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Author	Topic: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
_Derisa_Ollamhin_ Registered: Jul '00	Date Posted: 1/29/04 8:55am Subject: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction - Date Edited: 7/10/06 12:32pm (1 edits total) Edited By: Jedi_Daniel
	FanFiction For the New User Have you ever wondered what if Luke was turned to the Darkside by Vader, and together they overthrew the Emperor? Or... what if Qui-Gon lived, and trained Anakin himself? What about all those little moments in the movies or books that are just glossed over, and never really fully explored? How did Anakin propose to Padme? What happened when Wedge and the other Rogues met at the rendezvous point, only to find their leader, Luke Skywalker never turned up? Many of these questions, and a whole lot more, have been explored in the medium of fan fiction. Fan fiction, often called fanfic, is a universal phenomenon in speculative fiction these days. Practically every new show, book or movie that comes out triggers some ideas in the fans, and inevitably, some of them take to setting their thoughts or ideas down in the form of stories. Star Wars, being of such a mythic nature, has generated a large number of authors, and a larger number of stories: stories that have something for every taste, from romance to action and adventure, from Jedi vs. Sith to pilots in the NJO and beyond. Stories range in length from single posts (“vignette”) through to epic “novel” series, in the hundred thousand word range. The forums here that host these tales can be kind of confusing to the newcomer, so I’m here to act as your tour guide to Fan Fiction on the JC. Hope you enjoy the ride, and perhaps find something cool to read, and maybe even feel inspired to write and post some of your own ideas. I hope you find this guide helpful, and look for updates on a regular weekly basis. Please feel free to post your questions here: I’ll answer them as best I can as we go! Forums The first thing to be aware of is that there are four separate forums with stories on them, as well as a single forum for writing/reading related issues. The oldest of these forums is no longer open for new stories: this is the Classic FanFiction Forum. This was the original home for fanfiction here on the JC. It has all of the older stories, some of which are being reposted to the newer, “era” forums, and while no newer works can be posted in the Classic forum, the unlocked threads can still have feedback posted to them, as well as be updated by their authors. When the FanFiction forum got too busy, with many new stories, the decision was made to branch out into three separate forums, divided by era: Before the Saga, The Saga, and Beyond the Saga. (The Saga is defined as anything that would have taken place from the beginning of Episode I all the way through to the end of Episode VI: TPM to ROTJ.) Before the Saga is where you may find stories that take place before the start of the Prequels. From the Sith Wars mentioned in the novels and other resource material, to Obi-Wan’s training by Qui-Gon Jinn and their adventures as Master and Padawan: if it’s been written, it’ll be here. The Saga is the Forum for all the stories that would take place during the events of the movies, and would include most of the Alternate Universe stories about how things in the films might have turned out differently. This forum also carries stories that speculate on the events of Episode III. (The TF.N spoilers policy applies here, just like every other forum.) The Beyond the Saga Forum is for all those stories that take place after the events of all of the films, from Bakura to the NJO, and in some cases beyond even that. Have a look over these boards to see if any stories catch your eye. If you like the sound of one, click on the title and have a read through. Perhaps your questions will be answered! Feed Back One of the few rewards any of these authors reap is the reading of what their readers thought of their work. By all means, if you like what you are reading, post a reply to the thread, and let the author know what you are enjoying about their work! The writing of fan fiction is an odd and isolating activity, and most authors are quite sensitive about their creations, so we try to be as supportive of each other as we can in our feedback styles. If a story is not to your taste, or you disagree with a characterization or plot complication an author has chosen to write, don’t read that story, and look elsewhere on the forums: it’s very likely you’ll find something more to your tastes if you look a little further. Please do not post your criticism of that author’s work to their thread: it’s not a good way to make friends on the forums. Tune in Next Week... Next week, I’ll define some of the standard terms you are likely to read on the FanFic Forums, and explain what’s with all the “UP!”s. Then we’ll look at how to find stories that suit your particular tastes, and talk about some of the ways authors define their works, as well as touch on some of the ways to get started in fanfic. After that we’ll talk about the creative process, from concept through to posting your own stories here on the JC forums, including what is a beta-reader, and how you can find someone to help you with technical aspects of writing. From there we’ll have a tour of the Writer’s Resource Forum, and then explore the Fan Fiction Archive. I’ll try to post weekly, but I’ll answer any questions that have come up in the mean time as often as I can, so please, don’t hesitate to ask. You don’t have to be a new comer to the JC, either: there are a lot of users who are unaware of what fanfic is all about, and I’d be happy to be of assistance to anyone with questions. Derisa -----signature----- In memoriam: Talon Squad Leader . When you can't run anymore, you crawl and when you can't do that...well, you know the rest. . Clear skies, General. You will be missed.
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Morgaine Title: Ex-Manager Registered: Mar '01	Date Posted: 1/29/04 10:49am Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction - Date Edited: 1/29/04 10:58am (1 edits total) Edited By: Morgaine
	Great work, Derisa. Thanks for posting this.
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Skiara Title: • FFC RSA • WNU Manager Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 1/29/04 10:54am Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Very good work, Derisa! Maybe I should take a deeper look at FanFic. -----signature----- e-hermanita de pirry "I can't keep track of you WNU kids" (Inty) "It is better to expect nothing and let each moment surprise you." Obi-Wan
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Stridarious Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 1/29/04 3:33pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	[face_shocked] Whoa! Great work _Derisa_Ollamhin_! I better take this link and add it to the main "Adoption Info Pack" I send out along with Skiara's optional Adopters guidelines, as man this would help emmensely with any of those stranded Newbies up on into the forums and begin their training without any hassle, plus kinda helps those whom are training another user to know where to turn for advice or an explanation of one thing/item that they are having a hard time explaining . -----signature----- Padawan of the Lightside \|\| Adopter of docking_bay94
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_Derisa_Ollamhin_ Registered: Jul '00	Date Posted: 2/6/04 11:22am Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Morgaine, Skiara and Stridarious: thanks for the welcome, guys! Here’s hoping this thread is actually of use to newer users. And now for this week’s topics: the lingo of fan fiction, and “Up!”-ing story threads. Fanfic Jargon Like most other fan pursuits, the writing and reading of fan fiction has spawned its own vocabulary: words, phrases, and abbreviations that are used in reference to specific aspects of fan fiction. When looking for a story that matches your interests, a basic understanding of these terms can help you weed out material you are less likely to enjoy. As with most jargon, it isn’t that hard to get the hang of: the more you read, the more sense it makes. Here is a quick glossary of terms you may encounter on your initial forays into the forums. Many props to the posters of the first Fan Fiction FAQ for their work: I’ve followed their format and only expanded upon their original. General Terms These are standard bits of lingo specific to fan fiction, but often uniform across milieus, ie. a Buffy fan may employ a beta-reader and know what is meant by the term, just as well as a SW fan fic author on these boards. These terms are universal to fan fiction as a whole. beta-reader or beta – an editor or pre-reader of a story, before it is posted, who goes over it with an eye to spelling and grammar fixes, continuity, plot or characterization holes or conflicts, et cetera feedback- the posts readers add to story threads, to tell the authors what they thought of their work plot-bunny – fanfic plots or ideas repost- a story that is being reposted from the classic forum or another site to the appropriate JC era forum ’ship or ‘shippers – a specific relationship or pairing’s fandom: as in ”I’m a big Han/Leia ‘shipper.” update – a new post to an ongoing story Story Info These are terms you may see in the titles of story threads, which help define what type of story lies within. Use these to explore the type of story you think you might like. add-on or add-to-it – a multiauthor story still requesting new contributors angst – anguish, torment, fear, anxiety AU – alternate universe: a what-if story that changes one pivotal moment in the films or books and explores from there, for example, what if Leia was raised on Tatooine and Luke was a Prince of Alderaan? canon – drawing strictly on the events from the films and published novels. crossover or x-over – mixing Star Wars with another movie, tv series or book H/C –hurt/comfort, occasionally featuring a single character, as in Obi-torture – Obi-Wan gets hurt and comforted humor – lots of silliness OC- original character: a character created by the author of the story, as opposed to taken from the films or novels ]round robin or RR – multi-author story, occasionally inviting more people to join in songfic – a story based on the lyrics of a song squadfic – fighter squadron stories vignette – a very short scene or story: told entirely in one post Era Terms As I explained earlier, the fan fiction forums are broken up by era. When an author is posting their story and wants to narrow the era even further, they may include one of the following in the title: JA – a story taking place during and involving events from the Jedi Apprentice books about Obi-Wan's youth before TPM JQ – the same, except featuring events from the Jedi Quest books about Anakin Skywalker's youth before AotC inter-trilogy – a story that takes place between the two trilogies Purge – a story taking place during or referencing the Purges of the Jedi Order postulated in the novels. NJO – a story referencing events or taking place during one or more of the New Jedi Order books, 25 years post ANH Character / Pairing Abbreviations These shorthand terms are designed to quickly inform the first-time reader who are the main characters in a story. This is by no means a complete listing, it is merely to give you a taste of some of the stories out there. A/A or Ani/Ami – Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala A/T – Anakin Solo and Tahiri Veilla H/L – Han Solo and Leia Organa Handmaidens – a story involving one or more of Padme Amidala’s Handmaidens from the films J/J – Jaina Solo and Jagged Fel J/K – Jaina Solo and Kyp Durron L/M – Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade Obidala – AU pairing of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Padme Amidala Rogues/Wraiths – featuring some or all of the pilots of the two squadrons most written about in the novels, also Myn/Lara, Wes/Shalla, Fab Four, Lt. Kettch, et cetera. S/S – The Skywalker and Solo families What’s with all the “UP!”s? Good question! Well, as you may have noticed, when you post to a thread, it moves to the top of its forum (below any sticky topics, of course). The most visible stories are those on the first page of the forum, so it is a way of keeping the story in the public eye, as it were. It is effective, but doesn’t tell the author anything about what that poster liked about their work. To that end, simply posting an “Up!” onto a story is better than not posting at all, but detailed feedback is always more appreciated. If it has been a long while between posts, conversations regarding aspects of the story, or common ground of the fans may crop up. Most authors have no problem with their fans chatting while waiting for the next update, especially if they are talking about their story or characters or whatever. It is considered gauche for an author to “Up!” their own story, although it does happen. Posting replies to feedback is usually done at the start of a story post, or in a separate post, if there have been a lot of replies the author wants to respond to. That’s a nice way for authors to acknowledge and thank their readership. Well, that’s about all for now. Hope that was helpful! If you have any questions about what I’ve posted here so far, or about fan fiction as a whole, please post here or PM me, and I’ll endeavour to answer as best as I can. Tune in Next Week... Next week we’ll go over how to find stories that will captivate you, and start talking about the writing of fan fiction. Till then! Derisa -----signature----- In memoriam: Talon Squad Leader . When you can't run anymore, you crawl and when you can't do that...well, you know the rest. . Clear skies, General. You will be missed.
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Stridarious Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 2/6/04 2:29pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	[face_shocked] tunes his radio to the right station Whoa this is great, I just thought that was all the info and you surpise me with all of this! Whoa, thats all I can say...whoa... -----signature----- Padawan of the Lightside \|\| Adopter of docking_bay94
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Morgaine Title: Ex-Manager Registered: Mar '01	Date Posted: 2/7/04 12:19am Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction - Date Edited: 2/7/04 12:20am (1 edits total) Edited By: Morgaine
	I think you should read a little more closely next time, Strid. She did write "Tune in next week..." Again, very nice work, Derisa. Even I learned one or two new things here.
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Stridarious Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 2/7/04 8:47pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Morgaine: "I think you should read a little more closely next time, Strid. She did write "Tune in next week..." " I couldn't help it, I looked over that section . Thus why I suppose I should read it all before hand eh? -----signature----- Padawan of the Lightside \|\| Adopter of docking_bay94
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_Derisa_Ollamhin_ Registered: Jul '00	Date Posted: 2/13/04 2:55pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	I Love Fan Fiction! Welcome back one and all, to the Valentine’s edition of the Guide! Today we’re going to talk about how to find stories that appeal to you, and then discuss the start of the creative process that leads to works of fan fiction. Since the variety of stories is immense here on the JC, it can be a little overwhelming for a newcomer to a forum to find the kind of stories they might enjoy. There is no easy way around that: the first dip into a pool is always the one with the most trepidation behind it. The key thing to remember is that you are not bound by any law to finish reading any story you begin. If something about it doesn’t appeal to you, head back to the main page and select another thread to read. No one need ever know! Even bearing in mind that unspoken truth, some potential readers are just swamped by the sheer volume of stories available. For them, I have a couple of ideas. Finding Fics If you have a specific kind of story in mind, ie: romance, with Jedi original characters, or action, with Imperial pilot characters, you can post that request in the Fan Fic Recommendation Service thread like this one, at Victory Base, which is the first of them. I started the Service to help members of my local Fan Force find their way over to the Fan Fic forum. (If your local fan force doesn’t have one, I’d be happy to help set one up for them.) Conversely, you could post your request here, and I’ll show you all how the Service works. Basically, the requestor posts their desired story material here, I go looking, using several resources at my disposal, and post the links and a brief summary of the story here for the requestor to have a peek at. If you tell me which stories they liked of the ones I linked, I can narrow the search even more, customizing it closer to your specific tastes. Another really good way to get your feet wet reading fan fiction is to have a read through the forums’ Fan Fiction Newsletter. Story reviews make up a great deal of the copy, and if you like the way a story sounds, there’s a handy link right there to go and have a read through yourself. As all the stories have to pass through two reviewers, they do tend to be of a higher quality. Furthermore, links to all the previous issues of the Newsletter are easily available: if this method works for you, there’s quite a bit of good material to choose from there. Challenges, Fan Clubs, and Indexes: Great Sources Challenges, which run monthly on the Writer’s Resource Forum can be a good place to find an author whose style appeals to you. These are the Challenge threads to date: Blind Character, Word Awareness, Characterisation through Dialogue, Light, and End of the Empire. As well there are various character discussion and fan clubs, where oft-times challenges are posted, such as Obi-Wan: a character workshop, and Skywalker-Solo Revival Society. The Writer’s Resource Forum also features a number of indexes for stories featuring specific characters or formats. Examples include Jaina/Jag index, and Anakin/Padme story databank. All of these are really good places to get a sense of an author’s style and favourite subjects to explore. There are other places to find writers of stories you might enjoy. If you are a fan of a particular character from the Expanded Universe novels, you could visit their various fan club threads in the Expanded Universe Community forum. Quite often authors have posted links to their stories in the fan club threads for the characters they use: I know I have done this with my Myn Donos story. Even if they don’t have easily accessible links, they often do mention their stories there, and you could search their latests posts to find their story, if it sounds interesting to you. Lastly, there are the occasional seasonal contests sponsored by the Fan Fiction moderation team. There was a Spooky Stories one for Halloween, a juried story competition with required festive elements for the winter holidays, and this weekend, a Valentine’s Love Letter Challenge, this last featuring easy-to-find Era-specific anthologies to showcase all of the entries. I like this one story… How do I find more? If you read one of those threads and find an author whose style or ideas you like, you can follow the View Latest Posts link in their profile back, or their story links in their bio: many authors are now doing this as a way to make it easier for readers to find their stories. You may find they either have posted, or are following a similar actual full story themselves. That’s actually the secret to finding stories you will like: it’s less about the story and more about the author, and thereby, that author’s readers. If you like one author, it’s likely his regular readers are inclined to write similar material themselves: and you may find several possibilities with one click. If none of the above work for you, please feel free to post here or PM me and I’ll do everything I can to help you find the perfect story to while away some of your time here on the JC! Bitten by a Bunny So one day you were sipping some tea and watching a romantic film, seeing someone bending over a lady’s hand, and suddenly, you found yourself wondering, “What would have happened if Lando had managed to court Leia more successfully?” All of a sudden, you can’t get the image out of your head, the two of them are having conversations and lover’s spats, and making up afterwards, and then there’s a shoot-out duel with Han for Leia’s hand… The whole thing is crystal clear in your mind, and furthermore, it’s haunting you. You, my friend, have been bitten by a plot-bunny! Don’t worry, it is never fatal! In fact, it’s a really good sign: it means you may become a fan fiction author in your own right. Somewhere out there, a fan is wondering that exact same thing, but doesn’t have the courage or creative drive to start writing it down. The question is, do you? The first thing to do, is start. Remember Yoda’s advice: “Do, or do not: there is no try.” Well, that is especially true of writing. The only way stories get written is some author somewhere has an idea, puts pen to paper, (or fingers to keyboard) and starts to write. There’s nothing mystical about it: just start typing. “Lando bent over Leia’s hand, enjoying the smoothness of her skin against his palm: here was a truly remarkable woman, way too good for that old pirate, Han Solo…” At the start, let your idea have free rein: write down everything that comes to mind. It may be that some of it (or a lot of it) won’t fit that story, but it might fit a future one. There will always be time enough to edit the work, making it more suitable for public consumption. Creative ideas are valueless, but those ideas put to words on paper or a screen are priceless. So rule one is: Write everything down. Let me know if any of you try this, okay? PM me with your inspirations and efforts: I’d be happy to read whatever you have come up with! Tune in Next Week… Keep your eyes on this thread for the next update, when we’ll talk a lot more about the writing process, from treating that darn bunny bite, to plotting a story, and how to get your story into postable shape! We’ll talk about characterization, both OC and Canon, about dialogue, and about description, so if you have any questions, please post them soonest, and I’ll do my best to answer them. Also, the week after next, we may have a guest columnist here: a beta-reader of great skill and patience to answer your questions about the beta-reading and editing of stories. Thanks for reading along! Derisa -----signature----- In memoriam: Talon Squad Leader . When you can't run anymore, you crawl and when you can't do that...well, you know the rest. . Clear skies, General. You will be missed.
