9962 réponses à ce sujet

[MeredithvL]

About outlines vs writing on the fly: I'm chaotic too. Very chaotic. That's why I need to impose myself some order if I really want to get something done, and that's why I write outlines. Of course, if I come up with a better idea I update the outline, but at least I have some direction while I write. I don't feel constrained by outlines because I give myself permission to change it if needed, but normally I don't need to change it too much because if I still like the story and the outline past chapter 10, chances are that I will like it until the very end.

About romance: I think that you are correct, Drussius. My problem is that sometimes some of those romantic stories are a little bit PWP or OOC. I've read many of those because I have some iddle time at work, and some were good but others just didn't belong into the Mass Effect universe. I also believe, as fluffywalrus said, that people writing or reading fanfic want more time with the characters, but that can be achieved in a number of ways.

Personally, I don't read whole retales of ME1-to-3 fanfics. I could read a short fanfic retelling one particular mission, as long as it's told differently than it went in the game or if it really expands into dialogue between the characters, but if I wanted to see ME1-to-3 again I'd just replay the games. Mostly I read post ME3 fics, because I want to see something new, or find out how the aftermatch went in other people's heads. I totally hate the happy-ever-after kind of fanfics though. You, as an author, don't get to tell that all went well and dandy when you look around and see the ashes of your cities and comrades. Edit: things could get better eventually in the fic, but if the story starts from the premise that the war ended and everyone is happy instead of mourning, I just close the window.

About the most difficult chapter I had to write: it probably was chapter 16 of "Symphony of grief and hope". You see, in my first play through of ME2 all 12 squad mates survived the suicide mission, but the first time I played ME3 I lost Miranda to Kai Leng. The thing is, I LOVE Miranda. In later play throughs I found out how to save her, but for my fanfic I wasn't going to cheat myself, and I had to describe how my Shepard felt about having lost a woman that for her had been a sister. I was literally crying real tears as I wrote. But it had to be done.

Modifié par MeredithvL, 29 juillet 2013 - 07:10 .

[MrStoob]

Talking of romances... stupid pairing ideas! Today was Ashley/Miranda ('not Miranda', don't ask lol). It'd work I think in my universe but I'm getting a bit OTT on potential romances. I've already done Ash/Liara and on the verge of, though I might still swerve it, Ash/Hackett. I think I'd had enough of Ash being the old maid, so I'm always considering pushing some poor bugger her way lol.

"Ashley, meet your new love interest, Admiral Hackett!"
"What? Who are shoving at me now?"
"Now come on, Ash. He's a good soldier, and you know you've been lonely..."
"But Hackett? I mean, at least Liara was young, though you do know I don't go for women right?"
"That was half the fun..."
"Just get me a nice young man next time, please?"
"James Vega?"
"Ugh, forget it."

Yes, sometimes I do consider what the characters think about what I'm inflicting on them as an author. It can be humorous.

[MeredithvL]

MrStoob wrote...

Talking of romances... stupid pairing ideas!

Urrrgggghhh... you're right, the stupid pairings! I cringe sometimes just reading at the summary of some stories.
Here's a list of some of them that I've seen often and that I don't understand why people keep doing them:

Liara/Javik... well, for Javik it would be exactly as dating a monkey, but in the event that he doesn't commit suicide, and that he gets really really lonely, and lost all purpose in life because the Reapers are gone, and he does write the book with Liara, it could possibly happen... but I think they'd be one of those marriages that fight all the time.

Javik/anyone else: just NO. Monkeys.

Ash/a woman or Miranda/a woman: NO. They're straight. If they weren't I would have romanced them with any of my femSheps. Especially I hate that some people think Miranda and Jack have some unresolved sexual tension. I feel that they weren't paying attention when Jack explained why she hated Cerberus and why she hated Miranda as Cerberus' trained puppet. Even when Miranda leaves Cerberus, I don't see them coming together or having a lot in common to build a relationship, plus the fact that Miranda is straight.

Hackett/anyone not his age: NO, he's not a creepy old man or a playboy. I understand that he could get lonely but he wouldn't go for a woman that could be his daughter. Although I've seen some stories in which Hackett and Hannah Shepard end up together. Good for them. Won't happen in any of my stories but I can read that pairing and not yell to the skies.

Anderson/anyone that is not Kahlee: just NO, the game made it very clear that Kahlee is his love. Especially, I hate Anderson/Shepard pairing. That's practically incest, man!!

Wrex/Shepard: NO. That's sick. Shepard does tell to Wrex that he is his/her brother.

Shepard/Vega: I don't see that happening. Vega respects the Commander too much and wouldn't feel him/her to be an equal in a possible relationship. He even says so on YouTube videos I've seen for the Citadel DLC (I did play the DLC but my LI is Garrus so I didn't get that particular scene in my game). Plus, Shepard is not a Mary Sue/Gary Stu. Not everyone on the Normandy have to fall for her/him.

There are more pairings that immediately deter me from even opening a link to a story, but those are the ones I've seen more frequently.

[MrStoob]

MeredithvL wrote...

MrStoob wrote...

Talking of romances... stupid pairing ideas!

Urrrgggghhh... you're right, the stupid pairings! I cringe sometimes just reading at the summary of some stories.
Here's a list of some of them that I've seen often and that I don't understand why people keep doing them:

Liara/Javik... well, for Javik it would be exactly as dating a monkey, but in the event that he doesn't commit suicide, and that he gets really really lonely, and lost all purpose in life because the Reapers are gone, and he does write the book with Liara, it could possibly happen... but I think they'd be one of those marriages that fight all the time.

Javik/anyone else: just NO. Monkeys.

Ash/a woman or Miranda/a woman: NO. They're straight. If they weren't I would have romanced them with any of my femSheps. Especially I hate that some people think Miranda and Jack have some unresolved sexual tension. I feel that they weren't paying attention when Jack explained why she hated Cerberus and why she hated Miranda as Cerberus' trained puppet. Even when Miranda leaves Cerberus, I don't see them coming together or having a lot in common to build a relationship, plus the fact that Miranda is straight.

Hackett/anyone not his age: NO, he's not a creepy old man or a playboy. I understand that he could get lonely but he wouldn't go for a woman that could be his daughter. Although I've seen some stories in which Hackett and Hannah Shepard end up together. Good for them. Won't happen in any of my stories but I can read that pairing and not yell to the skies.

Anderson/anyone that is not Kahlee: just NO, the game made it very clear that Kahlee is his love. Especially, I hate Anderson/Shepard pairing. That's practically incest, man!!

Wrex/Shepard: NO. That's sick. Shepard does tell to Wrex that he is his/her brother.

Shepard/Vega: I don't see that happening. Vega respects the Commander too much and wouldn't feel him/her to be an equal in a possible relationship. He even says so on YouTube videos I've seen for the Citadel DLC (I did play the DLC but my LI is Garrus so I didn't get that particular scene in my game). Plus, Shepard is not a Mary Sue/Gary Stu. Not everyone on the Normandy have to fall for her/him.

There are more pairings that immediately deter me from even opening a link to a story, but those are the ones I've seen more frequently.

So how do you feel about Ash/Liara, just out of interest?  The same as any other 'female' character pairing with Ash?  Wouldn't have ever put her with another human female but with Liara, and the history they have in my fic, it works I think.  I did also put Miranda with Thane but it didn't really work out but she does rue that she didn't visit him in Huerta before he died.

I personally think that Liara/Javik could work, particularly if injected with humour.  Him humbugging his way around, while Liara berates him and apologises for him.

Modifié par MrStoob, 29 juillet 2013 - 10:08 .

[MeredithvL]

MrStoob wrote...

So how do you feel about Ash/Liara, just out of interest?  The same as any other 'female' character pairing with Ash?  Wouldn't have ever put her with another human female but with Liara, and the history they have in my fic, it works I think.  I did also put Miranda with Thane but it didn't really work out but she does rue that she didn't visit him in Huerta before he died.

I personally think that Liara/Javik could work, particularly if injected with humour.  Him humbugging his way around, while Liara berates him and apologises for him.

Liara and Ashley are too different in my opinion. Even if Ash could get past the fact that asari aren't really female or male but that they look like females, I don't see that they have a lot in common. Ash is a soldier and likes to speak her mind directly, Liara is the Shadow Broker.

Of course, for humour fanfics, anything goes. I even read a fanfic that felt a lot like Ranma 1/2 meets Mass Effect and I laughed a lot, but it was correctly tagged as humour and the author was careful enough to put a lot of jokes and humourous situations. It was very well written. And about Liara and Javik, like I said it could work, but under specific situations, or humour.

[fluffywalrus]

MeredithvL wrote...

MrStoob wrote...

Talking of romances... stupid pairing ideas!

Urrrgggghhh... you're right, the stupid pairings! I cringe sometimes just reading at the summary of some stories.
Here's a list of some of them that I've seen often and that I don't understand why people keep doing them:

Liara/Javik... well, for Javik it would be exactly as dating a monkey, but in the event that he doesn't commit suicide, and that he gets really really lonely, and lost all purpose in life because the Reapers are gone, and he does write the book with Liara, it could possibly happen... but I think they'd be one of those marriages that fight all the time.

Javik/anyone else: just NO. Monkeys.

