[ SECRET POST #1991 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #1991 ⌋

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

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[ ----- SPOILERY SECRETS AHEAD ----- ]














15. [SPOILERS for Legend of Korra]



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16. [SPOILERS for Cabin in the Woods]



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17.[SPOILERS for Mass Effect 3]



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18. [SPOILERS for Game of Thrones]



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19. [SPOILERS for ASOIAF]



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[ ----- TRIGGERY SECRETS AHEAD ----- ]















20. [TRIGGER WARNING for rape]



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21. [TRIGGER WARNING for stalking/harassment]



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22. [TRIGGER WARNING for mentions of suicide/self-harm]
[SPOILERS for Mad Men]



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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 00 pages, 000 secrets from Secret Submission Post #284.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 1 2 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ], [ 1 - unreadable ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

06. http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll285/2Jane_Doe2/fandomsecret2.jpg

[(Anonymous)]

I agree. Once you publish a work, it's out there for people to interpret or re-interpret at will. If they're sharing your published work for free and you're losing potential customers I could see them being concerned but fanfic?

[deadtree]

I do the same thing, partly because I love fanwork and can't imagine being in a fandom where it's banned, and partly because I don't want to give my money (or time, but what they want is my money) to creators who would do something like put a ban on fanwork. They don't deserve it.

[(Anonymous)]

IAWTS

I can see the reasoning behind authors/creators not wanting fanfic written. It can be squicky, after all. but fanfic IS a valuable marketing tool--I've gotten into so many things I don't think I would've heard of if it wasn't for crossovers or recs.

imo the best stance to take is the one J.K. Rowling is taking. If I were a published author with a big fandom I would probably lurk but then come across mpreg or something and just get unbelievably squicked out.

[writerserenyty]

I think that while it's their right to request it, it's kind of silly, especially since it's super easy to get around. I'm very big on Legend of the Seeker, and the author of the original Sword of Truth books the series was based on has requested that people don't write fic about his books. However, since the TV rights are different, people can write fanfic freely about Legend of the Seeker, and I've seen a lot of places where people will be taking a lot of book canon into the TV series fanfic. So it feels almost like requesting "no fics about Sword of Truth" is kind of not going to do much, because people are going to write fics about Richard and Kahlan anyways. The books and the TV series are very different, but still.

[sparklywalls]

My attitude is you're probably never going to stop it because people will write it anyway so you may as well embrace it...or just ignore it but not actively hate on it. I probably wouldn't be very interested in fanworks based on my work because I'd just see it as people having fun with my stuff and so long as they're not profiting from it what's the big deal? I'd draw the line at the creepier situations like people going crazy at authors if their otp doesn't become canon. Although I don't know how many people actually contact authors directly with that stuff, I'm quite sheltered.

[(Anonymous)]

you're probably right in that they're missing out on some free marketing. but whatever, it's their choice.

[kaileighblue]

I disagree. It's within their rights. Especially if they don't want their characters to be written in sexual situations since that's what most fics tend to be.

The fun of fandoms without fics is meeting new people and having fun because you love something that doesn't have to devolve into who's having sex with whom. Now I'm not saying fics or sex is bad, just that there is far more to offer than that. I've traveled across the country with fandoms friends from a fandom without a fanfic element. Not that it was prohibited, it just didn't exist.

[(Anonymous)]

I can understand, a bit, why there are authors who don't want it.

I was put in the position of someone wanting to write fanfic - about my fanfic! They adored the original characters I brought into the narrative and wanted to do something with them. I gave them my permission because I thought it was awesome (and it WAS awesome) that someone wanted to do something like that.

Then I read the fic.

It was not bad. It was well written, the characters - MY characters - were in character but it felt so strange and creepy and wrong to see someone else pulling the strings that it wigged me out something fierce. I never told the person, because the fic was good, but it changed my perspective.

All that being said, I think it's ridiculous to outright ban it. People love to engage with their chosen fandoms. There's no rule out there that says the creator needs to read, acknowledge, or even pretend to LIKE that there is fanfic of their creations, but without it they are crippling some of the potential of the fanbase to expand.

[truxillogical]

This old chestnut again.

