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ladydraceHaving been reading (and writing) fanfic for years now, it came as something of a surprise to me when I realized the other day that there's something I've never taken into account when I post fic.
Every time I sit down to write a fic, I have only canon as fixed points. (Unless of course it's an AU.) Anything I've written before is out of my mind as soon as it's posted and plays no part in later fics. (Excluding only sequels and my drabble series.)
I never considered that this could be a point of confusion to my readers, but recently I discovered that many writers tag their fics: One-shot. I often considered this almost too much information, since the length and such would suggest it was just a small piece. But I completely failed to realize that some other writers create very firm head-canon when they write, so even while they don't label anything as a series or sequels, it's sometimes a given that facts revealed in earlier fics are still valid.
I don't. Sure, I have certain things I prefer to revisit in most of my fics, but I can just as easily decide to deviate from it if the bunny demands it. So this leaves me with the question: Should I label my future fics "one-shots"? Seriously, all my fics are one-shots to some degree or other, because I'm not the kind of writer who churns out the epic novellas. I stick to the short and light. It's just my thing.
As an example I can take my recent fic in which I explore Garak and Bashir's differences in sex drive. In Natural Decline (Or Lack Thereof) I portray Garak (or indeed any Cardassian) as having a ridiculously high sex drive, forming the basis for a funny little story. In an earlier fic: A Fistful of Garaks I go the other way and have Bashir being the one with the over active sex drive, which there is at least some basis for in canon.
Now, anyone reading either fic first might take that version as my personal canon and become confused when reading the other. I dunno, am I over-analyzing this? Are my readers smarter than this? Or should I cover all bases and outline more in the fic description?
I'd love input on this!
Every time I sit down to write a fic, I have only canon as fixed points. (Unless of course it's an AU.) Anything I've written before is out of my mind as soon as it's posted and plays no part in later fics. (Excluding only sequels and my drabble series.)
I never considered that this could be a point of confusion to my readers, but recently I discovered that many writers tag their fics: One-shot. I often considered this almost too much information, since the length and such would suggest it was just a small piece. But I completely failed to realize that some other writers create very firm head-canon when they write, so even while they don't label anything as a series or sequels, it's sometimes a given that facts revealed in earlier fics are still valid.
I don't. Sure, I have certain things I prefer to revisit in most of my fics, but I can just as easily decide to deviate from it if the bunny demands it. So this leaves me with the question: Should I label my future fics "one-shots"? Seriously, all my fics are one-shots to some degree or other, because I'm not the kind of writer who churns out the epic novellas. I stick to the short and light. It's just my thing.
As an example I can take my recent fic in which I explore Garak and Bashir's differences in sex drive. In Natural Decline (Or Lack Thereof) I portray Garak (or indeed any Cardassian) as having a ridiculously high sex drive, forming the basis for a funny little story. In an earlier fic: A Fistful of Garaks I go the other way and have Bashir being the one with the over active sex drive, which there is at least some basis for in canon.
Now, anyone reading either fic first might take that version as my personal canon and become confused when reading the other. I dunno, am I over-analyzing this? Are my readers smarter than this? Or should I cover all bases and outline more in the fic description?
I'd love input on this!
