I chose option C, but man, I think it makes a difference *which* fans you have check you over.
You need the ones who've either seen all (or nearly all) of the canon in one of those finite fandoms, or who are as-informed-as-they-can-be in the infinite ones -- at least up to the time period in which you're setting the story.
I wouldn't ask someone writing, say, a post-S1 SV fic to know everything that went down in S2 or S3.
But also... yeah. It's a care thing. I wrote a story a while back based on one small piece of canon from a storyline I hadn't yet read. Nearly everything in the story was written around canon I *had* seen, and the canon info I used from what I hadn't was correct, but... man. The story's still all wrong, because the fan I used for info-checking left out what I *considered* to be a major aspect of the storyline in question when tutoring/vetting me.
(Essentially, the story slashed character A with character C and did not mention -- at ALL -- character B, whose romantic relationship with character A, while ultimately over by the time I set my story, was a *major* part of the storyline. Hell, it was the B-plot. If I'd known that? I would've written the story in an entirely different way. If I'd gotten someone else who'd read the storyline to beta it, I would've *edited* in an entirely different way.)
And... yeah. You can't just ask anyone, I don't think. You have to take a good look at who's vetting you, and what issues they may or may not have with the canon and canon relationships. I don't *blame* the fan in question for leaving this stuff out -- I *did* know about their massive issues beforehand, in the same way I knew which people in SV fandom I could and couldn't ask 'hey, what's going on with Lana?' and expect a detailed, objective answer.
But... man. Yeah. In the end, it's always going to be *better* to see the canon yourself, I think, because even though it *is* perfectly possible to write -- and write well -- without it...
Even the most conscientious fan has weaknesses and blind spots.
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8/8/04 00:39 (UTC)You need the ones who've either seen all (or nearly all) of the canon in one of those finite fandoms, or who are as-informed-as-they-can-be in the infinite ones -- at least up to the time period in which you're setting the story.
I wouldn't ask someone writing, say, a post-S1 SV fic to know everything that went down in S2 or S3.
But also... yeah. It's a care thing. I wrote a story a while back based on one small piece of canon from a storyline I hadn't yet read. Nearly everything in the story was written around canon I *had* seen, and the canon info I used from what I hadn't was correct, but... man. The story's still all wrong, because the fan I used for info-checking left out what I *considered* to be a major aspect of the storyline in question when tutoring/vetting me.
(Essentially, the story slashed character A with character C and did not mention -- at ALL -- character B, whose romantic relationship with character A, while ultimately over by the time I set my story, was a *major* part of the storyline. Hell, it was the B-plot. If I'd known that? I would've written the story in an entirely different way. If I'd gotten someone else who'd read the storyline to beta it, I would've *edited* in an entirely different way.)
And... yeah. You can't just ask anyone, I don't think. You have to take a good look at who's vetting you, and what issues they may or may not have with the canon and canon relationships. I don't *blame* the fan in question for leaving this stuff out -- I *did* know about their massive issues beforehand, in the same way I knew which people in SV fandom I could and couldn't ask 'hey, what's going on with Lana?' and expect a detailed, objective answer.
But... man. Yeah. In the end, it's always going to be *better* to see the canon yourself, I think, because even though it *is* perfectly possible to write -- and write well -- without it...
Even the most conscientious fan has weaknesses and blind spots.