Fanfic Pet Peeves

[SciFiSGFan]

The problem being that some people are in real life uncomfortable with uncouth language, I'm one of those, though we may be a rare species, but as a comprominise I tend to use lesser despciptive grammar and still get the point across, albeit with the mastication muscle planted firmly in one's cheek

I have to agree. I hear enough of that in RL. I find it hard enough to write 'actual conversation' sometimes without getting too 'stiff'.

[Skydiver]

well, anyone that's had a kid and had the 'joy' of having their teacher call to tell them that 'little johnny shouldn't be speaking that way', learns to moderate their language.

Now, i do know that 'canon' is catered to the rules and regs of broadcast TV, and that Jack and co had to speak in a awy that wouldn't get them in trouble, yet, because of that, it IS canon that, while they swear when necessary, they don't break out the really gnarly words just in casual conversation.

[puddlejumperOZ]

"Dangnabbit Sky I was going to ruddywell say that!"

[Aragon101]

I have to agree. I hear enough of that in RL. I find it hard enough to write 'actual conversation' sometimes without getting too 'stiff'.

Hmm.. i never have that problem myself. Just talk it out and see how long it takes to say each sentence. I usually end up trimming the dialgoue a bbit to get it tight

well, anyone that's had a kid and had the 'joy' of having their teacher call to tell them that 'little johnny shouldn't be speaking that way', learns to moderate their language.

Now, i do know that 'canon' is catered to the rules and regs of broadcast TV, and that Jack and co had to speak in a awy that wouldn't get them in trouble, yet, because of that, it IS canon that, while they swear when necessary, they don't break out the really gnarly words just in casual conversation.

Too bad there isn't just some sticky that has the basics of how to write each character according to "canon" just take a few select lines from the show and transcribe them, then give examples from well written fanfic. I would be amazed to see more Jack using less than 2 commas per sentence (He's like a shakespeareant monologue artist in some things i've seen.)

Swearing, just write what you're comfortable with PJ. If you're not comfortable writing, it shows. You get people trying ot be badass agoing "you ******* piece of ****! I'm gonna ***** slap your *** and **** you till you love me!" Needless to say, that's not exactly hoe people speak

I'm okay with cursing and swearing as long as it's the punctuation, not hte sentence itself. Sometimes i'll even do as Sky showed earlier and just hint at it and show reactions.

and a Jack specific peeve. Okay, we all know he's decently smart. But it's a WTF moment for me in fics where it's found out by the team he has a masters in physics, or spanish or history, or any other assortment of esoteric thing that really wouldn't help him much in his career as an AF officer. Just very annoying to suddenly see him be philosophical with Daniel and quoting Lord Byron or something. He's philosophical in a satire way!

[Skydiver]

writing the characters 'in voice' is one of the hardest things an author can do.

There is no greater praise I can get than 'I 'heard' them when i read it'

[puddlejumperOZ]

That's what I strive for, to get the 'voice' in the written word. It's difficult but can be done. The greatest compliment I have received is someone wrote recently "I can just hear them saying that". Needless to say it made my day. Another thing I like to do which seems to go over quite well is to use some rather famous or infamoius idioms from other TV shows, which Aragon can attest to "Holy Buckets!"

And as for Jack, I seem to recall he said once that he was "uncormfortable" with High School

[Pitry]

and a Jack specific peeve. Okay, we all know he's decently smart. But it's a WTF moment for me in fics where it's found out by the team he has a masters in physics, or spanish or history, or any other assortment of esoteric thing that really wouldn't help him much in his career as an AF officer. Just very annoying to suddenly see him be philosophical with Daniel and quoting Lord Byron or something. He's philosophical in a satire way!

Actually, considering he was trained as a fighter pilot, a degree in physics shouldn't be that off the mark.
Quoting Lord Byron isn't something he'd do, no, but the impression I got from the show isn't that he wouldn't quote Lord Byron because he can't, but because he chooses not to. For all that matter, you'll need to have some pretty contrived situation to get Daniel to quote Lord Byron, IMO.

