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Readers - How picky are you? (aka "Are you a FanFic Snob?")

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    Readers - How picky are you? (aka "Are you a FanFic Snob?")

    I've been wondering this for awhile. I have a morning ritual (at least when I have time) to search my local fanfic posting hangouts and read new updates and stories. A lot of the time, I come across newer authors and I become interested in reading what they've written.

    Heres where it gets snobby.

    I will refuse to read it if there are any of the following things within the first few paragraphs or page views:
    1. Simple grammar/spelling mistakes.
      "Ill" instead of "I'll," "your" instead of "you're", etc. It screams to me that they either didn't have a beta and/or didn't care to run a spellcheck on their work, turning me off to spending my time reading it.
    2. Stargate vocabulary spelled incorrectly.
      "Gould" instead of "Goa'uld" is my biggest beef. I won't read the story if this is mispelled. Snob Factor +10
    3. Character (especially main) names spelled incorrectly.
      "Oneal" vs. "O'niell" vs. "Oneel" tan my hide. Snob Factor +20


    I know I should probably be giving the stories the benefit of the doubt, but after awhile, the little things start to rub me the wrong way.

    Am I alone?

    #2
    I'd only hold repeated typos or egregious grammatical errors against an author; the odd mistake will always slip past, that's why professional editors get paid real money.

    I certainly don't think it's unreasonable to expect character names to be spelled correctly and Stargate terms to be within certain parameters (naquadah/naquada are both acceptable, for example). If not, you get the feeling that someone is not really trying.
    Behold the majesty that is...GERALD!
    - Read The Prophet's fan fiction at The Lost Vegas Public Library.

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      #3
      Originally posted by Mr Prophet
      I'd only hold repeated typos or egregious grammatical errors against an author; the odd mistake will always slip past, that's why professional editors get paid real money.
      <snip>
      That makes sense. I probably should have elaborated more. When the mistakes are few or far between, I try to overlook that. But when a paragraph (if you could call it that) ends up looking like this:

      "When Sam saw the new stargate she yelled out OMG your to close to the puddle! and then she ran to the scientist who already touched the puddle and then he exploded into a big liteflash with sparkels and noise

      sAm didnt want too see the scientsts get hert anymore!"

      I just move on lol.

      Who knows, I could be missing out on a really great and thoughtful story somewhere down the road, but if I have to WORK to understand it... I refuse to lol.

      Comment


        #4
        I'm very picky indeed about Fanfic. Other than the annual award-winning fanfics I only read stuff that's written by authors I know or recommended by people whose opinion I respect.

        I have a few niggles based on what I think is and isn't good writing. I'll not mention them though cos I'm a pretty inferior writer myself, so when it comes to passing judgement on fics that are pretty good stuff anyway I ought to keep mum

        So I'll just post this silly little gripe that's quite clearly a matter of taste and shouldn't offend anyone: I don't enjoy reading descriptions of the characters' looks, especially stuff describing their clothes; especially when those clothes are OOC and sexed-up (I don't believe any of them would wear ripped jeans for anything other than gardening.) I skip skip skip when that happens.

        Madeleine

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          #5
          Ah yes; the Anita Blake fashion fetishism problem. Not something you really need to be seeing when everyone's in Air Force base fatigues or BDU.

          I also have my turn-offs.

          Young prodigies are usually a bad sign, but especially female characters who have somehow made Professor and/or Major before the age of thirty; it only makes it worse if they have non-regulation hair that reads like a pitch for a shampoo advert. If nothing else, it's usually a sign that people would rather be writing for a different show.

          Saying this, I have written Stargate fanfic about much younger people, but only if the story involves Cassie.
          Behold the majesty that is...GERALD!
          - Read The Prophet's fan fiction at The Lost Vegas Public Library.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Mr Prophet
            Ah yes; the Anita Blake fashion fetishism problem. Not something you really need to be seeing when everyone's in Air Force base fatigues or BDU.

            I also have my turn-offs.

            Young prodigies are usually a bad sign, but especially female characters who have somehow made Professor and/or Major before the age of thirty; it only makes it worse if they have non-regulation hair that reads like a pitch for a shampoo advert. If nothing else, it's usually a sign that people would rather be writing for a different show.

            Saying this, I have written Stargate fanfic about much younger people, but only if the story involves Cassie.
            Yes! Hit the nail on the head with that one too..

