#Using Night-Owl Romance fanfic as an example for many points

[pearlcrysta]

How I Create Fanfiction Using MysMe as Example (Method and Advice)

I am not coming close as a great writer.

Fanfictioning is purely done for my own enjoyment and amusement whenever i fall in love deep, DEEP, with a story, char, setting etc, whether it’s related to anime or other works of fiction. Ideas keep clinging onto my brain and those ideas need their release onto either an art medium or writing. 

Anywho, probably a long ass text coming here, so here I present to you the steps my brain takes in order to regurgitate writing content. I’ll be using my Night-Owl Romance hiatus fanfic as an example for some steps. If you don’t wanna read all the text, just look at the bold letters. 

PREPARATORY STEPS

 1) First of all, as a general rule to have in mind before starting, it is NOT ENOUGH to see an anime or read a book/manga only ONCE and then establish a story based on your first impressions. I mean, you could - but you would surely miss out on a lot of info and context about the characters you wish to play with and not realize the full depth of their impact within the story. Or why they might do questionable things or actions u may not understand the first time.

 For a game like Mystic Messenger, it’s important for you to have gone through all routes a few times and then keep on researching about the character you wish to base your subject on. If you don't have that much time on your hand to be thorough, then it's ok. XD But it's a recommendation if you want to strive to have less OOC'ness in your writing.

 (OOC = Out of Character)

 In my case, I chose to focus the story around the developing relationship between MC and Zen (slow, SLOW romance) and his route is not nearly enough to establish the complexity of his char and the dynamics he has with the other members. For example, if I’d have stuck with just his route and had not gone through them all, then I’d probably DISLIKE Jaehee quite a lot and confuse her with a jealous fan/girlfriend and not realize the level of rudeness Zen can have against Jumin - even without being provoked. Zen really doesn’t like being around Jumin, always seeing him in a bad light. Like, I love this handsome actor, but sometimes he can be a big jerk. 

 A major plus is if you manage to get the call cards, in order to reach out to the RFA members – extra content is given there too. ^^

 2) Research is vital because it can help you better understand the complexity of the character. Not only the events in the game, but real life situations too. 

Research a bit about Korean lifestyle !!!

You can find a lot of subtle things you might have missed - or unsubtle ones. 

 a) In Zen’s route, you’ll realize that Jaehee is actually looking up to his wellbeing and trying to protect the actor from career-ending scandals. Jealousy is not the issue. Jaehee doesn’t hate the MC, but is weary of her intentions of dating Zen because it can ruin his dream if the relationship comes into the spotlight.

In Korea, celebrities dating can become a huge, huge PR disaster if handled poorly. Career ending even, to the point even idol groups can disband over one such scandal and you ruin not just your own life, but other people as well who depend on this job to survive. Some people train their youth away and have such a moment ruin all they've built...

It's just horrible. 

 b) The boys asking you constantly whether you ate or not is not them thinking you are a dumbass adult who cannot feed yourself and need a protective mother to remind you day, after day. It’s almost mechanically said to you, like how people ask someone “How are you?”, but not necessarily asked out of intense care of your wellbeing. It's just a habit that requires “I’m fine” even if not meant to be true. In the eating case, one usually expects “Yes, I ate.” as answer.

 c) Kimchi is not the only korean food. Try to explore other parts of their cuisine if you are mentioning foods.

 d) I don’t think cereals are that common to eat in the morning there. Like SUPER common. Or waffles. Or peanut butter and jelly on bread. 

... Or bread.

Rice is the equivalent of westerners’ bread in terms of importance in a meal.

 e) Driving can become an 'interesting' experience in Korea. I've seen many Youtubers living in Seoul that point out the chaos on the streets thanks to reckless drivers that rush through traffic like there's no tomorrow.

 So when Zen is out on his motorcycle, people can only become super worried about his safety for a good reason. Especially since he had a nasty accident in the past, it can always repeat itself due to the unsafe conditions on the road sometimes. And humans are squishy beings, so if a car hits you on a bike while you aren't wearing proper outfit protection then... RIP.  

f) and many other.

3) Make sure you got the essence of the plot figured out and pin point any storytelling holes or flaws you may notice within the canon story. 

