The Fan Fiction Mafia

[bobandbill]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

I'd like to finish off the draft of a multipart fic (shouldn't have too many scenes left to finish off), and then get to the fun editing part, maybe try out the group beta/editing process with it, and post all of it this year. It'd be nice to also start another project, whichever that ends up being.

I also want to write a bunch of articles for the webzine I'm running over on JX's site and keep it going. Already have some ideas for them over the next couple months.

On a non-fandom side, I will hopefully have some writing done for my thesis and potentially have a paper. We'll see!

 

[Griff4815]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Write more, and more regularly. I'm gonna try to write a bit a day to keep up the momentum.

 

[Kukansis]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

I have two, of a sort. Firstly, I want to write my fic more consistently throughout my free time, rather than the short random bursts I've been doing through this last year. Second, I want to work on my characterization, since that was pointed out to be lacking by quite a few people, and that's kind of crucial to most any story.

 

[SnoringFrog]

In effort to help get myself to stick around for a bit and potentially get back into some more writing this year, I'm using the fact that I stumbled back onto the site I got my fic-writing start on as an excuse to get myself back into some sort of online writing community among a few names I recognize. To that end, I should probably join this so I can post about in posting actual writing doesn't go as well as I'd like (i.e., laziness and too much time traveling to concerts end up taking priority).

Why you like fanfic/writing:
Writing's always been a fun outlet. Sometimes it's just an idea/emotion I want to explore, other times I go in on something solely for the challenge of it (which reminds me...it's been 4 years since my last hundred theme challenge thingy...I should do another one of those this year). And...yep, that's about it. Fun outlet for ideas and stuff. Pretty much anything I've written should still be linked in my sig. The one-shots might be worth checking out, anything chaptered got abandoned for sure and probably wasn't very good in the first place.

What's the funniest/most unfortunate typo (or other mistake) you've ever made in your fics?
Not related exactly to fics, but I love this story too much to pass it up. The typo itself wasn't terribly funny, but the way I ran with it got kinda interesting. In short, one wrong letter led to me writing a sequel piece four years after the fact.

I wrote some poem nearly a decade ago about some guy who went and brutally murdered the man who slept with his wife. The final line was supposed to say something like "you should have thought about that before you slept with my wife," but I accidentally typed "before you slept with me wife".

Some kind commenter on DA pointed out the error, but in doing so they asked if it was a typo rather than telling me. For whatever reason, I found that amusing and proceeded to tell them that it was not, in fact, an error. I claimed that the speaker of the poem had been a pirate earlier in his lifetime, but had given up his pirating ways and settled down into a respectable lifestyle, but the combination of his wife's affair and the murder he had just committed were reawakening his need for piracy. Thus, shortly after the poem ended he would likely return to the high seas for pillaging and whatnot.

I followed this with "loljk yeah that's a typo". The commenter apparently believed my little spiel at first, so I told myself I'd eventually write that followup piece about the speaker's return to piracy. Four years passed. I was doing a writing prompt challenge and came on the theme "pirate". Instantly, my mind jumped back to that old typo, and I actually finally wrote the followup piece and tracked down that commenter to show it to them.

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?
Eight years ago I did my first 100 Theme Challenge (take a list of 100 themes, do a piece of whatever type of art you do for each one of them over the course of a year). Four years ago, I did my 2nd HTC, so, this year, I'm hoping to get myself to do my third.

 

[gorgonfish]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Stick to one thing (or three) and get a nice chunk written before doing something new. If I watch or read something I'll probably start having ideas for fics even if I don't like the source material that much. When I get bored with a fic, I sort of piddle around with notes for something else and get caught up with rl stuff and a whole year goes by and I've only gotten four chapters out. Also I need to learn how not to be distracted.

 

[Umbramatic]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Finish a big thing off-site properly so I can start on some fic projects I've been planning a while later this year, especially my return to chapterfic.

 

[Starlight Aurate]

Not related exactly to fics, but I love this story too much to pass it up. The typo itself wasn't terribly funny, but the way I ran with it got kinda interesting. In short, one wrong letter led to me writing a sequel piece four years after the fact.

I wrote some poem nearly a decade ago about some guy who went and brutally murdered the man who slept with his wife. The final line was supposed to say something like "you should have thought about that before you slept with my wife," but I accidentally typed "before you slept with me wife".

