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The Fannish Generation Goes to Work
May. 11th, 2007 11:25 amDriving home last night, I heard an interview with a guy who wrote,"The Most Praised Generation Goes to Work."
This morning, via friendsfriends, I read This, which was that writer's response to a post on one of his posts, here. (Despite the way ranty nature of the first link, the second is pretty reasonable and thought out and I kind of agree with the idea that fans probably don't actually want the writers to do what we want because we tune in for the surprise, to see how someone else's story unfolds and mostly we write fic to see how we'd unfold it and those are different beasts).
McGrath's rant also elicited the following recap from Sean Lindsey
Denis McGrath calls bullshit on fan fiction. The substance of his complaint: that fan fiction is "puerile, overwrought, florid, hamfisted, tin-eared, illiterate, badly spelled, laughably punctuated, intellectually bankrupt pig vomit." He writes for Canadian television, so he speaks with authority.
Which made me laugh and laugh despite the fact that I think Slings & Arrows is the best thing I've seen in years, and possibly the most perfect TV ever. (I'd have laughed just as hard no matter what nationality - American included - the blogger had used as a joke, but seriously... it's hard to take someone seriously ranting - however tongue in cheek - on the perils of fanfic when he is a) TV Writer, b) working on a show (Blood Ties) based on a set of novels. Paid or not, it smacks of his own sense of entitlement, which was kind of the point, both of his rant and this post).
So, what are we, what am I, entitled to as a fan?
1. Entertainment. When it's not entertaining, I stop watching.
2. Surprises. See above.
3. Work that challenges something - whether it's stereotypes, perceptions or just the everyday dullness of my existence. I want to interact. I am the easiest audience ever. I'm primed like a pump, but I'll switch off just as easily so keep my interest folks.
4. My own opinion.
And that's it. I can want. I can hope. I can rewrite in my head, I can rewrite on paper. I can get pissed off at the gender depictions, or the stupid science, or the plain stupid. I can wish for more women, or less violence, or more sex, or less gross, but that's wanting and wishing and I vote with my remote.
The same thing is true in fandom, and we know it and we preach it, and we ignore it at our peril because WANT is such a huge part of being a fan that it overrides our brains and we put WANT into DESERVE. I do it when I'm looking for fic and can't find anything that scratches the itch I want scratched. When I post something and want more feedback. When everyone's talking about something else instead of the GREAT GLORY THAT IS EARL. (Seriously, I heard that there's like some other show on Thursday nights?)
But it's want, and it's not deserve. In my life, I deserve to be treated with respect. I deserve to be as happy as the next person. I deserve food and shelter. I'd like to say that I deserve to not have the girls upstairs constantly making furniture and dropping bowling balls in the middle of the night. Or that I deserve to not get a parking ticket at every single opportunity, but really, those aren't rights, they're just things that would make my life better.
So, while I think that McGrath is a little off his nut if he meant that diatribe to be tongue in cheek, while I know that there's fanfic I'd rather read than some of the crap that gets made into published or filmed material, I do think the point of expectation is true. For him, the entitlement of fic writers gets his gourd (and I'm guessing that there's more,because DUDE is there some bile ripe in that tirade) for other people, it's characterization, or funny costumes, or whatever, but there is a truth in the idea that we get irrational with want and mix it up with deserve.
In other news, Earl rocked last night, and I actually watched The Office, and while I'm still vastly uncomfortable with it, I may be sort of in love with Pam now.
This morning, via friendsfriends, I read This, which was that writer's response to a post on one of his posts, here. (Despite the way ranty nature of the first link, the second is pretty reasonable and thought out and I kind of agree with the idea that fans probably don't actually want the writers to do what we want because we tune in for the surprise, to see how someone else's story unfolds and mostly we write fic to see how we'd unfold it and those are different beasts).
McGrath's rant also elicited the following recap from Sean Lindsey
Denis McGrath calls bullshit on fan fiction. The substance of his complaint: that fan fiction is "puerile, overwrought, florid, hamfisted, tin-eared, illiterate, badly spelled, laughably punctuated, intellectually bankrupt pig vomit." He writes for Canadian television, so he speaks with authority.
Which made me laugh and laugh despite the fact that I think Slings & Arrows is the best thing I've seen in years, and possibly the most perfect TV ever. (I'd have laughed just as hard no matter what nationality - American included - the blogger had used as a joke, but seriously... it's hard to take someone seriously ranting - however tongue in cheek - on the perils of fanfic when he is a) TV Writer, b) working on a show (Blood Ties) based on a set of novels. Paid or not, it smacks of his own sense of entitlement, which was kind of the point, both of his rant and this post).
So, what are we, what am I, entitled to as a fan?
1. Entertainment. When it's not entertaining, I stop watching.
2. Surprises. See above.
3. Work that challenges something - whether it's stereotypes, perceptions or just the everyday dullness of my existence. I want to interact. I am the easiest audience ever. I'm primed like a pump, but I'll switch off just as easily so keep my interest folks.
4. My own opinion.
And that's it. I can want. I can hope. I can rewrite in my head, I can rewrite on paper. I can get pissed off at the gender depictions, or the stupid science, or the plain stupid. I can wish for more women, or less violence, or more sex, or less gross, but that's wanting and wishing and I vote with my remote.
The same thing is true in fandom, and we know it and we preach it, and we ignore it at our peril because WANT is such a huge part of being a fan that it overrides our brains and we put WANT into DESERVE. I do it when I'm looking for fic and can't find anything that scratches the itch I want scratched. When I post something and want more feedback. When everyone's talking about something else instead of the GREAT GLORY THAT IS EARL. (Seriously, I heard that there's like some other show on Thursday nights?)
But it's want, and it's not deserve. In my life, I deserve to be treated with respect. I deserve to be as happy as the next person. I deserve food and shelter. I'd like to say that I deserve to not have the girls upstairs constantly making furniture and dropping bowling balls in the middle of the night. Or that I deserve to not get a parking ticket at every single opportunity, but really, those aren't rights, they're just things that would make my life better.
So, while I think that McGrath is a little off his nut if he meant that diatribe to be tongue in cheek, while I know that there's fanfic I'd rather read than some of the crap that gets made into published or filmed material, I do think the point of expectation is true. For him, the entitlement of fic writers gets his gourd (and I'm guessing that there's more,because DUDE is there some bile ripe in that tirade) for other people, it's characterization, or funny costumes, or whatever, but there is a truth in the idea that we get irrational with want and mix it up with deserve.
In other news, Earl rocked last night, and I actually watched The Office, and while I'm still vastly uncomfortable with it, I may be sort of in love with Pam now.