Ash/a woman or Miranda/a woman: NO. They're straight. If they weren't I would have romanced them with any of my femSheps. Especially I hate that some people think Miranda and Jack have some unresolved sexual tension. I feel that they weren't paying attention when Jack explained why she hated Cerberus and why she hated Miranda as Cerberus' trained puppet. Even when Miranda leaves Cerberus, I don't see them coming together or having a lot in common to build a relationship, plus the fact that Miranda is straight.

Hackett/anyone not his age: NO, he's not a creepy old man or a playboy. I understand that he could get lonely but he wouldn't go for a woman that could be his daughter. Although I've seen some stories in which Hackett and Hannah Shepard end up together. Good for them. Won't happen in any of my stories but I can read that pairing and not yell to the skies.

Anderson/anyone that is not Kahlee: just NO, the game made it very clear that Kahlee is his love. Especially, I hate Anderson/Shepard pairing. That's practically incest, man!!

Wrex/Shepard: NO. That's sick. Shepard does tell to Wrex that he is his/her brother.

Shepard/Vega: I don't see that happening. Vega respects the Commander too much and wouldn't feel him/her to be an equal in a possible relationship. He even says so on YouTube videos I've seen for the Citadel DLC (I did play the DLC but my LI is Garrus so I didn't get that particular scene in my game). Plus, Shepard is not a Mary Sue/Gary Stu. Not everyone on the Normandy have to fall for her/him.

There are more pairings that immediately deter me from even opening a link to a story, but those are the ones I've seen more frequently.

There are some admittedly off the wall pairings for sure. I agree with most of the above...but I think that sometimes if there's enough canon info out there, then things can be stretched. Like how, before Bioware threw out the options, a lot of the characters Shepard could romance were possible with either MShep or FShep, and the fact that there's some leftover data of those remaining on the disc makes me feel that it's totally cool for people to go for that. Any discarded romance that had been partially developed is one I can support in theory, even if I may not be interested in practice.
Like, Tali, for instance. There's clearly some light flirtation and intimacy there in the dialogue, and she was a half-developed love interest for lady Shep anyway, so I couldn't blame someone for writing a FShep/Tali fic building off that, even if Tali's straight in the games.
As long as there's an in, I figure I can be supportive, if only because I've done the same in another fandom (characters who flirt and show affection and tease each other in intimate fashion, but don't officially do anything in canon). But it's never worth going far out of character for (Javik/Liara, for instance...a definite no in my books). because while sexuality's just one part of a person, it's not worth shifting around a bit if it costs the character  other aspects of what makes them who they are. I figure, characters need a reason to be into each other, I guess. Without that...well, I can't suspend my disbelief.

With crew like Wrex, who totally sees Shep as his sister/brother, that's out of bounds. Same with Anderson, who's set up like a father figure. I don't really get those pairings, and that's the kind of thing you'll find in Kmeme communities (not that all of their requests are terrible, but many are just plain...crazy).

Modifié par fluffywalrus, 29 juillet 2013 - 10:39 .

[Dikajos]

Hello, I'm new here. I suppose that's the right place to ask my question.

I've created 2 stories in ME Universe (well, one is finished, I'm still working on the second one). Both of them are in Polish, but I live in England for a while now and decided to translate them into English. So my question is:

Where should I post them? Create a new topic or put them here? Or any other topic i didn't find yet?

[dpMeggers]

Ooo...pairing talk! I can totes get in on this.

MrStoob wrote...

"Ashley, meet your new love interest, Admiral Hackett!"
"What? Who are shoving at me now?"
"Now come on, Ash. He's a good soldier, and you know you've been lonely..."
"But Hackett? I mean, at least Liara was young, though you do know I don't go for women right?"
"That was half the fun..."
"Just get me a nice young man next time, please?"
"James Vega?"
"Ugh, forget it."

Yes, sometimes I do consider what the characters think about what I'm inflicting on them as an author. It can be humorous.

Hey now, Ash and Vega get on like a house on fire. (And I think it's adorable. Even though I ship Vega with an OC. And neither of them have met yet. And at the point I'm at in my story they're like 17 and won't meet for another 9 years or so. And I havn't figured out what will happen when they meet. Unrepentantly ship them anyway!!!)

MeredithvL wrote...

Shepard/Vega: I don't see that happening. Vega respects the Commander too much and wouldn't feel him/her to be an equal in a possible relationship. He even says so on YouTube videos I've seen for the Citadel DLC (I did play the DLC but my LI is Garrus so I didn't get that particular scene in my game). 

I had to stop watching those about halfway through. It was harassment and it was gross and it left me feeling gross.

Going further back...

MrStoob wrote...

Now I know there are people reading it, so that's okay. But no-one is saying a damn thing. It'd be nice to know what it is that makes them return, or what they don't like, or anything really!

