Subject: Re: Since you brought up OFU Squared . . .
Author:
Posted on: 2014-04-29 22:20:00 UTC
I'm not sure, my main drive to make this OFU was first getting inspired by the Phanphiction academy and the fact this Wiki had absolutely nothing about TMNT on it which I thought was a shame
Yes, I've been teasing about this for a year or so now, but it's finally here:
The Ispace Wars
The Interdimensional Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Elves is back with a vengeance. Their goal is to protect the elves of the multiverse - all the elves - and they don't care who gets in their way. It looks like everyone is in for a rough time...
This is the sequel to The Official Fanfiction University of Discworld; I don't know to what extent it can stand by itself, so you should probably read OFUDisc first. It will constitute a massive crossover of most of the metafictional organisations - and since the four prologues, at least, are actually written, you should get to see who the 'main character' organisations are fairly quickly.
If you can't stand FF.n, you can also follow along through the OFUDisc Files blog; any associated elements will be posted there.
And... reviews are always very welcome!
hS
Agent-in-training Hieronymus staggered back from the wall that had suddenly appeared in front of him, clutching his fore-head with both hands. "What was this?" he hissed.
"Scene shift," whispered Androia Avatar. "Didn’t you see it coming? You should always look out for these at the end of a paragraph. Let me see!"
"I know," grumbled Hieronymus, lowering his hands to reveal the sprouting bump. "I’ve seen all these slapstick events in the archives, but they mostly happen when there isn’t even a paragraph, don’t they?" He didn’t like to be lectured, and being thrice the lecturer’s age in physical appearance, about one hundred times her age in life experience, and being her creator, didn’t help the matter at all. "I didn’t expect problems here," he added accusingly. "You told me this would be a place to watch good writing."
"This requires cooling. Give me your handkerchief," demanded Androia, pulling a water-bottle out of her backpack. "I think I know just who to talk to..." she quoted. "Ending with an ellipsis, this is a hint that the next we will see is Penny talking to this other person, and you wouldn’t expect them to come to Penny’s not-a-Response-Center, would you?"
Hieronymus pressed the wet handkerchief to his bruise. "Okay, okay," he growled, "I got it. Can we now continue watching?"
I’m so sorry. Appearances of my not-existing agents should probably be restricted to the badfic games, but this scene shift did take me out of the story, and I just had to write me back in again, because I don’t want to miss what happens next. Also, I realized that I had not posted for more than a month, so it was time to give a sign of life.
HG
A pox on you, Pit of Voles! Accept my correction, or face the consequences!
It'd better work this time. Thanks for letting me know it wasn't fixed! And welcome back. ;)
hS
This page, along with edits on "Coordinator" and "Mini" just got added to the wiki, by someone with no other edits or interaction here that I can recall:
http://ppc.wikia.com/wiki/TeenageMutantNinja_Turtles
Since you're the driving force behind OFU Squared, I wanted to ask what you think we should do regarding recognizing this OFU and its mini type as legitimate.
I'm not sure, my main drive to make this OFU was first getting inspired by the Phanphiction academy and the fact this Wiki had absolutely nothing about TMNT on it which I thought was a shame
Neshomeh's already explained why we don't have anything about TMNT on the Wiki - it's the same reason we don't have anything on, say, Paradise Lost - so I won't repeat her points. I will say that, while the TMNT page you created will probably be removed, mentions of your OFU won't be (or shouldn't); it exists, so in the interests of cataloguing, we'll mention it unless we have a good reason otherwise.
Instead (as well?) I'm going to address your other post, here:
Oh man...I never realized a few spelling/grammar mistakes would be so bad.
This is going to depend entirely on your audience. Most people, let's be honest, won't care. But we're the PPC. We've been nattering on about spelling, grammar, and punctuation since we came into existence. It's kind of our thing (one of several, I admit).
More to the point, you're not just writing any old story - in which case, if it came to our attention for some reason, we'd just grumble and move on. You're writing an Official Fanfiction University. Your story demonstrates that you know what that means:
Dragon Love had to stop writing when she felt ice cold steel press against her neck, she felt deep fear and a Japanese Accented voice said "I'm going to have to stop you right there."
Dragon Love turned her head and saw a tall Japanese Woman with a strict expresion on her face the Woman was holding a Katana to her neck.
"I am Karai." The Woman said
[...]
