Firefly Fanfiction: What Are Your Pet-Peeves? by Xeyra

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Quote:
Originally posted by RMMC:

Grammar: Homonyms. Folks need to know the difference between there, they're and their, among others. Nothing makes me fall out of a story faster than the wrong word. Get a beta, someone who will tell you what to fix, not just what's good.

Paragraphs are your friends as are punctuation and capitalization. Use them, but don't abuse them.

These two sum up two of my big issues perfectly, so I'm just going to quote them. I'm going to say that most esspecially your and you're need to be watched. Even people who use you're properly one time don't use it next time, they use your, which really makes me twitch.

Pairings are interesting. I like to see all sides of an issue, but there are certain pairings that just have to be incredibly well-written for me to buy them at all. Jayne and River, Jayne and Kaylee, Mal and Simon... All of these kinda make me twitch, but I have found a few stories that make them work. Any story would have to address the basic issues with the pairing, such as how much Jayne and River clash and the fact that Jayne betrayed River and River stabbed Jayne, you know. For Jayne with Kaylee, her interest in Simon has to be addressed. For Kaylee with anyone not Simon, actually, that has to be addressed. Same with Mal and anyone not Inara. And Inara with anyone not Mal. I have yet to find a really convincing Inara/Simon or Inara/Jayne story, so both of those pairings are a bit laughable to me. I have seen very good stories that are Mal/River; the best of them address the Inara thing. So I guess then my peeve would be people just not addressing obvious issues just because they "like the pairing".
My biggest, biggest pet peeve in terms of story is pregnant Zoe. I am tired of it. Even the ones set before the BDM, which there are some older ones, kind of grind my nerves, though not quite as much. And if you are going to insist on Zoe having a baby, then for the love of Joss don't give it frickin' blue eyes. Brown is dominant and hers are very very brown. Lighter skin, lighter hair, bit more believable. Maybe even hazel eyes. Not blue, though, that just bugs me. But really, no matter how good the rest of the story is, if it says anything about "Zoe's little secret" or "Zoe eating for two" or whatever the hell else, I tend to stop reading. Honestly, though, I just don't think children fit in that well with the whole verse. Got nothing against them myself, but they would cause a lot of problems on a boat like that. I have the same reaction to storylines involving pregnant Kaylee.

*************************************************
One summer.
One mission.
One legion of Browncoats.

Starting June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 8:51 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Xeyra:

PS: I read somewhere that she does use the "she" as part of a joke in another episode, but I don't remember that; then again, I don't have all her lines decorated (yet! LOL). If anyone can point that out to me, I'd appreciate it. Regardless, it

I think I know this one. It was during the episode "Safe" when River and Simon were kidnapped and in the village. River goes out and comes back to Simon with berries. They talk, he eats some berries and then...

SIMON
These are better than the Cambersons' berries.
RIVER
They are. Except they're poison.

Simon spits out the berries, looks panicky.

RIVER
(laughing)
He believed her. Made a face.

But yea, that's the only other place she uses third person besides the part in OIS. And this time it seems like she could be saying it to give more of an effect to the joke? I dunno.

----
Anyway...

I have HUGE pet-peeves with fanfiction. So many so that I usually can't find any I like.

I only like canon like stories/characters/relationships, in Firefly fanfiction or any other fanfiction for that matter. I cannot stand when characters do not sound/talk like they do in the series/books/whatever. Because if it doesn't sound like the way they talk, or they do something they just wouldn't do in the original its just ridiculous and unbelievable. I won't be able to imagine its them and your story would no longer be a good fanfiction, just a unrelated story with characters that happen to have the same name as Firefly characters.

I cannot stand non-cannon pairings. If it was never suggested, hinted at, or established in the original I will close out the fanfic ASAP. I hate this more than anything. Why oh why do you need to hook up Jayne and River, ("they're just good friends.") AHHHhhh... I mean it just doesn't entertain me for someone to screw with the original I fell in love with. No offense to those who do or like non-cannon pairings, but I cannot abide them. I would like to see Joss's face if the subject of Jayne/River or Mal/River ever came up. Or my favorite... Mal/Simon. WTH?

Also, any story that completly revolves around a non-existing character. Example... A story about Mal & Inara's daughter. Ummm, no. It's like a spin-off show gone wrong.

I hate fanfiction told in first person too. So yea, basically anything not in the spirit/respect to the original, already established characters, 'verse, relationships, and way of story telling will get an immediate boot by me.

Damn picky this one is :) I'm only bothered by spelling and grammar if I notice it. And my spelling and grammar are TERRIBLE, so if I notice it... that's pretty gorramn bad.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 8:57 PM

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Quote:
Originally posted by Squid:
Quote:
Originally posted by Xeyra:

PS: I read somewhere that she does use the "she" as part of a joke in another episode, but I don't remember that; then again, I don't have all her lines decorated (yet! LOL). If anyone can point that out to me, I'd appreciate it. Regardless, it

I think I know this one. It was during the episode "Safe" when River and Simon were kidnapped and in the village. River goes out and comes back to Simon with berries. They talk, he eats some berries and then River says "they're poisioned." And Simon spits them out, she laughs and says something like...

