs (own charcters) or sometimes even original characters that are lightly disguised as themselves in order to live out their fantasies in the fandom(original fiction).
(see, you have just finished a crash course of common “lingo” in the world of fanfiction)
Well, obviously, I was wrong. Though there were admittedly works of the sort I dreaded, I also found some wonderful works from writers who surpass mediocre published authors. Works that wove themselves into the fandom, characters that fit perfectly into the fandom and established characters, and, my personal favorite, well written pieces that developed the characters of original characters, yet was perfectly believable and coherent. There were many pieces of writing that echoed the author’s interests that were blended with the fandom. Sometimes, when pieces of writing were found where the author’s passion for the subject matter comes across so clearly that it inspires the reader to try what they describe. This is, for me, is the best form of emotive writing, and I have found such gems in fanfiction.
These pieces of work take on the form of drabbles, oneshots, twoshots and chaptered fics.
Drabbles consist of tiny snippets or scenes set in the fandom, with a word count of exactly 100 but are sometimes misused to indicate a short story of under 1000 words. Oneshots are stories that are only one chapter long and, twoshots are two. Chaptered fics are whole stories that take on the form of novels with an unlimited number of chapters. They are sometimes standalone pieces or part of a series where the pieces make reference to events in one another.
Best of all, I found a close group of writers who offered support and practical criticism for their fellow fanfiction authors. Collaborations are common, and good-natured and productive criticism plentiful. In addition, some authors undertake to write about events another author has written about from another point of view, making for an intriguing insight to the mindset of the characters they portray.
Thus my new obsession: fanfiction. Not only does it allow me to get more of my current interests, (how many times can we re-read a single book after all?) it also lets me beautiful pieces of writing that have me sighing in contentment. Admittedly, some may find it “gross” or “geekish”, but it’s a place where people of similar interests get together and share their insights into the story. For me, it is a world where you can choose your own endings, your own situation, and, where, if it pleases you, where you can establish your version of what-should-have-been.
& I wake up to a beautiful day
