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andrasteYou know, sometimes the characters are (in the past/in the future/on the astral plane/having interspecies tentacle sex/evil giant robots/omnipotent) and condoms just don't seem relevant to the situation. And other times, the characters are idiots.
I mean I care deeply about whether the characters in the story I'm writing practice safe sex, but I'm not entirely sure that they do. It's the mid-eighties, so they definitely should use protection. But given that they walk around with nuclear accelerators strapped to their backs, unsafe sex is probably not high on the list of stupid things that are likely to get them killed.
Probably I will solve this dilemma by putting this argument into the story, but it occurred to me that this has cross-fandom applications. Maybe one of the reasons condom use isn't universal in fanfiction is that many of the characters we write about take ludicrous risks of other kinds.
Now, I think it's entirely in character for Buffy Summers to endanger her life fighting vampires every night but demand that her lovers (well, the human ones) use condoms. Taking risks in one area of life doesn't necessarily mean that you'll take them in another. But if you're stuck on a desert island with invisible monsters, is not catching an STD really that much of a priority? If you're with the brain-eating serial killer who murdered your father, are you actually going to try to discuss safer sex?
I mean I care deeply about whether the characters in the story I'm writing practice safe sex, but I'm not entirely sure that they do. It's the mid-eighties, so they definitely should use protection. But given that they walk around with nuclear accelerators strapped to their backs, unsafe sex is probably not high on the list of stupid things that are likely to get them killed.
Probably I will solve this dilemma by putting this argument into the story, but it occurred to me that this has cross-fandom applications. Maybe one of the reasons condom use isn't universal in fanfiction is that many of the characters we write about take ludicrous risks of other kinds.
Now, I think it's entirely in character for Buffy Summers to endanger her life fighting vampires every night but demand that her lovers (well, the human ones) use condoms. Taking risks in one area of life doesn't necessarily mean that you'll take them in another. But if you're stuck on a desert island with invisible monsters, is not catching an STD really that much of a priority? If you're with the brain-eating serial killer who murdered your father, are you actually going to try to discuss safer sex?
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Date: 2007-07-15 04:29 pm (UTC)I just wish the Master would stop sitting in my brain being all amused at it. He seems to think it would be a great form of revenge for the mind games the Doctor was playing with him in aforementioned previous story, which is Insane Time Lord Logic if I've ever heard any. He's all, like, "Oooh, Doctor, it burns. Every time, it reminds me of you. I'm thinking of not getting it treated. I could just let it kill me. Don't you think that would be appropriate?" And he smirks. And the Doctor has to try very hard not to hit him.
(Erm, there. That's all you're getting for me. I mean it. I have to go and finish writing my Multiverse fic. Which features no STDs whatsoever.)