I am not one of those people (for once) but as a rule if I don't have something specific to contribute I don't comment on a story. So a lot of the time I'll read something and think 'oh that was pretty good' but I don't have anything more concrete to offer. Fanfic.net needs a thumbs up button to go with it's reviews - it's easy to click on and you don't have to think of an in depth thing to write.

On the most difficult chapter(s) to write: I'm still writing the fscking thing. I have been writing it for over a year now. It doesn't like me. (Yes I'm still writing Akuze. Consider my **** thoroughly kicked.)

I think that I've decided that rather than write exactly what happened, I'll just have Shepard do his report about it and have him think about the important bits. Because otherwise this fic is going to be in perma-stall.

[dpMeggers]

Dikajos wrote...

Hello, I'm new here. I suppose that's the right place to ask my question.

I've created 2 stories in ME Universe (well, one is finished, I'm still working on the second one). Both of them are in Polish, but I live in England for a while now and decided to translate them into English. So my question is:

Where should I post them? Create a new topic or put them here? Or any other topic i didn't find yet?

Hello and welcome!

Also, my goodness you're braver than I am. I would never have the courage to translate my stories into French (my second language).

Where you should put them:
You can post them as a new topic in Mass Effect 3 Fan Creations.
You can create a FanFiction.net account and post them to that website.
You can create a DeviantArt account and post them to that website.
You can do all three!

There are other options, but they're not as familiar to me.

Good Luck!

[Dikajos]

dpMeggers wrote...

Also, my goodness you're braver than I am. I would never have the courage to translate my stories into French (my second language).

Where you should put them:
You can post them as a new topic in Mass Effect 3 Fan Creations.
You can create a FanFiction.net account and post them to that website.
You can create a DeviantArt account and post them to that website.
You can do all three!

There are other options, but they're not as familiar to me.

Good Luck!

Heh, maybe I am brave, but I expect you people to find A LOT of mistakes which even an English child wouldn't make. My English is not as good as I would like it to be and I don't feel confident about it. But I'd like to improve, so if I created something, translating it into English could be my way to improve that beautiful language . A new topic in Fan Creations? I guess that's going to be my choice. Thank you for the answer!

[Seracen]

MeredithvL wrote...

MrStoob wrote...

So how do you feel about Ash/Liara, just out of interest?  The same as any other 'female' character pairing with Ash?  Wouldn't have ever put her with another human female but with Liara, and the history they have in my fic, it works I think.  I did also put Miranda with Thane but it didn't really work out but she does rue that she didn't visit him in Huerta before he died.

I personally think that Liara/Javik could work, particularly if injected with humour.  Him humbugging his way around, while Liara berates him and apologises for him.

Liara and Ashley are too different in my opinion. Even if Ash could get past the fact that asari aren't really female or male but that they look like females, I don't see that they have a lot in common. Ash is a soldier and likes to speak her mind directly, Liara is the Shadow Broker.

Of course, for humour fanfics, anything goes. I even read a fanfic that felt a lot like Ranma 1/2 meets Mass Effect and I laughed a lot, but it was correctly tagged as humour and the author was careful enough to put a lot of jokes and humourous situations. It was very well written. And about Liara and Javik, like I said it could work, but under specific situations, or humour.

I implemented a burgeoning romance in my story between Kolyat and Falere.  It was amusing to see the effect it had on my beta reader.  She had a brain freeze.

Probably b/c her Femshep romanced Thane, so the prospect of her Shep's stepson dating her best friend's daugther freaked her out, haha.

On another wierd emotional connection, I also had a random Vorcha imprint on Ashley as a Battlemaster of sorts too (more like hero worship, no romance obviously).  Having her deal with that is amusing.

When I get around to my Femshep story, it'll end up being Kaidan/Miranda (which seems unlikely and fitting in equal measure), as this Shep still holds that torch for Thane.

[MeredithvL]

@ Dikajos: I've also seen stories posted on Tumblr. I also write in English to improve that language, since my first language is Spanish (I'm Argentinian). I think that the advantage about posting on fanfiction.net is that you could also find a beta reader that would be willing to help you with grammar and English language, and that could be helpful for you. Anyway, good luck!

@ fluffywalru: You're right, I'm aware that some romance options were for both MShep and Fshep and that they changed it at last minute, but I've play all three games so many times, that I believe I discarded the options that didn't make it to the game. Anyway, Ash/FemShep or Tali/FemShep is probably not as bad as Aria/Ashley, like I've also seen. As for Javik, does he even have the ability to love? I think not. He could of course fake empathy if the situation absolutely requires it, as when he's talking to people on the Citadel and Shepard has a paragon interrupt to tell him that he's not being helpful.