This attitude always comes off as being from a kid who grew up at a time when everything was computers. There's a lot of history to the whole "Don't like fanfiction" thing, especially for the older authors. Times change, maybe they do, maybe they don't.

It's their decision. I can actually enjoy source material without needing a whole bunch of fic to make me happy.

But while, yeah, ficcers gonna fic, I really do hate the "it's free publicity!" excuse. It's so condescending (nevermind that most writers who don't want fic don't really need the publicity) and always sounds like you're trying to justify what you're doing. Don't. If you want to write fic, write the fic, but don't try to tack on some altruistic purpose of "helping" the author.

[(Anonymous)]

I think it's really rude to write fanfic about something that the author has requested you not write fic for.

I would love to read fanfic for my original stories, but I completely understand why some authors wouldn't. Though I wouldn't ban it, I would be very uncomfortable if people wrote smut about my OC's, or used my fic to tell a story with a message I strongly disagreed with.

[(Anonymous)]

I use to agree with this (especially completely annoyed by GRRM's stance on it) but that was until 50 Shades of Grey came along and suddenly I can see the reservations about not wanting it.

Mind you I would like that every author would just accept it but at the same time I can see their side of it now.

[gabzillaz]

It's their choice. Personally, I wouldn't mind. But that's me.

Not much they can do to stop it anyway :/

[(Anonymous)]

personally, I support an author's right to say that if that's how they feel and it won't stop me from buying their books.

It also won't stop me from writing fic about their books if I feel like it and sharing it on the internet. I have zero compunctions about this issue.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm with you completely.

So many times, I've vetted fandoms before actually trying the source material. If it has very few fanfics/fanart/fanlove, I'm not as willing to add to the creator's profits as I might otherwise be. Sure, I may be missing out on something, but I don't really care; I'd rather my big, boisterous fandoms, where we're encouraged to express our love for canon however we please. All it does is hurt the creator to inhibit it, since other people feel the same as I do.

And to the person above who says authors don't want fic because it's all porn/shipping, gen exists.

[(Anonymous)]

I think it's ridiculous of an artist to assume that art is not a product. If you want full control over the world in your head, don't publish. But once you expect to live off your art, it becomes a two-way relationship. You can't sell me a product and then expect to dictate exactly what I can and cannot do with it. Copyright protects an artist's royalties, and that is that. If you want your world to remain 'unsullied' by fannish perversions, the easy solution is to keep it in your head. Can't have your cake and eat it too and stuff.

[(Anonymous)]

Everytime an author prohibits fics, I can't help but think they mean "You can pay me and only enjoy what I created IN THE WAY I WANT."

That also makes me wonder if they're brothered by interpretations that don't coincide with their intent...

[mekkio]

For me, it depends on the book. For example, if you wrote book retelling how you survived being sexually assaulted, even one where you fictionalized it in that you made up characters to represent you and your attacker, as many authors have done, the last thing you would want to see is rape fanfics between the fictional representation of yourself and the fictional representation of your attacker. You would find it horrifying and grotesque.

Yeah, it's a shame when authors go, "No, hands off" but anyone really wonder why? Most times authors go, "It's personal." How personal? There has to be a story behind the ban. I wonder what is it.

[badass_tiger]

Yeah I agree. Fanfic is a big part of a good fanbase, and a good fanbase can do magical things. Why deprive yourself of something so useful?

[diet_poison]

It's obviously within an author's rights to request that their work is not used for fanfiction, but damn if that doesn't take away from the respect I have for that author. I think it's very arrogant. Not to mention I also have to wonder why they are so against something that brings them free publicity.

[(Anonymous)]

Having seen how some people consider themselves turned off a work by how terrible the particular fandom was, though, I can sort of understand it.

[mimi-sardinia.livejournal.com]

In some ways I agree with this, in others...

Well I generally think it's the right of an author to decide whether they want to allow fanfic or not, but I dislike those authors who, along with objecting to fanfic, feel the need to call it perverse and a blight on their writing, or some other offended nonsense like that.

No matter how much fanfic gets written, the canon material will stay exactly the same, and even if the author bans fanfic, it won't stop readers from thinking up their crazy totally-opposite-what-the-author-intends ideas. It may just discourage a few from posting it online.

