Your opinion on fanfiction?

[Spotty01]

For those of you who don't know, a "fanfiction" is a story, varying in length from a single chapter of any amount of words (called one-shots) to several chapters (fittingly called multichapter fics), written by fans of any type of media: TV shows, cartoons, books, video games, etc. in the setting(s) of said media and using the existing characters of the specific cartoon, book, video game, etc. People put canon (existing) characters from any media and put them into any situation they want to put them in; that's what's so appealing about it, the possibilities are, quiet literally, endless. They even put characters into entirely different universes, called alternate-universe fics, and have them interact with the setting(s) and/or character(s) of entirely different or similar media, called crossover fanfiction.

However, an unfortunately common (IMO) genre of fanfiction are called ship-fics, in which they ship two or more characters together that are either (a) unlikely to end up together in canon, or (b) an existing relationship in canon, but the writer just wants to expand on it. A "ship" is Internet terminology for "relationship", sometimes meaning a platonic relationship between two or more characters but much, much more often means a romantic relationship between them. But that's a story for another day, otherwise this post would end up rated TV-MA (ship-fics can get... vulgar sometimes and, no, I'm not going into details, at least not right now).

Writing is my life. I've been "writing" stories ever since I learned to draw pictures at a wee age. As I've stated a few times prior, I'm an aspring author. I write out the original ideas that spark in my mind in complete random for later usage and, from time-to-time, write out drafts of short stories or prologues of stories that will eventually become much longer, but at the time, my main focus as a writer is fanfiction. I'm an avid fanfiction writer (if I wasn't then that wouldn't be what this thread is about), predominantly for my two favourite cartoons and two of the only really good cartoons on the air these days (strictly my own opinion, don't forget that): My Little Pony (don't judge me!) and Steven Universe. Fans of either one seem to be few and far between 'round these parts, so I'll just skip talking about either one unless someone wants me to talk about it with them.

I've heard a lot of people say that fanfiction, as a whole, is a very unoriginal type of writing and, while I strongly disagree for obvious reasons, I can very much understand why they think that way. You're using the characters and settings that other people made, not you, which takes out a big part of the challenge of writing a good story or book, but that doesn't stop fanfiction from being extremely creative and, yes, even original once you find the diamond in the rough.

Anyway, the point of this topic as a whole are the following questions: what are you guys' and gals' opinions on fanfiction as a whole? Do you think it's original or unoriginal? Do you believe that it's a good starting point for new writers? Do you read fanfiction or do you just stick to the original media? Do you write it? If the answer to the latter is "yes", I'd love if you'd share it with me, but only if you're comfortable with doing so. ^^

For the curious, these are the three main websites for fanfiction:
FanFiction.Net - Probably the biggest fanfiction community out there and the one that I use the most. Unfortunately, finding a story with good grammer (joke), a good plot, and an original idea all at the same time are few and far between.
Archive Of Our Own - It's still in beta and you need to request an invitation to make an account there. FFnet hides M-rated stories (stories containing sex, graphic violence, etc.) by default... AO3 does not. Tread lightly.
Wattpad - Won't let you read anything unless you have an account (I have one, but I'm not signed in currently). It's a combination of both fanfiction and original fiction; which one's are which are tagged as such.

 

[Momo]

I think fanfics are sometimes some of the most original, trippy things I've ever read. It's like reading magic mushrooms

 

[AGXStarseed]

Fanfiction is something I find has a 'hit-and-miss' style to it. Sometimes, I come across a fanfiction story that I genuinely like - either for how well its written, for its story ideas/direction and/or how much I like the characters.
Sadly, most stories I see tend to be not well written (either grammatically or from a story-based element)

e.g. Sophie went to the building, it was very big and beautiful inside. Suddenly a girl came upt o her and said their was a time machine inside. Sophie said wow and followed the girl to another room.

I've tried writing both original and fanfiction stories before, although in my case I usually run out of steam and/or get distracted by other ideas that I have.
I think its great to see people's creativity and how they would handle things like the characters, the settings, the stories - regardless of whether its an original idea, an expansion on an existing one, etc. - and how they deal with crossovers between two or more products.