"She tricked you. And you believed her."
"You're such a brat"

That's not the exact quote but it's something like that. I'm too lazy to go find the scripts right now. But yea, that's the only other place she uses third person besides the part in OIS.

The line is "He believed her, made a face." So it's completely third-person, not just relating to herself.
Yeah, that bothers me, too. Forgot to mention that one. Anyone consistantly referring to her as "girl" actually bothers me, not just she herself. I don't stop readin the fic based just on that, but it does bother me because it doesn't happen that much. The only one to call her "girl" tends to be Jayne, and even he doesn't overdo it.

*************************************************
One summer.
One mission.
One legion of Browncoats.

Starting June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 9:07 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by PhoenixRose:

The line is "He believed her, made a face." So it's completely third-person, not just relating to herself.
Yeah, that bothers me, too. Forgot to mention that one. Anyone consistantly referring to her as "girl" actually bothers me, not just she herself. I don't stop readin the fic based just on that, but it does bother me because it doesn't happen that much. The only one to call her "girl" tends to be Jayne, and even he doesn't overdo it.

My bad. I edited my post before I saw your post. But yes, I went and found the right quote and fixed it. But I agree with you. It's annoying when people over use a phrase, word, or idea that was funny or interesting the first time we saw it but gets old once you hear it again and again in someone's fanfiction.

"Is it bad that what she said made perfect
sense to me?"

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 9:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by PhoenixRose:

The line is "He believed her, made a face." So it's completely third-person, not just relating to herself.
Yeah, that bothers me, too. Forgot to mention that one. Anyone consistantly referring to her as "girl" actually bothers me, not just she herself. I don't stop readin the fic based just on that, but it does bother me because it doesn't happen that much. The only one to call her "girl" tends to be Jayne, and even he doesn't overdo it.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 9:16 PM

CAB1729

I don't read a lot of fanfic because of:

a) grammar grammar grammar. If it's unreadable, it's --- unreadable, gorramit! And

b) I don't like to take the chance of stumbling on slash et al. I've created plenty of my own psychological scars, don't need someone else creating them for me too. And

c) characters not acting like the characters we know from the series/movie. What's the point?

I don't mind the pregnant Zoe thing as long as it fits and takes into account the problems she's facing. The possibility of pregnancy was mentioned in HoG and it lets us keep a bit of Wash post BDM so what the heck. Also, "family" ships crop up quite a bit in SF. Plus, I wrote one (a great one if I say so myself!

) so

___________________________________________
Hobbes: How come we play war and not peace?
Calvin: Too few role models.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 9:42 PM

PLATONIST

Well developed character "point of view" is the essence of any fiction worth reading.
When a writer achieves this, either through dialog or narration, they have my attention.
I'm used to reading student rough drafts/sloppy copies so grammer and punctuation don't hinder my enjoyment.

Things that I don't like in this verse are;
Rehashes of other story lines- Read and then get creative
M/R pairing - Come on guys, that's a Dad surviving
his daughter's teen years with her "behind the wheel", in a pilot's seat! Let's draw a line.
Inara's screaming or excessive chatter(she did neither in the series or the BDM) She was weepy in the comic books, but that was her transition time.

Other than that please do keep writing someone will read....Thanks!

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 10:32 PM

CHOO1701

Main peeve

(Mal/Simon, Mal/River). Sorry guys, but i just feel it wouldn't happen. Also the whole "This is Kaylee/River/Inara and Simon/Jayne/Mal having full blown Sex in every graphical detail." Er...I really don't want to know

(besides the reader can imagine it in more detail, if they want to

)

and yes, the whole 80 chapter adventures. Its. Not. War. And. gorram. Peace. guys. 20 then yes, possibly i'll try and find the beginning, but 80!!

Okay..i'm feeling kind of like a meany for being so harsh, but there are many things I do like and not all fanfics with these are bad..

(and remeber, if you don't like it, just skip over...there's always someone else who will

)

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 10:37 PM

EMMARIGBY

Hi

Just wanted to chime in to say I agree with almost every issue raised here but wanted to add one more that's not been mentioned.

The long, meandering pointless fic. You know the ones, they go on for chapters and chapters with everyday sweet stuff going on. No matter how well written or how much witty banter there is, if some major plot development doesn't turn up I get bored and wander off. It also annoys me when it's very clear that someone hasn't bothered to plan out a story beofre writing (sometimes they even say - I don't know where to go from here), to me that's just lazy. A good story has to have a beginning a middle and an end!

