Canon Draco vs Fanfic Draco

[Flying Ford Anglia]

No: HPFGUIDX 5800

"Steve Vander Ark" wrote:

<<<I can't afford any of the fan transfigurations to get into the 
 Lexicon or it loses its credibility. When I write about Draco, I 
have to be sure that all the information I put down is just from the 
books.
 
But the same concern could be noted about our discussions here. We 
have delved much deeper into the subtext of the books than I believe 
even JKR herself has.>>>

You make some really good points, Steve.  I was just looking at 
Sister Mary Lunatic's message and thinking much the same thing as 
you. I'm glad you're staying pure, BTW: your Lexicon is a 
brilliant resource...

I have enjoyed some fanfic and it seems to be an inevitable part of 
the 'cult fan' experience.  I would agree though that it's easy to 
confuse fanfic facts with fic facts.  Harry and his year are still 
barely into adolescence and HP fans are already imagining our hero's 
antics as a strapping adult and writing feverishly about 
the "Marauder" years.  I suspect that JK Rowling has written less 
than 0.001% of the Harry Potter fiction now in existence.    

Writing fanfic in the middle of a series of books must be 
disheartening at times, because the author can so easily throw a 
spanner in your work.  She has the power to kill off your lead 
character in the opening pages of her next book or contradict the 
premise of your masterpiece with a single comment in an interview.  
Also, there's the argument that the best fanfic writers really ought 
to be writing their own stories and becoming famous millionaires in 
their own right, countered by the argument that some truly stunning 
fanfic writers might never have put fingers to keyboard ('pen to 
paper' is so passé) if it hadn't been for Harry Potter.

When it comes to the deep discussions we have here, the causation is 
the same really.  We *need* some sort of outlet for our enthusiasm.  
If we can't write fanfic, we design a Harry Potter website, or 
collect the books in every known language, or lust after over-priced 
pillowcases or trinkets, or compose comic songs, or just empty out 
our spinning thoughts into the Pensieve we call the HP4GU message 
board.  

Some of us are more obsessed than others, but it is a form of 
addiction...

But, hey, it's fun, isn't it?

Neil