After I was surprised to discover fanfic existed at all I was SHOCKED when I discovered people were taking ficational characters who were not in an on-screen relationship and writing them in a relationship. It was a compulsion I'd never had, never even considered and it surprised me that so many people were so drawn to the idea.
Since moving into Stargate I've learned to enjoy some ship fic (generally the ones that really explore the characters and the world and aren't just about the sex or ship) and I've even written some and found it can give you a new angle with which to explore the character but...
I still really, really don't understand it and I'm still running around asking "why ship" and, well, I promise if I ever find the answer, I'll let you know. But I'm not sure everyone can necessarily articulate why it appeals to them and I highly doubt everyone's answer would be the same anyway.
It could partly be a basic human need - romantic and sexual relationships are a pretty common thread/shared experience among most humans. It's a classic storyline. I mean, in a way all stories are about people and how they interact and their relations and ship fic is just exploring one specific type of relationship.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2007-12-21 02:33 am (UTC)After I was surprised to discover fanfic existed at all I was SHOCKED when I discovered people were taking ficational characters who were not in an on-screen relationship and writing them in a relationship. It was a compulsion I'd never had, never even considered and it surprised me that so many people were so drawn to the idea.
Since moving into Stargate I've learned to enjoy some ship fic (generally the ones that really explore the characters and the world and aren't just about the sex or ship) and I've even written some and found it can give you a new angle with which to explore the character but...
I still really, really don't understand it and I'm still running around asking "why ship" and, well, I promise if I ever find the answer, I'll let you know. But I'm not sure everyone can necessarily articulate why it appeals to them and I highly doubt everyone's answer would be the same anyway.
It could partly be a basic human need - romantic and sexual relationships are a pretty common thread/shared experience among most humans. It's a classic storyline. I mean, in a way all stories are about people and how they interact and their relations and ship fic is just exploring one specific type of relationship.