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Sigh, authors these days
Friday, May 7th, 2010 12:12 amThis was pointed to me by Anna. Links within are gathered from Anna's original post and a few other places.
I laugh. I really did. It's a very intelligent-sounding piece, but that's just it. The letter to the fanfiction author just sounds intelligent. It's not intelligent at all. It's defensive.
From my point of view, the author doesn't sound like she is confident that anyone will love her characters and her world as much as she does. It's a fear I can completely understand; when I first set out to start writing Naoko's, Kishan's and Sukina's stories, I was secretly terrified that someone would turn the three of them into sex-raving maniacs or the girls into lesbians, or worse.
Two years on, I know better and am a little bit more secure. That doesn't mean I won't sue anyone who takes my characters and makes a profit out of them. I'm an unpublished author after all, so I still want to protect them as best as I can. After the first book is out, then heh, we can talk about fanfiction. If it ever reaches that stage. But I disgress.
From Gabaldon's perspective, her idea is that fanfiction is illegal. To her, it steals her characters from her. It also portrays a version of her characters that she does not want the general audience to see. In a way, it also seems to say that fans who choose to write fanfiction are cheating; they are authors who steal from the original author for their own fantasy.
These are valid perspectives. They are perfectly valid reasons. As a novellist-in-progress, I can understand and empathise. However, this outlook is also incredibly shallow. It is also ultimately demeaning, not just to the fans, but to the author. At the extreme end, it also implies a control freak. You cannot control what people think (hint: first mass media lesson I learnt in college: the media can only tell people what to think about, not what to think).
It's demeaning to the fans because it tells them, "I cannot trust you with this world I have created. This is my playground. You can't come in to play. If you buy my books and read what I've written, then you can see what I do. But you can only watch. You can't touch." So, in simpler words, the author treats her fans like babies. The author doesn't even allow her fans to be children; what they think must remain in their thoughts, they cannot and will not be allowed to express their love of the characters and the created world by acting it out.
It demeans the fans because it removes their right to express themselves.
More than that, it cuts off access to new fans and expressions. In a way, the Internet has thrived and grown because of fanfiction. Fan-created works are part of the reason why there are so many youths on the Internet, youths who explore, expand, and enjoy the world created by authors.
The doujin community is strong in Asia. In Malaysia, at the very least, it has been the reason why so many youths join the creative industries. Many writers I know got their start by writing fanfiction (yours truly was one of them). Many fantastic artists I know got their start by drawing fanart. A number of people dear to my heart let off steam by cosplay; dressing up as their favourite characters and participating in photoshoots. These fan-based activities are possibly one of the reasons why there is a fairly strong creative industry in Malaysia; the majority of the newer generation artists and writers got their start by writing fanfiction and creating fanarts of their favourite characters and settings. I can say with certainty that possibly it's one of the reasons why Japan and Korea have such strong creative industries.
When such fans come together, they do not just come together to share the love among themselves. They spread it around. They bring new fans to the fandom, even years after the original book or series was first published and released. On the Japanese side, it's one of the reasons why series like Sailormoon are being reprinted, even though the original run is over. There's demand from the fan market, which keeps the series and the demand alive, by creating fanfiction and fanart. It's the reason why Firefly became such a huge hit even though it was taken off the air early. It's one of the reasons why Final Fantasy is one of the most enduring series around. Goddamnit, Shin Megami Tensei the game was created based on a fanfic work by the game company!
Fans are the ones who will defend an author from critics. In many cases, most fans understand that the author too has to eat, and they will support the author the best way possible; by buying her books. By buying her merchandise. By encouraging their friends and family to do the same. By goddamnit, supporting her!
The point I am trying to make is this; fanfiction isn't just good for the author by bringing her publicity and putting her work out there in a medium that makes it easy for people to discover her. It's a way for fans to tell the author, "Hey, your work is so awesome, I was inspired!" Your works inspire people damnit. Fanworks (not just fanfiction), tell the world that people think your work is AWESOME that it needs to be expressed. It's so awesome that people want to explore your world! Your work made them think! It encouraged them! It inspired them! In some really extreme cases, it gave them a reason to continue. To live!
And you COMPLAIN.
Wow. Really, really great way to repay an audience that took the time and effort to publicise your book. That took the time to try and understand how your world works. That tried to make other people see the awesomeness of your work. You know, when you rail against fanfiction, you don't just alienate your fans. You tell non-fans to GTFO too. Who will, in turn, decide to never support you and in fact, will probably go out of their way to ensure that they will never buy one of your books.
Well done.
