fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #3168 ]

[ SECRET POST #3168 ]

⌈ Secret Post #3168 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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02.

[Criminal Minds]

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03.

[Community]

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04.

(Harry Potter, Yu-Gi-Oh)

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05.

[JerryC]

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[J.K. Rowling/Harry Potter]

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07.

[Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance]

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[Hatfields & McCoys]

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[Proof]

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10.

[Brooklyn Nine Nine]

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11.

[Scarlett Johansson]

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12.

[No Escape]

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 065 secrets from Secret Submission Post #453.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

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Same - I don't mind RPF so long as it's about the actors and based on who the actors are, and not a totally random epic coffee shop AU romance or something using the actors names and appearances.

Why not just write OCs and say they share the actors' physical appearance or something instead? Since they're fictional characters at that point anyway, and the actors' jobs are to play fictional characters...

nayrt

Why not just write OCs and say they share the actors' physical appearance or something instead?

Because for me, I write to explore characters and their personalities, mannerisms, interactions with other characters, reactions to situations, etc.. Not because I like the way they look on camera...that doesn't really translate to written word. I want to write about a particular person, this actor I like, not just some guy who looks like this actor I like. And I don't see how that would be any better, really, if you WERE writing just for appearance, to say this random dude you made up totally is not based on $popularactor but looks exactly like them anyway...

And I don't see how that would be any better, really, if you WERE writing just for appearance, to say this random dude you made up totally is not based on $popularactor but looks exactly like them anyway...

Really? You don't see how it would be less alarming to say "oh, the character just like me!" versus "oh, this character IS me, with my mannerisms, personality, reactions, etc."

You don't see how that wouldn't be better? I mean, I don't have a horse in this race either way, but I can definitely see how the latter would be more uncomfortable than the former.

More uncomfortable for whom? The actor, who probably makes it a point to not read their own fanfic?

"oh, the character just like me!" versus "oh, this character IS me, with my mannerisms, personality, reactions, etc."

And if they did, read the fic, they'd probably recognize the mannerisms, personality, etc., are those of the public persona that most celebrities have, and not their actual private personalities.

ayrt

So you only write about public personas rather than the actual person?

Of course? I don't know the actors beyond any information that they release to the public. If they act exactly the same way at home as they do on the red carpet then that's not my fault or my problem, and they probably should distance themselves somewhat, for their own sanity.

I am taking the character that they have put out into the world (whether it's their own character or one they've created) and I am entertaining myself and a few other people with it. I'm not tweeting photomanips to them or anything creepy. I don't write fic about killing off the spouses to enable OTP sexytimes. I just explore the characters that they choose to present to the public.

And basically everything is semantics, so I dunno what point you're making there.

> If they act exactly the same way at home as they do on the red carpet then that's not my fault or my problem

lmao okay, you should have just said something like this in the first place, I wouldn't have bothered engaging with you

Oh good. Are we done then?

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-06 20:52 (UTC) - Expand

>they act exactly the same way at home as they do on the red carpet then that's not my fault or my problem

>whether it's their own character or one they've created

A created persona is equally as valid as a real persona (because I'm sure not all celebrities have created one, whether that's good or bad) and because you want to and because that's what the celebrity has put out there, writing fiction about that persona is valid and should be considered as non-problematic as writing fiction about obvious fictional characters? That's what's going on in this thread?

(god, that sentence is a terrible run-on)

ayrt

TBH, I don't even know what's going on in this thread anymore. People are arguing with me, with opinions that I already hold, so...

So you only write about public personas rather than the actual person? What if you can't tell if this is their actual personality? I'm assuming you don't know what celebrities act like behind closed doors, so what if they don't have a public persona? What if they're just who they are?

Doesn't everyone have a public persona though? I'm certainly not the same person at work as I am at home, and I have the most unremarkable job ever. I assumed that was true of everyone.

Unless you know a celeb personally, all you know is the public persona. Social media has blurred lines from the glossy magazine spreads of the 30s and 40s that created the mystique of Cary Grant and Greta Garbo, but don't be fooled-- We don't know anything about who these people really are.

That's why I've never had a problem with RPF. You're not writing about Tom Hiddleston the person. You're writing about Tom Hiddleston the character. It's just another role being played out in front of you.

so we can write rpf about anyone we want? sweet.