Sadly, some creators don't like people writing fanfiction - to the point where they not only tell fans to not write it, but they tell FanFiction.net not to let the fanfiction stories stay up. See here for the legality behind it: Fan fiction - Wikipedia , Legal issues with fan fiction - Wikipedia

 

[Spotty01]

I think fanfics are sometimes some of the most original, trippy things I've ever read. It's like reading magic mushrooms

Oh, yes, so much yes.

I've read a few good ones that I could actually see getting published, y'know, if they weren't using other people's characters and all, but some are so hilariously insane and over-the-top, I sometimes wonder if they were on magic mushrooms when they wrote it.

Take this for example. I think perfection has taken a new form.

 

[Momo]

Oh, yes, so much yes.

I've read a few good ones that I could actually see getting published, y'know, if they weren't using other people's characters and all, but some are so hilariously insane and over-the-top, I sometimes wonder if they were on magic mushrooms when they wrote it.

Take this for example. I think perfection has taken a new form.

Well, what they need is to lay off on the magic mushrooms and take a basic grammar class. Jeez, I grew up writing in Chinese and I write English better than that!

 

[ZebraAutismo]

I've read them and don't see the fascination but if it makes peoplehappy I don't see a problem. As no one is getting harmed.

It also give people a chance to practice their English skills and have more fun then in the classroom as it is their choice.

 

[xudo]

My honest opinion? It's mostly awful.

I also blame fanfic for being unable to Google certain fandoms without safe search on

 

[Spotty01]

My honest opinion? It's mostly awful.

Unfortunately, that's all too true, as I've already specified in the OP, but then again, there's always that diamond in the rough, y'know? There's one fanfic that's 70+ chapters long (and every chapter's about 20,000+ words) with great grammar, a surprisingly good storyline, and relatable, believable original characters that the readers actually give a s*** about. I've been working to finish it for going on probably a year now (my only excuse is procrastination).

I also blame fanfic for being unable to Google certain fandoms without safe search on

Don't blame fanfics for that, blame fanart. I'm not going into any specifics for hopefully obvious reasons, but I can handle sex, graphic violence, whatever as long as it's in written form. Often graphic, unnecessarily detailed illustrations, though? Yeah, it makes me want to beat myself with a lead pipe until the picture is out of my mind.

 

[Spotty01]

Fanfiction is something I find has a 'hit-and-miss' style to it. Sometimes, I come across a fanfiction story that I genuinely like - either for how well its written, for its story ideas/direction and/or how much I like the characters.
Sadly, most stories I see tend to be not well written (either grammatically or from a story-based element)

e.g. Sophie went to the building, it was very big and beautiful inside. Suddenly a girl came upt o her and said their was a time machine inside. Sophie said wow and followed the girl to another room.

I'm assuming the poor grammar in your example was deliberate. I understand the whole incorrec tspacing, especially if you're a really fast typer, but if it shows up several times in a row, then they're clearly either doing it purposefully or just don't care.

And the depressingly common "their/there/they're" and "your/you're" typos drive me up the walls. Literally. These were things we were taught in elementary school and half the people on the Internet can't even get it right. Half the time, I struggle to keep my grammar Nazi side at bay when I read a comment containing those mistakes...

Another writers' pet peeve of mine is that there's either not enough detail, like the example you gave, or too much detail, AKA "purple prose". It's rare that writers actually manage to get the happy medium between the two. But, then again, you could have the irritatingly simple description that forces you to make everything up in your mind's eye, or you can know every tiny, insignificant, unnecessary detail of settings, characters, whatever.

While neither is good, per se, I'd much rather have the latter than the former... probably because I'm guilty of it myself. I've gotten better about it with time, but in my early days, I used to write a few paragraphs describing one character. One.

I've tried writing both original and fanfiction stories before, although in my case I usually run out of steam and/or get distracted by other ideas that I have.
I think its great to see people's creativity and how they would handle things like the characters, the settings, the stories - regardless of whether its an original idea, an expansion on an existing one, etc. - and how they deal with crossovers between two or more products.

