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insignificant other ([info]snacky) wrote in [info]fandom_wank,
@ 2010-05-03 10:09:00
Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Entry tags:author entitlement, authors, creator wank, doesn't mean what you think it means, fanfic, suck it up and deal, writers are often pompous douches, your kink is not okay

Diana Gabaldon, author of the wildly popular Outlander series, has an opinion on fan fiction: I think it’s immoral, I _know_ it’s illegal, and it makes me want to barf whenever I’ve inadvertently encountered some of it involving my characters.

Highlights include:


  • Writing fanfic is just like breaking into someone's house.
  • Fanfic is WAY WAY WAY TOO PORNY omg ick people have sexual fantasies!*
  • What to do about an auction offering fanfic to raise money for a cancer patient? She doesn't want to "seem heartless"! So she seeks advice in the comments. Which are mostly full of "Fanfic? I have never heard of such a despicable load of garbage! Also, CRUSH THAT CANCER PATIENT!"



ETA: Unpublished author Eddie Louise (who cannot write the word "shit" and seems to fail spectacularly at reading comprehension) offers fanfic writers A CHALLENGE! Accept it if you dare, sniveling pedo thieves!

ETA 2: Previously, Ms Gabaldon has said fanfic is like selling your children into white slavery. Well. Now. I don't even know what to do with that.

ETA 3: Smart Bitches, Trashy Books has some discussion on the topic.

ETA 4: And bookshop on LJ/DW has a rebuttal.

ETA 5: See what happens when I leave the sweet embrace of the internet for a few hours? Ms. Gabaldon updates her blog!

ETA 6: Evidently Ms. Gabaldon deleted all evidence of her hissyfit, but some wankas have screencaps in this thread.

ETA 7: [info]kate_nepevu has screencaps and the text of Gabaldon's posts here. And via [info]alchemynerd, more screencaps available here:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/tiz4vp
http://www.sendspace.com/file/ibidpj
http://www.sendspace.com/file/r6zik6
http://www.sendspace.com/file/hlknqo
http://www.sendspace.com/file/d9alsh

Thanks for all the links! :)




MOD REMINDER: Remember, my little wankas, we DO NOT troll the wank. Nor do we write fanfic after the author has specifically requested people not and post it in the comments here, no matter how tempting it may be. Carry on. oh god my inbox ow ow



*Just as a point of interest, I was a bookseller for 12 years, and had several customers tell me about the sex scenes in her books. Some were pro ("My friend told me to read these books for the sex scenes, and she was totally right, they are so hot, this is best thing to happen to my sex life in years!") and some were con ("What is up with all the sex all the time? Where's the story?"), but one thing you can't say about her books is that they're sexual-fantasy free. :D

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[info]lady_ganesh
2010-05-03 05:26 pm UTC (link)
I kind of wonder that too. Especially since some of the most critically praised genre writers are pro-fanfic.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]marmaladecat
2010-05-03 08:10 pm UTC (link)
May I ask which ones, because I see lists of those who are anti-, but can't find one for those that are pro-? (And I'm more than sure they're out there.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]lady_ganesh
2010-05-03 08:19 pm UTC (link)
Pro- may not be the right word, but certainly not anti:

Jim Butcher's named in the wank as basically letting people run free with his stuff.
IIRC, Neil Gaiman is okay with it, though I can't remember any statements.
Naomi Novik is on the board of the Organization for Transformative Works, and IIRC there are a few other authors on the board.
Joss Whedon is not a novelist but is vocally pro-fanfic.

I suspect the vast majority of authors don't care that much, or don't feel strongly enough about it to voice a public opinion and risk alienating potential readers/colleagues on both sides.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]zing_och
2010-05-03 08:40 pm UTC (link)
Also the pro writers who are (or were) themselves fanficcers: Naomi Novik and Sarah Rees Brennan come to mind.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]zing_och
2010-05-03 08:46 pm UTC (link)
oops, somehow didn't see Naomi's already mentioned!

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]asparagirl
2010-05-03 09:09 pm UTC (link)
And Jane Espenson, who certainly read fanfic back in the day, although it's unclear if she also wrote it.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]sleepyjean, 2010-05-04 02:59 am UTC

[info]lady_ganesh
2010-05-03 09:12 pm UTC (link)
Oh, and J. K. Rowling is clearly fine with fanfiction.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]darkrose, 2010-05-04 04:14 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]lady_ganesh, 2010-05-04 04:16 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]vorpal_blade, 2010-05-04 04:49 am UTC

[info]amaresu
2010-05-04 12:36 am UTC (link)
Rachel Caine mods her own LJ fic comm.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]rani, 2010-05-04 01:05 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]amaresu, 2010-05-04 02:03 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]rani, 2010-05-04 02:26 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]beckyh2112, 2010-05-04 02:32 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]disdainful_soul, 2010-05-04 04:23 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]shark, 2010-05-04 06:26 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]magic_at_mungos, 2010-05-04 09:50 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]dragonfangirl, 2010-05-04 06:14 am UTC

[info]spawn_of_kong
2010-05-04 06:23 am UTC (link)
Neil Gaiman not only gives his thoughts on fanfic in the Q&A's on this journal entry, he even writes a little bit of Sméagol/Gollum slash.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]visp, 2010-05-05 09:46 am UTC

winterfox
2010-05-04 07:55 pm UTC (link)
Jim Butcher is critically praised? Commercially successful yes, but critically... uh.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]lady_ganesh, 2010-05-04 08:00 pm UTC
(no subject) - winterfox, 2010-05-04 08:08 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]lady_ganesh, 2010-05-04 08:15 pm UTC
(no subject) - winterfox, 2010-05-04 08:18 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]librarianmouse, 2010-05-05 07:32 am UTC

