emily_waters

Title: Slow News Day (Part Seventeen)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

Title: Slow News Day (Part Sixteen)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( XVI )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Fifteen)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

Title: Slow News Day (Part Fourteen)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( XIV )</div>

Title: Slow News Day (Part Thirteen)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( XIII )

I thought since I've spent some time writing a fanfiction guide over here, I'd post it here as well. I put it together, but had several people contribute ideas.

oooo

I've been thinking about posting something like this for a while and since I've been writing more, I've really been thinking about the subject a lot. And that subject is:

Editing your fanfiction.

I'm going to try really hard for this not to come off as preachy or bossy because I really just want everyone to be able to write wonderful stories to the best of their abilities and in doing so, the quality of writing at the fanfic archive will improve. These are meant to be helpful suggestions and this thread is meant to promote discussion about fanfiction: both Saula fanfiction and the idea of fan created stories as a whole.

Here's what I've noticed about a lot of the Saula fanfiction on the web: The story ideas are brilliant, but the execution often makes the stories difficult to read. Misspellings and grammar and punctuation errors are often what drives a reader away. Here is my list of suggestions on how to avoid doing that:

1. Spellcheck - I know, it seems lame and obvious, but it's the first line of defense in polishing a story. The grammar check feature can be useful too. Sometimes you can see a sentence differently and reword it to be better. Sometimes you laugh and click ignore because Word doesn't know what the hell it's talking about. Either way, you take a second look at the sentence and that's a good thing. This includes spelling the character's names correctly: Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Kara DioGuardi. There's also other characters such as Ryan Seacrest, Paula's sister Wendy, her friends Jimmy and Daniel, etc...

2. Read your story out loud - sometimes spellcheck misses errors because the word is spelled correctly but the usage is wrong. Reading it outloud will help you catch the times you write 'form' instead of 'from' and 'Paul' instead of 'Paula'. My mac has a voice reading feature where it will read text out loud which is nice if you write epic sagas like I do.

3. Get a Beta Reader - I can't stress this enough, you guys. Nothing will help your story like having another pair of eyes to help you edit. The Saula fic archive also helpfully lists the authors who are also willing to beta on their profiles. Win win! Finding a good beta can be tricky. Try asking someone you trust as well as someone who will tell your their real opinion as opposed to just what you want to hear. In the world of beta readers, you want a Simon, not a Randy. This is especially helpful if English is not your first language. Not being a native speaker shouldn't stop you from writing - in fact, it's a good way to improve your skills. Finding a beta who is good with English grammar and usage is a good plan.

4. Format - decide which format is the best way to express your ideas. Most fanfiction is written in fictional, short story format. Some longer stories are more novel like with chapter breaks to help manage the lengths. Both are totally valid. These look like most of the stories you see on the archive. Here's an example:

“You thought I would come in and tell you that you were awful?” he asks.
“That is a fairly accurate description of your day job, Simon,” she says.
“For nobodies,” he snorts. “We both know you can sell albums; it’d be stupid of me to tell you that you can’t.”

Quotation marks and dialog tags help you spot this style easily. If you open a novel, this is the formatting that you will see.

Another way to format your story is in the screenplay format. The same chunk of story would look more like this:

Simon: You thought I would come in and tell you that you were awful?
Paula: That is a fairly accurate description of your day job, Simon.
Simon snorts.
Simon: For nobodies. We both know you can sell albums; it’d be stupid of me to tell you that you can’t.

This can be an interesting formatting choice if done well, but the flow of the story is often the first casualty. Instead of getting lost in the story, I find myself feeling like I'm reading a stage play. It's hard to insert a lot of details into a screenplay, and details are what make a story great!

5. Full words - there is a time and a place for texting language and shorthand, but your fanfiction isn't one of them.

6. Chapter length - Fanfiction is an investment of time, for both the writer and the reader. It takes time to write something and time to read it. Putting time into your work will encourage people to put time into reading it. Having chapters that are longer show that you are invested in your work. It's disappointing to open a new fanfic and only get one or two paragraphs and it's also to move the story along that way. It's better to write a (1/1) or have longer chapter lengths.

7. Title, Headings, and Summaries - This is not a place to cut corners. The title, heading, and summary of your fanfiction is the very first thing your readers see. It's your hook, so to speak. If you can't be bothered to come up with something other than 'untitled' then why should we, as a reader, be bothered to read it? The heading is the part that tells the reader who the author is, which characters will be involved, and the rating. Please rate your story carefully. There are a lot of underage readers on the interwebz. I'm not their mom, and I can't tell them what they may or may not read, but having the proper rating is really important so the reader knows what to expect.