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Stridarious Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 2/13/04 5:32pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Looks good . Especially along with these great colours! -----signature----- Padawan of the Lightside \|\| Adopter of docking_bay94
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Katya_Jade Title: Administrator Emeritus Registered: Jan '02	Date Posted: 2/13/04 6:18pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Nicely done, Derisa. -----signature----- For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:17 Igor, would you give me a hand with the bags? Certainly, you take the blonde and I'll take the one in the turban.
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Eon-Wan-Mome_NT Registered: May '03	Date Posted: 2/21/04 8:51pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	I knew she had it in her! Great work Master! -----signature----- "Without Reflection, you will never be able to look into your own eyes" My Fanfic below: Simpsons Star Wars, Episode 1, The Fat Man Menace http://boards.theforce.net/The_Saga/b10476/18582548/?64 ]
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Sologirl Registered: Feb '04	Date Posted: 2/21/04 9:05pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	This is great! I am currently working on my first fanfic ever and have been reading the stories here for about a year. I just officially joined! I am quite nervous about posting my first fan fic so this feedback thread is a great resource for me! Thanks! -----signature----- Read my first fan fic ever!!! PLEASE READ! FINDING THE WAY HOME (Parents of Han Solo, H/L, L, C) http://boards.theforce.net/The_Saga/b10476/15149942/?0 " Life, love and the pursuit of happiness lies within a very good story...."
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Amidala_Skywalker Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jul '01	Date Posted: 2/28/04 4:59pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	I finally managed to make my way to this thread! Fabulous job, Derisa . You know I admire you for putting together this guide. Am -----signature----- Amsié, Crest of Handmaidens . ___ TF.N Archive Reviewer ___ Battlestar Galactica is the new way.
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Stridarious Registered: Nov '02	Date Posted: 2/28/04 7:17pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Yes, it has helped emmensely with Adoptions, I pray that more of these would be opened or allowed within this forum as so that Newbies get that better understanding of the termonology as well as the rules and ways things work of a forum before actually in fact posting there . -----signature----- Padawan of the Lightside \|\| Adopter of docking_bay94
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_Derisa_Ollamhin_ Registered: Jul '00	Date Posted: 3/4/04 8:55pm Subject: RE: A Newcomer's Guide to Fan Fiction
	Well, that was sort of the idea, Stridarious! It is my hope other forums will take the initiative now that they have seen what can be done, and a few regulars from each with start up their own thread here to introduce newcomers to the ins and outs of their favourite places to hang on the JC. Feel free to link any interested parties to this thread as a benchmark for ideas and suchlike, or send them my way via PM if they need any help or advice in writing this sort of a Guide thread. It's my pleasure to assist with this sort of thing! Katya, thanks for your help and support. I'll miss yours and Morgaine's careful, consistent and considerate moderation style. Padawan Eon, there you are! I have an assignment for you... if you aren't careful, you'll find yourself put to work! Sologirl: it's great to see an actual new user in this thread! I hope I can be of whatever assistance you require in the writing and posting of your story, and that it leads to many years of fun and friendship for you the way it did for me! Amidala: you have been instrumental in this thread, just so you know: your outspoken support of cross-pollination of the boards has inspired and encouraged me in my meagre efforts. Thank you! So, slan all, and sorry about the wait between posts: I've been busy with a variety of other issues, but I should have the next update ready to go for next Friday. I wish I could edit the thread title, to show when there is a new post from me in the subject line, just like we do over in the Fan Fiction forums. Just a quick note for now, though. The above method of replying to individual posters (and bolding their names) all in one reply has become more or less standard in the Fan Fiction story threads. It allows every reader to feel appreciated, as they are named and their comments replied to, which has the added benefit of encouraging detailed feedback on a story. The more and better the feedback, the more inspired the author is to write, so it's a wonderful upward spiral, and everybody wins! More to come! Derisa -----signature----- In memoriam: Talon Squad Leader . When you can't run anymore, you crawl and when you can't do that...well, you know the rest. . Clear skies, General. You will be missed.
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