How to Write Fanfiction is a writing resource that contains tips and tricks on crafting fanfiction stories - by the community, for the community. This guide will serve as a helpful point of reference for fanfiction writers both old and new. We ultim...
There is a critical moment in the reading process of fanfic. No, it's not going to be the climax of the story. It's not the moment where the couple gets together or the football team wins the state championship. The critical moment of fanfic-when the connection is forged between author and reader-will always be those first few paragraphs.
As some of you fellow literary geeks out there might know, 'First Impressions' was the working title for 'Pride and Prejudice' before its publication. It's the age-old story of girl meets boy, girl harbors intense dislike for boy due to some unfortunate misconceptions, girl slowly realizes that the boy is wonderful and they fall in love and....you get where this is going. This might seem like a ridiculous tangent, and that's probably accurate, but the point is that depending on your copy, Elizabeth Bennet had upwards of 250 pages to fall in love with Fitzwilliam Darcy. Getting people to fall in love with your fic is a little different. You've just got that one first impression to make, and your story doesn't have the benefit of Colin Firth's jaw line or Matthew Macfadyen's baby blues working in its favor. So basically I'm here with a few tips to help your first chapter make that good first impression.
Step One: Judging a book by its cover.
I'm sure we're all familiar with the old adage 'don't judge a book by its cover'. It's a good sentiment to keep, but ultimately it's not that realistic. Wattpad has literally millions of stories to choose from, so what is going to make somebody click on yours as opposed to somebody else's? The view count, probably. The number of likes or comments. But another thing that can draw people towards your story is the cover. I ask you to consider another age old saying: 'a picture is worth a thousand words' (there's something to increase your word count right off the bat).
Now before I go on, I want to make it clear that there are plenty of phenomenal stories using those automated cover options provided by Wattpad. But people, much like magpies, are drawn to brightly colored and/or shiny objects. The cover is an opportunity to tell the reader a little something about your story before it has even begun. It's your story extending a hand to be taken before you and your reader go skipping off into the sunset. Or into a giant mess of feels, as it were.
Basically, the way I see it, is the cover of a story can serve as one indication of an author's level of commitment to their writing. If they are willing to invest the time and energy into finding that perfect photo or making that perfect edit, then it is more likely that they are heavily invested in the world they're creating. It's the very first way you can distinguish your story from all the others, so take advantage of that.
Step Two: Grammar.
By now we all know about the internet and grammar. Studies say that something like 32% of all YouTube comments are correcting other people's grammar (don't look up the statistics on that-life is easier when you trust me unquestioningly). And while that can incite a lot of eyeball rolling and frustration, it's an important thing to take into account while writing fics. The relationship between the internet and grammar is almost as strong as the relationship between the internet and cats (which needs a ship name, by the way), but it is definitely way more contentious.
Now, I'm not somebody who has any right to go lecturing people about grammar. I have made my fair share of mistakes from misspelling words like 'mushroom' (yes, it's possible) to the most obvious grammatical issues (my head knows the difference between 'their' and 'they're' but for some reason my fingers just don't). And editing is kind of my nightmare. I spend so much time staring at the words on my computer screen and thinking 'ugh, I just wrote you-why are you bothering me already?' But you bet your adorable keister that my first chapter is freaking perfect. Read it at least four times before you post it. Give the reader time to fall in love with your story, and then you can let yourself go a bit.
Just kidding. Always pay attention and edit your stories. But in truth those few first chapters are among the most vital you will write.
Finding a grammar issue in a story is kind of like tripping on a crack while walking down the sidewalk. Sure you don't face plant on the ground, but you stumble a bit and it interrupts the flow of your stride. If you trip enough times, you might get frustrated and sit down, whip out your phone, and start scrolling through Tumblr instead.
Again, it's all a matter of demonstrating your investment in a story. If you are really serious about what you're doing and want to create the best possible story, you will pay attention to grammar. Dot all the i's, cross all the t's, and make sure you punctuate! Consider each punctuation mark a tiny little mic drop.
Step Three: Blank Space *begins to quietly hum Taylor Swift*
This might sound incredibly strange, but sometimes what's not on the page can be just as important as what is on the page. The human brain can actually process text and images more easily if there is white space surrounding them. It allows for the more comprehensible exchange of ideas. Therefore, it is absolutely critical to have page/paragraph breaks. When I'm reading stories and I see one gigantic block of text, I immediately back out. Am I missing out on good writing? Probably. But I think the human brain needs some logical stopping points for the story to have the impact you want. So if you don't want to suffer the wrath of the 'back button', take the time to appropriately structure your paragraphs.
Basically, making sure that there's white space on the page is like punctuation on a larger scale. It's a tool that lets you know when an idea is concluded, so you can move on to the next topic or idea in your writing. If you have a story with no paragraph breaks, it's essentially like reading one giant run-on sentence. There might be a beginning and an end, but everything in the middle can get all jumbled and mixed up inside your head leaving you wondering what you just read. Making your story more readable is as simple as hitting the 'enter' key a few times.
Similarly, you don't want there to be too much white space on the page either. If I open up a story and see a bunch of one line 'paragraphs', then I'm pretty hesitant to embark on that adventure. If there's nothing but dialogue, then a lot more needs to be developed for it to be a fully fleshed out story. There needs to be a balance between dialogue and description.
All this might seem a little trivial, but when it comes to making first impressions, the aesthetics of the page itself can be crucial.
Remember, guys, the first chapter is always going to be the most important chapter of any story you write. More important than the one where your protagonist and their love interest finally kiss or where the Mighty Ducks finally win the big game. It is the chapter that convinces the reader to stick around long enough to get to all the other fun things you have planned, so treat it with care and consideration!
Final note: Cats and the internet. Caternet? Intercat? This is a serious issue that must be resolved.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Do you like to pay attention to the aesthetic of your story? As a reader, is aesthetic important to you?
