Fifty Shades of Grey
discussion
Why do people compare this to Twilight?
I haven't looked into it extensively, but it's my understanding that Fifty Shades of Grey began as a Twilight fan fiction. Supposedly the details were changed so it could be published.
It started as Twilight fanfiction, and people who ran the original piece and the published work through various Anti-Cheating softwares discovered that they're pretty much 89% identical. The biggest changes being the names, and miscellaneous touches, like the removal of certain passages or new additions to make the words flow better.http://dearauthor.com/features/indust...
Oh I had no idea, thanks a lot:)
They compare 50 Shades of Grey to Twilight because it was originally a Twilight fan fiction. Ever notice how Bella and Ana & Edward and Christian are VERY similar? That's why.
yeah, the couples in each book are far too similar. Edward & Christian are both over-the-top protective, jealous, possesive blah blah blah. Ana and Bella are two of the most irritating female protagonists I have ever read about. Both gorgeous (with apparently no idea), both clumsy, both whiny. Both series are my guilty pleasure but I'd happily throw both of those girls into a very deep hole with no means of escape :)
Emma wrote: "Both series are my guilty pleasure but I'd happily throw both of those girls into a very deep hole with no means of escape :) "I found myself giggling because when I read your comment, I could only think: "It puts the lotion in the basket!"
As for the question, yes, fan fiction.
Wow, no wonder it's so bad. Twilight is badly written, poorly conceived, and derivitive to begin with.
message 10:
by
~*~Princess Nya Vasiliev~*~
(last edited Jan 23, 2013 09:03PM)
(new)
-
rated it 5 stars
Even though this started as a Twilight Fan Fic,(which I did not read) while I was reading this trilogy, I didn't really see any major or identical similarites between the two. So IMO, I think the author did well in switching up the story in order to get it published. I've read the Twilight Saga numerous times as well as seen the films, but while reading the FSoG books, I didn't get a Twilight feel from it. And I was happy about that. For me Christian's character & actions were way darker from anything Edward ever did. Ana vs. Bella? Mmmm I think Ana was way more obsessed than Bella was when it came to their inner monologue. Ana got on my nerves. Bella I could tolerate. But in comparing the two, if they are seen as identical, I would say they are no different than any other lead heroine in this type of book setting.
It seems like every book out there now days is either compared to Twilight or 50 Shades.
Irene wrote: "It seems like every book out there now days is either compared to Twilight or 50 Shades."I know.. and this I'm not understanding. I read all kinds of books, and the comparisons I see on some of these stories? I'm just not seeing *shrugs*
~*~Princess Nhya~*~ wrote: "I know.. and this I'm not understanding. I read all kinds of books, and the comparisons I see on some of these stories? I'm just not seeing *shrugs* "ITA! I don't get it either ...
Yeah, it started as a Twilight Fanfiction.The only thing that bothers me (and A LOT) is that everyone seems to HATE twilight so much...
... but they love this book?
seriously?
As almost everyone already stated: This was a Twilight fanfiction first.I personally never read any of the Twilight books, only the snippets on the tumblr blog: reasoningwithvampires (in one word for the url, if you want to take a look) and found that Edward Cullen and Christian Grey are basically the same character. They are both the kind of guy who stalk a woman to "protect" her, etc. Which is super creepy and absolutely NOT okay.
I dislike both stories.
And because there will no doubt be some dolt that will say that fsog has nothing to do with twilight, it’s admitted on the author’s website - http://www.eljamesauthor.com/faq/ - click on the question “Was Fifty Shades of Grey originally self-published as a eBook?”. Hidden inside a question that doesn’t seem related to twilight at all.“Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker, and Fifty Shades Freed were never self-published as these novels. An earlier version of this story began as Twilight fan fiction which was self published on the internet. The trilogy was picked up by an Australian publisher, The Writer’s Coffee Shop, who released them as e-books and print-on-demand paperbacks.”
Licha wrote: "89%!? Isn't that called plagiarizing?"The software was comparing the fanfiction (written by James) and 50 Shades of Grey (written by James), so no, it isn't plagerizing.
Anjasa wrote: "Licha wrote: "89%!? Isn't that called plagiarizing?"The software was comparing the fanfiction (written by James) and 50 Shades of Grey (written by James), so no, it isn't plagerizing."
Yeah, it'd only be true plagarization if James stole the fanfiction. However, as she was the author it doesn't really count. The point of the 89% was to point out that there really weren't that many changes from the fanfiction using Twilight characters, to the original novel. One could say that she used the success of the Twilight fandom to increase the sales of her own novel, but that's a bit harder to argue - since most people are honestly not aware that FSoG started out as what it did.
