In the early discussion of this week's episode ("You Don't Want To Know"), there's been a lot about how unlikable 13 is--in general and in this episode in particular--and some about CTB (Amber) as well. It seems to me that the House writing team has some difficulty with likable female characters. Since there are lots of things the fic writers do better than the actual writers, I wondered if we could talk about fics with likable female OCs, and try to figure out what makes them work when the canon new female characters don't. (Of course, I realize not everyone dislikes 13 and Amber, but it seems to be a widespread opinion.) I wish I could start off by naming some fics with likable female OCs, but I can't think of any off the top of my head. I know I've read at least one or two, though--I'll try to track them down and point to them later.

Where is the fine line between cliche and canon? I have often given thought to the tendency of fanfic writers to pull out a big stick and threaten those they deem to be using too many "clichés." But the things about fandom clichés, is they only become clichés because other fandom writers have used them. Certainly, there are worn out, old clichés in general, one wishes to avoid. It is best not to say things like, "He was hungry enough to eat a horse, so he drove like a bat out of hell to the nearest fast food joint and filled his belly." However, who is to say WHEN the use of certain fandom specific terms crosses the line from descriptive to "cliché"? If someone reads a ton of fanfic, then eventually Wilson rubbing the back of his neck is going to become "cliché" because it is used by numerous authors - and they will thus come across it numerous times. The problem is, that *is* a method of body language RSL conveys certain emotions on the part of his character. It *is* something Wilson does. So does that mean it is "cliché" when RSL uses it on screen? And if not, why should it be "cliché" in fanfic? I have written in a lot of fandoms, where various things have become "cliché" in the minds of many. But when I write, I don't worry about "clichés" in fandom. I write what and how I want to write. If I mention eye color, too bad. People have eyes. They have color. I might mention it. (shrug) If I mention House limps, too bad. House limps. It is a fact. I don't write fanfic just for readers who have read a thousand other fanfics before and are sick of the word "limp" - I write for "everyone." (Then again, one needent mention House limps in every sentence!) People will either like my writing, or they won't, but if they determine whether it is good or not based upon whether I mention someone's eye color, then I figure that is their problem, not mine. I try to keep my writing fresh and interesting, but I am not going to agonize over whether to use the word "limp" or not. If I think it works, I will use it. And I figure when there have been umpteen thousand fanfics written about certain characters, almost everything is going to be "cliché" to someone! There are 'rules" about the mechanics of writing, but when one starts trying to apply set 'rules" to things that have more to do with personal preference, and word choice and style, then one begins to take the individuality out of the writing process. This is a very hard concept for some people to understand. I worked on a district wide grading team for student writing for two years. We met several times a year and graded student work. And there were certain "graders" who could not separate their own personal tastes from what they were grading; they consistently graded down papers written in styles they did not like, even though there was nothing technically wrong with the papers. And then when called on it, they had a hard time justifying their grades, because they were based upon things like a topic the reviewer didn't enjoy, or a point of view they disagreed with or an author voice they didn't like. In the end, a talented writer can use clichés and still capture your interest and hold you captive with his/her words. A poor writer could have a totally cliché free piece, and still bore you to tears. Writing talent isn't about what you write, it is about HOW you write it. That is why I will read just about anything if I know it is by a writer I admire. Some of my favorite fics are about subjects and in genres I would never consider reading in general, but I did read because I trusted the author enough to follow them down a road less traveled. And I am grateful that I did! Sorry cousinalexei, :? I know this wasn't on your proposed topic, but as usual, I am late to the party. Carry on!

Since there are lots of things the fic writers do better than the actual writers, I wondered if we could talk about fics with likable female OCs, and try to figure out what makes them work when the canon new female characters don't. I'll start by saying that I think the pitfall the House writers fell into with "13" and CTB is that they lack balance. The problem with "13" is that she is just too everything and it makes her seem like a 12 year old came up with the character...she's mysterious, she's beautiful, she can snark back at House, can already diagnose better than CCF could after years of learning from House, and now she may have to fight a terrible illness. If they had made her just one of these things and had given her a flaw or two to balance things out, she would seem a bit more real. CTB is just too over the top mean, and they haven't bothered to try to give her any redeeming qualities to balance that out. IMHO, a good example of a female OC that I really enjoy is Nurse Angelina from aenessai's Postcards From Ruritania. She gives to House as good as she gets, but it's more believable due to the fact that she's older and not so beautiful. It's also a good thing to know what your story calls for and what it doesn't. The fact that Angelina is a very familiar feeling character is a good thing in Postcards, because she's a pretty small part of the story- no need to waste too much time developing her, aenessai gets the most impact for her trouble by using a character her readers will likely feel that they already know. An OC that's going to be at the center of a story, of course, would need to be developed preferably in a slow but steady fashion and balance...balance...balance.

