Has fanart / fiction altered the way you perceive canon?

[Lunatic]

I've only recently gotten into fanfiction, but a Keen Observer really altered my perception of the Sorting Hat as well as Andromeda and Ted.

What's more, for my own fanfic, I find myself asking questions that cause me to think more about a character's motivation. For example, I found myself driving home and figuring how much of or little of her life up to age 11 I would have to alter to make Hermione a Ravenclaw. My answer, alter her parents profession to make it include more inqirey or put her in slightly stranger positions then a dentist's daughter would encounter normally.

While I never wrote a Hermione Ravenclaw AU story. I applied that criteria when working on my version of Rose (the character that I've "fixiated" on) deciding that yes, she would be a Ravenclaw, though one who is an "almost Gryff".

All the Best,

Lunatic

[Beatifically]

This is really strange, but fanfiction gave me a more accurate outlook on characters. I've always been a Marauders fan, and when I started to read fanfiction, sometimes I saw the writers making them acting completely out of character. Usually I ended up picking up and that and stopped reading fairly quickly. Whenever I come across fanfictions like that, I wonder why it seems out of character, and then I realize why.

When the books came out and more was revealed about the marauders, I never found myself surprised. A lot of the way the characters behave is exactly how I imagined them to be.

So, overall, fanfiction enhanced my view on characters.

[MmeBergerac]

One of my favourites passages in the books is Tonks's outburst in the Hospital Wing at the end of HBP. I loved the Lupin/Tonks idea, and always wondered how they had come to that. Then I found a fic called The Trouble with me, which tells the story of Tonks and Lupin during OotP. Now I can't help it, and always think of that story as background for those characters.

And well, I wrote a fic with my own version of Book 7, but it doesn't follow canon... Oh, no, I can't believe I'm sppeaking of my own fic. Forget this paragraph!

[LoveWeasleys]

Very soon after reading DH, I was browsing Deviantart and came across some drawings fo DD/GG. I saw them and was thought, "Wow that totally makes sense." So I read the book again and could definitely see the relationship between them being more than just friendship. So in a way it did make me perceive canon differently, until Jo confirmed it herself.

I haven't read too much fan fiction and I have written my own stories from Mary Macdonald's point of view, during the Marauder era. I think writing it has deepened the way I read and see the Marauders. Writing a character makes you get inside their head a bit and I think you understand them more or have a better view of them. Or at least a better view of who you think they are and what they were like.

[LilyDreamsOn]

Makani's fanart has definitely made me appreciate the comical value of the Malfoys and Bellatrix. I see Lucius and Narcissa as a much more... loving couple, I guess? I just never really thought of them as in love, just as Draco's parents. Now I think of them more as a couple with a son. If that makes sense.

I'll admit, some very good fanfictions have made me alter my opinions of characters a bit. I remember reading one about Draco, and I completely fell in love with him (don't worry, he wasn't a Gary Sue) and now I have a hard time seeing him as badly as the trio do - I have too much sympathy for the guy, even after everything that happened. However, I do realise where to draw the line with things like this; I'll never go and say he's a respectable guy with a great heart.

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

For Harry Potter, there is a lot of fanfiction and fanart out there.

Some start up questions:

Do you like reading fanfiction and looking up fanart?

What are some of the sites you go on?

How does it effect your view of the books?

[dazzel21]

Originally Posted by CleanSweepSeven

At first I didn't like Harry and Ginny's relationship in HBP, but then I read a lot of fanfic that illustrates them as a couple more, and I now I really like Harry/Ginny.

me too!! but its more of lack of 'romantic scenes' (for me) for Harry and Ginny but after reading "In The Words of Ginevra Molly Weasly" i really become addictive to Harry/Ginny fanfictions...



Do you like reading fanfiction and looking up fanart?
- love them!!! but more of fanfiction than fanart...fanfictions serves entertainment for me whenever there are dull times (which in my case is...always)

What are some of the sites you go on?
- flourish and blotts here in cosforums and fanfiction.com and sometimes harrypotterfanfiction.com

How does it effect your view of the books?
- of course theres nothing that can beat books! one thing, reading books for me, always serves as an excuse to be lazy...theres nothing more relaxing than taking my favorite book and lie in my bed all day. reading fanfiction takes more activity coz i need to sit in front of my pc to be able to read, which is why i transer all fanfictions i want to read in my PDA so i can take it to bed with me...lol (thats just me im way toooo lazy)

[MC2456]

No No means I have always been a tad rebellious against canon, and this is not the cause of fanfiction!

[AmeliaPotter]

Not when we're talking about the canon that's already written in stone, i.e. books 1-6, but of the eras which we do not know a lot about, specifically the Marauder Era and New generation, it does help me with ideas. In particular it influences the way I perceive the personalities of the new generation; everytime I post about Rose, Scorpius or Albus, I think of a fanfic / RP character and then adjust how they're portrayed to determine my own view of what type of person they become, where they're sorted, their relationships etc.

I would say that it influences me, but it could never change or shape my perception. In the end we are only fans and we can never be sure how accurate we are about pretty much anything; that lies with Rowling alone.

[LoonyMagic]

Fan fiction hasn't really influenced me that much. I began with reading a few really bad fanfics and that kind of put me off reading them. As for fan art, it's actually been great seeing some amazing artists work and bringing the world of Harry Potter to life. I've seen a lot of beautifully drawn fan art and it definitely enhances my image of certain scenes or characters It's great

[USNAGator91]

The canon can be a little disconcerting at times. I write a bit of fanfiction here and there, and the disjointed way the canon points are established can be a bit problematic, however, I don't write to drive the canon one way or another. In fact, as much as possible, I try to remain within canon, because this is JKR's world, not mine. However, once I establish a storyline and the canon changes, I keep true to the story as much as possible.