 It is highly recommended that you note down these observations or questions you may have about what’s going on in this story. You may even use these particular things to help you create the intro of your story. ^o^ 

 Ex: Find a logical reason why MC would so willingly ignore the ‘stranger-danger’ factor at the beginning of the story. ((Daredevil MC? Lulz, sure, you could try this angle, but I’d question how she survived unharmed so far.))

 Or why she has food, water, clothing in an apartment where she is supposedly stranded within, unable to leave. Or...is she unable to leave it?

 Or where are her parents and why is nobody worried about her missing?

 Does she have a workplace? Is she a student at school? Homeless? 

 A lot to interpret ^^

4) Plan your plot points, but don’t overdo it or sob when plans change while writing.

I don’t really plan chapters ahead much, since I tend to change my mind a lot about things. It depends on my mood and emotions. But it is important to set goals for the near future to reach for your story --- like, you may want X event to happen in Day 1 or Y action on Day 2. 

And from these thoughts, you can start sketching situations that can lead your char up to the desired points.

But the road to X or Y can change and not remain static. Heck, even the Y event can happen in another moment of time --- the planning doesn’t have to be a rigid one and must be open to changes, befitting the flow of the story. If an idea you wanted badly to write in a chapter doesn’t seem like it fits in a spot anymore... 

Then, don’t put it in. It’s simple as that.

I personally have over 60 pages worth of content of Night-Owl Romance that are unusable because I kept going in different directions than what I had initially wanted.

Ex: For my story, I really wanted MC to have moments where she’d interact with the RFA outside the messenger. But I still wanted MC to meet up with Zen - officially, make him be the one she meets the first properly. 

 Close-encounters scenarios were fun to add and, at one point, I even wanted MC to see Zen rehearse on stage, without him realizing it was her in the crowd, watching him from the side. Pages about her reactions while seeing Zen on stage were later on discarded. Because I was stuck. It would have caused a nasty rift between them if he was to discover that MC had not bothered to greet him after rehearsals.

 I did not want them to have their first official meeting there.

 But I DID want MC to go to his workplace.

 So I used a trope, to have MC leave the theater without attending the actual rehearsals as a member of the audience, thus the girl remained completely unaware that Zen was working there. And the reason why she did not see him perform was because she would have felt uncomfortable being surrounded by the people in the audience, whom she'd known from her time in University.

 They did not get along.

  5) Try to write characters in a way that doesn't surpass the boundaries of OOC’ness (Your own characters included). To avoid the OOCD (Out of Character Disease), try to make notes about the chars you will write about. Or just keep in mind certain personality traits and you should do fine. In the case of Mystic Messenger, I often use info online about the characters from their data book, wikia, chats etc and create mini summaries about them.

 ...

 Lol, not really creating mini summaries, since I can remember small stuff, here and there, but if you aren't the type to hold up a lot of info and are forgetful about details, you can write them down in order to ease your work.

 Here's an example ^o^:  

  Jumin – uses a lot of formal language. And only when being quite tipsy with wine may he become less rigid in speaking online. Even 'funny', depending on his soured mood caused by the distress he may have with his father and the women he is dating.

Jaehee – also uses formal language, but somehow it seems to me that she drops into informal tones when she goes in her fangirling mode about Zen. Or when she points out why Yoosung cannot find a girlfriend, (Lolz, poor guy) Or when she points out things she finds wrong about Luciel (name included)

Yoosung – uses a lot of informal language.

He is traumatized by the loss of Rika, but not to the point he can't go a second without mentioning her to the MC. ^^;;; I think some fanfics can tone it down with the Rika, and just write glimpses from time to time. Like, if MC is really hardworking, he may do some parallels and notice similarities – at the same time, acknowledge the differences. For example:

Rika seemed like a serene, wise being, almost like an idol for Yoosung.

MC in Yoosung's route seems a bit more... grounded. Like he doesn't put MC on such a steep pedestal.

 Zen – also, more on the informal spectrum of speech, unless he is talking to directors, producers etc.

 His narcissism stems from the fact that he wants to be acknowledged by the world and recognizes that he has the potential to be seen and reach greatness in his craft. At the same time, this has become a double edged blade for the actor, since many ppl offer him work that rely on his looks more than skills. Or people like to shove away all his hardwork and point out how he could never had achieved this without his good looks and body.

