--Alan -- ##################################################################### "Elfquest" Fanfic: Where It's At, Where It's Going An Editorial By Alan (John Alan Riggs) ##################################################################### With every group of fans (fandom), there is a point where the need to create becomes particularly strong. One of the best-known examples is the original "Star Trek" series. After its cancellation, the many rabid fans began to write their own stories. It wasn't long before many of them became quite good, creating fiction that was high- quality, daring, and beyond the series' boundaries. Since that day, other fandoms have taken up such callings. In this editorial, I will examine the world of Elfquest fan fiction, as it is found on the Web. I'll attempt to descibe the main themes and settings that permeate stories, and predict where EQ fanfic will go in the future. One good sampling of current fan fiction is at Elfquest.com's fanfic mailing list archive (http://www.elfquest.com/Fan/Archives/FANFIC/). As of this posting - May 4, 1999 - there are several dozen diverse stories and poems up, and there were still over 250 messages that came before then. Other sites are no less remarkable: the RASH archive, For Elf Eyes Only, as well as several others. Clearly, there is an active EQ fan community on the Net. But what has been created thus far? I can not vouch for every fanfic, but I can comment on major stories and general trends. That said, the typical fanfic types are... 1) The continuation story. This sort of thing is always popular - after all, there are several major storylines in Elfquest, and it's easy to pick up where one leaves off. For example, Seriwolf03's "Friends" story branches off of the second Wild Hunt arc. Not long ago, I considered a sequel to the Shards storyline, but it didn't hold much interest for me. What, though, are the benefits of a continuation story? For one, they involve characters and plot elements known to nearly all Elfquest fans. Beyond that, continuations are relatively easy to write. It's tempting to write a story that ends the Futurequest arc, especially since it doesn't seem that the actual comic will be completed any time soon. 2) The alternate-universe story. If one doesn't care to follow the storyline as it was written, or if one just wants to put new ideas into Elfquest, an alternaverse story can be a good idea. There are quite a few notable examples of these: "Bright Stars in the Night" by Raven Adams, Jerelyn Parker's well-researched, formidable "Crescent's Story," and Heather Grimes' "Lost One / Friends and Strangers" cycle. On the other hand, it's easy to get carried away with an alternaverse story. My "Daughters of Strongbow" story had many negative, poorly constructed features, but one of the worst was its bizarre re-building of established characters. For those who don't recall, Strongbow's behavior in the first part of "Daughters" not only went against his characterization in Elfquest, it wasn't even justified in the story! 3) The fan-holt story. By that, I mean a story which centers around characters not in Elfquest, but which exist in another person's variation on the EQ world. The term fan-holt is a bit restrictive, since many of the groups of elves have nothing resembling a holt - still, I use it to signify any Elfquest-like world that doesn't exist in the comics. Now that I've explained that... A surprising number of these stories can be found. There is a key problem I have with them: only the members of the fan-holt, and those closely associated with them can understand the stories. While it is a good idea to create original fiction - writings that don't rely on knowing Elfquest characters - most fan-holt stories strike me as an uneasy cross between fan fiction and original writing. This sort of fusion may be precisely their goal... I hardly know. Still, I believe fan-holt stories are often too intimately connected with the fan-holts to be appreciated by those outside them. To this, I should add that you're free to post a reply to my editorial. I suggest addressing the following questions: Beyond research, is there a way fan-holt stories can be understood by the general EQ community? What makes a good fan-holt story? How much should fan-holt stories rely on Elfquest knowledge, and how much should be original material? 4) Miscellaneous stories. Such writings as poetry, introspection pieces, humor pieces, parodies, allegories, scripts, and absurd pieces all have their supporters. However, none of these genres is sizeable - or fit - to be critiqued at this time. All these story-types have their potential. But what sort of stories will likely be written in the future? A lot depends on Warp's publishing decisions. If new EQ material is not published in a few months, the fans will likely become impatient. Hopefully, such a move would help to advance the state of Elfquest fanfic. If, though, the current serials are printed in a graphic novel, and if it gets good distribution, the fanfic world will continue in its current direction. Ah, yes, I nearly forgot -- what is the current direction? I see the EQ fanfic world growing gradually larger, and better. While there will always be amateurs and people who leave EQ fan fiction, in general, the writing is improving. The community is becoming more diverse, and with that, there is a steady in-flow of new ideas. This can only help the Elfquest Net world, as it advances toward 2000. Thanks for your time and patience. Please respond over the Fanfic- Discuss list, unless you have private comments to offer. -Alan (May 4, 1999) E-mail: Websites: eq_addiction> "This food you've been givin' me, Is making me blind, ya see. My soul needs to be... free." (Burlap to Cashmere, "Ancient Man")