First of all, it seems that you are speaking of two entirely separate issues here - type of fiction and the relative writing ability of the writer. There is no direct equation that slash=bad writing. Beyond that, slash in and of itself is one of the cornerstones of not only modern fanfiction and its associated communities, but of the "old time" fanfiction and communities that you mention. "Old time" fanfiction of the modern age would hearken back to the Star Trek groups and writers in the 1970s. Who did self publish in the manner you speak of (as there wasn't an internet yet) and a huge segment of which happened to be slash. The very term "slash" was initially created when (primarily Star Trek) fic writers began to distinguish stories that depicted friendship between Kirk and Spock from stories that depicted a romantic and/or sexual relationship between them by use of either an "&" for the former or a "/" for the later. While the symbol-system is a convention used for both heterosexual and homosexual pairings, the term "slash", because of it's association with the Star Trek fandom became associated specifically with homosexual pairings.
Let me also assure you that there are a multitude of incredibly skilled writers writing slash.
As to the relative skill with which fanfic writers write, well, some aspects of that are in the eye of the beholder. Judging the merits of art - ANY art - is highly subjective. There will always be, in any fandom, in any time period, in any age, good writers and bad writers. That hasn't changed. There was great fanfic back in the 70s, and there was crap fanfic back in the 70s. There was well written fanfic on Gossamer, and there was crap fanfic on Gossamer. There are, for that matter, excellent professional writers and writers whose work I pick up and wonder how they ever got past an editor. But that's ok. Read the stuff you like, don't read the stuff you don't, and live and let live. The work of others shouldn't be any threat to your own abilities and accomplishments.
Writers aren't made whole cloth, it takes years of practice, years of refining that technique to become good at any kind of writing. Fanfiction is no different. If you were to start restricting the world of writing to only those who were already "good" at it, how would anyone else ever get that way? I know that my first attempts at writing fanfiction were awful. But they were steps. And the feedback from other readers and writers in fanfiction communities was integral to my improvement as a writer. If only "good" writing got published, how would anyone get feedback? How would they know what was good or bad about what they were doing?
Sites like fanfiction.net, and other major archives, as well as the growing internet fandom culture are making huge strides in how who we are and what we do is seen by the greater community. We're breaking down misconceptions and preconceptions about who writes fanfiction, about who likes what kinds of shows, and who goes to conventions everyday because the internet has given more people a voice in this sort of thing. Sociologists and anthropologists are starting to study the self-created cultures of fandom just like they would any other subculture. Universities are starting to offer classes on not only classical science fiction, but on modern television and popular culture. Professors and scholars are starting to take the phenomenon more seriously, and it's because people are standing up and saying "I do this, too." Popular authors like Peter David write fanfiction, and claim it. (see next reply for continuation...)
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2006-08-25 01:09 am (UTC)Let me also assure you that there are a multitude of incredibly skilled writers writing slash.
As to the relative skill with which fanfic writers write, well, some aspects of that are in the eye of the beholder. Judging the merits of art - ANY art - is highly subjective. There will always be, in any fandom, in any time period, in any age, good writers and bad writers. That hasn't changed. There was great fanfic back in the 70s, and there was crap fanfic back in the 70s. There was well written fanfic on Gossamer, and there was crap fanfic on Gossamer. There are, for that matter, excellent professional writers and writers whose work I pick up and wonder how they ever got past an editor. But that's ok. Read the stuff you like, don't read the stuff you don't, and live and let live. The work of others shouldn't be any threat to your own abilities and accomplishments.
Writers aren't made whole cloth, it takes years of practice, years of refining that technique to become good at any kind of writing. Fanfiction is no different. If you were to start restricting the world of writing to only those who were already "good" at it, how would anyone else ever get that way? I know that my first attempts at writing fanfiction were awful. But they were steps. And the feedback from other readers and writers in fanfiction communities was integral to my improvement as a writer. If only "good" writing got published, how would anyone get feedback? How would they know what was good or bad about what they were doing?
Sites like fanfiction.net, and other major archives, as well as the growing internet fandom culture are making huge strides in how who we are and what we do is seen by the greater community. We're breaking down misconceptions and preconceptions about who writes fanfiction, about who likes what kinds of shows, and who goes to conventions everyday because the internet has given more people a voice in this sort of thing. Sociologists and anthropologists are starting to study the self-created cultures of fandom just like they would any other subculture. Universities are starting to offer classes on not only classical science fiction, but on modern television and popular culture. Professors and scholars are starting to take the phenomenon more seriously, and it's because people are standing up and saying "I do this, too." Popular authors like Peter David write fanfiction, and claim it.
(see next reply for continuation...)