SPOILERS Raising Steam *Warning Spoilers*

[=Tamar]

It's a different universe from the one Mort was hired in.
It may only be different in a few ways, but we don't know that.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hmm. That's the whole point, though, isn't it? Mort is the "hero" (read: protagonist). After all, it's his story! If he didn't change the world in some way, he wouldn't be the protagonist.

But if he wasn't the "hero" of his own life-story, things would be pretty weird!

 

[Woofb]

DW FF 99% of it is crap. :|

Sturgeon’s law—99% of everything is crap. AO3 is reasonably good (a lot of people use it as training to write, and it was set up by real writers (eg Naomi Novik).

My favourite Discworld one was a crossover with Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London, where the geeky hero is magically dropped into Ankh-Morpork and fanboys all over it.

 

[Tonyblack]

99% of facts are made up.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Maybe ... but many facts aren''t. We know, for instance, that oxygen and nitrogen exist. We know that Genghis Khan rampaged across Asia, and his descendants rampaged across Europe and the Middle East. We know that Hitler backstabbed Stalin during Operation Barbarossa, etc.

We don't know for sure what Hannibal was thinking in the aftermath of the battle of Cannae, but we do know that he crossed the Alps with his elephants. It's mentioned in many of the classical texts. =)

Many facts are, well, factual. They happened. We shouldn't deny them just because it suits us to. =(

 

[Tonyblack]

The "99% of facts" post was a joke - hence the smiley face.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

Maybe ... but many facts aren''t. We know, for instance, that oxygen and nitrogen exist. We know that Genghis Khan rampaged across Asia, and his descendants rampaged across Europe and the Middle East. We know that Hitler backstabbed Stalin during Operation Barbarossa, etc.

We don't know for sure what Hannibal was thinking in the aftermath of the battle of Cannae, but we do know that he crossed the Alps with his elephants. It's mentioned in many of the classical texts. =)

Many facts are, well, factual. They happened. We shouldn't deny them just because it suits us to. =(

Just drop the F at the beginning and they turn into Acts.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Or change the "c" into an "r" and they become ... nah, I won't go there

I'm not sure where all this came from, by the way. Dug said that "DW FF 99% of it is crap", Woofb said that "AO3 is reasonably good" ... I'm confused.

What is DW FF? What is AO3? Am I missing something? Being a budding writer, I'd like to know.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

The majority of DWFF I read in the past was not good at all IMO, but there was one that was very good, it got to the stage where I couldn't read it anymore. I suppose it all comes down to personal taste.

 

[Tonyblack]

DWFF = Discworld Fan Fiction (I think)

I have read a good deal of FF in the past - including Harry Potter FF. At this point I consider FF as playing with someone else's toys and trying to make them your own. I no longer feel the need to go to FF for my DW fix. I'd rather reread genuine DW (as it keeps on giving) rather than read faux DW that is a shadow of the original.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hmm. I agree with you up to a point, Dug and Tony. But then again, some fan-fiction is quite good.

It's not necessary to make huge changes in a story or a character. I remember reading some LOTR FF where Gandalf's constant smoking of Old Toby accounted for Gandalf's constant forgetfulness and speaking in riddles. *G* It was quite amusing.

I think that FF is a useful tool for beginners, and - as long as they don't try to make any money out of it - I don't see a problem with it. It's a fun way for beginners to "get their feet wet", so to speak, and as long as they don't try to sell it as their own or make money off it, what's the harm?

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

What's the harm? Rath I no longer want to take the chance of making my eyes bleed and my brain rot, with the majority of it in the hope of finding a good one.

 

[raisindot]

I think that FF is a useful tool for beginners, and - as long as they don't try to make any money out of it - I don't see a problem with it. It's a fun way for beginners to "get their feet wet", so to speak, and as long as they don't try to sell it as their own or make money off it, what's the harm?

Don't get me started on fanfiction. It's what lazy writers who can't think of their own character and ideas do. It's the ultimate bastardized fulfillment of "write what you know." No. Write what you DON'T know. Think of something original. If you want to be inspired by Pterry, step on his work and do better. But don't borrow from his canon to fulfill your own writing fetishes. And if you must, keep it on your computer. Don't put it out there looking for approval from others to bolster your ego.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hey, fair enough. I agree with you there. I must be thinking of fan-fiction from the days when I started writing, way back in 1995 or so. (Has time flown so much, and the standards of fan-fiction writing dropped so low, since then?)

I don't think I've touched FF since 2001 or so - I'd moved on to writing stories firmly set in ancient history (and properly researched, outlined, beat-sheeted, and so on). I think the last one I wrote was set in ancient Babylon, and obviously I researched the era thoroughly to avoid making howlers.