SW alternate universe question

[tarotgal]

Hey...

Stupid question and probably no one knows the answer, but I suppose it doesn't hurt to ask here...
Are there any firm rules/standards when it comes to alternate reality Q/O stories? I mean, is it all right to make up my own alternate variations on Quinn/Ben or whatever I want to call them? Or are those sort of reserved names and identities and I shouldn't reuse particular names if I'm to use the characters but it might be okay to come up with completely different characters? Or should I use existing ones if they do indeed exist in a hard form somewhere? Gah. I'm so confused.

Point is, I need to know if it's okay to write an alternate reality Star Wars story and if so, what the fanon concepts established are. I don't want to infringe on others' characters if that's not done, etc.

Thanks!

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

You know, I don't think that there's anything that you need to worry about. It's called an alternate universe because YOU make up the rules. Nobody else. If you make a few slips, who cares? It's YOUR universe. lol. I for one would love to see one, but you know how i feel about the boys, so lol. No suprise there! lol.
It's TG's universe, i don't think that there's anythinyg that you need to worry about, you can ask Nermal if she's feeling up to checking her email because I know that she wrote one a while back, and if not, you can always re-read the one's that she posted on her site for some inspiration/archetype questions? Yeah, that's my two-cents.
*G*
~Annalisa

[tarotgal]

Yeah... I just didn't want to unintentionally steal someone else's alternate reality and characters. Or accidentally use names that were reserved for another accepted AU pairing of them, you know? I wasn't sure if there was an accepted way of doing that in the fandom or not.

I re-read nermal's last night... or skimmed through them, rather. Mmmm. I remember way back when she wrote them and how fascinated I was with the general concept. Always wanted to try one... and this one just wouldn't leave me alone! lol!

Thanks for the enthusiasm, support, and most importantly the answer to my confusion! :-) Thanks!

[ladykorana.livejournal.com]

Nope, no rules apply whatsoever, as long as you label it AU.

I appreciate it when writers keep the basic feel of their personalities intact to keep them semi-recognizable as the characters we love, but it's by no means a requirement. Also, don't worry about the names. I've read at least a half dozen AU SW:TPM fics starring the characters Benjamin/Ben and his lover Quinn/Quentin/Quinton, etc...

So relax and let your imagination fly!

[tarotgal]

I just didn't want to take a name combination that was reserved for a specific type of AU pairing that had already been created and accepted as a staple... I've read a number of them, and didn't want to copy anyone but didn't want to use names that were supposed to represent someone else's AR pairing exclusively...

YAY! Thank you! I had an undeniable urge to write university professor/student and the images that popped into my head were Qui and Obi and no matter how I tried to make original character out of the plot bunny, the images and basic characteristics wouldn't budge. But I didn't want to steal anyone else's AR characters either... I tried searching but it's a difficult thing to search for on Yahoo/Google. I've read maybe 10 different ones... but that didn't help answer my question. Yay! But you did! Thank you! Thank you much!!!