What is
yaoi/slash/shounen-ai?
Yaoi, slash, shounen-ai... all these terms refer to the idea of a
homosexual relationship. The terms yaoi
and shounen-ai are Japanese
and refer to male pairings. Yaoi is more of a smut idea, while shounen-ai tends to focus on romantic feelings and general sappiness. Yuri
is the term for a feminine pairing. (There might be more, but this is
the only one I'm aware of.)
What do the
different ratings mean?
G = Good for all. Nothing of a particularly bad nature whatsoever.
PG-13 = May be a few curse words or a little bit of violence or
sexually suggestive situations.
R = Possible cursing, violence or sexual situations are present.
NC-17 = Contains possible cursing and extremely graphic violence or
sexual situations.
Does the order of names have a meaning?
Well, obviously yes, or I wouldn't switch them around. They are
arranged semexuke.
Seme? Uke? What
does that mean?
Seme and uke are Japanese terms that denote the dominant and submissive
in a pair. Seme is the dominant role, the one who takes charge and is
in control. It would be the 'male' role in a heterosexual relationship.
How do you validate your pairing--what
"proof" do you think that there
is?
Any pairing can have any numbers of reasons to be used. Many
people prefer to write fics based on pairings that have an actual
likely chance because the actual people do have a close relationship,
such as bandmates or people who have worked together on projects or
have known friendships. Other pairings can be completely random based
solely on aesthetic interests. Personally, I don't think you need to
validate the pairing in a story as long as you can make the
meeting/relationship plausible within the work itself. These are, after
all, fictional works and are not required to reflect reality in any
matter what-so-ever.
What do "lemon"
and "lime" mean in relation to stories?
When you see the terms "lemon" or "lime" on this page, it's not meaning
the fruit. A lime is a story that contains light sexual content,
usually about an R rating unless they have other elements that push
them to nc-17. Lemons are full out smut stories with heavy sexual
content and will be, without a doubt, rated at nc-17.
What are some of the
arguments for and against RPS/RPF?
RPS/RPF or real person slash and real person fiction can be
controversial in some cases. Why write stories about real people? Isn't
it just as easy to write your own original characters? Many authors
find it easier to write about a face and name that they're already
familiar with and many readers are interested in seeing stories about
celebrities they know. Some people might see it as slander to the
people in question, but it's no worse than things you'd see in a
tabloid about them except with one huge difference - these stories
never claimed to be true. And it's not bad for the artists in question.
I know, for myself, that after seeing someone in a story I wanted to go
find out more about them and their music to try and understand why the
author protrayed them in that way. Definitely the most important thing
to keep in mind, though, is that these stories are not written with any
malicious intent and are all plainly stated to be works of fiction.
They cannot harm the artists within them in any way. If you feel that
it's wrong, just don't read them. No one's forcing you.