Plot bunny. Fanglish
(fanspeak + English). A rodent of varying size, sometimes travelling alone,
sometimes in ravening packs. They show up completely out of the blue, carrying
fillers for plot holes, ideas for new adventures and are sometimes amorous (see
the part about ravening packs). Now and again, when a fan fiction writer does
not write fast enough (ie, skip pesky things like work, family, food, and
sleep), the plot bunnies will hide behind the dust bunnies under the fan
fiction writer’s bed and sulk.
When I began writing fan fiction, the plot bunnies attacked
hard and fast. I wrote a lot of short pieces, usually of the flash fic to
ficlet length. Most people agree that flash fics range from around 100-500
words, with ficlets hitting the 501-1000 word mark. If you don’t agree with
that, that’s fine—being unique is cool. Kidding! Don’t get your knickers in a
bunch! If you ever have a different opinion than I do, I welcome your input. I’m
occasionally wrong. Or often. Depends on which of my kids you’re talking to,
the teen or my little stooge.
I digress. Often, but this time specifically here. So the
plot bunnies were attacking, my fingers were sore from typing and I was putting
out a bunch of un-beta-ed work. I was still receiving some pretty positive
feedback, which is like plot bunny carrots. They munched the feedback carrots,
snuggled with other plot bunnies and produced more little plot bunnies.
As I wrote more and more, and got hits, visitors and reviews
on my fan fiction stories, I started thinking. Maybe, just maybe, I could write
an original story. I had scads of ideas for those, too, and wrote many of them
down. On my computer. Whose hard drive decided to take a virtual nose-dive off
the Chrysler building. At any rate, I have since gotten a new computer and some
new plot bunnies have come scratching at my door. So, if you see me writing
historical or sci-fi or fantasy, if you see my romances ranging from the sweet
to the downright erotic, blame it on the plotus
rodentia.
No comments:
Post a Comment