5 Things I Hate About Fics

[innibis]

So Bee's been doing the heavy lifting in the thinky thoughts posts lately, and I certainly don't have the flist she does to generate a ton of ideas. *waves to mini flist* This isn't actually thought provoking either, but as I am well and truly snowed in (and irrepressibly positive in nature), I thought I'd attempt to start a discussion about

Comments

[callmeonetrack]

Heh. These lists always make me feel awful. Because invariably I have violated every rule on the list more than once. But what the hell... I'm waiting for snow anyway.

Am trying to think of what totally pulls me out/puts me off of a fic. Well, Kara (or insert other hardass character here) crying a lot. Or alternately, punching a lot. Yes she punched Lee once, doesn't mean she thinks about clocking him every time he pisses her off.

If the characters don't have the proper tension between them that bothers me A LOT. Kara and Lee can light up a room with their UST. Pretty much always. If you write them UST-free, I tend to think you just don't have a good handle on the characters.

OCs. Not a fan of original characters in general though tolerable if they have a specific purpose. I'd read a novel if I wanted original characters to get to know.

Kara letting anyone fuck her out of guilt/shame/payback squicks me beyond belief.

[innibis]

I'm sorry - that was never my intent to make anyone feel awful - more like look at what people really find off putting. I know plenty of people who like what I don't, and it's all cool. And I can unequivocally say that if you do do anything on this, I can't think of it and it has never been enough to put me off your writing (even if I am hopelessly behind in reading everything from everyone).

Yeah - I hate it when stories go too far one way or the other on tough characters too - anything with Kara being a big weepy mess of ANSGT OH THE ANGST underneath or being a bullying jerk is not really readable for me.

Totally agree on the OCs, (although I can tolerate them better if they are well written and of legal drinking age). I've read maybe a handful of stories over the fandoms with good OCs, but usually I want them out of the way.

And yeah - anything with any character allowing him/herself to be sexually abused out of guilt or punishment is not something I can read either.

[ecstaticdance]

First, I hope I avoid 2 and know I avoid 3, but I'm looking at the rest of the list and cringing. Yeah. I do that. In my own defense, at least on 5, sometimes it's just a matter of not wanting to sound too repetitive in a string of dialogue.

Things that bug me, personally in fic?

-- Sudden and unexplained character behavior. i.e. - They're all going along, doing their thing, and then Kara decides to pop Lee a right hook. Because... ? He's convenient? Dunno. Drives me nuts.

-- Inappropriately stiff character speech. There are certain speech patterns that are obviously stiff and only really work for aliens and foreign diplomats. Do not use these speech patterns for school bullies, or anyone else who neither an alien nor a foreign diplomat.

[innibis]

I'm a jerk - I don't actually want people to feel bad from this post, but as usual I moved forward, willy-nilly. More like looking at people's individual weirdnesses. Like I hate the use of the word panty, but I certainly wouldn't consider that bad writing, you know?:)

5 is a tough one - there's a line for me, and I don't know what it is exactly. But there sometimes comes a point when I notice that someone never uses the word said, or people are screaming or whispering all the time which is strange for me - like I don't scream or whisper during conversations, and maybe that's just me, but if characters are never just talking, it bothers me for no apparent reason.

-Yeah - the things that make you go hmmm, where you back up and read a few paragraphs before to see if you missed something and it turns out. . . you haven't.

-Speech in general for me - I get put off by speech patterns pretty easily.:)

[ecstaticdance]

No, no! Not a jerk. And I'm certainly not going to stop writing because of it. Just be a bit more aware in my writing. :)

Re: 5... I get what you're saying. Maybe it's the appropriateness of the descriptor? Like you said, I don't whisper or yell or smirk in the course of a general conversation. He said, she replied, he interrupted, she continued anyway, etc... Like you said, just talking without that extreme emoting.

[innibis]

I do think it's the emotiness of the descriptor. . . For example, in a non-BSG fandom pairing that I adore, there is a great series of stories that I really like, except for a cople of things, most of all the use of the word murmur. They murmur all the time. Like in meetings and on missions and just places where one wouldn;t be murmring. . . I just can't help but think 'you keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.':)

[isla_verdad]

Word, sister. Especially #5. I hate over-writing in fics. "insert any verb except said" is one of them, but another is overwrought vocabulary and descriptions

[innibis]

I'm totally with you. I love fan fic and I never leave anything but positive feedback, because I know it's scary to put yourself out there and I want to encourage people to write. If it isn't my cup of tea I'm just moving on

[ourmutualfiend]

The said thing is pretty much the number one rule in fiction writing, right after Write What You Know*.

Okay so it's rule 1.5 or whatever. And yet so few people seem to grasp it.

*This, at all times, must be said in the voice of Elizabeth Windsor as played by Scott Thompson.

[innibis]

The said thing is pretty much the number one rule in fiction writing, right after Write What You Know

I did not know that. But it is annoying, so I'm glad there's a rule like that somewhere.

[ourmutualfiend]

Yeah, it's kind of a stated rule and kind of an instinctual thing. Like as you progress as a writer, you pick up on the idea that you don't need the verbed.

[cosetteferaud]

Heh. Such an interesting post. I’ve thought more than once to write an entry about “Things I don’t like to see in K/L fic” (it’s the only sort of fic I read, I am that obsessive ;P), but I thought it was too politically incorrect -especially given the fact that I am not a writer!! (besides, I don’t want to make anybody feel bad, really, because I love fic to bits). But well, truth is that fic-wise everybody has their very personal quirks

[innibis]

It probably is too politically incorrect, but I was stuck in a blizard and catching up on SGA fic and it occured to me that there are certain things that drive me insane.:) Plus you're nicer than I am

[cosetteferaud]

Plus you're nicer than I am

Heh. I am not that nice, believe me ;P

I have a high tolerance for it in AUs simply because circumstances change people

I agree, but I guess my tolerance is not so high (that's why I find some AU tough sometimes). I love seeing different versions of my favorite characters, but I need to recognize them.

I'm shameless about recasting people as I see fit
Hee! I LOVE it! :D

And I do like some long fics because I really enjoy good plot

I tend to associate long fics with WIPs... And don't get me wrong, I love long fic --when it is well written and doesn't get lost in superfluous plots and subplots. Maybe it's just me, but I find it difficult to find really really good long fic --but hey, they are probably the most difficult to write and I admire writers who are skilled enought to do that.

I may be a jerk and post things I don't like

Heh. Not at all. I like this sort of posts. You are super polite, you write fic --so obviously, there is some self-criticism here--, and this is your journal :)