I've always been into fanfiction, I just didn't know it.
Star Wars Expanded Universe = Legal Fanfiction.
There are two things about the EU that irritate me (not a whole lot, and not enough to make me stop reading it, but still) and they are the words and the continuity.
Words: Authors make up words in the Star Wars universe, and I understand that that's necessary, because it's a whole other universe with new objects and creatures and species and such, but you could at least make them pronouncable. I mean "wookie" is pretty straightforward. But (Hey Matt I started reading your books) how the fuck do you say "ysalamiri"? And that's a tame example. If you're going to make up words, which lets face it you're going to have to, for the love of God and George Lucas make them pronouncable! Oh and the names! We have Luke, Leia, Han, Lando, Chewbacca. Then we have C'baoth. WTF? ARGH!
Continuity: There isn't always continuity in the books, and it's irritating and confusing. Like, will these events ever be brought up again? And sometimes things contradict each other, and characters don't seem to remember doing things they did in other books, and it's just a mess. And the timline skips around so much it's almost impossible to keep it all straight. I can't remember what happened before the book I'm reading, or what happens later, or how they all fit together. RAWR!
At least with Harry Potter fic they don't make up words, and seldom create new characters with unpronouncable names, and the timeline is fairly easy to keep straight. So that God and JKR for that.
Ok I feel so much better now. Of course none of you (except Matt) will really know/care about this, but I just had to rant. Now I'm going to look up what a Noghri looks like.