I agree with you on both matters. I used to barely be able to make myself write anything more than a one-shot because I'd always lose interest and/or willpower to continue it like a chapter later. That's a phase I've since passed, but it still happens on rarer occasions, especially when I'm hit with writers' block.

I think that's why a lot of creators usually encourage fanfiction, fanart, etc. because they like to see the creations their fans come up with and how they handle the characters that they made. Unfortunately, that isn't always a good thing.

 

[AGXStarseed]

I'm assuming the poor grammar in your example was deliberate.

It was deliberate, yes.

I agree with you on both matters. I used to barely be able to make myself write anything more than a one-shot because I'd always lose interest and/or willpower to continue it like a chapter later. That's a phase I've since passed, but it still happens on rarer occasions, especially when I'm hit with writers' block.

Yeah, writer's block is a major pain.

 

[xudo]

Don't blame fanfics for that, blame fanart. I'm not going into any specifics for hopefully obvious reasons, but I can handle sex, graphic violence, whatever as long as it's in written form. Often graphic, unnecessarily detailed illustrations, though? Yeah, it makes me want to beat myself with a lead pipe until the picture is out of my mind.

The majority of fan "art" that I've had the misfortune to come across has been directly correlated with fanfic. People will draw stuff because they've read some godawful MLP fanfic, and decided that it needed to be illustrated and then uploaded (usually to DeviantArt) meaning that when I want some source material to make a hat, I have to remember to put safe search on....or reach for the eye bleach.

 

[Bella Pines]

what are you guys' and gals' opinions on fanfiction as a whole?

Love it.

Years ago (scratch that), decades ago, as an angsty and isolated (by choice) teenager with a suicidal father and a schizophrenic mother, I used to write fan fiction and loved it! I would watch TNG and then write stories based off the star trek universe.

Do you think it's original or unoriginal?

a) original. Without a shadow of a doubt. Fan fiction (and I appreciate the details, I'd never heard of canon characters or that terminology before), is perfectly original. Just because you use the star ship enterprise as the framework, or sunnydale high school, or the cylon home world, doesn't make it unoriginal. Using a pre-existing character is done ALL THE TIME. In fan fiction it is Jean Luc Picard, in "so called original works" it is "the sporty one" or "the wizard". So fan fiction is just as original as any other story.

Do you believe that it's a good starting point for new writers? Do you read fanfiction or do you just stick to the original media? Do you write it? If the answer to the latter is "yes", I'd love if you'd share it with me, but only if you're comfortable with doing so. ^^

Yes, I'm trying to change careers myself and become an author and have tried some fan fiction. It helped me learn story architecture and grammar. And was deathly boring! So boring I couldn't even bring myself to edit it. But I will keep going, next stop, short stories of 4-6000 word.

I do read fan fiction, but I still like paper, not really an online reader. And I will be more than happy to share a story one day, once I've written one that I can actually bare to read. Unfortunately at the moment my job and family is such that I only get an hour a week or so to work on it, but I will keep going, no matter how many years it takes.

I recently read these articles which fascinated me, the 4th one went some way to explaining why my writing is so tedious.

How Rowling Turned a Story Idea into a Best-Selling Series (Rowling’s Outline and the Book Architecture Method, Pt I)
How Rowling Formed Her Narrative Arc (Rowling’s Outline and the Book Architecture Method, Pt II)
How Rowling Created Key Scenes (Rowling’s Outline and the Book Architecture Method, Pt III)
How Rowling Developed Suspense, Surprise, and Shock (Rowling’s Outline and the Book Architecture Method, Pt IV)

 

[Spotty01]

Another question to keep this thread going a little more: what are some of the best fanfics that you've ever read? How about the worst ones?

For me, the best would probably be Fallout: Equestria: Project Horizons (no link because its fairly NSFW), a grimdark crossover of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and the post-apocalyptic RPG series, Fallout. It's very infamoujs within the MLP:FiM fandom; some people like it, others despise it. However, I, for one, love it because, oddly enough, it's the perfect blend of drama, angst, grimdark, and, believe it or not, comedy, with believable characters that the reader cares about and a literal Hell On Earth setting, but then again, it's two hundred years post-apocalypse. What else would you expect, sunshine and rainbows? Look it up and read it at your own risk because there is a lot of vulgar language, graphic violence/gore, and *sigh* rape scenes. Lots and lots of rape scenes.

