How To Write Fan Fiction

Writing fan fiction is a wonderful endeavor for the creative mind. It allows an individual to join a growing community on the Internet, while at the same time getting critique on their writing style. And, because it is done with no intention of making a profit, it is legal according to copyright laws.

There is one downside to deciding to write fan fiction for the first time: fan fiction communities are often close knit, making most writers nervous about diving into this new world with a fresh story. There are, however, some things that a writer can do to help ensure they are accepted more easily.

Know Your Fandom

Fandom, or the world in which you are writing in, is filled with facts and statistics. As the writer, you need to know when key events have happened to each character as well as how the relationships have developed and when certain characters have left or entered the world. For the purpose of this article I will be using Buffy the Vampire Slayer as my example fandom. So, for instance, it is critical to know that in season four Spike was implanted with a government chip in his brain which kept him from harming humans. To make an error of this magnitude, a fan fiction writer is simply asking to be either ignored or looked down on by their peers.

Know Your Characters

The beauty of fan fiction is that it allows us to pull apart the characters of someone else and find something that a person can’t see at first glance. The key to doing this is making sure that these pieces of their personality are true to their character, even if it seems like the complete opposite to an outsider. If you know the character well enough, you will be able to create an environment and situation that would steer them in the direction you want them to go.

Let’s take Xander Harris from Buffy. There are a good number of stories in the Buffy fandom that have him becoming evil. The basic thinking for that is: if Willow can turn evil, Xander can turn evil. Right? Well, this is true, but you have to push different buttons on Xander than Joss Whedon did on Willow. And that’s the part that makes these fan fiction stories good or downright ugly. Research his character first, look at the episodes that feature him in particular, especially the ones that put him in a bad light or have him experiencing something traumatic. Once you’ve got all that in your head, you’ll be able to create a scenario that turns Xander Harris into a more evil man than Angelus himself.

Be Creative

There’s a big issue with fan fiction: it’s repetitive. Each fandom is different, of course, making repetition not much of an issue if you’re involved in a large number of them. But for those devoted to one or two, it’s hard to not pull your hair out over the number of stories written on one topic, in exactly the same way as everyone else wrote it. If you’re planning on being a fan fiction writer, start out with something amazing. Shock your readers so they’ll come back for more. This isn’t that different than writing in any other category: novels, short stories, and articles. All of these have the chance of being boring, repetitive domains, unless you take a chance and break the mold.

Do Your Research

While small facts can be overlooked, you should at least do some research for your story. This doesn’t mean you have to pull out the big guns like it’s a term paper. Stick to simple references. The problem with writing is that there is such a thing as too much information, and not enough. To keep yourself from going over either line, stick to what the main character would know. Would Buffy Summers know how to fix the plumbing in her shower? No, but she’d be able to tell you how to un-arm a man in ten seconds flat.

Another thing that should be looked into is what your characters are doing. If you’re going to have a lot of fight scenes, you need to know what the moves they’ll be performing are and if they are even physically possible. If you’re going to have a sex scene, you’ll need to know the basic mechanics of it. Especially if it’s between two men.

Writing fan fiction can be a worthwhile experience that brings people together. I’ve seen people make friends and even find their future wife within the fan fiction world. So if you’re thinking of jumping into the fray, do so. It will definitely be worth the experience.