You fics vs. OC fics

Things I Cannot Stand

Ah, the infamous 'you'/OC fic.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that this type of story is one of, if not the most, popular type of fic written on asianfanfics.

It is also the genre of fic that is subject to the most hatred on this site.

I myself write numerous 'you' fics, and while I am not the best writer, I see nothing wrong with writing them.

Some writers thoroughly blast the mere notion of having a 'reader-insert' story, labeling the female characters as 'Mary-Sues' and believing that those fics are of no worth to read. A good number of those writers believe that an OC, or original character, fic is better (and the ones complaining are often the ones that write those types of stories).

However, I've read numerous stories of both types, and while I have read good fics from both categories, I have read even more terrible ones.

First of all, having an 'OC' does not necessarily mean that the character is better built. There are so many OC fics that have flat female leads, most often depicted by an ulzzang and are described as 'happy, cheerful, lonely, everyone loves her, nobody knows her, can speak multiple languages, is a nerd, is a bad girl, a transfer student with a Korean name, sweet, gentle and/or sarcastic' in some combination (or sometimes all of the above). It's impossible for one single person to have all of those characteristics.

Many 'you' fics also use that same formula, which I find apalling. 'You' fics, however, are supposed to allow anyone (usually of the female gender) to read it and imagine themselves in it, but the vast majority of these on this site use ulzzangs as a 'base' for how 'you' should look, and often, they are given a Korean name.

It's not terribly hard to build an interesting character. It is harder to do so with a 'you' fic, as you have to assume that anyone could be reading it, however I have read several of both 'you' and OC fics that are engaging and believable.

TL;DR: Neither 'you' nor OC fics are better than the other as a whole. Some are good, and some are bad. You just have to look.

(there will be more on this topic later...)

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deepbreath #1
Chapter 11: thank you for clearing up the meaning of SNCJ. i keep on seeing sncj santa exchange fics but doesnt have any clue as to what sncj means. and then i searched what it stand for only to be more confuse cause what in the merriam is sonyeoncheonji? i still dont know. but at least it is now clear its for the exo fandom only cause i swear i thought girls generation has something to do with it. thank you for this informative article. and your a/n cracked me up. also, evrything about that lj thing is super true. atleast in my observation. theres a lot of unappreciated writers there.
ChaoticDarkAngel #2
Chapter 4: I think it's silly when people bash authors who write 'you' fics and praise those who write OC fics. Deep down I think those type of AFF users know that both genres have their faults. There are some you fics I've enjoyed greatly actually and ones I didn't enjoy as much same for OC stories it all depends on how the writer portrays the lead character is all ^^
kaedeyuuki #3
Chapter 4: Wanna know something? The Mary Sue trope can be both found in OCs and reader-insert characters. :)

It's total bullsh*t if one says that OCs are a lot better than reader-inserts. I could totally throw a good number of Mary Sue OCs from Fanfiction.Net. :P
lovestillgoeson #4
Chapter 12: While I agree with the majority of things you say in your posts, I have to disagree with the last one.

I personally don't think asking for a sequel to a story is rude (again, asking, not demanding; demanding does is rude). You take the readers wanting a sequel as if they're telling you your story is not good enough, but for me (and I think a lot of people will agree) it means that they liked your story so much that they need to have more of it.

Haven't you ever liked a book or story so much that you wished you hadn't gotten to the end because you couldn't get enough of it, or you've read it more than once because you couldn't get over it? The feeling is pretty much like that.

So no, I don't think people who ask for sequels are implying a story is bad.
j2ster #5
Chapter 12: by far the worst i've ever gotten was a straightforward "i demand a sequel"
MehRainbow #6
Chapter 3: Overall, I found the tidbits about AFF & LJ to be the most interesting. I frequently use both sites, and your points seem very valid. Anyway, I just wanted to say, "Kudos to you!" :)
Iloveanime #7
Chapter 6: Oh God, Mary-Sues... hate them! I dislike it when the OC is perfect. I mean, do you know anyone who is pretty, has an IQ of 700 (aka super smart), virtually speaks ALL languages, is a magnet for hot boys and is popular, all at the same time? The answer is NO.
FullmetalTitan #8
Chapter 8: Mhmmm...I personally like mpreg but to each their own XD This could be very useful to those who have no idea how to write . Hell I've been writing it for awhile and it's difficult to get right .___. I hope to become better at it someday.
FullmetalTitan #9
Chapter 3: *patience* stupid typos...
FullmetalTitan #10
Chapter 3: I have a LJ account though I haven't been on it...oh gosh since last year I think. It's not that I dislike it, I just feel more comfortable on AFF is all ^^ And yeah, there are bad stories on here...but there's also good ones. People just need to have patients is all. They'll find a good fic on here I'm sure.

I just dislike it, when people praise LiveJournal like it's a God or something. It's just like every other site out there and so is AFF. You'll find cringe worthy fics on both sites and good ones :3
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