About the Kmeme community... don't get me started. A friend of mine sent me a link to one good story there, about the First Contact War, so when I was done reading it, I started browsing the site to see what else could be found. BAD idea. Some request are plain crazy, in the style of things like: "Can you put all the characters of Mass Effect in High School, but the year is 2010 and it all happens on Earth? And the teacher is a vorcha. And someone gets raped, but that's OK because they eventually like it, because that's totally how rape works, right?" Uuurgghh. I think Kmeme and sites like that are the reason why fanfiction has bad press.

@ dpMeggers: You're absolutely right, the "romance" with FemShep and Vega in Citadel DLC was totally harassment and the reason why the Alliance has regs about sex between their members in the first place. It was awful, but a lot of people thought it was nice and they were happy because they finally got their Shepard to have a night with Vega. Poor Vega, he looked up to her. I guess he doesn't look up to Shepard after that. Luckily that never happened in my game and never will, not even my renegade Shepards are such bastards

And if you're stuck, really the best approach is what you said, have Shepard make a report about what happened instead of describing every detail, or have a character telling another character what happened, or something that doesn't force you to go into details that you don't want to think about. Not every detail has to be explained for a story to be good. In fact, too many details could make a chapter boring (like when I tossed "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" literally out the window because Verne had the absolute need to have Nemo describing every single little fish, and I was "OMG, I don't care!!")

[MeredithvL]

Seracen wrote...

I implemented a burgeoning romance in my story between Kolyat and Falere.  It was amusing to see the effect it had on my beta reader.  She had a brain freeze.

Probably b/c her Femshep romanced Thane, so the prospect of her Shep's stepson dating her best friend's daugther freaked her out, haha.

My first beta wished her Shepard had romanced Vega. Boy, did she freak out because Vega was dead in my story (he died in the final run to the beam, in London). She even stopped beta reading my story. She also hated that my Shepard's LI is Garrus, but that's a canon LI, I didn't make it up. I guess that's why it's hard to find a beta reader for Mass Effect stories, people are so invested in the games, and everybody have their own head canons (that sometimes don't even work with real game canon).

Seracen wrote...

On another wierd emotional connection, I also had a random Vorcha imprint on Ashley as a Battlemaster of sorts too (more like hero worship, no romance obviously).  Having her deal with that is amusing.

What do you mean? English is not my first language so I didn't understand that. You have a vorcha following Ash around thinking that she's a Battlemaster for him?

Seracen wrote...

When I get around to my Femshep story, it'll end up being Kaidan/Miranda (which seems unlikely and fitting in equal measure), as this Shep still holds that torch for Thane.

I don't get why people go for Kaidan/Miranda, I don't see what could they have in common, and Kaidan says clearly in the first game that he's not interested in casual sex, so that's not that either. On another hand, if Virmire hadn't made that impossible, I can totally see Kaidan/Ashley, once one of them are over the infatuation they feel for Shepard, if she/he doesn't romance them at all. So, it's very sad that one of them doesn't make it out of Virmire, because in another world, another universe, I can see them together and very happy.

[MrStoob]

MeredithvL wrote...
Liara and Ashley are too different in my opinion. Even if Ash could get past the fact that asari aren't really female or male but that they look like females, I don't see that they have a lot in common. Ash is a soldier and likes to speak her mind directly, Liara is the Shadow Broker. 

Being a soldier and speaking her mind, rather describes a certain Commander that the young Doctor is enamoured with, don't you think?  In my fic, there's a lot more history/friendship with the three 'girls', and in the scenario, their usual backgrounds of 'career soldier' and 'shadow broker' don't really apply.

[hot_heart]

Just popping in to say hi to faces, old and new. Hi!

Lately, I'm finding myself more motivated to work on this superhero script of mine (if I ever finish it, I may look to an artist to help translate it into a comic). Oops.

[MrStoob]

hot_heart wrote...

Just popping in to say hi to faces, old and new. Hi!

Lately, I'm finding myself more motivated to work on this superhero script of mine (if I ever finish it, I may look to an artist to help translate it into a comic). Oops.

'ey up, Hotty.  Sounds interesting...


This is my fave artist for comic style on DA:

FolksNeedHeroes

He/she does fluffy ME stuff as well.  The characterization is great.

[hot_heart]

Oh, that's nice stuff. Though I'd be looking for a goofier style. It started as a sort of comedy (if you've ever read Warren Ellis' NextWave then in that vein but nowhere near as absurd), but I've decided to rework it with a proper core story and character arcs while retaining the humorous angle. The other option was commissioning a few pages and seeing if that can go anywhere, but that's still a way away.

It is called SuperZeroes and essentially about a group of people who make for z-list superheroes but learn to get better...and stuff. I don't really have a second or third act yet, though, so I want to try and focus on getting this Miranda story done as well as writing some short stories.