"I have come to tell you you are now drafted into the Mutant Academy." Karai handed Dragon Love some papers..."Your various crimes against our Canon left us no choice."
OFUs are two things. First, of course, they're stories - and they're supposed to be entertaining ones, naturally! Like I said in my review, TMNT is just a whirl of unfamiliar names to me these days, but you do have some good ideas. Making all your students into randomly-determined mutants was a good one, for instance. So on the 'story' front, you at least have a good start.
But the other thing OFUs do is try to teach people how to write better - and specifically how to write in the fandom they're written in. Probably the biggest example of this I can think of is Lily Winterwood, who regularly sticks actual lectures into her OFUs. Here we see a lesson given by Bilbo and Smaug, for instance, in the Sherlock OFU.
But even more than lectures, OFUs are meant to show by example. If you write a story that says 'good writing is important!', and you have dodgy spelling, mis-placed punctuation, and bad grammar, anyone who looks to you for examples of how to do it well is going to think those things don't matter. And anyone who knows they do is going to have a hard time liking your story, because it's... well, hypocrisy. If you hire me to catch a thief, and I steal your stationary while you tell me about it, you'd think twice or even three times about giving me any money - even if I was the best thief-catcher in the world.
You also said:
I'm going to be honest with everyone, I am a person with Asperger's Syndrome, so I guess my spelling/grammar mistakes are caused by...Being so excited about my writing I don't stop and spellcheck
I can see how that makes a certain amount of sense, but honestly? We've had people with Asperger's here on the PPC Board before. Some of them have been our best writers. On the other hand, even some long-time regulars with Asperger's never got the hang of it (to anyone who's interested, I'm thinking of kippur here). So you may have a point - I'm certainly not prepared to claim you're lying!
So, if spelling and grammar are important, but you, as an author, are incapable of giving them the attention they need, what's the solution? Simple: a beta reader. That's someone who looks at your stories before you post them (but after you feel they're finished), and tries to catch any errors.
There are many ways for betas to work. Often, you want a 'canon beta' - one who can check that you've got the details of the canon correct. As I've said, I can't help you there. But I can help with the SPG errors. If you would like, I will go through your current five chapters with a fine-toothed comb, correcting every error of that kind that I come across; I'm even willing to do the same thing for any future chapters of Mutant Academy.
Obviously, my hope would be that my doing this would help you to learn to do it for yourself, making my job less and less necessary. But even if that doesn't happen, the offer's still there.
hS, long-winded, but had a lot to say
Thanks for the helpful advice, I admit...I do have trouble with spelling and grammar frequently
First of all, I assume I'm speaking to Blood100/Rebel Mutant. To prevent confusion, please pick one and use it to fill in the Author space when you post. Thanks!
Anyway, about the wiki. It's called PPC Wiki for a reason. Things go on it when they become noticeably relevant to the PPC community and/or the fictional PPC universe. When it comes to fandoms, that means at least one of three things:
1. There have been missions in that continuum.
2. There have been several agents from that continuum.
3. The continuum has contributed something important to the PPCverse (e.g. the neuralyzer from Men in Black).
TMNT does not meet any of those criteria as far as I know. That's why there was no page, and why the one you added will probably be taken down. It's not that we have anything against TMNT, or you for that matter. It's just that it's PPC Wiki, not Fandom Wholesale Depot Wiki.
~Neshomeh
OK
OK I understand
Do you have a user name? We're not going to be able to greet you properly if you don't tell us who you are, you know!
By the way, I've not actually read your OFU yet, so I'm not sure in what capacity you used your minis, but we only have one mini species per continuum. True, there are a few that have multiple types, but they're beside the norm and we try to keep those to a minimum. You shouldn't have mini-Bebops and mini-Rocksteadies.
Mini-Foot Ninja would probably work better, since they're iconic enemies, appear in every version of the show, and are part of a group rather than versions of an individual(the latter isn't required but is definitely a plus). Then again, I know next to nothing about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so there could be something else that would work even better.
They're non-humans (I've never been comfortable with any of the miniature-human versions of minis), and fairly iconic in their own right - as a team, not individually. I don't see any actual instances of the minis, but I suspect they're in the same vein as mini-Aragogs - they're actually just minis of the same species, but - oh, yes, it's in Chapter 4 - 'mini-Rhino-Mutant' is a fairly awful name.
