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A thread for fanfic discussion. Recommend stories, talk about tropes, and post your own work!
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>>3 No.5237
>>5236I'm not a new writer and not ESL but I did try translating one of my own fics for the first time over on Pixiv and it was definitely a nerve wracking experience and I was checking for mistakes and obsessing over stats a ton. It has a super low fave-viewcount ratio, which still worries me, but it's also a super rarepair that literally no one but me has written except a small handful in reverse top/bottom order so I don't have much to compare it to.
I figure I probably did make many baka gaijin mistakes but I don't care because I want to represent my rarepair so I'll never take it down.
At least when I'm reading fic myself I have read plenty of dodgy translations but if I can follow the story and it's good then I couldn't give less of a shit, so don't worry. And if you're writing a rarepair or a rare trope combination then the people who really want to read that will click because they're starving. You can also go to Wattpad and remind yourself that plenty of native English speakers can't write for shit either.
No.5238
>>5236You're always gonna be your harshest critic. I still have moments where I'll just neg my writing ability super hard, and that hasn't changed despite having 10 fics on Ao3 atm. Best I can say is that what you're feeling is very much a double-edged sword. Like, it sucks because you're constantly slowing your writing down and overthinking and just overall being very negative but simultaneously it shows you're, on some level, super aware of what you're doing and want to create something of merit. You want to make sure a certain level of quality/care shines through and that's super respectable imo. Just don't be afraid to step back and accept that you do want to write it just for the fun of it, and you don't have to freak yourself out over any mistakes (especially since you can always edit down the line.) You can do it.
>English is my second languagelmao don't let that spook you at all, most EFL still screw up their/there.
No.5241
>>5240ITS BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No.5490
>>5487I'm familiar with 3/4 of these, thank you so much!! especially watchmen, yum
No.5513
>>5512What plagin do you use, nona?
No.5515
>>5512Nonna, do you use otp:true? Or are you alright with a low number of ships but draw the line at 3+?
No.5517
>>5515I have it set to 2 as the limit of relationships so it doesn't accidentally filter out stories with a background ship. Any more and the story either isn't worth reading because they're just throwing on tags or it's poly which I despise.
No.5520
>>5517To be fair, I would say that most fics with endless tags like that tend to be permawips so IME filtering to complete usually solves that problem for me, but if you are a wip reader it's definitely more of an issue. I have several rarepairs whose tags are nothing but harem fic with a ton of ships but they were written by the same people so I just muted those people.
>or it's poly which I despiseYou won't avoid this if it's properly-tagged poly, that is, a single A/B/C ship tag. Although I'm in a weird situation with this myself where I like threesome smutfic but 99% of the time not actual poly, however A/B/C could apply to both unless the author has also tagged Polyamory.
No.5521
>>5520>You won't avoid this if it's properly-tagged poly, that is, a single A/B/C ship tag.You would think this, but more often than not I see something tagged A/B/C, A/B, A/C, B/C and it's the worst thing. That screenshot above is my filter capturing an entire page of foursome stories when trying to find a single pairing.
No.5528
>>5520>Although I'm in a weird situation with this myself where I like threesome smutfic but 99% of the time not actual polyExactly me
I'm sure someone out there in the world has written a poly fic that wasn't extremely cringy, but I won't bother seeking it out
Meanwhile threesome fics can have the drama of semes that hate each other but both wanna fuck the uke, or my guilty pleasure of cloned ukes/semes
No.5802
I can't tell if I'm just a prude, or just have a different life experience, but I feel like a lot of fics treat sex way too casually. Like often the characters will fuck first and then sort out feelings later. Not talking about PWP fics or even fics with the framework of a one-night stand turning into much more, but just in a plot focused fic the characters will fuck before an "I love you" or declaration of feelings is even uttered and it's so alien to me.
Anyway came across the first fandom where just no fics appeal to me at all, The Boys, so I guess I have to write something. Now I understand the pain of just not being able to find something no matter how hard you look.
No.5803
>>5802>I feel like a lot of fics treat sex way too casuallyThey need to carve their initial into each other before the first kiss
No.5804
>>5528>I'm sure someone out there in the world has written a poly fic that wasn't extremely cringy, but I won't bother seeking it outSame. Poly takes all of the fun out of it.
No.5806
>>5804I think it's an issue as well, of the kind of authors who like poly also being the kind of authors who hate conflict and can't write tension. The sort of people who write boring coffeeshop AUs and all.
Romantic tension is interesting, but when it get resolved with 'we simply are poly and don't get jealous', then the entire thing becomes lifeless and dull.
