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McAnally's (The Community Pub) => Author Craft => Topic started by: pcpoet on April 14, 2014, 10:41:51 PM

Title: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: pcpoet on April 14, 2014, 10:41:51 PM
I have just started writing short story's and never understood writers dread of fan fiction till now. I have come up with a character and I don't ever want someone else using that character. anyone else feel possessive of there writing.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: superpsycho on April 14, 2014, 10:48:52 PM
I have just started writing short story's and never understood writers dread of fan fiction till now. I have come up with a character and I don't ever want someone else using that character. anyone else feel possessive of there writing.
I think any author who spends time developing a character is going to be a little possessive of them at minimum, and potentially a whole lot if the character is unique and required a lot of time, effort and imagination.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on April 15, 2014, 02:12:18 AM
If anyone fanficced any of my work, my emotional response is "Go for their eyes with a teaspoon."
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: superpsycho on April 15, 2014, 02:58:39 AM
If anyone fanficced any of my work, my emotional response is "Go for their eyes with a teaspoon."
It depends on the purpose I'd written the story for. If it's for publication, then of course I don't want people using my material but I've written short stories as an exercise for people to rewrite. Those they can use anyway they want simply because that's what they are for. Though I might get ticked if they put the original out as their own.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: The Deposed King on April 15, 2014, 03:03:05 AM
If anyone fanficced any of my work, my emotional response is "Go for their eyes with a teaspoon."

I guess my first reaction would be how good is it.  Followed by dang I have to shut them down.  Followed by, did they use any of my secondary characters in a non-mainline setting?  Followed by, nah, probably still no good.

But I would be intrigued.  However with my MC and my core cast, I would probably not want them doing it.



The Deposed King
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: Wordmaker on April 15, 2014, 11:39:54 AM
At this stage in my career, I'd be delighted if someone just put up entries for my books on Wikipedia and TV Tropes.

If I found out someone was entertained by my work to the point they were inspired to write fan fiction, I'd be thrilled.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh on April 15, 2014, 02:54:10 PM
I guess my first reaction would be how good is it. 

The chances of anybody fanficcing work of mine getting things right in ways that work with the vast volume of background stuff I know about the setting and characters that don't make it into the text are negligible, though.

Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: Eire on April 15, 2014, 03:08:24 PM
I think you've already mixed several things- ff writers never claim that they invented characters and usually copyringht prevent them from being published without permission. In USA and Western Europe, at least- Russians have very lax copyright and when it comes to fantasy lots of writers actively encourage fans to help them and come with own stories. I must say that I like this attitude- the original will always be the original and there's nothing bad in making fictional universe more diverse. 

Remember that our whole culture is one great fanwork- you may devote your life to trace things based on Bible, Greek Mythology or Arthurian Legends and that won't be enough.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: meg_evonne on April 15, 2014, 04:33:55 PM
More to the point, how would you know it? On a practical side, no one but someone very good could possibly write your character like you can.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: superpsycho on April 15, 2014, 05:40:05 PM
I'm sure a really good writer could get a lot of things out of one of my characters I'd never even thought of but if they were a really good writer why would they need to.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: LizW65 on April 15, 2014, 05:58:10 PM
I just hope I get well known enough to be fanficced some day. Wouldn't read it though - I don't want to be influenced by someone else's interpretation of my fictional world.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: Wordmaker on April 15, 2014, 06:23:40 PM
Having written fanfic myself, it's more about wanting to explore beloved characters in a new light, and using established work to help improve your own writing. At least, that's how it was for me. It's not about needing to use someone else's characters.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: pcpoet on April 15, 2014, 07:57:38 PM
I just started to try and write short stories. I have read fan fiction but realy don't have a desire to do it. I want to tell my stories not explore other peoples. but I am finding the more I write the more possessive I feel for my characters.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: Wordmaker on April 16, 2014, 01:41:06 PM
My own experience of writing for publication has been that I lost any sense of possessiveness pretty quickly once editing started  ;)
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: meg_evonne on April 16, 2014, 03:15:15 PM
My own experience of writing for publication has been that I lost any sense of possessiveness pretty quickly once editing started  ;)
Here, I've been very fortunate.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: Wordmaker on April 16, 2014, 03:23:35 PM
Don't get me wrong, I love my editor. She's wonderful. But the early changes I had to make on my first two books were pretty major. The first involved merging three different characters into one and cutting out my first two chapters, while the second was literally a complete re-write.
Title: Re: posesivnes of charicters
Post by: trboturtle on April 16, 2014, 06:56:57 PM
Speaking as someone who is writing in a shared universe (Battletech), my characters are part of the universe and can be used by other writers, just as I have used canon charcters in my own stories. Once my stories are published, my characters stop boing my exclusively and become part of the Battletech universe. I however, would ask an author if I could use their character, to be polite. I would expect any other suthor would return the favor and ask me before they used one of my characters.

That being said, I use someone else's characters sparingly, where I can use them in minor roles, but still have an effect on the story. Most of my characters are not movers and shakers, and are not really center to the universe....

Craig