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Jan. 2nd, 2006 01:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
beccaelizabethI just realised a thing.
Someone wrote a thing about someone wanting to use one of their RPG characters in a story, and they were offended, even though they fanfic. It felt different.
So I was thinking about that.
One time, someone used my name in fanfic. And I was totally shocked and offended. It was deliberate, putting me in the story. And they meant to do good things to me there, but hey, not wanting things done to! And they were making 'me' do things, and no, me makes me do things. So I didn't like that at all. (The specific incident was a couple of lines of mention, but these were the reasons I didn't like it, the doing and done to things).
My RPG characters, I also make do things. I do the talking, and the deciding, and they feel a bit like me. But also a bit not. If someone wanted to write up a report of a game I was in, fair enough. But if someone wanted to write a new story with my character in, that wouldn't feel fair, no more than when the GM says I do a thing. Only I didn't say this hypothetical person could even be GM (who gets to say what things happen to everyone anyway) so it is making a bit of me do things without any permission. So it would be uncool.
And then I went 'ah'.
Because, well, there are people on TV that do the talking. And writers that do the deciding what them characters do. And maybe that spilts up the character so they're a step further away than an RPG character, but those are still *their* characters.
So, er, I kind of get the point better, when writers or whoever are loud about fanfic.
Thing is, I don't think that adds up to 'don't write fanfic', or even 'don't write RPF'. RPF has a much greater capacity to offend. Maybe even hurt, emotionally. And avoiding hurting people, generally a good thing. But balanced against making readers happy, or doing all the other things art does? *shrugs*
The thing that remains important though is proper credit. 'Based on a true story', or 'Nothing like a true story even if it has the same names', or that thing they put on the end of films about resemblance to persons living or dead being a coincidence. Label it properly and label it as fiction. And also keep the names of the creators on it. Highlander had 'based on characters by' at the front of episodes. Fanfic disclaimers do that too.
The thing that remains though, using characters based on people, or using people's characters, can really piss them off, or hurt them, or all kinds of things. And these are not things most people wish to do to their friends, or people they like and admire.
So I think that part there mostly usually adds up to 'no RPF'. Because it is anti-fun.
Using other people's RPG characters without permission, or mangling them even with permission, might be... artistically valid, but will have consequences in the impact on the writer's relationship with the originator of the characters. Usually I'd say it is likely more trouble than it is worth.
In fanfic, we lack relationship with originator anyways, so *shrugs*
But it is much more fun when they actually tell us to go write fanfic. blessing of Joss, PTB of the Buffyverse! yaays!
Someone wrote a thing about someone wanting to use one of their RPG characters in a story, and they were offended, even though they fanfic. It felt different.
So I was thinking about that.
One time, someone used my name in fanfic. And I was totally shocked and offended. It was deliberate, putting me in the story. And they meant to do good things to me there, but hey, not wanting things done to! And they were making 'me' do things, and no, me makes me do things. So I didn't like that at all. (The specific incident was a couple of lines of mention, but these were the reasons I didn't like it, the doing and done to things).
My RPG characters, I also make do things. I do the talking, and the deciding, and they feel a bit like me. But also a bit not. If someone wanted to write up a report of a game I was in, fair enough. But if someone wanted to write a new story with my character in, that wouldn't feel fair, no more than when the GM says I do a thing. Only I didn't say this hypothetical person could even be GM (who gets to say what things happen to everyone anyway) so it is making a bit of me do things without any permission. So it would be uncool.
And then I went 'ah'.
Because, well, there are people on TV that do the talking. And writers that do the deciding what them characters do. And maybe that spilts up the character so they're a step further away than an RPG character, but those are still *their* characters.
So, er, I kind of get the point better, when writers or whoever are loud about fanfic.
Thing is, I don't think that adds up to 'don't write fanfic', or even 'don't write RPF'. RPF has a much greater capacity to offend. Maybe even hurt, emotionally. And avoiding hurting people, generally a good thing. But balanced against making readers happy, or doing all the other things art does? *shrugs*
The thing that remains important though is proper credit. 'Based on a true story', or 'Nothing like a true story even if it has the same names', or that thing they put on the end of films about resemblance to persons living or dead being a coincidence. Label it properly and label it as fiction. And also keep the names of the creators on it. Highlander had 'based on characters by' at the front of episodes. Fanfic disclaimers do that too.
The thing that remains though, using characters based on people, or using people's characters, can really piss them off, or hurt them, or all kinds of things. And these are not things most people wish to do to their friends, or people they like and admire.
So I think that part there mostly usually adds up to 'no RPF'. Because it is anti-fun.
Using other people's RPG characters without permission, or mangling them even with permission, might be... artistically valid, but will have consequences in the impact on the writer's relationship with the originator of the characters. Usually I'd say it is likely more trouble than it is worth.
In fanfic, we lack relationship with originator anyways, so *shrugs*
But it is much more fun when they actually tell us to go write fanfic. blessing of Joss, PTB of the Buffyverse! yaays!