I honestly didn't read any of Twilight books (I watch the first movie though) so I couldn't see any similarities between 50 shades and twilight. But 50 shades was originally written as Twilight fanfic, so maybe thats why people often compare the books to twilight saga.
It was Twilight fan-fiction. It was written like Twilight fan-fiction and I'm just in shock over how this book got published when there is so many similarities between the characters in this book and the character in the Twilight book.The reason fan-fiction succeeds is because we(me included) write about things that DID NOT HAPPEN IN THE ORIGINAL BOOK that we wanted to happen. Then when we're over that, we start using the same book characters to create our own stories.
Where E.L. James goes wrong is that, like many other fan-fiction authors, she let the success of the story reviews from fan-ficion readers go to her head. Now all we have is a book full of stolen characters surrounded by a repetitive idea that doesn't really work, especially for people who've read better.
I don't think people are stupid for liking FSoG. I think whether or not you like a book is a very personal choice and no one should be ridiculed for that.The part where I start to question intelligence is when people say that they have read both series and don't see the similarities. There are so many similarities that it's impossible to miss them.
Emma wrote: "yeah, the couples in each book are far too similar. Edward & Christian are both over-the-top protective, jealous, possesive blah blah blah. Ana and Bella are two of the most irritating female prota..."I wish I could like this, upvote this, something. Personally, I LOVE both series even though I know they're the worse excuse for an independent woman (and this is coming from somebody who can be a little over feminist and idols Lisbeth Salander) and yet the romance. *swoon* Gah, this is embarrassing.
But the fan fiction idea is true though not paranormal and with a lot of sex.
i read all the twilight sage and the 50 shades of grey trillogy on one hand yes i can see the similarity in the characters to a point but as far as the books go i think they are very different i really dont see the simimlarity.
I read Fifty first and never understood the whole Twilight craze. I only read Twilight because I heard so much about it and the comparison. I have to say that the comparison between Ana and Bella ends at the fact that they were both female and young. I thought Ana was much more full of life and humor than Bella. Christian and Edward the only similarity was that they were both dominant males and wanted to protect Ana and Bella, oh yes that they were both wildy rich. Christian also had a sense of humor where as Edward had none. This is just MHO.
Christian has a sense of humour? Was he laughing like a madman as he hit Ana at the end of book one?
I agree christian did have a sense of humor not so much in the first book but in the second and third he did start to have more laughs and edward really never laughs about anything and yes bella was very dull in personality and ana was much more full of life.
message 27:
by
~*~Princess Nya Vasiliev~*~
(last edited Jan 31, 2013 10:49AM)
(new)
-
rated it 5 stars
Angie wrote: I don't think people are stupid for liking FSoG. I think whether or not you like a book is a very personal choice and no one should be ridiculed for that.The part where I start to question intelligence is when people say that they have read both series and don't see the similarities. There are so many similarities that it's impossible to miss them. ..."
Then you are still in essence ridiculing others by still questioning another's intelligence.. This trilogy alone, is testament enough that many many people can read the same thing and still walk away with a different feel/POV from it. Does this mean all these people are less intelligent than you cos they were left with a different impression than you?
I think because in both books, she loves him so much, yet it's always in the back of her mind that he could possibly hurt her. However, she never wants to believe it. But isn't that always the case with love? :)
Wendy wrote: "I think because in both books, she loves him so much, yet it's always in the back of her mind that he could possibly hurt her. However, she never wants to believe it. But isn't that always the case..." Wendy you are so right thats exactly how it is with love and i think thats where the similarity is between these two books.
Jessica wrote: "My currently issue with the book is that we are all made aware Christian is an uber-sexy hunk of asshole, but I have little idea of what Ana really looks like. I’m trying to form an image of her and it’s fuzzy and frankly I’m only coming up with “homely.”"Lol homely. :D
Jessica wrote: "Additionally, the Twilight parallels are getting old. I'd make a list but truly I dont have the time or energy. It'd be a BIG list."It's actually been done already in another discussion thread anyway.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/9...
Michael wrote: "I have only read the first part of this book, I look forward to reading the sequels. On the other hand, I never read any Twilight book and do not have any desire to read it. The subject matter with..."It's because the book is a fan fiction of twilight, and, if you had read the books, you'd also see the similarities.