It's the mistake with people who know they aren't very clever and therefore need to show off their education/ cleverness, in order to assert themselves as clever, as opposed to the people who are that clever and therefore don't feel any need to show it off. Daniel and Jack belong to the second group, not the first.

[Skydiver]

tactics and strategy, definitely, for Jack.

he's not the kind to need a 'mine is bigger' show off moment. at least not now

now, when he was younger? yeah, i think he did some showboating and grandstanding...and then likely had a mentor of a sort, a Bra'tac, that taught him that showing is better than telling, and results count more than 'see, see, see!!!!'

I also think, given his intolerance for the 'look at me' types, he was burned by one of those in the past, so has a low tolerance for those grandstanding but once he finds ones he can trust, that trust is implicit

[puddlejumperOZ]

In fact this is a common error a lot of people presume. Jack was a Air Force SF, it says so in his "Official" bio, and you'll notice on his earlier appearences in full uniform, he does not wear the pilots wings. Somehow along the way TPTB decided he could fly.
That being said from the late 1940's all US miltitary officers usually had a college education at the very least. The exception being those who worked their way up from the enlisted ranks, but I'm not sure on the qualifications required for further advancement, Coela Belltore would know.

[Skydiver]

no, RIck decided that Jack was a pilot.

season 6 i think, rick decided that Jack had been a test pilot, thus jack became one, despite never having worn wings before

and i'm sure it made the plot easier...kinda like in Continuum, when Sam became qualified in whatever fighter she and cam flew, despite the fact that, given her career track, there was no way she'd have earned her wings on that jet.

Unless you wanna think that Cam took her up and taught her how to fly it

[SciFiSGFan]

Thus another reason I prefer to focus on lesser characters!! Not as much is known about their background and so "expanding" them is less controversial.. then again, there is also my favorite disclaimer -- Alternate Reality/Universe!!!

[Skydiver]

minor characters brings up a peeve

'so and so, long lost sister to.....' 'long lost brother of......' 'child of......'

In other words, not a created character, not an expounded upon minor character, but the sibling of offspring of one of the team

when i read that in the summary - bonus points if it's Danielle O'Neill or Jackie Jackson or some other 'named after my parents' ex teammates' name, i give it a complete and total pass cause they tend to be mary sue fic, with the newly created character saving the day or the star of the show.

Now there is a difference between a 'real' created character and a mary sue one, but the names are usually a dead giveaway that it's the latter

[puddlejumperOZ]

Now this comes to another itch. A lot of readers I've had, can't seem to get their heads around "new" charcters. They feel if they weren't in any of the SG shows they don't belong, what is the feeling about that here. And I'm not talking about walk in characters, I'm refering to new heroes in a Stargate story.

[slurredspeech]

minor characters brings up a peeve

'so and so, long lost sister to.....' 'long lost brother of......' 'child of......'

In other words, not a created character, not an expounded upon minor character, but the sibling of offspring of one of the team

Oooh, or a twin.

Nothing good can come out of a fic that, as its plot device, has Sam's estranged twin sister, identical in beauty yet a bubbling socialite not wrapped up in her career and eager to settle down, come visit.

I WONDER WHAT HAPPENS.

[SciFiSGFan]

I think I'd rather read about a new character that may come out of a main character's past or off-base life. I mean these people have lives outside of the SGC, right? Someone totally different. I mean something like the whole Sam and Pete thing. It worked for me in a way but they never made much of it. What would be wrong with Walter's cousin showing up in a story!?? I dont mean the other character has to 'save the day' or anything - not everyone can save Sheppard and his team!! What's wrong with a good old-fashioned story about a couple of people that happen to be characters from SG1 or SGA (SGU is too new for me to know anyone).., throw in a little science fiction action to keep it interesting and go with it.