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Post by space1traveler on Apr 19, 2009 16:01:47 GMT -5
I think about fan fiction most of the time. I dream about it. (One of my favorites!) I use it to work out problems. I wish there was a way to make the fics audible, I would get more done around the house. I insert different aspects of the characters or situations into my everyday life.
I love to read and I print the stories to read in bed at night. I do make a point of having worship before I read my first story. I have also limited myself to no stories on Thursday or Friday or else nothing will get done for the weekend. (I will let you know how this works out for me!) When I read fan fiction and the stories are running hot I do not eat, I do not drink, I barely make it to the bathroom, I ignore the phone if I look at the 'caller ID' and deem the call unimportant (as in life and death sit). I only read and then move on to the next story, this can last up into the wee hours of the morning, sometimes I do not sleep for days. Do I think of it often, YES! I need a better computer so that I can take it to the bathroom with me.
The escapism question is a qualified yes. It is a fom of escape but for me it has become a teaching tool as well. My background is complicated and I won't go into it here but before fan fiction there was TV and I learned a lot about the world and how to get around in it. Enhanced my social skills, we might say. Now there is fan fiction and I fancy my self a John Sheppard wannabe.
I admire his code of ethics, his bravery, his intellect, his friendship with the people he protects and saves on a daily (at least at my house) basis. This transferrence of his ideology I place on my self and I have learned not to take my self to seriously, to speak up for myself if I believe I'm right. To be a better friend to the people around me as those I want and need to protect and/or support. Rodney's character has seeped over into my speaking and thinkings. I interject his actions and phrasing into my everyday life. I accept only what I think is worthy. Not all these guys do or say is worth repeating. Every author does not have the same standards that I have for myself. But pretty much I think reading SGA fan fiction has made me a better person.
I also read Thoughtcrimes. Both the John Sheppard character and Brendan Dean are played by Joe Flanigan. I don't have any illusions that John or Brendan are who Joe Flanigan is. I'm not that far gone. I do believe that the characters are worthy of immulation (did I spell that right?). They are flawed but at the core 'good people'. I want to be a good person in my own right. Not having someone to train me in this manner, like I said, I learn different aspects from the writers of fan fiction and get to see the world in a wider view. I discard that, that does not meet my own code of ethics and I assimilate (sp?) the good parts. Does that make me a fan fiction Borg? No matter what I try to remain true to MY core beliefs.
Question: Should not we try to learn and take the best from each person, experience, or aid we encounter, to better ourselves at every opportunity?
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Post by lynx212 on Apr 19, 2009 22:07:37 GMT -5
I think about fanfic everyday. Whether it's one I read/am reading or one I'm writing, it's mostly thoughts of the several I'm writing. I too have watched my interest in "actual books" dwindle since fanfic came into my world, but I feel that's only because there is so much and it's free, at my fingertips, etc. Reading online is great and my family tends to leave me alone on the PC more so than they would if I had a book in front of my face. I can chat, check my bank account, play games off and all in one fail swoop.
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Post by lynx212 on Apr 19, 2009 22:18:03 GMT -5
Also there is not the same limitations on fanfic as there are in what is published in actual books. I know fanfics that go places most books would never dare or even think of going (can we all say rampant mpreg?...lol) but people take that freedom and come up with some rather entertaining story lines and twists and turns.
I am totally addicted to it and don't plan on giving up the habit anytime soon.
My favorite thing to read is Yaoi and slash (BL, M/M) Slash and/or Yaoi is making big waves in fiction to the point where a lot of het readers and writers complain. XD It is misunderstood by a lot and I have a tendency, when people ask me why I read it or write it, to answer, "why not?" i mean I would like to think that the world and society as a whole has drug itself to a point where two men or two women being romantically involved is no longer shocking. (If not I wonder what it's gonna take for the shock value to wear off...yeesh!) So on that note, why not write it? Why not read it?
I think it's a great twist on the same old story. I mean seriously how many new ways are there to tell a classic love story without adding something not so familiar or classic to it? Look at it this way two men are not going to argue the same way or fashion a man and woman will. it not totally different but the "edge" has changed.
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Post by happyshep on Apr 19, 2009 22:46:40 GMT -5
I strongly agree, space1traveler. John is an admirable character. He is a variation of a warrior/leader archetype which appeals to a very ancient part of our psychology.
