Pet Peeves in Fanfiction

CarlManvers2019

Writers Blocked Douchebag
Here’s my peeve for edgy Goblin Slayer and Tokyo Ghoul fics

They really don’t actually read the original source material, the LN for GS and the manga for TG which has things much more fleshed out(though with :RE out I think they may have actually bothered to read the manga)

They also don’t seem to care for characters other than the MC or their relationships with other characters
 

Terthna

Professional Lurker
Read the first maybe three volumes of Mushoku Tensei

Honestly, all those volumes made me feel like the MC was a sort of childlike sociopath with the way thoughts are written

Lots of Isekai LN these days when translated to english sound like the narrator’s a sociopathic child just beginning to learn english and going “ooh ah” or something

Barely much emotion or feel of said emotion when its in that POV

Nevermind how it’s also creepy in that I’m pretty sure his parents didn’t realize a dude older than them was their son and probably never really developed that sort of “they’re my dad and mom” referring growing up
Him acting like a sociopath was kinda the point; it's supposed to clue the reader in to the fact that the guy wasn't some innocent being abused by his family, as he initially portrays himself in his own head. He was actually a messed up individual that they had good reason to become disgusted and fed up with, and toss out onto the streets; a large part of the story is about him accepting that fact, and trying to use this second chance at life to be a better person.
 

Arlos

Sad Monarchist
So, it’s not exactly about fanfic, but it’s still something that make me frustrated.

On FF.net, Almost everytime I try to look for good, interesting crossover, I am flooded with Harry potter fic, and they are not even that good(and I am not really interested in HP anyways), trying to find a good cross like this is surprisingly similar to gold panning.
 

Abhorsen

Local Degenerate
Moderator
Staff Member
Comrade
Osaul
So, it’s not exactly about fanfic, but it’s still something that make me frustrated.

On FF.net, Almost everytime I try to look for good, interesting crossover, I am flooded with Harry potter fic, and they are not even that good(and I am not really interested in HP anyways), trying to find a good cross like this is surprisingly similar to gold panning.
Use the search engine on DarkLordPotter forums. It's much better than the search engine on FFN.
 

Zyobot

Just a time-traveling robot stranded on Earth.
When the dialogue and/or first-person narration isn't realistic. As in, characters not sporting a speaking style or thought process that befits them, such as a fourteen-year-old kid who sounds like an author or particularly attentive diarist, just as one example. In fairness, there are times when taking (some) creative liberty with that makes sense, such as when said character drastically differs from their canon counterpart (e.g. being raised in a different environment).

Otherwise, even if it has little to no effect on the actual plot, it just makes the fic less believable and renders what might otherwise be an all-around promising story harder for me to read without raising an eyebrow every so often.
 

Emperor Tippy

Merchant of Death
Super Moderator
Staff Member
Founder
It's been awhile but...

Pet Peeve of the Day: Protagonist centered morality reality warping.

A large part of what makes a good story is having a character face actually difficult decisions and be faced with less than ideal choices that conflict with their base morality/precepts and how they deal with it. And yet so very many authors refuse to make the MC face consequences for their decisions or use deus ex machina to pull a "third way" that just happens to perfectly align with the characters morality and works out without a problem.

No, put the gun in a pacifists hand and have it pointed at an unrepentant baddy who is plainly disabled at the time and force them to either make the choice to execute them or let them live. And when they let them live, have them actually be really punished for it.

Or the reversed situation. The MC offs the baddy only to find that doing so thoroughly fucked them over. Like the baddy was actually an undercover plant from an allied organization or something and now the MC has to deal with the consequences of blowing away an undercover agent without any real need to do so.

And slightly expanding on this, characters who come up with all kinds of justifications to leave the actually important big bads alive while blowing away rank and file peons with nary a care in the world. Redeem the guard working for the baddy simply because he needs a job and is trying to feed his kid sister, don't lop off his head and then try to redeem the unrepentant mass murdered who is champion of the god of evil and has spent thousands of years killing puppies in the millions.

Oh, and finally, a refusal to call sanctimonious assholes on their blatant hypocrisy merely because the asshole is the protagonist. This is REALLY bad in any fic that takes an insert of whatever kind, puts them in a position to have real power, and then has them going on about how the powerful need more rules/fuck the nobility/etc. It's like, dude, the only reason that you can get away with mouthing off to the noble prick is because you have the power to casually level the entire city. You casually violate every law and convention basically on the basis of might makes right and yet tell off other powerful people for doing the same damn thing. And no one fucking calls them on it!
 

The Immortal Watch Dog

Well-known member
Hetman
A pet peeve of mine in GOT fics would be the idea that Cat would automatically love Jon if she knew he was Jeaharys Sand. I'm pretty sure she would react to the kid less with disdain and passive aggression and more the way someone would react to turning a corner in their own house and finding a King Cobra in front of him or her.

If anything she might actually try to poison the kid because he now represents an existential threat to everything from Riverrun to the Wall.

I mean really the most you could do with that is have Cat chimp out hard enough Jon gets sent to Brynden or something.

Or if Cat was more like Olenna I could see her trying to use the stubborn bastard to build up an alternate to Robert should the worst happen.

But either way, the "and Cat magically starts being a decent foster mom" makes no damn sense.

Oh and I struggle with SI's I truly struggle. It comes off as masturbatory a lot and there are few truly great writers who succeed.

The great ones are great though.

Lastly: the Lack of decent Conan or Kull/ASOIF crossovers suuucckk.
 
Last edited:

Gaouw

Active member
So, one of my latest pet peeves in fanfiction is sudden and unexpected crossover.

I remember several SI/OC in Naruto, HP, and Worm fandom in which MC is this brilliant, skillful, and smooth operator due to being inserted into an actual brilliant, skillful, and smooth operator character's head.

Like Kakashi or Tom Riddle.

This character then proceed to monologue about how great he is, and take action to better his/her position.

I'm still fine with it at this point.

But then suddenly MC either crack dimensional travel to other fandom, off screen, or just managed to create power/skill/magic from other fandom. Again, off screen.

This is then used to somehow be the justification for opening the faucet of the sudden crossover.

My pet peeves is, in short. Why?

If you write an SI in a specific fandom, usually you already know, or at least, has a vague direction, on what you, as the MC, want to do in the setting.

If you perchance decides that discovering dimensional travel or summoning outer god or recreating other setting skills is what you wanna do, than at least shows the effort your MC does to achieve that.

Not just suddenly giving Kakashi from Naruto the UBW from Fate, or making Tom Riddle from HP becoming Le Fay from Fate's mentor.

The change is just jarring is all.

++++

My second Pet Peeve of the day is when MC bring religion and modern sensibility as basis for hypocrisy in "historical" setting.

Especially the one in which MC is born as part of conqueror/raider tribe and be forced to "partake" the loser tribes woman and then spend way too many words angsting about it.

If it offend your sensibilities, take over, and change the culture.

I especially hated when religion is brought upon.

There's a part of me that dislike stories about religion, due to my upbringing in which most people is somewhat a devout.

However, that part is so small compared to the fact that interesting stories that brought up religion tend to invite backlash, that in return results in either flame war, or a ban.

Either way, the stories are dead anyway.
 

Agent23

Ни шагу назад!
Because we all come across things that just annoy the hell out of us.

Pet Peeve of the Day: Inspired by Mass and Magic: adult Harry Potter wizards that are supposed to be skilled/competent speaking incantations to use their magic. Silent Casting is 6th year material and virtually the only time in the entire series that we see any adult wizard using an incantation it is for 1) dramatic effect or 2) for demonstration purposes as they teach. And yet so very many fics seem to totally forget that this is the case.
Yeah, the problem is that they were kinda/sorta the antagonists our merry band of teenegers had to fight, and getting beaten and outsmarted by a teenager is kinda-sorta not something that makes one look all that competent.
 

Emperor Tippy

Merchant of Death
Super Moderator
Staff Member
Founder
Yeah, the problem is that they were kinda/sorta the antagonists our merry band of teenegers had to fight, and getting beaten and outsmarted by a teenager is kinda-sorta not something that makes one look all that competent.
It's not the competence or incompetence of the enemies that is in question. The Death Eaters virtually never cast verbally, save for the Unforgivables. And even then, it's usually as much for dramatic effect as anything else.

None of the adult wizards in the series use verbal incantations with any regularity outside of a classroom setting when they are instructing.

And in combat? Verbal incantations are idiotic almost beyond compare.

So then we have "supposedly competent and highly skilled/trained" Harry and friends who cast like first years with careful pronunciation and wand movements when they should be casting with what is basically just a casual wand wave and will. At least for everything but the more exotic stuff.
 

bintananth

behind a desk
My Pet Peeve of the day: an SI or isekai where the character is clearly the author's wish fulfillment or soapbox. Bonus points if it's both.

Kancolle example:
- the author states they are MtF and a lesbian in the beginning
- the SI is Musashi, a lesbian, and openly shoves pro-LGBT+ in everyone's faces.

No thank you!
 

Gaouw

Active member
My Pet Peeve of the day: an SI or isekai where the character is clearly the author's wish fulfillment or soapbox. Bonus points if it's both.

Kancolle example:
- the author states they are MtF and a lesbian in the beginning
- the SI is Musashi, a lesbian, and openly shoves pro-LGBT+ in everyone's faces.

No thank you!
I mean, I have no beef with LGBTQ characters in fanfic.

But I do feel that fanfics that keep soapboxing and shoving agendas in the story annoying.
 

gral

Well-known member
My Pet Peeve of the day: an SI or isekai where the character is clearly the author's wish fulfillment or soapbox. Bonus points if it's both.

Kancolle example:
- the author states they are MtF and a lesbian in the beginning
- the SI is Musashi, a lesbian, and openly shoves pro-LGBT+ in everyone's faces.

No thank you!
Oh yeah, that one. Gave up when it had a number of the Japanese admirals being incompetent bigots who openly harassed the shipgirls.
 

bintananth

behind a desk
Oh yeah, that one. Gave up when it had a number of the Japanese admirals being incompetent bigots who openly harassed the shipgirls.
Sadly, I know exactly which bit of unreadable dreck you're referring to.

OTOH, the basic premise of "a guy (or someone FtM) becomes the strongest shipgirl/abyssal in the area" can be done well. I'd probably take an "I've seen my wife do this" tack and "oops, wrong door" reminders which make sense in context.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top