Paint With Words

There’s nothing more laughable in writing today than fanfiction. 9 times out of 10, the stories are written by overly obsessed fans of some book, tv show, actor, or band, wishing they were somehow part of that world. So what do they do? They write a story, and insert themselves, or a character largely based off of themselves, into the story. Not only does this lead to a weak plot, but the creation of Mary Sue/Gary Stu characters, and a story that serves as more of a comic relief than literary satisfaction.

Now, I’ve been reading and writing fanfiction since I was 11, back in the good old days of “MMMBop”. Yes, I’ve been a Hanson fan since 1997, and I still am, loud and proud. And I’ve divulged in plenty of other fanfiction obsessions since then: Savage Garden, Gil Ofarim, Orlando Bloom, AFI, and my most recent being Tokio Hotel. There’s a little bit of Cinema Bizarre infatuation in there, but as most Cinema Bizarre fanfiction is written in every western language EXCEPT English, so I haven’t really gotten into it.

But anyway, my point is, I’ve read and written quite a lot of stories in my day. In fact, it’s what I cut my teeth on, concerning writing. I’ve read and written a lot of it, and some of the stories are more embarrassing to remember. They were the total teenaged Mary Sue wish I was the perfect girlfriend for (insert celebrity of choice here) with no flaws, an amazing wardrobe, and a family with an endless bank account. My first one that was really published on the Internet was a Gil Ofarim fanfiction called “Can’t Help Fallin’” which was basically about me. I was the main character, my friends were part of it, so was my family.  Definitely was Mary-Sue-ish, but it was my first attempt at a half way decent story.

Over the years, fanfiction though has morphed from goofy wishing to a real story. There are a lot of hardcore fanfiction writers now who frown upon those kinds of stories, and there are also a lot of really good stories out there. The downside is though there’s a lot of Mary-Sure writing fangirls out there. If you go on Tokio Hotel Fanfiction, or AFISlash, you have to watch out for the bad slash and twincest fiction. However, once you discern past that, talk to a few users, and check out the popular stories and authors, you start finding stories that are probably good enough to be published, or can keep up with things that are on the New York Bestsellers list. Sometimes you even forget you’re reading fanfiction; there’s only the vague reminder that the people in the stories are celebrities.

 If nothing else, over the years, Fanfiction has been a good way for me to learn. I’ve been able to sharpen my skills, get feedback, and honestly not have a lot of pressure. Sure, there have been mean people, and whatever, and you’ll always have that, but I have been able to gain all the experience without all the pressure of the ‘industry’. So now that I’m trying to write a story to get it published, I feel more confident in myself, and I don’t feel like I’m just shooting in the dark. Of course I have friends helping me, and all of that, but it’s not all foreign to me. Fanfiction has been for me what spending hours in a practice room are for a musician. A musician can’t go out and perform without rehearsals and hours of practice. They sit in their practice room for hours, straightening out tought parts and adjusting their technique. Spending the better part of 10 years writing fanfiction has done just the same for me.

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