You've given me some great responses guys, and some very intimate ones too. Thank you for your contribution to this thread. I'd like to move on from this discussion for now. If there is any more that you would like to add you are more than welcome to, but I'm going to be creating some new topics which I think we should focus on for now.
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Post by space1traveler on Apr 19, 2009 22:47:21 GMT -5
Hi, lynx212. What is BL and Yaoi? Thanks for replying.
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jagfan
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JAG=>NCIS=>NCIS:v.2
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Post by jagfan on Apr 19, 2009 22:58:22 GMT -5
It's the same for me - I think about the character all the time, on the bus, in class, and definitely every single night before I fall asleep. I make up stories in my mind that I don't write down because they are usually plotless, but actually some of my nighttime fantasies have later been a basis for some of my multi-chapter stories. Even though I didn't know that fanfiction existed until a couple of years ago, I have been making h/c stories with book and movie characters for as long as I can remember. I agree with dontquoteme that if you are switching fandoms the addiction is less strong. In the past I used to make up stories with the characters from the book I was currently reading, and as soon as I finished it and moved on to a new book, the characters changed. It wasn't so strong then. But once I discovered the Lord of the Rings, which has been my only fandom for nearly seven years, I could give it all my thoughts and I am much more into it. Fanfiction is most definitely an escape from reality. While I read/write/fantasize/ I can forget about everything else. But it is more than that. Writing allows you to share your thoughts and fantasies with others, and it lets you meet people who are interested in the same things as you. I've made some great friends since I started writing, and I am thankful for that. Starlight said it all for me. I'm a bibliophile and have always wanted to be a librarian or architectural historian. Before I got sick I often had 3 or four books going at a time. l'm almost always thinking about TV, movies,or books.
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vexed
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Post by vexed on Apr 19, 2009 23:19:33 GMT -5
Also I have found that the audio versions are great for when cleaning the house.
I know I could get books on tape , but these are all stories I know and and love , if I am out of the room for a few minutes I never wonder what I missed.
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Post by azalea3 on Apr 19, 2009 23:56:25 GMT -5
I have been reading fanzine fan-fiction since 1973 and was writing it (not for publication) in 1966 when I was a young teenager. Over the years I tend to think of my interest as proceeding along in active and dormant phases. So there are times when I never think about fan-fiction, and other times when it became a near obsession.
I only read stories in a few fandoms, Star Trek and a couple of others. Right now I am reading Stargate Atlantis and have great hopes that the new Star Trek movie will invigorate that oldest and best of all the fandoms.
I have read fan-faction across almost five decades and I have no sense that the quality of the writing is any better or worse. The only difference is that there is much more to read. I was not a writer in the seventies, but I have much respect for all the early writers because almost all the tropes and story patterns that still dominate today were laid down within just a couple of years by many innovative and creative people. The terminology of fandom changes but everything else is very much the same.
But the question about how often do I think about fan fiction has a hidden side to it. Once you have entered into the realm of self produced, non-regulated literary production, (as reader or writer) you have put your feet into the freedom pool. All other literature one way or other is judged along side it. I am not making any claims about the worthiness of professional works or fan produced works, only pointing out that the reader’s mind is forever warped by the experience of comparison.
And that warping is what I continue to think about. Now when I read a novel, and I don’t like the path the author chooses to take, I re-write the novel in my head the way I want it to end. When I watch a television show and I don’t like what the writer’s are doing I re-imagine it. Whether or not that is fantasy wish-fulfillment is a hard thing for me to answer, but I don’t think it is.
As early as I can remember I’ve had a fascination with artificial worlds. I was a voracious reader and I enjoyed inhabiting other times and other places. But I don’t think I would call my fascination escapist. I enjoy the remaking of other places as intellectually challenging, a personalization of interior space that enriches rather then avoids reality. The best fan fiction feeds that enrichment. So in this sense I do think about fan fiction all the time, as a kind of alternative to the literary market place. It fascinated me when I watched it develop in the early Trek fanzines, and it still fascinates me. Its possesses a communal ‘legacy of possibility’ that is still very much at the core of writing and reading it and I don’t think that is ever going to change.
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Post by amalthia on Apr 20, 2009 0:09:25 GMT -5
"When we see fanfiction communities on the internet the enthusiasm given to a fandom seems to be consistent and eternal, but how much do you think it actually occupies your mind in reality? How often do you think about fanfiction? On the bus? In class? Before you fall asleep?"
