fanfic as lit

[owlmoose]

Okay, I know I am way over my posting quota these days, but I just had to share this right away (found it by following a link in madlori's blog).

The Democratic Genre: Fanfiction in a Literary Context. A scholarly work about fanfic, examined from a literary persepective rather than considering it as a social phenomanon. And high time, I say. The first chapter is published online; I'm about halfway through and it is utterly fascinating. Anyone interested in literature should look at this.

Unfortunately it only seems to be available from Amazon UK. I'm pretty tempted to buy it anyway.

Comments

I

[kunstarniki.livejournal.com]

Can you imagine, I had completely forgotten about the Elizabethan playwrights stealing both characters and plots from any source they could get their ink-stained hands on? Of course, there was no shame, it was the way it was done. How grand that must have been.

A most excellent chapter. I am hungry for the rest of the book as well. Perhaps if we make a noise, Amazon USA will make it available. I think the chapter reminded you of me because of the references to Holmes.

Everytime I think of Ann Rice I am reminded that I hated every one of her books after the first and think they were all abominably written - save for the first. If ever a writer abused her characters .... Any decent family court would take them away from her and that dreadful mish-mash of bad mythology in which she sank them. Bah! Like some other popular writers of our times, I fear she has spent more time creating herself than good fiction.

But I digress. Thank you for the pointer to this book. It has generated a great deal of thought for me.

Re: I

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

I think the chapter reminded you of me because of the references to Holmes.

There was that, but more importantly, I thought of you when she discussed those who write fanfiction to give depths to a character that the original creator never imagined were there.

I am serious when I say I may order the book from Amazon UK. Who knows how long it will take to be available here, if it ever is? I think I will check into how much it would cost, anyway.

The only Ann Rice book I have ever read was the first. I was impressed by it, but I was not moved to read further, perhaps because I found Louis more intriguing than Lestat, and it was clear that Lestat was going to be the future focus. But her attitude toward fanfiction and reviews (remember the Amazon kerfuffle a year or so back?) would have put me off her even if I had been a fan.

I

[kunstarniki.livejournal.com]

to give depths to a character that the original creator never imagined were there.

*curtsy* Thankee, ma'am.

If it is convenient could you let me know the cost etc. if you check it out before I get around to it. I will do the same for you.

And Rice ... ah, when I noticed she had made Lestat a rock musician, I parted company with her and then I heard, from my estranged sister, about all that Egyptian nonsense ... And she complains about character theft! No, I do not remember anything about a kerfuffle over at Amazon. She disliked a review? Or was she inflating her review count by writing them herself?

Re: I

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

If it is convenient could you let me know the cost etc. if you check it out before I get around to it.

Of course.

She disliked a review?

That's the gist of it. Her book Blood Canticle garnered a number of uncomplimentary reviews on Amazon, mostly complaining about weak characterization and shoddy prose if I recall, and she *posted a response to the site*, telling the reviewers that they were wrong and obviously didn't understand the characters or her writing. And she included her home address so that anyone who was dissatisfied could send the book back to her for a refund. It degenerated into something of a flame war, and eventually Amazon removed her comments as well as the responses to them. Bascially, she threw a public temper tantrum and got called on it.