The summary is, perhaps, the most important thing for your story. It tends to be the deciding factor of whether or not a reader is going to click through to your work. Something that says, "Oh, I don't know, read and see" is not very intriguing. Summaries should be short, no more than 2 or 3 sentences at most. I know for the Saula Fanfic site, the left hand side bar cuts the summary off pretty quick, so it is to your benefit as the writer to keep it pithy. Summaries can give the reader an idea of your basic plot as well as the quality of writing they can expect. Sometimes this is the most difficult part - coming up with a good summary. Sometimes I use the first sentence of my story. Sometimes less is more. For instance: "Paula and Simon go on vacation together." Basic and to the point. But try not to be too vague. "Paula and Simon fall in love." Well, yeah. Duh. For the last 8 years. But what makes this story unique?

8. First time writers - Don't be scared! We all had to start somewhere! (May you never find the X-Files fanfiction I wrote when I was 13, if you know what I mean..) Fanfic is a great way to help you learn new skills in writing, reading, and grammar. It's also a fun way to be creative and share your ideas with your friends. The best thing a first time writer can do is do their research. Research doesn't seem fun (well, I think it is, but that's just me...) but it's really important to learning your characters. Would you write a fanfic for a show you've never seen or for characters you know nothing about? Probably not. Research will make your characters more well-rounded, your plot more believable, and readers happy. Paula grew up in the valley, so reading in a fanfic that she was born in San Francisco in 1972 is just going to be frustrating for most readers.

If you, dear writer, are thinking about writing your first fanfiction, it's perfectly acceptable to ask a pro for help. Do you have a favorite author? Drop them a e-mail asking for some advice. In turn, seasoned authors: help a newbie out. I always try to answer any questions, especially if someone takes the time to e-mail me privately instead of just leaving a review. The thing is, you don't know what kind of writer you are going to be until you try, so give it a shot.

9. A/U: This stands for Alternate Universe. Above, I mention Paula being born in S.F. in 1972. She wasn't, but in another world, maybe she was. A/U fics are completely acceptable, as long (and this is important, so read carefully) as long as they stay TRUE TO THEIR CHARACTER. Putting Paula in another place and time is one thing, but she still needs to be Paula. If she doesn't dance, doesn't sing, doesn't create, and has totally different family members, then why is she still Paula Abdul? It's not Simon if he isn't British and snarky.

10. Reviews - Reviews are great. Everyone loves reviews. But, I'm going to admit something. I don't write fanfic for reviews. I write fanfic because I love to write and I love the characters and I love the world that they live in. If fanfiction is the meat and potatoes then reviews are the hot, tasty gravy on top. Writers post their work so that others can read it. But by reading it, the reader does not sign some iron clad contract saying they're going to leave you a review. Readers leave reviews because they want to and that's their choice. Is it great? Yes. Is it mandatory? Unfortunately, no. Begging for reviews is not really very classy. Asking for reviews is fine and everyone does it, but by saying something like "I'll only write more if I get X amount of reviews every chapter" shows your readers that you're writing for feedback, not because you enjoy creating art.

11. Mary Sues - What are Mary Sues? Mary Sue is a character in a fanfiction that is really just the author. It's like an author saying, "Wow, I wonder what it would be like if I got to hang out with the judges or if I were a contestant on Idol and got to see Saula up close every night?" To you that sounds really exciting to think about and read about. To not you (which would be everyone else in the world) it seems silly and indulgent. Basing characters on people you really know or even yourself isn't necessarily a bad thing, but most fanfictions don't need extra characters that you make up, especially ensemble shows like Idol. We have a ton of characters to play with already. Ryan, the judges, the contestants, Idol staff, family and friends... making up new ones probably isn't needed, especially if it's just you living out your Idol fantasy.

If you actually do get on Idol, however, then write away.  We want to hear all about it.

These are some things that help me when I'm writing. I hope everyone will add to this thread their own tricks of the trade they use to make a story great! Then we can have an awesome list that will help everyone out if they're stuck!

Title: Slow News Day (Part Eleven)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: NC-17
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.
Authors Note: PLEASE note the rating change.

( XI )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Ten)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: R
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( X )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Nine)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: R
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

Title: Slow News Day (Part Seven)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: R
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( VII )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Six)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: R
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.
Author's Note: Please take note of the rating change.

( VI )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Five)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( V. )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Four)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

Title: Slow News Day (Part Three)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( III. )

Title: Slow News Day (Part Two)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( II. )

Title: Slow News Day (Part One)
Author: emily_waters 
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: PG-13
Summary: You can never depend on a slow news day.

( I. )

Title: Stars That Shine (Part One)
Author: emily_waters
Fandom: American Idol (Paula & Simon)
Rating: R
Summary: Two sides to every coin, after all.
Author's Note: Thank You to hello12344 who reminded me that I should keep writing.

All italicized lyrics are from the awesome band The Weepies. Download everything they've ever produced immediately. It'll change your life.

( Stars That Shine )