Opinion on Fan-fiction?

[Rushlight]

I know that some people like fan fiction, and other find it horrible and hoaky, but I want to know what the general community here, especially the writers feel about the topic.

I myself am writing a... sort of fan fiction.

[RainRat]

I am actually reading a fan fiction called Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality ( http://www.hpmor.com ) right now and quite enjoying it.

[weremagnus]

Yo I'm all about reading fanfiction. Is it self indulgent? Of course it is, but who cares! If people can DRAW fanart, then by all regards WRITING fanfiction should be just as acceptable. (Though there are some who condemn fanart too)

[lindel]

fan-fiction for me can go both ways. A well written one has the 'chance' to improve my love for the particular game,anime,t/v show,ect. ..that I'm reading about
I also like fan-fiction that takes pairings that aren't cannon and makes it work.As a writer I do enjoy the challenge of writing something that takes what someone else created and adds to it..I personally can't see a greater compliment to the creator
Then again that's all if the fiction is good
When it becomes outside of the cannon character's basic nature or when the writer throws in something that would never normally occur(For example throwing a unicorn into a supernatural fan-fic(really bad example)) that is when i'll stop reading a fan-fiction no matter how good it's been up to that point(most writers I've seen that do this 'mess' up right away)

[Rushlight]

While i agree that a good fan-fiction can be great, i personally find that most (at least in terms of startrek) are terrible. like, reeeaallly bad.
The biggest downfall of most fan-fictions seems to be the cheeze/fap factor. i call it the fap factor 'casus they can often just be douchie fangirling fests over the main character where the only plot is how awesome the main character is.

MY fan-fic is well... a completely different take on an already existant universe. In clasicalstartrek the federation is seen as a perfect socialist haven where the government is fair and everyone lives happily. however, the reader/viever always sees it from the standpoint of the military or the upperclass citizen. never the homeless, never the criminals, never the people who's world and way of life have been destroyed.

The Original Series touches on this a bit, but uses the good old american "bringing them freedom" clause to justify destroying their culture. How many times has Kirk defied the prime directive? how many people's worlds have been destroyed that arn't mentioned? how many people ARE actually poor, homeless, without jobs? what about the jails? the drugs? the corruption and gangs?

This is where im writing my fan-fic. From the perspective of a nobody, the last of an extinct race, an orphan, a criminal. I've been piecing together bits of events that have actually happened in the cannon series (and official non-cannon books) and been using this to create MY verson of the universe. The darkness that is alluded to, is the truth in my distopian verson :)

[zenia]

I love fanfics. Of course, it all depends on the author and how well they can write. ;) I have many stories saved in my favorites.

[Tegir]

i would probably not be here (not at bcf, but actual existence) if it werent for fanfics getting me away from difficult times, providing escapism, and for having stories about characters i loved (not in a weird way), i guess fanart would be included in that praise, but the stories occupied much more of my time, which is usually the goal, getting through another day. im sure this wasnt what this question was asking. yes there are good and bad, but hopefully there is enough quantity and variety that everyone can find exactly what they are looking for. i wrote some too and hope they werent shitty. but people seem to still be faving them, lol.

[Samurai Kai]

I won't lie, some of the Mass Effect ones aren't too bad... hell I'll even admit the erotic ones aren't too shabby themselves! ;D

[lindel]

I won't lie, some of the Mass Effect ones aren't too bad... hell I'll even admit the erotic ones aren't too shabby themselves! ;D

haven't read any of them honestly.I am guilty of writing a soul eater one(which I am having way to much fun with) a few final fantasy ones and a drakenguard 2 one

[Zanko]

I've never been a fan of fan-fiction. Most of the stuff I've read was too weird. Even for me.

[Samurai Kai]

haven't read any of them honestly.I am guilty of writing a soul eater one(which I am having way to much fun with) a few final fantasy ones and a drakenguard 2 one

Haha Soul Eater huh? XD Now I'm curious. Now Rushlight is gonna kill us both XD

[TimePages]

I.. I might be guilty of writing a few Pokemon ones and OC ones..



But you don't understand! It's too much fun DX

[Atom]

I love fan-fiction but it can be hit or miss.  Depending on various things including grammar and content.

[lindel]

Haha Soul Eater huh? XD Now I'm curious. Now Rushlight is gonna kill us both XD

i'll just say stein X medusa is a thing :)...rushlight shall eat you maybe..i however am a dragon *cheeky smile*

[ChapterAquila92]

Three factors come to mind on this issue:

- The material the fanfic is derived from;
- The amount of research into said material; and
- The proficiency of the author to write a story.

The subject material of the fanfic is always going to be the initial draw of the fanfic while at the same time being the most subjective factor, depending heavily on the interests of the audience. It is barely any wonder then that the vast majority of a fanfic's audience happen to be fans of the material it was derived from, and there is more than a likely chance that fanfic reviews will often be biased as a result.

The amount of research into the original material is a harsh quality control - it is all too common for fanfic writers, who themselves tend to be passionate fans of the setting they're writing in, to have a rather limited scope of what the entire setting has to offer. Straight off the top of my head, there are three settings that suffer immensely from a general lack of invested research: Mass Effect, Halo, and Warhammer 40,000 - all three suffer from fans who are only familiar with their respective settings through the games, with very little awareness that there is an expanded universe for each of them (Mass Effect doubly so, with its in-game Wikipedia that many fans inaccurately reference).

Just as bothersome are the crossover fanfics that use one setting's flaws to justify why the other setting is better. Mass Effect is an easy butt-monkey for this, and a particular Halo crossover gave the impetus for a surge of such HFY (Humanity, F*ck Yeah!) fanfics, featuring ME!humanity swap-outs that still somehow follow ME!canon while making everyone else hold the idiot ball, because HFY "bypassed" the Reaper trap. On the other hand, Warhammer 40,000 suffers from a different problem - fans who paint in broad strokes, often making everything lather in the setting's tagline of "grimdark" or assuming that what little they know from the tabletop and computer games is sufficient material to work with in the fanfic, even though the setting is vast enough that anything can be possible without even having to mention the default game content.

And last but not least, I can't stress enough that the ability of an author to write a story will have a significant impact on the fanfic itself. On one hand, it's the difference between retelling the original story with a different skin and telling a new one with elements of the original source. On the other, it's also the difference between a well-structured story and a poorly-worded block of text.

One further thing: when trying to make a serious and mature fanfic of a series otherwise geared towards children and young teens, "grimdark" is too far unless you intend on writing a horror fic. This is something I've been keeping in mind for a Pokemon military fanfic called Forgotten Army, if anyone is interested.