The Online Communities: Study of FanFiction

Fanfiction is a genre of writing where existing characters from books, movies, games, or other stories are thrown into whatever situation the author wants. I never really wrote any fanfiction because I was too afraid of the backlash of the online community if it wasn’t good enough (especially since I don’t think my writing skills are that great) and because I was too lazy to write that much, but I did read a lot of fanfiction in my time.

Many people fall in love with characters from stories and want to rewrite a scene the characters already played out or sometimes want to have them explore a new environment or meet another one of their favorite characters. Fanfiction is a creative free way of writing about anything you want.

Take for example Harry Potter; It is the top subject for fanfiction (if you google “fanficiton”, scroll down and you’ll see there are websites solely dedicated to Harry Potter Fanficiton) with over 678,000 stories about the characters of harry potter on fanfiction.net.

Fanfiction Termonolgy – The language of the amateur writing community. 

Crossover (X-Over): Authors mix stories and characters into one setting from separate stories
– Ex: Pokemon and Naruto (Yes this exists) –> https://www.fanfiction.net/Pok%C3%A9mon-and-My-Little-Pony-Crossovers/80/621/
Canon: Refers to elements established by the original source material (TV show, book, movie, etc…) itself for either plot, setting, or character developments. The official details, as it were.
POV: Point of View. The author uses this when the POV changes from character to character (usually in first person)
– Ex: Michael’s POV: I looked over and saw her walking by holding a cone of ice cream. I was already having a terrible day and my lack of food in my stomach wasn’t helping my case. Part of me just wanted to take it from her and walk off with the prize, but I’m not that rude.
 Sophie’s POV: I was eating my ice cream and I noticed this creepy guys staring at me. I looked at my ice cream and back at him and I couldn’t tell who he was staring at…Either way: He’s not getting any. 
AU: “Alternate Universe” –> Refers to a story of which there is a (often major) plot, setting, or character deviation away from established canon. (Often focus on the “What If’s)
– Example: AU where all of the HP characters are ponies. (Yes it’s a My Little Pony Reference)
OC: “Original Character” –> Refers to a non-canon character created by the author that is featured prominently in the story. May be male or female, and either a major or minor character in comparison to the canon characters
– Example: Emilee is a Hufflepuff that has brown hair and got Outstanding on all her owls. Her best friends are Ron, Harry, and Hermione.
Drabble: Refers to stories of exactly 100 words in length. AKA Very short stories
One Shots: Refers to a single story that can be read and understood in full without having read any other prior story. Stand alones are complete in and unto themselves, and are not related to any other story by that author, or any other author for that matter.

The level of writing depends on the author and the style of the story is also up to the authors discretion. The fanfiction community is strong and is just another way fans can fandom about their favorite characters. It’s very similar to fan art (except instead of producing art, you’re producing words, which turns into stories).

 

Comments for the Week:

1. http://amm356375.wordpress.com/2014/03/28/375-blog-post-7-stock/comment-page-1/#comment-39

2. http://jessepearsondtc375.wordpress.com/2014/03/28/63/comment-page-1/#comment-11

I’m So Old it Hurts

Describe to a future college student (somebody born within the past 20 years but who is not yet in college, to include next year’s freshman class or that little girl born yesterday) an old-school technology you grew up with that she or he won’t adequately recognize or understand. Explain its relevance and importance. Your blog entry should use second-person address (in other words, talk to your audience as “You”), and should clearly reflect your (imagined) audience’s age and assumptions. (“You know, back in the day, we used to. . . .”)

Dear Future College Student,

Remember that time when the Digital Age was just blossoming and people didn’t have any art programs that were commonly accessible beyond MS Paint? Before the Digital Pen to the screen took place? Well I’m here to tell you something about the advanced creative tools in my day called “Magnadoodle”. It was the more advanced tool of the “Etch A Sketch”. The Magnadoodle uses a magnetic tipped stylus to draw out the magnetic particles that are inside the magnetophoretic panel that has white liquid. You now have access to tools such as Photoshop and tablets that can “Ctrl + Z” any marks to redo art, make layers, and add all these fancy effects. I learned most of my drawing skills through this handy little device and got one every year for christmas.

The reason that this technology was important, at least to me, because it taught me to stick with the lines that I made as a commitment or start over. It was portable and I took it in the car for road trips and being able to start over again was just a swipe away. I’m amazed with what Crayola and Fisher-Price design for creative minds with technology of water doodle pads, glow in the dark, mark on the wall creative tools, etc. You are lucky to have the creative outlets that you have access to now with Photoshop, Gimp, Illustrator, Crayola and Fisher-Price new products. The only drawback I see now is that the programs and creative tools you want to use now are ridiculously expensive compared to my simple magnadoodle.

Good Luck

Art from the MagnaDoodle and Etch A Sketch

Magnadoodle

Using a thick stylus limits the amount of detail that can be worked in, but quicker and easier to draw out ideas.

No batteries required.

Yes the Etch A Sketch Art looks more impressive.

