[ SECRET POST #3715 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #3715 ⌋

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

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 39 secrets from Secret Submission Post #531.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

okay, but fanfiction doesn't carry with it the normal elements of an original piece of fiction tho?

Sure, but that's not an argument against reading it. I think in a lot of ways fanfiction can be understood as a genre, and it's one that appeals to some people in itself and not just in relation to fandom.

In particular I would say that it's not like there is, in the abstract, anything that makes exposition inherently good

[(Anonymous)]

I mean, I guess if you don't want to care about the characters then it might not matter?

for example, in a hypothetical AU fanfic where character A is put in danger within the first chapter, I already carry with me an attachment to that character and an inherent sympathy for him because I've read/watched the original series, and the fanfic author knows and takes advantage of that attachment. but reading a fanfic for a series I don't follow that starts with character A being put in danger isn't going to affect me likely at all.

I don't disagree with you that fanfic is sort of its own genre, but that's precisely why I don't understand the appeal of reading fanfic for series I don't follow. it's like assembling a puzzle while missing at least 30-50% of the pieces.

[(Anonymous)]

for example, in a hypothetical AU fanfic where character A is put in danger within the first chapter, I already carry with me an attachment to that character and an inherent sympathy for him because I've read/watched the original series, and the fanfic author knows and takes advantage of that attachment. but reading a fanfic for a series I don't follow that starts with character A being put in danger isn't going to affect me likely at all.

It'll have a different kind of effect, to be sure. I don't think it's a barrier to people enjoying fanfic qua fanfic; it's just one of the characteristics of it as a genre. I mean, compare it to pulp, where you often have relatively paper-thin characterizations that people still find a way to care about.

I don't disagree with you that fanfic is sort of its own genre, but that's precisely why I don't understand the appeal of reading fanfic for series I don't follow. it's like assembling a puzzle while missing at least 30-50% of the pieces.

Well, the answer must be - and I think it is - that fanfic provides certain things, or does certain things, that other genres of fiction don't provide. My guess is it's something about the way that fanfic writes about relationships and emotion and intimacy, which often feels very distinct, and also the kinds of plot that fanfic tends to have, which while not good are often satisfying. But that's just a guess and I don't have a very well-defined idea of what it is.

[ketita]

It's not about exposition, though. It's about assumptions.
I only really started noticing it when I read fics for pairings that I don't actively ship (but don't mind) - the fics carry this... assumption, sort of, that the characters are meant to be together. They never challenge it, or try to convince the reader, because it's a shippy fic, and everybody knows that's where it's going.
You see that with certain plot twists or character developments. There's a lot of shorthand that goes into writing fanfiction.
You can absolutely write fanfiction that doesn't "need" the canon as much - and not because you're overloading it with unnecessary exposition, either - but imo it's pretty rare.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't disagree with you that fanfic is sort of its own genre, but that's precisely why I don't understand the appeal of reading fanfic for series I don't follow. it's like assembling a puzzle while missing at least 30-50% of the pieces.

I agree, but again, I don't see how that goes against my point. Some people like to read fic where two characters are definitely going to end up together and everyone knows it.

[ketita]

Oh, I wasn't disagreeing with your major point, just saying that in my opinion it's less directly about exposition/lack thereof and more about shorthand and assumptions.
But some of those are not even holes because of show events or characterization, but holes based on fanon or the mutual agreement by shippers that the characters should be together, stuff like that.
There's nothing wrong with that, but it's definitely something that is pretty endemic to fanfiction.

So I'm not disagreeing with you!

[(Anonymous)]

Oh cool! Sorry, my bad. I definitely agree that's one of the major elements of fanfiction.

[(Anonymous)]

Da

This is a very good way of describing some of the hallmarks of fanfic as a 'genre'... but these very reasons are also why it's easy for people to read fics of fandoms they don't follow. Once you've read a quick summary of the fandom and characters on wikipedia, especially for shipping fic it's kind of like picking up a harlequin or mills and boon - the characters aren't fleshed out that well, but they're familiar enough, and the tropes are familiar enough, and the plot rollicks along fast enough that you can ignore the bits you don't get.