Fanfic is Hard to Write
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| Title: | Fanfic is Hard to Write |
| Creator: | Catherine Rain |
| Date(s): | February 8, 2005 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom: | |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | Fanfic is Hard to Write, Archived version |
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Fanfic is Hard to Write is a 2005 essay by Catherine Rain.
It is part of the Fanfic Symposium series.
"I'm tired of hearing that fanfic is easier to write than original fiction. It's not a training ground for beginners. It's not a kit with all the parts pre-cut. Well-done fanfic is harder to write than original fiction in a handful of ways, which I am going to rant about."
Parts
- "The boundaries of what you can decide to do are less flexible."
- "Sometimes you run out of places in the plot to fit exploration without violating canon."
- "Fans' preconceptions are strict and need to be considered."
- "Fans are less accepting of changes in characters."
- "You have a lot to live up to."
- "Not getting to write the big important scenes."
Excerpts
A great fanfic-- not just a decent one, but a truly amazing work-- has to reach a standard on all these things that is, in some ways, less forgiving than the general standard for original fiction. Many of your readers are reading fanfic because they know the original source very well already and they're looking for more-- but they know the source so well that they're capable of spotting and picking at any flaw. That's natural; they love the source, right? So if they see something that violates the source, THEY ARE GOING TO NOTICE. And it's going to bug them, more than it would bug them if they didn't love the source, because the writer is spreading badwriterness on a thing they love. They're going to expect that a good fanfic be really awesome, because it's a homage to something they love, and to be a good homage it had better be worthy.
One thing that I frequently hear said to support the claim that original fiction is harder to write than fanfic is that in original fic you've got to worldbuild everything, whereas in fanfic you only have to fill in gaps. Well, yes, you do-- and worldbuilding is hard work. I don't mean to downplay that; I write original fantasy novels as well as fanfic, and I know just how much work it can be. But I'm not convinced that this one thing overcomes all the other objections on this list automatically. For one thing, it varies depending on the writer's strengths-- some writers don't find worldbuilding hard at all.
For another, worldbuilding may take a lot of thought and research, but the fact that you have to do may not be a strike against you as you struggle to improve the quality of your writing from good to great. Many of the objections on this list are actual impediments to creating a good story, not just because they are extra work, but because you have to curve your story around with them and grapple with them. It's not just a matter of doing the extra work of dancing farther across the stage; it's a matter of dancing across the stage while trying to avoid the giant cardboard trees. Some people may be natural tree-avoiders, but find they're exhausted after making it across the stage, and think that is harder. Others may be willing to undertake the trip across the stage, but find it difficult to avoid the trees gracefully. Whether you think it's harder to do the extra work or to deal with the obstacles is a matter of your individual strengths as a writer, and you cannot make a blanket claim that one is easier than the others for everyone.
Fanfic may provide a "starting ground" for writing-- which is what people always say when they claim that fanfic is easier to write-- but you can just as easily rip ideas from various sources to provide a "starting ground" for original fic (stealing definitively is plagiarism; stealing loosely is inspiration.) I'm not making the claim that fanfic is necessarily harder to write in every way. But it is harder in many ways, and it sure isn't a free ride. People need to stop dismissing fanfic as being a lesser achievement simply by reason of being fanwork. It's not a smaller matter by definition. For some writers, it is the greater achievement and the greater glory.