[YurigirlzCrush]

*waves* it's time for elcor girl's thoughts on fanfiction romance! but it seems my opinion is in the minority here. as far as pairings, I think just about anything goes. there is only one thing I straight up refuse to read about, and that's more about content than any specific pairing. anyone who puts Tali in a relationship as a submissive in a dominant-submissive style relationship loses me immediately. quarians are already treated like trash by most of the galaxy. it's the last thing I can see them being okay with in love.

but as far as pairings go? I think that's the draw of fanfics. they let writers do things that were impossible in the games. if it is written well enough to seem natural, I say go for it! on the other hand if it's horribly written and makes the characters seem completely out of character, then that's just bad writing, not a symptom of the pairing itself. I think just about any two characters could potentially find attractive qualities in each other, even if they seem to be total opposites, so the pairings themselves are never "out of character" in my eyes. it's about presentation. I could totally see Ash and Liara together, if it's presented believably enough. I love Tali/Femshep stories because she would have been my first choice in the games, but I was denied that chance (hence another draw of fanfiction *smiles*) and I am secretly dying to find a well-written Liara/Tali story... my dream pairing! and the few pairings I wouldn't read about are more about characters than the pairings themselves. I wouldn't read Shep/Anderson, but not because Anderson is like a father figure. It's because I didn't like him. In my headcanon, my Shepard cooperated with him as a superior officer, but secretly couldn't stand him. And Javik/anyone is something I wouldn't read, but that's because Javik was a colossal douche and I have no interest in reading more of him.

and btw, I am totes one of those people who uses the "romance" filter exclusively when looking for stories, so I may be a contributing factor to the original discussion about how romances get more views and reviews. aside: I review every chapter of any story I actually read, almost without exception. sometimes I review two chapters together, but that's rare. back on track, personally, if I want action, I enjoy movies as opposed to printed media. movies were made for showcasing action. it comes across so much better visually than in print. I enjoy drama, but it's so easy to get it wrong when writing so that it turns from intriguing to either cheesy, boring, or overboard. but romance is something that is almost always better in print. I can only think of a handful of romance movies that I truly, truly enjoyed, but I've found dozens of awesome romance stories *smiles* again, i'm talking romance here. while I don't mind the occasional bit of pure smut, or to have that inserted into one or two scenes in an otherwise romantic story, stories written as printed porn are not my speed at all. *shrugs* I don't presume to speak for anyone but myself, but maybe other people have a similar mindset and that's why romance stories generate so much more following.

[fluffywalrus]

YurigirlzCrush wrote...

*waves* it's time for elcor girl's thoughts on fanfiction romance! but it seems my opinion is in the minority here. as far as pairings, I think just about anything goes. there is only one thing I straight up refuse to read about, and that's more about content than any specific pairing. anyone who puts Tali in a relationship as a submissive in a dominant-submissive style relationship loses me immediately. quarians are already treated like trash by most of the galaxy. it's the last thing I can see them being okay with in love.

but as far as pairings go? I think that's the draw of fanfics. they let writers do things that were impossible in the games. if it is written well enough to seem natural, I say go for it! on the other hand if it's horribly written and makes the characters seem completely out of character, then that's just bad writing, not a symptom of the pairing itself. I think just about any two characters could potentially find attractive qualities in each other, even if they seem to be total opposites, so the pairings themselves are never "out of character" in my eyes. it's about presentation. I could totally see Ash and Liara together, if it's presented believably enough. I love Tali/Femshep stories because she would have been my first choice in the games, but I was denied that chance (hence another draw of fanfiction *smiles*) and I am secretly dying to find a well-written Liara/Tali story... my dream pairing! and the few pairings I wouldn't read about are more about characters than the pairings themselves. I wouldn't read Shep/Anderson, but not because Anderson is like a father figure. It's because I didn't like him. In my headcanon, my Shepard cooperated with him as a superior officer, but secretly couldn't stand him. And Javik/anyone is something I wouldn't read, but that's because Javik was a colossal douche and I have no interest in reading more of him.

and btw, I am totes one of those people who uses the "romance" filter exclusively when looking for stories, so I may be a contributing factor to the original discussion about how romances get more views and reviews. aside: I review every chapter of any story I actually read, almost without exception. sometimes I review two chapters together, but that's rare. back on track, personally, if I want action, I enjoy movies as opposed to printed media. movies were made for showcasing action. it comes across so much better visually than in print. I enjoy drama, but it's so easy to get it wrong when writing so that it turns from intriguing to either cheesy, boring, or overboard. but romance is something that is almost always better in print. I can only think of a handful of romance movies that I truly, truly enjoyed, but I've found dozens of awesome romance stories *smiles* again, i'm talking romance here. while I don't mind the occasional bit of pure smut, or to have that inserted into one or two scenes in an otherwise romantic story, stories written as printed porn are not my speed at all. *shrugs* I don't presume to speak for anyone but myself, but maybe other people have a similar mindset and that's why romance stories generate so much more following.

Haha, just responded to you on FFnet, but I'll add that there's a solid Liara/Ashley fic out there called "My Cause and My Love" and it actually was pretty convincing when it came to the pairing's compatibility, even if a few characters were ever so slightly AU, and Wrex was kinda inconsistently written at times. It was a bit of a fluffy ride for sure, but I kinda liked that But yeah, it's the only quality Liara/Ashley story I've read, but it made me a believer that it could work.

[MeredithvL]

I don't believe that any pairing could go, because in real life I don't feel attracted to just anybody. I think people feel attracted to a certain kind of people, based on personality. If there is a canon already showing what kind of people a character is attracted to, I don't see how a fanfic could alter that and not come out OOC.

About Liara and Ashley, I can understand why Liara would feel attracted to Ash once she's rejected by Shepard, but I fail to see what could Ash find attractive in Liara. I believe Ash would go for a stronger looking person, just like Shepard. Also, Liara is not exactly my favourite character, so I try to avoid stories focused on Liara. I'm fine if Liara is just there, as another character, however. In fact she's around in my own fanfic, but I couldn't stand to make her appear too often. Oh, and I cannot stand Jack. In my fanfic she made a cameo appearance of the type "hey, I'm alive" and that's it. She won't show up again, and I don't read fanfics where Jack plays an important role.

@ YurigirlzCrush: you're right that action scenes come better in movies, but for me the advantage of written media is that you can imagine whatever you like. Anyway I like drama better, and I don't see how writing drama could more easily get done wrong than romance stories. There are good drama stories just as there are bad stories, but you can also find bad romance stories and good romance stories. For me, pure fluff is boring, I can read fluff in the context of a story but then I'm like "good, that was nice, now what else is happening in their lives?". But like you said, it's about personal preferences. I'm not against romance stories, it's just that I've seen too many that were done wrong, OOC, or are just smut for the smut itself and have no content whatsoever.

Modifié par MeredithvL, 30 juillet 2013 - 04:36 .

[YurigirlzCrush]

Meredith, no offense intended by this: but I think your personal views on the characters color your perceptions. you seem to read into their likes based on the small bits of information in the games, while that could hardly be the whole picture. only one character ever made any kind of statement about the types of people they are attracted to, and that was a very broad statement: Traynor doesn't like guys. yes, they set aside a bunch of LI's for Shepard, but does that mean she is the only type of personality they would ever be attracted to? plus, Shepard can vary in personality so wildly by how you play her, that she is hardly set in stone. maybe Ash secretly loves shy and awkward types, or, given her interest in poetry, she might be into sensitive and romantic sorts. I could definitely see her as a hopeless romantic beneath the exterior of a soldier. maybe Garrus is attracted to blunt honesty instead of his own brand of sarcastic wit. personally, there are like 10 personality traits I find very attractive. do I only date people who have all 10? of course not. which is why I am attracted to a wide variety of girls... they might have a few of the personality traits I look for, while others have different ones. I don't think anyone is honestly attracted to only one type of person. otherwise their relationships would be with a bunch of carbon-copy partners, and i've never seen a friend of mine, guy or girl, date two people back to back where I thought they were very much like my friend's last significant other.

the point being, any pairing can work, as I said before, IF it is well written. opposites do attract sometimes, and love can creep up on anyone. you said you can't see what Ash might see in Liara, but you immediately followed it up by saying you don't like Liara. if you don't like her, of course you can't envision what someone might see in her. Ash is particularly well-read. perhaps Liara's intelligence and inquisitive nature is what first draws her. who knows? the point being, a good writer could make any pairing work.

romance vs. drama/action. it's true, there are good and bad romance stories. i've certainly seen some bad ones. but i've seen lots that I really enjoyed. whereas drama... i've only seen a small number of good drama fanfics, not counting romance/dramas... those I tend to enjoy more. but I do read drama. it's just that drama can be done well both in movies/TV and in print, so I can get my drama fix elsewhere too. I say they're easy to screw up because most drama fanfics i've read are filled with over-the-top conflicts and misunderstandings or the plot becomes so convoluted for the sake of added drama that it becomes hard to follow. I like some of that in a drama story, but when it goes too far I tend to find them unrelatable and therefore they lose my interest. maybe i've just picked bad ones to read and that doesn't apply to the majority, but most of the ones i've read take the drama too far and turn it cheesy or overdone.

my point to that whole thing though was that I can get action/drama through movies and TV, while romance... TV/Movies don't usually give me what I want out of them. I enjoy romance more in print, where you can get into the heads of the participants better as a reader and share their thoughts and feelings, rather than being limited to just judging from expressions and actions and the character's spoken statements in film.

[MeredithvL]

YurigirlzCrush wrote...

Meredith, no offense intended by this: but I think your personal views on the characters color your perceptions.