AYRT

>I want to write about a particular person, this actor I like, not just some guy who looks like this actor I like

And you're... claiming to know what your particular actor would act like, in real life, in an epic romantic coffee shop AU where he's entered into a turbulent romance with his male coworker despite the fact that he has a wife and kids IRL? Shouldn't people admit they're making up a fictional character at that point?

I get the appeal of RPF - like I said, I enjoy fics where the actors are themselves, or getting along on set, or hell, being in secret slashy ships on set based on real interviews or something - but just like with fictional AU there are limits before things stop being the character you're trying to write. With real life people, where you can legitimately say you know Harry Potter better than your favorite actor in reality, the limits are even shorter than fictional ones, is all.

ayrt

I'm claiming no such thing. I'm sure it's horribly inaccurate. In which case, why does anyone care if we write RPF? It's not like we KNOW the actors. He/she/they totally wouldn't react like that. We KNOW that we're writing the public personas that they choose to project to the world. Just pretend it's fictional (because, you know, it is) and let us do write we want.

I know my favorite actor as well as I know Harry Potter. Both are fictional personas. If there were a *real* Harry Potter, I would know him about as well as I know the real personality of my favorite actor (which is not at all).

nayrt

is anyone here saying you're not allowed to write it

AYRT

Unless you've read seven books worth of 10+ years of your favorite actor's life and were privy to his intimate thoughts and his darkest moments all the way from when he was prepubescent to when he graduated high school, you really don't know him as well as you know Harry, just sayin'.

I never said people should stop doing it or feel bad about it. Only said at that point, they should admit they're writing original characters drawing on real peoples' appearances and mannerisms, and not "real person fiction." Since, you know, it's not about a real person at all. But you're getting real defensive here so I'm going to bow out.

SA

Before you go "but I've never read Harry Potter! Lulz jokes on you!": the Harry thing was assuming the writer is a HP fan. Obviously. Replace HP with whatever fandom fictional character you choose, whose life and thought processes you are much more privy to than any real life celeb.

ayrt

Do I know this person whose profession happens to be acting, his innermost thoughts and deepest desires and his feelings and passions and his soul? No. I don't want to. Because people keep things secret for a reason, and it's not my business to know those things.

Do I know a whole lot of the public details that this actor has chosen to present for public consumption through various media as part of the persona he presents to the world and his fans? Yep. And those are the details I use to write.

I have no illusions that RPfic is "real person". I never said I was writing actual people. I'm still writing a character. I think a lot of people who protest the practice don't actually realize that, and if they did, we wouldn't be having this debate.

DA

I also don't have a dog in this hunt (I just can't relate to the RPF concept--I'm old, IDK) here's my question: Aren't you limiting yourself, in doing this? I mean, if you're imagining some epic scenario in your head, and suddenly X becomes OOC because you're stuck on one guy/girl/robot IDK.

(Wait, doesn't everybody flip around age/hair colour/eye colour/mannerisms/biology/clothing/location/etc of their pretend people in their pretend universes as need be/if you get bored with it/them? No? Just me? okey then *slinks away*)

ayrt

No? I strive to keep my characters in-character. I don't write for plot. I set up scenarios and write characters that I enjoy, to see what happens and see what they decide to do.

"in-character"

You know, to be a sarcastic asshole, I wrote a big honking disclaimer about the character of an actor vs the actor's actual character in the middle of that comment, but I thought that would come across as rude. Clearly it's necessary because some of you can't actually read context. I will dumb shit down for you in the future, don't worry.

"character of an actor vs the actor's actual character"

because we definitely know there is a difference lmao

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-06 21:04 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-06 21:09 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-06 21:53 (UTC) - Expand

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-06 22:50 (UTC) - Expand

nayrt

As someone who writes an RPF AU fic series, I can say that it mostly had to do with there being a built-in readership for RPF. I couldn't see any way for the TV show characters to act the way that I see the characters in the fic, so I went RPF with it. The basic personalities of the characters align with the public personas of the actors, so it made sense to use them.

It's hard to get someone to read an original story, even if you tell them who you picture for the characters.

That seems like one of the worst justifications for writing RPF that there could be. You did it because you knew there was a built in readership.

You can't even plead your base writing urges getting the better of you. You used real life people for your fic, deliberately, and it was all designed just to get more page views.

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