One of the female OCs I really like is House's daughter Viv, from pwcorgigirl's Rockabye. I don't know if she counts, but she's the first one who came to mind. I agree with what Melly said about balance.

A female OC that I really loved was Wilson's Nana, Judy from Hi Ma (Sunrise Sunset Remix) by Roga http://community.livejournal.com/remix_redux/60762.html She was funny and warm and...I just really liked her. Another female OC I liked was Mary, the girlfriend of House & Wilson's son Jack. She is the creation of the wonderful deelaundry (Roga remixed her story Hi Ma - see above) and appears in two of dee's fics: My Fathers' Son http://deelaundry.livejournal.com/7091.html Keeper (Agnates in Elysium) http://deelaundry.livejournal.com/55109.html

I love Nurse Myrna from Tidwell's Two Rooms at the End of the World. It's rare to see a believable love interest for House. In the case of Myrna, she is vunerable without beeing weak - and it helps that she has the mother from hell (no, really).

There are several very good original female characters in the "Aftershocks" series: Wilson's mother, Bette, who is nervous and brittle and nothing like her sweet son; Carla Jean Fowler, the boisterous home-health nurse who is fired by House because she worsens Wilson's post-traumatic stress disorder; and the occupational therapist (can't remember her full name off the top of my head) who turns out to be an old friend of Wilson's.

The occupational therapist was Shoshana Weinstein, who turned out to be not quite the person Wilson remembered. :wink:

A good female OC is Pamela, created by fluffykitty2001 for Take the Ducklings Bowling and When You Least Expect It. She is delightful, but can get away with being delightful because she's a good balance for Foreman whom she's involved with. I think it helps that she's not winning over House and she doesn't distract from the core characters while she enhances a core character--namely, Foreman who is often not written about at all.

The occupational therapist was Shoshana Weinstein, who turned out to be not quite the person Wilson remembered. Thanks, Nightdog. I could remember Shoshana but drew a blank on the rest of her name. That was a fun little twist when Wilson found out how she'd changed. Namasteyoga did a great job creating Foreman's mom (before we met her on screen, so it counts as an original character) in the post "Euphoria" fic About Time.

But the cliche that's currently driving me nuts is "House popped a couple of Vidodin." Poeia mentioned this about a page back -- I'm fashionably late. Something that doesn't so much annoy me as much as it jolts me out of a story is any reference to House's pills tasting either bitter or chalky. Do we actually know about the taste of a Vicodin pill? Usually when you swallow pills (even without water) you just get a sort of vague taste. Not overwhelming bitterness or chalkiness. As far as I know.

I don't know what Vicodin tastes like, but plenty of the time we see House put the pill(s) in his mouth and not swallowing right away. He looks like he's rolling them around his mouth with his tongue. So I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that he would taste them if he's taking them that way.

I have some Vicodin left from having surgery last year. Should I go lick it and report back? :lol: I agree with so much of Lagniappe's post that it was hard to narrow down what part to quote. However, who is to say WHEN the use of certain fandom specific terms crosses the line from descriptive to "cliché"? I have written in a lot of fandoms, where various things have become "cliché" in the minds of many. But when I write, I don't worry about "clichés" in fandom. I write what and how I want to write. If I mention eye color, too bad. People have eyes. They have color. I might mention it. (shrug) If I mention House limps, too bad. House limps. It is a fact. I don't write fanfic just for readers who have read a thousand other fanfics before and are sick of the word "limp" - I write for "everyone." (Then again, one needent mention House limps in every sentence!) People will either like my writing, or they won't, but if they determine whether it is good or not based upon whether I mention someone's eye color, then I figure that is their problem, not mine. I try to keep my writing fresh and interesting, but I am not going to agonize over whether to use the word "limp" or not. If I think it works, I will use it. If you're writing a long piece, I think it's much better to say that House limped every once in a while because if you don't, you might give the impression that you've forgotten that House does have a disability. I would much rather read a piece that uses descriptive words and synonyms than the same words over and over again. And I figure when there have been umpteen thousand fanfics written about certain characters, almost everything is going to be "cliché" to someone! There are 'rules" about the mechanics of writing, but when one starts trying to apply set 'rules" to things that have more to do with personal preference, and word choice and style, then one begins to take the individuality out of the writing process. Exactly. If you get so caught up worrying about the nitpicks your audience will have, you may get bogged down and lose your creative spirit. You have to write what you feel comfortable with. You also have to consider what you value in your characterizations. Everything in fan fic is "alternate universe," I don't care how well you write or how close your characterization is to the show's. If your story calls for House to be a little more compassionate than he is on the show, give him a good reason to be compassionate. If you can make it believable, then you've done your job well, I think.