I think about fan fiction quite often, mostly because when I really get into a fandom I'm always coming up with stories in my head, but even when I'm kind of meh about all fandoms I'm still actively running a few communities and two archives so I'm still participating in fandom. Since I got my Sony PRS-505 I've been reading a lot more fan fiction than ever before now that I can take it with me when I'm away from a computer.
After considering that, what do you think about the idea of fanfiction as escapism from reality? Could we go further and call fanfiction a form of fantasy?
I think any kind of reading is an escapism from reality, the main difference with fan fiction is we can finally get male/male porn out of it that's written by women for women. I'm not sure I can classify all fanfiction as fantasy because when I think of fantasy I do think of actual fantasy novels (that I do read) and there are some fan fiction genres that lend themselves to true science fiction. If you haven't read Sheppar's Law by Speranza I recommend checking it out.
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Post by happyshep on Apr 20, 2009 0:14:59 GMT -5
Azalea3, you're a fanfiction veteran! A few other members have mentioned their involvement in some of the original Star Trek conventions and fanzines. To be able to make those comparisons between the old and the new will be very valuable to any discussion which we might have regarding change and continuity.
Your last point is very clear and true. I have been using the term "escapism" very generally, but now I realize that it is important to differentiate between fantasy as intellectual or imaginative exploration, and fantasy as defined by Freud, which is marked by the presence of the self. This second definition I believe is most abundant in younger women.
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Post by supernoodle on Apr 21, 2009 15:45:35 GMT -5
All the bloody time! ;D
It really is an obsession - If I'm not writing it, I'm reading it. I love regular books, of course, but being able to read a new story about your favourite characters every day is just too much fun. And my obsession gets worse when I post a new story on Fanfic.net, because getting reviews from people who have enjoyed something you have written is beyond addictive. It's instant gratification.
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Post by mpbrennan on Apr 21, 2009 18:25:03 GMT -5
All the bloody time! ;D And my obsession gets worse when I post a new story on Fanfic.net, because getting reviews from people who have enjoyed something you have written is beyond addictive. It's instant gratification. You can say that again. Does anyone else get . . . almost an itch when you have a story finished and are *almost* ready to publish? Knowing that it's done and an intoxicating flood of reviews could be just a few short clicks away? I've done some really dumb things in response to that itch (like publish without proofreading, without waiting for beta input, without figuring out a good *title*). I wish I could write in the environment azalea began writing in, but I feel like my stories would shrivel up and die without the instant gratification of reviews. I need help, I know.
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Post by azalea3 on Apr 22, 2009 2:50:54 GMT -5
To mpbrennan, I'm not sure I'm linking this correctly. But I wanted to tell you that eventually you will write in a place without feedback, because there are lots of subjects and ideas that will come to you that won't necessarily have a built in audience, but they still need to be written. Nothing anyone does is without purpose. And what many people here consider escapism--isn't. Don't worry about the obsessive part, in only means you are in the right place. Enjoy it while you can, because the 'flush' as my friends call it will eventually damp down. I'm going through it my third time and it just gets better. Why my desire to write fan-fiction again woke up four months ago is a mystery. I had no idea I would be jumping back into active fandom--but here I am. Savor every second of the intoxication don't worry about perfection, post as much writing as you can, but more important post the best writing you are capable of--that is without going nuts. The itch is always a very good sign, but most of all don't forget to have fun.
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Post by mpbrennan on Apr 22, 2009 7:54:00 GMT -5
Thanks for the words of encouragement, azalea.
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Post by listyfox on Apr 22, 2009 12:28:03 GMT -5
Fiction is always on my mind, and the characters I am currently working with are continually "with" me to the point where I will start talking to them if I'm not careful! Sometimes these are my own characters, but quite often they are someone else's.
I love making up stories (and reading good stories) about characters I care about, and I do it anytime my mind isn't occupied with other matters. It does help me cope with the stresses of reality, and I have no doubt it is a form of escapism.
I think that some fics are daydreams turned into story. Definitely my crossover started out that way. But for me, the daydream, once turned story, becomes a literary exercise, which I treat as seriously as any of my original fiction. And there are times I will decide (or be prompted) to write a story with much less internalizing.
I'm not just an avid reader, I'm an avid writer as well, and once I get a story idea I must write it down, even if it goes no farther than my hard drive. It is an urge I cannot ignore, and is always with me.
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