Some kind commenter on DA pointed out the error, but in doing so they asked if it was a typo rather than telling me. For whatever reason, I found that amusing and proceeded to tell them that it was not, in fact, an error. I claimed that the speaker of the poem had been a pirate earlier in his lifetime, but had given up his pirating ways and settled down into a respectable lifestyle, but the combination of his wife's affair and the murder he had just committed were reawakening his need for piracy. Thus, shortly after the poem ended he would likely return to the high seas for pillaging and whatnot.

I followed this with "loljk yeah that's a typo". The commenter apparently believed my little spiel at first, so I told myself I'd eventually write that followup piece about the speaker's return to piracy. Four years passed. I was doing a writing prompt challenge and came on the theme "pirate". Instantly, my mind jumped back to that old typo, and I actually finally wrote the followup piece and tracked down that commenter to show it to them.

That's hysterical XD I would've totally accepted it as well lol.

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?
Not officially, no. Of course, I always tell myself that I'll get more of my actual fic done, but as it's been over a week since I've really worked on it, I'll see how well that goes.... And I want to re-vise this one-shot, as well as finish another one, and maybe try to revise another huge one-shot I wrote a while ago.

 

[Akiyama]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Maybe I'll go read the New Testament, King James Version and see what this cadence is. Besides that, I plan to read read through through all of my chapters at least once a month. Should lead to continuous revision while remembering what I wrote before I write some more.

 

[Firebrand]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Do more of it.

 

[Bay]

What's the funniest/most unfortunate typo (or other mistake) you've ever made in your fics?

I don't exactly remember the exact typos/mistakes off the top of my head, but I'm sure there were a couple instances the typos were an inappropriate word for this forum, haha.

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?
Nothing too specific at the moment. I have a few fic ideas (some short, some could take a few chapters or so) that I'm interested in trying out, so I guess my resolution would to get started on those ideas.

 

[Mrs. Lovett]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?
Last semester I took such a long break from writing and posting that I feel like I have to reteach myself how to do it. xP So this year I'm going to get back into the groove of things. I'm going to try to write every day at least a little bit, and read what other people are posting. My ultimate goal is to finish Roots (probably not this year, but maybe early in the next one), as well as post a non-Pokemon fic that I've been working on. Overall, I want to be more prolific, because I can't stand having all these ideas in my head and forgetting them because I never wrote them down.

 

[Cutlerine]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Oh, do I. I really didn't do enough writing last year -- which is not to say I didn't do any good writing; I've produced at least one short story I'm proud to set my name to this year, and maybe two. But I didn't do enough. I've got two episodic novels/short story collections (the boundary seems to have become blurred) to finish, and I've got an idea for my next big fanfic that I want to have started and posted by the end of the month. Which in turn means I need to get my current fic wrapped up as soon as possible, without any loose ends -- a difficult proposition, given that it's gone into such unexpected territory.

Lots to do, basically. I suppose the resolution is really, like so many of us, do more writing.

 

[ChloboShoka]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

I really want to go back and edit some of my old fics but the problem is that I have so many I don't know where to start. I once written a pwp when I was about 14 and I think it's really terrible but I had two people send me a private message that it was one of the best stories they've ever read and now I think I'm very good friends with them. Maybe I could improve that one because it was one of the first fics I ever posted.

 

[SerenadeSP]

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Do more of it.

This is me in a nutshell.

Trying to get into more a routine, but school makes it hard. And so does life.

I'll figure it out eventually. Hopefully before next year.

 

[Starlight Aurate]

Okay, I'm sorry, but I'm here to ask for help because I really need it.

I feel like I've hit some sort of wall; I haven't really written anything in weeks (discounting the YuleTide, and that was because I was writing a specific story for a specific person). But I've been sitting here telling myself every day that I'll write more of my current fic, and nothing comes of it. I get so far as to reading over it, getting ready to write, adn then I just can't seem to start. For a while it was because I didn't know how to progress, and now I think I might know how I want things to go, but I'm still not sure. I've been looking over things I've written but didn't have the intention of posting for ideas, and even when I think I know the direction I want to take, I can't seem to make anything of it or go anywhere. I either can't find the drive to write, or when I do have the motivation and I get ready to write, I can't seem to find anything that makes sense.

