~~ ahhh, the tedium of fantasizing

[reenka]

Reading the review of `Mirror of Maybe' at hp_fictalk where the major crit was 'too much detail' made me wonder about why that's such a huge pet peeve of mine (to the point where reading-- correction, trying and failing to read-- MoM gave me near physical pain). I mean, one of the most obvious flaws within my own writing is that I don't explain things (like details about the environment or what some character is thinking) enough-- because it just doesn't seem interesting or essential. I'll describe something if I've got an deeply vested interest in every tiny detail (like a sex scene-- there, you could never really have too much detail for me), but who has the capacity to be that deeply interested in every scrap of minutiae of their existence...? (Don't tell me-- those people scare me, mommy!)

It seems to me that even in original work, there should be a different balance between the various fic elements of fact (the base element of plot), exposition (ahhh, the tedium that plagues all fantasists everywhere-- diekilldieEVILDEMON!!1), dialogue (wheeeee! never too much and double-yeay if used subtly for exposition!) and atmosphere (sort of like 'setting', except cooler because it's more concise/poetical! yeay!)
    In other words, in original fic you get away with having 30-40% exposition (if you are very lame or in other words, the majority of popular fantasy authors). In non-AU fanfic, 10% is more than enough-- any more feels like someone's force-feeding the reader gruel, no matter how high the 'sugar' content. (No more gruel please!! Reena hates gruel!! Stoooopppp iiiiit maaaaasterrr!) Er. Anyway, the reader just has more of a role to play in fanfic-- they shoulder more of the burden of exposition, yeay, so the fic writer can get to the Good Stuff (character development!) fast! That's the point, no?


It's just interesting, the different ways in which fantasy-building works-- I mean, as fans and readers, we want to know next to everything about the things that really interest us-- and I'm no different. I remember, especially in my early (original) fic writing when I was in High School, describing the world till I dropped, without much effort made for characterization, because really, who cares about these people (I know I didn't)? I was much more interested in the ever-so-cool details about how the magic worked & how the land was geographically structured & what the history was and where the flowers grew. I was pretty much in hog heaven in my own head, to the point where my English teacher (whom I gave my one novella to read) called my writing 'ecstatic'.

It just seems like fanfiction is markedly different in my mind, in that it's not my world to build-- and I was able to let go of any burden or ecstasy that brought. All I needed to play with were characters, and that was such a relief! I already had the world in my head, and even the characters, halfway, so to have it all explained to me again and again is the worst kind of torture! Like an original fic blooming where I want my pretty fanfic to be, and that's just not on! It's a weed! A weed, I say!

It's funny, 'cause I enjoy fantasy AU fics for Gundam Wing (which have plenty of world-building), mostly because I dislike that canon world (eeewwww, mechas!). In HP, I love the canon world-- as is, baby. So to have a fantasy AU in HP-- built into the Potterverse without fully removing the original-- feels like some sort of parasitic invasion. Which is similar to the feeling I get when a character's thoughts are over-explained-- as a reader, I have my own ideas about what they're thinking too, and to have all my space for imagination used up feels as if the fic is some sort of parasite on me, leeching my every flight of fancy for itself.

It's different when I'm doing this myself, in my writing-- I can see the appeal of describing everything that interests you, as I've said. But as a -reader-, it just relegates your role in the storytelling to 'object of lecture', which is so vile and loathsome as to be avoided at all costs (...now take a wild guess why Reena doesn't do well with organized schooling a lot of times).

In response to that post in hp_fictalk, arclevel said that they enjoy having things explained to them because they don't necessarily make the 'obvious' connection-- and I'm aware there are plenty of readers with this issue. Um. So I suppose this is why different sorts of stories will always attract different sorts of readers~:) For instance, I still can't muster up the will to slog through the endless tedium of plot/description/plot in either Tolkien's LoTR or Herbert's Dune series, though I know full well they're good books & I really enjoyed the movies. I feel like I'd really love them if someone else rewrote them, haha.

...Even so (that is, even if the reader digs it), I think it's not actually good writing to have that over-abundance of detail. It stifles the reader's own imagination (and by 'stifles' I really meant 'strangles'). Reading should encourage your imagination, not beat it bloodily into the ground! And stomp! And yell mightily for it has won! (...All right, I should go eat.)

Comments

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

I know just what you mean. To me it's like the difference between fics where I can walk around freely and those where I feel trapped or buried. Not just fics but writing. I remember that always being one of the things I preferred about Diana Wynne Jones, because I don't consider myself somebody who's really into heavy high fantasy at all, and in her books I felt like there was just enough.

This, btw, is also why I continue to shamelessly fangirl mirabellawotr. If somebody said to name somebody you'd love to be able to write like--like that. For exactly that reason. I love it when she describes things because I usually don't notice she's doing it. I just know now I have this really really really pretty image in my head and I can hear it and smell it as well. Yay! But even so when I think of her style I wouldn't even say "descriptive" but straightforward, clean etc. I might even think of her as more of a character-writer than a descriptive one.

Maybe that's the thing--you feel almost like you've discovered the descriptive details by yourself. Like surely the author is more concentrating on Remus' flashback as he walks down that street in Hogsmeade, but I am secretly admiring the light in the sky and smelling the woodsmoke.

Mmmm. Woodsmoke.

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that'd be the difference I was trying to get at with 'atmosphere' vs. 'exposition', which is more factual and plodding and logically-structured up the wazoo and bleargh. I think if one is a more character-centered writer, the world & details come more naturally, at the sidelines-- because you're not focusing on it. I mean, in a way, these two drives are complementary, but in another, you can still see which one the writer is more interested in by how heavy-handed & over-developed that aspect of the work is-- I remember writing environment-heavy fantasy where the characters were almost ciphers & now with fanfic, my writing is much more atmospheric and concise (comparatively!) because I'm focusing on dialogue and character.

If I had to pick someone to write like, it'd be Francesca Lia Block or Patricia McKillip, 'cause they combine a beauty of description that is almost painful to me and yet it tie it intimately to the character development to the point where everything seems like a metaphor and has several layers. Like... especially the way FLB describes LA-- the heavy fruits, the hot wind, the orange blossoms. It's like... more than just a place, more than just a setting. Everything is structured to influence everything else to the point of sheer poetry.

I find most people's characterization too 'heavy', so I'm just really sensitive to any hint of being over-told anything, character or setting-wise. Like... the more you tell me, the more I can disagree, anyway. Woe, for this is why I cannot bear to read anyone's H/D fic anymore.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Totally in agreement on FLB--and then she did that one book in NYC and it was so incredibly different. But yeah, I think that's a great great skill to be able to have the atmosphere reflect what's going on, particularly with the characters, but subtly so you're not being overtold anything.