#and done that

[cryptid-crawly]

Advice for Writing Fanfic

Assume your readers know what’s up. People read fanfic because they are, well, fans. Write with the assumption that your readers know the basics of the source material.

Don’t rewrite canon scenes unless you’ve significantly changed them. Whether it’s and AU or canon divergence, reading a play-by-play of the exact same scene as in canon (or one nearly identical with few or cosmetic changes) gets really old really fast. If there’s an important minor change, reference it in an original scene. If nothing changed and it’s canon divergence, your readers will assume it’s the same as canon. Want to rewrite an iconic canon scene in some vastly different AU? Change it up. Identify what elements of the scene are the most important and make something new that keeps the essence of those things.

Do not change your tags after the fact. To elaborate: this *specifically* means that you shouldn’t tag your fic with something only to go “ah-ha! It was a red herring!” and delete the tag later. Don’t do that. (A very dramatic example is tagging the fic as Everyone Lives/No One Dies and then deleting that later so you can have a surprise character death). Yeah, you might change your mind. In that case, let your readers know in the Author’s notes. But don’t do this on purpose.

Don’t worry about spoiling your plot. Have the greatest plot ever? Awesome! But people aren’t reading fanfic for new and original ideas (it’s transformative work for a reason). It’s great to write a complex and compelling story, but remember that first and foremost, people read fanfic to have a comfortable and familiar experience. It really really sucks to read 50k of something only to have a new tag/element thrown in as a surprise twist, when you intentionally try to filter that stuff out.

Write your summary to reflect what tropes/ships/setting your fic will have. This is part of not worrying about spoilers. Again, you may have a fantastic idea, but if you’re too afraid of spoiling it you may leave out too many details in the summary and people won’t be interested. Let your readers know what this story is about! Don’t be afraid to spoil some of the plot—I guarantee you it will make some people excited to “get to that point” in the fic. (For example, if character A secretly being a werewolf is an early plot twist, maybe don’t worry so much about revealing that in the summary?)

Don’t say you suck at summaries in the summary. Just trust me on this one. Write a summary like you’re convincing yourself to read the fic. Slap it on and go.

Stop using greenette, [color]-ette etc. That’s not done in published fiction.

Read published fiction. I don’t care what you read but read some of it occasionally. Otherwise you get used to the way that other fanfic writers write and ily all and am blown away by the creativity people put out into the world but many writers are new and learning and you’ll pick up bad habits. I personally recommend reading literary classics because 8 times out of 10 the writing is legit good. Not always, but it’s easier to guarantee good quality then just picking a random book.

Write for yourself. Yeah, whatever, this is lame advice. But it’s also true. Write what you want to read, otherwise you probably won’t have any fun. Eventually you’ll get to a point where you’re confident in your writing and you can go back and read your stuff and go “I am the funniest motherfucker in the room” and you’ll be right. (Replace “funniest” with whatever genre term applies to you. Like “angstiest”. Ignore that that isn’t a word.)

Comment on other people’s fics with questions. So technically this goes with the read published works one but it applies to both. The point is to develop literary analysis skills. When you read anything, think about it. Vague and unhelpful advice? Hell yeah that is. So if you want some concrete starting places: when you’re reading fic, ask yourself if you agree with how the author characterized your fav. Why did they act that way? Would you have written it that way? And engage with the author! This doesn’t mean point-blank saying “well I would’ve written it like this…” but if you notice a character decision you agree/disagree on or is interesting, simply ask “hey [xyz] scene/moment was interesting, why did you decide [blorbo] would do that?” Understand why authors made the choices they did in their writing. Learn. Grow. Flourish. Take over the world.

Occasionally revisit the source material. Reread or watch it or whatever applies. Dump fanon out of your head and think about the source. Please. I love you all, but please. Thank you.

To anyone who writes fanfic: I love you and thank you for sharing with the world. Hope this helps.

[paintedcrows]

They do this every year...

Happy 25th to Dipdop and Lebam!! and Happy 17th to Hatsune Miku!! 🎉🎉

(comic continued: The M&M stands for...)

[skipppppy]

I was cooking on twitter today

[nb-marceline]

(full article here)

[w1lmuttart]

The lake town

[kiiingsnake]

(college stuff) everyone give it up for the humble arapaima

[kenapiece-main]

Can you believe I'm having to make this meme even after successfully finishing up taxes and applying to job

[stargatebarbie]

[antlerlad]

happy tdov my loves. don't let anyone else define your transness for you.

help trans women evacuate gaza

[gwydionae]

Behold, one of my best friend's Halloween costumes, recorded and uploaded by a complete stranger with over a million views on tiktok! (I'm so proud!!)

[wuntrum]

ripley :)

[cafffine]

be pro-aging but wear sun screen. sun protection is not beauty industry propaganda it will save you. wear it. or else.

[thinkingabout-girls]

85k note oli theorionsound

[bisexualvampires]

he has a 100% divorce rate btw

[demaparbat-hp]

That infamous prison escape.