50 shades of grey and its sequels are a real romantic stories with a pinch of spice. But everything is nice and a part of love whereas twilight is about a bloodsucking vampire which has less romance and more brutality. Stephen Mayer's level of imagination reached the sky.
~*~Princess Nhya~*~ wrote: "Angie wrote: I don't think people are stupid for liking FSoG. I think whether or not you like a book is a very personal choice and no one should be ridiculed for that.The part where I start to qu..."
You're right. I am. The disconnect between the two of us is that you think it's an impression. I don't think that.
This was written as a fanfiction, and everything that takes place in these books mirrors (right down to the sequence of events) Twilight to a 't.' So, yes.IMO, if someone can't see the similiarites, I'm questioning their level of reading comprehension.
message 36:
by
~*~Princess Nya Vasiliev~*~
(last edited Feb 05, 2013 11:17AM)
(new)
-
rated it 5 stars
Angie wrote:You're right. I am. The disconnect between the two of us is that you think it's an impression. I don't think that.This was written as a fanfiction, and everything that takes place in these books mirrors(right down to the sequence of events) Twilight to a 't.' So, yes.IMO, if someone can't see the similiarites, I'm questioning their level of reading comprehension. "
I never read the Fanfic for this trilogy, but I have read the Twilight Saga. Now, it's my understanding that what occurs in a fanfic is not what occurs in the original story. Correct? The fanfic may have the same characters, to a certain extent the same premise but over all it's a different story.
Now I've read in this thread and others, don't know how true it is, but I've read this trilogy is like 90% the same as the fanfic. Which in essence is not the exact same story as Twilight (if this is the case). So in comparing this trilogy and the Twilight Saga, the only similarities that I walked away with, if I think about it, is
1. Bella & Ava are both young, naive, they obsess way too much in their head, they're totally in love but (differences) Ava is also a few years older than Bella. Leaving college starting a career. Ava is more sophisticated than Bella a bit more comfortable less awkward in her own skin. Oh and IMO, Ava obsessed and stayed in her head way more than Bella did.
2. Christian & Edward. They are both rich, attractive, and possessive/ controlling although, (Differences) Christian's demons, controlling ways etc.. are far more darker than anything Edward has ever done or shown. Oh and Christian is human. His life & money he's earned revolves around the empire he's built, not high school & using his adoptive sister's gifts on playing the stock market. Definitely not a virgin, and enjoys the kink way too much.
So some of these are the only things that I see as the same when I compare this trilogy with the Saga, not the fanfic (which I didn't read) but the Saga.
When I take in the setting, the darker tone, and sinister things/experiences that occur between Ava & Christian in comparison to the setting, the tone, and what occurs between Edward & Bella, I don't see nor feel an identical story to Twilight.
And a question for those who feel it's identical to the Twilight Saga, those who love the Saga but hate the Trilogy. If it's so identical, then why do you hate the Shades Trilogy?
Me? I liked both. I love the Saga I read it so many times. I have to say my fave book is book 3. The Shades Trilogy I liked but it's something I can't see myself re-reading *shrugs*
~*~Princess Nhya~*~ wrote: "Angie wrote:You're right. I am. The disconnect between the two of us is that you think it's an impression. I don't think that.This was written as a fanfiction, and everything that takes place in ..."
I think my use of the word 'mirror' insinuated that it was indentical. Maybe I shouldn't have used that word. You are right; the characters are similar, and that's what I meant. I didn't mean identical, so I apologize for the confusion there.
I'm not going to go into all of the similarities, because there's another thread here that does that. I'll just give an example.
At the beginning of Twilight, after Edward resoloves to stay away from Bella, he saves her from almost being hit by a truck. Similarly, in FSoG, after Ana and Christian have tea and she thinks they'll never see each other again, Christian saves her from being hit by a bike.
There are many more corresponding instances, and I believe someone included the link above. Identical? No. But the storyline follows the pattern of Twilight so much that it's blatantly obvious.
It boggles my mind that people can't see this. Even more so when it's been outlined (and assuming one has read the thread--I'm not assuming you are, I'm just generalizing here) and one claims they still can't see it.
message 38:
by
~*~Princess Nya Vasiliev~*~
(last edited Feb 05, 2013 01:33PM)
(new)
-
rated it 5 stars
Angie wrote:There are many more corresponding instances, and I believe someone included the link above. Identical? No. But the storyline follows the pattern of Twilight so much that it's blatantly obvious. It boggles my mind that people can't see this. Even more so when it's been outlined (and assuming one has read the thread--I'm not assuming you are, I'm just generalizing here) and one claims they still can't see it.
