![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
30-Day Fanfic Writing Meme, Day 5
5. If you have ever had a character try to push their way into a fic, whether your "muse" or not, what did you do about it?
Yes, I've definitely had a character push their way into a fic! It's the OC werewolf Ash from my Always series, who made a brief appearance in Part 62 of my Snupin fic Aftermaths as an informant who helps Tonks and Kingsley when they're trying to find someone who may have bought a Muggle device in the black market. I gave him a scar on his face to make him look more sinister and mysterious, and although I hadn't intended for him to be a major character, I started wondering how he got the scar and how he became a werewolf, and I thought maybe I'd bring him back again sometime.
I wasn't planning to make him gay or bi--in fact, I had him flirting a bit with Tonks, but that didn't go anywhere since I'd already paired Tonks with Kingsley. Then later in the fic, I got bit by a plot bunny for Ash to have a one night stand with Takeshi, another OC--comfort sex to soothe a friend's broken heart. I felt a little bad for Ash that I ultimately paired up Takeshi with someone else, so I ended up writing an entire story just for him: Ash's Story (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3), which explains his background and how he became a werewolf, and introduces a new love interest for him.
He also became a major character in Scars, the next entry in my Always series. I have it listed as a Snupin, but the main plotline revolves around Ash's estranged family and how his biological father (who turns out to be a Death Eater) is anxious to wipe out this stain on his pureblood family's honor.
Snape's mother, Selima, also turned out to have a much bigger role than I had originally planned. (I created pureblood parents for Snape prior to the publication of Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince, since it seemed logical to assume that a former Death Eater would be a pureblood.) In Always (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6), I mentioned Snape's parents very briefly, explaining that they were cold and strict towards him as a child, and that his father disowned him for becoming a Death Eater, and that Snape was more than happy to be disowned because he wanted nothing to do with his family. I don't really remember why, but for some reason, I had Snape run into his mother in Phoenix Rising, and that later led to something of a reconciliation with his family in Aftermaths. Perhaps it was because I had Snape becoming a father figure to two of his Slytherin students that I decided he needed to confront and attempt to make peace with his own family.
Hmm, so it seems like it's mainly my OCs who unexpectedly push their way into fics, at least in my Snupin universe. Maybe it's because they're my own creations as opposed to someone else's that I find myself becoming attached to them. Blaise Zabini also ended up with a bigger role in the Always series than I had planned--originally, he was just going to be a friend and classmate of Theodore Nott and Dylan Rosier (yet another OC), but I ended up shipping him with Theodore, and since Theodore had a major role in Phoenix Rising and Aftermaths, so did Blaise. But since I began writing the character before HBP came out and we knew nothing but his name and House, my Blaise is essentially another OC. (Ironically, he's almost the opposite of canon-Blaise: he comes from a poor but loving pureblood family, and his father and mother are happily married, opposed to canon-Blaise whose mother seems to be a black widow who marries men for their money and then disposes of them.)
Er...so to fully answer the question, I guess it's obvious that I pretty much let the pushy character have their way and write them into the story. I could try to ignore the pushy character's demands, but it sort of feels like trying to paddle upstream--generally, I try to let the story go in the direction that it wants, even if that's not the direction I had originally planned for. Trying to turn the plot back to the planned direction usually doesn't go well and makes the story feel a bit forced. At times it's frustrating to have to change the story to fit the new character/plotline, but it's also kind of exciting to have the story take on a life of its own, and I feel like I'm discovering something new even though I'm the one writing the fic.
Previous Days:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
***
Since it seems that other people may be interested in this meme, or 30-day memes in general, I'll go ahead and post the entire list in case anyone would like to give it a try:
1 – How did you first get into writing fanfic, and what was the first fandom you wrote for? What do you think it was about that fandom that pulled you in?
2 – Name the fandoms you've written in, and how much you've written in that fandom, and if you still write in it.
3 – For each of the fandoms from day two, what were your favorite characters to write?
4 – Do you have a "muse" character, that speaks to you more than others, or that tries to push their way in, even when the fic isn't about them? Who are they, and why did that character became your muse?
5 –If you have ever had a character try to push their way into a fic, whether your "muse" or not, what did you do about it?
6 – When you write, do you prefer writing male or female characters?
7 – Have you ever had a fic change your opinion of a character?
8 – Do you write OCs? And if so, what do you do to make certain they're not Mary Sues, and if not, explain your thoughts on OCs.
9 – Pairings – For each of the fandoms from day two, what are your three favorite pairings to write?
10 – Pairings – Have you ever gone outside your comfort zone and written a pairing you liked, but found you couldn't write, or a pairing you didn't like, and found you could?
11 – Genre – do you prefer certain genres of fic when you're writing? What kind do you tend to write most?
12 – Have you ever attempted an "adaptation" fic of a favorite book or movie but set in a different fandom?
13 – Do you prefer canon or fanon when you write? Has writing fanfic for a fandom changed the way you see some or even all of the original source material?
14 – Ratings – how high are you comfortable with going? Have you ever written higher? If you're comfortable with NC-17, have you ever been shocked by finding that the story you're writing is G-rated instead?
15 – Warnings – What do you feel it most important to warn for, and what's the strangest thing you've warned for in a fic?
16 – Summaries – Do you like them or hate them? How do you come up with them, if you use them?
17 – Titles – Are they the bane of your existence, or the easiest part of the fic? Also, if you do chaptered fic, do you give each chapter a title, or not?
18 – Where do you get the most inspiration for your fics (aka "bunnies") from?
19 – When you have bunnies, do you sit down and start writing right away, or do you write down the idea for further use?
20 –Do you ever get bunnied from other people's stories or art in the same fandom?
21 – Sequels – Have you ever written a sequel to a fic you wrote, and if so, why, and if not, how do you feel about sequels?
22 – Have you ever participated in a fest or a Big Bang? If so, write about your favorite experience in relation to one. If not, are there any you've thought about doing? And if not, why not?
23 – When you post, where do you post to? Just your journal? Just an archive? Your own personal site?
24 – Betaing – How many betas do you like to use to make sure there aren't any major flaws in your fic? Do you have a Beta horror story or dream story?
25 – Music – Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain "mood" to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?
26 – What is the oddest (or funnest) thing you've had to research for a fic?
27 – Where is your favorite place to write, and do you write by hand or on the computer?
28 – Have you ever collaborated with anyone else, whether writing together, or having an artist work on a piece about your fic?
29 – What is your current project or projects?
30 – Do you have a favorite fic you've written? What makes it your favorite? And don't forget to give us a link!
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject