My Experience and advice for being a fanfiction writer (This will be long). · 2:12am Jun 3rd, 2014
Hello readers of Fimfiction (or any other site I decide to post this on). I am Animegx43 for those who didn't bother to read the name, and I have some thoughts I'd like to share. This is also my first real blog on this site.
Recently, I was inspired by a by a video made by pony analysts Drwolf and Firebrand, who talked about quality control in the My Little Pony fandom. It was actually a follow-up to another video they made regarding the same topic, both of which I recommend to watch (I'll provide links), and they left an impression on me. More specifically, the second one, since it talked about a topic I very much enjoy: FANFICTION!
They mentioned how while there are so many awesome creations made within this fandom, the bulk of our creations are...well, to put bluntly...crap. As a person who's found fanfiction within a number of different fandoms, and as someone who's been writing for a long time, I think I've got some advice on making fanfics. Now I'm not a master writer myself, but I'm still sure that I know the difference between good and bad stories.
To do so, I will now share to anyone who's reading this my little memoir as a fanfiction writer, starting from when I myself was a bad writer to today, where I am...afraid to say something that'll make me look egotistic. Anyway, I will talk about my growth as a writer and share the discoveries I made that help me become a good writer and hopefully help others to improve as well.
The advice I will share will also include some common knowledge, but don't go skipping over those parts, even if you know it. If you do ignore them, then who's to say that you don't actually follow them?
Warning: A lot of this won't have much to do with ponies until I get to that point in my life. Now let's begin.
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Chapter 1: Beginnings
My writing started back in 2009. It was when i was really into a very underrated cartoon called Morel Orel (I'm glad this is a fandom that don't judge me harshly). For years, I would always have story ideas from the shows I want, and this was WAY before 2009. More like late 90's. Once day, after thinking of some ideas, I simply said to myself "You know what. I think I will write them."
While I was happy with my work back then, I see now how it was cringe worthy by my new level of standards. Why? I started writing in script format (By the way, have a barf bag ready).
But, that was a start, and that marks the first step of being a writer: Getting off your butt, sitting back on it, and start planning your story. So my first bit of advice is to start thinking.
On paper (no pun intended), starting a story is the easiest step. Actually, from when I started to today, I've always found starting a story to be the hardest thing to do. I take great pride in my work, so when I start a story, I have to know what the hell I'm doing. I need to have a clear image in my head on how I want the story to start, have a middle, and end, but in order to get to the latter two, you need a good opening to get there. This may seem like common knowledge, but it is important.
But then there's what happens after you begin. Do you have the energy to continue any further from the first few chapters?
When I start a story, I usually make sure that it was an idea that I would commit to see to it until the end. I have started a few stories yet failed to finish them simply because I didn't have enough interest in it.
That's my second advice for writing: Have foresight. Before actually writing, ask yourself the important question "Do I really want to do this?"
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Chapter 2: Improvement
Now obviously, I no longer write in script format. I eventually got the hand of actual story format and began writing proper stories. My advice here is to simply be open minded. I was stubborn with my format before and now I'm glad I changed it.
From there, i wrote stories in different series. I've written stories for Fairly Odd Parents, Happy Tree Friends (NOT a kids show), and even one for Kid Vs Kat. Writing this paragraph makes me fear myself.
As I wrote more and more and thought about how others wrote, I found that one thing a lot of people do is writing is put in extra detail. Detail is a VERY good thing. It keeps the dialogues from being boring and adds structure. What I didn't like was stories with too much detail. I personally find too much to be boring sometimes since it feels long winded. My goal was always to include detail, but only what's actually needed.
But, this is a case where the term "less is more" could be a bad thing too. I hate stories with too much dialogues too, especially when it's like eight sentences in a row with five words or less in each sentence. Even if you try to add some detailed paragraphs, it's possible to not have enough. Heck, it's possible to just not have enough of anything.
I have two advices from here.
1. Find a good balance of detailed paragraphs and dialogue. Not saying that it should be half detail, half dialogue. I just encourage you to make good use of both. I also find there's more decent detail heavy stories than decent dialogue heavy stories.
2. Proofread as you go. It's always good to proofread after you finish a story, but what I mean after you write ANY part of the story. You right a paragraph or a quote, take a good look, and ask yourself if it's readable. It's also a good way to check for mistakes early. If you were the one who wrote this and double checked early, you would've seen that the word "right" was used instead of "write".
And now, we will talk about the most controversial word in a writer's vocabulary.
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Chapter 3: CRITICISM!
This stems back to when I was in the Phineas and Ferb fandom. I still like the show now and it's still a well made show. Just like another certain show you all watch. (Wink wink).
Now there's like a billion different forms of criticism, but my story focuses on two types in particular: Constructive and Destructive.
My first story in Phineas and Ferb (PaF for short), I got a low of love from reviewers, but one person in particular gave me actual help. She pointed out how I would switched between past and present tenses in my story, which therefore made inconsistencies. And Spanish was this person's first language, so you know you're f*cking up when you're getting advice like that.