No problem, no offense taken. The thing is, I do assign a personality to the characters from what I've seen in the games, and I try to get a coherent picture of that character and their interests. Of course I'm not saying that a character might not evolve (especially for post ME3 stories) but I still find that some personalities wouldn't do well in a romantic relationship with certain others, based of course on how I've seen them act in the games and what I've read about them in the lore (codex, LOtSB, wikipedia, etc).

YurigirlzCrush wrote...
the point being, any pairing can work, as I said before, IF it is well written.

Then maybe I didn't find any well written stories about non canon pairings. but for some of them to work they would have to be excepcionally well written, IMO.

YurigirlzCrush wrote...

you said you can't see what Ash might see in Liara, but you immediately followed it up by saying you don't like Liara

I don't like Liara, but I understand why other people like her or even why other characters might like her. I just don't see Ash liking her. She could be attracted to Liara's nerdiness? I don't know. I'd rather read fanfics where both Ash and Kaidan survived Virmire and they ended up together. I do see that happening, if only both were alive.

YurigirlzCrush wrote...

but most of the ones i've read take the drama too far and turn it cheesy or overdone.

Oh, yes, I see your point. I hate that too. Perhaps the stories I've read are short and they ended before the author was tempted to overdo them.

YurigirlzCrush wrote...

I enjoy romance more in print, where you can get into the heads of the participants better as a reader and share their thoughts and feelings

Yes, I've found some good fanfics that actually do that and are very pleasant to read. Unfortunately I also found many fanfics taking romance and turning it into something cheesy as well. For instance, the fanfics that turn femShep post war into a housewife in 1950. There are tons of those, and she always romanced Kaidan when this happens. I find them OOC for both characters, because Shepard wouldn't feel happy just baking cookies, and Kaidan didn't fall for a woman that could just bake cookies. Or the fanfics where Shepard is submissive in her relationship and she's totally fine with that. Or the ones that are only about "I love you, let's have icecream, let's go to the park, let's watch the moon, etc" and nothing else is happening, not even post war psychological trauma or anything. Probably the worst I read is one where Shepard basically had the same personality as Sailor Moon. Of course I didn't read it past chapter 1, but it had a lot of chapters and readers. I mean, it's perfectly fine if you write that same story where Shepard is Sailor Moon and you tag it as humour... but not romance, as it was tagged.

Anyway I understand your reasons for prefering romance stories. I like better the stories that have a little bit of everything: some romance, some drama, conflict, emotions, intrigue, a little action, etc. They're hard to find in the universe of fanfiction however.

[MrStoob]

Final thought on romances.  The only character who explicitly states their sexuality/orientation/preference is Samantha Traynor.  For all the other characters, it can only be stated that they did not take in interest in femShep/Sheploo (as appropriate).  Ashley doesn't say, "I'm straight, so I'm not interested in you.", it doesn't even come up.  Maybe she just finds Sheploo attractive and not femShep.  Same with Miranda, or Tali, (Jack...?).  Like I said, no-one does except Traynor.  So IMHO, all bets are off!  

Modifié par MrStoob, 30 juillet 2013 - 08:43 .

[fluffywalrus]

MrStoob wrote...

Final thought on romances.  The only character who explicitly states their sexuality/orientation/preference is Samantha Traynor.  For all the other characters, it can only be stated that they did not take in interest in femShep/Sheploo (as appropriate).  Ashley doesn't say, "I'm straight, so I'm not interested in you.", it doesn't even come up.  Maybe she just finds Sheploo attractive and not femShep.  Same with Miranda, or Tali, (Jack...?).  Like I said, no-one does except Traynor.  So IMHO, all bets are off!  

Jack says she's "not really a girl's club kind of person", but she has 'swung that way' in the past, though that was back when she was being heavily manipulated.  I'd lean toward her being bisexual heteromantic.

Modifié par fluffywalrus, 30 juillet 2013 - 10:03 .

[MrStoob]

fluffywalrus wrote...

MrStoob wrote...

Final thought on romances.  The only character who explicitly states their sexuality/orientation/preference is Samantha Traynor.  For all the other characters, it can only be stated that they did not take in interest in femShep/Sheploo (as appropriate).  Ashley doesn't say, "I'm straight, so I'm not interested in you.", it doesn't even come up.  Maybe she just finds Sheploo attractive and not femShep.  Same with Miranda, or Tali, (Jack...?).  Like I said, no-one does except Traynor.  So IMHO, all bets are off!  

Jack says she's "not really a girl's club kind of person", but she has 'swung that way' in the past, though that was back when she was being heavily manipulated.  I'd lean toward her being bisexual heteromantic.

I thought there was something with Jack, hence the question mark.  Ta.  So she's up for a little frivolous fun then?