Original Characters in Fanfiction

[xXDarkDeception600Xx]

Klaark

I hate them and won't read a fic where they're featured prominently. I don't care how great they are, if they're well rounded and fleshed out, give them their own story.

I agree with some of this. OC's in fanfiction are fine, but I find it kind of weird, just because fanfiction itself is based around characters in someone else’s story. To bring in other characters may make it easier to move the story, but just for me as a reader it's kind of bothersome. I’m not saying that I'm totally against them, and that they shouldn't be used at all however.

But if they're dynamic characters, they really don't belong in the fic. They do need their own story, as Klaark mentioned.

[Sachiko-sama]

Depends if they're just their to take a role that a canon has like, if you write about a half al-bhed summoner who is orphaned and wants to defeat Sin, instead of writing about Yuna well that's pointless. But if you write about about a summoner, who wants to defeat Sin for the personal glory, that comes with being a high summoner, then go for it (Yes, I do know that high summoners are dead). But if they solely exist to romance one of the canon characters, usually making them very out of character in the process, not all men want to settle down happy with you character. If they progress the storyline, and fit in the world then it's fine.

Sibling as OC's are tricky. If a character is implied, or stated in supplementary material to have siblings, but they never appear, then it's fair game to write about them, for example, writing about Balthier's or Ashe's siblings is fine, but giving Inuyasha a sister is not.

I'm writing an AU for Nanowrimo in which one of the characters lives, and I need like four original characters to make the plot work. In turn, I took out two canon characters, who well don't have much to do with the plot, they're just there to see what unfolds, and replaced them with one OC who does have a legitimate reason to be adventuring. The other three don't really replace anyone, they help the plot move smoothly, and eliminate the many, many plotholes that would arise.

[Rei Uchikino]

Alli Bialystock

I know this is very hypocritical of me, but I have written many OCs, but hate reading about them. I feel like writing OCs in is really more for me, and I understand that many people won't want to read about them, and I won't read anything if a major character is an OC.

I'm kind of the same way. I've written OCs in my fanfiction before and still do sometimes, but I won't always care to read fanfiction with OCs in them.

[icecheetah]

As long as the story is good, I don't really care. Unfortunatly, many bad writers go for OCs right away, hence the bad reputation of OCs in fanfiction.

[Rei Uchikino]

icecheetah

As long as the story is good, I don't really care. Unfortunatly, many bad writers go for OCs right away, hence the bad reputation of OCs in fanfiction.

Yeah, I see what you mean. Sometimes when I'm reading fanfiction with OCs I get the feeling that the writers feel it's necessary to add an OC as the main character or something.

[ll_A-t-T-i-C-u-S_ll]

Rei Uchikino

So I've recently started reading fanfiction again, and I've been noticing more people writing original characters into their stories. I was a bit surprised since I didn't think that many people liked using original characters in fanfiction. (My assumption was probably wrong. Or I was away from ff.net for too long.)

I was wondering, WF, what do you think of OC's in fanfiction? If you write fanfiction, do you use OC's in your stories? If you read fanfic then what do you think when someone uses an original character in their work? Do you like it? Dislike it? Or are you indifferent?

I write fanfiction when I'm not working on my other writing and I actually use original characters quite a lot. I don't know about other ff writers, but the reason I add original characters is because I think they can bring out something in the ff character that wouldn't be seen in the original storyline (movie etc.). I don't think I explained it well, but basically I write original characters that can mold well with the fanfiction character.

[HueCoatl]

I was a fan of FF myself for a short period of time, and wrote a Love Hina Fanfiction with an OC. I don't have anything against either form of writing. I think that when it comes to FF, writers need to be careful about having self insert OCs, which is what a lot of FF becomes.

[AngelicxLucifer]

Honestly I don't like OC's in fanfiction because in most of what I read, the OC is the writer putting themselves in the story to get the guy, or girl, they like in that anime, manga, or game. So I don't think they work well.

[Rei Uchikino]

AngelicxLucifer

Honestly I don't like OC's in fanfiction because in most of what I read, the OC is the writer putting themselves in the story to get the guy, or girl, they like in that anime, manga, or game. So I don't think they work well.

I've noticed this, too. That's something that really turns me off to OCs in fanfiction. (Though, I admit that I used to do the same thing when I was younger. sweatdrop )

[AngelicxLucifer]

Rei Uchikino

AngelicxLucifer

Honestly I don't like OC's in fanfiction because in most of what I read, the OC is the writer putting themselves in the story to get the guy, or girl, they like in that anime, manga, or game. So I don't think they work well.

I've noticed this, too. That's something that really turns me off to OCs in fanfiction. (Though, I admit that I used to do the same thing when I was younger. sweatdrop )

I did to, but I didn't post them, and mine were just there for one story.

[Satch]

I am also not a fan of original characters. Many people do indeed put them in because the fancy themselves as being a tragic hero.

However, with that said, there are some good original characters. My guess is that some (the good ones) are placed in to add some variety, but more often then not, the only good ones are not the main character of the story. This seems especially the case with bad guys or children. In those rare cases, I feel the original character is ok. But yes, there does seem to be a larger tend in original characters - that or I'm just getting too impatient.

[TottWriter]

I'm gonna admit straight out that I've neither read nor written all that much fanfiction, but I give it a glance every now and then.

The one attempt at ff i wrote was based on an MMO universe, so we're talking OC. And that, I feel, is an important distinction. It's all too easy to get bogged down with a flat 'No OCs in fanfiction' statement, but it doesn't take into account the different areas that can theoretically be exploited with writing in someone else's canon.

Essentially, if you're writing fanfiction about a TV series set in, say, the real world, OCs have to be carefully worked so that they don't clash or draw hate. It's classic MS territory - as with Harry Potter fics set while he's at the school, and all the other things like that.

However, fanfiction is still fanfiction if you're writing in someone else's universe - whether you're setting it there and then or not. So, if I wrote a Harry Potter fanfic (for a bland example everyone will know), but it was set, say, a hundred years ago, and the only links were the Universe rules and locations, OCs would be more-or-less expected, and could be pulled off easily. Though, arguably, anyone going to such lengths should probably just switch to original work. That's actually what happened with my ff attempt. Oh well. It was only about a game.

Obviously, I'm clearly not talking about a particularly sizeable portion of fanfiction here, but it's still something I would read, and write too, if I had the patience with limitations. Maybe as an exercise.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there is fanfiction and fanfiction. I'm less a fan of random pairings and the dreaded self-inserts, and more interested in seeing what someone makes of another author's world. Needless to say, I'm a fantasy author myself...

[The Fagasaurous Rex]

Rei Uchikino

So I've recently started reading fanfiction again, and I've been noticing more people writing original characters into their stories. I was a bit surprised since I didn't think that many people liked using original characters in fanfiction. (My assumption was probably wrong. Or I was away from ff.net for too long.)

I was wondering, WF, what do you think of OC's in fanfiction? If you write fanfiction, do you use OC's in your stories? If you read fanfic then what do you think when someone uses an original character in their work? Do you like it? Dislike it? Or are you indifferent?

I heart good Ocs in fanfictions. But that's just me.