• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  first of all i'd like to say that Joss Whedon is a god and one of the most talented people out there. I really enjoyed Firefly and Angel, which is now my favorite tv show of all time. Which is why I don't think that people should write fan fictions. i think a story should be told by the author and the author only. The way someome writes a story is what gives the magic and the reality of the story. I think that when someone tries to mimic someone's writing, it's like saying that the story wasnt good enough so i'm going to write it myself. I use to read fan fiction for The Adventures of Sinbad (don't laugh i was 15), and as much as i loved the stuff that was going on, it was not how the author intended it to be. It's almost like copyright infringement. It's like taking someone's idea and using it as your own. i don't know. i'm iffy about this whole fan fiction thing.
  

• silverwhisper said on Aug 31, 2006....

  tifa: i encounter that sentiment now and again and i've never really understood it. i've seen some fan fiction that's absolutely stellar (such as the guys in the firefly project i mentioned): it stays completely true to the characters, the themes of the original material, etc.
  
  IMX, true fan fiction doesn't take someone else's idea and use it as its own: it takes someone else's idea and tells new stories that could have been produced as part of the original source.
  
  another friend of mine is writing some star trek fan fiction. it's light years better than anything i've seen of star trek on TV in the past several years.
  
  ed
  

• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  IMX, true fan fiction doesn't take someone else's idea and use it as its own: it takes someone else's idea and tells new stories that could have been produced as part of the original source.
  
  true, but i still think the essence of the original author is not the same. It's like Walter Benjamin's idea of original objects having an aura. If you take the original Mona Lisa and recreate it, it's not the same as the original one. The countless numbers of paper posters of the Mona Lisa cannot possibly compare to the original work of art. the reproductions have lost the aura. Or its like taking the Mona Lisa and have it reproduced as a mosaic.
  
  I see fan fiction being the same. you take an original idea and recreate it to be very similar to the original one. We all know who did it originally, but it's not the original version, so it can't possibly be comparable.
  

• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  you can read Benjamin's The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction here.
  

• silverwhisper said on Aug 31, 2006....

  tifa: i don't have the time now to read that although i'm curious what benjamin would think of scanning and faxing.
  
  of course it isn't the same and i think it would be silly to argue otherwise. it's necessarily different.
  
  OK, here's an example: i'm a big springsteen fan. springsteen gave a few songs he penned to other artists or let them cover it. the '70s manfred mann hit blinded by the light was actually a springsteen tune.
  
  to the uninformed, the manfred mann version is the original version. that of course is incorrect: it's actually a cover.
  
  so how do you feel about a musician covering someone else's tune?
  
  ed
  

• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  I think music is different because the message and the lyrics are essentially the same, giving it a different tuning doesn't necessarily change the song. However, there are bad song covers that butcher beautiful songs (I'm thinking Stand by Me, NOFX. great song when sang independently, but when you really listen to the NOFX cover, it takes out the magic out of the original because it's not as romantic anymore).
  
  Fan fictions derive from the original track of the story. Taking the character down a path the original author did not intend to take. Now, there might be some great fan fictions out there and i might be bashing it cuz of the fan fictions i used to read. Maybe the project you're talking about is actually great. In fact, I would really like to read that, maybe it'll change my mind about fan fics. =P
  

• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  sorry not NOFX...Pennywise..
  

• silverwhisper said on Aug 31, 2006....

  tifa: i don't know that cover, so you know, i would never have known. :>
  
  i was trying to avoid saying that your earlier experiences might have prejudiced you. if you do take a peek, i'd be curious to know your thoughts.
  
  ed
  

• tifa said on Aug 31, 2006....

  i'll make sure to take a look at it..=)
  

• purple said on Aug 31, 2006....

  Speaking of writing fiction, how do I reach you off of soulcast so I can send you my Literotica name? Is Firefly the one about the courtesan? Anara? I loved the heck out of that show. Everytime a great show gets cancelled I swear I'll never get sucked into another one. Remember Earth 2. That was another one that got canned, though I hear it's on cable now. (Not that that helps me, as I've never had cable in my life).
  

• silverwhisper said on Aug 31, 2006....

  purple: the discussion forums on lit have a private messaging (PM) option. or heck, just go to the how to or how to cafe forums and start posting away: i'm sure i'll see you there.
  
  heck, go to this thread and say hello: that's what the thread is for. :>
  
  i'm known there by the same name. i look forward to seeing you there. :>
  
  ed
  

• Zayda said on Aug 31, 2006....

  Ohhh...and purple you will find me there too, but under a different name. :)
  

• Zayda said on Aug 31, 2006....

