A lot of people look down on Fan Fiction, especially those who do not understand completely what it is about. Some authors refuse to allow fan fictions of their stories to be published online, George R.R. Martin called it a bad practice. But is it? Is it bad practice? Or does is in fact strengthen hopeful writers and help build a base? And what does Fan Fiction do to the fandom? Does it strengthen the fandom or weaken it?
I will have to give my personal experience here to make a case. I started fiction writing with the fan fiction, and I see several benefits. First of all, you don't have to worry too much about world building and work on your styles; the world is already there, and you should have good understanding of it. You are likely to be more motivated since the subject is of your liking, which is a big plus. When I was writing fan fiction for Castlevania, I was only happy to write about the world I liked. Many of my chapters were never read, but I did not care because I was loving every second of it. If the new writer is unsure of how to make the world, fan fiction can be a good practice. Of course, there are several pitfalls with fan fictions. The most dangerous of all is that if you stay with fan fiction for too long, you will have hard time developing your own world. In addition to this, overuse of Mary Sue can create conflict within the fan community, and can lead to disastrous consequence. If certain "interpretation" gains popularity, the writer may become arrogant and stops improving him/herself. So my opinion is that fan fiction is a great way to start writing, but eventually you have to get out from it to be original writer. – idleric10 years ago
For those interested, please take note of the thesis posited within an article I wrote about, especially the final sub-heading: https://the-artifice.com/when-a-story-should-end/ – Matthew Sims10 years ago