As an author, though, I HOPE I've had some sort of impact.

[maquislady1388]

Fanfiction has absoloutly changed the way I see Cannon. I think I read more fanfiction then I do cannon. Reading all those Manipulative Dumbledore stories and then going back and reading cannon made me rethink how I see Dumbledore.

And it's thanks to Fanfiction that I firmly believe that Sirius and Remus are ment to be together. No matter what JKR says.

[Muggle_Magic]

Originally Posted by Moriath

Yes, it has. I still know the difference between canon and fanon but most good fanfiction authors go to great lengths to analyse the characters' possible motivations, something that is often missing in canon. Especially when it comes to minor characters.

Yes, exactly. I was only vaguely aware of fan fic before, but another member (FleurduJardin, to be specific) and I started coming here to CoS, and a few CoS members have registered with our AV site, two of them fan fic writers. It was quite a discovery for the two of us and yes, reading their works and other fan fics they recommended have changed my (can't speak for Fleur) perception of canon. I still know the difference between canon and fanon too, but sometimes I have to make an effort to remind myself, for example, that Cedric is dead.

Moriath is right, minor characters are more thoroughly explored, and that opens up whole new vistas. Alters our perspective on main characters. Some fan fic are parallel canon, but others turn canon upside down in intriguing ways that are always interesting to follow. Also, the internal logic of the Wizarding world at times is better constructed than JKR's herself. The writers spotted some of the inconsistencies and contradictions and kind of ironed them out when they could.

I became a fan of Hufflepuff and a defender of Slytherin because of some of those fan fics. Nothing, however, has changed my feelings of for Cho.

Apart from some avatars and signatures in here and on AV, I haven't seen much fan art, so that has had no influence on me.

[Lorena]

Originally Posted by USNAGator91

As an author, though, I HOPE I've had some sort of impact.

YES!! your fan fic is one of the most creative, thorough and well written I have read. I can see that you put a lot of time and effort into it.

Fanfic changed the way I see some characters like Draco Malfoy, Lupin, Snape. "the asp at hogwarts" in which albus potter is a slytherin, changed my view of that house.

[GinnyIsGenius]

, no.

Well, I'm relatively new on this fanfic/fanart thing. I never read fanfiction before DH came out, so my way of perceiving canon is as it ever was.
In fact, I have to reminding myself, from time to time, that it is fanfic and I should read it as open-minded as possible.
I have find a couple of stories that are truly engaging in the process.
And Gator, you are just too modest!

I think if anything has change my view of perceiving canon is the movies ...

[GrangerHermione]

To answeer Voldemorts8thHorcrux's start-up discussion questions:

Do you like reading fanfiction and looking up fanart?
Yep. I'm always looking at fanart (espially H/G -- my favorite couple! ) and I even draw some myself...but I also keep it to myself. I also enjoy reading fanfics on CoS. (Inkwolf's The Asp at Hogwarts is amazing! Sorry to you other fanfic writers, but I haven't read very many fanfics other than that yet...but I will!) I have started to write some of my own fanfics, which I also keep to myself. Maybe I will post them later on when they are finished. And maybe my fanart, too.

What are some of the sites you go on?
Not many...mostly CoS (of course) and sometimes phoenixsong.net. Not much else. Sometimes I will just search fanart on Google to see what good sites pop up.

How does it effect your view of the books?
It doesn't really affect my view of the books. I enjoy reading fanfic, but to me, that's just what they are...fanfics. No matter how enjoyable they are. That goes for fanart, too. But that doesn't mean that I don't sometimes wish that what happens in a fanfic or fanart is true...

[Muggle_Magic]

Originally Posted by MmeBergerac

Then I found a fic called The Trouble with me, which tells the story of Tonks and Lupin during OotP. Now I can't help it, and always think of that story as background for those characters.

Could you give the link to that fanfic, MmeBergerac? I'd like to read it. Thank you. And thank you, GrangerHermione, for the link to The Asp at Hogwarts. I'm going to download it and read it.

I never read fan fic before, but since I started on HP fan fic, I've practically read nothing else but HP canon and HP fan fic! I haven't touched a Kung Fu book in months now.

And yes as I said before it did change the way I perceive canon but it's not a bad thing IMO. I wonder whether JKRowlings sometimes reads some of these fics?

P.S. GrangerHermione, I don't know why but I can't access "The Asp at Hogwarts" - I get "Cannot show page" or an entirely different site. Does anyone else have the same problem?

[GinnyIsGenius]

Originally Posted by Muggle_Magic

P.S. GrangerHermione, I don't know why but I can't access "The Asp at Hogwarts" - I get "Cannot show page" or an entirely different site. Does anyone else have the same problem?

My sig has the link. Use it if you are interested.

[GrangerHermione]

Originally Posted by Muggle_Magic

P.S. GrangerHermione, I don't know why but I can't access "The Asp at Hogwarts" - I get "Cannot show page" or an entirely different site. Does anyone else have the same problem?

I tried to fix the link. Does it work now? I tried it out and it worked for me...

[gertiekeddle]

Originally Posted by GrangerHermione

I tried to fix the link. Does it work now? I tried it out and it worked for me...

Works for me too.