[info]ladyjax
2010-05-05 07:27 am UTC (link)
Susan R. Matthews, author of the Jurisdiction Universe novels, used to be well known in Blake's 7 fandom. I have copies of old fanzines and she's in them.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]funwithrage
2010-05-06 11:44 pm UTC (link)
I think Pratchett's come down on the sure-fine-but-don't-let-me-know-for-legal-reasons side, as has Lackey.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]derryderrydown
2010-05-09 02:06 am UTC (link)
Karen Healey is definitey pro-fanfic. (Her first novel came out a few weeks ago.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]lady_ganesh, 2010-05-09 02:09 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]derryderrydown, 2010-05-09 02:10 am UTC
(no subject) - [info]lady_ganesh, 2010-05-09 02:55 am UTC

[info]platedlizard
2010-05-09 08:28 pm UTC (link)
Steven Brust is heavily pro-fan, and apparently interacts quite often with his fandom. I haven't seen his stance on fanfiction specifically, but he recently thanked a lot of fans for helping him with his latest book (he's on the final chapter of Tiassa! WOOT!)

Terry Pratchett's stance is basically 'it's awesome that you want to write it, just don't send it to me'.

Michel Stackpole and Aaron Alleston used to frequent alt.fan.wedge during it's peak years, lots of fan fiction there. Although they did not read it, they were pretty supportive. (mind, at the time they wrote for Star Wars, so their official stance had to be that of George Lucas's, but they seemed pretty flattered)

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]firebird308
2010-05-03 09:28 pm UTC (link)

Eric Flint is another one that's fine with fanfiction. In fact, if it's good enough to meet certain requirements (like being logical), it has a chance of making it into the eZine version of the Grantville Gazette.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]ceteramisto
2010-05-04 06:30 am UTC (link)
Also there are book versions of the earlier eZines and best of books of the later eZines. My dad wrote a story that was included in the best of book.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]silmaril
2010-05-03 11:28 pm UTC (link)
I know that Michael Stackpole and Aaron Allston have the stance "We can't read what you write otherwise lawyers will eat us, and you should probably not try to make money from it otherwise lawyers will eat you, but other than that rock your talented fanfic writin' selves" with respect to Star Wars Extended Universe fan fiction. I suspect, but do not know for sure, that they might feel the same towards their own universes.

(They used to, in days of yore, participate in the newsgroup alt.fan.wedge, the one newsgroup I have ever seen that did not have a single flamewar, ever. I mourn its passing along with the rest of USENET. And it was common to post fanfic / links to fanfic there, with clear warnings in the subject line as a courtesy to the Resident Pros.)

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]eleutheria
2010-05-03 11:47 pm UTC (link)
Timothy Zahn is also fine with it, at least, that's what he said to the group I was in when he met us at Dragon*Con.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]shinysandals
2010-05-04 12:41 am UTC (link)
Terry Pratchett is cool with it, from what I've been told. I also seem to remember seeing a quote from him that went along the lines of, "They can do whatever they want, so long as they're not making money and they do it far away from me."

(Reply to this)(Parent)

TV, rather than books.
[info]selene_avis
2010-05-04 03:31 am UTC (link)
I can't provide a link, but I seem to recall that Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse of the Lost fame have said they're cool with fan fiction. And TPTB for Supernatural not only have a slash fangirl as one of the recurring characters on the show, they've written gender-swap RPS about their fandom.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: TV, rather than books.
[info]fools_game
2010-05-04 02:03 pm UTC (link)
And TPTB for Leverage find fanfiction totally delightful, and think that having an active fic-writing community is a sign of a healthy show.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: TV, rather than books. - [info]sistercoyote, 2010-05-04 09:20 pm UTC
Re: TV, rather than books. - [info]were_lemur, 2010-05-06 01:25 am UTC
Re: TV, rather than books. - [info]dragonfangirl, 2010-05-06 08:32 pm UTC
Re: TV, rather than books. - [info]were_lemur, 2010-05-08 02:24 am UTC

[info]alana
2010-05-04 06:59 am UTC (link)
Not exactly the same, but Hasbro and the companies that hold Transformers licenses are highly friendly towards fan endeavors, including fan-made toys, comics, fanart, fanfic, voice acting, repainting toys... it's pretty wonderful.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)


[info]seiberwing
2010-05-04 02:58 pm UTC (link)
With minor censorship. The Transformers: Mosaic project doesn't allow any icky romance between boy robots, for instance.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

(no subject) - [info]alana, 2010-05-04 03:08 pm UTC
(no subject) - [info]seiberwing, 2010-05-04 03:41 pm UTC

[info]lilitu93
2010-05-04 04:27 pm UTC (link)
I know Karen Marie Moning has requested that no one write fanfic of her characters until after she's finished the series about them. Which makes sense to me and is pretty respectful while still not allowing all fanfic.

(Reply to this)(Parent)


[info]trialia
2010-05-08 01:58 pm UTC (link)
"for legal reasons I cannot read or review fan fiction and I cannot protect you from the legal consequences of writing it" is pretty much what Diane Duane's said, too. She doesn't allow fanfiction to be posted on the Young Wizards forums, but she's happy for us to link to sites containing it so long as we mark it carefully so she can avoid reading it.

Lois McMaster Bujold holds a similar opinion - any fanfiction posted to her mailing list has to be marked with FIC: so she can filter it out of her email, and that's all.

(Reply to this)(Parent)

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