On Writing, Fan and Pro

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Title:	On Writing, Fan and Pro
Creator:	various
Date(s):	November 1980
Medium:	print
Fandom:	Sime~Gen-centric, but also addresses all fandoms
Topic:
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On Writing, Fan and Pro is a series of round robin letters among fans: Ellen Blair, Leslie Fish, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Kerry Schaefer, Mary Frances Sambreno, and Deborah Laymon.

They were printed in Zeor Forum #3 in November 1980.

Some Topics Discussed

• is fanfiction a crutch?
• which is harder to write: fan fiction or pro fiction?
• do what makes you happy
• writing fanfiction to be active in a community and for the feedback

From the Letters

Ellen Blair, addressing Jacqueline Lichtenberg:

I was going through some of my files recently and came upon the manuscript of "Seed of Reckoning" that you were kind enough to critique for me. I don't recall if I ever wrote and thanked you for that help. In any event, I d£ thank you. I haven't yet done anything with that particular story, but your comments, plus Ann's and Barbara's, provided me with much good advice which has improved my subsequent work. None of that work, however, has been rendered to the pro market. Work on Falcon's Flight and some additional SW and Battlestar Galactica stories have taken up most of my time. I did have cause to re-evaluate my reasons for trying to turn pro. I love to write and it would be nice to make money doing it, but I have come to realize that I don't need to write for money. What I do need is recognition—an audience. And I find that audience growing as the months pass. Via FF and several other fanzines, I do have a market for my work—my readers beg for stories with the SW and BSG characters as fast as I can turn them out. I even seem to have a few fans of my own, readers who have inquired about the possibility of my publishing my own original work. So I'm doing just that—my first original full length novel will be ready for printing by the fall —a vanity press thing since I will pay expenses and sell the novel for a small profit. I'll never get rich doing it this way and I still hope the day will come when professional editors consider my work marketable, but I consider myself a pro-writer already. Maybe it's just artistic selfishness on my part, but I've always wondered why it should be so desirable to allow someone else to make money from one's own creative efforts. This may be circular reasoning because, of course, the printer makes money, so I suppose it follows that the pro-editor should have the right to expect payment for his marketing services. I guess it all comes back to recognition again—pro sales indicate wider recognition than private endeavors, as much from the readers as from those who arc considered masters of the craft. And maybe I suffer just a little bit from a "sour grapes" attitude. I've gotten quite a lot of feedback from various editors who tell me that my work is "nice, but not quite what we're looking for." Since they hasten to add that I do have talent and that they would be willing to look at future work of mine, I take heart and go on. However, ferreting out what they are "looking for" seems to be more of a job than I am equipped to handle, especially when I read glowingly reviewed and widely published pro work that reveals itself to me as hastily thrown together and poorly executed hogwash. Don't misunderstand me; there's quite r. lot of excellent sf literature on the market, some of which seems to follow along the lines of what I'm trying to write.

Anyway, I really don't have cause to bitch so much, especially when fine writers like you take the tine and trouble to help me along. It's just that my milieu seems to be a very peculiar combination of sf and psychology and I don't seem to be able to write any other way. Maybe I'm doomed to be one of those writers with a small cult readership instead of mass adulation. Oh well! I truly appreciate your advice and opinions and a good deal of it must have taken root by osmosis because several of my fanfic stories since "Seed" are very much better written than they would have been had I not thought about and followed some of your suggestions (not all -- some of the things that you and Barbara said about "Seed"' and my work in general I felt instinctively were wrong — not wrong technically, but wrong for me in a sense of style. After all if all writers agreed on right and wrong, then there would be none of the delightful variety that exists.

[Kerry Schaefer]:I don't really think in terms of "being a fan writer." I'm just trying to make a story out of the vivid images in my head. I never had a story to tell until I read the Zeor books, and suddenly this all occurred to me. Just the fact that there is an outlet (the fanzines) for a Sime story probably acted as encouragement for my even beginning such a project. If other people read what I've written and find it worthwhile, I may write more. Some ideas for creating, my own universe have been popping into my head lately, but no story has evolved yet, only background. I ever thought I was good enough, I would probably try to sell my stories professionally.

[Mary Frances Zambreno]:

You may recall that I once told you I feel extremely ambivalent about fan fiction, especially my own. "Ambivalent” isn't really the right word; deep down, if I'm being honest with myself, I disapprove of the whole idea. And yet I write fan fiction and intend to continue writing it, if I can — perhaps "ambivalent” is the right word after all, but it is an ambivalence of action as opposed to one of feeling and/or opinion: I don’t do as I say. Before I deal with why I’m so inconsistent, I had best discuss why I disapprove of fan fiction in general and for me in particular. In brief: it’s cheating.

