Mumblings
Hmmm, some interesting discussion in the TWOP fanfic thread again, about new characters and minor characters and why they get or don't get written. Interesting because I was just talking about that with iscaris when she was squeeing about Michael/Whistler. What makes a pairing or a character "pop".
And of course I was just trying to extol the virtues of minor/new character Gen to a doubtful halfshellvenus.
I kinda have various theories of what makes a character who gets added at a later point in the series "pop":
-) They bring a fanbase along with them that serves them
-) They fulfill a function that has previously been left empty. For example, if you have a popular character who hasn't had a potential love interest or a good slash potential in canon for a while, so the fans of that character jump on this chance in droves
-) They are intertwined into the plot that it's hard to write around them and/or they provide a lot of useful background information on some other beloved character
-) They have a big and strong enough storyline that they carry on their own
-) They just sparkle enough, even in a minor role
ferrynheit posted a new Michael/T-Bag fic. I haven't read it yet, but I have no doubt that it's good. It's a sequel to Comfortably Numb if you remember that. I still remember when that story was posted at the fic exchange. I went crazy guessing for the author. I remember I was so impressed that I was convinced it had to be one of the more big name authors. Of course back then ferryn hadn't really written/posted all that much, so in my defense, it's not like I had a chance to know her style all that well.
And of course I was just trying to extol the virtues of minor/new character Gen to a doubtful halfshellvenus.
I kinda have various theories of what makes a character who gets added at a later point in the series "pop":
-) They bring a fanbase along with them that serves them
-) They fulfill a function that has previously been left empty. For example, if you have a popular character who hasn't had a potential love interest or a good slash potential in canon for a while, so the fans of that character jump on this chance in droves
-) They are intertwined into the plot that it's hard to write around them and/or they provide a lot of useful background information on some other beloved character
-) They have a big and strong enough storyline that they carry on their own
-) They just sparkle enough, even in a minor role
ferrynheit posted a new Michael/T-Bag fic. I haven't read it yet, but I have no doubt that it's good. It's a sequel to Comfortably Numb if you remember that. I still remember when that story was posted at the fic exchange. I went crazy guessing for the author. I remember I was so impressed that I was convinced it had to be one of the more big name authors. Of course back then ferryn hadn't really written/posted all that much, so in my defense, it's not like I had a chance to know her style all that well.