Fan Fiction - barf-worthy??

[amberdreams]

Diane Gabaldon has really stirred up a storm with her illconsidered bashing of all things fan fiction.  I see she is rapidly backtracking but the damage is done as far as I am concerned.  Her books are off my To-Read list.  I understand the problem of ownership of intellectual property, and the very real threat posed by open access to information, but fan fiction is not the area to attack here, fan fiction is not a threat to good published  writers.  It is actually a compliment to those writers if a FF community springs up around their books, because it means that their story-telling and ideas has inspired others to explore themes and characters created by them in ways that perhaps they had never considered.  (And yes, some of those ways might include sex!!).
I find it hard to understand how any author can not realise that there are very few original stories out there - to come up with something that is truly new, has never been told before is virtually impossible.  Most stories that are told share the same basic roots, and all that is happening is that we are putting a new slant, a fresh viewpoint on something that humans have been experiencing from the dawn of time.
And humans have always told stories, and enjoyed listening to stories being told...
So a big big thank you to Pandarus and Bookshop for spelling this out to Ms Gabaldon with such eloquence and equanimity.  Guys, you put this so much better than I ever could - kudos to you!

http://bookshop.livejournal.com/1044495.html
http://pandarus.livejournal.com/336009.html

And there are authors who 'get it' - http://www.locusmag.com/Features/2007/05/cory-doctorow-in-praise-of-fanfic.html

Comments

Wow

[sansglorie.livejournal.com]

I had her books on my to-read list as well. I find her attitude shocking and pretentious. You're right though, it sounds like she thinks idea just whip up out of thin air without any foundations to speak of. When did she become God? And why the hell wasn't I informed? :(

Re: Wow

[amber1960.livejournal.com]

I know! And it sounds like the moral high ground she thinks she is standing on might be due for a flooding - though not having read any of her books, I couldn't possibly comment on whether she has 'borrowed' any of her ideas!

[sansglorie.livejournal.com]

I just got done reading the comments left on her blog about fanfic being immoral and all. Thanks for letting me know about this...I'm telling everyone! *sticks tongue out at Diana*

http://voyagesoftheartemis.blogspot.com/2010/05/fan-fiction-and-moral-conundrums.html

Check that out, our fellow fanfic writers are truly showing their mettle!

[real-funky-town.livejournal.com]

I don't tend to read modern fiction so I have no clue who Diane Gabaldon is, but I have heard of a few other authors making a personal stand against fan fiction.

I have no idea what they're thinking when they do that - usually people don't go out of their way to alienate those paying their bills... Anyone who makes a living off of a fan base needs to be mighty careful what they say about those fans.

The only reason I can think of for an author to work themselves into a tizzy over fan fiction, which should be seen as free advertising and validation of a strong fan base, is if they had some kind of insecurity about their works. If an author really thinks that people are going to stop buying their books and just read fan fiction then they either need to work on their self esteem or get a serious reality check. At the least, they're missing the point of fan fiction entirely.

If someone is copying stories and claiming them as their own that's lazy and wrong. If someone is looking for ways to creatively explore a verse created by someone because they love it - like you said, that's a compliment. Fan fiction simply does not equal plagiarism.

No legitimate fan fiction writer (as opposed to a plagiarist) makes any claims to someone else's works, characters or verses being their own. They're not trying to steal them or desecrate them or whatever it is that these authors fear - they're just fans celebrating characters that they find to be interesting or thought proving.

As I'm sure is the case with many other fan fiction writers, I write both fan fiction and original fiction. Half my time in college was spent in writing classes - the assertion that someone writes fan fiction simply because they do not have the creative capacity or skill to write their own works is baloney. Only someone who has never written fan fiction could make that claim.

Fan fiction involves all the same creative muscles as original fiction that come after the point of character/verse conception. Is there horribly written fan fiction out there? Of course there is, but there are a lot of amazing writers out there too. That's the internet - you have to take the good with the bad.

Somehow my short, supportive comment to say how much I appreciated you bringing up this subject turned into a rant. But for the record (and you can quote me on this ;)), when I'm a famous writer (really I'm not rolling my eyes...) fan fiction will be so welcomed. To think that something I wrote inspired others to create...sounds like the ultimate validation to me.

[amber1960.livejournal.com]

Well said Amanda! I think you should copy this entire and post it on Diane Garbaldon's blog - there are many replies there and I don't think there could ever be too many. http://voyagesoftheartemis.blogspot.com/2010/05/fan-fiction-and-moral-conundrums.html
I just hope she is reading them all and absorbing the rational arguments we are putting forward.

Like you, if one day my non-fanfiction writings were to get published, and if someone (even if it is only one person) was inspired enough by the characters I created and the story I told to go away and write something of their own, I will be so flattered and happy. What a wonderful thing, to think that something I wrote could light a spark of creativity in someone's soul in the same way that all the books I have read since I was a child lit sparks in me - what could be more marvelous than that?