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Need Advice Getting Back into Writing Fan Fiction


Will Guide

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I already made this topic in Life Advice, but since it's about Fan Fiction, my plea for help should reach better ears here.

The original post:

Okay, so for the past 4 years, as long as I've been a Brony, I've been developing fan fiction that I wished to post on FimFiction.net. Main Problem is that I've been mentally developing what would happen in the story for much longer than actually getting all of it written down and officially published over these past 4 years.

I used to write Phineas and Ferb fan fiction on fanfiction.net that still get added to readers' favorite lists every once in a while. That ended a month before I became a Brony 4 years ago. Haven't published a single chapter of any kind of FF since then.

Honestly, I know what I would like to write about in my MLP FF, but in addition to writer's block about what are the exact words to type, I've never published anything on FimFiction before and am worried that despite my best efforts, no one would like it or I might break the website's standards for a T-rated story, which is what I want my main stories to be. (There are some M-rated ideas I do want to write, but I want them to be separate stories)

Plus, I fear of becoming a perfectionist who ends up wanting every little thing to be perfect or no one would like it.

Oh, what should I do? Any advice would be nice.

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The only way to beat writers block is to just write. Sit yourself down and force yourself to. It may not come out how you want at first but it will be something. Be sure to have an outline of what you hope to accomplish in each chapter. Proof read. And don't worry so much. I don't know much about that website but it won't be the end of the world if it doesn't come out how you were hoping. Just keep trying. You will improve regardless of whether you do well or poorly on your story.

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Writing is hard, especially doing it as a hobby.  Professional authors have a good motivator in that if they don't write they don't eat.  I've found it's useful to set some sort of goal <I won't do X until I finish Y>.  Brandon Sanderson, one of my favorite writers, talks about how he sits down and writes mostly every day, even if he doesn't really want to; which lets him crank out books at a ludicrous rate.  Self-discipline is key.  Ultimately, as with many things in life only you can make you succeed.

The converse is: since this isn't funding your next meal, the price of failure is rather cheap.  So don't stress out.

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I might not be the best person to talk on this subject, but I am currently where you will be in a few months. I had never written a shred of fan fiction in my life prior to last year. I had instead occupied my time writing real life experiences with embellishments to make people (mostly my friends) laugh or poke fun at my expense. (To give a little background) I used to have a ongoing post on Modded Mustangs Forum that we shall simply refer to as DAG posts. Dag meaning Dumb (fell free to guess the second word) Guest. at the time I was a brony and was very active in the community, but felt that fan fiction was out of my grasp due to the natures and wants of my FimFiction readers.

(back on topic, again, this next bit is in my humble opinion)

First I will address your concern about T-ratings. There is no real need to worry about that unless you are wanting to attract a specific demographic(s)  in your writing adventures. Many will have an opinion on this, and like those many, here is mine. I personally could care less about attracting this group or that group with my writings. I feel that the moment you set constraints on what you can and can't say, what you can and can't write about, you severely limit yourself and end up setting yourself up for writer's block. I feel that if you are passionate about the thing you are writing about, you need to express yourself fully and clearly in order to provoke the catharsis you desire from the reader. So if your fic has mature moments, label it as such and write it. You may not pull MLD numbers, but few do. Don't forget that one of the best stories in the fandom in terms of following is still Fallout Equestria, a story that has spawned countless off-shoots and side stories, some that are over 1 million words long! But if you are concerned that you are going to get nailed for posting an overly mature T-rated story, don't. I have read my fair share of T-rated stuff on there that had more than enough "perverse" or gory stuff to deserve a M rating. You can push the bounds, but just remember who might be reading it might not like it and you can earn quite a few negs from it.

As far as becoming a perfectionist is concerned... Show me a writer who is not one. Most of my chapters are in excess of 20k words, of which I reread every single time I set down to work on them. I make changes all the way up until I post the chapter, sometimes exploiting the smallest detail just to make a long running joke or hide something in plain sight. I will rewrite entire paragraphs and some times multiple paragraphs just to add more vivid detail. Sometimes I will cut out a few paragraphs and make them into one really well written one just to make it more concise to keep from harping or boring the reader. Perfection is the essence of writing some say, striving for it is the best you can do and will help you sleep at night after hitting the dreaded "publish" button.   

Lastly, the big one. The mentally over developed story.
This is something I deal greatly with. I over think everything! The ending of my current story has over 20 possible outcomes and each needs to be written a certain way and will effect the last 5-10 chapters. It has taken me quite a lot of time to find a method to my own madness, but after a full year at this, I think I have nailed it down. For me, I have found that working 5 chapters ahead not only keeps things on track but also helps set a check point. I keep the details simple as far as the timeline is concerned. Lead character has to get here, lead character is injured, group must find this pony, lead character screws up, remorse, recovery. Doing this has helped me considerably! I spend most of my time working on the characters and their traits, loves, relationships and weaknesses. I try to make them as if they were real before I start working with them and have them act accordingly when I pitch them into the story. It not only makes for a deeper feel and more likable character, but also one that will write itself in terms of dialog and forethought. Now plot-lines are something that I am ashamed to say that I struggle with from time to time. Your story has to have a beginning, a middle and a end, so many people think that you have to have all of this layed out prior to writing. 
That has never been the case for me. I have an idea of what I want, but I keep it flexible so as not to constrain myself to an idea that I may lose passion for later on. One of the reasons why I have so many outcomes to my story is because I like to daydream far too much! My one escape in life is driving and listening to music WAY too loud. I find a song, find a twisty road and get lost in thought. That is where most of my best ideas come to me. The problem is though that most of those are always key moments in the story, things like fights, love scenes, dialog exchanges that are prolific, ect... But, having those means that I can write the filler up to that point and make a good chapter. So in short, there is no such thing as overly mentally developed in terms of writing, just don't let it get the best of you and lock you up. Find you a song that matches the scene, and play them out in your head, which ever one makes you smile, gives you goosebumps or brings a tear to your eye is the one you run with. 

Best of luck!
Rocco 

  

Edited by Rocco
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  • 5 weeks later...

There is one important thing when it comes to writing fanfiction: save. Every. Draft. So long as you do that you'll have enough drafts to compare to each other that you'll be able to figure out which version is the best. Also: having someone review your story ahead of time definitely helps.

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