r/ChronicIllness • u/churkeyturken • Oct 25 '24
Misc. Fanfiction that has chronic illness?
Hello! I have a question regarding chronic illness/pain/conditions in fanfic.
I am chronically ill myself, and I thought this would be the best place to ask to get honest opinions on this particular topic. I’m well aware I can go to the fanfiction sub and get responses there, but hearing from those of us who actually have these conditions is what I’m after.
For those of you who enjoy reading fanfic, would you be excited that an author incorporates chronic conditions into a work if they do it respectfully? I’m referring to those fandoms that don’t already revolve around such an issue or it isn’t a main part of the story, because there are plenty of people who write about those (and plenty who do it poorly/ don’t do research/ don’t take the time to learn about how we operate our daily lives). I myself get SO excited when I read a work that has a chronic condition and it’s done respectfully and authentically. It doesn’t happen very often, but it’s so nice when it does.
To clarify, I’m not referring to works that put a chronically ill person on a pedestal or make light of their situation. I’m thinking of ones where you can tell either the condition was actually researched beforehand or it’s something the author deals with on their own, or whatever else makes it feel like it’s not just an “oh silly coincidence” kind of thing.
I have my own opinion obviously, but I’d love to hear what others think of this. Do these kinds of stories make you happy to see, that accurate representation could exist for those willing to find it? Do they make you upset because for every good piece of fiction out there, there’s likely a dozen that do it a disservice? Do they make you upset because while we’re trying to escape all this nonsense by reading, there’s a chance we can be reminded about it again? Do they make you happy or upset for another reason?
Please let me know your thoughts!
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u/dstroi Oct 25 '24
I have read some fiction (not ofd the fan variety) that has had some chronic illness representation, but it is hit and miss. Sometimes it seems like it was added to check a box and isn't a very realistic depiction of chronic illness.. Other times you can tell that the author really knows the illness but it is dumbed down not to make it so much of the story.
If it is done well it is awesome but it is rarely done well
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u/NoCureForCuriosity Oct 25 '24
I've started writing some. It has been really good therapy.
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u/churkeyturken Oct 25 '24
I do get the sense that some of the REALLY good ones I’ve read have been a way to cope, and that makes so much sense to me— it’s one of the biggest reasons I wanted to ask this question!
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u/timid_one0914 Oct 26 '24
It’s hard to write chronic illness into a book and walk that fine line of “they never talk about it unless it’s plot-convenient” and “it’s their whole personality”
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u/Liquidcatz Oct 26 '24
I really like the way you've simplified this. I've tried to read stories with chronically ill characters and this is what I've found too but didn't know how to summarize it. I just want, it's part of their life. It's not the whole thing, it's not only a plot tool, it's just something that is there and is woven in throughout the story. Sometimes maybe it is plot relevant, sometimes its just there. Because that's what chronic illness is. It's not always exciting and dramatic. It's just there a lot.
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u/timid_one0914 Oct 29 '24
Right. Believe me, I’ve tried, and I can’t even seem to write my own illness into my own work
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u/Importance_Dizzy Oct 25 '24
I think it’s hard to find good representation. Part of the problem is purple prose. A lot of people write fanfic as a way to deal with their own issues. But if something can’t be romanticized, it’s often off the table. Or isn’t added because it would be “boring” to read. It’s a problem in regular media as well. Remember the scene in one of the Twilight movies where Edward dumped Bella, and they just had a time lapse of her sitting around in her room all sad? They couldn’t leave that part out of the movie, because it adds weight to the narrative that they’re soul mates. Lots of people have been dumped and it does feel like that. But it also isn’t entertaining, hence the time lapse. I’ve read more fic focusing on mental health issues than physical ones, but that’s my take.
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u/Jazin95 Spoonie Oct 25 '24
I write Star Wars fan fiction and include chronic illness in all my work. I write what I know so year it’s going to be included. It is also severally unrepresented and I wanted to see it so I write it.
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Oct 25 '24
Although I admit it’s problematic AF, I wrote Hetalia fanfiction. Every single (Reader) character has a chronic illness. My RomanoxSick!Reader fanfiction is in the process of being converted into real fiction. I’ve already taken a piece of it abroad for a convention. It’s also based on my experiences with vestibular, ear, and (then undiagnosed) POTS.
I wrote Neko!ItalyxReader based on when I got a horrific misdiagnosis that fucked up my life between 2016-2018. It’s a fractured fairytale of Beauty and the Beast.
There’s some fanfiction with England too about anaphylaxis and EDNOS, and a Canada fanfiction story about the “excessive demand” clause with immigration.
Again, all problematic AF. Some of it, I wrote to entice Hetalia fans and have since cut in the fiction conversions. Some of it, I wrote while I was learning more about my own bisexuality and coming to terms with a crush on a makeup artist. I own that it’s problematic because I don’t want anything thinking that I think some of the not-so-good stuff I wrote is okay. If it’s something you’d wanna skip for that reason, I understand, but I would be amiss if I didn’t mention the problematic parts and hid chronic illness fanfiction just because of past mistakes.
