This one is from September 2013. You wouldn’t believe how many of my old posts lost their pictures, especially those that were picture only. Yikes.
Fan Fiction Meme
A question came to mind from a comment made. Fan fiction is an odd area because it’s really a bunch of people writing stories with an established person’s world and characters. It’s a safe area for the most part since money isn’t being made by the fan fiction writers for these stories. It is still strange to me when compared to other types of writing. I know I’ll anger fan fiction writers, but I’m trying not to say what they do sucks or is worthless. There are fan fiction authors that capture the characters and write good stories. That does take a lot of skill. Unfortunately, there are more that do it simply to get the ending or hookups they want. Read some Avatar: The Last Airbender and you’ll see some insane stuff. The same can be said for indie authors with many that churn out quick slop and others that put hard work into their self-published novels. Sadly, the terrible tends to get more attention than the talented in both fields.
Now, there was a comment made that was confused about a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. I was curious about the difference between a fairy tale retelling and fan fiction, so I asked Ionia the Wise. She said “Fan fiction is based on characters and fairy tale retellings are based on story that does not hold exact copyright.” That’s when the term ‘Public Domain’ clicked in my head. For those that don’t know, Public Domain is the term for artistic creations that are free for the public to use. These are characters, stories, and worlds that have been around so long that they are no longer covered by copyrights or the families of the creator never renewed the copyright. Look at the comic book series ‘Fables’ and you’ll see how many fairy tales and old stories are Public Domain. Everything from Grimm to Arabian Nights to Jungle Book are fair game. I’ve heard that there are some disputes of Conan the Barbarian and Tarzan too, so you always have to make sure you are retelling a Public Domain story. This is why you can get so many Alice in Wonderland remakes and you still have hoops to jump through for The Hobbit.
Fan fiction tends to work differently in that it uses characters and worlds that are still under copyright. Even when it uses a Public Domain character, it tends to be a version of that character from a retelling. For example, fan fiction that involves Alice and Mad Hatter from the Tim Burton version. That isn’t really a retelling because there is no change to the characters from that specific movie. Again, this is fine and oddly flattering as long as the fan fiction author doesn’t try to make money off it. I think that’s the line for it and why fan fiction is so widespread. It’s a hobby for many and a way to flex their creative muscles. I will admit that I have trouble talking shop with a fan fic writer because the discussion of designing characters tends to be iffy. Seriously, I’ve had some rough conversations with people who have openly asked why I don’t simply take characters directly from Lord of the Rings and change their names. Yes, it has been suggested that I blatantly steal from preexisting works.
So, what’s your opinion on retellings of Public Domain stories and fan fiction?
Legends of Windemere 
I know authors who feel fan fiction is a great form of flattery when done right. They even include fan fiction in their own published books and encourage other writers. I would enjoy having my own characters meet up with another’s characters in a fan fiction story and expect that I will write some of it. I think anything that encourages writers to write is a good thing.
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I would be very cautious about using fan fiction in a published work. That seems to be the opening for a money debate since the main author would be the one getting the royalties. I can see fan fiction being put up on an author’s website as part of a contest though. That’s just me being overly cautious in my old author age.
Fan fiction crossovers would be fun.
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If it’s an anthology of fan fiction published by an author and he’s cutting in contributors on royalties I don’t see a problem with it. If you’re writing a piece for the fun of it and making a contribution I also don’t see a problem with it. If you are publishing your own work using another person’s characters, that’s as bad or worse than plagiarism and a copyright violation. I think it all boils down to using common sense.
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Sadly common sense isn’t as common as people think. As for the other scenarios. The first one definitely works if the author has an agreed upon system. I remember a few indie authors approaching me to do something like that, but the royalty division was very shaky. You could tell there were favorites or there was a vagueness to the deal. Honesty and trust is important for that one.
I agree with the second one. A contribution would be interesting and can help blossoming authors get a handhold. Another version of that is for authors to have their own characters in an established world and get to use some of the author’s characters as cameos. It could help with world building and the author maintains control over the scope of the other stories. For example, cameo characters cannot be killed and certain towns are not allowed to be destroyed. I tried to let a college friend play in Windemere for fun and she sent Gaia into the ocean . . . along with Nyx and Trinity. I was not happy.
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No, the rules should be laid out in advance. Using your own characters in someone else’s world would still require abiding by their world rules and staying true to their characters. Hopefully fans have an understanding of those. Ultimately, the primary author should have the last say whether something is fitting/acceptable. And their hero stays the hero, no matter how clever your characters are.
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That’s really where the final decision lies and it’s probably why you don’t see it very often. The problem that comes about is that a reader has a different perspective on characters than the author. So it wouldn’t be a perfect match. A way to fix that would be having the author write those parts of the story.
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It’s not hurting anyone. If anything it’s an outlet for writers and readers who enjoy a particular universe e.g., Lord of the Rings. For authors, it’s a great way to show off their writing style. I know a fanfiction writer who posted information about her own book at the end of her fic. She wrote fantastic fic, so this could have led to some sales. It’s a great way to connect with other fans as well.
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I agree to a point. It normally isn’t hurting anyone and it is a great outlet for author’s to showcase their talents. Yet, I’ve seen some people attempt to publish their fan fiction or money and that’s where things seem to go awry.
Something interesting that I’ve noticed about this topic and remembering from the time before. People seem to focus on the fan fiction aspect and not on the Public Domain/fairy tale retelling part. So is it safe to assume that one is accepted to the point where it isn’t worth talking about and the other still requires some defense as to its legitimacy? Weird question, but I do find it interesting that everyone jumps to the ‘fan fiction is great and harmless’ comment whenever this comes up.
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I for one would like to do some fan fiction. Like to have Luke transported into one of my stories. I could see his confused look when someone pulled a 9MM on him and then the realization that the treat is the same as he is used to handling and taken care of in the usual two sword manner..
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I wonder how that would go. A fantasy character coming across a gun is typically answered by death since they aren’t supposed to know what one is. Yet a quick-witted character would have a vague idea that it’s a weapon. It’s pointed at them, a stance is taken, aggression can be sensed, and the thing has a trigger like a crossbow. I think Luke’s sound sight would be the thing that saves him because that click would remind him of a crossbow or trap being set.
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I think so too. But exciting to slow the action to the millisecond until he suddenly realises he needs to take action.
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That’s also if he’s alone. Nyx would be more inclined to knock the gun away before she’s even sure it’s a weapon.
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I’d say public domain and fan fic are different beasts. Fairy tales have been around so long for a start, the authors are long dead. That said any retelling should be unique – based, perhaps, on the original story but different enough to be the author’s work. I’d say it should be stated what it is. Fan fic – write for fun not profit.
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Good differences. Ever think some fairy tales should be retired? Even temporarily?
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