Is there any general advice as how to deal with this? Or is this just something that I have to figure out on my own? I know I'll have to figure it out on my own to an extent--but I was wondering if other people have/have had this problem and know of a way to get around this. I'm sorry that I only came here to ask for help and not to contribute anything, but I really want to get back into the swing of writing again (especially now that I have time and I'm not studying 24/7).

 

[Creepychu]

So this year I'm going to get back into the groove of things. I'm going to try to write every day at least a little bit, and read what other people are posting. My ultimate goal is to finish Roots (probably not this year, but maybe early in the next one), as well as post a non-Pokemon fic that I've been working on. Overall, I want to be more prolific, because I can't stand having all these ideas in my head and forgetting them because I never wrote them down.

If that means we'll be seeing updates to Roots in the coming year, then I definitely hope that resolution will work out for you. I really enjoyed the story, but since I noticed it had been well over a month since the last activity by the time I caught up it felt a bit too awkward to leave a comment on it at the time.

Okay, I'm sorry, but I'm here to ask for help because I really need it.

I feel like I've hit some sort of wall; I haven't really written anything in weeks (discounting the YuleTide, and that was because I was writing a specific story for a specific person). But I've been sitting here telling myself every day that I'll write more of my current fic, and nothing comes of it. I get so far as to reading over it, getting ready to write, adn then I just can't seem to start. For a while it was because I didn't know how to progress, and now I think I might know how I want things to go, but I'm still not sure. I've been looking over things I've written but didn't have the intention of posting for ideas, and even when I think I know the direction I want to take, I can't seem to make anything of it or go anywhere. I either can't find the drive to write, or when I do have the motivation and I get ready to write, I can't seem to find anything that makes sense.

Is there any general advice as how to deal with this? Or is this just something that I have to figure out on my own? I know I'll have to figure it out on my own to an extent--but I was wondering if other people have/have had this problem and know of a way to get around this. I'm sorry that I only came here to ask for help and not to contribute anything, but I really want to get back into the swing of writing again (especially now that I have time and I'm not studying 24/7).

Oh, I get this all the time. When your story has a couple of chapters to it, it's quite easy to develop performance pressure over where you take the story, or just feel like you don't have any idea of what to say next. Especially if it's something you've really been focused on for a long time.

As for what you can do about it, I'd recommend that you stop questioning yourself for a bit and just let yourself write, even if the larger goal is still unclear. It's perfectly normal and okay if your initial ideas feel unfinished or you can't get them all to fit together right. That's what a first draft is for; getting your ideas written out so that you have a starting point to work from. Once you get engaged in actually writing your story rather than worrying about how to write it, you should start getting a feel for what you want to say just based off what feels right to you and what doesn't.

So really, just write out what comes to your mind and worry about having it make sense later. All those bits that feel redundant or don't work out can be edited out and no-one but you need ever know; I mean, just consider the massive tl;dr paragraph I wrote out for you (twice as long as what this reply ended up being). It really didn't feel like it had any point to it, but you wouldn't know by looking at what I actually posted, would you? ;D

Also, don't worry about asking for help. It's all well within club topic and suggestions for problems like this can be helpful for a lot more people than just the person who asked.

Do you have any writing-related new year's resolutions this year?

Two really.

First, review more. Sitting down and really breaking down why I like or don't like a piece of writing is a huge help for figuring out what I'm missing in my own and I really need to make use of that more often instead of brooding over it on my own. Besides, there's a whole lot of stories with very little responses to them around so it'd be nice to balance that out a little.

Second, get something post-worthy done. Doesn't matter if it's a chaptered epic or just a quick one-shot, I need to get at least one piece of writing done and posted before the year is up. I need to stop cluttering my fanfic folder with half-finished work and start getting it done and putting it out there. Doing reviews myself helps, but it's not a substitute for getting feedback on my work.

 

[Negrek]

starliteevee

It's very difficult to separate the act of writing from worrying about the quality of what you're producing, but you'll need to if you're going to finish anything substantial, and it sounds like getting scared that your work won't be very good is what's holding you up here. This is a pretty normal part of working through a chaptered story, I think. Creepychu's got some good advice--when in doubt, just writing along and seeing what comes out is a good way to go; at least it's more productive than fretting. It can be hard to come to terms with the fact that you're writing without a real sense of your destination, but once you get the words flowing and start to build up momentum, you can often break through plot uncertainties on inertia alone.

