Fandom School (4th period): How To Find The Best Fanfiction

Hello, and welcome again to Fandom School! If you read fanfiction (check out the page with my fanfics or my post about different types of fanfiction), chances are, you don't read just anything that comes your way. You skip over the awful ones, and if you start a fanfic only to find an appalling lack of grammar and abundance of Mary Sues (see Emily Ecrievane's post about fanfiction if you don't know what a Mary Sue is), you're out of there in a heartbeat. You want to read the awesome fanfic, not the awful stuff. But how do you tell which is which? There are a few things you can do before you even click the link to read a fanfic. This will serve as a guide to readers, but fanfic writers can also use this to make sure their fanfic will catch people's attention and get read.

1. Use the filters. This shows you only the fanfics that have your criteria. What you can filter depends on what website you're reading fanfiction on. AO3 allows you to filter these terms: any [general search terms], title, author, complete/incomplete, single-chapter/multi-chapter, word count, language, fandoms, rating, categories, characters, relationships, additional tags, hits, kudos, comments, and bookmarks. Fanfiction.net allows you to filter these terms: any [general search terms], regular/crossover, fandom, time range [update date/publish date], genre, rating, language, word count, complete/incomplete, and characters.


2. Read the title. A good title is an indication of a good fanfic. The more interesting and original the title, the more likely the fanfic is to be interesting and original. That being said, a good fanfic could have a bad title and vice versa. 


3. Read the summary. The point of a summary is to give you an idea of what the fic is like. A good summary will give the reader an understanding of the fanfic's plot without giving any spoilers. A good summary will also convince the reader of the author's competency. If a summary says "I suck at summaries" or "I don't know, just read it" or "yeah, that's about it", or anything like that, the reader will wonder if the fic is actually any good and will likely abandon it for a more promising one. Also, if the summary has any spelling or grammatical errors, there is very little chance that people will read it.


4. Look at the tags. At least on AO3, you can give your fic additional tags, which will help the reader understand what the fic is about. Sometimes, tags just reiterate what's in the summary, but sometimes they involve things not mentioned in the summary. And in some cases, they enhance the meaning. For example, if you see a fic that has the warning "Major Character Death", you might not want to read it, but if you see that it is also tagged "Canonical Character Death", that might change your mind. Tags might include trigger warnings for various things. They could also just provide amusing commentary on the story.


5. Read the warnings. On AO3, a story can have any or all of these warnings: Major Character Death, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, or Underage. An author can also say that no archive warnings apply or choose not to use archive warnings.


6. Read the ratings. There are a few rating systems, so here's a chart comparing the most common ones.
   

   MPAA	AO3	FF.net	Meaning
   G	G	K	Intended for general audience 5 years and older. Content should be free of any coarse language, violence, and adult themes.
   PG	n/a	K+	Suitable for more mature childen, 9 years and older, with minor action violence without serious injury. May contain mild coarse language. Should not contain any adult themes.
   PG-13	T	T	Suitable for teens, 13 years and older, with some violence, minor coarse language, and minor suggestive adult themes.
   R	M	M	Not suitable for children or teens below the age of 16 with non-explicit suggestive adult themes, references to some violence, or coarse language. Fiction M can contain adult language, themes and suggestions. Detailed descriptions of physical interaction of sexual or violent nature is considered Fiction MA.
   NC-17	E	MA	Content is only suitable for mature adults. May contain explicit language and adult themes.



7. Read the categories. AO3 has categories based on relationships: F/M, M/M, F/F, Multi (multiple types of relationships), Gen (no relationships, or they are not the main focus of the story), Other (e.g., threesomes). If you don't want to read slash, you can choose not to view M/M or F/F stories. If you don't want any relationships, you can choose Gen.


8. Read the pairings. Does it have a ship you like? One you hate? If you don't like the ships listed, you probably won't like the fanfic. However, if a fic lists your OTP, you will probably want to read that fic.


9. Look at the statistics. How many hits does the story have? Kudos/favorites? Comments/reviews? High numbers increase the likelihood that a fanfic is good. Low numbers may mean a fic is bad, but it could also just mean that it's undiscovered.


