AU n.

Why do AUs, so many of them just seem like they were written to get the guys in different costumes. I firmly believe in fun role-playing, and fantasizing about what B and D would be like in a Victorian London setting seems like perfectly harmless fun to me…. At least when someone scribbles an AU, there is some energy and thought going into setting and plot.

Could this lesson have been learned without Qui-Gon’s death? Possibly. And I want to stress that there are some ‘fixit’ stories that maintain a certain tragic integrity (although these are usually AU’s that take the saga in direction Lucas never imagined). The problem with many of these ‘fixit’ stories, tho’, is that either their sole purpose is to provide a happy ending, to revive a character the author clearly loves, or to keep Qui-Gon around for post-TPM stories.

After reading Lena's column on A/Us, I feel that I need to speak up for fans and writers who like alternate universes…. I feel the need to defend a/us because a/us allows us to expand our imagination and creativity…. Some experiments success [sic]. Some fail. But writers still like writing a/us.

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE. Also AU or A/U. Fanfic set in a universe which is different from the canon show universe. AUs are also known as What Ifs (What if Luke had joined Vader?), Elseworld (DC, Marvel fandom) and Uber (Xena fandom).

In the Whedonverse, AU can refer to fanfic set in a non-supernatural universe, where Buffy is not a Slayer and Sunnydale is a normal town (i.e., not situated on a Hellmouth, and not home to vampires).

In keeping with a lot of AU fanfiction based on classic texts, the language is a mix of homages to Austen and contemporary slang (Mr ‘arsehole’ Darcy; SOB), and the story [sc. ‘Ae Fond Kiss’] also resembles other fanfics in its knowing humor (for example, recasting Mary Bennet as a ‘goth’).

Her name was Kelly, and Liv had known her for years as the fic-writer @SpartanGrrl, who specialized in High School AUs, Baby!fic, and all forms of romantic fluff.

A stunning example of the modern AU—or alternate universe—fanfiction, the film completely transforms the setting of Emma, placing the story in the dramatic, plaid- and platform-filled world of the Beverly Hills teenager.

I also think people always have different interpretations of what they read and like to explore AUs; that's one of the most fun parts of reading and discussing books. But declaring that your head canon is fact and everyone else's is wrong in the author's mentions? That's not a good hill to die on.