Break-in characters
Apr. 16th, 2008 08:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenayA few of you may have noticed that so far this year I have written exactly two short fics so far. Leaving aside the small matter of how many long fics I used to write in a year, the thing that I have been thinking about is that both of those fics are Doctor Who fics based around Donna.
Why have I been thinking about this? Because Donna seems to be my break-in character for Doctor Who.
I have got the beginnings of several Ace fics littered around my hard-drive. Try as I might, none of them seem to call me even though I really want to write fic for my favourite character and a much under-used Doctor. In classic Who, the only character that I've actually finished a fic for was Brigadier Bambera. Not anyone's first choice, I think, although she was great to write for. In new Who, I have vaguely considered writing fic for both Rose and Martha, but never got further than vaguely thinking about it. I love both characters to bits, yet they just don't speak to me.
This brings me to Donna, who should be the hardest of the new companions to write for because she's loud, brash, shouty, obnoxious and pushy. She's so easy to caricature that she should be incredibly hard to get right and intimidating for writers. And yet she's the character that I've written two fics for with another half finished and a couple more germinating in my brain.
I'm calling her my break-in character because she's the character that I finally found to write in DW.
It doesn't seem to be the character that I most identify with or that I share the background to and that holds true for every fandom. Buffy was my character in Buffy, it was Daniel in Stargate and Elizabeth in Atlantis. It's not necessarily the most popular because half of fandom seemed to hate Elizabeth and a lot of fandom still isn't sure about Donna. It's not a character that I feel needs redeeming or the prettiest or the most fun-loving or the funniest.
I guess the thing with all those characters is that they're the ones that I want to explore and that I have something to say about. Perhaps that's why I spend a couple of years writing for a fandom and then largely move on because I have nothing left to say. Fannish butterflies like me is an essay best left for another day. These are the characters that catch me up and that I can actually feel when I'm writing, who I don't have to struggle to create words for. I like exploring the sides to these characters that are hinted at on the screen but never explored hugely and I enjoy working out how they think.
Perhaps it's easiest to say that these are the characters that speak to me, except it's not a literal voices in my head thing! Just...they are the characters where the stories write themselves to a degree rather than the ones where I have beginnings littered around that never go anywhere without a monumental struggle.
I haven't found my Torchwood character yet. I assumed that it would be Tosh - computer whizz! - and it isn't. Except lately I've been getting the vague ideas for a Captain John Hart story and I'm not sure that I'm ready to write a sociopathic murder addict even if his story is starting to write itself in my head when I get quiet moments.
So, does anyone else experience this or am I just crazy?
Why have I been thinking about this? Because Donna seems to be my break-in character for Doctor Who.
I have got the beginnings of several Ace fics littered around my hard-drive. Try as I might, none of them seem to call me even though I really want to write fic for my favourite character and a much under-used Doctor. In classic Who, the only character that I've actually finished a fic for was Brigadier Bambera. Not anyone's first choice, I think, although she was great to write for. In new Who, I have vaguely considered writing fic for both Rose and Martha, but never got further than vaguely thinking about it. I love both characters to bits, yet they just don't speak to me.
This brings me to Donna, who should be the hardest of the new companions to write for because she's loud, brash, shouty, obnoxious and pushy. She's so easy to caricature that she should be incredibly hard to get right and intimidating for writers. And yet she's the character that I've written two fics for with another half finished and a couple more germinating in my brain.
I'm calling her my break-in character because she's the character that I finally found to write in DW.
It doesn't seem to be the character that I most identify with or that I share the background to and that holds true for every fandom. Buffy was my character in Buffy, it was Daniel in Stargate and Elizabeth in Atlantis. It's not necessarily the most popular because half of fandom seemed to hate Elizabeth and a lot of fandom still isn't sure about Donna. It's not a character that I feel needs redeeming or the prettiest or the most fun-loving or the funniest.
I guess the thing with all those characters is that they're the ones that I want to explore and that I have something to say about. Perhaps that's why I spend a couple of years writing for a fandom and then largely move on because I have nothing left to say. Fannish butterflies like me is an essay best left for another day. These are the characters that catch me up and that I can actually feel when I'm writing, who I don't have to struggle to create words for. I like exploring the sides to these characters that are hinted at on the screen but never explored hugely and I enjoy working out how they think.
Perhaps it's easiest to say that these are the characters that speak to me, except it's not a literal voices in my head thing! Just...they are the characters where the stories write themselves to a degree rather than the ones where I have beginnings littered around that never go anywhere without a monumental struggle.