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 10:44 PM

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Quote:
Originally posted by EmmaRigby:
annoys me when it's very clear that someone hasn't bothered to plan out a story beofre writing (sometimes they even say - I don't know where to go from here), to me that's just lazy. A good story has to have a beginning a middle and an end!

Heh, that's why I haven't posted any extended fic at this point. I'm one of those "figure it out as I go" writers, so it would have to be completed and edited before I posted it here. If I did the chapter by chapter thing some folk can do, I would get lost. Longer fics are hard. I've had some false starts; verse plots kinda work differently than most (least they should). So I'm just doing some character exploration, which has been well-recieved. Hopefully at some point I'll have an actual story with a beginning, middle and end

*************************************************
One summer.
One mission.
One legion of Browncoats.

Starting June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 11:09 PM

SPACEANJL

Rayne fic, every time. Not just an age issue (big GSR fan on another 'ship, and I love Laurie King's Mary Russell books) - I can't see Jayne being attracted to crazy little girls. (Then, I have my own take on what Jayne likes - shameless fic plug

)

Also, sloppy writing. I am ready to defend my own use of present tense and dodgy grammar on the grounds of dramatic tension and characterization - yadda, yadda - but these l'il boxes of bits have spell checkers. You can even default 'em to Brit or US. And plots - plots are nice.

Pregnant Zoe I can almost live with, but Firefly;TNG is disturbing, particularly, I'm afraid, the Live!Wash ones. Man was last seen impersonating a kebab, people.

And I can't get on with slash/fic. The characters were not written that way originally.

Hoo, boy, you started me off on one here. Best sidle off and continue my own epic - 35,000 words and counting. Does this make it one of the monsters?

SpaceAnJL

"Many suffer from the incurable disease of writing, and it becomes chronic in their sick minds" Juvenal

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Tuesday, May 23, 2006 11:16 PM

Oh yea definetly EMMARIGBY.

Also I'm not too found of it when people post tiny small chapters for their story. Either they don't have the story planned out and are just posting whenever they manage to get an idea into some paragraphs. Or, they have alot done and are posting in small doses to get more reviews or have it be seen more since its being posted every single day. I mean, come on, just put things together in one long chapter with a beginning, middle, and end and have just a good number of well written, polished chapters instead of 100 smally crappy ones that just end abruptly everytime with some huge, unneccesary cliffhangers. I think its okay to have a long series where each chapter is like an episode with its own plot but also a building overall plot that connects the entire series (like you're having a season of Firefly episodes), but not to have one single story drawn out in lots of tiny chapters. That's just sloppy.

Also, AU (alternate universe) fics and crossovers don't happen for me. "Mal and Inara meet as High School students in the year 2006." Yuck. And, "Firefly meets... Harry Potter. River falls in love with Harry and a love triangle between Ron/Kaylee/Simon. What will happen?" Oh god, I hope I'm not giving anyone ideas.

--------------------
"Is it bad that what she said made perfect
sense to me?"

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 12:04 AM

GEEKUSA

Quote:
Yuck. And, "Firefly meets... Harry Potter. River falls in love with Harry and a love triangle between Ron/Kaylee/Simon. What will happen?" Oh god, I hope I'm not giving anyone ideas.

HA! Oh I can see it now! Voldemort starts monologuing and Mal just walks up and shoots him dead! Who needs the phone book-sized novels, huh? I find myself inspired if only because it's so over-the-top I can't stop laughing (though that might be due to the late hour)...

I don't have pet-peeves about Firefly fanfics...or any fanfics in general. I just skip over the ones that don't seem appealing to me. Poor grammar in general gets on my nerves, but that's true whether I'm reading fanfics or reading an article. Not that I'm perfect or anything. I mean I feel like bashing my head against the wall when I make a stupid mistake.

"Knew it...probably...saw them cops...and...turned...tail..."

"Can't...sentence...properly."

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 12:16 AM

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

Quote:
Originally posted by Squid:
I'm not too found of it when people post tiny small chapters for their story. Either they don't have the story planned out and are just posting whenever they manage to get an idea into some paragraphs. Or, they have alot done and are posting in small doses to get more reviews or have it be seen more since its being posted every single day. I mean, come on, just put things together in one long chapter with a beginning, middle, and end and have just a good number of well written, polished chapters instead of 100 smally crappy ones that just end abruptly everytime with some huge, unneccesary cliffhangers. I think its okay to have a long series where each chapter is like an episode with its own plot but also a building overall plot that connects the entire series (like you're having a season of Firefly episodes), but not to have one single story drawn out in lots of tiny chapters. That's just sloppy.

Also, AU (alternate universe) fics and crossovers don't happen for me. "Mal and Inara meet as High School students in the year 2006." Yuck. And, "Firefly meets... Harry Potter. River falls in love with Harry and a love triangle between Ron/Kaylee/Simon. What will happen?" Oh god, I hope I'm not giving anyone ideas.

