"Fan fiction, stories by amateur writers about characters from their favorite books, movies and television shoes, was once mainly a fringe pursuit. Now, it's changing the world of fiction, as Internet exposure helps unknown authors find mainstream success. Some Web sites are attracting unprecedented numbers of readers and, in some cases, leading to book deals."
Fan fiction has been around for a long time in one form or another. I can still remember being in seventh grade exchanging fanfic about our favorite rock group with my best friend Eileen (of course, we both figured prominently in the stories we wrote).
The first formalized fanfic I remember hearing about related to the Star Trek television series. Fans devastated by the show's cancellation fell back on fanfic to keep the series alive. Back then, writers were constantly reminding each other that they could face legal consequences for expropriating characters that were copyrighted.
The advent of the Internet has spurred the growth of the fanfic industry.
According to the WSJ, "one sign of the growing influence of these authors and stories is that media companies, usually quick to go after people who use their copyrighted material, are increasingly leaving fan fiction writers alone. Mindful of the large, loyal audience the writers represent, many companies are adopting an attitude . . . [of] 'benign neglect."
Not all parties regard fanfic with such a friendly eye. The article talks about the aggressive efforts writer Chelsea Quinn Yarbro has taken to protect her vampire characters from being used by fanfic writers. Her attorney sends out letters of warning to websites using Ms. Yarbro's copyrighted material, demanding removal of the material from the sites.
Star Trek also features prominently in what is called "slash" fanfic (as in the slash between m/m) in which fanfic writers create gay relationships between heterosexual characters like Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. The WSJ article says that media companies are looking for ways to capitalize on the large audience these stories have attracted. "A company called FanLib is working with networks and publishers to create fan-fiction promotions and contests for books and TV shows."
On September 7, 2005, I wrote about HarperCollins' new Avon FanLit website where the publisher is running a series of contests for writer/readers. While not strictly fanfic, this initiative demonstrates the interest the imprint has in their fans. The WSJ article quotes an Avon senior vice president as saying, "We're looking for ways to reach the real core readers."
Simon & Schuster paid a librarian a $150,000 advance to publish her online writings about a Jane Austen character from Pride and Prejudice as a three-novel trilogy (she'd been posting her stories online for ten years by then).
Fanfic writers have attracted the notice of agents as well as publishers. The article cites more than one fanfic writer who ended up with an agent contract as the result of stories posted online.
Until I read this article, I didn't realize there was fanfic on the television show House. I'm off to go read it.
1 comment:
Emjay: You've been living a sheltered life. The Star Trek slash fic has been around for a loonnnnggggg time. {g}
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