PS: Or are you just afraid that you'll meet someone who can tell your world's story better than you?
I laugh. I really did. It's a very intelligent-sounding piece, but that's just it. The letter to the fanfiction author just sounds intelligent. It's not intelligent at all. It's defensive.
From my point of view, the author doesn't sound like she is confident that anyone will love her characters and her world as much as she does. It's a fear I can completely understand; when I first set out to start writing Naoko's, Kishan's and Sukina's stories, I was secretly terrified that someone would turn the three of them into sex-raving maniacs or the girls into lesbians, or worse.
Two years on, I know better and am a little bit more secure. That doesn't mean I won't sue anyone who takes my characters and makes a profit out of them. I'm an unpublished author after all, so I still want to protect them as best as I can. After the first book is out, then heh, we can talk about fanfiction. If it ever reaches that stage. But I disgress.
From Gabaldon's perspective, her idea is that fanfiction is illegal. To her, it steals her characters from her. It also portrays a version of her characters that she does not want the general audience to see. In a way, it also seems to say that fans who choose to write fanfiction are cheating; they are authors who steal from the original author for their own fantasy.
These are valid perspectives. They are perfectly valid reasons. As a novellist-in-progress, I can understand and empathise. However, this outlook is also incredibly shallow. It is also ultimately demeaning, not just to the fans, but to the author. At the extreme end, it also implies a control freak. You cannot control what people think (hint: first mass media lesson I learnt in college: the media can only tell people what to think about, not what to think).
It's demeaning to the fans because it tells them, "I cannot trust you with this world I have created. This is my playground. You can't come in to play. If you buy my books and read what I've written, then you can see what I do. But you can only watch. You can't touch." So, in simpler words, the author treats her fans like babies. The author doesn't even allow her fans to be children; what they think must remain in their thoughts, they cannot and will not be allowed to express their love of the characters and the created world by acting it out.
It demeans the fans because it removes their right to express themselves.
More than that, it cuts off access to new fans and expressions. In a way, the Internet has thrived and grown because of fanfiction. Fan-created works are part of the reason why there are so many youths on the Internet, youths who explore, expand, and enjoy the world created by authors.
The doujin community is strong in Asia. In Malaysia, at the very least, it has been the reason why so many youths join the creative industries. Many writers I know got their start by writing fanfiction (yours truly was one of them). Many fantastic artists I know got their start by drawing fanart. A number of people dear to my heart let off steam by cosplay; dressing up as their favourite characters and participating in photoshoots. These fan-based activities are possibly one of the reasons why there is a fairly strong creative industry in Malaysia; the majority of the newer generation artists and writers got their start by writing fanfiction and creating fanarts of their favourite characters and settings. I can say with certainty that possibly it's one of the reasons why Japan and Korea have such strong creative industries.
When such fans come together, they do not just come together to share the love among themselves. They spread it around. They bring new fans to the fandom, even years after the original book or series was first published and released. On the Japanese side, it's one of the reasons why series like Sailormoon are being reprinted, even though the original run is over. There's demand from the fan market, which keeps the series and the demand alive, by creating fanfiction and fanart. It's the reason why Firefly became such a huge hit even though it was taken off the air early. It's one of the reasons why Final Fantasy is one of the most enduring series around. Goddamnit, Shin Megami Tensei the game was created based on a fanfic work by the game company!
Fans are the ones who will defend an author from critics. In many cases, most fans understand that the author too has to eat, and they will support the author the best way possible; by buying her books. By buying her merchandise. By encouraging their friends and family to do the same. By goddamnit, supporting her!
The point I am trying to make is this; fanfiction isn't just good for the author by bringing her publicity and putting her work out there in a medium that makes it easy for people to discover her. It's a way for fans to tell the author, "Hey, your work is so awesome, I was inspired!" Your works inspire people damnit. Fanworks (not just fanfiction), tell the world that people think your work is AWESOME that it needs to be expressed. It's so awesome that people want to explore your world! Your work made them think! It encouraged them! It inspired them! In some really extreme cases, it gave them a reason to continue. To live!
And you COMPLAIN.
Wow. Really, really great way to repay an audience that took the time and effort to publicise your book. That took the time to try and understand how your world works. That tried to make other people see the awesomeness of your work. You know, when you rail against fanfiction, you don't just alienate your fans. You tell non-fans to GTFO too. Who will, in turn, decide to never support you and in fact, will probably go out of their way to ensure that they will never buy one of your books.
Well done.
PS: Or are you just afraid that you'll meet someone who can tell your world's story better than you?
