Fanfiction Discussion & Inspiration

[sevenpuddings]

I have a somewhat odd, rather biased topic for discussion.

Do J&M fans mainly come on here to read J&M fics? And do M&L fans come on here mainly to read M&L fics? And so on and so forth... what attracts you to a fic? Is it the pairing, the length of the fic, the style of writing, or the author? Or something I haven't mentioned. Also do you read fics and don't review? If so, why is that?

I myself, know that I generally cannot stomach most fics. I like a healthy amount of fluff and angst, and feel that any JM fics won't have this. In saying that, I know that if given the shot, I could enjoy any number of JM fics because I know some of the authors write really well. So maybe I'm biased against JM themselves, which is wrong of me because I'm always about the fan fictions and people manipulating the character to make them their own... so technically the characters shouldn't turn me off a fic.

I'm rambling now. I'll go back to the original topic, of what draws me to a fic.

Pairings are important... as I rambled about above, but soon in the future I may broaden that. I'm fussy about style... I think. I fix things in my head as I'm reading, even when I re-read my own stories, and I think it has to have a certain flow which I enjoy. The length does not bother me, as I'm open to read anything from 100 words to 100000 words, as long as its got a good enough quality.

Just so everyone knows, I'm being very general about fan fics now, not just the ones on this board, but the ones I've read over the years.

Anyone else have any opinions about the topic?

[Home and Away Always!!!]

Well I myself am a massive J&M and M&L fan, so I'll try any stories of them that people have written, but I do read other stories without those couples. There's nothing to say that they are not as good, because that is simply not true!! Any story can be good, it doesn't have to be a Jack and Martha or Matilda and Lucas story. As long as people like it, they will read it.

[aejdude]

Well i comment in every fic i read, because i think that's the right thing to do. About what draws me to the fic, it usually is the idea behind the fic although sometimes if i see an author who has wrote a new fic and i had just finished reading their old one then i will go on and read their new one because i know it will probably be just as good as their old one.

The pairings, in my opinion doesn't affect which i read then again saying that i do like the basis of the fic to have a good plot, i.e with This is me, but who am i? you have the four friends living their normal lives yet the fic is writen from one person's point of view but it isn't just another fic about these four friends it has added drama to it which i like.

[Drew]

I think it's pretty simple when it comes to choosing which fics to read. I don't read the J&M ones for obvious reasons and I don't read other fics if I don't like the authors style of writting. The fics that I just enjoy are the ones that keep you coming back for more, great stories, great twists and so on.

[emmasi]

I don't read many fics, mostly because I'm busy writing my own. That's not to say I don't like other peoples, because the ones I have read have been really good

I don't usually go for pairings, as such. If the title sounds interesting, I'll give it a look. If I then like the characters that are involved, I'll keep reading. Style is important to me also, but that's not to say that everything has to be perfect. I just need to feel like there's been some obvious effort put in to get a good story across, and then I'm happy to see where it goes

Most fics are broken into bite-sized chapters, so length isn't that much of an issue if you read it in portions, but I'll admit that jumping into a 8 page fic for the first time can be daunting.

Speaking of, who wants to read "After the Crash..." (note the avatar) ?

[-Annie-]

Hmm...good question Jess.

Well, I read particular fics for different reasons. You see, I have my favourite authors and whenever I see a new fic of theirs, I read it, regardless if the pairing is J/M or Alf and Colleen ...I simply like their style and quality of writing.

I always try reading any new fics posted, and give an honest opinion. I am a J/M fan, but there are plenty of JM fics that are better than others...so if I see a new JM fic posted, I DO NOT just jump on over to read it...I might take a look if I'm bored, but basically I go for the style of writing over the characters.

I think the quality of the writing is most important. The only reason we have such things as ML fans or JM fans, is because of their fictional chemisty on-screen. So, basically for readers to enjoy a fic with their fave characters, the writing needs to protray that chemistry...OR have some sort of other great writing style, storyline etc.

So basically, I suppose I am drawn to a fic by the author.

[I love music]

Unfortunately, I don't have time to read all the fics on this site so I mostly only read about characters that I know. And, as I rarely watch H&A now, that rules out Jack/Martha and Matilda/Lucas fics - tho I did click on "Angels Just Live in Heaven" because it had so many hits and I was curious about that. And I read on because it had a good beginning...

A fic, even if it's about characters I DO know, like, say, Kane or Jesse, has to grab my attention in the first paragraph or I don't read any more. I would try out a fic by an author who's work I've read and liked, even if it was about characters I didn't know tho - but, again, it would have to have a very strong beginning.

[Skykat]

This is a great topic for discussion.

I'm drawn to stories for a number of reasons. If it's an author who's work I've liked before then I'll always read it no matter who it's based on. The fanfiction challenge has been good too because you read pieces from different authors and if I like their style of writing on a one shot I'll take the time to read more of their work.

I'm also drawn to fics that have unusual pairings, something a bit different or have more than one thing going on. I particulary love stories with older characters in, having watched Home and Away from the beginning. I have no real preference on the style of stories, I'll read fluff, angst, drama, gore, anything really provided the style of writing's right and it draws me in.

I rarely read Jack/Martha or Matilda/Lucas Ric/Cassie just because I'm not the biggest fan of the characters and a lot of fics based on these characters are quite similar and have nothing new to offer. I'm not saying that's true of everyone because there are some fantastic stories on those characters that I do read and there's probably plenty more that I just don't take the time to read.

I always try and take the time to read and review stories written by people who read and review my stories because I think it's only fair.

I'll also try stories out if they're getting a really high number of views or if I see another writer who's work I really like is reading them. Any story that I continue going back to, I'll always post a review or a comment on because I like people to do the same when they read my stories and it's only fair.

[xGlowingAngelx]

I have a somewhat odd, rather biased topic for discussion.

Do J&M fans mainly come on here to read J&M fics? And do M&L fans come on here mainly to read M&L fics? And so on and so forth... what attracts you to a fic? Is it the pairing, the length of the fic, the style of writing, or the author? Or something I haven't mentioned. Also do you read fics and don't review? If so, why is that?

I myself, know that I generally cannot stomach most fics. I like a healthy amount of fluff and angst, and feel that any JM fics won't have this. In saying that, I know that if given the shot, I could enjoy any number of JM fics because I know some of the authors write really well. So maybe I'm biased against JM themselves, which is wrong of me because I'm always about the fan fictions and people manipulating the character to make them their own... so technically the characters shouldn't turn me off a fic.

I'm rambling now. I'll go back to the original topic, of what draws me to a fic.

Pairings are important... as I rambled about above, but soon in the future I may broaden that. I'm fussy about style... I think. I fix things in my head as I'm reading, even when I re-read my own stories, and I think it has to have a certain flow which I enjoy. The length does not bother me, as I'm open to read anything from 100 words to 100000 words, as long as its got a good enough quality.

Just so everyone knows, I'm being very general about fan fics now, not just the ones on this board, but the ones I've read over the years.

Anyone else have any opinions about the topic?

Firstly, I'll admit I do mainly read Jack and Martha fics, but I also try to read others. I love Jack and Martha, but I tend to find that most of there fics either involve them being all lovey dovey, some form of jelous ex, or them hating each other (I'm one of the people who wrte the lovey dovey ones.

I also agree that pairings are important. This is probably what attracts most readers, I also think you should experiment (I know you like Hessie for instance) because that way your exploring all alternatives.

Whilst I do love reading the lovey dovey fics, I've recently discovered my love for fics that aren't always lovey dover. Take, for example, Aarons 'Forever Trapped' I love it. It was so...what's the word? gripping. I read it because before he posted the chapters he gave a summary of what it would be about, so I knew if I would be interested.

I'm trying to write one that doesn't involve Jack and Martha (At least, not as the main characters) it's just....difficult for me.

OK, Now I'm rambling lol.

[Pierced Musie]

I don't read much fic these days. I read fics of other shows (and occassionally fics based on WWE wrestlers *whistles innocently*) but I don't come in this area of BTTB often.

There are things that do draw me to H&A fics though.

1. I tend to give fics a go if they include Noah or Kit. I will definitely give a story a go if it is Noah/Kit based. I feel it helps if you actually like the character(s). I also feel a good fic comes in the form of characters that are layered. Kit is a fascinating character to mess around with in fic because she has been through a lot and grown as a character. My favourite kind of Kit fics is based on her getting through life without Noah. As a side not, I find that the more layers they have the easier it is to get into the character.

2. The fic has to make sense. The occassional spelling mistake is fine and, as someone who struggles with comas and stuff a lot, things like that are fine. If I come across a fic that is riddled with spelling mistakes from the get go I just leave it be.

3. There has to be an actually storyline in the longer fics, with some twists. If the first few chapters don't lead to anything then there is no point in going on. There also has to be something interesting in one-shot fics. The only one-shot fics I can stomach when there is nothing but fluff is if it's also comedy. I will, on the other hand, read fics that deal with slash or feelings between two characters and it leads to an unusual pairing.

4. This one has turned out to be the biggest one for me. If I can picture the scene in my head and truly hear the characters saying the words then I'm on to a winner. When I first started writing I never got this but since last year, thanks to muses, this is one thing that has to happen. If I write something and I don't see and hear it in my head then I throw it away and create a new scenario. Anyone else get this?

5. I can't believe I almost forgot one thing. I love fics that don't fall back on relationships and romance. If a fic starts out with romance then that is fine but if it doesn't and that ends up become the core of the fic then I'm gone.

J&M fics don't do anything for me. Kirsty & Kane fics were my favourites at one point but when my interest in them died a horrible death, I stopped liking. It did get to me that the only fics on ff.net at one time were KK fics. The whole reason I started writing H&A fics is because I couldn't find any good Noah/Kit fics or slash fics.

Edited to add #5