I haven't found my Torchwood character yet. I assumed that it would be Tosh - computer whizz! - and it isn't. Except lately I've been getting the vague ideas for a Captain John Hart story and I'm not sure that I'm ready to write a sociopathic murder addict even if his story is starting to write itself in my head when I get quiet moments.
So, does anyone else experience this or am I just crazy?
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no subject
Date: 2008-04-16 08:53 pm (UTC)Oh, absolutely not because I spent the whole time reading this thinking how much I agreed with you.
When I started writing LOTR I was sure I'd be a hobbit writer because I loved the hobbits and the first time I read ROTK I skipped through the first half of the book. And yet I've written a lot of Elrond.
With Atlantis I thought I'd write Shep and it turned out to be Elizabeth. With Doctor Who I was sure it would be Ace, being as how she's the best character ever, but it's Sarah, and Harry.
I think it's the characters I have something to write about. Someone with a gap to be explored, whether that's a literal gap or an emotional one. Just someone who is interesting to write about, rather interesting to watch/read about.
I'm definitely fannish butterfly-like for similar reasons. I want to go back and write more Elrond and more Elrond & Aragorn but I don't know if I have anything left to say about them any more.
Totally off topic
Date: 2008-04-16 09:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-04-16 10:03 pm (UTC)I haven't written much in other fandoms, but I had the same thing happening with some of the prompts.
Before Doctor Who, my stories were mostly kept in my head, but I see the same pattern.
I'm also seeing it with the Chalet crossovers I'm working on. My favourite characters aren't the ones I'm writing right now (partially because the timing's wrong), but I find I'm liking writing Joey which I never expected. And in rp I've started an AU Sarah in which she left the Doctor and eventually married Stephen Maynard. ;)
Did you ever get the information about the Girlsown mailing list? I'm not sure I had the right emaill address.
no subject
Date: 2008-04-16 11:38 pm (UTC)That surprises me, because I have nothing but love for her. She's the companion I've most loved right away in New-Who. (i.e. it took me a LONG time to warm up to Rose, not as long to accept Martha, but Donna? Loved her from the first special!)
As for finding 'your' character... hmmmm. For me, each show has a character I am in love with (male or female), and therefore the character I WRITE is the one who is also in love with/closest to my favourite character. That way the POV echoes my own.
no subject
Date: 2008-04-20 03:13 pm (UTC)I think that's what I worked out. There has to be something that hasn't been said about that character, a gap, or I can't write them.
I'm definitely fannish butterfly-like for similar reasons.
*nods enthusiastically*
Re: Totally off topic
Date: 2008-04-20 03:14 pm (UTC)*scampers off to look*
no subject
Date: 2008-04-20 03:18 pm (UTC)Phew! I was afraid that I was babbling hopelessly.
but I find I'm liking writing Joey which I never expected
It seems like the character you *think* you'll want to write is never the one you *actually* write. A lot of the time, I either feel like there are characters I should write (Sam Carter in Stargate is my biggest bug bear for that) or there are characters that are pretty and fun to watch so I'm sure they must be great to write (Ianto, Ace etc.). Except those are exactly the characters that I never end up writing much for.
Did you ever get the information about the Girlsown mailing list?
I did, thank you! I tried to email you to let you know that I had it, but obviously the email never got through. I'm currently on digest and loving all the different discussions :-)
no subject
Date: 2008-04-20 03:26 pm (UTC)Same for me - I adore her more with every episode. I will admit that I wasn't entirely convinced when I saw Runaway Bride originally, but I rewatched it a couple of months later and couldn't understand why I'd ever been unsure about her! I think some people are finding it hard to get past Catherine Tate playing her and people are focusing a lot on the fact that she's louder and more pushy that Martha or Rose. The Catherine Tate thing was why I was initially unsure about her, but CT is much better actress that I ever thought she would be. Donna challenging the Doctor and voicing her opinions (loudly sometimes, yes) is one of the things that I absolutely love about her.
That way the POV echoes my own.
Now that's really interesting. I'm trying to think back to how I felt about the characters when I'm writing them or watching them. I don't tend to be in love with the characters on the shows so that doesn't really affect my character choice. Perhaps with Buffy fic I was a little in love with Faith and Willow when I was writing them, but it was usually more about their feelings for Buffy rather than the other way around. If we took a poll around fandom, I wonder what the split would be on how people choose 'their' character?
no subject
Date: 2008-04-20 03:27 pm (UTC)Although not too big a gap or I just don't know where to start.
no subject
Date: 2008-04-20 04:10 pm (UTC)*bounce* I'm behind on the list (which happens periodically). I'll catch up during the week sometime.