Rain

Jocelyn 25th Jul 2013, 10:40 PM edit delete

Those two hanging out? Oh, this ought to be interesting…

I don’t normally come right out and do this, but I want to address a little bit of reader backlash towards Fara lately. The idea is that the character is supposed to be snarky, but it seems many people are interpreting her statements/actions as mean or even cruel. This is pretty big failure on my part, so help me make things better. Am I just overdoing it? Should I be toning her down? And I don’t want to hear “you don’t have to change anything,” because the reactions she’s getting are not ones I wanted (trust me, I revel in it when I can make readers hate a character I want them to hate, but if people start hating on a character I want readers to like, I’m clearly doing something wrong).

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GigaNerd17 25th Jul 2013, 11:29 PM edit delete reply

Webcomics aren't an aural medium, so getting across concepts which require vocal cues like snark can certainly be a challenge. I wish I knew how to help. :/

Mademise 26th Jul 2013, 12:12 AM edit delete reply

Well, I think that the thing with getting Jessica's name wrong is definitely something that makes me feel less positively inclined to Fara. I realize that in the context of the story, it's meant to be a playful thing, but it has a lot of a 'misgendering' feel to it, like 'it's not even your birth name anyway, how can I be expected to remember what you want to be called?'. And I know that's not how Fara means it at all, but that's the kind of connotation that behavior has for me.

Aimy 26th Jul 2013, 12:41 AM edit delete reply

yeah, I think the wrong-name gag has run it's course. If it's continued, I think it should be in intervals. It's fun to be snarky, but if you're constantly "forgetting" someone's name, and it's clearly becoming obnoxious to the other person, it's time to tone it down. Good snark is well timed, witty and clever, bad snark is monotonous, repetitive and dull. Fara crossed the line a bit with the last one.

Guest 26th Jul 2013, 1:19 AM edit delete reply

Fara? Cruel!? Naaaaah. I think "snarky smartass" comes out across rather well. The "constantly forgetting name" is becoming dull though. I like my webcomic jerks, if they are witty being so.

Nightsky 26th Jul 2013, 1:56 AM edit delete reply

I personally like her mistaking the name, though I have to admit it's less funny since "Jessica" is actually a pretty common name. However, I don't think she comes off as mean. Fara seems just snarky and teasing to me.

Also, I haven't really noticed much backlash against her. Can you link to pages with it?

MooingMoe 28th Jul 2013, 12:51 AM edit delete reply

http://jocelynsamara.deviantart.com/art/RAIN-p372-Overdoing-It-387667928 For the most part, I have seen it on DA

j-eagle12212012 26th Jul 2013, 6:25 AM edit delete reply

I agree with @Nightsky, Fara isn't mean she's sassy. on the other note Jessica and Heather hanging out 0_0 could be trouble.

Miss Mc 26th Jul 2013, 8:27 AM edit delete reply

First of all, gotta say... Love your stuff. I am a stepmom of a teen girl who is loving your stuff and is getting out so much more thanks to Rain's example and I LOVE you for it! ;) She asked for her family to read your work, so we can better inderstand her- what a compliment to the things uou are saying and writing!!!!!

secondly, to address the misunderstanding of Auny Fara....I agree, it is the forgetting the name... Names are so much a part of who we are.... Jessica has lovingly chosen her name as a reflection of the person she is inside and it seems not just lovingly snarky, but disrespectful to keep up the bit. Perhaps you can find a way to lovingly razz her on a different way.

Anna 26th Jul 2013, 3:06 PM edit delete reply

I agree with most of the comments here. Fara has never come across as bad before, I like her snarkiness. But the name thing did seem just plain mean and I couldn't work out why she was doing it.

Lex-Kat 21st Nov 2016, 2:46 AM edit delete reply

For me, Fara's not coming off as mean, and I still like her, it just has gotten old.

As for Heather + Jessica, should be interesting. Perhaps even a chance for Heather to grow a little more, giving me to love. :)

AriaOfEffect 17th Sep 2021, 12:35 PM edit delete reply

Fara's one of my favorite characters! Although when I think about it, pretty much everybody is "one of my favorite characters."

Comic 400 - Caffeine

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