But, that's still a great example of constructive criticism. You point out technical problems and encourage people to be careful with that problem. If you take advice like that into heart and think carefully, then you'll likely improve yourself as a writer just like that.
That's my first advice here: Be open to constructive criticism. If you mastered my open mind step, then this will be easy. It's not enough to just read or listen to the argument, you have to actually think about it. On top of that, if they put in the effort to try and help, then odds are, you've written a story they like that want to see done as best as it can. Try and see it as a form of encouragement.
And now...we face darkness itself.
DESTRUCTIVE CRITICISM!
This is one I'm actually quite sensitive about. Back when I was in the PaF fandom, there was a group, an ACTUAL GROUP, of people on deviantart who "specialized" in negative criticism. My guess is that they were trying be something like Doug Walker as the Nostalgia Critic, a very very funny man I have to say (a lot of free advertisement in this thing), but seeing how they talked equally as rude to me directly, it was clear that they were just jerks.
I know precisely how devastating destructive criticism can be and how much they can hurt a writer. After what I went through, I realized I had pretty much dealt with a form of cyber bullying (especially since they chased after my comments on posts that had nothing to do with anything). I that point, I was actually very discouraged from continuing my writing. A writer can recover from writer's block, but this was just a painful experience.
"Sticks and stones will break your bones, but words make psychological scars that never heal!"
-Fairly Odd Parents quote.
After talking to a friend and looking back at the happy comments I got though, as well as calming myself down, I was able to keep writing and eventually ignored those people. Again, scars will never heal, but after a while, the pain goes away. You just need to be able to feel good. Writing is something I loved to do and I didn't want to let anything stop me. Why after all that, I was still able to write and complete what I still consider to not only be my best PaF story, but my best story period. It had constructive criticism to help me out, it had simple good reviews to keep me motivated, and I was very proud of myself for doing it.
I have no clear-cut advice for dealing with destructive criticism except to ignore it, but that's only if there's NOTHING in it that can help you improve. My real advice is to keep yourself motivated. Prove those who think you're not cut out by putting in that effort and make your stories the best it can be.
The MLP fandom gives you the luxury of replacing most of the negative critics with constructive critics. Count yourselves lucky for being in it.
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Chapter 4: When your story is simply a bad one.
I feel guilty talking about this one right after talking about destructive criticism, but that doesn't mean there's no such thing as a bad story. I've made them before, others do too, and they're easy to find, especially in this fandom. Remember, I started this whole thing because there's complaints of too many bad stories.
Now there's a number of easy way to make bad stories. One way...is by not being me.
...
Okay, that's a lie. But that's not entirely false either (don't hate me. Hate my ego).
One way is by not using any of the tips I mentioned throughout this story. If you don't think, think ahead, be closed minded, have too much dialogue and not enough detail (or vice-versa), and handle criticism poorly, you're going no where not just in writing, but in anything altogether. I keep all of this in mind whenever I write.
Now let's try a more specific way to make a bad story. Have you ever found a story that actually has a good idea behind it, but failed because it was clearly rushed? There is a very big difference between writing fast and rushing a story. Steven King is a world famous writer, yet he's known for writing fast. A rushed story is one where you simply fail to put in the extra details because you wanted to get the chapter or story out as soon as humanly possible.
I myself am careful in my writing, so I usually take anywhere between 7-10 days before I upload new chapter in my story, whether it's because I'm careful or because I balance writing with real life, and will typically have 4000 words in them, more or less (not saying that's what you need to do, that's just me). I recently found a bad story because the first three chapters were posted exactly one day after each other. They were almost too hard to read.
This is the most important advice I will give you, at least in my opinion: Take your time and put in the effort. Even if the end result isn't a masterpiece, any one will recognize effort when they see it. Especially you. If you really want to write a story and want to see people compliment it or give you constructive criticism, then put in that effort. if you're simply not, then writing just might not be for you.
I know that last bit is a little harsh, but this whole article I've written here was inspired by a video that complained about there being so much bad stories. But...
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Chapter 5: What makes a good story a good story?
You can have an idea in your hand an enough grammar skills to write something readable, but how do you make the story itself good? This is by far the hardest to explain since the choice of deciding what's good and bad can be opinion based, so let's focus on what's universally acknowledged as good.
I guess the first place to start is from where all stories are suppose to be about: The characters. This is a good time to actually talk about MLP.
On the show, we learn about characters like Twilight, Pinkie, Rainbow, Fluttershy, Rarity, and some background pony, and how well they bounce off of each other, other characters, and the world itself. The writers no who their own characters are and do what they can to keep them in character so they bounce off like they should.
We are fans of the show and have learned who the characters are. Theoretically, we should know these characters just as well. Does it not suck when people don't get the characters down perfectly? Well truth be told, it isn't as easy as we think. Not even the writers can get it done right all the time and they NEED to do it properly. I myself am always very careful to think about the situation I put the characters in, and then ask myself "How would they react?"
