#*spends thirty minutes rearranging and bolding bc i have brain things that make me like when paragraphs are sorted*

[meerly-writing]

Alright, you make excellent points on how to improve as a writer. But, I think you're bashing fanfiction too much without considering how genuinely useful, flexible, and creative it is as a medium for writers. Here's a few reasons why I believe reading and writing fanfic is great:

1. Fanfic is an EXCELLENT way to focus on polishing specific skills.

Want to improve prose? Retell your favorite scene. Try to imitate different author's voices. (This is similar to artists drawing in different styles.) Want to work on character creation? Set characters in your favorite story. Worldbuilding? Alternate Universe fic. Distinctive character voices? Write your favorite characters having an argument.

Precisely BECAUSE fanfic is based on using another frame, you can isolate the things you want to work on and improve them.

Also, fanfic is a GREAT PLACE to get experimental and write things publishers might not be into. I know right now novellas and short stories aren't being published as often unless they're in collections and written by previously successful novelists, but fanfic websites are perfectly receptive to these.

2. People enjoy writing fanfic. It isn't just something ppl settle for because they're not good enough.

Fanfic is a form of love, and I say that with 100% seriousness. Almost every author I love and follow from VE Schwab to Noelle Stevenson to Victoria Aveyard have openly talked about the fanfic they write. It's very common for writers to feel compelled to share their love for something by, well, writing about it.

There are many fic writers who are happy to hone their craft in fanfic, and publish full length trilogies and novels for only a handful of kudos in dead fandoms beause, ultimately, it's about the writing for them, not the likes.

3. All fiction is a remix of all your experiences and reading.

So I agree with your point that people should read more, but I disagree that it's bad to only read fanfic. I've read advice from script writers who say "Don't bother reading books. Make sure to consume lots of TV" and advice from published authors who say "Never watch TV, always read." And BOTH are good advice. If you want to write sitcom scripts, watch sitcoms. If you want to write sci fi books, read sci fi. If you want to write fanfic, read fanfic.

Reading to improve as a writer is all about picking up on patterns, consciously deciding what works and what doesn't. If a fanfic makes you feel something, take note of how. If a fanfic fails to effect you, take note of why.

Read what you want to write, and read with a critical eye.

4. Fanfic can be a safe place for new writers (if you're careful with how you navigate the Internet.)

Everyone starts somewhere, and, if you manage to find the right people to cheer you on as you grow as a writer, that's a good thing.

I never would have finished my first book if my friends and family hadn't been along for the ride to tell me it was worth doing even as it was Horrible. For people who don't have that support system, fanfic is a place you might find it (again, with care.)

5. Fanfiction has been successful beyond the Internet.

Think of every retelling of a Shakespearen play (my personal favorite being Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.) Of the musical Wicked based on the book which was fanfic of The Wizard of Oz. TV adaptations of books whose scripts were written by fans of the work (Lord of the Rings, Series of Unfortunate Events being two notably successful adaptations, one which greatly deviated from the source material and the other which closely followed it.) Historical fiction is a whole genre of fanfic of primary sources.

HOWEVER, EVEN IF a fanfic is bad and unsuccessful, why should we care if a 12 yr old or a 31 yr old compares their unpolished first fanfic to Hamlet? Shakespeare is not going to roll in his grave and die again. We should let new writers call themselves writers. I want more stories from everyone!

Ultimately, for as long as there have been stories, there have been retellings. Both are great skills to have. If someone wants both or only one, that's up to them, but it doesn't make one less than the other.

Retellings are great for fixing cishetnormative stories, adding POC, and generally taking a world that was unwelcome to you and making it your own. Meanwhile, original stories are a great way for making the change you want to see. Both are empowering and wonderful to read.

Tl;dr Fanfiction is good, actually. And I'd even recommend it as something to keep in your toolset if you want to improve as a writer.

(This essay was brought to you by your local writer minoring in Creative Writing. To those of y'all who are isolated from other writers for any reason, it is very strange to me that fanfic is often placed in opposition to original fic because MANY of the writers I know write both. The writing club I joined before COVID even workshopped fanfic brought in by members. And it was like workshopping any other piece.)

(Also the point about white people dominating fanfic is probably true. Not because fanfic is a white thing, but because white people dominate writing in general. I was one of like two POC out of 8-12 (it fluctuated from meeting to meeting) in the writing club I joined. I didn't start actively seeking out LGBT and POC authors until I got to college. It's been much easier for me to find LGBT and POC fanfic authors than published authors.)

EDITED FOR CLARITY ON OCTOBER 21st 2020

Wait, now I do want to get a little mean. I’ve been very nice and understanding, if not a bit firmer than many of you indoor kids are used to, but that was my mistake. I keep coming at this thinking I’ll be able to change the minds of fully grown people who refuse to accept they’re not the best at everything. I keep trying to reason with people who refuse to analyze stories, woobify genocidal fascists (fictional and real…), and people who genuinely believe that fiction has no effect on reality. I cannot reason with stupidity; I can’t teach people that don’t want to be taught.

So, here’s the thing—fanfiction is good practice, it’s a fun and cute hobby, it’s relaxing, and just about everyone likes to imagine their favorite characters from their favorite pieces of media in different situations. It’s nice! I myself have written tons of fanfiction, and I still do write fanfiction even while criticizing it.

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