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UPDATE: (June 12, 2009)

I will be posting a comic version of my "Avatar Book 4: Air" fanfic at my deviantart site under the same name. It will be very simple, though, and rough. Black and White. And I will only be doing the first half of the comic. You can view the title page on this site:

link

That is all.

Personally, I believe a reader gets to know the author by his or her stories, so I advise reading my story/stories if you want to know me better. (Plus, I'll be inserting a few tidbits about myself in the last few chapters of my story/stories just to make things interesting)

o

Relevance of UserName to real name: The "Kojab" in my user name is actually an anagram of my real name, except for the "K". Just replace it with "c" and unscramble the letters to form the right word. Only then will my name be revealed to you. The "8890" doesn't have any significance but was made by my friend years ago and I don't really know why I included it. It just seemed so random.

Age: 18 (for now...)

Gender: Dude

Kojab8890 Quote for the time being: "The greatest crime of all is an unfinished story..."

My so-called Writing Career: I wrote and book-bound my first 100-or-so page novel at the age of 12. (It sucked though. Too many plot holes and Deux Ex Machina schemes) After that, I created more novels to develop my own writing style. I also became a feature writer in our high school news paper. To date, I've written three prototype novels (they're the ones not ready for the big world), one mini novel (it was an assignment and it barely reached forty or fifty pages), and finished four novels of a series. That's a total of 8 books. I hope to publish before I reach eighteen. I'm also thinking up new ideas for other novels.

Relevance of BioPic: The pic above turns out to be the cover page for one of my Avatar stories entitled, "Book 4: Air". There are also chapter titles. Read it : ) The drawings get better along the way (Ha ha...)

Favorite Themes: Dystopia, Hope, Time, Death, "Against-all-odds-situations", Speculation, etc.

Why I began reading FanFiction: When I first encountered fanfics, it was like an epiphany. Here was a chance to see stories that didn't happen in the real canon. These were stories not bound to age groups, not limited to ratings, and the authors wrote things, not because they were getting paid. Authors here wrote for something more fundamental and more driven than anything a hired writer could have. Authors wrote simply to be read. And if you're lucky enough, you get to encounter well-rounded stories with original and amazing plots with powerful twists. These authors were passionate and driven. They didn't do it for money. They did it because they had a story and they wanted to share it with the rest of the world. They would go through great lengths and would spend hours at night trying to place new chapters or new stories. That's why I'm here in Fanfiction.net. That's why this site is worth my time.

Why I began writing FanFiction: Honestly, I never believed that I would ever place a story here. I believed that I would only read in this site. My original home base for writing was FictionPress.com, but it didn't stick. The problem with Fanfiction is that the story is already there and I'm sort of a continuation-story-fan. Continuation stories are hard to write because a set of rules has already been given to the world and there are sometimes very little room for speculation to make a continuation fanfic. But "Avatar: the Last Airbender" was different. For me, Avatar held a world of possibilities and even before the coming of the finale, I had already conjured a story in my head. Time came when it was ready to burst and I decided to write it all down. I'm still not sure yet if I'm going to make another story but who knows?

Favorite Pieces of Fiction:

I am a great fan of cartoons with good story lines. I mean, what happened to those old Saturday cartoons? There's no more depth in animated cartoon stories. But luckily, there are those that choose to be exceptional (even though some may be quite childish in my age)

...Avatar comes first! (I knew it was epic since the first episode and I made a shirt in dedication after the finale).

...Next is Danny Phantom (made a shirt of that too)

As for books, the Artemis Fowl series comes into mind. Eoin Colfer has inspired me to write and (hopefully) publish my own series of books. James Patterson's Maximum Ride series is also a must have in my bookshelf. Others to mention are the Septimus Heap books by Angie Sage, books written by Michael Crichton, "Back to the Moon" by Homer H. Hickam, and the books of Anthony Horowitz.

