Wednesday Writings: Fan Fiction

Ifyou’ve never heard of fan fiction, then it is about dang time you did.

Fanfiction, by my definition, is fiction (stories mostly) written by fansfeaturing characters and storylines from their favorite shows, books andmovies. Generally, a fan fiction story will center on a specific character andsome aspect of their life. The writer finds some sort of inspiration and runswith it.

Itcould be changing an ending. I wanted so-and-so to end up with what’s his nameinstead of that other guy. Or this person should have never died, so in mystory they won’t! Sometimes the stories pick up where a show or book left off.Fade to black and then…

Fanfiction is an outlet for fans, happy or frustrated, to get the story and endingthey wanted, whether that is actually what happened or not. Most often not.

Ifirst found myself wrapped up in the world of fan fiction back in 2003. 10years of fan fictioning! I can’t say I remember exactly how it all began, buthere’s what most likely went down. In 2003, Buffy the Vampire Slayer went offthe air. I was sad because Buffy and Spike did not get together at the end(although they did have a special moment or two) and so I went on a search fora world in which they lived happily ever after.

AndI found one. Or hundreds.

Someof the websites I began frequenting were The Spuffy Realm and TheBloodshedverse. I also think there may have been a website called the Buffy andSpike Diaries or something to that effect, but it is no longer in existence. Asfar as I know, the others still are, though I do not visit them as muchanymore.

Ifyou’re looking for more than Spuffy related fiction, Fanfiction.net is theplace for you. This website features multiple genres and categories. You canfind almost any book, TV show or movie you might want to read or write a fanfiction story about. And if the category you want isn’t there, you can requestit.

Soanyways, back to me.

Istarted reading what other people had written about my favorite show anddecided I wanted to follow suit. I had always been a semi-blossoming writer (Iwrote stories a lot as a kid) and this gave me a way to write about charactersI loved and get feedback from other readers and writers. Also a good way tofind like-minded people.

Oneof the first stories I published on FanFiction.net was called Have You Ever. Itis no longer on there because it sucked big time, but I’m fairly certain it wasone of the earlier stories. It took place five years after BTVS ended. And ofcourse Spike came back. There was singing involved. I also wrote thisridiculous tale that was totally AU. (For those unfamiliar with fan fictionterminology, this means Alternate Universe, which is taking existing charactersand putting them in a completely different world. This happens a lot whendealing with supernatural worlds. Sometimes people will take characters thatare say… vampires, and make them all humans.) Dawn was the slayer and Spike andAngel were brothers and I don’t even know what else. I’m pretty sure I wrotethat in 9^th grade health class.

Basically,my earliest attempts were bad. I’ve improved somewhat. At least, I like tothink so. I don’t have as many grammar and spelling errors as I used to. Duelargely in part to having Microsoft Word now. When I first started this nonsense,I only had word pad. Also, I went to college and stuff but whatever.

Idon’t spend too much time reading or writing fan fictions these days, mostlyjust when I’m mad or disappointed about something. I’ve written about BTVS,ATS, Twilight, Southern Vampire Mysteries, Warm Bodies, Night Huntress…Supernatural things mostly. If you have any interest in reading my stories(some good, some bad) you can find them here: www.fanfiction.net/u/314839/Moluvsnumber17

Courtneyhas also dabbled in fan fiction. You can find her one and only (self-proclaimed really super awesome) story here: www.fanfiction.net/u/1339000

Ifyou enjoy writing and have never tried fan fiction, give it a shot. It couldeven make you millions of dollars. 50Shades of Grey, for those who were unaware, began as a Twilight fanfiction. So you never know where it might lead you. Once, I won a free copy ofTwilight when I entered a fan fiction contest. My biggest accomplishment sofar, but who knows. Maybe I’ll be the next E.L. James.

ExceptI’ll write erotic short stories.

50shades or more in 50 pages or less!

Beon the lookout for Wednesday Writings: NC-17 Edition. (Just kidding! Probably…)

-Mallory