 Basically, his skills are overshadowed by his handsome features a lot of time.

 Which is why he doesn't like modeling jobs very much, or that was the impression he gave. When a folklore group wanted him to wear a hanbok for a shooting, Zen refused. When Jumin offers him money for contracts that make good use of his looks, rather than talent – he refuses.

His route's deep flaw: he falls in love too easily with the MC.

Realistically, if MC was a despicable human, Zen would be trapped in a hurtful relationship if she were a manipulative ****. Which shows how lonely and desperate for companionship he truly is at times – 5 years without having someone to share his life with, must be difficult.

   707/Luciel – first impression: he is bat-shit crazy, but in a fun way. Cosplayer, so must be good with costumes and make-up. Perfect Trap, who makes people question their gender preferences.  (Lolz, I can imagine this to be so true).

 He probably had to learn to go undercover as both throughout his days as a secret agent.

 His speech is informal and secretly-mocking, especially when he's talking this way towards his superiors. Really, in Korean culture, if you speak informally to someone higher ranking than you at your workplace and you aren't necessarily best of buddies --- you are branded as a rude ass **** and can even lose your job. And the potential to find other jobs if you pissed off the wrong people.

 So, 707 plays with a lot of fire and knows he is THAT important to his organization – it's enough to have them accept his flaws.

 -  second impression: Saeyoung: Well, the funny guy was just a persona he uses to mask his deeper, , hurt and raw self. But that doesn't mean the funny, quirky personality was all just a lie, even if he tries to tell MC this in his own route – more, to me it seems like 707 is the person he wished he could be day, after day. And not the secret agent who may have killed people in the past or helped his organization in missions to achieve such cruel things.

 We can only imagine these things ^^

 Serious Saeyoung seems more formal in speech, compared to his 707 persona.

 - third impression: I think that after the story unfolds with the whole Saeran thing, who is back into Saeyoung's life, the red head's personality becomes a mixture of both with the fall of his organization. He still has quirky, crazy moments, but is more freely expressing himself. Especially with MC, adding jokes here and there when he is in lovey-dovey moments.

 V – is incredibly formal and super respectful, more so than Jumin, to the point he overly apologizes for things he had no control over, but considers himself to be solely to blame. ;=;

 6) Don’t be afraid to give your characters flaws. Keep a balance of skills vs. flaws and try to stick to it in a realistic manner. (Of course, there's always room to improve one's flaw or skills, but – same thing – keep it realistic)

 Also, canon characters aren't superheroes – Mystic Messenger ones aren't superheroes, they are humans with their own limitations. Don't give them God-mode unless you do it in LOLOL.

  7) It's OK to imagine your own reactions regarding certain situations in life and write them down from the perspective of your char. If it fits.

 Same thing when writing happy scenes or emotionally sad ones – if your mood reflects the vibe of the story you wish to convey, you can portray it better. This, however, doesn't mean u can't write a sob story when your life is all sunshine and rainbows.

 This is why humans have imagination ^^

 Just picture how you felt when hearing saddening news or when you had a moment you were not feeling cheerful. Step in your characters' shoes and imagine how you'd have felt in her/his situation.

  I also change my music playlist if I cannot write a certain feeling down – it usually improves it. ^^

 8) Don't worry about choosing a title/chapter names. 

You’ll come up with one as you start planning the plot you wish to pursue in your story. Sure, a catchy title can make people wanna start reading your fic, but if your story is boring and goes nowhere, then don’t expect much feedback even if your title and story summary are engaging and make people curious. (I should listen to this advice too TwT)

For example: In my MysMe story, Zen x MC pairing, I wanted most of their chats and conversations to take place during nighttime. Or, at least the ones where they bond more closely together.

And what do you call insomniacs who cannot sleep at night? Night-owls.

What do I want to happen between Zen and MC? Romance.

Story title: Night-Owl Romance (ikr, very creative, but it's a decent title. TwT)

And the same mindset I have with chapter names too. I see what is dominant there and then try to summarize it in a title. Sometimes it fits, other times it's just weird.

Also, my Insomniacs, Insomniacs Second, Insomniacs Third etc --- i choose these titles for certain chapters from my fic in order to help me remember what Day is in the story. ^^;;;;; Needless to say, I needed a better system since I mixed up the days LOL.