No.5858
>>5486Hot damn nonna, how much fandoms are you involved in, that you don't even care what ends up suggested?
>>5802I kind of get it, but the emotional turmoil (even ambiguity) makes it more entertaining tbh. That with a mix of "I tend to give fics writers leeway, since they aren't professionnals". For example, I wrote one nsfw fic where I just couldn't find it in myself to have the characters confront their feelings. It will sound like a massive reach, but I kind of went the miyazaki way, kek. As in, it all lies in subtext.
But again, I do get you. I often come accross mushy fics that have most of it spelled out, which makes for a portrayal balancing between being cringe and endearing which I also enjoy. But maybe it depends on the fic, you tell, nonna!
No.6033
Why do some authors write their fics in all lowercase? Do they think it makes them look cool and nonchalant? If so then how come they still adhere to the rules of grammar and punctuation? That seems plenty chalant to me. I just don't get it.
No.6034
>>6033it's just a style anon, like some ee cummings shit
No.6036
>>6033Most people who write, are not good at it.
A lot of them are high schoolers, even more are in middle school pretending to be older. Every bad writing trend you see is from someone else who made it look cool and everyone decided to copy it.
Like (A/N: LMAO) various annoying trends from the 00's that writers on FFN thought their story needed.
Disclaimer: Author does not own the characters in this fanfic. plzzzz don't sue her >_<
No.6038
>>6036Aw I miss disclaimers like that. They’re so nostalgic. Although I’m pretty sure the reason they’re not used as often is because ao3 protects the authors from litigation unlike ffn or livejournal so authors stopped using it as much. I still see it in older fandoms from older authors.
No.6040
>>6033It's called "lapselock" and yeah it's silly.
No.6042
>>6036I'm having flashbacks to 2007 nona.
Or when authors would argue with the characters in the author notes. I've been on the hunt for some older fics recently and was amazed at the quality of stuff where the author then got into a fight with Inuyasha in the afterword.
Not to be an old hag about about it, but the average fic quality has dipped drastically in the past five or so years, worse than Mary Sue fics on quizilla, even.
No.6043
>>6033Writing on phones is also way more popular than it used to be, and people often don't bother to leave on autocaps.
>>6042I think it has a lot to do with the kinds of things people read now. I wrote my best fic when I was binging high-quality books, and I find my skills wane if I stop exercising my brain with them. Short-form content is the go-to for a lot of younger writers today, and a much higher percentage of fandom doesn't really explore past YA romance when reading.
No.6044
>>6043I make so many stupid typos typing posts here on my phone I can't imagine writing an entire fanfic on one.
No.6045
>>6033There's this social media thing where if you don't type all lowercase you're somehow a big scary elitist, but if you do type all lowercase you're friendly and approachable and nothing to worry about. I think this mindset got spread into kids' fics, so they can say "it's not that deep lol" if someone dislikes their writing. That or they copypasted what they wrote in Discord straight onto Ao3.
>>6043… I didn't realize you could turn the autocaps off. I'm always trying to get CAPS to turn off when typing case sensitive things and take time fixing it.
>>6044I'm afraid I'm guilty of it for all my recent fics, because my brain only ever figures out what it wants to say when I've gotten into bed for the night and should be sleeping. Suddenly 2000 words in one go. I'm an arthritic fuck though so the light touch of a touchscreen keyboard is easier on my hands than a physical keyboard or pen, ever since I got a smart phone I've been writing emails and notes that way so I'm well practiced.
No.6046
>>6044lol, I did it a lot when I first started out after a long period of not writing any (I was
>>6038 young fanfiction.net writer who did those A/N and little character skits). I still do it since my eyes have gotten worse and can't focus as well om larger screen, but now I alternate between the laptop and phone. I find laptops are better if it's for a long fic since I can do fancy stuff like making headings and chapter lists, but not so much for shorter stuff. I tend to mess up regardless on laptop or phone, so it's not such an impediment on my decision to write on what device
No.6047
>>6045>I think this mindset got spread into kids' fics, so they can say "it's not that deep lol" if someone dislikes their writingmaybe it's fandom dependent, but most lapslock fic i've seen is actually very Try Hard and fake deep, so i'm shocked by the number of replies saying it's anything but kids trying out edgy styles as if they're in a creative writing course lmao. i hate this gen of fandom kids as much as anyone, but lapslock fic has always been a thing, even back on LJ.
No.6048
>>6045>my brain only ever figures out what it wants to say when I've gotten into bed for the nightI do this all the time. Literally finished a whole chapter right at midnight instead of sleeping. I still have to edit it and proofread before posting though. But I like using my phone to write especially because when I’m bored at work I’ll get some inspiration and write a little during downtime.
No.6049
>>6044I mean you could just pop it into google docs afterword to check for grammar mistakes right before you post it. it’s just more convenient on a phone ngl
No.6050
>>6047This is my experience too. Always the most pretentious purple prose that feels at complete odds with the Dave Strider style lapslock. Big reason why I cringe at so much modern poetry.
No.6053
>>6049Nah, I just genuinely hate typing on my phone and it takes me forever on top of the mistakes. I guess I just don't have dexterous fingers.
My late night fanfics will always be done via laptop.
No.6057
>>6033Going off the same vein as this, I think fic writers who respond like autistic, illiterate spazzes are deplorable. Not the ones who do this and are bad writers. That honestly makes sense, but the ones who actually write well and sometimes on the more literature side and comment with "kk thx for the coment! u made my day!1!" It's not quirky or eccentric - it's cringe and suspect as hell
No.6157
I love crackfics so much. I wish they were more common, my fandoms are severely lacking in them. Maybe I'll try my hand at one…
No.6158
I wish I could share my fics since I don't have any [fandom online] friends, but they are genuinely so cringe and bad. I know I'll feel self conscious about justified criticism too. It's hard because I know how cringe it is to to other people but I'm also very into the smutfic too.
No.6159
>>6158You could try the thread on here. I was posting for a bit but was the only one sharing fics so I stopped because I figured no one else was interested and I was just bothering people.
It'd be cool if we could get a writing thing going again so beginning writers can get feedback
No.6161
>>6158I faced the same type of embarassement for a while, only to push it aside the second I learned I could post anonymously on ao3.
My nsfw tends to come out cringe, so I went for just that when I wrote once
the smut for my niche otp ain't gonna write itself and tossed it over to the fc collection to see what happens. By no means am I a pro, but as someone who doesn't express with words very well, this is good practice.
Beeing anonymous really helps, because the readers can't link you to your sfw account, and so you have even less pressure to answer comments. They can just sit there until you muster the courage to read them.
On that note, if you don't mind me asking, what fandom are you in?
>>6160Could you be the person I'm looking for, nonnie? As I mentioned above, nsfw isn't my strong suit, so a second opinion would be welcome.
No.6164
>>6161>Could you be the person I'm looking forOf course nonna! I've read all the fc collection fics, which one is yours? I'm just an amateur writer who does this for fun but I'd love to help to the best of my abilities. ♥
No.6166
>>6165Anon this was such a warm and cozy read! You're really good at getting that atmosphere across with words. I have to admit I haven't watched Inazuma Eleven but I grew up watching Captain Tsubasa so I definitely get the appeal of these sort of characters.
Smut isn't really my strong suit either but when it comes to reading it in other people's fics I find that I enjoy it more when the writer takes the time to really flesh out the sex scene and describe the characters' thoughts and sensations in detail. I understand that your fic is a oneshot for an anonymous collection and its length is appropriate for that, but maybe the sex scene could have had more room to stew and ripen, if that makes sense. I also really enjoy when characters talk to each other during sex rather than just going through the motions in silence, and I really appreciate that you had that in your writing as well. Too many writers just make their characters say generic porn dialogue that's painfully out of character, but you seemed to write them in character (I assume based on what the characters look like lol).
If there was one thing I'd change about your fic though, it would be to limit the use of epithets for the character names. It does get a bit distracting sometimes if used too much.
Anyway, take everything I just said with a massive grain of salt because I am by no means an expert on writing. I hope I didn't overstep any boundaries with my feedback, and I hope to continue seeing your writing here ♥
No.6272
>>6166Omg, nonna, ilysm for this. Thank you so much for your feedback! There were a couple things I couldn't put my finger on, so this helps alot.
You're right, it does feel like I flew over describing additionnal details which could have made the sex scene more apt for stewing and riping, as you put it (fitting choice of words btw). And yeah, the name dropping does feel repetitive too, I guess I was too paranoid about my readers getting lost with who's talking or whose sort of pov it is. So, I'll definitly come back to revisit this one!
Otherwise, I'm happy to see you enjoyed it. ♥♥
No.6274
>the tags: platonic relationships, father-son relationship, father figures, good dad, platonicccc did i mention PLATONIC
>tagged with both the platonic & and the romantic /
?
No.6275
>>6274I’m guessing it’s newfags who don’t understand the ao3 tagging system.