I do think fanworks acts as publicity though - I wouldn't be in my current fandom if not for fanfic - a fandom which has 6 DVD sets, going on 7, in canon material. I have bought the first 6 and am awaiting the release of the 7th.

It just so happens it's a TV fandom, with notoriously fan-savy creators, so the issue of an offended creator doesn't exist, but my next fandom may be a book fandom again.

That said, I won't knowingly get involved in any fandom that has an author who has expressed anti-fanfic sentiments. That does not mean all writers who have requested no fanfic (ones who may only do so due to legal worries), just those who have spouted particularly harsh vitrol about it.

[(Anonymous)]

The hilarious coincidence that this is posted the same day as that WSJ article...

I agree. I think it's stupid. I much prefer authors who are like "I've read a few for laughs, but only for books or series I'm done with. I don't want to accidentally steal an idea!!"

My rambling thoughts on the issue

[(Anonymous)]

Okay, here is my thoughts on this whole issue. I think authors/creators have the right to deny fandom fanfiction. Do I think it's a stupid move? Yes, I do, but I'm not going to be mad at them and boycott their books. I'd miss out on a lot of good reading if I did. As a writer myself, who grew up with fanfiction, I'm totally okay with it. If I were to ever be published I would be totally fine with fanfiction and everything that goes with it (including slash, because I love it, and I have gay characters so that point is moot anyway). I recognize that not all authors, new and old, have the same feelings I do about fanfiction.

I don't mind people playing in my sandbox, as long as I don't have to read it. I think the sandbox metaphor is apt for describing what becoming published means. By [the writer] opening up their sandbox to other people, they are inviting people to play with their characters, whether it be through fanfic, fanart, discussion, or just in the readers mind. As an author you can't control how your readers interpret your characters, lines of dialogue, or descriptions. Every person that reads your story is going to interpret it in a completely different way,and that's the thing I love about stories. That's what makes me want to improve my writing so that I can one day be published. I see my stories in a more fluid/evolving way, as in each person who reads it (my stories) can potentially bring something new to a discussion/fan related thing about my stories. However, not all authors see it that way, and I respect that. Some authors are very strict on how they want their characters to be seen. I don't personally understand it, but I can live with it.

The only time it bothers me is when the author is disrespectful to the fans who write fanfiction. Several of the authors I've seen who disprove of it have said horrible things about fanfic writers that I just can't get behind that. I don't think an author needs to demonize the fans who do write fanfiction to get their point across ("cough"DianaGobaldon"cough"). I think that sort of behavior is inexcusable. They are public figures now, and shouldn't act like children throwing a tantrum. It's fine to not like fanfiction, but I don't think authors need to be rude about it.

Besides, a lot of older authors who dislike fanfiction, dislike it because they don't understand it, and have been told the potential risks by publishers who also don't understand it. I have seen countless authors say they were told not to accept fanfiction because of legal issues. Most of those concerns are unfounded for the most part.

Also, a lot of authors don't see fanfiction in a positive way at all. We (I'm assuming most of us on Fandom Secrets) see fanfiction as a stepping stone to writing our own characters/worlds, they see it as a crutch. These authors see fanfiction as lazy writing because the fanfic writers are not creating their own characters/worlds. They are seriously baffled when you tell them that there are fanfic writers who don't want to be published. These authors don't understand the appeal of writing fanfiction, because they spent most of their lives writing their own worlds and characters. I can understand this to a certain extent. Give me a story idea and I can run with it, give me a fanfic idea and it sits on my computer forever. I'm not interested in writing fanfiction (I love reading it though). I'm much more interested in writing my own stories. Basically, every writer is different, and they all have different goals and different reasons for writing.

The truth of the matter is, I don't think we'll see most writers supporting/being comfortable with fanfiction for another decade. I know I'm 24 and I know a lot of writers (some younger) my age who are against fanfiction.

[saiika_von_maou]

I think it's a bit harsh to call them stupid...but I'll admit that I want to facepalm at the writers who get soooo offended by fanfiction. I remember reading somewhere about an author that said, "A person writing fanfiction is like a person breaking into my house and raping my children." Really? What even is that?