..."
Okay I understand what you mean by this. Following the pattern, yes I can see the similarites in the minor details concerning certain occurances within the story.
But this can also be said for plenty of other books within this genre... For instance the car scene in Twilight, I can say I've read to the "t" in other PNR/erotic books. Even in some Mature Adult or YA reads that I've read. The premise, plot, even some characters/occurances could be seen as the same. So it's a broad arguement to be had.
When it comes to the over all arc of the shades trilogy, and the characters, it doesn't at least for me, give a Twilight feel to the trilogy like some may claim. Which is why I believe this author was still able to get Shades published and not be sued even though it started as a fanfic inspired by Twilight.
I believe the bottom line is the major blow up about this being exactly like Twilight stems from the simple fact that so many are aware that it came from a fanfic for Twilight. Yes, they have similarities with the characters & some occurances within the story. But over all the trilogy is still a very different story than the Twilight Saga.
Emma wrote: "I'd happily throw both those girls down a very deep hole with no means of escape"Not that they irritate you or anything :P
The bottom line is 50 Shades is twilight minus the paranormal aspect, someone actually sent me the original fan-fiction, which she eventually took offline and did some minor reworking in to the final product that is now 50 Shades of Gray. I will give James some credit, by the third book she does veer away from the format enough to almost qualify as an original work. In an interview I read she alluded to writing a fourth book, supposedly from Christian's point of view (supposedly to have been released December 2012) and failed to do so, following the Meyers formula to a tee.WHY Meyers didn't raise a fuss, is beyond me. Either she is too wrapped up in the filming of the Host, or she is so flattered by the copy's success that she doesn't care, it's anyone's guess.
Tammy wrote: The bottom line is 50 Shades is twilight minus the paranormal aspect-The major kink & Christian's emotional issues took care of the paranormal aspect which gave the story a completely different feel from Twilight.
WHY Meyers didn't raise a fuss, is beyond me. Either she is too wrapped up in the filming of the Host, or she is so flattered by the copy's success that she doesn't care, it's anyone's guess.
"
I don't think Meyers cares for the simple fact she's made and continues to make hella money off of the books as well as the films so why should she bat a lash? I don't think she cares or raised a fuss about it cos she probably honestly doesn't think it's a copy of her work. It could come down to something as simple as that.
"WHY Meyers didn't raise a fuss, is beyond me."I'm not sure she has a legal leg to stand on. After all you can't copyright character features or characteristics. Nor plot patterns.
I'm inclined to think that what EL James did was technically legal. I'm convinced it's unethical though.
Stephenie released a quote basically saying she'd never read fifty because it wasn't her thing, but added a sarcastic 'you go girl' to the end of it. Best thing Stephanie's put out there, IMHO.
I have no desire to read any Twilight book, but thanks for all the reasons behind the comparisions.
Michael wrote: "I have no desire to read any Twilight book, but thanks for all the reasons behind the comparisions."LOL! Ur welcome :D
cielo wrote: "Yeah, it started as a Twilight Fanfiction.The only thing that bothers me (and A LOT) is that everyone seems to HATE twilight so much...
... but they love this book?
seriously?"
Is because it has sex, sex sell.
1.The story started as Twilight-fanfiction.2.Twilight is still a hype so everybody compares their books with it...
And people, stop hating Twilght if you haven't read it.
I noticed the similarities before I even knew it started out as fanfiction. Guess it was my spidey sense at work....
First of all, FSG its based in Twilight, originally it was a fanfic.And the characters.. i mean come on,
Anastasia = the annoying lead character = Bella
Christian = a dark, misterious control freak and rich guy = Edward
Jose = the best friend of the girl, who is in love with her by the way. = Jake
Grace = a loving young and adoptive mother. = Esme
Carrick = a loving young and adoptive father =Carlisle
Mia = the beautiful young sister, who apparently loves everyone = Alice
Kate = Best friend of the female character.... = oh wait, Bella didnt had any friends so, this doesnt count :D
Emma wrote: "yeah, the couples in each book are far too similar. Edward & Christian are both over-the-top protective, jealous, possesive blah blah blah. Ana and Bella are two of the most irritating female prota..."xD couldnt agree more...
all discussions on this book
|
post a new topic
I just see a lot of people making comparsions with this.
Is it because Twilight is as graphic as this, Christian is a lot like Edward, or what? I just want to know why there are so many similarities.