Wait. You're a writer? That's your career? I know your first name IRL since others have called you that, but we never really crossed paths much back when you were active. Now I have to hunt you down and read some of your stuff.
I am indeed a writer! Not a very financially successful one (yet?), but I published my first novel in 2015, right before my life imploded and I spent three years in hell, but it is always foremost in my mind to get back to the point where I can resume work on my next novel. I have a lot to say! You can check out
my site if you like, but beware that my work is for a relatively niche audience. I would not expect most people to be interested in it.
That's the big feather, but really I'm a writer not because of a published novel but because I
write. I've written thousands of pieces over the years, including some really exquisite essays here at the Compendium. It's just what I do: I write.
And there's also the external employment and contract work. I do freelance writing and editing, and am currently employed as a copyeditor and copywriter.
Although if you don't have Sabin Suplexing the Phantom Airship (a la the fight against the Phantom Train), I'd be horribly disappointed in you.
Definitely! =]
I always have to remind myself, when I'm in Serious Writing mode, that materials like FFVI had a fun side too, and good fanfic needs to encapsulate this as well, or at least be aware of omitting it. I'd love to take a crack at writing this relatively grim work that nevertheless has a good sense of humor to it, and the caricatures from the original game are great springboards for that!
Which brings me to this excellent point by Acacia Sgt:
Although, personally, I wouldn't really read it as a sequel work. Interesting as it could sound to envision the post-FFVI world like that, to me it's... more of a detractor. Maybe it's just me, but fiction is fiction for a reason. When it gets too realistic... well, it defeat its purpose. So a happy (or bittersweet/hopeful/downer/etc) ending should remain so, not derailed because in real life it wouldn't be the case.
That is indeed a great point, and something I'm aware of myself as an artist: I like to honor the spirit of original works by respecting their tonal decisions in anything derivative I do with them. That doesn't mean I'll slavishly uphold those decisions, but I do make it a point to justify any departure therefrom.
So, deviating from a "happy ending" (or another type of ending) by introducing a new direction, even though sequels have made this their bread and butter since time immemorial, is something I like to be fully aware of and deliberate in. I don't like wrecking other people's resolutions.
Likewise, when an original story has a certain flavor to it--in this case epic adventurism--I like to respect that tonal decision and only depart from it for good cause. I do tend toward realism in my writing, and so your specific point is salient, and I have definitely spent energy thinking about this facet of the fanfic, as this is one of only a tiny handful of fanfics (maybe the only one!) that I definitely intend to eventually write.
Think about it like this: I didn't necessarily say that my fanfic would be a "bad ending" to FFVI, or that it would ruin FFVI's ending. It is, simply, a continuation of what I think of as the natural storyline that FFVI began. The pain and difficulty of recovery were glossed over in the ending sequence, but it wouldn't violate the tonal flavor of the original game to introduce new hardships even after the defeat of Kefka. And my premise is actually carefully designed to fit within precedents introduced in the story: An assassination plot, for instance. And Celes having a physical hardship as well as a psychological one that are relevant to the progression of the story--well, different forms of these ideas were present in Celes and other characters in FFVI itself. There's even room for the same style of exaggerations that tended to mark FFVI and other JRPGs of that era, which were forced into the heights of theatricality because of their many hardware limitations.
I actually envision my fanfic as one with a positive message, despite its bleak circumstances. Celes' progression in the story isn't a tragedy. Nor is it to recreate the circumstances of the original: to slim down, get back on the front lines, and fight and win the day. Her progression in the story isn't to become a fighter, but to stay fat (and if anything get even fatter, since people need to be shown through our storytelling that getting fat isn't the end of a person's humanity or their potential) and instead reclaim her self-confidence by developing non-physical outlets for her inner strength of character. While my personal style of writing may be more realistic than the game's, I think the themes of such an effort are very much in keeping with those of FFVI.
But, yes, your point is a great one and it's something I am very thoughtful about!
