Poll: What is an acceptable length for a fanfiction chapter? Vote Now!

Concerning My Stories:

I believe I was eight or so when I first created this account and began writing. As you can clearly see, my writing has gone under stages of evolution since first posted and will continue to do so--as have my interests. However, I am now currently nineteen I wish to 'clean-up' my account somewhat since I don't necessarily believe in actually making a new one. So if you see any of my stories go 'bye-bye' as well as some of my favorite ones of the past--I deleted them. I apologize if you liked it, I'm honored that you did, though I hope you understand my reasons for doing so.

They do not truly represent my skills and style at the moment, please consider this.

My oldest stories to date would be:

Trouble in Townsville

Winter of Death

Flames of Darkness

Understand that while they are by no means horrible, I feel as though I have grown much since those stories and while I am leaving them up due to popularity, I would not recommend judging the rest of my material solely by those few.

---

Check Out My Deviantart!

http:///

---

ADVICE ON HOW I CREATE

1) Before I start a story, I try really think about it and ask whether or not I think I'd be capable of handling it accurately or be able to see it through till the end.

Be aware, this can often be misjudged. I have often began stories I thought I was passionate enough to finish, and shamefully ended up throwing in the towel once I realized my interest in the subject diminished enough to stop production altogether. While quitting is not ideal, I believe if an artist truly feels they can no longer produce the quality expected of them due to their lack of interest-it should be accepted. Yes, readers my get sad and upset, but it is YOUR story and no one else's. Only you can make that call to stop and if you do, readers will just have to deal with it and hopefully come to see your side of things.

2) Once I'm positive I've got the right idea I begin first by making a 'plotline' document where I take all my thoughts about how I want to portray the story and include the characters and important events while noting things like important emotions or thoughts the characters might have.

HINT: Start small, use basic sentences or bullets. It's incomplete and a very, VERY rough idea of the overall layout of the story just to guide you towards the right direction. It is also useful to jot down any pivotal moments in the series you plan to include. This is NOT 100% set in stone, it is merely a brief glimpse into your initial thoughts of your stories plotline-IT CAN CHANGE DRASTICALLY OR NOT AT ALL depending on how you feel.

For example, here's a sample of the one I used for my Deadman Wonderland story-Survival of the Fittest.

-Start off with Senji, Karako, Yosuga, Ganta, and the Wretched Egg's P.O.V. detailing what they are doing/how they feel now that they are out of Deadman Wonderland.

-Later include Minatsuki, Yoh, Chaplin, and Ganta's lifestyle.

-Detail what Yosuga and Ganta's school life is like.

-Detail how Karako and Senji are having trouble finding jobs.

-Detail how Mocingbird feels with the Wretched Egg. Have him question her about Ganta.

3) Note that you don't have to finish the 'plotline' before you begin the story, it is just a rough outline or guide to what you want the story to follow that you can always update whenever.

Heck, sometimes I just use the plotline for the first few chapters (just to get into the flow) and then never pick it back up. It's not a project or a thing that needs to be updated-just something quick to reference if you can not remember where you were going with the story.

4) Also, whenever considering a story it's important to really debate whether or not YOU will like it. I get that some people enjoy challenging themselves by writing things they typically do not, but I feel like a person should write for themselves first.

Bottom line: You lose interest, your story will decline. It's not unheard of to leave a story incomplete either. I've done it myself. It's all well and good if your readers like your story, but it you don't (I mean really dread it) then do not put yourself through that misery. One of the best thing about being an author is genuinely enjoying your work and product and if you don't then...

Another thing, the internet is GREAT. However, if a fanfic or some other priority causes issues for yourself in real life (job, education, etc) do not continue. Just take a break to get your life in order. Making real life sacrifices simply isn't worth it. Real life will affect you forever, the internet and other online priorities, will not.

Even if you decide to discontinue a story, you do not have to delete it from the internet. Leave it up for others to enjoy but if it's something that truly makes you cringe (say, earlier works that do not represent the quality of fiction you now write) you may want to consider dropping it. Readers may get upset for discontinuing, but they will get over it. If they truly loved your work, they should appreciate what you offered them in the first place and understand you reasons for discontinuing.

5) For me, I get inspired by various books, fanfictions, animes, and music. Whatever you do, try not to copy it, its called inspiration for a reason and should always be unique and have your own original twists.

No one likes a copycat. :(

6) Stuck? Sometimes listening to music or drawing inspiration for a certain mood helps. Trying to write a really angsty scene? Listen to sad music and/or look into angst fanart, etc.

I find the best thing to do is read some very well written fanfiction/book that portrays the kind of mood you want very, very well so you have an example of how that particular emotion/scenario could be written or played out. Learn from the masters, so to speak. Again, do not copy. Something to inspire you or give you an idea of how it should come across. Consider a proofread from a close friend or fellow fanfictioner you trust to give you honest, insightful feedback.

7) Once you begin to write the prologue, determine what type of person you want it in. For example, if it's going to have many characters I'd prefer it to be in third person where it uses 'her' and 'she' and includes many thoughts of many characters instead of using first person, which uses 'I' only includes the thoughts and feelings of one character at a time, because it would lead to having to switch point of views many times and could get confusing.

