This includes some quotes from other posts in this thread.
AB: So. I'm almost done with the first story of my spinoff (finally!) and I realized this needed to be asked before I look for betas.
Now here's my question. The hapless bits in most of the badfics I've read, once they're rescued, revert to the rules of their own canon. So... I was wondering exactly how much the rules of the Left 4 Deadiverse would aply to him. I'm thinking they should more than not, but... in his badfic of origin, he was as sapient as a human, and I'm wondering how much of that would go away.
[If you’ve read my PPC writings, then you’ll know that I do not categorically disapprove of non-human characters, even ones who should be villains. I had some questions that I posted when I started considering using Kelok as a character. WHEN I STARTED CONSIDERING. Not when I’d almost completed a mission with him in it. By then he was my character, and my responsibility. So, really, this triggered my first concern. This is a fairly large question for Skelter, and it’s not been asked and answered yet.]
AB: Jack's bad enough and he's not even close to canon.
[This tells me that you are aware that it is not easy to write a different kind of character, which is good. Although, I truly have a soft spot for Jack. He’s just completely adorable.]
AB: The problem with Skelter is that he's from an angstfluffle of a fic, in which the Specials were slowly changing back into normal human beings. (Or, ya know, dying if they were too mutated to revert, re: the Tank.) Unfortunately, their human psyche came back before they reverted all the way, so they still had all the instincts, powers, and urges of an Infected... there was just a very human intelligence trapped inside this monster's body, having to cope with them. (In retrospect, we'd been writing entirely too much Vampire: the Masquerade at the time, and I think some of that might have seeped in.)
So now, he's a human intelligence, stuck in a Smoker's body, thinking of the PPC as his chance to be a superhero, and still with an unholy hunger for human flesh. This is not going to end well, obviously. (Meaning: it will be hilarious.)
[This is the part that I have serious concerns over, and where this character differs markedly from Jack. Jack is an intelligent Hunter that does not have the urge to snack on those around him (tackle and glomp--yes, snack on--no). Not the original personality stuffed into a monstrous body and bombarded with monstrous urges and desires. Anyone dealing with that situation would very quickly--and horrifically--lose their minds. Nothing hilarious about it. As this concept is presented here would represent, to me, one of the worst tortures that could be inflicted on a character. I would raise concerns of torture if someone did this to a Sue, and this is an agent character.]
AB: I think as long as he didn't get on the recieving end of a Canon Bomb or into the Reality Room, he ought to be okay. And to be honest he tends to stay OUT of his own canon for that very reason. (He doesn't want to go back to being a regular Smoker when canon fixes itself after the death of a Sue. Can you blame him?)
[Having a restriction on a character is not a bad thing. It can make them interesting as they try to work around their issues, and you can restrict the canons that a character goes to. As evidence of this: The All-Purpose Department.]
AB: Sorry, friend. I shouldn't have been as harsh with you. I've just had a few people telling me with other characters of mine that 'your idea is bad and you should feel bad'. (Not here in the PPC, mind.) And so I just wanted to deflect the criticism before it got bad.
ME: I definitely am not saying that I want you to feel bad, but mightn't it be possible that if people in multiple locations are raising concerns about your characters that there is something that you need to address with them?
AB: They were hating the slash. I like slash, as long as it is good slash. They did not like slash, period, and were hating on it. Once I got that they were hating the slash, and not the characters being slashed, then I felt a *lot* better about things. But, ya know, I'm still just a wee bit sensitive about this, because... well, yeah.
[This response really floored me. The subject seems to have been radically shifted, but for what reason I was not immediately sure. My first suspicion was that it had to do with dislike of the suggestion that you examine your characters. However, I have given your response quite a lot of thought before jumping into a reply of my own.
Firstly, I like slash. I read slash, and I have possibly written more missions dealing with slash than any other member that has posted to the Board within the last year (of course not even close to Trojie and Pads, but speaking of currently active members). You don’t mention if these characters were canons that were being slashed or your own original characters. Writing good slash with strong male canon characters that have little canonical evidence to support slash, while maintaining that they are strong male canon characters, is a very tricky thing. Looking beyond any hurtful things that were said at this unspecified other site, was it over the slash’s existence, or how the characters were written to enable the story to be slash?
Are these concerns that others have expressed over Skelter, and that I have put into detail in this post, being said because we are being mean, or because speaking as more experienced writers we have concerns for this character that should be addressed before you continue with him?
I understand that it is not easy to hear and accept criticism, even criticism that is phrased politely and meant only as constructive. Please consider very carefully before replying to this, and please try not to deflect this question.]