Fan Fiction Conversation.

[SierraLea]

Not sure if this should go here or not, but it's about reading and can include books, so let's just put it here.
Talk about your favorite authors, stories, even your frustrations here.
I for one hate it when someone has a tantalizing Summary, only uploaded one chapter, and then you look at the update date and see it was, like, three years since they last posted. Why can't people finish what they start?

[MomentOfInertia]

Not a fanfic reader but I have had similar experiences with abandoned webcomics and other projects; life tends to intervene and muses often fail.

I think it is because there are two types of people in the world: Those who crave closure

[SierraLea]

And? Who are the other type? Oh no, wait, is this some kind of joke?

[the_wolfs_howl]

Love fanfiction. Sure, it can be nothing but drivel at times, but then you run across the really good ones and you remember why you keep looking for them. Some of the fics I've read could easily be published works of fiction if not for them being based on a pre-existing story.

My list of favorites (in case anyone's looking for some good stuff) can be found here: http://www.fanfiction.net/~griseldabanks

What annoys me are certain trends that I see in summaries, especially. Why do so many people advertise that it's their first fic ever? Whenever I see that in a summary, I immediately turn away, because that probably means it's not worth reading. I also get really tired of people trying to excuse their lame summaries by saying, "I'm not good at summaries." No ish, Sherlock I also get annoyed when it's not specified in the summary or a beginning author's note whether the author is going for a certain pairing or not. There have been times when I've gotten halfway through a fic and started to get invested in the plot, only to realize that it's yaoi or something else that I don't want to read. If they'd just specify it at the beginning, I wouldn't have had to waste time on it.

[SierraLea]

What about summaries that are more like the back of books? They tell you a little of the plotline, but only enough to make you want to read it. That's mostly the kind of summary I use.

[FllMtl Novelist]

What about summaries that are more like the back of books? They tell you a little of the plotline, but only enough to make you want to read it. That's mostly the kind of summary I use.

Which is precisely the kind of summarizing a good writer should be able to do. You can't tell an agent, "There's uh this guy and uh this girl and um they try to save the world uh I'm really bad at descriptions sorry. XD Just read my book."


I've enjoyed fanfiction from time to time, but I find it's best for ego stroking showing just how terribly a human being can write. Other things to be learned are supplementary sex ed what good summaries look like in action, how important the pieces of good writing (dialogue, characterization, etc.) are, and necessity of white space on a screen.

[the_wolfs_howl]

Which is precisely the kind of summarizing a good writer should be able to do. You can't tell an agent, "There's uh this guy and uh this girl and um they try to save the world uh I'm really bad at descriptions sorry. XD Just read my book."

Amen.

What I find fanfiction most useful for is writing practice where you don't have to worry about certain aspects as much as with original writing. For example, if you write a novelization of something, you're basically taking a story that already works, picking it apart, examining the different pieces that go into it, and then fitting it back together and seeing how they did it in the first place. I find that the most helpful kind of experience for writing my own original stories. But even with other kinds of fics, the plot or the characters or the setting are already there, completely created and fleshed out, so you can focus all your attention on some other area of the story instead of having to make sure that everything in your story is working. Fanfiction is tremendously helpful to the aspiring writer.

[peacenotus]

What I find fanfiction most useful for is writing practice where you don't have to worry about certain aspects as much as with original writing. For example, if you write a novelization of something, you're basically taking a story that already works, picking it apart, examining the different pieces that go into it, and then fitting it back together and seeing how they did it in the first place. I find that the most helpful kind of experience for writing my own original stories. But even with other kinds of fics, the plot or the characters or the setting are already there, completely created and fleshed out, so you can focus all your attention on some other area of the story instead of having to make sure that everything in your story is working. Fanfiction is tremendously helpful to the aspiring writer.

I agree. I know my writing has definitely improved by writing fanfiction. I know some "famous" authors think writing fanfiction using their characters is "unoriginal" and consider it stealing, but honest fan writers don't claim to be original in their works. And as an aspiring writer becomes more familiar with their writing style, they tend to take more chances and might even create something that is so out-of-character for the fandom that it could be considered original with only some name changes. I know I've taken good plots that I've used in alternate universe fanfiction and incorporated them into my original stories.

[SierraLea]

I think crossovers allow for a new writing experience. You can test character types against each other and brush up on character reactions.
One thing that's harder with this type is to not rip off one of the stories. I see this a lot of Harry Potter/ FMA fics. People focus like crazy on Ed, because let's face it, he is in some ways way more complex than Harry and Co. But the HP cast is then relegated to secondary characters. I have seen very few that uses both casts to their ultimate potential.

[WorldsTraveler]

I’m a long-time fanfiction reader and I enthusiastically agree with most of what has been said here. It’s great to find other people supporting fanfiction as a learning tool for writers. ^^

I’ll add that one of my favorite things about fanfiction is watching multiple authors try the same plot idea, with the same characters, in the same universe. An idea will catch on like ‘What if such-and-such happened to this character?’ and suddenly five more authors are inspired to try writing from that premise! It’s a great learning experience for me as both a writer and reader to see who best executes the idea, who gains the most readers, who loses interest in their story vs. who keeps going to the end, etc. Crossovers are a great example of this since they can go in so many different directions depending on the author's view of the cast.

[SierraLea]

I’m a long-time fanfiction reader and I enthusiastically agree with most of what has been said here. It’s great to find other people supporting fanfiction as a learning tool for writers. ^^

I’ll add that one of my favorite things about fanfiction is watching multiple authors try the same plot idea, with the same characters, in the same universe. An idea will catch on like ‘What if such-and-such happened to this character?’ and suddenly five more authors are inspired to try writing from that premise! It’s a great learning experience for me as both a writer and reader to see who best executes the idea, who gains the most readers, who loses interest in their story vs. who keeps going to the end, etc. Crossovers are a great example of this since they can go in so many different directions depending on the author's view of the cast.

I actually love reading those too, seeing what a person will change or do differently. I see this particularly in FMA/HG and FMA/HP crossovers. Even if they are the same thing over and over, it's still fun to read them.
I would never write one though. I'd just be repeating everyone else's ideas. Besides, I need to be able to come up with my own plotlines if I ever want to make it as a professional writer.

[teigeki_calesa]

I write fanfics, and I do mostly crossovers. However, even if I have one planned out, real life comes and interferes, and another work comes along that I obsess over. There goes my idea. That's why I never get to finish anything

[SierraLea]

I write fanfics, and I do mostly crossovers. However, even if I have one planned out, real life comes and interferes, and another work comes along that I obsess over. There goes my idea. That's why I never get to finish anything

If you have it planned out, you could give me your plot ideas and I could adopt your story, although mine probably have a different style from yours. What's your author name?

[teigeki_calesa]

Here's my fanfiction.net account.

I stopped with my "Chord Of Hope EXCEED" fic. But as of now, I have another fic idea, and I'm kinda hesitant about sharing it because it's M-rated.