This is a very obvious reminder, but it's still important. Watch the show carefully. Remind yourself of the characters, even if your positive that you know them well. Before I started my latest story, which have Pinkie Pie and Applejack as main characters, I made sure to of watch enough episodes before even starting. Pinkie Apple Pie in particular helped me for this particular story, but I digress.
And now, for the only opinion oriented question that actually needs to be considered. After thinking of that story idea of yours, you have to ask yourself this: Is this idea a good idea?
This is where you REALLY think. As a creative mind, I'll get hundreds of ideas for stories in my head, but I typically go with the idea I think is the best. But it's not enough to just think of an idea you like. As a writer, you're goal is create something others will want to read. It's important to know your audience and to know if they even exist.
Let's take two of my fanfics as an example. The Royal Turnabout and The Sun is in Your Hoof.
Due to the popularity of the Ace Attorney series, as well as Turnabout Storm, there are plenty of bronies who know and love the Phoenix Wright games. That said, my story, Royal Turnabout, has an audience and there are a good number of people who read it.
My other story is Sun in Your Hoof, a crossover of MLP and a game series called Boktai. I guarantee you that you've never even heard of that game (most underrated game ever, but that's not important right now). Because of this, the audience for the story was essentially non-existent, and because of that, people didn't read it. I sadly had to abandon the project solely because of that. I did enjoy writing it, but with a lack of people to actually read it, i had to face the harsh truth that maybe it wasn't such a good idea after all. This is another good example for chapter 4. It was simply not a good idea.
Of course, all of this only applies to long stories. One or two shot stories are finished after the one chapter, so whether it succeeds or fails don't have too much of an effect on it in the future. I don't really write that many one shots anymore, but I encourage you to do it yourself. It gives you GREAT practice. In fact, that will be my second most important advice here: practice.
Actually, one small suggestion I was recently given at a fanfiction panel I went to recently that goes well with this one. "Phonics is your friend". Definitely another form of practice.
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In conclusion:
So yeah, I'm learned a lot over the course of 5 or 6 years. This has pretty much been a summary of what I had learn during that time. Let's look at the list of tips I've been sharing.
1. Start thinking, then write.
2. Ask yourself it its worth doing
3. Think open mindedly.
4. Balance details with dialogue.
5. Proofread your work WHILE you write (and after obviously).
6. Embrace Constructive Criticism.
7. Stay Motivated.
8. Don't confuse constructive criticism with destructive criticism.
9. Put in the effort and take your time. (Most important on this list).
10. Rewatch the show so you're familiar with the characters.
11. Practice practice practice.
These are what I've learned and these are what's made me an experienced, yet still learning writer. I'm not the greatest writer in the world, nor am I anywhere close, but I still feel comfortable talking about something like this since I've been through just about everything a writer will probably go through. I also know an 11 item list looks strange, but like I said, go watch the Nostalgia Critic.
Now I'm sure the list can go on based on what others have gone through, but hopefully, this will give you an idea on how you can start improving yourself. Have you had any other experience that had impacted your way of writing that I didn't go through? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
This has been Animegx43. Thank you for reading and please share your thoughts. Until then, I'm off to finish the next chapter of my latest fanfic.
Drwolf: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSVbVB1hckKojjYdOl9q2og
Firebrand: https://www.youtube.com/user/FOBEquestria
Watch this too. This is the collab video they made that inspired me to write this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGSMAw21KYc&list=UUSVbVB1hckKojjYdOl9q2og
I must sincerely apologize if I sound...rude, I guess, but I couldn't help cringing when you mentioned "good idea and good grammar" and had "an" instead of "and".
(side note to that: Is it a good or bad thing that nowadays I'm always idly picking up spelling errors and then instinctively wanting to immediately point them all out?
)
Even so, very good blog post, sir. I myself have some interest in writing myself, but it's always been the questions of "will they like it enough? Will I have enough of a fanbase to justify making more even if I personally want to keep going? Will I be able to devote enough time to any long-term (IMO 15+ chapters of 3-4k+ words each) projects?" that have stayed my hand. But then, that's just me and my own personal hang-ups. (and it also makes me feel slightly hypocritical in that I'm quick to start pointing out grammatical errors in other's stories--even if it's well-intentioned and fully asked for--yet I don't have anything except my comments for others to do the same.)
...bah, rambling. <_<
2237116 Yeah, as I said before, my grammar, wording, and phrasing can be sh*t. I'm not ashamed to admit it.
If you can help people improve their writing and can avoid sounding rude (like you were able to do), then yes, let them know. It's the only way we'll learn.
As for your writing, you can always start by simply writing up a first chapter when you can, then from there, you can decide whether or not you feel that you want to write another. Of course if these ideas are one-shots, you'll only need to write 1 anyway.
2237178 I actually do have a short one-shot already made and self-proofread, but I'm kinda procrastinating on asking for someone else to proofread it and/or otherwise get it on FIMfiction, so...
2237415 Don't feel hesitated, especially if its already done. Worse case scenario: someone spots a mistake or two. best case scenario: Someone likes the story.
2237431 I know, I know, but...I just can't help it, it seems.