  I think, to some extent, what I am writing, isn't entirely fan-fiction, not in the sense that people use it in regards to television shows.
  
  I took my character from an MMORPG and wrote a storyline based around that character. The storyline was posted on our server's forums, and other players began contributing to that storyline by writing as their characters. It went on for a couple of months. What you are seeing is simply my part of that storyline from my character's perspective, or from the perspective of another character, if I wrote it.
  
  Star Wars Galaxies (SWG), btw, had a novel published around it. A player, on one of the servers, wrote an entire novel based around her character from the game.
  

• Expendable said on Aug 31, 2006....

  If you're doing a mary sue where you're putting yourself into the story (sometimes with a thin disguise) to overwealm the regular characters then it's a dream better kept private.
  
  If you're staying true to the characters and the storyline, you ought to think about submitting it as a script if its still on the air.
  

• SeanRenaud said on Aug 31, 2006....

  I'll start by saying that I am a huge fan of anything Whedon, from Buffy the Movie all the way to Firefly. Go ahead and crucify me, Buffy is my favorite of them, granted that is probably because Firefly got cancelled before the charachters had a chance to truly grow and develope but still.
  
  Fan fiction to me, I have mixed feelings. I like some of it, too much of it is crap. I've found escellent Buffy/Angel Fanfictions, one DBZ Fanfiction worth a damn, and a few assorted others.
  
  Then there is other fanfiction, like my own The Crow:Legend of the Ravenous Wolf. It isn't really a true fanfiction, it isn't meant to continue the stories. I had a story in mind, and I didn't feel like creating my own cast, so I didn't. A lot of people enjoyed it. I enjoyed writing. First chapter is up here btw.
  
  Anyway, if your good a fanfiction, write away.
  

• BeautifulObscenity said on Aug 31, 2006....

  fan fictions are fun to read.
  

• mockmog said on Aug 31, 2006....

  Fanfictions, there are good and there are bad. Personally, I also likes to read them, it's what could have happen spin-off from the author. Or it added another meaning to the stories, or make-believe storyline which could never happen in real - either written by author or in real life. It's like living a fantasy dream movie with the characters created by the author as the main actors & actresses.
  
  I don't write though I did try to once, 2 years ago, *grin* and left the story hanging with a few reviewers asking for the story to be continued. Too bad, as I can't seem to continue it as I have lost the storyline completely. Really admire people who can write stories, poetry, poem etc.
  

• Alyss said on Sep 01, 2006....

  Like most things there are good and bad sides to fan fiction. Some of it is very well written and comparable with or better than the original but some is truly dire.
  
  Besides who needs Firefly? Farscape forever!!
  

• silverwhisper said on Sep 01, 2006....

  alyss: next to firefly, farscape is teh sux. everyone knows that! :p
  
  ed
  

• Expendable said on Sep 01, 2006....

  Oh ed, I can't believe you said that...! 0.0;
  

• Alyss said on Sep 01, 2006....

  Now ed you just know that is so plainly not the case but as I'm non-confrontational I shall be satisfied with a grovelling apology from you rather than tossing the gauntlet...
  
  How about if I said who needs Firefly when there's B5, will that one fly?
  

• purple said on Sep 01, 2006....

  I'm not one to piggy back on the fame of others. Would I be flattered if I had a bestseller and the fan fiction people took it and ran? Maybe, maybe not. I know my viewpoint is in the minority. I've known hoards of people that are still writing storylines for StarTrekTNG.
  

• silverwhisper said on Sep 01, 2006....

  alyss: o, puh-lease, as much as i love JMS...nope, still ain't there. b5 is the only series i own in its entirety on DVD...besides firefly.
  
  ed
  

• Alyss said on Sep 02, 2006....

  Whereas I own both the complete B5 and Farscape and not a single Firefly dvd to be seen...
  
  Guess we'll have to agree to disagree, at least until I actually see Firefly... ;-)
  

• silverwhisper said on Sep 02, 2006....

  [orca-clubs alyss]
  
  ed
  

• Alyss said on Sep 02, 2006....

  Hey! You keep that whale to yourself! Cruelty to animals and all that...
  
  Actually I just realised I own TWO complete sets of B5 as I have it on video also...
  

• silverwhisper said on Sep 02, 2006....

  o, good grief, alyss...
  
  [trout and orca-smacks alyss]
  
  :>
  
  ed
  

• purple said on Sep 03, 2006....

  I just picked up a copy of Life Story Film Fantasy at the grocery store because it features Pirates of the Carribean on the cover.
  On the last two pages is a spread called The Top 10 Pirates of the Caribbean Fan Fiction Pieces. Some of them are on http://www.blackpearls.net if you want to try to find them.
  

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