Now that I'm in college, all my fics will have pretentious-cool titles. Get used to it.
I've been reading Naruto like crazy lately, and am planning to write shorts and drabbles for weird pairings.
Seriously, quit bugging me for sequels. I am so tired of it. I really would prefer some constructive criticisms or something like that. Please.
Some Advice for Aspiring Fanficcers
Some of these apply exclusively to anime shonen-ai fics, which is write I write, for the most part, though some, like #2, are universal. Follow these simple guidelines and you might just grow up to be a kickass writer like me.
1. DO NOT use the word "musing" or any variation thereof. Especially not in a title. It's overdone. It's boring. Stop it. If you must use it, limit yourself to once per fic.
2. Spell-check and correct your grammar. Just do it. It makes everyone happy.
3. DO NOT try to use Japanese in your anime fanfics. Seriously. We know thateven though you write inEnglish, they speak in Japanese.An occaisional 'ne' here and there is ok, as are name suffixes (-chan, -kun, etc.),but don't overdo it.
4. DO NOT pester writers for sequels when a story clearly has the words "one-shot" in the summary. One shot means one chapter only.That's why it's called a One-shot. If I wanted to write a sequel, I would have called it a two-shot.
5. Be original. Everyone does the "confession scenes" and there are certain premises that are used over and over and over again. Though they can be done very well, and confession scenes especially you should try to avoid them, unless you have some great twist to it. One very common example is "Character A gets sick and Character B has to help A get better. Romance ensues." It's overdone.
6. DO NOT attempt to add lots of Japanese cultural stuff into your fics. You will confuse readers who have no idea what you're talking about, and annoy those of us who have actually been there with your inaccuracies. Also, how much do you really know about the culture? Stuff you pick up from watching anime? You either look stupid or annoying. Try not to do this too much. However, keep in mind that it is sometimes ok and even necessary. See number 7...
7. DO NOT, if you are an anime fiction writer, attempt to apply Western culture to yourJapanese people, unless they are traveling to America. For example, your protagonist happensto be listening to your favorite song on the radio; or he goes to Target to buy something. It is very strange.Although Japan is becoming increasingly Westernized (your characters can actually hang out ata 7-11, those are actually very popular over there), don't assume that your favorite Death Cab for Cutie song is a massive hit there.
8. Quit trying to be clever with disclaimers. Just stick with the standard "I do not own these charaters" and be done with it. No more of this "Hisoka and Tsuzuki aren't mine, but I promise to put them back when I'm done with them. Oh how I wish to glomp them.", etc. It's annoying.
9. What the hell is up with these "Vote for which couple you want me to write in!" messages at the end? Are you really that indecisive? Or just fishing for comments? All of here at ff.net are insatiable comment-whores, but you don't need to try to be sneaky about it. And make up your own damn mind. A simple "Please review" will suffice.
10. Please stop the "Of _ and _" fic and chapter titles. You all know what I mean - "Of Devils and Candy bars", "Of Cherry-Blossoms and Bananas", etc. It's like using the word "musing" too much. Stop doing this altogether.
11. Pay attention to your English teacher. Do your English homework too. Not only will you become a better writer, your good grades will get you into college, where you can slack off and write fanfiction all the time.
12. Read books. I mean real books, not 50-chapter long fanfictions. Reading helps you learn to spell and use proper grammar. I may not remember what a prepositional phrase or an intransitive verb is, but I know what sounds right and what doesn't. It's good for you, I promise.
Don't even try to disagree with me. I'm rad and you know it.
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