fic: The Indirect Life (Tin Man - you read that right: TIN MAN!)

[blade_girl]

You know how sometimes a fandom comes along where the source material is less than it could or should have been, maybe even has serious, debilitating flaws, and yet you are for some reason drawn to it? Even to the point of becoming slightly obsessed with it for a while? No? Well, thanks for all the empathy

Comments

[solo_from_uncle]

This is truly one of the best writings of yours! Please keep up with this one - I love each chapter that comes forth and am looking forward to the next.

[blade_girl]

I don't think I could stop writing this one. It's a true compulsion.

Thanks, though, for the encouragement, dear!

Tin Man Anonymous

[blackletter]

Hello, I'm Blackletter, and I'm a Tin Man fan. And worse, I'm a slasher. I think my schoolwork may be suffering. And my personal life...oh wait, I'm a grad student, I don't have one of those. Anyway, I think my schoolwork may be suffering.

You know how sometimes a fandom comes along where the source material is less than it could or should have been, maybe even has serious, debilitating flaws, and yet you are for some reason drawn to it? Even to the point of becoming slightly obsessed with it for a while?This expresses it *precisely*. Although for me the imperfections can be part of the appeal. Partly I think it's my obsessive desire to fix and organize and rationalize things (and Tin Man gives me a nice, illogical mess to obsess over), partly it's because the lack of cohesion means that I can make stuff up however I please for each story, and re-organize and re-invent over and over. It's like playing with legos

Re: Tin Man Anonymous

[blade_girl]

Hello, I'm Blackletter, and I'm a Tin Man fan.

Hi, Blackletter!

Although for me the imperfections can be part of the appeal. Partly I think it's my obsessive desire to fix and organize and rationalize things (and Tin Man gives me a nice, illogical mess to obsess over), partly it's because the lack of cohesion means that I can make stuff up however I please for each story, and re-organize and re-invent over and over. It's like playing with legos.

Yes, I think you're right that the imperfections provide both inspiration (the impetus to "fix" things) and room in which to work (canon holes and inconsistencies). I spent a few years writing in the Highlander fandom, which has so many separate continuities - none of them consistent within themselves - that it makes Sybil look like she had it all together. But it offered really fertile ground for fanfic.

Also, when I find myself fascinated with a story, it's because I'm really fascinated with a character...and Glitch is very easy to become attached to.That's how it is with me, too. I

You're not alone

[verilyverity]

I've noticed it's always the fandoms with promising premises and problematic canon that generate the most good fic, as opposed to the wish-fulfillment scenarios that make up about 99% of fanfiction out there. I think it's a combination of irritation at wasted potential and the temptation of what is essentially, a blank slate. The idea is there, it's a good one, and canon falls short. This allows for so much more freedom than a story that leaves nothing more to be said.

Re: You're not alone

[blade_girl]

Oh, I quite agree. Thus it is that while I dearly love Battlestar Galactica, I feel no impetus at all to write fic for it, because for me, what the canon provides is perfectly satisfying. I may not love every direction it takes, but I don't walk away from episodes complaining about plot holes and bad characterization. They manage to sell me on nearly everything they do with the show, and that makes the show itself sufficient for me. (All you on the flist who dislike BSG: no need to pop in to tell me how wrong I am or how much superior the Stargate shows are. I'm okay with you feeling that way, but that particular debate always seems to get nasty. :) )

On the other hand, I am also a fan of Stargate: Atlantis, and the bulk of my fanfic has been written in that fandom. Much as I love the show, I recognize numerous areas in which it falls short of its potential, and as you say, that triggers the desire to try my hand at doing a better job than TPTB.