Fic Talk > General Discussion
Why aren't other genres controversial?
mare:
I agree with that. Like Between the Lines or On The Rails, as long as I can recognize the guys and still think it's them, it will hold my attention (most of the time)
On the Rails is really an excellent example of this. This story basically has everything I have just openly shunned lmao It's not only AU but historical AU and it only really has had Nick as a central character with Brian showing up recently. The story is so well written and interesting, that it has held my attention. Also in that same vein, there is a very strong female character which I enjoy as well. you put all those elements into one fic and it's going to hold my attention. It doesn't matter if Nick is a BSB or not.
If the story isn't very entertaining and the characters aren't very true to form, that's when I start looking for the BSB connection and if I don't find it, I click right out of there.
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: julilly on July 08, 2011, 02:27:56 PM ---Many times I've been told that the things I've written aren't fanfic, might as well be OF, etc because the boys aren't Backstreet Boys in them and sometimes there's only an appearance by one character. In my mind though, when Nick gets cancer, or Brian and AJ fall in love, or Howie gets addicted to meth, whether they're Backstreet Boys at the time or not I don't think it's canon, that's a universe alternate to the one we live in, no different than if he weren't a performer and were a janitor instead. And if we all only wrote specifically to canon, to the universe that we live in right now, we'd all be writing the same tour/recording story.
I think it's about keeping the characterizati on the same more than keeping professions, etc the same.
--- End quote ---
I'd say the people who claim you're not writing fanfic don't really get what an AU is. That's the whole point of AU - that you take these characters (or, in this case, real people) and take them out of canon and put them in a different situation. It's still fanfic if you're writing about those specific characters/people, though, not your own original characters. Like it or not, it is a valid subcategory of fanfic.
That said, I wouldn't call the other situations you mentioned - Nick having cancer, Brian and AJ in love, Howie addicted to meth (LOL) - AU, assuming they're still the Backstreet Boys in those situations. Isn't that what fanfic is, taking real people (or other people's characters) and putting them in fictional situations? To me, canon is just a set of guidelines that should be followed if you're trying to write the Backstreet Boys as the authentic Backstreet Boys. Personality traits, backgrounds, careers, families, all that kind of stuff. Some fanfic writers stick closer to canon than others, and unless it's supposed to be AU, I prefer reading a story that is canon, but I don't think that means you can only write about situations that have really happened and people who really exist without it being considered AU.
Like you said, though, I think characterizati on is the key. Whether it's canon as in they're the Backstreet Boys or completely AU, if you're calling it a fanfic, the guys should still seem like themselves. I'd rather read a story where Howie was a janitor who was still recognizable as Howie than a story where Howie the Backstreet Boy is a meth addict for no particular reason other than the author thought that sounded like a cool idea. If you're gonna take them that far out of character, you gotta show the progression to that point - otherwise, it's more like you're just using a real person's name for a fictional character. In that example, I'd consider the janitor story more of a true fanfic... or at least a better-written one.
Rose:
--- Quote from: RokofAges75 on July 08, 2011, 12:58:19 PM ---For me, it depends on the story. Rose and I did give Brian and Howie fake children in Undead because we couldn't bear to make Baylee and James zombies LOL. I've killed off Leighanne before, but I would never touch Baylee in one of my fics. That does seem wrong. Like you said, it's hard to explain why that feels wrong, but not writing about - in my case, torturing - the real guys, but it's where I draw the line.
--- End quote ---
Right, in stories where I don't plan to kill kids lol, I include the real life ones. RMTW has Baylee, James, and Mason all included in there, to keep it as realistic as I can. Undead, they have fake kids, because I couldn't kill em. That's like my line I can't cross LOL. I can torture wives/gfs/the Boys, but the kids always feel untouchable.
julilly:
--- Quote from: Rose on July 08, 2011, 06:37:05 PM ---Right, in stories where I don't plan to kill kids
--- End quote ---
This made me laugh really hard for some reason!
Rose:
--- Quote from: julilly on July 08, 2011, 06:48:14 PM ---This made me laugh really hard for some reason!
--- End quote ---
LMFAO it sounds so wrong. I'm so odd.
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