More to the point, while we - as the PPC - usually stick to just one mini (though there are continuua where the minis are 'a miniature version of the appropriate [whatever]', determined by something about the character) - the OFUs are not under PPC Community jurisdiction. We're the heirs of Jay and Acacia, not of Miss Cam - we don't have the right to say what OFUs aren't allowed to do. Make suggestions, yes - but not issue orders.
hS
When you misspell a name, would it create both a mini-Bebop and a mini-Rocksteady, both with the same name? Because if not, the minis would still be operating as individuals, and there would need to be some way of determining why one mini came out a Bebop and the other came out a Rocksteady. I think it would just make sense to have the original model for minis be part of a single species, rather than the two species that Bebop and Rocksteady are, while remaining iconic to its native continuum. I'm not going to claim I have very much knowledge of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, though, so the only idea that I would have for an alternative mini choice is one I already mentioned.
You're right that the most we can do is make suggestions, and that's what I was trying to do. I had intended to point out something inconsistent, say why it didn't quite fit, and offer an alternate solution, and I apologize if it seemed like I was ordering anyone around. Consistency is always good, whether it's consistency with the other OFUs, which also usually have one mini species each, or with the broad nature of how minis as a whole have been shown to, for lack of a better word, work, and I would always like to see it maintained if possible.
I was mostly going by what Phanphiction Academy did that when you misspell a character's name a grasshopper OR scorpion appears
I was mostly inspired by 'Phanphiction Academy' where there were not-so-mini-grasshoppers and not-so-mini-scorpions
Since the OFU non-franchise was declared open by Miss Cam, any OFU story which acknowledges her as the origin of the concept is legitimate. If it contradicts a previous mini type in the PPC, then we probably end up discussing it here to decide what to do (as we recently did with the Pokemon mini). If it's a very bad OFU, we may well decide - as the PPC - to not recognise it, and - as OFU2 - to go and break its supporting columns with a crowbar.
So, is there a story? I didn't see one this morning, but it might have been added since.
hS
Looks like this is the one: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10305709/1/Mutant-Academy
It mentions Mini-Bebops and Mini-Rocksteadys, which are the types that were added to the Mini page.
I've had a quick skim of it, and spotted quite a few grammatical errors. It looks like it could do with a Beta, at least. What are the criteria for invoking OFU2?
On another note, it's cool to see The Ispace Wars up, I enjoyed reading that again. I wonder how much of Ispace Mountain is going to left after the Administrator finishes knocking on Liliac's door?
I guess now that I'm back on the Board I should really finish off my piece for that, unless you made other arrangements during my absence? (which I would completely understand if you did).
I haven't made any other arrangements - though I was going to email you soon to find out how it was going.
hS
By which I mean non-existent in the last several weeks.
But I'm back to writing now, so it should pick up again soon.
... would be to make Miss Cora Calico a student at OFU2. Her* story has four chapters, true - but all in the last day or so.
*I'm assuming here the Coordinator is an author insert.
More realistically (since, while we may eventually have enough 'lectures' to make a pretend course actually educational), inviting her to come and chat about it on the Board might be a good idea. Not so we can say 'you're not allowed to do that' - thankfully, that's not in our job description! - but so's we can guide her in how to write a really good OFU. (And, yes, find someone to offer up as a beta...)
In fact, I'll probably go and issue an invitation right now. Onwards!
hS
Oh man...I never realized a few spelling/grammar mistakes would be so bad.
I'm going to be honest with everyone, I am a person with Asperger's Syndrome, so I guess my spelling/grammar mistakes are caused by...Being so excited about my writing I don't stop and spellcheck
And I have no idea what's going on!
Well, OK, that's a slight exaggeration, but not all too much. Readers, if you have not read OFUDisc, there is a lot you will not know. Trust me, I have not read it, and I have a lot of questions that I know would be answered in OFUDisc. However, that's just the first chapter. Perhaps in later chapters it will split further from the OFU, which I certainly hope it does. However, while waiting for the next part, you may want to read OFUDisc.
Status on the mission?
I know I have no right to complain about slowness. ^_^
In all seriousness, though, I'm not complaining, just checking in.
I'm afraid I'm going to have to focus a lot more this week and postpone writing for the mission until it's over. Hopefully I can get it done quickly after this week is over.
I should probably go back and read all of OFUDisc.
Guess this means I should hurry up and finish that cowrite section?
Elcalion