            Stargate FanFiction is here, Buffy/Teeny-bopper/teen angst FanFiction is that-a-way *points way over there* (unless of course, you're writing about Cassie watching Buffy with teen angst )

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Brandie
              Yes! Hit the nail on the head with that one too..

              Stargate FanFiction is here, Buffy/Teeny-bopper/teen angst FanFiction is that-a-way *points way over there* (unless of course, you're writing about Cassie watching Buffy with teen angst )
              Well, my Buffy fandom creeps into my Stargate fanfic, although it's only Cassie who really talks like a character out of Buffy (mostly, I assume, because she watches it and programmes not unlike it).
              Behold the majesty that is...GERALD!
              - Read The Prophet's fan fiction at The Lost Vegas Public Library.

              Comment


                #8
                I am a snob.

                I have a short list of people whose work i automatically read and will read others on recommendation.

                Bad grammar turns me off, bad spelling. Net speak in fic is an automatic 'reach for the delete button'.

                bad characterization is a biggie for me. along with bad info. such as a fic that had jacob assigned to fort carson....an army base.

                there are some authors whose work i won't read because they interpret the characters so drastically different than i do that i just can't stand to read thier stuff

                so yeah, i am a snob
                Where in the World is George Hammond?


                sigpic

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                  #9
                  [quote=Skydiver]there are some authors whose work i won't read because they interpret the characters so drastically different than i do that i just can't stand to read thier stuff[quote]

                  Yup, people have incredibly different views of the characters' personalities. I don't mind reading radically 'wrong' () characterization too much as long as the author still appears to *like* the characters. If for example Daniel is over-sensitive, Sam is over-feminist, Jack is over-hard and Teal'c does little but bowlderise Earth culture references I'll keep reading as long as all four are still clearly Heroes and the plot is decent. I'll shunt it all to an AU if necessary and just enjoy the story for the story's sake.

                  What turns me off completely is stuff like - Daniel is contemptibly wet, Jack is a heartless git or Sam is self-centred to the point of back-stabbing. I don't want to read stories where any of the main characters are held in disdain like that.

                  Madeleine

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                    #10
                    i don't think not reading a story because of numerous spelling/grammar errors is snobbish... it really makes it hard to read. It's no fun to read fanfic if you have to struggle through it.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Originally posted by Brandie
                      I know I should probably be giving the stories the benefit of the doubt, but after awhile, the little things start to rub me the wrong way.
                      Am I alone?
                      I doubt it! I'm not that picky myself, though. I can forgive a lot if the story is extra good, or grabs me for some reason. There are stories that I flat out refuse to read: death stories, het romance, S/J ship.

                      I won't read stories written by Brits (or Australians) who don't have a beta go in and "americanize" their stories. There's nothing more off-putting to me to have something like "Daniel, you bloody git" come out of Jack's mouth... Part of the reason I'm so picky about this particular squick is due to the fact I wrote for several years in a fandom called The Professionals (a British-and better-version of Starsky and Hutch) and you'd better believe we yanks heard from the brits if anything American came out of Bodie or Doyle's mouth! I can forgive the odd oops, but a story full? Nope.

                      I don't know that I'm a snob. Yet.
                      Dana Jeanne
                      Click here for the latest news on Michael Shanks

                      Michael Shanks Online

                      Daniel Fanfic Archive ~ My SG-1 Scribbles ~ My Pros Scribbles

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                        #12
                        I'm absolutely a snob. I won't read a majority of fanfic because a lot of what I HAVE read (or, rather, what I've tried to read) is so utterly appalling that it's turned me off the whole genre. But that doesn't stop me from writing fics, myself. Guess that makes me a hypocrite, too.

                        I absolutely loathe fics that aren't grammatically correct and/or that haven't been spell-checked. The odd typo or three I can understand, but there's no excuse for consistently bad spelling and IMO, if you don't know how to structure a proper sentence, you shouldn't be writing.

                        Above and beyond the mechanics of the writing, however, are the wildly implausible characterizations. I have some very definite ideas about what the characters are like and how they should act and if a story I'm reading fails to adhere to my standards and fails to convince me that this "new way" is just as viable as my own viewpoint, then it's like fingernails on a chalkboard. I've read stories where the author's interpretation of a character was different than my own and not had a problem, but if- for example- the author has the characters acting like a bunch of overly hormonal teenages complete with hissy fits and melodramatic language... *shudder* Unless there's a valid, believable reason for them to be acting like that, I prefer my characters to behave like the adults they are.

