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timepiececlockI finally got a few reviews for my recent Naruto one-shot, and subsequently was thinking about writing fanfic and the conflict between what I want to say, and what the readers hear.
Does anyone else ever get the urge, I ask, to simply sit down and write a point by point description of every theme or thematic aspect of hints of possible themes within your story, to explain every bit of symbolism and minute point of parallels and character analogies and basically do a reverse analyzation of your own stuff?
And then to present this fact sheet to a reader and say "Hey, did you get all of this stuff out of my fic? How much did you pick up on, and which parts went completely over your head?"
I get the urge to ask that all the time. Because even though I start a story with just an idea of a scene or a bit of dialogue, by the time I'm done I always know exactly what I'm trying to show/achieve with a fic. And I tend to recognize in my own writing many layers, even if they only exist in my perception and because of my amateurish writing aren't properly conveyed in the story itself, or even if they only mean something significant to me, and not anyone else. But typically, by the time I'm done with something I can analyze my own stuff as much as I'd analyze a Buffy episode or a classic novel. My stuff is nowhere near as good or as deep as either of those two catagories, but I do try very hard to convey themes on more than one level in fanfiction, even if it's only obvious to me and not to any readers. Even if I don't succeed, I try to give everything a point or a purpose in my stories, so that I can look back and think "I used this symbol because I wanted to show that this character was such and such." Some people do that very unconsciously in their writing, from what I've heard people say. For me, it starts out unconscious but by the time I'm through it's all very conscious and meticulously thought over.
As late, I also tend to analyze other people's fanfiction to as much depth as I'd give my own in writing it. A lot of fanfic doesn't have that far down deep to go, and some of it has noewhere at all, but a lot of the good ones do have a lot more symbols and purposes than I'd first realized.
So I guess my thoughts to LJ writers are these... do you guys also ever feel this way, or approach writing this way? Do you ever want to tell a reader everything you thought you were trying to say with a fic, and then ask them
"Is that what you thought when you read it? Was it even close?"
That's the kind of feedback that I could really make use of.
Does anyone else ever get the urge, I ask, to simply sit down and write a point by point description of every theme or thematic aspect of hints of possible themes within your story, to explain every bit of symbolism and minute point of parallels and character analogies and basically do a reverse analyzation of your own stuff?
And then to present this fact sheet to a reader and say "Hey, did you get all of this stuff out of my fic? How much did you pick up on, and which parts went completely over your head?"
I get the urge to ask that all the time. Because even though I start a story with just an idea of a scene or a bit of dialogue, by the time I'm done I always know exactly what I'm trying to show/achieve with a fic. And I tend to recognize in my own writing many layers, even if they only exist in my perception and because of my amateurish writing aren't properly conveyed in the story itself, or even if they only mean something significant to me, and not anyone else. But typically, by the time I'm done with something I can analyze my own stuff as much as I'd analyze a Buffy episode or a classic novel. My stuff is nowhere near as good or as deep as either of those two catagories, but I do try very hard to convey themes on more than one level in fanfiction, even if it's only obvious to me and not to any readers. Even if I don't succeed, I try to give everything a point or a purpose in my stories, so that I can look back and think "I used this symbol because I wanted to show that this character was such and such." Some people do that very unconsciously in their writing, from what I've heard people say. For me, it starts out unconscious but by the time I'm through it's all very conscious and meticulously thought over.
As late, I also tend to analyze other people's fanfiction to as much depth as I'd give my own in writing it. A lot of fanfic doesn't have that far down deep to go, and some of it has noewhere at all, but a lot of the good ones do have a lot more symbols and purposes than I'd first realized.
So I guess my thoughts to LJ writers are these... do you guys also ever feel this way, or approach writing this way? Do you ever want to tell a reader everything you thought you were trying to say with a fic, and then ask them
"Is that what you thought when you read it? Was it even close?"
That's the kind of feedback that I could really make use of.
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no subject
Date: 2004-01-25 02:01 am (UTC)But then, I would think that by writing fanfiction, you let the story speak for you instead of giving it all out and then asking if their observations was even close to yours.
I think that's what makes it much more fascinating. Obviously, what you say in your story (with the depth of it) and what you think is different from what readers think. This shows in my reviews of other stories (which is mostly HP). Those that I really love, the ones that are long, very deep and with a plot that's so complex that I squeal to death, I give out my observations. I don't usually critique it as there is no point, but I do supply what I think of it. I actually give allusions, references, quotes, etc and sometimes that author is amazed at what I see because she wasn't able to see what I saw in her stories.
So I guess, in the end, no to your question. The kind of feedback I could make use of is their own interpretations and observations of my stories, not what I provide them in the AN or through email. It's more challenging and fun that way, I think. It also helps me alot, because if for example those ideas I was trying to emphasized did not get to them and they didn't supply it in their reviews, then I know what to work on the next time.
Then again, its pretty much the same with what you said neh? Or at least, similar application.
no subject
Date: 2004-01-25 03:00 am (UTC)I must say, you _are_ one of my favorite reviewers. You just say everything on your head and leave lots of commentary. Don't ever think that goes unappreciated. :)
I tried this overall idea on one guy tonight, and he was a great sport about it. He read all my very specific questions, and then told me what he'd gotten out of it, and how he'd interpreted things. It was very useful. But it's not something I think I could do often.
no subject
Date: 2004-01-26 12:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-01-26 12:38 am (UTC)Exactly. That's the frustrating part. Is what you're writing the story that they're reading? Is it even close? Are your efforts (to include layers and levels and the very sincere importance you believe these layers have to understanding your overall meaning) seen, or are they missed?
I guess in many ways, the story might never mean as much to other people as it means to you while writing it. But sometimes I wish I had a video camera or audio bug implanted in people's brains as they read my fic, so I could see what it means to them.