DJ wrote:
So please don't think that your views on deathfics are any more strong or important than others views on nfic or PG fic that blurs the line of morality. Or anything else, for that matter. "Importance" depends very much on someone's "own point of view".
Wow, DJ! Why do you say I think that? I wonder if maybe you could please flag the quote that gave you that impression? - I'd like to correct it because it would have been (and is) the furthest thing from my mind. No one who puts an opinion out there is assuming that the opinion will be accepted by everyone
As I understand it, Ann's concern with deathfic, as it manifests itself on these boards, is not the subject matter per se but the pattern it takes: mostly it is the female protagonist that is killed. That's a valid question, one with broader social and cultural implications. The purpose of my second post was to defend the right to explore a topic here on these boards and to present diverse points of views on it.
(my first post was a brief response to Sue's comment about how she reads and the importance of her religion in her life which is proably a tad OT - I mean the post, not Sue's religion
)
Now, however, I'm concerned that we're moving towards a position on these mbs that tolerates most types of fiction being posted but only a narrow range of 'non-fiction' ideas being discussed and presented.
I'm not quite sure how the morality of nfic got into this thread, but it seems to have. A few years ago there was quite a heated and prolonged debate on these boards about the morality of nfic . I believe the nfic folder was created as a way to calm the waters at that time (I'm not sure, though, on the time sequence here)
There can be many different things that a person might take offense to in the stories that are available to read. My point is... that you don't see anyone else starting threads to complain about that particular genre.
Ah, but we have seen them - there have been threads discussing kiddie-fic (with some particularly contemptuous opinions expressed of that genre), alt-stories and crossovers in particular, and of course the Clark-moves-on fic (this one usually usually entangeld with the dead-Lois fic)
As well we've got into discussions of characterization - personality and character traits. Those too have tended to become theme-related.
Plus there have been many, many disdainful comments about stories with lots of A-plot content that have left writers of those types of fics feeling not great.
I could continue with the list.
But it's death that is the most powerful theme, the most emotionally involving, the most devastating. I'm guessing that you would disagree with me on this point, though.
At any rate I think that's why it keeps coming up. Then, combine that theme with the pattern we usually see in deathfics here. (now I'm repeating myself - oops
Could be worse - could be taxes.
(sorry for that old, old joke))
But it really would be nearly as easy to write Clark death-fics as it would Lois dfs. (imo, easier) So, logically, we should expect to see that difference roughly approximated in the stories we see here. But we don't, so surely it's valid to ask why not?
Each time, we discuss this I learn something new - this time, for me, a few things. But in particular Hasini's idea that links the fact that most of us are women and many of us may like to fantasize about how a lover would react to our deaths.
As I've said before I haven't read the story that triggered this discussion - I had seen the story posted and was going to read it, had read the author's intro - noted it was ambiguous but the title sounded promising so was all set to settle in. Got distracted by some mundane task (can't even remember now what!) . It wasn't until the next day that I became aware of the actual content of the story. Any comments I've made about the genre have nothing to do with that specific story as I hope I made clear earlier.
At any rate I do hope that these mbs will be as open to non-fiction L & C discussions as they are to fiction. A writer who posts a lengthy opinion is putting herself out there as much as is a writer of fiction - to continue with Alcyone's comment.
And to mix in Dj's comment - if discussing this genre is a "dead horse" zone, then isn't writing the genre too?
(playing Devil's Advocate there but had to pick up on the 'dead horse' insult. Absolutely couldn't ignore it
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