(no subject)

[moonsheen]

Nerds are the best Halloween candy ever.

Also. Attempting princess fic. This is saturnoolaa's fault. I hope you're happy. . Though I guess partial blame can go to playing Princess Maker 3 again--in which my daughter became a merchant's mistress! I'm so proud of her.

Also, random question of the day: Original characters in fanfiction? Like them or hate them?

Comments

[dosetsu.livejournal.com]

Depends on how they're done. Judging on a case-by-case basis is best, in my opinion.

[moonsheen.livejournal.com]

That's sort of how I feel about it too, it's just the question of how to do it right. A series like Naruto (which is of course, what's bugging me right now agh) lends itself to interesting plots involving original characters. And hell, I'd love to see fanfic focused on ninjas from the other countries (*coughshiddenwavecoughcough*). The world itself is too much fun for that not to work if it's well thought out. But when dealing with original characters and canon characters together...Well, then it feels like a balancing act.

...Oddly, I feel more comfortable with it when I don't give them names. Kakashi's parents? No name. Lee's crazy cane wielding grandmother? No name. Random members of the older generation of the Hyuga clan who suddenly want to get in on the weird politics and family drama? Want names. And it's driving me crazy and wow, I did know I had a rant in me there.

[dosetsu.livejournal.com]

Ah, yes, Hidden Wave. >> I really should get back to that.

As for the latter point, yeah, I agree with you and Spacetart--characters who fill in a necessary role, like relatives, are fine; and often it's easier if these people don't have names, because that keeps the focus on the canon characters. Funny that those older Hyuuga folks want names, though. :P

[sairobi.livejournal.com]

Agreeing firmly on the second paragraph. For some reason, unnamed characters are lot less invasive in an established diegesis when they're sort of...faceless. Not to mention how irritating assy fangirl Japanese names can be.

(Not that you'd be guilty of either count. Just my general opinion on the situation as a whole--I'm sure that since you're already aware of the risks, you'll be able to navigate around those pitfalls with ease should the problem arise.)

[spacetart.livejournal.com]

It depends. If they're just filling a role(parents of a character, the friends of an underdeveloped minor character who is the central character in the fic, etc.), they're fine. It's when they become the focus of the fic that it bugs me. Even then, if it's done well and makes sense in canon, it's fine.

[saturnoolaa.livejournal.com]

You know you love it.

Anyway, I tend to stay away from original characters unless there's no choice involved. When there isn't, I try to make them as unimportant as possible.

But that's just me, and sometimes I find original character fics fun to read. As long as they don't end up with canon characters. That's a big no.