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I'm thinking about whether or not I continue the Decagram past FM. While I have quite some plot I'd like to tell, I'm not sure it would still be a fanfic.
36° was about their connection & Seishiro's past as Sakurazukamori.
Family Matters is about how they continue & the past of their clans.
Additional plots would be (in no particular order):
So far, 36° & FM are seen rather positively, but I wonder if I don't "overuse my stay" if I stray that far from the canon into original territory.
What do you think?
36° was about their connection & Seishiro's past as Sakurazukamori.
Family Matters is about how they continue & the past of their clans.
Additional plots would be (in no particular order):
- Yue's story
- Setsuka's story
- Seishiro's life around the time of making the bet, between the making of the bet and its execution, until the beginning of X
- what happened with Subaru's parents
- and the continuation of Family Matters would tell how all that affects their present existence.
So far, 36° & FM are seen rather positively, but I wonder if I don't "overuse my stay" if I stray that far from the canon into original territory.
What do you think?
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Date: 2008-08-31 11:02 (UTC)From:In conclusion, from what you've said I don't think that strays too far from the range of fanfic at all and I WANT A SEQUEL 8| Pretty please. *will beg if necessary*
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Date: 2008-08-31 12:40 (UTC)From:No, please don't beg. I summarized what I plan to do with the Decagram in the next FM-PMS (http://akk.insanejournal.com/109660.html). :)
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Date: 2008-08-31 13:31 (UTC)From:Anyway... if you feel unsure about writing it maybe it just means your subconscious is telling you that you can plan it better than how it actually is in your mind?
I don't know what exactly you're planning so I'm afraid I can't tell you for sure which would be my reaction reading it, beyond the curiosity I feel for future works of yours now.
Sorry... I figure this isn't helpful... *hides in shame*
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Date: 2008-08-31 13:57 (UTC)From:"Far from canon" for me means two things:
1) the characters undergo continuous development; after all, the events in the stories happen to them and if that doesn't change them somehow, it would be just bad writing. But the longer a plot goes, the bigger the changes are. Right now, FM makes perfectly sense, but only if you know 36°. And a sequel will require FM and therefore 36°. The amount of homework for readers to recognize their beloved characters within the plot is growing and I wondered, if there's a point where it stops being a fanfic, because the characters have grown so much.
2) the amount of plot content - locations, events, characters, etc. - not included and/or based in canon. For example, Yue, Omi, Yoshi, the Sakura being a talkative, perverted piece of shrub... that sort of thing. With growing plot, also their numbers grow (not the numbers of original characters - I try to keep them and their appearances to a minimum - but the past events affecting things become more numerous. Things not within X-canon, but within fic-canon. I wondered about whether it would still be a TBX-fic. However, most of this I already solved for myself in Fm-PMS (2) (linked above). So it's no longer critical.
But your reply is helpful. These musings help me figure things out. Thank you for that. :)
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Date: 2008-09-01 00:04 (UTC)From:"So far, 36° & FM are seen rather positively, but I wonder if I don't "overuse my stay" if I stray that far from the canon into original territory."
As far as this series goes, I certainly wouldn't mind it a bit. One of the great (for a fic writer), and simultaneously frustrating (for any fan) thing about the entire TB/X story arc is that we really have no idea about anything. Sure, Subaru for the most part seems easy to read, but Seishirou is another matter entirely.
I like to say that my favorite scenes in TB and X are when Seishirou is caught off guard, and has a surprised look on his face. Other than the very minor insight that his character file and X manga side-story provide, we don't know anything at all about Seishirou, how he feels about this entire situation, his motivations, his thought processes, anything at all about the Sakurazuka clan (Granny S. mentions a bit, but as a Sumeragi her judgment and info will be clouded), and just a very small bit about "the tree".
This actually is one of the reasons reading TB/X fanfic is so fun. CLAMP left so much room for interpretation, and as long as the writer can manager to keep Seishirou's character on track (I've never thought of him as emotionally barren as is portrayed sometimes) you can pretty much go with anything.
Any additional material that you write I would just consider as part of the series, written for the version of the CLAMP universe that you have Seishirou and Subaru living in. The same goes for anything you write about Yue. From reading 36° and Family Matters, I certainly know what happens a few hundred years after his death, and it will be interesting to read about him, the tree, and their activities knowing what is in store for them.
In a way, it's entirely CLAMP and Asuka's fault that you're able to write fanfic like this, because they never finished it! If X was a completed story, and we knew that (like the TV series), Kamui became his kekkai, saved the world, and everyone was was living on through their personal torment; if that had happened in the manga, it would be ridiculous to have a fanfic like this, but it's all up in the air.
As a last note, Kouri and Karasu wrote am amusing parody ficlet (http://www.fatalistic.net/knkfics/finerpoints.html) that fits in with this situation. Seishirou laments being "underdeveloped" in the canon saying, "“Given that my actions are never explained, as long as the explanation given is justifiable in the setting, I don’t see why everyone needs to make such a fuss about it."
So, write on! Any audience that you've hooked by now will certainly stay for the whole ride.
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Date: 2008-09-02 12:50 (UTC)From:Also thank you for the link to the ficlet. It's funny! :D
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Date: 2008-09-01 01:52 (UTC)From: (Anonymous)no subject
Date: 2008-09-02 12:51 (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2008-09-01 06:31 (UTC)From:Any decision you make - we are happy to have it.
Feel frustrated, post about it, but never let anybody influence what you write :) [but you have already done that... again too late :D]
We are happy to have it as long as you are happy to write it :)
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Date: 2008-09-02 12:53 (UTC)From:I'm still happy to write it, despite the occasional bout of frustration.
