I've been writing fanfiction for going on 15 years now. (I know it's appalling but I can't help it.) I've been involved in online fiction for 9 years, and I've been a slash fan for 13. In that period of time I've read a few very good stories and a
lot of truly godawful stories. I feel that I have earned the right to put forth a long-standing observation that, I can assure you, is as non-biased as I can make it:
Slash fanfiction, with the exception of a small percentage (and most of it being in the anime genre; sorry, Naruto fans), tends to be well-written, thought-out, and astoundingly superior to heterosexual fanfiction. My theory? Brain development. Hear me out. Slash fans tend to be older (although the trend is quickly changing thanks to the porny ways of internet), and understandably have a better grasp of basic writing mechanics.
Creatively speaking, I believe that slash fans tend to use a larger percentage of their brains when writing. Here's why I think so: writing slash is, when you're trying to keep it as canon as possible, something of a puzzle. The author must sit down and try to figure out some way to get those two characters together, often resorting to some very imaginative methods (or not-so-imaginative, if you're in a fandom that's screaming "GAAAAY!" at the top of its lungs). But to pull off a nearly-canon slash story, research and/or attention to details is essential.
A thorough slash author will immerse him- or herself in the fandom, study the characters, the dialogue, learn everything there is to be learned, and try to find a loophole (or gloryhole, whichever you prefer). It's detective work, Watson. They're looking for homoclues.
Het writers, on the other hand (and I'm making a generalization here), often insert an original character directly into the storyline (who usually has little or nothing to do with the canon fandom thema), therefore bypassing the whole educational section of the writing process. I equate it with writing a biography on a person you've never met. Their sole focus seems to be upon gratifying a self-indulgent fantasy (that goes for you too, RP slashers). The only creativity to be found in the story is attached to the OC who, unfortunately, becomes the singular focus of the entire thing and pushes the canon characters to the side, where they become supporting actors to an otherwise egocentric sample of literature.
Is it vanity? Are het writers naturally more prone to self-inserts? Are slash fans more loyal because of their love for the characters instead of the OCs that mirror themselves? Is it cerebral maturity? Do you think there's a correlation between intelligence/lack thereof and slash writers?
What are
your thoughts?