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Strongbrush's Guide to Writing Fan Fiction
Hi there. I'm Strongbrush. You probably don't know who I am, but that's not important. What is important is that I'm here to tell you amateur or struggling writers how to get started with crafting your own tales of wonder and whimsy. First, we're going to need to cover the basics.
Where do I begin?
If you're planning on writing a story, the first thing you'll want to do is come up with the plot. A good plot is central to any story worth its salt. So, what is the story about? What happens to the characters? How is this story going to keep the interest of its readers? That's up to you.
How do I come up with a good plot?
There are several different ways you can go about this. Use your imagination. You can set the story and characters anywhere. They could be in the city, out in the country, under the sea, out in space, maybe even in an alternate dimension. If you're having trouble coming up with a good original story, you can borrow plot elements from other stories, or just rely on an old standby plot. NOTE: Do NOT steal a plot directly from another source. unless you're doing something differently.
I've got the plot. What about the characters?
If you haven't come up with a good set of characters to base your story around yet, now is the time. You can't have a story without characters unless you're planning to make some kind of nature documentary. Since this is a fan fiction, some of your characters, if not all of them, are going to be lifted from previously established work. Make sure to do your homework on these characters before you use them. Nothing raises more eyebrows in a fan fiction than when characters don't seem like themselves. If you want, though, you can create your own characters to interact with the others. Be warned, though: if ever your original characters should meet up with canon characters, it will need to be explained. We'll talk more about original characters later.
Okay, I've got the characters. Now what?
Now the fun begins. If you've got a good idea of how you want the plot to go, now's a good time to map it out. The events should all be in a sequence that the reader will be able to follow. If you've got a million different ideas for subplots, then cut down that number. Subplots are perfectly fine, but they should be kept to small numbers, and all eventually tie up the main story before the end. Once you've got a decent, intelligible and coherent plot set in stone, it's time to put pen to paper. Or, hands to keys, if you prefer.
Narration
Narration is how you present the story. You can choose to do this in many different ways, so take your pick. If you wish to show the inner conscience of your hero, there's first person, which shows the story through the eyes of the main character, as if they are recalling a memory or writing a journal. If you want to show how others see the exploits of the main character, there's second person, AKA seen through the eyes of a secondary character. If you just want to focus on the straightforward story, though, you're best off using third person, or “casual” narration.
Opening
If you want people to read your story, you're going to have to appeal to their attention spans. First off, show the reader that they should care about your story. Say something that piques their interest. NEVER start with a long expository sentence. Get to the point as quickly as possible, and set the tone so the reader knows what to expect.
Keeping Interest
Once the reader has taken the bait, it's time for you to reel them in. Set a good pace for the reader to follow. Don't drag out the story, or else the reader will get bored and stop reading. However, don't throw too much action in at once, or the reader will get confused. Try to put an equal, or at least balanced, amount of time between descriptions and action.
Grammar and Spelling
You can have the best ideas in the world and a creative genius that rivals that of Dickens and Shakespeare, but that doesn't mean jack if you can't convey it properly. Always check your tenses and spelling to make sure that everything is understandable and easy to follow. Spell-check is your friend. Also, make sure to re-read your work and make sure that you've spelled everything correctly, because spell-check is not a fix-all solution.
Show, don't tell.
Description is hard. No one is denying that. But if done well, it can make all the difference. The one thing you have to keep in mind with your descriptions is to show people what you're talking about rather than outright stating it. For example, “His blood felt like it was ready to boil” sounds a lot more expressive and interesting than “He was furious with her”, doesn't it?
Careful with the Exposition.
The thing about plots in stories is that sometimes, you have to release tidbits of information at a time. Exposition dumps are what happens when every single detail of a story is suddenly revealed to the reader at once. Try to progress through the story at a steady rate that is easy for the reader to follow.
Make sure it makes sense.
Despite what the writers of the Romantic Period believed, readers aren't idiots. You can't just throw something into a story randomly and expect them to buy it. They will have the smarts to ask questions if something doesn't feel quite right with the way you interjected aliens into your romance novel.
Keep your characters believable.
Not everybody can be perfect. Batman has anger issues, Jesus could be tempted, and even Superman has his weaknesses. If you want to make an original character, it cannot be one that everybody immediately loves. It needs to have characteristics that make it unique. Maybe they're nervous about going out in public. Maybe they have a drinking problem. Just give them some flaw that can make them more relatable. But don't forget to give them redeeming qualities as well!
Have a point.
As Steve Martin once said, "It makes it so much more interesting for the listener!" You can't just have a story happen and then not give the reader some payoff. Develop your characters, and have them learn lessons. Have them go through a variety of moods. Just do SOMETHING that won't make the reader feel like he wasted his time reading your story.
Make sure the reader is left satisfied and/or ready for more.
There is nothing more absolutely teeth-grindingly annoying than a story that just suddenly ends for no reason. Remember the finale of the Sopranos where the screen just cut to black in mid-sentence and how frustrated the viewers were? You don't? Oh. Well, the point is, you have to find some way to end, whether it's on a cliffhanger to be resolved in another story, or a resolution that says "Yep, we're done here. So long!" A good way to do this is to provide closure to all of your plot points and then having them go off on their ways, whether separately or together.
Well, I've said all I can to help you out. What you do with these guidelines is up to you. I'm not one to criticize style, or beliefs, or tastes (with some reasonable exceptions for the latter two), I'm just an author who wants to help your work become as good as it possibly can. And in the end, I just want my work to count for something. I hope you take my advice and put it to good use. Who knows? You could end up writing something way better than I could ever hope to write.
I don't mind how you go about it. I'm just glad I could make a difference. Someday, my friend, we may meet again soon. Till then, I bid you good night, and good luck.