Writing Inspirations:

a.) Long, isolated walks that get the mind thinking

b.) Looking out the window, all "emo-like"

c.) Reading professional works and works from other fanfic writers

d.) Food (Nothing inspires you like food, yeah!)

e.) Daily experiences (These ones keep my work fresh and completely original)

f.) Going around with friends (These develop dialogue, especially since I write young-adult stories)

g.) Just stopping once in a while to block out the rest of the world and to really listen to yourself

h.) Inspirational quotes and stuff (Man, this is starting to sound like a freaking diary...T_T...)

i.) Family (My dad's acting as my editor but he gets pushy with my stories sometimes. But they support me all the way)

j.) That girl I like (Dad, if you're reading this, IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK!! He...he...he...)

j.) God, Jesus, and the Bible (I am a guy who loves evidence and proof, but like that one movie says: I believe science can't answer all the really interesting questions...)

Kojab8890's Tips to being a Fanfic Author (These are for continuation-fics only. I'm biased in my writing that way T_T...)

~o~

1.) Be Unique, bub!- One thing readers love about a story is originality. But in a world with so many stories to go around, it's hard to find originality even if it is a piece of fanfiction. That's because of something called stereotypes. An example of a stereotype is something like the "reluctant hero", the "conflicted love relationship", the "orphaned protagonist", the "Anti-hero", the "Ego-centric villain", and stuff like that. From my experience, there haven't been any original stereotypes in a while now and some people believe that they've all been exhausted. But originality can come in many forms. One may have an original way of writing or a unique kind of plot. It all depends on the way you set your story.

~o~

2.) The Style you Write with- Writing styles are fundamental when it comes to stories--not just fanfiction. A writing style is an author's "fingerprint" to his or her story, so to speak. From my experience, writing styles are better if they were created from backgrounds of other author writing styles. This way, you can build on it until it becomes unique. But there are some cases where people just start with a writing style without background (though I've never heard of such thing). For me, three authors helped me build my writing styles and they would be Eoin Colfer, James Patterson, and Michael Crichton. Writing on a daily basis also helps smoothen your style out.

~o~

3.) Making Practice Runs- Outlining a story really helps. I wasn't in the habit of doing it before, but story outlines can help identify plot-holes in stories. Outlining also helps authors think in advance and it allows the author to identify key points in a story plot. And lastly, story outlines make writing a story much more fluid and easy. Thus, an author prevents writer's block.

~o~

4.) Narration/Dialogue Balance- This is a tip you don't have to really follow since it depends on a writer's style. When I write, I prefer to see a balance between narration and dialogue. But from my experience, readers tend to read more on dialogue. This is because, apparently, people like hearing the characters speak compared to the author. It makes the whole thing seem more real. But narration allows the reader to see what the characters in the story do not see. A third-person point of view may see the enemy on the other side of the corner while the character does not. Narration also allows description. This is the only way a reader can "see" a written world.

~o~

5.) Write from Experience and Imagination- An author who knows exactly what his character is going through because of experience conveys the right feelings and descriptions better than one who imagines the whole thing. But imagination goes where experience cannot. Imagination helps a lot since fanfics out there are mostly fantasy and science fiction.

~o~

6.) Crossing the lines- Like I said earlier, a canon story has a set of rules already assigned to the story world. This makes writing a story hard because fanfics do not belong in canon. But an author is allowed to speculate how things work and can build new stories from that. And since this is fanfiction, there are virtually no rules hindering a person from writing stories that go beyond the rules. But writing a story within the rules makes it appear more realistic too. It's just the challenge that makes it so daunting.

~o~

7.) Recieving Fan E-mail- I believe everyone knows there are two types of reviews: positive reviews and flames. As an author of a fanfic, first-hand experience to reviews is critical to writing a story. Positive reviews is what everyone is hungering for. In all of the author's efforts, positive reviews are our only kind of "profit". It makes nights of endless typing finally worth the time. Also, it makes you feel better inside too. Flames are the downsides. It feels really bad to open your inbox only to find one of those reviews telling you that you need improvement or that a part of the story shouldn't be there. Most of them are a blow to our writing ego.

Well, here's something every writer should know: You can't impress everyone. It's the truth. Also, there are times when reviewers often criticize a chapter but often forget that the story is based on "the bigger picture". Reviewers should know that it is not the singularity of a chapter they should review on, but of the entire story. It's the same way you do with a chaptered book. Criticize only after you've read the whole thing to prevent misunderstanding...