Tiny chapters are a problem, I agree. Sometimes they get cut off, though. I don't know what the length limit is, but one of the stories I read recently had to cut up the last chapter because of size restriction. But there are some chapters in storylines that are obviously shorter than whatever the restriction, so yeah, that can be annoying. Unless the next chapter is already up

I don't really do crossovers, either. Not just because I'm not all that embroiled in pop culture and as such wouldn't really get it (though I have been a Harry Potter fan for many years) but because a lot of times they don't mesh well. I suppose they can, and little homages or allusions can be fun (read a story where there was a very brief cameo by Angel, which was kind of amusing) but all these stories take place in different universes with different realities, so, y'know. And I've never read an AU story. I kinda get the fantasy element, but mostly I just wonder what the point is.

*************************************************
One summer.
One mission.
One legion of Browncoats.

Starting June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 1:29 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by PhoenixRose:
Quote:
Originally posted by Squid:
Quote:
Originally posted by Xeyra:

PS: I read somewhere that she does use the "she" as part of a joke in another episode, but I don't remember that; then again, I don't have all her lines decorated (yet! LOL). If anyone can point that out to me, I'd appreciate it. Regardless, it

I think I know this one. It was during the episode "Safe" when River and Simon were kidnapped and in the village. River goes out and comes back to Simon with berries. They talk, he eats some berries and then River says "they're poisioned." And Simon spits them out, she laughs and says something like...

"She tricked you. And you believed her."
"You're such a brat"

That's not the exact quote but it's something like that. I'm too lazy to go find the scripts right now. But yea, that's the only other place she uses third person besides the part in OIS.

The line is "He believed her, made a face." So it's completely third-person, not just relating to herself.
Yeah, that bothers me, too. Forgot to mention that one. Anyone consistantly referring to her as "girl" actually bothers me, not just she herself. I don't stop readin the fic based just on that, but it does bother me because it doesn't happen that much. The only one to call her "girl" tends to be Jayne, and even he doesn't overdo it.

Thank you for pointing it out to me. I love that exchange. My favourite Simon and River moment.

I would have loved if I could be less bothered by it but I tend to cringe at it when I find it a fanfiction that could have otherwise be good, and it kind of puts me off. I try to continue reading but if it repeats often enough, I will most likely give up. It's just me, I guess. I'm a very big fan of River, so when her characterization is so over-the-top with the dissociation thing, I just click the little and nice Back button and go find something else.

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 1:46 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by LaughingMuse:
River being a wee bit too coherent for too long. Yes, she does have her more lucid periods; and some of her insights and ideas are really good (this is what happens when you can step back a level and spot the patterns). She's had her brain severely scrambled. Before that, her own neural net already featured many "skipped steps" - the mental "of course this happens, duh" - but now that her mind isn't able to focus and choose what will make her react, this gotten more pronouced. Or it should. Dammit. She not only reads minds, she sees patterns that most people don't see - being too closely enmeshed in them. But she sees, and reacts, to everything. Unless the amygdula can grow back, it's not ever going to get better.

(Now there's a good question. I think that I remember reading that nerve sheaths cannot regenerate - can the amygdula?)

Hmmm... I think very little in the brain actually regenerates but my only course in neuroscience was way back in my second year in college so I'm very rusty on that... LOL. Then again, we're 500 years in the future... who knows what medicine can do? Not that, what with being fugitives and all, they can do anything about it.

That point actually doesn't bother me so much, post-movie wise. I guess my problem is people actually having River sounding even more crazy than she is. :)

Quote:
Originally posted by LaughingMuse:
There are others: mis-spelling of the pinyin Chinese (I studied the language for five years and got within sight of technical fluency, so...fingernails on the blackboard...); oversimplified characterization; two-too-to / their-they're-there / and other versions of Fun with Homonyms; but these other annoyances are either widespread enough that they're simply part and parcel of fanfiction, or I start systematically avoiding the authors who most often make my teeth itch...a bit like everyone does, I'd imagine.

My main language isn't English but I tend to catch this confusion a lot when I'm reading fanfiction, mostly because when I write something in English, I try very hard not fall into this problem with homonyms, so they become very noticeable to me when I do catch them. It does distract a bit (like any mispelled word or confusing grammar) but if it appears sparingly, I can ignore it.

As for the mis-pelling of the Chinese, I believe that may be a problem for pretty much anyone who doesn't know Chinese but want to incorporate it into their fanfictions in the 'Verse. I'm pretty sure I'd end up screwing up the Chinese if I tried to do something with it...

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:01 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAnJL:
Rayne fic, every time. Not just an age issue (big GSR fan on another 'ship, and I love Laurie King's Mary Russell books) - I can't see Jayne being attracted to crazy little girls. (Then, I have my own take on what Jayne likes - shameless fic plug )

I like your interpretation of what Jayne likes. LOL. I'm not really fond of Jayne/River either; haven't found any fanfic yet that could convert me and the only one I've seen highly recommended makes use of my pet-peeve described above, so...

Quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAnJL:
Pregnant Zoe I can almost live with, but Firefly;TNG is disturbing, particularly, I'm afraid, the Live!Wash ones. Man was last seen impersonating a kebab, people.

LOL. How mean of you. Kebab? Poor Wash... *pets pets* But, yes, if you're going to write a post-BDM fanfiction, do not write Wash into it as being quite happily alive, as if a Reaver spear did not even touch him...

Though there is one fic out there that has Wash live but actually explains how the spear didn't go through him but took out his arm instead... makes for a lot of angst, but at least it doesn't use the dreaded words "Wash's alive but I won't explain why", which I've seen scarily too often.

And I also don't much mind pregnant Zoe, as long as it is well written and incorporated into a wider fanfiction. I like epics. I like adventure. I like to read about all characters in one fashion or another... prefer them to the vignettes or character pieces, but that doesn't mean I don't read them. I do stay away from solely PWP stories... I like me some plot. :)

Quote:
Originally posted by SpaceAnJL:
Hoo, boy, you started me off on one here. Best sidle off and continue my own epic - 35,000 words and counting. Does this make it one of the monsters?

Hey, I like monsters and yours is quite good. I really like Jayne in your story and 'Larji is actually not a Mary Sue (the horror!), for which I'm very thankful. They're a very BIG pet-peeve of mine too. I actually came across a story in a livejournal that had another student from the Academy who could turn people invisible and stuff like that... Really! More Mary Sueish you couldn't have had...

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:01 AM

TAYEATRA

Grammar.

Each and every time! Especially when it's the same mistake over and over in every fic by the author. I just sit there thinking, 'you were told about the error, fix it already!'

I'm not really a Mal/Simon fan although Kispexi2 made it seem reasonably believable. The only other thing that really bugs me is the obscenely short chapters. As in, the ones that are shorter than some thread posts. I mostly hate them because either nothing happens or they're very, very rushed and it's just bad writing.

I'm going to throw my support behind the epic from ScrewtheAlliance. I love it although I understand how it must feel if you haven't started it. In my mind it's the first firefly novel and I strongly suspect it will be better than the one due out later this year. StA's spelling and grammar is good and his characterisations are amusing. A good mix of humour and action and his OC's aren't annoying or overdone.

*****
Taya
*****
I'm going to S3!!!
(*Insert hysterical celebration dance here*)

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:13 AM

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

I like StA, too, but I have to disagree that the grammar is always good. He uses "your" for "you're" on a number of occasions in Kaylee's Lament (haven't started the other one yet) and isn't always consistant with the slang of each particular character. Over all, though, pretty good.
I'm kind of wondering, regarding the Wash issue, how exactly a huge Reaver spear through his middle would end up taking off his arm? That makes just about zero sense. Most ways I've heard on how Wash would be alive, in fact, make no sense. Hey, I'd like him to be and everything, but really. The "100% alive" thread is a good example of people kinda reaching. For one thing, the whole theory (I didn't read the whole thread, just the first few posts) revolves around the Alliance not only being on the ground first (they obviously weren't) but stopping at Serenity (which they might) and then putting a lot of effort into reviving the kebab in the pilot's seat (which I don't think they would since they had been ordered to blow up the ship and hence kill everyone inside) instead of immediately going after the fugitives. So that one doesn't work. Usually when there is a grave/funeral the character is not anything close to okay. So stories in that type of vein... no. I prefer stories that involve Zoe kind of coming apart at the seams and trying to deal with life. Wrote a very short one myself, actually.
Anyway. Ramble ramble ramble.

*************************************************
One summer.
One mission.
One legion of Browncoats.

Starting June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:15 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Tayeatra:
Grammar.

Each and every time! Especially when it's the same mistake over and over in every fic by the author. I just sit there thinking, 'you were told about the error, fix it already!'

I'm not really a Mal/Simon fan although Kispexi2 made it seem reasonably believable. The only other thing that really bugs me is the obscenely short chapters. As in, the ones that are shorter than some thread posts. I mostly hate them because either nothing happens or they're very, very rushed and it's just bad writing.

I'm going to throw my support behind the epic from ScrewtheAlliance. I love it although I understand how it must feel if you haven't started it. In my mind it's the first firefly novel and I strongly suspect it will be better than the one due out later this year. StA's spelling and grammar is good and his characterisations are amusing. A good mix of humour and action and his OC's aren't annoying or overdone.

Not to mention that River with the harmonica is a hoot. :) But, yes, if you don't start a fanfiction this big from the start it may be difficult to go back n chapters and read it, but look on the bright side... you won't have to wait for the next chapter for a while yet, which can be quite nail-bitting-inducing when it involves a fanfic you love.

As a side note: I'm not sure if any Firefly/Serenity novel is actually due out this year. Keith DeCandido explained that the book listed on Amazon should only be a placeholder and that the info about publishing date has no basis in fact, considering the proposals various authors sent to Pocket Books last year haven't been reviewed yet or at least no one has gotten back to the authors about it.

