Fanfiction or Fake fiction?
Many times, I have been involved in friendly debates over whether fanfiction can be considered legitimate fiction or reading material. I think fanfic is great and absolutely love that I can hop between fandoms and read whatever I fancy because someone has already looked at my favourite characters and had the same thoughts. I love the community that comes with fanfic and knowing that whoever wrote the stories I am devouring is probably in the same place as I am, lying in bed on my phone or sitting at a laptop on a messy desk.
Despite being more likely to be reading fanfic than I am traditionally published reading material, I often find myself not referring to it as legitimate reading material. It’s not as if I don’t know that the amount of time and effort that goes into writing fanfiction is the same as writing any other type of fiction. I think for a long time, none of us have allowed ourselves to think about it as anything but a fun pastime or something a little silly because that’s what a lot of people around us have taught us to think. Fortunately, the attitudes towards fandom have been changing and a lot more creators are being more open about their passions and it’s great to see people openly proud about their work.
As someone who wants to one day traditionally publish some of my own fiction, I find myself thinking that fanfiction should be easier to write because some elements of the story, namely the characters, have already been created. So, when I struggle to write fanfiction, I find myself feeling like I am more of a failure because in my head all I have to do is write the plot rather than come up with all the nuances of the characters or the setting. Logically, I know it’s rubbish, coming up with a well-written story is just as hard when you borrow characters or create your own.
At the end of the day, I love fanfiction and I wish that more people recognised it as legitimate fiction and understand that it takes just as much effort. I, too, need to get over this ingrained notion that it’s easier than creating my own characters. However, more importantly, I really need to figure out how to restrain myself when it comes to fanfic because so many things in my life take three times as long as they should do due to me procrastinating through fanfic.
C🌙
