Instead of necroing an old thread I decided to start a new one. So, I have this guilty pleasure; I read fanfiction. Trouble is most seems to be extremely poorly written. Especially slash fanfiction (I haven't read much yuri, but most straight fanfiction seems to be ok). Most of the problems I encounter are: 1. Waaaaay out of character depictions of original characters. 2. Sloppy writing in general: speelong, pun.tuation, using sms-speech, being inconsistent with names etc. 3. Rushing the story or dragging it out with silly and contrived plot devices. More slash related: 4. Extremely common and rigidly defined bottom/top couples. And by extreme I mean the bottom is almost always feminine, insecure and angsty, whereas the top is muscular, atheletic and headstrong. Extra points if the feminine/bottom guy loves to be treated like a girl and the masucline/top guy starts out homophobic. Double extra points for this causing problem no. 1. characters being waaay out of their oringinal character. 5. Repetitive and eye-gouging plots: A.The feminine/bottom guy get's raped in a dark alley/abandoned warehouse/behind the school gym, causing the homophobic muscle top to finally realise he cannot live without his girly angsty friend. B.Either one or even both of the couple have homophobic parents and/or other relatives, when it would be completely out of character for those relatives. C. Magical sex powers, be it (unexplained) male pregnancy, healing rape with sex etcetera. That's not to say there aren't good fanfic out there, otherwise I wouldn't like the genre. I've even had the good fortune of reading some stories that seemed to fit with established canon perfectly and was well written. Sometimes I'm just a bit discouraged of trying to find a good story because I have to wade through so much crap. So how's about the rest of you? Do you like fanfiction? If so what kind and for what reasons? And what don't you like about fanfiction? ---------- Post added 17th Jun 2013 at 09:50 PM ---------- Here's a fic that parodies common stereotypes and terrible writing for a specific couple: The Greatest Taito Story Ever, a digimon fanfic | FanFiction
I've read some good ones but can't remember what they were called. I know almost all of them were Harry Potter related stories. Harry/Draco, George/OC, Hermione/Minerva And I'm subscribed to a Waterloo Road fan fiction called Tides, with Lorraine/Nicki paring. I'm in love with this one! I know most of them are probably not worth reading but there are some good ones as well!
I hadn't considered fanfics based on Waterloo Road yet. Good tip. ---------- Post added 17th Jun 2013 at 10:08 PM ---------- Also just realised the season's continued in May. Lots of catching up to do.
I don't mind male pregnancy, as long as there is a reasonable explanation for it, be it sci-fi or fantasy (magical). For example they develop artifical wombs for men or something, or the characters belong to a fictional race/species that is capable of male-male reproduction. As long as it's reasonably explained and serves a purpose, it's fine by me. It's when it's done purely as a plot device and in a supposedly realistic setting, without any explanation whatsoever, that I can no longer suspend my disbelief.
Actually, if you're selective like me, t's hard to find bad fanfiction. Just by critically analyzing the summary, one can glean whether it's worth the time to check out the story. You might want to check out Hetalia and Bleach fanfiction. Though I have beginner's knowledge of Bleach, it has some nice stories. As for the bad elements that you outlined... I have read some stories like those. Thankfully, with my selective eye, those instances have been few and far between.
Fanfiction... it's probably the biggest mixed bag. A lot of misses, but there are some nice hits. ^-^ I used to surf around a lot of them when I visited the library. :lol: The biggest pet peeve I have with it are the love triangles. Two people obsessed with one person. Ugh. There's no rhyme or reason to it, they just write it that way - which probably makes it harder for those who are trying to create a plausible triangle themselves. *thinks* Oh yeah, younger characters having babies, a lot of babies. :dead:
Meh, I look to fanfiction with LGBTQA plot points for smut, as I have little hope for one actually having a decent plot. A few I love, but those are so few I just hold them to my chest and cuddle with them, after reading them and there sequels thrice.
I know, but that still sometimes means you have to read like 10-20 summaries until you find a good one. I've already read some Bleach ones, Hetalia I haven't seen yet so. I'm becoming more adapt at avoiding them to. It's like there's certain trigger words. ---------- Post added 18th Jun 2013 at 08:26 AM ---------- I know what you mean.
there was this thread or website i saw long time ago that discusses gay fic stereotypes. as for fanfics, I haven't read them
:lol: You're right about the trigger words. I've read probably hundreds and hundreds of them (not LGBT related) and I think I've always based it on the wording of the summary whether it's worth reading or not.