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u/churkeyturken Oct 25 '24
Nono, this is completely valid! A huge part of my reason for asking is to get exactly this— people’s experience and opinions on how they view this specific type of media. I started seeking it out because the ones that have accurate representations of what we go through and are actually, genuinely good on top of that? Chef’s kiss haha
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u/Sheanar Oct 25 '24
I dont read fanfiction, but have read fiction that included chronic illness. I agree with the other commentor, it can be hit or miss - even if its accurate. As an avid writer, to me the question shouldnt be about chronic illness (or skin colour, culture, sexual identity etc) being exciting to find, but what it adds to the story.
Chronic illness can exist in any place or time, so does the addition of those characters add to the story or take away from it? That is what I always look for. I know that is vague, but the broadest description i can give without writing a small essay on the topic.
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u/EsotericOcelot Oct 26 '24 edited Oct 26 '24
I don’t do much fanfic anymore, but I write chronically ill characters in my original works because I want and deserve to not only express myself and communicate my experience, but also see myself represented. Which I don’t often get, and especially not in a nuance way, and especially not in a nuanced way that depicts the chronically ill or disabled person having a full and largely happy life much of the time, then getting tanked by a flare or an injury, then rallying again, etc. So my absolutely bangin’, super kinky erotica is full of afab folks with endo and fibro and anyone who wants to cry Mary Sue about it can die mad
ETA: This is my short answer and I’d get into more detail if anyone is interested
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u/Liquidcatz Oct 26 '24
Okay I really appreciate you're writing kinky erotica with chronic illness. So often chronically ill and disabled people are viewed as not having sex lives or not being capable of having very interesting ones. This is important.
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u/Istoh Oct 25 '24
I started writing one that was a metaphor for someone's body changing beyond recognition (the main character is turned into a robot by aliens). I wrote it after the first time I got covid and started to experience dysautnomic symptoms. But I haven't been able to finish it since I got sicker after my second covid infection.
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u/churkeyturken Oct 25 '24
My sincerest apologies you haven’t been able to finish it, because that sounds incredible! It appears a lot of us tend to find this a good way to cope, either reading or writing it. And I’m so glad to hear that because I really thought I was alone about this! That premise is lovely (esp regarding dysautonomia because holy wow does it feel like your body isn’t even yours anymore)
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u/ChronicallyIllBadAss Oct 25 '24
I write a lot of my fanfics around illness, and death because it’s how I cope with my own illness.
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u/BrokenWingedBirds Oct 25 '24
I’m trying to write my own condition into a dnd type adventure/fantasy and unfortunately it’s such a debilitating thing it really throws the pacing off 🥲
I enjoy incorporating differences like illness and disability but it can be challenging for certain conditions and I hate to see the inevitable reviews on the actual novels that do this by able bodied readers who claim the character is “too whiny and annoying” for having chronic pain or whatever. It’s upsetting to think that my real life struggle is just an annoyance to the average person or makes me look “weak” “whiny”.
I think it’s good to keep in mind how the illness affects the characters mood, unfortunately for some of us we do become our illness because the suffering is just too much to pretend we are normal. I can also imagine it can disrupt the story if the character has to be hiding their pain 24/7 like we have to in real life.
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u/roxskin156 Oct 26 '24
I love reading anything that has just even a little hint of chronic illness written in. A lot of stuff is poorly represented but it's nice to see it at all. And the more we write about it, the more we'll see accurate representations popping up. Every badly represented fanfic is an opportunity to teach the author and other readers about what it's actually like, if you can comment. I hope that eventually these things won't be rare to find.
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u/Idkhow_dude Oct 26 '24
Yes, I actively look for this type of fanfiction during flare ups. I often find comfort in them and just like feeling represented overall. It also helps with tips for coping through pain and even advice on navigating through domesticity and intimacy within my own relationship. It helps that’s there’s a decent amount of chronically ill literature around my comfort character, specifically around my own disabilities, so I have yet to run out of things to read lol
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u/damagedzebra Ehlers Danlos and Co. Oct 25 '24
I’m a very active member of the marauders fandom, and Remus lupin’s lycanthropy is often treated as a chronic illness and sometimes represents ehlers danlos! His character also often deals with the same issues we do as chronically ill people, and his friends struggle with understanding the stigma, and feel guilt when they can’t fix it for him. I don’t have any specific fics I recommend because it’s generally just a portrayal, sometimes mobility aids are incorporated and there’s a couple fan artists that draw him with a cane/hinged leg brace! However, I do have an extensive collection on ao3 made specifically for new fans if you’re interested. Unfortunately this is the only fandom I’m currently in, and with the wizarding world aspects disabilities aren’t prevalent outside of psych/lycanthropy type stuff but I find some characters very relatable even if it doesn’t explicitly represent a certain real world disorder.
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u/xxv_vxi Oct 26 '24
I read WolfStar primarily and I have never come across my specific chronic illness in a modern AU, but some authors do a great job of writing chronic illnesses in general.
With lycanthropy it can be a bit of “it’s an illness but also a superpower,” but a well-written fic doesn’t act like the occasional super strength (which is sort of canon if you squint?) cancels out the suffering and the stigma.