The worst would probably be Agony In Pink (again, no link 'cause NSFW content). It's a torture fic with no real plot other than torturing the main character, and that's probably all I'm allowed to say about it here. Don't look it up, you will regret it... and saying those words will probably prompt a lot of morbidly curious people to look it up, then regret it.

 

[isthisreallife]

I'm an avid fanfiction reader, mostly Harry Potter, but I have read others. Finding good fics can be tedious, but worth it when you find that gem in the rough. I find a lot of the stories very original, such to the point, that the only recognizable feature of the character is the name. I'll sometimes be reading a story and wonder if the author is someone who is really published and famous, the writing is so fantastic. Even if the writing wasn't that great, I still appreciate the effort and creativity that that person put into it, and putting themselves out there when they posted it online. So anyway, yay fanfiction!

 

[puzzlingbill]

I'm an avid fanfiction reader, mostly Harry Potter, but I have read others. Finding good fics can be tedious, but worth it when you find that gem in the rough. I find a lot of the stories very original, such to the point, that the only recognizable feature of the character is the name. I'll sometimes be reading a story and wonder if the author is someone who is really published and famous, the writing is so fantastic. Even if the writing wasn't that great, I still appreciate the effort and creativity that that person put into it, and putting themselves out there when they posted it online. So anyway, yay fanfiction!

I really enjoyed this re-telling of the Harry Potter story set in a world with no magic and told from Hermione's point of view:

Hermione Granger and the Boy Who Lived

Harry, Ron and Hermione meet at Harworts (rather than Hogwarts -- one of several names that are changed), where they're being trained to be spies. Harry's dad was 007 when he was killed, and Harry's being groomed to be the next one. Hermione's going to be another Emma Peel. Ron's a pureblood because his grandfather's the Duke of Wellington. Very well written and very well plotted. A lot of fun.

 

[Tyrantus1212]

Even though fanfiction uses already existing characters, it can still be very original. Frankly, I don't read much fanfic myself (I'm not much of a reader in general), but I know it can definitely be original. I did however have a hobby of writing unpublished fiction at one point and it too started out with shorter drafts. One of those was a short story about a superhero called "Superbird" (was it an inadvertent mix of Superman and Birdman?) and the story did use Little Red Riding Hood; basically LRRH was becoming the new favorite hero among the public, so Superbird got jealous and froze her in a block of ice (thus inadvertently becoming a supervillain lol). Might this be considered to be an example of fanfiction? If so, then it wasn't a bad starting point at all; it was one of my earliest (unpublished) works. They're all still unpublished.

 

[ksheehan88]

Nooooo!

They belong where they were originally! Characters shouldn't be plonked in some random place doing and seeing things they wouldn't usually! It makes my stomach knot thinking about that!

 

[Ylva]

I like rationalist fanfiction.

Luminosity which is Twilight with a rational Bella
Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality where Harry is more like Ender Wiggins
Branches on the Tree of Time which is The Terminator if Sarah Connor was a computer scientist

Other than that it's mostly crap. Weird, anatomically impossible sex scenes, highly unreasonable emoting for drama, spelling and grammar that make me feel like I'm reading some kind of code. I can live without.

 

[AGXStarseed]

Nooooo!

They belong where they were originally! Characters shouldn't be plonked in some random place doing and seeing things they wouldn't usually! It makes my stomach knot thinking about that!

Well, that doesn't stop the canon material from doing the weird and...not wonderful, especially when it comes to crossovers with other franchises.
Have a look at these crossovers for an example of canon comic stories that are truly odd: 6 Comic Book Crossovers You Won't Believe Actually Happened

 

[Dannarama]

If they're well-written, then there's A LOT of great lewd material in fan fiction for those shows or comics where the original authors don't wanna get kinky ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )