There are stories that you just can't let go. It strikes a chord in your soul. The character grows in your heart. And you simply want to add to the story in some way. So you do.
Congratulations, you just made fan fiction.
In its broadest definition, fan fiction encompasses all the writings made by fans from a beloved original work. These are made by fans for fans. These usually supplement the original in some way. Most of the time fan fiction is not authorized. The original author had nothing to do with it or barely heard about it. The vast majority of fan fiction are not professionally published.
However, if we go back in time we'll find that fan fiction or fanfics comprised a lot of our literature. Many great tales were taken from original sources and embellished through poetry or prose. There are many epic cycles supplementing the works of Homer for example. Every play by the Greek playwrights, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, etc. can be broadly defined as fanfics of the original tales. Ovid did not write original stories of Greco-Roman Gods. Shakespeare also got into the fun and decided to recreate his version of the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
From gods, other tales brought were rich sources of fan fiction. The tales of King Arthur is also a rich source of old time fanfics. Did you know that there are at least four continuations of Perceval by Chrtien de Troyes? In the Islamic world, many storytellers added continuations the stories of Sinbad or Aladdin and many others.
The 20th century saw fan retellings of Alice in Wonderland and Sherlock Holmes. Jane Austen also became a fanfic favorite together with Tolkien but it wasn't until the 1960's that the term came into its own and many more fans began to write about their favorite stories. Which fans brought this about? Trekkies. That's right, the fans of Star Trek decided to write about their favorite characters in a huge way. They boldly went where the original writers did not go before. It was due to star trek that fanfic only fanzines cropped up. But it wasn't until the internet that fan fiction became truly huge.
The birth of the greatest text-based communications medium of all was a profound event for everyone. But it had a greater effect on fans who found that they could communicate with their fellow fans everyday without the need of conventions or snail mail. This brought many fans together who shared opinions about their favorite stories and of course stories. It began with mailing -lists, then websites and then forums. Self-publication became the norm and searchable archives brought the stories together. Fanfiction.net is the biggest archive so far.
Some writers of fan fiction ascended into a real authorized writer of their favorite works. This can be done with the creators blessing for example, several Star Trek Books. Or the original work has lapsed into public domain and it is now fair game for any enterprising writer, like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith.
The worth of fanfics has been degraded by some while others consider it as a good starting place for aspiring writers. However, there is no denying that being able to create new stories for your favorite characters has enriched literature.
Congratulations, you just made fan fiction.
In its broadest definition, fan fiction encompasses all the writings made by fans from a beloved original work. These are made by fans for fans. These usually supplement the original in some way. Most of the time fan fiction is not authorized. The original author had nothing to do with it or barely heard about it. The vast majority of fan fiction are not professionally published.
However, if we go back in time we'll find that fan fiction or fanfics comprised a lot of our literature. Many great tales were taken from original sources and embellished through poetry or prose. There are many epic cycles supplementing the works of Homer for example. Every play by the Greek playwrights, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, etc. can be broadly defined as fanfics of the original tales. Ovid did not write original stories of Greco-Roman Gods. Shakespeare also got into the fun and decided to recreate his version of the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
From gods, other tales brought were rich sources of fan fiction. The tales of King Arthur is also a rich source of old time fanfics. Did you know that there are at least four continuations of Perceval by Chrtien de Troyes? In the Islamic world, many storytellers added continuations the stories of Sinbad or Aladdin and many others.
The 20th century saw fan retellings of Alice in Wonderland and Sherlock Holmes. Jane Austen also became a fanfic favorite together with Tolkien but it wasn't until the 1960's that the term came into its own and many more fans began to write about their favorite stories. Which fans brought this about? Trekkies. That's right, the fans of Star Trek decided to write about their favorite characters in a huge way. They boldly went where the original writers did not go before. It was due to star trek that fanfic only fanzines cropped up. But it wasn't until the internet that fan fiction became truly huge.
The birth of the greatest text-based communications medium of all was a profound event for everyone. But it had a greater effect on fans who found that they could communicate with their fellow fans everyday without the need of conventions or snail mail. This brought many fans together who shared opinions about their favorite stories and of course stories. It began with mailing -lists, then websites and then forums. Self-publication became the norm and searchable archives brought the stories together. Fanfiction.net is the biggest archive so far.
Some writers of fan fiction ascended into a real authorized writer of their favorite works. This can be done with the creators blessing for example, several Star Trek Books. Or the original work has lapsed into public domain and it is now fair game for any enterprising writer, like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith.
The worth of fanfics has been degraded by some while others consider it as a good starting place for aspiring writers. However, there is no denying that being able to create new stories for your favorite characters has enriched literature.
SHARE