Using someone else’s background or (worse) someone else’s background and characters is too easy. Any inconsistencies I find do not need to be explained/dealt with because they are not "my" inconsistencies — they are problems built into the fabric of the universe which I cannot solve without doing violence to that fabric. You told me once that I should try thinking of fan fiction as simply writing in an "established universe" much as mainstream writers use an "established universe." That’s one of the best justifications I’ve come across, but it doesn’t work for me. You see, I don’t believe there is such a thing as an established universe. In my opinion, every writer creates his own universe every time he picks up a pen or sits down at a typewriter, whatever the raw materials of that universe may be. But in writing fan fiction I do not collect and refine my own materials; I borrow already refined constructs from an author who has done the real first-step work and then proceed to twist that refined matter to suit my own vision. In other words, in writing fan fiction I am doing only half the job — the second step of expressing ideas and images in concrete terms. Step one—gathering and shaping—has been done for me.

So. Writing fan fiction is cheating, only doing half the work. It is also particularly dangerous for me because I find it too easy—as comfortable and safe as a steady job. The writing part is, of course, never easy, but the imitating part is. Imitation is a necessary function of all art, but the imitation involved in fan fiction is not completely an imitation of life. Rather, it is one author’s attempt to "imitate" another while still maintaining an individual persona. It can be done successfully, but I find the first part (imitating another author) terribly easy, while the business of maintaining a separate literary persona gives me great trouble, I am a born chameleon.; I would probably make a great shadow. But I don:t want to be a shadow, so whenever I start writing a fan story I have to be very, very careful.

Which is not necessarily a wholly bad thing, and in any case does not keep me from writing fan fiction. Okay, why not? Three basic reasons I write fan fiction: first and foremost, it is extremely good practice. That second step (expressing ideas and images in concrete terms) is vitally important to a neophyte writer—to any writer. It is also difficult for the neophyte writer to get sufficient practice (is there such a thing?) in this step without getting bogged down in other equally important but different matters. It helps to be able to practice one or two things at a time, and frankly, I need that kind of practice—any kind of practice.

Second reason for writing fan fiction: criticism. It may seem vulgar and blatant to point it out, but just where else in the world of amateur writers could I go to get the kind of comments pros and fans alike have given me on 'Epiphany' alone? Until I started writing fan fiction I struggled on largely alone, with one loyal and perceptive reader to provide feedback and a host of editors to provide rejection slips — and a few bad experiences with creative writing courses in my past Now I get comments, I get suggestions — and I'm finally beginning to learn how to rewrite. I'm overwhelmed, and grateful, although it does seem a little unfair of me to reap the benefit of all this advice and assistance from busy people with much better things to do — but when it comes to writing, I'm not proud. I'll take all the help I can get, deserved or not, any way I can get it.

Third (and easiest) reason: damn it, writing fan fiction is fun! Queasy or not, I enjoy writing the stuff, which is probably the major reason I'm going to continue doing just that — and I suspect a lot of fan writers out there agree with me. There being few enough sources of innocent pleasure in the world today, I am certainly not going to abandon one that is useful as well as entertaining. When it ceases to be useful, I may set fan fiction aside—but IT11 be ready for a tombstone by the time that happens. ((NO—you stop writing ff and start letting others do ff in your universe. -- JL)) I'm not a pro writer, I'm not a very good writer, but I?m getting better and I intend to keep on getting better; if fan fiction helps me now, it will help in the future. When fan fiction isn't fun any more, I'11 stop. On that day, pigs will fly.

Looking back over this letter, I realize that it's almost as illogical as I am on this subject. Sorry. The fact remains that I can't help but see fan fiction as a

crutch — and those who have no need of support have no business relying on crutches. But most of us do need support of one kind or another, at one time or another, and the fact also remains that fan fiction has aided a number of remarkably fine writers in honing their skills. I'm not ashamed to try to make one of their company — as I said before, I'll take all the help I can get. Besides, my very first fan story (the Starstone short story contest story) helped me work my way out of the only real case of writer's block I have yet suffered through — that alone I count as an inestimable benefit derived from writing fan fiction. So I guess I will just have to learn to live with contradictions — it shouldn't be hard.

Deborah Laymon: I don't know that I ever distinguished Fan writing from Pro writing in my head. Both start with ideas, and when the ideas hover in my head long enough, they get

written about. I can't not write, I have to write. If nobody ever read or liked what I wrote, I would still write. Dreaming is a compulsion. Main difference between them is that my fanfiction is unpublishable professionally. Plagiarism and all that. I'm not solely content to write for fanzines but I'm not ready to "go pro", and I'm vain enough to want someone to read what I write.

