RIG NET- Grayson Towler writes:

It seems that a great deal of time and energy is invested by people
who wish either to suggest "new" fanfic ideas and/or those who 
take it upon themselves to point out that such stories have been
done before.  Not to say that these efforts are completely unworthwhile,
but I take issue with the assumption that saying "it's been done"
automatically invalidates an idea.  

 
    Of course, it doesn't. But saying "it's been done" serves several
purposes.  It could lead the person suggesting the idea to stories he
was apparently unaware of; thus he gets to see the kind of story he
wants instantly, without waiting for someone to pick up the idea and
write it. If the existing works are not what he was thinking of, perhaps
he will be motivated to refine the idea. For instance, if all you want
is a story where Ranma is gay, there are a number of stories you might
like. If not, perhaps you will realize that what you really want is a
story where Ranma is gay, but still in love with Akane, so he wants her
to find the Nannichuan with him and jump in, but she's really a lesbian
and wants him to use the Chiisuiton and lock himself in female form, so
Akane ends up running off with Ukyo while onna-Ranma seduces Kuno and then
reveals her curse, causing Kuno to .... Maybe you'll even be inspired to
write the bloody thing yourself.

    Additionally, the person who is inspired by the idea is reminded of
what his predecessors have done and can get some guidance for himself on
which ways to go.

It is unnecessary and counterproductive to place such a high premium 
on complete originality.  Many of the finest stories out there were written
after a similar concept had already been explored by another.  And 
what of it?  Was Richard Lawson's work truly the first "Ranma gets 
stuck as a girl" story?  Are RpM's stories really the first "Ryouga and
Ukyou" tales?  Was "A Faint Hope" the first Ranma/Star Wars crossover?
The fact that others had taken a stab at these ideas in no way 
diminishes their value or quality.  

    Originality of execution is generally more important than originality
of plot. If I told you I'm writing a story where Akane gets kidnapped and
the whole gang goes after her, you'd groan and refer me to the dozens of
dreary fics that have bludgeoned that premise into a sodden, bleeding mass
of twitching equine flesh. Yet that can also describe "Hearts of Ice".
Still, there have been fics, problematic in other areas, that have been saved
for me by the novel conceit at their core.

Consider if Takahashi-san had employed this line of thinking.  "What
if Ranma were roped into some esoteric sort of Martial Arts tournament...
oh, wait, it's been done."  "Suppose I introduce another fiancee for
Ranma... oh, hold on, I've done that."  "Let's say that Ryouga learns
a new technique and challenges... darn, I did that too."  Each of her 
"repetitive" storylines had their own richness and distinctiveness.  The
same potential exists for fanfictions which follow the same theme, so 
long as they are crafted with skill and devotion.  

One might argue that it is a bit absurd to get overly hung up on the
principle of originality when one is writing with somebody else's 
characters.  Given the number of Ranma stories out there, it seems
futile to grasp desperately about for ideas which have never been done.  If 
you stretch hard enough, you can assuredly come up with something
unique ("What if Ranma fell in love with a hedgehog?"  "What if
Ryouga was really the Second Coming?"  "What if Akane grew an
extra head and stole a prototype spaceship?").  But can you write a
*good* story about it?  I'll take quality over originality any day.

    But can you have a story, a story of real quality, that is
completely unoriginal? If what you write is written with "skill and
devotion", it should at least offer me one thing I can't get anywhere
else: your point of view on life, the world, the characters of Ranma
(or whatever series), etc. Probably there will be more. I jokingly
described "Hearts of Ice" as an "Akane gets kidnapped" story, but the
things I like about that story are things I don't get from most
fanfiction.

Grayson Towler
grayson@rigroup.net

http://www.rigroup.com/~grayson/relentless

Reid Carson
rcarson@mnsinc.com