This is an entirely personal decision. I suggest going with whatever point of view you are strongest in or like working with. I tried a few different point of views before I decided third was the best for me-experiment, play with it, you may be surprised!

8) When I write, I like to use details and descriptions, because it gives the reader a clearer image, but it's important not to overuse it, otherwise they may get lost to the present event.

Again, a personal decision. No one can tell you how to write which is what makes it so great! Try different styles of writing with fewer details and then some with longer and see what fits you personally and then ask yourself which you'd think would be the most effective for the effect or overall portrayal of your story. If paragraphs with sentences between is your thing (which, by the way, is the technique I use!) then go for it! If you like dialogue/are really good at it-GO FOR IT!

9) Try not to get sidetracked. It's very common to want to create diversity in the story, and while it's good to have some relief from the plot, you want to relate it somehow to the plot otherwise the story drags on forever and gets rather dull.

In my younger days, I was very, very guilty of this. In a rush to just put anything out there in order to meet my weekly update-I'd carry on about things irrelevant to the plot or go into long, boring, and unnecessary monologues. It was all very unnecessarily dramatic and just plain forced and people can read that. Readers, especially those familiar with you and your work, can tell the differences between your hard work/quality and will see the moment a hasty lack of quality error is made. Bottom line: Take the time to put out your best work. I, and many other avid readers, will gladly wait for higher quality products than get continuous crap that frustrates us and causes interest to be lost. Also, remember real life=#1 priority!

10) Before posting something, always proofread it several times to check to see if it flows well and to ensure you're not accidentally switching the person and of course, spelling and grammar.

Humans are prone to mistakes-just the way it is. Unfortunately, so it spell check. It will not detect everything and it's up to you as an author to really scrutinize your work and polish it up the best you can. Of course, a mistake or two will always escape you-but those should be easily forgiven. If, for some reason, a reader points it out to you. Try not to see it as an insult (even if they might mean it as one)-simply thank them for pointing it out and fix it.

11) When portraying characters, try to put yourself in their position and think about how they would feel. Make sure your own feelings don't overpower your character's personality. For example, after Ganta was thrown out of DW with no one left to call friend, I figured he'd be very lonely, despite being unable to relate to his situation personally.

Note this rule, but again-take it with a grain of salt. Everyone will interpret a character and their actions/feelings differently and that is perfectly fine! In fact, it makes it better to read fanfictions by other authors portraying the same character, just to see how different they've interpreted them. Sometimes their interpretations will make you go 'wow, I never thought about them that way' and it really makes you see a new side to the character or improve the way you see them. Of course, the opposite can be true as well. Sometimes, readers will say your portrayal of a character is OOC or 'Out of Character'. That is entirely their opinion. Clearly they have interpreted that character differently or focus only on one aspect of the character's personality. Again, don't be upset even if they are rude about it. Their view merely clashes with yours and that is to be expected-not everyone will see your side of things in life as well as online. If you want, you can respond and justify your interpretation so you can maybe clear things up for them, but do not go overboard.

12) Make sure to save each chapter in some sort of folder on your computer or on fanfiction.

This is important for two reasons. First of all, if ever you take a long break from writing and come back to it and cannot remember where your characters are-you have the material saved so you can refresh yourself and not have to improve it from memory. Learned this one the hard way. It's important to advance your story logically. If that means re-reading the entire thing-then do it. Secondly, you have the files saved so you can continue to edit and improve upon it. If you are truly passionate about what your doing-you'll want those files someday. Over time, your skills will improve and your writing style may change. You may look at a piece you wrote when you first began and think 'Oh man, that was a good idea but I butchered it with my lack of skills'-then you can go and revamp it with your new and improved skills. Look at my own story Survival of the Fittest if you don't believe me. I began that story in 9/16/2012-nearly four years ago. And although that wasn't all that long ago in reality (feels like just yesterday) I've improved so much that I decided to revise the entire thing. And I don't regret a thing. Sure, it might mean more work-but if you are not satisfied with your efforts and cannot take pride in it, why have it there? Did I mention I wasn't even finished with it? Not even close. Writing is a long process and deserves time and effort. As long as you enjoy it though, you'll never feel as though it's a burden! :)

13) Don't worry about deadlines, if your reviewers get impatient, then so be it. You can't rush yourself into making a chapter that would be your best work, it's important to let the ideas come to you over time and think it through, no matter the time frame. But it's also important to finish what you started.

Again, I'm very guilty of this. Way back in Junior High, I used to update weekly and sometimes couldn't get to it until the day I swore I'd update. This would result in horrible rushed work that frankly made no sense in the story. Instead of advancing the plot, I'd go into unnecessary monologues about things that did not really matter at all in the story-making it forced, overdramatic, and overall bleh. It's not worth posting crap just to appease a schedule or your impatient readers-put out quality work, even if it takes far longer than intended. (I believe my record was seven months without an update...) And though that may seem like a ghastly long time, trust me, if you put time and effort into something and eventually update it-you and your readers will be ultimately more appreciative of it. Writer's block happens, it's just a fact. You can't force yourself out of it, so just deal with it. And always, always remember-put real life first!