I'm used to thinking about it the other way around, the need to be emotionally attached enough.
It's both for me, I think. Before I can write a character's pov I need to find some part of myself that's like them, or that empathizes with them, even if on the surface we're very different people. Gadreel's done some morally terrible things, but I get his loneliness, his desperation, his longing to be understood, and that makes it possible for me to write his pov.
But on the flip side, if I start to have trouble distinguishing a character from me, or from someone who wronged me in real life, then it's time to step away. There's both fic and meta out there that looks a lot like someone inflicting their anger toward a real person on a fictional character, or reliving their trauma through a fictional character, and while that can be fascinating at a psychological level, I think it rarely makes for good art.
Yeah... I've read those. Where it's not the characters finding somebody evil (or such), but the story promoting that or assuming agreement on that, or just depicts someone - och. All the Sam bashing. Spoiled, selfish child who's just using Dean and never does anything for anyone... ugh. I don't mind it as much when it's characters like the monster of the week, or sometimes John or that hunter to tried to kill Sam being used just as an antagonist to move forward the plot - perhaps just because I'm not that attached to them. But some stories are more about taking the time to revel in somebody's horribleness... Less my cup of tea.
It seems different to me if it's a MOTW or someone who was framed as a villain on the show, because then it's just more of a plot device. There's definitely a lot of fic where Sam becomes the big meanie who just doesn't appreciate how much Dean loves him. Lately, though, I've been coming across more of the opposite, where Dean is an abusive asshole and Sam is the woobie without the strength to stand up to him. And look, canon Dean is an asshole right now, and what he did to Sam in 9.01 was genuinely horrific and immoral, and his refusal to acknowledge that is a big part of why I'm angry enough at the character that I can't write him. But some fic reaches the point where it reframes everything Dean's ever done in the least sympathetic light possible, and I feel like that's not fair to Dean or Sam, and maybe more importantly sanding off the nuances of the characters doesn't make for an interesting take on canon.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2014-05-26 12:10 am (UTC)It's both for me, I think. Before I can write a character's pov I need to find some part of myself that's like them, or that empathizes with them, even if on the surface we're very different people. Gadreel's done some morally terrible things, but I get his loneliness, his desperation, his longing to be understood, and that makes it possible for me to write his pov.
But on the flip side, if I start to have trouble distinguishing a character from me, or from someone who wronged me in real life, then it's time to step away. There's both fic and meta out there that looks a lot like someone inflicting their anger toward a real person on a fictional character, or reliving their trauma through a fictional character, and while that can be fascinating at a psychological level, I think it rarely makes for good art.
Yeah... I've read those. Where it's not the characters finding somebody evil (or such), but the story promoting that or assuming agreement on that, or just depicts someone - och. All the Sam bashing. Spoiled, selfish child who's just using Dean and never does anything for anyone... ugh. I don't mind it as much when it's characters like the monster of the week, or sometimes John or that hunter to tried to kill Sam being used just as an antagonist to move forward the plot - perhaps just because I'm not that attached to them. But some stories are more about taking the time to revel in somebody's horribleness... Less my cup of tea.
It seems different to me if it's a MOTW or someone who was framed as a villain on the show, because then it's just more of a plot device. There's definitely a lot of fic where Sam becomes the big meanie who just doesn't appreciate how much Dean loves him. Lately, though, I've been coming across more of the opposite, where Dean is an abusive asshole and Sam is the woobie without the strength to stand up to him. And look, canon Dean is an asshole right now, and what he did to Sam in 9.01 was genuinely horrific and immoral, and his refusal to acknowledge that is a big part of why I'm angry enough at the character that I can't write him. But some fic reaches the point where it reframes everything Dean's ever done in the least sympathetic light possible, and I feel like that's not fair to Dean or Sam, and maybe more importantly sanding off the nuances of the characters doesn't make for an interesting take on canon.