fic ponderings

[rivendellrose]

So, fic. Grand total for Halloween so far has been one Firefly, one HP, and one for the hp_halloween exchange. I've still got two X-Files and one HP in the works for Halloween, and a few Firefly ideas that won't leave me alone until they're finished.

Funny thing about one of those Firefly bits - I was looking through it today, to see how much more work it needed before it was finished, and I came to a sad conclusion. I still can't write Wash. This thing was going to be from his POV, all about him and Zoe, and what happens? His voice sounds like Mal. The narration, the dialogue... everything. I just don't get it. Why, out of nine characters, is it so hard for me to write him? It took a while, but I finally got a grip on Jayne, and everyone else has been pretty easy... but no, I can't write Wash except in very tiny little pieces.

Frustrating as all hell.

What characters do you find easy to write, which ones are harder than hell for you, and what theories do you have about why that is?

Comments

[nekokoban]

'Cos Wash is all funny and articulate? That, or it may just be something unique about his particular brand of humor -- Nathan Fillion is hilarious, but Mal is only occasionally so.

As for myself, I don't think I could write Mal or Book to save my life, and Wash probably as much so. Zoe maaaaaybe, Inara maybe; Kaylee and River, no problem. It may be as much a personality thing -- Zoe's not as grim as Mal or secretive as Book; Jayne, it would be a simple problem of writing his language. XD

Otherwise ... hm. In FMA, most of the characters were fairly easy for me to write -- the minor ones not so much, but that's because I didn't care about them enough to pay attention ... ?

In tactics, I don't really have (to my knowledge yet) problems writing most of the characters. XD Maybe I'm simplifying too much, but they've all been fairly easy -- even Bad Touch, though I've only written him in cowrites/RPs with Haru.

Hum.

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

That's probably exactly it - I have no problem with Mal or Zoe's sense of humor, but Wash's just doesn't come out right for me. Once I get going with Jayne I only have minor problems, but he's still the other hardest for me... Inara, Simon, River, and Kaylee are easy as pie, Mal's harder to get out of than anything else, and Zoe's rapidly growing easier as I work with her. At the moment, I'd almost say she's one of the easiest for me. Haven't tried much with Book.

You're probably right that it's at least partly personality. Weird how it works, though - I never had this problem so much with other fandoms, with the exception of absolutely hating trying to write Duncan. And we've all discussed the reason for that.

[narsilion.livejournal.com]

How's Fey, did you guys have fun last night?
Are you busy cooking for the party? Wheee!!
Tell Fey "hi" from me ok?

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Haven't started cooking yet, that'll be tomorrow - we did have fun last night, yes!

I will!

[c57d.livejournal.com]

Wash has a quirky sense of humor that few people can pull off, but many people can find funny. His sense of humor is a large part of his personality, and yet he isn't always being funny, so I can imagine how it might make him difficult to write.

It's very deadpan. That's the simplest way to sum it up.

"Were I not married, I would take you in a manly fashion." "Cause I'm pretty?" "Because you are pretty."

In text, that exchange doesn't even half capture the moment. A lot of Wash was/is in HOW he says things. Which, even for me, is difficult to describe.

Of all of the characters, Wash doesn't SEEM to have the same "depth" in the way we understand and can infer it in the other characters. He does, but it doesn't play out the same way as it does for the others. He's a relatively peaceful sort of guy, he loves his wife.

Hm. To sum it up? Wash is the Sidekick archetype. He is the Normal Guy on the ship.

Once he attained his 'moment of Zen' in Serenity that showed how awesome of a pilot he could be (flying by the seat of EVERYONE's pants!)... Well. If you've seen it, you know what happened. If you haven't, you still don't know what happened. :)

But it's hard to write the normal, non-tortured guy with no Dark Secrets or Ulterior Motives or ohnoes!Angst.

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

The sense of humor does seem to be a large part of it - most specifically because his humor is so unique. Mal's got a quirky sense of humor, yeah, but it's not hard to capture, purely because it's so sardonic. Jayne's is simple, River's is insanely quirky and random... but Wash is just Wash. And that's hard to capture, for someone who doesn't have the knack.

I love the character, but it's going to take a lot more practice before I can peg him in writing. Sounds like a good excuse to sit down to watch a few episodes, to me. ;)

[c57d.livejournal.com]

Any reason to watch more Firefly is a DARN good reason!

Wash became my favorite character in his very first scene, with the line captured in the icon I sport currently. His sense of humor is just so lovely. Very quip'ish.

I wish you luck in getting a handle on Wash writing!! He needs much love. *grin*

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Exactly!

Thanks much. He does definitely need more love, so I'll be working on it! *g*