EMMYCH'S PROFILE

author=Housekeeping
If we're looking at writing as a sort of therapeutic exercise, then I suppose these characters are okay. It's okay to write whatever you like, and you'll inevitably find other people on the planet that also enjoy your work. That doesn't mean that anything goes if you want your writing to be actually good.

And @suzy_cheesedreams, I suppose!

I'm gonna have to respectfully disagree on this one! I think people having fantasies to make themselves feel better is more than okay: I think it can be a wonderful thing. Housekeeping, you said that thing about "you'll find other people enjoy your work" -- consider this: people are not always writing for an audience! Sometimes they are writing purely for themselves and then they cast the thing they wrote off into the ether of the internet. I maintain my position that this isn't a bad thing. People are gonna do what they wanna do with their time, and really, what's the harm in that? If someone is doing something that makes them sincerely happy, then that is the best thing ever in the whole wide world, as far as I'm concerned.

If we're getting into the writing as art thing, then like... idk, man. I've interacted with lots of "art" that's obviously a power fantasy for someone that ends up being critically acclaimed. I don't really wanna derail the discussion going on in here to make it all "BUT IS IT ART" since 1) I am honestly not equipped with enough info to confidently have that discussion and 2) IT'S OFF TOPIC. Regardless: I have seen the power fantasy as "art". I have also seen power fantasies as actual art. (see below)

Suzy_cheesedreams, as for your point: As I said before, I disagree.

I think turning yourself into a planet destroying mecha or a time altering god or a Devourer Of All Things in order to make yourself feel better can be a fine thing to do. Doing self-work is a full time job, and it doesn't have to be all "i am a trash human" 100% of the time! Sometimes you can take a break and pump yourself up, especially if you are of an identity that is constantly frowned upon or squashed under the boot that is society.

(ex: I once played a game that was a power fantasy in which you did indeed turn into a beautiful mech and the end of the game is that THE MECH WAS IN YOU you are great all that love and care was in you the whole time, even without the protective rainbow mech; THAT'S BEAUTIFUL AND THAT'S ART, I THINK)

i'm sorry if this is rambly and all over the place it is late and i am tired

8(

Hello, I am a computer illiterate scrub who cannot for the life of me figure out how to unignore people. I mean, I like keeping the occasional person in my personal shadow realm oubliette same as any other person, but eeeehhhh I've changed my mind on someone and eeeehhhhh I can't figure out how to fix it.

ANYWAY if anyone has hot tips on how to stop ignoring someone, I would be infinitely grateful. I've searched for things like "unignore", "how do I stop ignoring someone", "why does my mother still love me when I cannot do even this simple task in this, the year of our lord, two thousand and fourteen" and found nothing.

ALAS.

author=Liberty
There's really nothing wrong with basing a character, even the main character of a story, on yourself. No, even good writers do it - it's just less obvious because they mix parts of themselves and others together to create someone who seems a lot different.

p much! I don't know if it's been talked about elsewhere in this thread, but I think a lot of people see self-insertion as creating a power-fantasy in which you are the protagonist who can do no wrong (which... actually I don't immediately take issue with, but i'll get into that later), rather than a fully formed character.

Something that I've found pops up a lot in my own writing are characters who have struggles or flaws that are super close to mine. I end up looking at characters who have traits that I hate in myself and work on it through them. It's therapeutic, in a way? Plus, you end up with a realistic person whose journey will be more relatable than the 15 year old kid who was CHOSEN BY GOD to PUNCH HIS DAD WHO IS ALSO GOD, because the ~struggle is real~

Honestly, I don't know if it's possible to write a fully rounded character and NOT have some aspect of yourself show up in them. Yeah, they can be super different than you in almost every way, but I have personally found myself going "#SoRelatable" about some of my scummiest characters from time to time. IT JUST... KINDA HAPPENS, MAN... *cries forever about relating so hard to the biggest scrubs*

BUT ANYWAY, to the topic unity actually brought up: the power fantasy character. I call this a power fantasy character, since this is essentially what they are: the creator plays pretend in a fantasy world where they can be BIG AND COOL and SMOOCH THE CUTIES and BE THE MONARCH and SLAY THE DRAGON and PUNCH THEIR DAD. Yeah, this is a story that will, in all likelihood, not be too interesting to anyone other than the creator. To that, I say so what? Unless the plot ends up involving the protagonist doing really awful things, then what's the harm? The worst that happens is your writer sense is offended, and ehhhh you can get over that. I say let people make their games for themselves. You don't have to interact with it if you don't like it and it's not affecting anyone.

(really the "does it affect anyone" is the MAJOR caveat, since yeah if someone's power fantasy involves raping and pillaging and what have you, nah that shit isn't gonna fly; keep it to yourself, dickbag)

author=suzy_cheesedreams
This looks cool. FF9 was one of my faves as a kid.

Hey, thanks! Yeah, there's a lot of FF9 nods in this, and one scene that's a SUPER NOD that any FF9 fan should be able to immediately pick out, ah-hahaha.

Thanks for comin' by! nwn