Harry Potter and the purple prose Fans of the innocent boy wizard are in for a shock if they stumble upon fan-fiction websites.

News Media Commentary
Title:	Harry Potter and the purple prose Fans of the innocent boy wizard are in for a shock if they stumble upon fan-fiction websites.
Commentator:	Beth Pearson
Date(s):	November 29, 2004
Venue:	online, (print?)
Fandom:	Harry Potter
External Links:	Harry Potter and the purple prose Fans of the innocent boy wizard are in for a shock if they stumble upon fan-fiction websites.
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Harry Potter and the purple prose Fans of the innocent boy wizard are in for a shock if they stumble upon fan-fiction websites. is a 2004 article by Beth Pearson in the Scottish newspaper, "The Herald."

In the article, the "purple prose" in the headline appears to interchangeable with fic with sexual content, and fic that is not, but is supposedly poorly written. The author is not very clear on the latter.

The article starts with an excerpt (not clearly marked as such, perhaps a glitch in the online version?) from a Harry Potter fic.

Some Topics Discussed

• the article quotes or interviews four fic writers, three of them male
• there is a lengthy quote from the creator of Godawful Fan Fiction
• the article both emphasizes the positive creative aspects of fic writing, yet can't but help toss out the usual off-the-wall, cherry-picking oddities for readers' amusement

Some Suggestions for Readers

• "To read and write fan fiction visit www.fictionalley.org"
• "To laugh at bad fan fiction visit www.godawful.net"

Excerpts

The difference between the author of the above and other Potter fans is that his appreciation doesn't end when the books do. Instead, he writes new stories using the characters, locations and plots in the Potter books and posts them on the internet to be reviewed by other writers of so-called fan fiction.

Cronje is a 20-year-old New Jersey shopworker and, yes, Potter fan, who writes less romantically-inclined fiction about his hero. When writing fan fiction you add your ideas to an existing world, he says of his hobby, which has taken off since Harry Potter arrived on the literary scene. You can use existing characters and places, or make up your own. The only thing you really have to look out for is to stay within the 'rules'. If there is evidence in a book of something not being possible, it's generally a good idea not to do it.

Not all writers of fan fiction - or fics - adhere to the facts set out in the books that inspired them, however, and many take pleasure in changing much-loved characters, splitting up perfect matches and killing off heroes and heroines. So it is that Hermione moans about PMT , Lyra and Will of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials make rather explicitly-described love under a tree and Alice from Wonderland becomes a rock star.

Suffice to say, people who write fan fiction are a diverse bunch. "Every person is different, as are the stories they write," says Cronje. "We share a love of writing, but other than that I don't think there's anything common between us."

One person involved in the fan fiction field, known only as S G, has watched the phenomenon grow over the past 15 years and thinks it appeals to different people for different reasons. "There are many motivations," he says. "A desire to continue the adventures of a cancelled series, the joy of playing around with the characters you love, the need to fill in any perceived gaps in the plot, or just the opportunity to practise writing fiction with the convenience of having the characters and settings already created for you."

S G once wrote fan fiction himself, attracted by the subversive, underground element it had in its early days, but soon found a more interesting way to be involved in the scene. After reading virtual reams of bad prose, he set up Godawful Fan Fiction, which reviews the worst fan fiction around.

"I genuinely love bad fan fiction, of the so-bad-it's-good variety, with a passion," he says. Fan fictions reviewed on the Godawful site include a very graphic sex scene between Hermione and Harry, a very unShakespearean sex scene between Laertes and Ophelia, and a Lord of the Rings fic that includes the line: "Legolas got up and went into Laura's room and said 'good moring (sic)' and then Laura said 'good moring (sic) too."

So far, so amusing. The problem with the imagination, however, is that it doesn't always know when to stop. "Occasionally, something comes along that's so bad I can find no joy in it," says S G. "For instance, I remember one romantic tale of a concentration camp prisoner falling head over heels with Joseph Mengele, the camp doctor, while assisting him in his medical experiments on other prisoners. Pregnant with his child, she commits suicide when she discovers he's fled to South America without her. "I think it was the combination of Barbara Cartland-esque romantic prose and the horrific subject matter that has kept this story fresh in my mind. "There's also a Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers story that is infamous and much discussed in our forums. It contains nothing but the systematic rape, torture, dismemberment and eventual death of one of the female heroines of this children's television show and is so bad that no-one's ever been able to write an amusing review of it for the site."

Indeed, it's difficult to bear in mind the platitude "imitation is the highest form of flattery" when confronted with such fics. When done properly and with serious intent, however, there can be a real benefit for those who write fan fiction, particularly teenagers who author most fics posted on websites.

Harry Potter is not the only fictional character to enjoy some surprising adventures in the world of fan fiction.

STAR TREK: Phasers on stunned. Kirk and Spock get to know each other really well. Really, really well.

1984: Orwell's classic is transported to 1985, in poem-form, as told by Mr Charrington of the Thought Police. Winston goes on a diet.

BRIDGET JONES'S DIARY: Admirers of Helen Fielding's creation re-tell the story from Mark Darcy's point of view, with glimpses into the teenage Bridget's diary.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD: Scout becomes a mother and Jem meets girls. Atticus is still incorruptible.

PETER PAN: The boy who never grows up . . . grows up, with help from Wendy.