I don't know if this has been talked about, but I'm doing it anyway.

As I look through AFF, I see something very upsetting. People are confusing up OC (original character) & You (reader). These are two different things and the fact that people get this mixed up is a turn off, for me at least. But I still read them cause I like to.

OC stands for Original Character. An OC is some a character that you make up. They aren't someone people know about. For example, Jay Park isn't an OC. But if you had a character named Jackson Park & isn't an idol or an actual person, then that's an OC. They can't be real. They may resemble idols or real life people, but THEY ARE NOT PEOPLE.

By You, I mean reader. Reader fics are popular because they put the person reading into the story. You would be an OC. This goes against what I said, but hear me out. You are not real. In the story, you are a character. This character is fully developed but is not you. They aren't a real life person. The only thing in common is that you have the same name & age if nothing else. But you as a whole are not the character. Just parts of you, and a lot of the time these are fill-in-the-blanks.

Now, why You is an OC but an OC isn't always the reader. You (reader) is an OC because they aren't an idol or a widely known person in real life. They may be an idol in the story, but outside what are they? Thin air? So You can be classified as an OC always. BUT OC's AREN'T ALWAYS YOUs!

If your character has a name and is written in 1st/3rd person with a face (like a physical representation), then odds are they are just an OC and not a You. If they have just one or two of those attributes, odds are that they are both. If they have one or none, then it can definitely be either. Of course, they're are exceptions to the rule. But even then they can be separated.

Well, that's my rant. Thanks! All comments welcome.