ROSIE DOES NOT WANT TO BE YOUR FRIEND.

I just wanted to keep this here because I spent agest writing it and I think it's worth retaining.

In response to this thread:

I haven't read the 60 pages of responses to this, yet, but I've read 11 and I feel a few things need to be cleared up about RPS convention:

1. The first rule of fanfic: NOBODY TALKS ABOUT FANFIC. 99% of writers - and readers - of fanfic, especially slash, are completely against the fiction being sent to/shown to/explained to the people being written about. The logic is that it's a basic courtesy not to make them feel awkward (or the writers, for that matter) while they are turning a blind eye to it. There are plans in progress to establish a hit squad for the next teenie who sends/hands out fanfiction to the people in it. I will be leading the team and arming the grenade before it is stuffed between said teenie's teeth.

2. While a lot of slashers would love to see their favourite pairing come out of the closet one day and announce their deep and enduring love, most of them (or, perhaps I should say 'us', but I'll come to that later) appreciate that there are genuine boundaries and that the majority of what is written ISN'T REAL. That is why most RPS fics contain disclaimer stating a such.

3. Even though it's amusing and we appreciate the approval of certain factions of bandom (many bands acknowledge and deliberately feed the slashers with good natured humour - see: Fall Out Boy, Cobra Starship, et al) it is generally discomforting when you write a story and suddenly Gabe Saporta is commenting on it. If you're reading this, and you've seen yourself in a fanfic, please don't tell us it's awesome. Or anything else, unless you'd like for it to be taken down. It's just plain Awkward. Yes. Capitalised. A.W.K.W.A.R.D. Imagine your mother walking in on you masturbating. Yes. Awkward.

4. Unless a girlfriend/wife/partner is a celebrity herself (see: Ashlee, Lyn-Z, Nicole) the general concensus and unwritten etiquette is to leave her out of it. Either by pretending she does not exist, or not including her as an active figure in the story (writing about her in reference only, or as an incidental character). Writing her as a main character or the protagonist for purposes of self-insertion (literally, the author using a character real or invented, to represent themselves and exist vicariously through them in the story - often known a 'Mary Sue' fic; see point 5) is widely frowned upon and generally only written by young, inexperienced writers who are particularly focused on the wishfulfilment/fantasy aspect of fanfiction. Most writers understand that although they are dating/married to the subject, they did not necessarily sign up for fame (see: Joe Trohman's fiancee, Marie, who has remained entirely out of the limelight).

5. Our old friend Mary Sue... 'Mary Sue' is the nickname given to a character, or type of story, where the author creates or uses a hyper-perfect avatar in order to live through them within the universe they are writing. This is generally sneered at by most readers and writers, and considered one of the earliest phases of writing, from which people will either develop or grow out of. Of course, some remain delusional, but this is by no means the norm or a respected area of fanfiction.

6. One of the biggest areas of conflict in fanfiction comes when people write stories focusing on what would be considered 'perversions' by the average, non-bigotted leyman. This would include stories focusing on child abuse, rape, murder and subjects of that ilk. Many would also include incest in that, but it is a larger subject which I have no contact with, as I am not involved with any RPS pairings that involve siblings. Although these subjects do exist, and are entitled to do so on the basis of freedom of speech, they take up a tiny, tiny percentage of the fic which is actually available. Many members of RPS bandom prefer to avoid them, feeling that they are disturbing in principle and offensive to those real people being written about. Some writers could undoubtely pull off a tastefully explored character-study in which an individual was placed in such situations, but these are rare and the sub-genre itself makes many of us very uncomfortable - after all, nobody wants to imply that they see those individuals as truly capable of carrying out a sexually motivated murder or the molestation of a child, or that we generally wish to imagine them being put through such an experience themselves. The vast majority of works are based on romantic or (consentual) sexual relationships between the characters and feature nothing more 'perverse' in any regard, than a bit of rimming.

7. What's the point of fanfic? Simply put, once you have ruled out wishfulfilment and fantasy fic, it's that inspiration bites and you are taken over with plot bunnies which breed, as bunnies are wont to do, like rabbits - filling your head with ideas and scenes and concepts that you can't help but share. It's simple inspiration - some of us want to write it, others want to read it, as long as the subjects are not genuinely offended by it, there's no harm in doing it.

For my own part, I've been writing fanfiction without really understanding it, from the age of around thirteen. I'm now twenty-six. It has always been guy-on-guy slash. I have no idea why - it just has; I have no interested in 'Gen' fic and I loathe 'het'. But as a writer who has put out stories sometimes reaching hundreds of thousands of words and literally hundreds of hours' of writing, editing and researching (you would not believe how much I research my fics, honestly) it's simply a hobby I enjoy. If I'm not writing I sit around twiddling my thumbs and wanting to put down the ideas which are inevitably swimming around my head.

As far as RPS is concerned, my pet pairing - or OTP - is between Joe and Patrick from Fall Out Boy, and I could spend hours explaining why; but I won't because I'm sure it would be boring (Google 'tin hat's guide' and their names for a highly tongue-in-cheek explanation). I only write the ship I do because I see plausibility in it - 'plausibility', however, should NOT be confused with 'fact' - I could see how it would work and I can imagine how they'd make sense together. That doesn't mean I genuinely believe they are, but it serves to create a plethora of concepts to explore. I never write detailed sex scenes and I always do my best to remain true to their real-life personalities - with the exception of that one element of homosexual tendencies (which in itself is something the band toys with on a regular basis anyway, down to including it in the video to Arms Race).

In conclusion, I suppose: no - writing real person fiction isn't 'wrong', but it can be executed badly and disrespectfully, although few of us would condone that. Many commenters on here have been very quick to judge, although they admit to never having read the works or only having read the truly atrocious kind found on Quizilla. My suggestion, as with anything else, would be to investigate it before you write it off. At the bottom of the Tin-Hat's Guide are recommendations of fanfics which are reasonably well-executed - if asked, I'm sure many shippers will make recommendations of their own.

At the end of the day, it's an outlet for creativity which brings a lot of enjoyment for millions of people the world over, when considered in its various forms. If the people in the fanfics wanted us to stop, and they said so publicly, then I like to think that most of us would adhere to their wishes. But while they are supporting or encouraging it, there really seems very little wrong with it, to me.