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Date: 2008-09-02 21:55 (UTC)From:To put it aside, would writing something else be that bad? I know many people who would love to be able to create original content and can't. They say it it frustrating as well :D
Hmmm, I guess this is just my curiosity but:
1) why you write it?
I know the answer may be very personal (or not at all...) :), as I said, just my curiosity.
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Date: 2008-09-02 23:28 (UTC)From:You might decide not to write about that content in detail and gloss over it, but it's still there in the back of your mind when writing. For continuity of your plot, you have to keep it in mind and it influences the future in your plot.
Strictly speaking, everything past the final day in X-fandom (with few scenic images from the tv-anime) is original content.
I don't think one really can escape original content if one wants to write a round / sound plot in any universe. If nothing but strictly canon content was to exist, all you can write is a retelling - and don't you dare speculate about why a character did something (or choose that particular pair of socks on that day!) :)
To answer your question: I write original content because I like sound, well-rounded plots (then you can't escape it) and I write the occasional fanfic related original story because for those well-rounded plots I have to handle a lot of background data and those often take the form of side-stories (sometimes, the side stories become larger than the fanfic they relate to, but that's life). :)
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Date: 2008-09-03 23:40 (UTC)From:But you are just shooting your own leg now :)
If the stories are already in your head, you should write them down for them not to get lost :)
I know, I know, it is easy to say but it also takes forever. :)
However as a professional librarian I always scowl at anything that is created but isn't recorded :P
I guess we are all afraid of the time when people who write wonderful things get bored/stuck or are not interested anymore in creating. Pushing them never really works (damn!) :), and I get the feeling that in that particular case blackmail wouldn't work either... :P
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Date: 2008-09-04 00:25 (UTC)From:My question is not about whether or not I finish the current story. I will. And the side stories that appear because of it will be written. I don't leave stuff unfinished, that's not my style.
However, the fic-universe I created is expanding and I had to decide whether or not that's okay, because it is possible to bring things to a nice well-rounded conclusion when focusing entirely on Family Matters main plot at this point. I decided to go with expansion and also write _and post(!)_ the other stories. Had I decided otherwise, I most likely would have written the stories anyway, but probably more independent from the fic-universe.
My worries were a lot about "how to write them" and not really about "whether to write them". Muses are very stubborn (and egotistic!) critters. They can't be stopped! Believe me. ;)
Regarding large, unfinished epics: if people started posting, they ought to finish. If they don't know how, they should say so (instead of silently disappear) and make a post of their initial layout or ideas to go on, even if they themselves lack the time, the spirit or the writing ideas to do so. At least, the readers then have an idea how it could have ended (or somebody else can take the fic and run with it; at least it has a chance then!)
Regarding this phase of FM: expect more bouts of "waaaah, this can never work!" It's the final quarter of the plot; many threads to handle, little space left, virtually no leeway to wriggle if something doesn't sound exactly as it should; whining is normal. ;)
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Date: 2008-09-04 03:20 (UTC)From::) By creating never-ending cycle of side stories. Ok. I know that it isn’t exactly so, but such fast expending universe may lead astray any writer, especially when the stories are already there in your head (you may be tempted to write those dialogs, witty jokes, great descriptions that are in your head instead of working on the part of the main story that you cannot finish since forever and that makes you scream every time you even look at it :) )
“because it is possible to bring things to a nice well-rounded conclusion when focusing entirely on Family Matters main plot at this point”
and that is amazing because it could easily be an endless saga, but the truth is nobody expects less of you (old “with the ability you get the responsibility” rule)
“Had I decided otherwise, I most likely would have written the stories anyway, but probably more independent from the fic-universe.”
To tell the truth I would love that :)
“It's the final quarter of the plot; many threads to handle, little space left, virtually no leeway to wriggle if something doesn't sound exactly as it should; whining is normal. ;)”
Perfect :)
As I said we are lucky to get a god story and not an endless saga.
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Date: 2008-09-04 10:21 (UTC)From:I already try to make each main story halt at an end where it is bearable to stop following the Decagram arch in case one looses interest. (One=reader; not author!)
Writing side stories is essential for me to ensure congruent & conclusive plot. They almost always light up specific background details which influence character behavior or plot. I usually develop them until I am sure how the character(s) would have handled the specific issue. If the side story is close to completion at that point. I finish & post it (For example: teeny!Seishiro's fisticuffs with Suoh) if not, the written snippets get shelved "for further reference (example: Seishiro secretly healing Suoh after he was stabbed by the TS in 36°-X; Subaru was asked to do that, but Suoh rejected help. The Sumeragi wouldn't go against explicitly expressed wishes; Seishiro doesn't give a damn about that). The latter might at some point being turned into a story, or not. But not anytime soon. The main plot goes first.
Yue's story will be independent (mostly). But I will prepare the 3rd story of the Decagram in connection with Family Matters. Like I prepared Family Matters in 36°. There is definite main chara plot left to be told. No reason not to do that. :)
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Date: 2008-09-04 12:18 (UTC)From:All in the hands of the author :) *bows with respect*
BTW: I love the way how you list the facts, and the way it shows how much you love it :P
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Date: 2008-09-04 16:46 (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2008-09-04 23:08 (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2008-09-01 13:51 (UTC)From:I'd stand by any decision you made in this regard. Of course I am enthusiastic to see what else completes the Decagram, buy ten points is a lot to make. :smiles: In the end the thing you will write best--and the thing I'd be happiest to read--is the thing you are the happiest to be writing.
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Date: 2008-09-02 12:59 (UTC)From: