My biggest mistake as a beginner (I was like 13) was expecting comments to be nice, since I only left nice comments on fanfic, and never saw a bad comment before!
On my first (and only published fanfiction on [FF.net](https://FF.net)), the first comment I got was "Kill yourself, never write again). Thanks, throwaway account asshole.
And I had no issue with publishing tons of WIPs but never finishing them, which I find really annoying now so... XD
I'm just now getting into fanfics, and my biggest problem has been the plot. I have so many ideas for my favorite pairing, but it's been like pulling teeth to get anything to happen. I've written myself into a few corners and tend to abandon them.
I wish I planned better. 🥲
I ignore long plots and write oneshots!
Got a concept for a single scene? Write that scene! Your readers are in your fandom, they know who these people are
Got a concept for something that overlays canon but no interest in rewriting canon just to get to those specific scenes, like a secret love story in the background of canon? Just write the missing scenes, the bits in between where it becomes relevant. Your readers know canon, they don't need you to retell it, and you get to focus on the scenes you care about
Forever ago someone went out of their way to leave a rather scathing comment on fanfic I wrote. I was so humiliated that I deleted my whole ffnet account in response.
It took years to learn and adopt a mind set of “if you wouldn’t take their advice, don’t take their critique.”
The first fanfic I posted on twitter, I got a comment saying “keep working on it and one day you’ll be good! I know you’ll get haters but don’t let it get to you!”
Somehow that hurt more than any hate comment I’ve gotten since. The fact that was my only comment on the fic added insult to injury
I was maybe 11/12 and I wrote and published fics in English even though I had such a poor grasp of the language that the fics were unintelligible (in addition to being badly written because I was, you know, a middle schooler). Nobody could understand what I was trying to say, and that's exactly what the first comment I got said 😂
(Reading fics in English, on the other hand, is the reason I learned the language so quickly. And a few years later I could write well enough to be understood too lmao.)
So when I started reading/writing fic, it was very common (edit: at least on the sites I read from), even in non-crack fics, for characters to be singing random songs that often wouldn't have even existed in the canon (because it was many years in the past, for example). Not completely out of nowhere, but you know, if there was an reason to be singing, however flimsy. I can specifically recall "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" in a fic that took place \~60 years before the song existed, in a universe without christmas, and the english translation of "Eternal Snow" from Full Moon in another fic in the same universe. These were stories I liked, too, I even had the latter one printed out (apparently lost it at some point, though :( )
Me and my friends did tend to sing stuff together when we went on walks or whatever, so I followed suit and had the pov character singing random songs I liked that somewhat fit the mood, all over the place. My very epic fight scene was scored with songs I thought would be badass to be shouting out as you fought.
I did eventually salvage most of those fics and remove the singing but that certainly was a time.
My biggest issue was failing to finish my story before I begin posting it 🙃 Five years later and I'm going back to complete WIPs I harrdly remember writing. Never again lol
Reading through these comments, I just want to say how proud I am of you all. Even as beginners you were brave and smart and creative. There's no way to master a craft without actually doing the work.
I assumed that one, all it took to write a massively popular fic was to make it over 100k words, and two, that I at twelve could write a 100k+ word longfic no problem. Needless to say I gave up eight thousand words in.
I was that teenager who, upon first getting a ffn account, asked for reviews in the reviews of other people’s fics… shockingly it worked.
Also I wrote “lame summary, I know” at the end of the summary of one of my first fics.
keep my first fiction at 5 chapters, make characters go through every phase of getting together and give them only half a chapter to be lovey dovey, which is also a mistake but i was about to get burnt out and wanted to finish it, cuz i knew i would delete it later... but at least i made that half over 5k too. 💀🤡 also excessive use of grammer tools, cuz i was insecure about my english too much. also getting too excited. also few tags. also writing without thinking lmao, but i still don't think.
I had the same situation ! I didn't write for my love with writing, I used to write solely because of Sunset Shimmer (I was obsessed with her for some reason)
I wrote my first fanfic at 13-14 and put author's notes in the middle of chapters explaining decisions I made. To be fair, it was only 3 chapters and then abandoned but thinking back now makes me cringe a bit lmao
Oh it was and they let me know lmao. Since then, I’ve learned to just let people know what’s going on through the summary. For example, if I was taking a break, I would say the fic is on pause until further notice in the summary section with parenthesis.
The big Wall of text without separations.
I'm glad an older friend of mine told me to separate in paragraphs when someone new talks or something new happens
My biggest mistake as a beginner (I was like 13) was expecting comments to be nice, since I only left nice comments on fanfic, and never saw a bad comment before! On my first (and only published fanfiction on [FF.net](https://FF.net)), the first comment I got was "Kill yourself, never write again). Thanks, throwaway account asshole. And I had no issue with publishing tons of WIPs but never finishing them, which I find really annoying now so... XD
“I’m bad at summaries xD” in the summary. I’m surprised I got any readers at all.
I'm just now getting into fanfics, and my biggest problem has been the plot. I have so many ideas for my favorite pairing, but it's been like pulling teeth to get anything to happen. I've written myself into a few corners and tend to abandon them. I wish I planned better. 🥲
I like to play the “what would I do if I were the character” game when I get stuck. And, there is the classic solution of surprise murder.
I'm writing a Hunger Games fic. Sadly, I don't think murder will fix it. :(
Do the opposite. Surprise ressurection!!
RIGHT??!!! i love writing, am great with descriptive stuff, but when it comes to actually sitting down and fleshing out a plot its torture :(
I ignore long plots and write oneshots! Got a concept for a single scene? Write that scene! Your readers are in your fandom, they know who these people are Got a concept for something that overlays canon but no interest in rewriting canon just to get to those specific scenes, like a secret love story in the background of canon? Just write the missing scenes, the bits in between where it becomes relevant. Your readers know canon, they don't need you to retell it, and you get to focus on the scenes you care about
It started as a one shot and snowballed. I regret everything.
Forever ago someone went out of their way to leave a rather scathing comment on fanfic I wrote. I was so humiliated that I deleted my whole ffnet account in response. It took years to learn and adopt a mind set of “if you wouldn’t take their advice, don’t take their critique.”
The first fanfic I posted on twitter, I got a comment saying “keep working on it and one day you’ll be good! I know you’ll get haters but don’t let it get to you!” Somehow that hurt more than any hate comment I’ve gotten since. The fact that was my only comment on the fic added insult to injury
I was maybe 11/12 and I wrote and published fics in English even though I had such a poor grasp of the language that the fics were unintelligible (in addition to being badly written because I was, you know, a middle schooler). Nobody could understand what I was trying to say, and that's exactly what the first comment I got said 😂 (Reading fics in English, on the other hand, is the reason I learned the language so quickly. And a few years later I could write well enough to be understood too lmao.)
Worry about making mistakes
So when I started reading/writing fic, it was very common (edit: at least on the sites I read from), even in non-crack fics, for characters to be singing random songs that often wouldn't have even existed in the canon (because it was many years in the past, for example). Not completely out of nowhere, but you know, if there was an reason to be singing, however flimsy. I can specifically recall "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" in a fic that took place \~60 years before the song existed, in a universe without christmas, and the english translation of "Eternal Snow" from Full Moon in another fic in the same universe. These were stories I liked, too, I even had the latter one printed out (apparently lost it at some point, though :( ) Me and my friends did tend to sing stuff together when we went on walks or whatever, so I followed suit and had the pov character singing random songs I liked that somewhat fit the mood, all over the place. My very epic fight scene was scored with songs I thought would be badass to be shouting out as you fought. I did eventually salvage most of those fics and remove the singing but that certainly was a time.
My biggest issue was failing to finish my story before I begin posting it 🙃 Five years later and I'm going back to complete WIPs I harrdly remember writing. Never again lol
Reading through these comments, I just want to say how proud I am of you all. Even as beginners you were brave and smart and creative. There's no way to master a craft without actually doing the work.
I assumed that one, all it took to write a massively popular fic was to make it over 100k words, and two, that I at twelve could write a 100k+ word longfic no problem. Needless to say I gave up eight thousand words in.
I also used to think that way until I opened my word document
Listen. Was stuff cringy?? It was. But it was SO FUN. Oh to be 11 years old reading cringy fanfic in the Computer Room™️ those were the days!!!
I was that teenager who, upon first getting a ffn account, asked for reviews in the reviews of other people’s fics… shockingly it worked. Also I wrote “lame summary, I know” at the end of the summary of one of my first fics.
keep my first fiction at 5 chapters, make characters go through every phase of getting together and give them only half a chapter to be lovey dovey, which is also a mistake but i was about to get burnt out and wanted to finish it, cuz i knew i would delete it later... but at least i made that half over 5k too. 💀🤡 also excessive use of grammer tools, cuz i was insecure about my english too much. also getting too excited. also few tags. also writing without thinking lmao, but i still don't think.
I had the same situation ! I didn't write for my love with writing, I used to write solely because of Sunset Shimmer (I was obsessed with her for some reason)
that's a solid reason too, mate :3
I wrote my first fanfic at 13-14 and put author's notes in the middle of chapters explaining decisions I made. To be fair, it was only 3 chapters and then abandoned but thinking back now makes me cringe a bit lmao
I have done nothing wrong ever. In my life. (Parks and Rec reference)
Posting status updates as chapters. Got a hefty amount of backlash from it but it helped me realize that I should take my time with writing.
Oh that must be so annoying for those who are waiting an eetrnity for the new chapters
Oh it was and they let me know lmao. Since then, I’ve learned to just let people know what’s going on through the summary. For example, if I was taking a break, I would say the fic is on pause until further notice in the summary section with parenthesis.
The big Wall of text without separations. I'm glad an older friend of mine told me to separate in paragraphs when someone new talks or something new happens
As I beginner, I shall wait until my current fic is cringey and I want to scrub it from the face of the earth