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:16 AM

TAYEATRA

Quote:
Originally posted by PhoenixRose:
I like StA, too, but I have to disagree that the grammar is always good. He uses "your" for "you're" on a number of occasions in Kaylee's Lament.

Ooops my bad... I must have forgotten about that. It's been a while since I encountered his early piece.

*****
Taya
*****
I'm going to S3!!!
(*Insert hysterical celebration dance here*)

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 2:19 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by PhoenixRose:
I like StA, too, but I have to disagree that the grammar is always good. He uses "your" for "you're" on a number of occasions in Kaylee's Lament (haven't started the other one yet) and isn't always consistant with the slang of each particular character. Over all, though, pretty good.
I'm kind of wondering, regarding the Wash issue, how exactly a huge Reaver spear through his middle would end up taking off his arm? That makes just about zero sense.

In this particular fanfic, he'd gotten off the pilot's chair a second or two earlier and thus the spear didn't hit him straight on but pined his arm. It was explained much better in the fanfiction, which was why I suspended my disbelief and read it as the AU it was. It had some very interesting character moments, filled with angst. I like angst... I'm screwed up like that. LOL. But there's no greatest angst than having Zoe without her Wash... *sobs*

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 3:36 AM

NURUMLA

I don't mind so much if the writer wants to have Zoe be pregant after the movie. What gets me is they want to give the baby blue eyes. Blue eyes are a recessive gene. The chances that Zoe carries said gene because of her make up is low.

River reffering to herself entirely in the third person. You all pretty much have that one covered.

People saying that River doesn't need the drugs that Simon is supplying. That she is just putting up with them to make her brother happy. People cut into her brain and probably messed up it's chemical balance. Or if the balance isn't messed up the chemical reactions that normally take place in a heathly brain could not come across in such a place. The drugs she is given can probably make her brain think her imgedila(I have no idea how to spell it) is working just fine. Anyway, bottom line she needs the drugs and probably always will. She does not need love/sex/Jayne to fix her.

_____________________________________
the woods are lovely, dark, and deep
but I have promises to keep
and miles to go before I sleep

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 3:44 AM

LEESHAJOY

I don't mind pregnant-Zoe fics, but FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, people, do NOT name the kid "Hoban Junior"! That's just cruel!

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 5:08 AM

DEEPGIRL187

I've brought up my own peeves regarding fan fiction in another thread (it was my first post, as a matter of fact), but I'll re-iterate.

First, as I've said before, I really don't like Simon and Kaylee fics. It's nothing to do with the authors themselves (in fact, I've stumbled across some really well-written ones. Check out any of Tara O'Shea's work. "That Old Yeh Shen Story" has the funniest line in all fan fiction history). But being the dark person that I am, that particular pairing is too...cute, happy, just plain shiny! I need darkness, angst, people arguing!

Ahem.

Second has to be slash. Particularly male slash. It might be fun to entertain the theory of some of the girls together, but the guys? Can anyone honestly say that they could picture any of them in the sack? Right unsettling, if you ask me.

Thirdly, I'd have to say bad grammar, along with poor plot and character development. It's bad enough to constantly be pointing out spelling errors, but when you have a story that drags on and on or characters that are, well, out of character, I find something else to read.

*whew*

Okay, rant over. Had a lot of things to get off my chest.

*************************************************

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 5:41 AM

EMBERS

Quote:
Originally posted by Xeyra:
Hi all,

I don't know if a thread like this has been posted in the past but I was curious about what kind of things are big no-no's in Firefly/Serenity fanfic for you.

I don't believe in 'no-no's'
and the only peeves I have is that there are never enough Jayne/River fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Inara fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Zoe fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Simon fan fic

and never any Jayne/Book fan fic (!)

there are plenty of Jayne/Kaylee however....

**********************************************
watch the R. Tam Session vids: http://www.hittarivertam.nu/
and buy the 'Serenity' comics published by Dark Horse
have you checked out this thread?:
http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=2&t=15816

and listen to 'I'm Going To See Serenity':
http://music.podshow.com/music/listeners/artistdetails.php?BandHash=a0
c814e1229742ce77ed4497cbf4631c

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 5:50 AM

INDIGOSTARBLASTER

What really gets my goat is third person omniscient narration, where the narrator goes on and on and on about how "Mal looked at Inara. He loved her so much, he wanted to die inside, he ached to hold her, and yet sometimes he was so angry he couldn't help being cruel..." yada, yada, yada. Especially if they then do someone else's internal state, too: "Inara saw Mal looking at her. She was so angry she couldn't speak, and yet she loved him so much..." You get the idea.

What with Firefly being a TV show to begin with, we aren't supposed to know exactly how the characters feel inside. TV shows are all about showing, not telling, and to my mind fanfic stories based on TV shows should do the same.