To try to put my ideas in more logical form, I guess I could start by trying to ask myself why I write fanfiction. Don't expect much, but here goes... Hell, I enjoy it, naturally. I don't agree with Mary Frances' feeling that it's cheating. For her, it may be actually, I find it harder to write fanfiction, good or bad, than it is to write my own.

First of all, I write fan fiction for reaction, for communication. Trying to tell somebody out there how I feel without them going to sleep. It seems as if one can get a message across more clearly and more economically in a dramatic medium.

Secondly, discipline. I said it is harder for me to write fanfic. I find it very difficult to write in somebody else's universe. I don't know all their givens. I don’t know all their rules. Often, with the rules I do know, I don’t understand why their givens exist, what they’re based on, what the whole point is. So, for me at least, it’s discipline, which I remember somebody telling me I needed. My universe is still in creation. If I dislike something, or something doesn’t fit, I can throw it out. I can’t do that in somebody else's universe. Not if what I want to write is a valid story. So I have to build a story around these rules, and try to make these rules work for me. It amazed me that I wrote a Sime story. It's difficult for me to write in a universe that hurts. I can’t write a story set on Darkover, though I read and reread the novels. Something about MZB’s universe hurts too much and the ideas don’t settle into story material. I can (apparently) write in a Sime universe setting. I don’t know why.

Third, learning. I’m not yet skilled enough to write for a pro market. In writing fanfic, I am teaching myself writing. And being taught to write by the people who criticize me. And I’m also learning to apply factors to my universe — villains aren’t always bad, heroes aren’t always noble, people are stupid and senseless and yet there is something good in them which sounds very obvious, and yet you see, I have also learned that you can objectively know something as a truth and subjectively not believe it.

Which brings me, I think, to my last and most important reason for writing fanfic and fiction in general, I am trying to find out exactly who I am and what I believe in. By putting a character who may or may not share my views into an already established universe and observing the conflicts created, I can slightly step back and say yes, I agree with that? or no, that’s not right. And then I ask myself why. Than I go back and apply this to my universe. All this goes, eventually, into what I perceive that universe to be. Simultaneously with this, try to ask myself why the characters in this story, along with the authors of these other universes, feel the way they do. So maybe I’ll end up with a better understanding of other people.

I don’t think I will ever exactly "quit” writing fanfic. I enjoy all the things I get from it too much. I want to be a pro writer, and so I will probably eventually write less fan fiction. I don’t see it as a crutch, but as a tool. You don’t throw out a tool you aren’t using; you lay it aside in case you need it later.

Leslie Fish: So...starting with Ellen Blair's letter, I can readily sympathize with the trials and tribulations of a new author trying to break into the Pro market. Jacqueline knows, there's been fun enough trying to get our novel (mine & Roberta Rogow's) published; Doubleday kept it for nearly six months before the editor-in-chief decided he just didn't like it. Now it's going to DAW, where we hope it'll have better luck. It appears that the big bottleneck is selling that first book; once you've done that, you're "established" and publishers’ doors become easier to open. But oh,’ that threshold...

For myself, I want to be a Pro writer so that I can make my living doing what I enjoy, and not selling 8 hours a day of my time to some disliked boss for money enough to eat on. I’d write whether I got paid for it or not, but I’d much rather be paid. That in itself, to my mind, is reason enough for wanting to break - into the Pro market.

Another good reason is that I do have some ideas I want to push, show to people, make them think about, and since I’m not rich and can’t buy time on TV the best way to broadcast my ideas is through my writing, particularly via the distribution that a pro-publisher can give me.

In exchange, yes, I will deal with any particular publisher's prejudices — up to a point. I'm willing to "tone down" here (which simply means being more subtle) and "pretty up" there (which can also be done with irony); keeping the small rules so one can break the big ones, as they say in politics. I won’t drastically alter a plot or gut a theme, though. Whatthehell, if a publisher wants changes that major, I want a different publisher. I am confident that, between my skills and Roberta’s and Jacqueline’s, I'll eventually get Pro-published; the only questions are when, where, and for how much. Tactical matters, only.

To Mary Frances Zambreno: no, I don't think fan-writing is "cheating" ~it's just another genre. Good Ghu, have you ever looked at the "given" (and strict!) conventions for Gothics?! Or "Confession" magazine magazine, where the editor literally gives you an outline to fill-in? I've heard that Westerns are graded — among writers and critics — not only according to how well the stories are written but by how nit-picking their historical backgrounds are. And as for classic murder-mysteries.,, Hoo-Ha! All genres have their "givens", and fan-fic is just another case. While this means, on the one hand, that a lot of the work done for you (thus allowing beginners to practice on basics like plot, dialog, characterization and exposition) It also means that you have to spend a lot of time learning and researching the givens. Now if you ordinarily love the subject, and have already studied up on it, this is no work at all. If you're a complete neo, though, just learning the "givens" can be a right royal pain in the asterisk. 'Tis just a matter of whether the conventions of the genre you're dealing with are a pleasure or a chore to learn. And why shouldn't it be a pleasure? Why not write about subjects you already know and like? Hell, the only real limitation on the ST, SW & BSG genres is that it's much more difficult to break that barrier and get into real paid-for-your-efforts Pro writing, due to copyright requirements.