An alternative might be for you to try and write an outline for the next few events/chapters in the story, even if you don't normally do outlines ahead of time. It might be less intimidating for you to get your ideas down on paper in the form of an outline than it would be to write actual prose where you'd be more worried about the quality, and then you can put together a framework you're confident in before you try fleshing it out in prose. An outline can be something to cling to if you're feeling uncertain, and it may make things feel closer to like what you had for Yuletide, the sense that you're writing a "specific story" where the goal is already known.

Best of luck getting through your block. It takes real courage and perseverance to get through a chaptered story, but you've already gotten much farther on this one than you have on the others you've tried, haven't you? You'll be fine if you just keep putting one word after another.

And try to be kind to yourself about the situation, too. It sucks to be stuck in your writing, but beating yourself up for not doing as much as you "should" or getting hung up on something you think should be "easy" (but it's not!) definitely doesn't help.

So a few of you mentioned future stories in your new year's plans. I don't suppose you'd be willing to give us a little preview? Any hints as to what you're planning?

 

[Umbramatic]

So a few of you mentioned future stories in your new year's plans. I don't suppose you'd be willing to give us a little preview? Any hints as to what you're planning?

I have a few things in mind...

First is sprucing up and ORASifying my Hoenn contest entry, Crater Dreams. You already know what that one's about, Negrek. For everyone else it's about the ancient Sootopolans.

Next is a little story called Truth. It's a oneshot about N and Reshiram that's actually a sequel to a similar oneshot I wrote on a whim three years ago.

Finally, there's Heroes After All, which is the return to chapterfic I mentioned. For now I'm keeping exactly what it's about under wraps, but it involves a fair bit of canon cocktailing.

 

[Brutaka]

So a few of you mentioned future stories in your new year's plans. I don't suppose you'd be willing to give us a little preview? Any hints as to what you're planning?

I don't have plans for a new story yet (there are some ideas for two more chaptered fics... but those will only see light if rTTL and rAVT finish before 2016, which is unlikely, knowing my update schedule).

However, rTTL and rAVT are still going, and the upcoming chapters are going to be fun. Mostly because in both stories, I'm still before where I left off in the old ones before I rebooted them both, and reworking the scenes from the old stories is really fun. For those that have read TTL and are currently reading rTTL, the events of Fracture and Exodus (the stuff following the Mud Caverns) are still happening, but I'm reworking the scenes as well as April's reactions to fit better with her reworked personality and my current skill level. And hopefully, the chapter that replaces Exodus wont sound so dumb. Overall, I'm making a lot of changes in favor of story and flow rather than sticking to the PMD skeletal structure.

On the rAVT side, Juniper is going to carry her little test of Amy much more effectively, and N's side of the story is going to much more interesting and mysterious than before. I can't say much since I haven't written it yet (i just have a bare-bones outline), but it involves Colress, a new secret location I'm dubbing "P3" (i know, so creative) that is located in the forest to the west of the route between Nuvema and Accumula. So take that for what you will. Also, the 3 v 3 battle from the original will make a comeback, with largely the same events, though N has a different Pokemon. Though in general, I'm desyncing the story from the B/W story significantly - but only ways that the introduction of Amy and her unique state has on N and Team Plasma's goals.

 

[PhalanxSigil]

VERY late to the party, but this looks cool! I kinda want in.

Why you like fanfic/writing: I've always had ideas for Pokémon stories rattling around in my head, but have never had an outlet for actually expressing those ideas. Also, writing in and of itself, even expository essays for my history classes, is fun for me. Writing fanfic, especially Pokémon, almost seemed inevitable for me. However, as I'm very new when it comes to fictional writing, I love the fact that writing a fanfic is almost collaborative, as the reviews and criticism are almost as important as the story itself.

Also:

Canon or Original Characters? That's hard. I like making original characters, as you have complete control over who they are, but using a canon character well is just as rewarding. So...mostly OC, sprinkle in some canon here and there to liven things up.