Are Fanfictions original any more?

[Jon UKX]

This question has been bugging me for a long time so I've decided to post my views.
When I came to the fanfiction board, I noticed that they were many fics that to my surprise were original. Fics like Lisa the Legend, When Destinies Collide and Lapras Valley High and Electric Buggy to Victory, all excellent fics and they were original.
But lately, I see that fanfics are starting to lose their originality. Although I've written very unoriginal fics I now think that originality is what's best.
However, even trainer fics (which I think are unoriginal) can be good, fics like From Rookie to Champion and The Emerald League are good because the characters are not wooden and two dimensional and the pokemon have a personality.
So, should fics be more original or should they stick to the same old layout?

[Iveechan]

People just write what they like. What's original and what's not are just how other people interpret them. Did you read all the fics on this forum? Trainer fics are tough to write because there are so many. I think if people write more fics about Pokemon and not the stupid human, I'd like them more. I just don't like humans, they bore me.

[Drago]

Hang on, could you define original? It's tricky for me to put my finger on a single fanfic ever made that was truly 'original', but I suspect I'm taking the term over-technical.

In the broader sense, the main reason so many fics are unoriginal is that there's a defined plot. Not only does it make things easier to progress, but there's also a defined successful way to do things. With an original fic, on the other hand, it's hit-or-miss. You could have the most brilliant ideas for your fic, but due to it being original, it could simply be too much for the casual reader to take in. And that's a real waste.
Nobody wants their fics thrown aside, so, for fear of rejection, they keep all their best new ideas out, and the basic plot is usually deep enough to bring them through. For one, a lot of fic writers are doing so for their first time (such as myself). It's a scary thing to post your creations online for the very first time, all you want is for people to like it. Then, when you've established that, there generally is less held back, meaning more original fics. So, in other words, the truly original fics take time. Maybe creativity's hit a dry spell, but I don't read every fic. I can only generalise based upon what you've said.

And, either way. If every fic was original, would we really be able to appreciate them?
The fics you've named... all respected for their originality, but if everyone was writing fics of such quality, would we be able to notice them as well as we do? And additionally, if most fics were original, there'd be less original material.

The short version of that is, I have noticed a lack of originality (not being hypocritical, I'm notorious for not being original myself), but I think it's only a temporary thing. Until we can grace a new original fic, at least we've got what we have right now to help inspire us to write something that takes the reader's breath away.

[Chris 2.1]

fanfictions are still as original, but the writers are not. I think it is safe to say beginning fanfics, maybe the first from a member, may be somewhat cliche in terms of plot and overall storyline, but some developing writers have fantastic original peices on their hands.

[classy_cat18]

Originally posted by Brit Chris
fanfictions are still as original, but the writers are not. I think it is safe to say beginning fanfics, maybe the first from a member, may be somewhat cliche in terms of plot and overall storyline, but some developing writers have fantastic original peices on their hands.

I kinda believe the opposite. Sometimes it's the first fanfic of a writer that's the most original. The problem is that they run out of original ideas as they write more fics. Some of them, that is. On the other hand, forget about what I said.

[The Rusted One]

I'm not so sure individual fics are unoriginal - many are very original, but it depends on the genre. If a genre is very much overdone, or at least has many authors writing for it, then there are more stories - each may be original, etc., but the premise is very similar.

[Captain Pringle]

Originally posted by classy_cat18
I kinda believe the opposite. Sometimes it's the first fanfic of a writer that's the most original. The problem is that they run out of original ideas as they write more fics. Some of them, that is. On the other hand, forget about what I said.

Yeah, true in some cases. Ideally, though, the more an author writes (and maybe more importantly, the more he reads), the more cool ideas he'll get flying around his/her head... and the more writing experience he/she will have to express those ideas better. :)

[mr_pikachu]

Well, the definition of "fanfiction" in itself violates complete originality, so that's pretty much out of the questions, but I think I know what you're trying to say. Let me put it this way. The fic you described, if I'm not mistaken, were all on the vBulletin forum, and possibly even some before that. This means, that, simply, they have been in the works for a long time. In all likelyhood they were not all thought up simultaneously, but rather with vast expanses of time in between. It's just that when you joined, they were all on the forum, so naturally you thought, "Whoa, there's a bunch of really good fics, and it's only my first day/week/month/whatever on the forum! This must happen all the time!" The fact is that it does not. Inspiration cannot be rushed, whether there is 1 writer or 100. Besides, there are still those same fics on the forum, plus Full Moon, Rhapsody in Red, and some fics by newer writers that are impressive as well. What I'm trying to say is that there will be up-periods and down-periods, and personally, I think we're going through a fine period right now. There are a lot of new writers, but they show some great promise, and that's something to commend. Not to mention we've still got the favorites from when you joined. So, let's just keep on reading. Eventually there will be another collection of "original" fics, and when that day comes, remind me to say, "I told you so." :D

[Gavin Luper]

Originality is always the best thing, but start off simple and then inrtoduce more original ideas as you get into the story. That way you're not bombarding new readers with all these new concepts at once.

I don't really think originality is something that comes with how many stories you've written, I mean, LTL was my first and really the only one I've done. I think that it really has to do with how good your imagination is.

Cheers!

[Jay]

Of course originality is what drives the readers - that's what I look for in a fanfic for me to start reading it.

If there were such similar fan fictions then we'd become bored quickly, and inevitably stop reading the fiction all together. Of course people like to write what they want, but basing it off of someone else fic to make it so identical and unoriginal just drives the readers away, thankfully?

It's a big factor to take into consideration, and variety is the way to go.

[classy_cat18]

I also think it's harder to write original fics because a lot of it's been done already. Dragons, werewolves, ghosts, vampires (have they done vampires?), I've seen them all, I think. Crossovers can always be original, but they are tricky to do.