                        Unless they are done for comical effect, I do not like Mary Sues. If I start reading a fic about Daniel's brilliant and buxom young "assistant" and they get trapped alone on a planet or some other nonsense, I just know the two are gonna wind up having sex and I'm sorry, but that just isn't fun for me. Unless it's a farce. Or unless the Mary Sue is a believable character with real human fallibilities and depth. Also, if I look at a pic of the author and read a description of the character, they should not match.

                        I want a story to MAKE SENSE. And I want it to have a POINT. Watching the characters bumble aimlessly along until some random point when the author decides it's over is NOT why I'm reading a fic. There should be a beginning, a middle and an end. I want SOMETHING to have happened by the end of it and I want it to have some kind of meaning. I'm not necessarily looking for some moralistic cautionary tale, but I do like to learn things, even if it's only some insight into a character. In fact, I tend to love character-centric pieces where we get a deeper glimpse into someone and maybe learn a few things we hadn't known before. Those tend to be the sorts of stories I write, myself. And angst, OOooooo the angst!

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Madeleine_W
                          Yup, people have incredibly different views of the characters' personalities. .
                          You can say THAT again! For the most part I don't care for stories where Daniel is so inept and childish that you're forced to wonder how he manages to bathe and dress himself without help. It's very difficult to get that wide-eyed wonder without infantilizing him. I like stories where Daniel and Jack are friends and equals, rather than father/son inequality.

                          Originally posted by Madeleine_W
                          I don't mind reading radically 'wrong' () characterization too much as long as the author still appears to *like* the characters. If for example Daniel is over-sensitive, Sam is over-feminist, Jack is over-hard and Teal'c does little but bowlderise Earth culture references I'll keep reading as long as all four are still clearly Heroes and the plot is decent. I'll shunt it all to an AU if necessary and just enjoy the story for the story's sake. .
                          I've done that with stories where the plot grabs me so hard I simply can't let go, but for some reason the characterization is just that little bit off from how I view them. I'm not terribly 'snobbish' about Teal'c or Sam, as they aren't my favorite characters; but when it comes to Jack, and especially Daniel, I am a SNOB.

                          Originally posted by Madeleine_W
                          What turns me off completely is stuff like - Daniel is contemptibly wet.
                          Okay, I give up-- what does contemptibly wet mean????
                          Dana Jeanne
                          Click here for the latest news on Michael Shanks

                          Michael Shanks Online

                          Daniel Fanfic Archive ~ My SG-1 Scribbles ~ My Pros Scribbles

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Wow great replies!

                            Everyone touched on points that I forgot to even mention lol, so I'm glad we're all alike.

                            And I'm with you Shadow, as far as angst goes. I'll read angst over anything else.. even BAD angst is better IMO than other categories But not too bad.... /snob

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                              #15
                              Hmm...I'd say I am a snob

                              1. Bad grammar is a major turn off.

                              2. I absolutely will NOT read a fic by someone who has seen maybe five episodes and knows close to nothing about the whole SG universe. Seriously, I've come across so many fics where the author though Daniel was Jack and where they made Sam so weepy and #%&%)# annoying and *****y.

                              3. Anything with OCs as main characters. They are invariably Mary-Sues and they invariably end up smooching Daniel while they are only 20 years old at most. Exception to this rule are some AU OC if the reason for the OC to show up from an alternate reality are plausible.

                              4. Nothing with "Oh look! I'm your daughter/son from the future" especially if it's followed by "and I'm a child wonder!"

                              5. I won't read slash, no way, no how. Not that I dislike slash, I love it. Just not Stargate slash. Especially Jack/Daniel slash. While I admit it is possible and there are enough shippy moments in the series, I just despise the idea

                              6. I avoid anything angsty, over mushy and hurtfics. I do write angst from time to time but I do my best to stay IC, as in I don't have Jack confess his undying love for Sam on the ramp and Sam weeping every few sentences.

                              7. Pregnancy...

                              8. Kidnapping fics.

                              9. PWP, I like my porn to have a plot thank you.

                              I know there are more, I just can't think of them just now. In any case, it's hell to find a fic I'll read. Which is sad really because I love fanfiction...
                              May our transmatter beams cross again...

                              Proud Member of the Chevron Guy Club

                              "Out of that sea of stars came all the elements that make me what I am. "


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