 9) I love cliffhangers. You should as well. OwO

Cliffhangers are basically a device that fanfic writers use in order to make sure that their engaging audience keeps being curious about the following chapters and want to find more. Feed in their addiction to know what will happen and if the outcome will go to their imagination.

ACK!!! Is everything going to be ok??? 8D!!!

But, also, try not to be sadists with your cliffhangers.

 10) Synonyms are your friends. So are linking words (connectors). So are online dictionaries. And spell check.

Example:  but – however, yet, nonetheless, nevertheless, still, though, although.

Already you can stop using all these but(t)s in your writing by just replacing the over usage of one word with a similar one. Every time you see a word being repetitive to the max in a text that's not even 2000 words long, you should really, REALLY check whether it has a synonym or not. Because it can become quite tiresome to read after a while.

I personally use thefreedictionary website.

11) Don't over explain things in your writing (like I do)

Try to alternate between dialogue and texts as much as you can. Offer variety. Try to stay relevant and not stray far away from the plot points you wish to achieve by including 32432464 scenes and scenarios that might make readers forget what you wanted to do/achieve in the first place. Or else, you may end up with a chaotic storyline that doesn't seem to have any clear steering.

 12) Try to write chapters in advance!!!

I find this step to be very, very important.

You should aim to have written chapters ahead of posting schedule (at least 2-3), in order to observe whether your idea has a place to grow from there onwards or you might hit a nasty dead end with the proposed scenario. If you end up in a point in your story where you are nearly convinced that you need to rethink the direction your plot goes, perhaps finding a better solution on the way... it's much better to have a 'backup' in chapters and not having instantly published everything you had done.

Like I pointed out earlier, I have over 60 pages of written content for my fanfic that are unusable. Because I ended up not going on certain routes and changed directions "off-camera", which could not have been possible so easily had I just posted chapters as I finish writing them.

But hey, this is just how I do it. :D

 13) Sorry to say this, but your first ever written fanfic will SUCK for sure, especially if you started as a kid.

I'm not trying to piss anyone off by mentioning this so harshly or discourage any potential writers. ^^ But, if writing, in general, is not a hobby of yours or if you don't have any affinity to it prior to starting planning a story (like role playing with friends/groups), then expect lots of criticism to pour down your story, many which may point out your writing mistakes.

It can be awful... TwT

But really, you can't be a pro at it from the beginning and you need to understand that there is a step one you need to take in a long, long journey in writing. Heck, I'm not even a pro myself and my skills are relatively decent.

Seriously.

Guys and Girls.

DON'T BE DISCOURAAAAAGED~!!!! <3

Just, write to your heart's content and try to always perfect yourself. ^^ Keep an open mindset and appreciate those people who comment on your work, who try to offer you constructive criticism and feedback.

You'll know when that person is doing it with good intentions.

Don't be upset or angry at people pointing out the faults they see in your story. You're not baby Tolkien. Sometimes, you don't even realize it's something you need to work on to improve. ((For example: in my Night-Owl Romance, someone pointed out to me that I was using ellipses far too often and, at first, I did not think it was the case until I re-read the text and realized... oops, yeah. I kind of over did it. And then, I tried using them less frequently.))

Bonus PearlCrysta Trivia: I started writing fanfiction after my school ex-friend stopped RP-ing with me frequently, so basically, I was probably... 13-14 years old when I started doing it. Quizilla was the monster site with fics and tests I would do daily during my summer holidays (do you guys remember that site? X'D I still do lol.)

At the time, I was super into Yu-Gi-Oh that I needed to write a romance between my god-mode OC and Marik/Malik Ishtar.

Now, I am 25 and I cannot find the power to read my story from scratch ever again.

...

The level of cringiness will make even 707 shudder.

 See guys?

SEE?!!

Yeah, I know what I'm saying when I say that your fanfic will suck.

But there's a remedy for it. OwO

 14) Practice makes it perfect. ^^ (10 years+ with obvious breaks in between) 

And this isn’t everything. Some are snippets, others have over 300 pages.

15) Reading enriches your vocabulary! 

And by reading, I mean reading literature books or whatever tickles your senses. But has to be of quality. And keep that dictionary close by in case u meet expressions or words you do not understand.