But flames are there for a more valuable purpose. The only way you're ever going to know that you're writing a good story is if people criticize you. That means that people are taking your story seriously. And flames allow you to improve.

So, there's a balance. While positive reviews keep you floating and makes you feel all good inside, flames keep you grounded and help you become a better writer.

And a good author accepts both.

(PS... This doesn't count non-constructive flames where people hate the story because they just want to... If I were you, remove them...)

~o~

8.) Dealing with the newcomers- Original characters or "OCs" are hard to take in whether you're reading or writing about them. Frankly, I wouldn't read a story with one in it. But if you read my own story, you would see that I've eaten my own words. Original characters are the stretch of a writer's imagination. It is best to make OCs that are more plot-effective than character-effective. Readers won't usually give OCs a chance because they're used to the old "gang" of characters. But if the OC is needed for the story to continue, then the character can be tolerated by the readers. (Of course, this is not always true. Other readers are more open-minded than most)

However, problems arise when an author creates an OC. If the character is underdeveloped, readers would comment that the character lacks substance and shouldn't have been placed in the story at all. They would most likely argue that a canon character would have done a better job compared to the OC. Thus, it is best to make the character as original as possible.

But if the reverse happens, if the OC is too developed and too seriously taken by the author, then the character becomes something equally despicable. Say hello to the Gary Stus and Mary Sues. (Trust me. I know about these very well) An OC given too much emphasis would make the story revolve around him or her. In the end, the character would become the author's "pet". Nobody likes to have one of those hanging around the original cast. (Remember: this only applies to continuation-fics)

~o~

9.) Take your sweet time- Although I'm not one to follow this tip, it is best to take ones time. It's your own story, your own life. The readers don't know how busy you are and if they pressure you, let them be. It's their way of saying, "Love your story so much that if you don't continue, I'll grill you!" By taking your time, you can prevent typos, create better plots, and develop characters more and more. But there's also a bad side. If it's taking you years, then your readers will probably fall back. Readers can only stay loyal to a story for so long.

~o~

10.) The Comparison Test- This goes for all forms of writing you may produce. I wish I had learned this tip sooner. Although the tip you are about to learn may be time consuming, it really helps you write better (Well, for me anyway). As soon as you are done making your story, compare it to the best story you've ever read. This allows you to see what you need to do to make the story better than what it once was. Revisions to the story will also be a good idea. But don't overdo it too. If you make it so much like the best story you've ever read, you might find out that the story is no longer your own.

~o~

11.) Experimentation-Finally, don't be afraid to place in different ideas into a continuation fic. Who knows? If presented right, a radical idea could be accepted by the readers. Rules may restrict you, but if you're sneaky enough, you can always find a loophole there somewhere.

o

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Now, I made these tips, not because I'm a good writer. Far from it. I made these tips because I've experienced mistakes whenever I wrote stories and no doubt, there'll be a thousand more that I have yet to learn from. Also, these tips are for you fanfic writers out there. I don't want Fanfiction.Net to be filled with stories that lack substance. I want it to be filled with great stories, so readers will have their time well spent on a site such as this. It may take an extra effort, but stories need effort. Also, I'm not forcing these ideas upon you, I'm just making suggestions.

People I would like to thank who have helped me and inspired me make better my stories

a.) AangKatara777- She's uplifted me many times. Thanks for the inspiration. I'm cheering for you too.

b.) gobier182- My number one critique. I can always count on this guy to bring me to my common sense. Call him a "devil's advocate" if you will. I'm grounded because of people like him

c.) Kestrel Faeran-A fan so dedicated that she plans to translate my story into French. Ha! Ha! Good on you! Here's a link to the French translation of the first chapter of "Avatar Book 4-Air": http://www.fanfiction.ws/s/4668230/1/Avatar_Livre_4_Air

d.) Koolchamp- One of the first people to give me a lengthy positive comment

e.) Smartalec93- the first reviewer of my story (that moment was historic, I can tell you)

f.) And all of my other reviewers who've helped me in all kinds of ways. (If I listed all of you, this profile would explode)

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