30-day Fanfiction Writing Meme – Day 03

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The meme continues (originated by elfflame, brought to my attention by jedibuttercup).

Day 03: For each of the fandoms from Day 02, what were your favorite characters to write?

Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Favorite character(s) to write — In this fandom, I actually have several favorites, and for different reasons:
Character: Xander
Why: Because he’s Xander. My favorite character of all time, period. Because he has so much more courage than confidence, because he’s outclassed by everyone around him and yet they all depend on him (and should). Because his voice isn’t easy for me, not at all, but when I can even come close to getting it right, he has the best lines. Most of all, though, because he’s Xander.
Character: Harmony
Why: I love Harmony. She’s such a total ditz, which opens all kinds of comedic possibilities. As a vampire, there is so much delicious dissonance between her easily-dismissed appearance/demeanor and her actual potential deadliness. Furthermore, she’s the kind of character who can catalyze and potentiate interesting responses from other characters.
Character: Ethan Rayne
Why: He’s a gleeful, unrepentant scoundrel, stirring up trouble for the fun of it. He loves his life, and his life is mischief. He appears to be as educated as Giles, but with a rougher edge (however sophisticated), and capturing that amused, dissipated irony in his voice is always a pleasure.

Fandom: Angel: the Series
Favorite character to write: Angel himself
Why: I haven’t done that much of him, but the part that I focused on was how seriously he takes himself. The guy actually IS tragic, but his unrelenting view of himself as tragic both limits and helps to define his character. This can be touching, or sad, or faintly comedic, and I’ve touched on all three.

Fandom: the Book of Eli
Favorite character to write: Solara
Why: Because she’s the one I wrote. Because where she was, at the end of the movie, had me wondering where her journey would take her, and that’s the story I told when it came time to do one.

Fandom: Mannix
Favorite character to write: Mannix, of course
Why: This was a Mannix/Buffy crossover, and he was the only character from ‘his’ world that I brought into Sunnydale. At the same time, it was fun and interesting to show a man who was tough and capable and determined, but at the same time totally clueless and out of his depth. Joe worked well for those purposes.

Fandom: Magnum, P.I.
Favorite character to write: Buck Greene
Why: Because he’s the one I wrote. Because, back when my wife and I were watching Magnum together, she was interested in the interaction between Buck and Thomas, and — since the story was written as a birthday present for her — that was the set of elements I explored.

Fandom: Superman
Favorite character to write: big surprise, Superman
Why: The extent of his power threatens to make him boring. The conflict between his power and his self-assigned sense of responsibility makes him interesting. Another promising contrast is between his internal self-image and the impression he makes on others.

Fandom: Alias
Favorite character to write: Marshall (so far)
Why: As I’ve said several times so far, he’s the one I wrote. I had an idea, and I followed it out, and it was told solely from Marshall’s POV. At the same time, Marshall’s unique perspective truly is fun to write.

Fandom: La Femme Nikita
Favorite character to write: Michael Samuelle
Why: Michael, facing off against Faith? No way he can win … but Michael doesn’t lose. More, expressing that core of passion through total icy inhuman self-control was an exacting and rewarding challenge.

Fandom: MacGyver/Modesty Blaise
Favorite character to write: Mac
Why: This was a very short piece, plus it was actually a rewrite of something sroni produced as a ficlet challenge, so don’t take too much out of this; still, between the two characters, MacGyver himself was more fun to write.

Fandom: Tarzan
Favorite character to write: none
Why: It was a drabble. I liked Jane’s closing line, but there just wasn’t enough there to establish a ‘favorite’ for me.

And that’s all for today.

Other Questions:

1 – How did you first get into writing fanfic, and what was the first fandom you wrote for? What do you think it was about that fandom that pulled you in?
2 – Name the fandoms you’ve written in, and how much you’ve written in that fandom, and if you still write in it.
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4 – Do you have a “muse” character, that speaks to you more than others, or that tries to push their way in, even when the fic isn’t about them? Who are they, and why did that character became your muse?
5 – If you have ever had a character try to push their way into a fic, whether your “muse” or not, what did you do about it?
6 – When you write, do you prefer writing male or female characters?
7 – Have you ever had a fic change your opinion of a character?
8 – Do you write OCs? And if so, what do you do to make certain they’re not Mary Sues, and if not, explain your thoughts on OCs.
9 – Pairings – For each of the fandoms from day two, what are your three favorite pairings to write?
10 – Pairings – Have you ever gone outside your comfort zone and written a pairing you liked, but found you couldn’t write, or a pairing you didn’t like, and found you could?
11 – Genre – do you prefer certain genres of fic when you’re writing? What kind do you tend to write most?
12 – Have you ever attempted an “adaptation” fic of a favorite book or movie but set in a different fandom?
13 – Do you prefer canon or fanon when you write? Has writing fanfic for a fandom changed the way you see some or even all of the original source material?
14 – Ratings – how high are you comfortable with going? Have you ever written higher? If you’re comfortable with NC-17, have you ever been shocked by finding that the story you’re writing is G-rated instead?
15 – Warnings – What do you feel it most important to warn for, and what’s the strangest thing you’ve warned for in a fic?
16 – Summaries – Do you like them or hate them? How do you come up with them, if you use them?
17 – Titles – Are they the bane of your existence, or the easiest part of the fic? Also, if you do chaptered fic, do you give each chapter a title, or not?
18 – Where do you get the most inspiration for your fics (aka “bunnies”) from?
19 – When you have bunnies, do you sit down and start writing right away, or do you write down the idea for further use?
20 – Do you ever get bunnied from other people’s stories or art in the same fandom?
21 – Sequels – Have you ever written a sequel to a fic you wrote?
22 – Have you ever participated in a fest or a Big Bang? If so, write about your favorite experience in relation to one. If not, are there any you’ve thought about doing? And if not, why not?
23 – When you post, where do you post to? Just your journal? Just an archive? Your own personal site?
24 – Beta-ing – How many betas do you like to use to make sure there aren’t any major flaws in your fic? Do you have a beta horror story or dream story?
25 – Music – Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain “mood” to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?
26 – What is the oddest (or funnest) thing you’ve had to research for a fic?
27 – Where is your favorite place to write, and do you write by hand or on the computer?
28 – Have you ever collaborated with anyone else, whether writing together or having an artist work on a piece about your fic?
29 – What is your current project or projects?
30 – Do you have a favorite fic you’ve written? What makes it your favorite? And don’t forget to give us a link!

Day 04