How did you get started writing fic?

[littlebutfierce]

For those of you who were scared to write fic, what made you finally do it? What got you over that hump? I ask both because I like hearing about how people overcome creative hurdles & because it might be useful or inspirational for other people who are still considering it.

Me? It was the fortuitous discovery, at around the same time, of 750 Words & the latest iteration of the Oofuri kink meme.

My partner & increasing numbers of friends were happy converts to 750 Words. I was pretty skeptical, but signed up & figured if it didn't do anything for me I would just stop. Given that I was having fic ideas for the first time in ages, though, it ended up being the right (virtual) place at the right time: ideas plus a private place to work them out (with no expectations of quality) plus letting myself have permission to try something new? Perfect!

Nowadays I seem to divide my daily quota of words for the site between fic and brain-dumping, but when I first started I made myself write fic every day, because it felt like the hardest & scariest thing to do. (I think that meant, in reality, something like 33 straight days of Oofuri ficlets. Ha! I try not to be discouraged by how few of them are even potentially revisable to see the light of day, because writing through the crap to get to the good stuff is a technique I know works. So I've got a high crap to good ratio, oh well!)

And the kink meme? Just what I needed: anonymous, with friendly commenters. One of my friends pointed out that in small fandoms, people were generally more appreciative of any fills. Which on the one hand made it less intimidating. On the other, it made me feel like I could be incredibly sucky & still get positive feedback because people were starving for any fic at all, especially for rare pairings. It's lovely to get praise! But better if you feel like it's not just because people are lowering their standards.

Anyway, I wrote my first fill for that meme one day while doing my 750 words. Later that week I revised it a bit, took a deep breath, double-checked that I changed the comment options so as not to post with my username, & put it up. If I got a tepid response (one that felt perfunctory) or none at all, I could always crawl under a rock & never write fic again. And no one would know it had been me, at least.

Pretty grim thoughts! But fortunately (or unfortunately, I suppose, depending on one's opinion of my writing), that didn't happen. I got a few very positive comments. Which felt like a miracle!

The anonymity of the meme made it a safe place to play until I felt all right attaching my username to things. Not that removing anonymity has to be a goal for anyone writing fic. For me, though, it's a sign that I'm becoming more comfortable doing something if I'm willing to admit publicly that I'm doing it. I've seen a few other people say, whether in the meme itself or elsewhere, that they hadn't written much fic before, or not in ages, or whatever, but that they thought they would try it. I'd guess that the same factors that kickstarted my writing also applied to them. Kink memes as newbie writer empowerment: I like it!

Are there other anonymous commentfic memes that aren't kink-related? Because I know not everyone wants to write smut, & particularly maybe not for their early forays into fic.

But yeah, in summary: sometimes anonymity can be a good thing! Nervous new fic writers-to-be might want to give it a shot.

Comments

[senmut]

I started in original fic set against the universes I roleplayed in. Basically, my then GF/future wife asked me to take up writing duties for my characters...and it exploded.

Fanfic? Other than borrowed characters, my fanfic dive came about eleven years later, because I needed an outlet for stories that weren't happening on-panel.

[littlebutfierce]

Ooh, I've had a few friends who started writing through RPing. Useful indeed!

I like the phrase "fanfic dive," heh.

[firecat]

I wrote my first public fanfic of more than a paragraph because I found a challenge that fit exactly what I was intrigued to write about, the crossover challenge "A Ficathon Walks Into a Bar." And the challenge was easygoing: If you don't finish it, no big deal.

I still need to write the second half of that fanfic...

[littlebutfierce]

Your fic is intriguing! I only have a v. basic familiarity w/ST canon, & it's been a long time since I watched B5, but I like it!

Also, yay for low-pressure challenges that tickle the creative bits of the brain in just the right way. We (er, the mods here) want to eventually compile (& keep updated) a list of challenges that feel low-pressure & welcoming to newbies.

Also, your comment just kind of made me want to squee in general. Because it's so exciting to just be starting out, even if it's scary, too, isn't it? YAY FOR US!

[firecat]

Thanks!

The list of challenges sounds like a fabulous idea!

*mutual squee*!

[sibyllevance]

It was a 30-minute challenge that did the trick for me. It's amazing what you can produce when pressed by time. The prompt (Wait, isn't he a Muggle?) was very original and allowed for sort of a crossover between the fandom it was written for (Harry Potter) and something else altogether (I ended up choosing Elvis Presley because I know his career well and I think I have a good idea of what he was like).

Today I finished my second fanfic, which is twice as long (almost 1,000 words) in a smaller fandom (Gilmore Girls, an American TV show) about a secondary character. This time I tried 750 words, actually, and ended up writing about half of it yesterday for 750 words. I wrote the second half today in Scrivener because I was so happy I'd managed to write the beginning of something.

I still have to practice dialog - in both pieces, there isn't much dialog going on, it's mostly narration, and I know it's not what I enjoy reading most.

[littlebutfierce]

And the Elvis fic was very cute! :) That's an awesome prompt too.

I am intrigued by these timed challenges--like I said in chat to you & Drae, I like the idea but the thought of posting it, or even just swapping it w/a friend doing the same thing, makes me shriek in terror. ;)

And congrats on your second fic! Hooray!!

I started toying around w/Scrivener (their 30-day trial: which I like, as it's 30 days of use, not 30 consecutive days) & it seems so useful.

[xpaperplanex]

It was a kink meme entry for me. I hated writing but started reading fanfic and wishing I could come up with ideas for my own (I wanted to be a participant). I saw a prompt and thought, "Hey, I can do that." Six very embarrassed posts later, I had a bunch of people wanting more and decided to continue. Eight months later, I'm still in shock at the response I've gotten.

[littlebutfierce]

All hail the kink memes! They are mighty for fic-generating indeed!

& yeah, there was definitely something for me where I wanted to play & have all the fun I saw fic writers around me having too.

(& I see from your journal you're new to DW: welcome!)

[xpaperplanex]

The anonymous aspect is also fantastic for getting over that initial fear!

Heh, yeah, I was feeling like one of those kids on the edge of the playground, who never quite makes it over to the swing set. I wanted to swing!

Yep, I came over in the flood from LJ. Thanks! I'm glad to be here.