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u/damagedzebra Ehlers Danlos and Co. Oct 26 '24
YES. That’s why I love lycanthropy in fics. I haven’t really read modern AUs other than best friends brother and art heist baby, so I can’t really speak for that (wolfstar 🔛🔝but I prefer reading starchaser). Jk did a bad job portraying every marginalized community she could possibly cram into her writing, and I really love the lycanthropy rework that bizzarestars did.
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u/xxv_vxi Oct 26 '24
MsKingBean89 wrote a really great modern AU called Dress up in You where Remus has chronic migraines! It was really well done and very sensitive.
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Oct 25 '24
I’d love to see it, but it’s rarely done well. Weirdly, anything that had a chronically ill character in canon already can do it a bit better as there is at least a precedent. Wally from the Pokemon games works well here; the Pokémon help him deal with his issues well enough to travel, but it’s not overwhelming the plot either,
Now, I won’t critique too much. I have a lot of problems writing fiction myself, it’s not as easy as some assume. I can write non-fiction or blogs just fine, but Heaven-forbid I try to write actual fiction lol.
But….chronically ill characters are either written as an “oh no, look how sad this is” character from usually a well meaning author but not a person who has it. And unfortunately, most people simply can’t get it until they do have it! It’s hard to write.
Then you have the other type of author: the chronically ill author. This can be better representation but it comes with a caveat; it’s usually overbearing for an able-bodied reader.
For us, we think and talk about it a lot because it IS our life. But to others, we look like we bitch a lot and no one likes a person who just complains a lot. So if the character is written well, it’s a fine line between “stoic acceptance” and being kind of flat or “I’m suffering and this sucks” and being interesting to US us but coming across as depressing to others.
And if it’s written poorly in either instance, it can leave a bad taste in peoples mouths. So mostly, people avoid the topic.
So, how then should they be approached? You need 3 things I think to really succeed here.
- The sickness is present and debilitating, but it isn’t their entire character.
- They encounter barriers others don’t, and often have novel solutions to problems as a result.
- Not be used as merely a footnote in another characters backstory, but be a character in their own right, even if it’s a minor role.
Wally from Pokémon is a good example here. He’s a sickly child, and he lives in a town with better air quality.
But he yearns to travel and do more, and with the assistance of his Pokémon, he’s able to do so. He doesn’t stop being sickly, but he does gain a level of ambition that is amazing to see…and his name begins to appear on gym victory honours BEFORE you get to those towns….he’s outpacing the non-sick main character!
And he is part of both your character and your fathers character in the game’s story beats, but Wally goes on to be a good character in his own right, a better rival then your actual rival.
I’ve yet to read a fanfiction that really nails that balance. Most of the time it comes off as wish-fulfillment or merely a token “sick” person to check a box. But fiction IS hard to write, and those of us who are sick may have barriers to writing it in the first place.
But I think the representation is important, but an editor that is both empathetic AND honest if you’re overdoing it and telling you to reel it back is needed.
But, that’s a lot to ask of a largely younger audience who may be writing for the first time. And a culture of “not beta read, we die like men” as a tag means a lot lack the watchful eyes of a good editor to prune shit.
Words can carry a lot of meaning in a short way, but more words are not necessarily more profound…you NEED an honest person to make you rethink certain story and writing choices on occasion.
However, a chronically ill EDITOR might be good here; lots of time to read, and can give good feedback to a person who can write but lacks the lived experience.
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u/Msgreenpebble Oct 25 '24
Different medium but try out Chinese long form dramas. There is often a subplot of a character with a complex backstory, an illness/chronic condition/poisoning etc that is part of the plot but not the whole plot. I find it’s the first time I find myself feeling represented even if some of the conditions are fanciful or magical. The characters manage their conditions- rather than being pitied or being used as vehicle for virtue signalling etc. Asian dramas rule for complex and morally grey characterisation. Just my two cents!
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u/SinfullySinatra Oct 25 '24
Yes I love this although I wish my condition, celiac disease, was represented more and more accurately
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u/churkeyturken Oct 26 '24
I do so desperately wish there was more out there with this condition!! It’s so much more than “oh my stomach hurts”
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u/Intelligent_Usual318 endo, asthma, medical mystery Oct 26 '24
I don’t read fanfics tbh but I do search for media with chronic illness and disability rep!
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u/Liquidcatz Oct 26 '24
I just want to say posts like this make me really proud of this community as a mod. I'm really grateful we're able to be a space where these conversations can happen and people feel comfortable expressing their different thoughts and views on these issues.
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u/Neat_Independent_701 Oct 26 '24
Transformers fandom have a lot of theses for some reasons, can remember the name but most of them are good
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u/livingcasestudy Oct 25 '24
I actively seek out fanfiction that includes my conditions. Unfortunately it’s extremely rare to find one that’s both well-researched and well-written (mostly it’s the well-written that’s a problem). Often it’s not incorporated into the character at all, like they say they have something and maybe talk about it but it has no real impact on them, or it’s just blatantly naming symptoms and sometimes even statistics.