askye: S'weird. I've never been able to write unless I have an absolute steel glad knowledge of how it's going to end. I just feel I'd be totally adrift if I didn't know how a story was to end.

The coolest thing EVER, (I was telling Ple this last night) was when I was writing Dream Forever, my frist BtVS story. I wrote it back when we were on TT and I literarly was writing it while posting in Bitches. I would write some and read and think and write some more.

The coolest thing ever part is when I posted the ending and EVERYONE howled "noooo! noooo!" which was the exact reaction I was hoping for.

By the way UTTAD, Dream Forever is a general story that at the time it was written, fit into canon.

But what if you're writing and the character takes a turn and wants to do something else? I mean, I know they aren't alive and writers control them and all that but sometimes what I wanted to write doesn't fit where the character is going, even if I did know the general vicinity where I wanted to end up.

I think I write fic best when I can do long elegant plotlines and add oiginal characters.

In fact, I seem incapable of not adding original characters, now that I consider it....

askye: See I think every fic writer secretly (or, you know not so secretly) craves that reaction. :-)

I've had, to my knowledge, five people read my fic. But I crave/am terrified that more will read it. :-)

See that's why I like writing the most. When characters you are writing just wander off on their own, seemingly without any intervention on your part.
deborah grabien: See it's the adding of original characters that I just can't. And yet ... in my latest, no sooner have I started than, bang! there's an original character. *sigh*

PMM: I'm 4,500 words into something, with an absolutely crystal clear knowledge of how I want it to end. Unfortunately I fear it will take about another 100,000 words to get there. Which is vaguely off putting. :-)

Hee. I also tend to be terse (blessing and a curse), and am aware that a lot of writers would use two words where I use one, so my longest piece was only (counting both parts) 35,000 words. But, oddly, while I tend to be spare with my word usage, I'm also not capable of writing a sex-based story without writing about six-to-ten pages of build up to where I could feel that rationally, yes, these two people in this place and at this time, would be willing to bed each other.

a good plot with wooden characters? Not so interesting to me.

Ahh, that's different. Good characteriztion comes before plot or relationship--that's not sacrificable. A story with an interesting plot with bad/wooden characterization would fall into a badfic category, for me. Once there are competent prose and believable characterizations, then I'd pick plotty gen over a relationship story.

But what if you're writing and the character takes a turn and wants to do something else? I mean, I know they aren't alive and writers control them and all that but sometimes what I wanted to write doesn't fit where the character is going, even if I did know the general vicinity where I wanted to end up.

I run with it. Go with what they want, not what I want. Randy drunken beasts.

UTTAD, I love attention. I knew about archives and fanfiction.net and I wanted people to read my stuff.

I'm contrary enough that I'm disappointed I still haven't received any negative feedback for anything I've written. Not that I really want anyone to hate my stuff, but it's an experience I haven't had as a fanfic writer and I want that too. Also a long feedback email. Those two things.

But even if no one else but the Buffistas or the Bitches, or my cat read my stuff I'd still write it.

Vonnie K: I think that's part of what I was trying to say before. The characters are already there. Fully rounded, waiting to be put into good stories. So, for me, Buffy fanfic, stands or falls on the story, not the characters.

askye: Can you link me to your stories?