(grumpy again)

[reenka]

At first I thought that it's just that I'm closed-minded or something, 'cause even looking at fics with pairings that conflict with an OTP makes me sort of cringe and want to rail against the (stupid) pairing in question... but... it's just that most people, even when they write get-together fics, don't actually bother to try convincing the reader that these people -should- be together. I mean, there's a basic question there, isn't there? -Why-? Why should the reader want these people together? Why do all these (fanfic) writers assume that only shippers will read their fic? Or do they?

It occurs to me that maybe that's true, actually. Maybe most people write for a) an audience of people who just don't care about what pairing they read or b) an audience that is already sold on the pairing in question. Possibly, there's a third common type of fic-- as in, c) an audience of people who're crazed fans of one of the characters and will happily see them with anyone at all, no matter how "out of character" the pairing seems.

I don't know if a pairing -can- be OOC. Can it?

Plenty of people write characters to be OOC to the degree that I can't see these versions of these characters together, even if I normally ship them. In that case, I don't care whether I'm already "sold", the fic in question reverses that. I don't know if that's common, though. Do people often read fics with their OTP that make them stop rooting for it in that case? Happens to me all the time. I mean, I really think that once you give a character enough issues (narcissism, extreme depression, mania, psychosis, extreme immaturity, commitment issues, anxiety issues) it'd make a lot more sense to not write a successful romance there. As in, I doubt these versions would-- or should-- last past a month with anyone.

I don't know if most writers or readers -want- to always start from square one in terms of non-canon pairings, though I don't see how one could honestly get away with anything else in a good story, porn aside. I suppose one can't help but start with some assumptions... but taking huge unsubstantiated things for granted is just sheer laziness, isn't it? As in, well, of -course- Draco has always wanted to fuck Harry. Of course, yes. Naturally. Gah. Bad writer, no biscuit.

Comments

[emeraldstorms.livejournal.com]

Ah, something I have a say on.

I don't know if most writers or readers -want- to always start from square one in terms of non-canon pairings, though I don't see how one could honestly get away with anything else in a good story, porn aside. I suppose one can't help but start with some assumptions... but taking huge unsubstantiated things for granted is just sheer laziness, isn't it?

I find myself thinking about that too, actually. Like, for instance, my favorite pairing is Draco/Ginny. And while I like the comebacks and spats and general snarky humor that will always arise from the pairing, I do have a craving for angsty fics every once in a while. Which is to say, most fics that start from scratch - them hating eachother at first, for some reason ending up liking being with eachother, and so on - will usually have a certain amount of angst in it, because D/G fics tend to be more realistic when they start from the beginning. Like, short little oneshots usually have Romantic!Draco paired with either Smitten!Ginny or Fiery!Ginny, while those writers who make them 'meet' so to speak will have them more IC (not taking into effect what you said about OOCness).

Is this making any sense at all?

Here, there's two fics that pop instantly to mind when I'm thinking of D/G - one is You'll Be In My Heart, by ten miles til midnight, and it features Draco leaving Ginny for whatever reason. They kiss, the hug, she cries, he comforts... it's all very well and good and I myself was sort of basking in the warm glow of D/G. But there's also another one, Jewel of the Harem by Anise, which is a very long and well researched fic. And it starts them off from the beginning and she makes it *plausible*.

But being a D/G shipper I loved them both (but moreso the latter). I think that maybe once someone reads a fic that makes the pairing plausible, it can always seem plausible no matter what, IC or OOC characters. At least, that's how I feel.

Personally I like to start from the beginning when writing an unusual pairing, just to prove to myself that it can happen (Crimony is Draco/Luna tough to do. O_o). And sometimes I feel that people who don't make the pairing plausible are somehow butchering the characters because they aren't doing them justice, but on the whole I like all D/G fics. As long as their written decently that is.

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I know what you mean. I do have a weakness for my OTP, and I'll usually enjoy any semi-well-written fic with them even if it's really unrealistic, though I'll enjoy a realistic fic a -lot- more. I guess I was really only coming up for a need to be convinced with the non-OTP fics... and I was wondering if people write fics -for- shippers. Like, am I not -supposed- to be sold? That was sort of my question, there.

That said... I mean, I do have my limits. If you portray the relationship as unhealthy or -totally- OOC, I will balk even with my OTP, though I give it much lee-way. There's only so much I will take-- and without the "OTP effect", naturally I'm even more picky. But anyway, yeah... proof is a lot more necessary with an unusual pairing. Then again, both Draco/Ginny and Harry/Draco are "unusual", depending on how you look at it, heheheh.

I definitely start thinking about that "justice" a lot more quickly than I used to, these days, mostly 'cause I've gotten old and jaded, heheh. I feel a bit insulted with fics that feed me shipper bullshit a lot of times. I mean, how much more plausible is Harry/Draco vs Harry/Filch, anyway? It's a tough call ;) ahahahah I can't believe I just said that -.-