Fan Comments

I found the "fan writing" letters interesting. I'm glad I can write for fan mags. Even if the stories or poems never get published. Or only a few. I never intend to become a "pro" and fan writing scratches an itch of some kind for me.

Hoo boy, do I ever disagree with Mary Frances Zambreno's opinion of fan/pro writing! Having been involved in both, I can say that fan writing is nobody's crutch. It is not half the work, it is more than twice. Yes, you are using someone else's universe when you do Trek or Sime or Darkover fiction. Someone else thought up these characters, their inter-actions, their technology and communications. The fan writer's job is to be creative within the limitations that someone else has established. The real difference between fan and pro writing is not "if you get paid for it." It is between walking down the street and treading on eggs. Can you be original within someone else's limits? ... It's an exercise in consistency Many have succeeded (including you, Mary Frances) but it is much tougher than working in a universe in which you can change all the rules and get away with it.

Can you project your ideas into another writer's mind and end up true to both your own style and the original creator's? Worse, can you project your own ideas into a universe created by both writers and actors? That's a double whammy!

incidentally, do we have to confine the term "fan writing" to stories which deal with universes created by others? It can apply also to original work which is not published professionally for any reason. Professional writing is not all that it's cracked up to be. Many have visions of "making it," getting huge advances and royalties, hosting lavish publication parties. There is another side of the pro world that's not so pretty. Anyone Considering "going pro" should take a long and careful look at both sides and decide if it's worth it. Do you know that when you make a purchase at a bookstore, the yo-yo who sells you the book gets a bigger slice of the pie than the author? Are you willing to invest years, lost income and all your energy in a project that can be arbitrarily killed in less than a second? is this the kind of lifestyle you want for yourself? If not, don't think in terms of "making it" when you set up your own universe. Do it because IT PLEASES YOU. If it sells, it sells. If it doesn't, it should not matter. When you consider the formula plots of most mega- bestsellers, what do the pros know, anyway? Ellen Blair must have the right idea in taking full control of her own project.

The important thing is that you are happy in what you are doing, whether it is creating your own v;ork or interpreting another's.

Mary Frances is overly modest in the fan fiction discussion. Who says she "isn't a very good writer?" I don't, 1 think she's at least as good as quite a number of pros regularly appearing in print and better than some of them. [JL: Right.] Her own personal standards are another matter, but I know from experience that I'm the last person to ask about the value of a story I've written. If the material is close to me I think it's better than it is, but if I wrote the story as an exercise just to see if I could do it I generally have a low opinion of it. Ironically, my exercises are better liked by anyone who reads them than the efforts which are painful and personal. Maybe I improve with intellectual distance? [JL: This is generally true of most writers until they reach MZB's level of proficiency,] Maybe i have to wait to develop the ability to see my work more clearly. Mary Frances is not alone in having this problem. i don't believe I imitate when I write fan fiction. I don't copy style from other writers (at least not consciously), the concerns I write about are mine and I always deal with problems that I perceive in the universe. Why else write fan fiction? I might be considered arrogant to go barging into someone else's creation to set things right that I see as wrong, but that's precisely what I do. [JL: V/e all do with ST, too.] I never ignore those inconsistencies that bother me. I believe that it's my responsibility to the universe not to let anything slide by that's important enough to occupy my attention. Why? One thing that no one brought up in the fan fiction robin is that fandom was created for love -l ove of STAR TREK, love of Darkover, love of Simos and Gens and of all the other universes that fans have written about. This is the foundation of fan fiction. I don't care what other arguments are offered. They are all rationalizations, though they have some truth to them. I write about Trek, Darkover, and Sime first and foremost because I care about them and I want to see them live on and grow. (Live Long and Prosper?) I see what Mary Frances is doing to herself with her intellectual justifications and equally intellectual counter-arguments and I don't like it. I refuse to feel guilty about loving anything! No one's going to convince me that I ought to feel guilty either. There are too few opportunities in this world to show love for what you care about. Give up fan fiction? I might as well be an unnappreciative Klingon junct!

One problem that bothers me about my writing is that when I write for pro sub mission, my most successful stories are humorous. This would not bother me if every effort to write a serious original story weren't an utter failure. I know I can write seriously, but only in fan fiction. Am I fated to become a humorist?

That's not a bad idea, though it is limiting. I don't like to use only part of my potential.