10. Read the comments/reviews. Warning: if you do this, you will probably get spoilers. However, you will get a good sense of if the people reading the fic like it or not. Positive reviews make a person more likely to read a fic; negative reviews may turn potential readers away. Also, does the the author respond to comments? If he/she does, that shows interest in the readers and indicates that the author cares about making a good product and ensuring that other like it, too.


11. Read the author's note(s). The notes an author has left may include useful information. For example, the author might warn that the fic will be updated sporadically. Or, they might say that the fic is abandoned. The notes might mention the author's stance on derivative works. They could include all sorts of information that the readers may want to know before reading the fic.


12. Pay attention to the author. Is it an author you know? If you see that a fic is by an author you know and love, you will be more likely to read it. Inversely, if you've read a terrible fic by a certain author, you won't want to read their other fics. Also, the author's name itself matters. Is it interesting? Relevant? If it is, you'll be more likely to read the fic. A boring or irrelevant pen name may turn readers off.


13. Read the first few sentences. Are you interested? Does it seem like a good fanfic? It doesn't have to start off spectacularly, but if you don't find yourself wanting to read more after the first few sentences, it probably isn't that great.

So, with that in mind, what should authors do to make sure their fanfiction gets read?

1. Come up with a good title. Before publishing your fanfic, think carefully about the title. If your work is incomplete, make sure you know enough of where it's going to pick an accurate title. Also, do a preliminary search to see if there are other fics with the same title. Try to pick a title that nobody else has used yet.


2. Write a good summary. Make sure it covers the main idea(s) of your fanfic, but doesn't give too much detail. Makes sure it's interesting enough to capture your readers' attention. It doesn't matter how good your fic is, if people are falling asleep reading your summary, they won't read your fic.


3. Be sure to add all applicable tags. It's all well and good if you write an amazing fic, but if people can't find it, they won't ever know. Also, see what tags come up when you start typing. Make sure to use the well-known tags instead of a variant name for the same thing.


4. Give your fanfic the appropriate warning(s). Fear of the unknown is strong. Don't choose not to use archive warnings; it will likely hurt more than it will help. Don't say no warnings apply if warnings do apply; people will get upset.


5. Give your fanfic the appropriate rating. Don't rate something lower than it really is; readers will be scandalized when they get more than they bargained for, and they won't want to read any more, nor will they read any of your other fanfics. Don't rate your fic too high, or people who would otherwise read it will shrink away in fear.


6. Choose the appropriate categories. Again, this is a way for someone to find your fic. It's also a way for someone to decide if the fic is for them.


7. Choose all relevant pairings. Right up front, let people know who's getting together with whom. This will help readers decide if your fic is for them.


8. Look at your statistics. What kind of stories get more hits, comments, and kudos? Write more of those. What kind of stories get fewer hits, fewer (or more negative) comments, and fewer kudos? Write fewer of those.


9. Write author's notes. If you have anything you feel like your readers should know that isn't included in the summary, warnings, or tags, then you should include it in an author's note.


10. Choose a good pen name. When I joined fanfiction.net, I made the mistake of signing in with my google account. Yes, it was convenient, but it gave me a pen name from an email address I made when I was 10 (or however old I was at the time) which is slightly embarrassing and completely irrelevant to the fandom world. When I joined AO3, I carefully considered my username, deciding on "vortexofdeduction" to match this blog, my tumblr, and my twitter (well technically, my twitter is @vortexdeduction because @vortexofdeduction is too long).


11. Maintain your integrity as an author. One bad fanfic listed under your name could stop others from reading anything else by you. On the other hand, if you become popular enough to gain a good reputation, more people will read your stories.


12. Write a good first few sentences. You have a short time to hook your readers in and make them want to continue. Don't waste it on pointless chatter or dull background. Start with something to shock or surprise your readers, something to fascinate them, something they will remember. Likewise, write a good last few sentences. You want to leave the reader with a good, lasting impression. Yes, the stuff in between matters, but the beginning and the end are the most important parts of your fanfic.