Comments:

Blog 6- I’m getting old

Response to Allie Stephens “CD player” ( I don’t have an account with her site of choice and I don’t want to make another account for it, so here’s the response)

http://stephensallie.blog.com/

– I remember when CD players and CD’s were a thing. It was common to buy them and we still see them in stores today, but unlikely that you’ll actually see people buying them to fit into their CD player when we have ipods and zunes now. I remember when I would buy CD’s I had to check the “Parental Advisory” label and ask my parents I could buy it. I think the one I got was My Chemical Romance The Black Parade and I had to ask for permission to buy it due to the swearing and stuff. I’m surprised they let me. I do remember the very first CD I ever bought because I didn’t stop listening to it for weeks –> Hilary Duff Metamorphosis. I was obsessed with the show and her singing when Disney Stars had actual talent and it wasn’t trendy for every start to sing.

Pencil, Paper, or Computer?

Baron says about the uses of writing technologies: What are your feelings about e-books versus print books? If you prefer print, do you like hardcover or softcover, and why? In his Preface, Baron notes the history of instructional technologies used in classrooms: pencils, typewriters, radio, tv, computers, and now phones and tablets have all been used in classrooms. What are some of your experiences of successful versus unsuccessful uses of classroom technologies (aside from that unfortunate pop-up ad from Dailymotion the other day)? If you have big lecture classes that don’t require attendance, do you go—and why or why not? Do you use writing more for memory or transmission? What do you think about the argument offered by Thamus?

I myself have not really used ebooks. I know that there are concerns about ebooks replacing physical books in the this digital world and that the accessibility to the ebooks makes it very convenient for customers since ebooks can be accessed on almost any device. My sister had a paper due and she ended up ordering the wrong edition (this was during winter break), so to get the paper book without ordering one and waiting longer for it to come in, she went online and ordered an ebook copy to finish the paper. Unfortunately, we don’t have the right devices that are compatible for amazon ebooks, so we had a friend get it on her Nook and she finished the paper that way. I personally like having a physical copy because that’s what I grew up with and that’s what I’m used to. It’s easier for me to make notes and edit when I have a physical copy in my hand. I’m not into the whole “smell of the paper” or the “feel of the paper between my hand” or “sound of the pages flipping” junk. The book really doesn’t smell like much to me, it just feels like paper (nothing special), and it sounds like paper flapping around. Simply: I grew up with physical books to read, so I like what I started with. I’ve never had the need for ebooks. 

Between hardcover and softcover, I have no preference. I like the durability hardcover, so if I ever decide to throw the book in a fit of rage, I won’t destroy the book. Softcover is more forgiving and flexible on the flip side. I’d say I like hardcover because I get meticulous about how the book sits when its on it’s side. I don’t like bent pages and or if the whole book starts warping.  

Successful use of Technologies: Art History classes where we study art and must always reference to images makes the use of the computer and projector a successful use of technology. We can physically see the images we’re lecturing about and our teacher can point out specific details on the painting that show interest and will be on the test. If we were just verbally lecturing about the images without images in front of us, then it makes comprehension harder. 

Unsuccessful use of Tech: When classes start doing the more involved activities such as using google docs or drawings for a whole group to edit, it becomes more engaging, but at the same time, it becomes distracting for the student and teacher. When we opened google drawing for the entire class to edit and make changes in; the lesson was out the window and people started a competition of posting the most ridiculous memes to gain attention. You can’t monitor who is doing what since the program allows users editing the document to remain anonymous, so it becomes safer for the users to be more risky. It’s a good brainstorming activity, but it can quickly turn on the teacher with certain students. 

I go to class because I myself am not paying for classes; my parents are and they expect me to and I expect myself to. Sure I’ll slack off here and there, but it shouldn’t be anyone’s responsibility (parents, teachers, friends), but mine to go to class. I came to learn and if I didn’t want to take the class then I shouldn’t have signed up for it in the first place. People say that “I’d go to class if they’d keep me accountable for it and make me need to go to class”. Teachers shouldn’t have to MAKE you do anything. It’s not their responsibility to keep you in class. We’re all adults and they’re not here to make sure you’re attending or not. You either show up and learn the material or don’t and pay for it. Their job is it to teach. Teaching can encompass the people that are ready and willing to learn and the people that are there just trying to get a requirement out of the way. I don’t like it when students blame teachers/classes for why they have to attend. This is all to help me further down the road, so why should I procrastinate on it? I know some people come to college with other things in mind and sure that’s fine and dandy if you can balance both. There is nothing wrong with partying and education if you can balance both. It’s when one becomes a priority over the other and negatively affects the other when it becomes a problem. I find it funny when people just come to party and completely disregard the education part of college because that just means they paid a crap ton of money for a party. If you have all of these resources available, why not do both? 

Comments this Week
1. http://tarrdtc375.blogspot.com/2014/03/i-once-thought-ebooks-were-for-lameos.html?showComment=1393871924265#c5141042165536514276
2. http://scubamadrigal.wordpress.com/2014/03/02/blog-5-freestyle/comment-page-1/#comment-11