The exception here would be vignettes which are intended to be brief glimpses into a character, but which are not intended to be independent stories. If they ring psychologically true, then I can accept them as insightful but not part of the story, if you know what I mean.

I also have to admit I don't enjoy slasher and "Mary/Marty Sue" fic, because it tends to lack plausibility. I feel the same about stories with deux ex machina rescues, uncharacteristic dialogue from known characters, etc.

Oh, another thing (the more I write, the more I think of) -- I hate it when people re-use actual phrases or dialogue from the canon, word for word. People don't do that in real life; they don't quote themselves. They may allude to the same subjects, paraphrase themselves, say very similar things, but generally speaking we create language anew every time we use it.

Anyway, given all of the above, so far the best fanfic I've read have been the "What could have been" episodes on www.stillflying.net, and a vignette called "Fine Line" at http://firefly.populli.org/archive/4/fineline.shtml. These are really the only things I can recommend so far.

Indigo S.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 5:58 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by embers:
Quote:
Originally posted by Xeyra:
Hi all,

I don't know if a thread like this has been posted in the past but I was curious about what kind of things are big no-no's in Firefly/Serenity fanfic for you.

I don't believe in 'no-no's'
and the only peeves I have is that there are never enough Jayne/River fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Inara fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Zoe fan fic

and never enough Jayne/Simon fan fic

and never any Jayne/Book fan fic (!)

there are plenty of Jayne/Kaylee however....

Methinks someone likes Jayne quite a little bit... *big grin*

*******************************
Wash: This landing is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting".
Wash: [deadpan] Oh God, oh God, we're all going to die?

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:04 AM

LEIGHKOHL

Non-Cannon pairings. That's about it. I mean sometimes there are atrocious grammatical errors,which hurts the story, but nobody's perfect! Yeah, so, pretty much that's it. I despise Jayne/Kaylee just because it makes me feel dirty, as does Jayne /River, or Jayne/Simon....pretty much I think Jayne should stick with the whores and not sleep with any of the crew. I love him, I just don't want him lovin' on any member of Serenity. If you don't like something, just skip it!

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:21 AM

GWEK

Thanks for the kind words, Indigo S! I skimmed through the thread to see if we were mentioned (and, if so, how!) with a great deal of trepidation...

www.stillflying.net: "Here's how it might have been..."

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:44 AM

SPACEANJL

Yep, Jayne makes me feel dirty, too...

But that ain't the point of this. Sorry.

I have to say, I never found the J/S slash fic. That scares me more than I care to conjure.

Nothing 'gainst it in the real world, but characters are written the way they are for a reason - don't be messin' with 'em.

SpaceAnJL

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:50 AM

INDIGOSTARBLASTER

Are you the Head Writer over there, Gwek? A screenwriter by trade or just really good at it?

Indigo S.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 6:56 AM

LEIASKY

Pet Peeves. Hmm. I don't read crossover stories at all. Joss has said there are no aliens in the Firefly 'verse and I have no interest in seeing stories that take place in the Harry Potter/Buffy/Angel/Stargate universe.

I don't generally enjoy reading non cannon pairings either. Some of them just truly disgust me because the writer takes one or more of the characters out of character to justify a new pairing. Which just doesn't fly. The Jayne/Kaylee pairing is a huge example of this.

The spelling issues (because I'm sure I have some of my own) don't bother me as much as they probably should, but if they continue through multiple stories, it does tend to get annoying.

"A government is a body of people usually notably ungoverned."

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:01 AM

LEIGHKOHL

Good point Leiasky! Crossovers are pretty much a no go for me too. I like the 'verse just the way it is. Oh, and the blue eyes Wash/Zoe baby thing, yeah that's a real pisser.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:09 AM

AGENTROUKA

Pet peeves... An excuse to rant! *G*

Wrong characterisation. Always.

I mean, there are always going to be different interpretations of a character, but some things are just facts.

Mal is distrustful of strangers, not a noble hero swooping in to save every damsel.
Inara is a dignified adult woman, not a shrieking, hapless and easily manipulated victim.
Jayne has brains - but not too much.

And so on...

Then there's the Character Punishment Fic, where it's clear the author is writing to make a point of "showing Character X the evil of his/her ways", instead of developing things naturally from constellations given on the show. Making them pointlessly apologetic and others judgmental and angry beyond what is warranted.

Outlandish scenarios. Say, a man sending another man to have group sex with whores "against his will" as a punishment and expecting this to be taken seriously.

Oh God, and Mary-Sues. Mal's long-lost wife/love that he lost because he thought she was dead/she became a Companion (or almost)/her parents separated them, whatever. It burns. And if there was such a thing as a dead wife, it would have come up in "Our Mrs Reynolds" and Mal would sure as hell be more broken up about that than about the ending of the War unless he never really loved her at all, don't you think?

Excess in babies. One of them? Okay. Two of them? Outlandish. All of them? Just how are they going to run the ship??

Rape as an excuse to create intimacy between the victim her her "hero". If Kaylee gets brutally raped, this would likely change her forever. Forever. That's not something you can easily step away from again for a happy ending.

Making Inara look stupid by painting the Guild as some evil cult that abuses its members. She's a smart woman, why would she do that to herself, really? Why would any Companion?

Or writing an ensemble story and completely ignoring certain characters that would normally show up at least once or twice, without a good reason.

Then obviously there are the pairings that I don't want to read, but that's beside the point.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:31 AM

SAMEERTIA

:)
Okay, I gotta jump in here.
I'm currently in the middle of a project to write every possible character pairing on Serenity, just to see if it's at all possible. (Some of them are posted here already.)

Slash doesn't bother me. Non-cannon pairings challenge us to expand our personal viewing spaces and opinions. I guess because I'm bisexual and a substantial number of my friends are, too, I have fewer hang-ups about trying out different pairings to see if they work.

What does bother me?
BABIES!
Wash was right. Serenity is no place to try to raise a child and any parent in their right mind would get their child as far away from the possibilities of being shot, suffocated, or taken by the Alliance and put in an orphanage as possible!

Pets. Pets got no place on a ship like Serenity. In fact, first hungry spell comes along, you can bet Jayne would eat it.

Just plain bad writing is bad writing no matter what. Some things that really bug me: authors who don't have a feel for the characters; Mary-Sue/Stu's (to be distinguished from original characters who interact with the canon characters in a believable manner); complex side stories that try to explain things that are better left up to Joss (The origin of the Blue Hands, etc), and painfully bad dialogue.

Usually, I can tell if it's just plain bad writing, or if the writer is young or inexperienced but has potential as a writer.
I try to read and encourage the people

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:44 AM

SAMEERTIA

Quote:
Originally posted by Leighkohl:
Good point Leiasky! Crossovers are pretty much a no go for me too. I like the 'verse just the way it is. Oh, and the blue eyes Wash/Zoe baby thing, yeah that's a real pisser.

Actually, this doesn't bother me.
One interracial couple I know has three blue eyed babies with their mama's blond hair. They got their dad's curls and his darker skin, but they are definately blond and blue-eyed.
Throw-backs happen.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:50 AM

SMARTBUTDUMBBLONDE

No offence to the writers, people Im sure the stories are actually really good. but I am thourghly fed up of scrolling down the fanfics and seeing nothing but Mal/Inara and Kaylee/Simon.
Never seen any of the slash fics, but damn, they sound scary!!

Gotta say I do love the Wash ones, but I have never, ever seen one all about Book! Where are the Book fans??
A few spelling/grammar mistakes are acceptable,because I'm slightly hopeless at said skills, and typing, but if you know you're truly awful, please use a spell checker!

I love Wash! Bring back Wash!

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 7:58 AM

MAL4PREZ

Wow. Yikes. I've only crossed a few of the lines in this thread, but now I feel all afraid of posting my monster fic with its many OCs...

OK, I'm overly sensitive. But I hope other writers reading this thread keep writing whatever their muse is telling them, whether or not it's someone's pet peeve!!

That said, let me join the bashing.

I'm so not a fan of weddings and babies. Not my thing. And actually, I don't like having characters be happy for long, it's just not the Jossian way. Conflict and drama, yay!!

I really dislike pairing River with anyone on Serenity. She's too young! And younger than 17 really, because she hasn't had so much practice being social. I'm guessing there wasn't a great dating scene at Brainfry Academy. She may be crazy and may read sex stuff in other people's minds, but I don't see her turning 18 and going seductress on Jayne or Mal. Icky ick!

Let's see... other than that... I don't mind slash, although it needs to be carefully done to shift the characters from their non-sly BDS selves, and build a believable rapport with their sly partner-to-be.

I don't like endless adventures with little or no character development. FF is not a star trek adventure, it's about the people and what they've been through and what they go through and how their relationships change. My mind gets numb to endless battles and new planets and etc. I want long, addictive character arcs!!

OK, stopping now. But all you baby/Rayne/RiverMal/adventure writers don't be offended, and keep writing, okay??

m4p

-----------------------------------------------
I'm the president. I don't need to listen.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:13 AM

LEIASKY

Forgot to add: real short (1 or 2 page) chapters that are part of a series are real annoying. Prologues and Epilogues are that short, a chapter is not.

Short stand alone stories are fine but short chapters, that the author just likes to 'get out' quickly instead of combining a bunch of them into one long chapter, are annoying as well.

"A government is a body of people usually notably ungoverned."

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:28 AM

MAL4PREZ

Just a side question - is there a word for River/Mal?

Malver?

Whatever. There's no good word because it just shouldn't happen!

-----------------------------------------------
I'm the president. I don't need to listen.

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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 9:30 AM