Questions About Fictional Trends, Creating Good Fiction, And Quite Possibly Poor Choices

[the_arc5]

Guys, I need new icons like mad. Anybody have a direction they can point me for new ones?

Secondly, IT'S ESSAY TIME.

Well, not an essay precisely, because I'm not really sure what I'm irate about. Working through feelings. Group therapy. Group writing therapy.

Comments

[kaffy_r]

I think that it could be a matter of your perspective, yes, but it could also be a reflection of the fact that trends in writing are probably like trends or fashions in everything else; they come and go in cycles. You may be seeing trend in which writers, for any number of reasons, are trying to write in what they see is a clear, straightforward manner. Some of them may do that well, while all too many don't do it well at all.

The thing to remember is that trends evolve. You may not have to fear for the future of fanfic; the diversity of styles is probably still out there, but you're just living through a rather more unfortunate period of writerly affection for a style that can easily be boring.

[the_arc5]

This is true. I just genuinely hope this is a short-lived trend. I've never been one to panic over the future of the written word (and tend to roll my eyes a little when I see articles proclaiming no one reads anymore), but I will be incredibly glad when we move on from this.

And vampire AUs and genderswap AUs and His Dark Materials crossovers. /personal dislikes

[kaffy_r]

I've rarely read genderswap that interested me (one or two fairly well done in Who fanfic, and that's it. Vampires? No. Seriously. I'm not very fond of the His Dark Materials trilogy, so it came as a surprise to me when I actually liked a fic that crossed over into that universe.

Since I write (nonfiction) for a living, I tend to look at all writing, fanfic included, with a rather critical eye. And I second every suggestion/demand, that fic writers look for and use a good editor.

[the_arc5]

I've read a couple of Star Trek genderswaps that were intended as meta and exceeded my wildest expectations. But for some reason, the Sherlock fandom is ALL ABOUT genderswap, which honestly is the fandom where genderswap interests me the least. I've only read one vampire AU to completion, and that was on repetitive recommendation; it was actually good, very politically and culturally aware, which was bizarre. I absolutely hated His Dark Materials, so I'm baffled with the endless crossovers.

I don't know. My degree is in English and I only wish I wrote for a living, but I know my standards aren't the standards of everyone else. I suppose what bothers me the most is knowing that I dislike something but not knowing precisely why. I'm having trouble articulating what it is about the fiction I've read that bothers me so much, which bothers me more than the fiction did originally.

[lindahoyland]

I think stories tend to come in waves of good or bad and also the more you read the more picky you become. I used to just lap up stories whereas now I think if she writes such a thing one more time, I'll scream!

Using proper names too often, guilty as charged and I'm working on it after a discussion with my editor.

I think we get a bit jaded if we read a lot as we know it should be done or at least we think we do.

[the_arc5]

I try to be conscious of the fact that everyone's a critic and watch myself, because I know that I'm not anywhere near perfect myself. Especially in terms of fanfic, I think a little leeway is warranted.

But it does grate on my nerves to see mediocre or poor stories hailed as the best thing since sliced bread.

Having an editor certainly helps, though; I think a lot of stories would benefit from a stern discussion with one.

[lindahoyland]

Yes, it grates on my nerves too, because it makes you wonder if any praise you receive for your own stories is meaningless!

I owe a lot to my editors.

[the_arc5]

God bless editors. I've got a couple of great ones I'm thankful for every day.