Fan fictions are any stories written by normal people, who are fans, about either a real life person, a cartoon, a book, or even a video game.
These stories take the real characters and use them in their stories as they would wish to. For example, if one would write a harry potter fan fiction, they would take harry potter characters and make their own plot line. Like Lord Voldermort surviving the battle, or Dumbledore and Snape still living!
There are about 3 million fan fictions written on Archive Of Our Own and about 800k fan fictions on fanfiction.net are about Harry Potter alone! Fanfiction.net had registered 2.2 million users in 2010 itself! The most popular fandoms on which fan fictions are written are on Harry potter, Twilight, Sherlock, One Direction, Naruto, Marvel Universe, etc.
Fan fictions can be read on websites like archive of our own, livejournal, fanfiction.net, wattpad, tumblr and many more websites.
Why are fan fictions becoming popular?
There are many reasons that fan fictions have become immensely popular over the last decade.
1. Understanding
There is a level of understanding that exists in each fandom. The fandom members know what to.expect from a book and could be writing stories on similar ideas. These ideas are what connects these writers are readers who have never even seen each others faces in reality but become really close friends through the internet.
2. Didn’t like the actual outcome
Many fanfics were written because the fans didn’t really agree with the direction the movie or book had taken. For example till this day many potterheads believe that Harry and Hermione would have been better off together and hence there are many fanfics written with them being together. Some fan fictions on actual people like Justin Bieber or One direction make much more sense than what image the media portrays them to be.
3. Plot Universe
Universe in a fandom means the setting in which the whole plot takes place. These universes are called AUs means Alternate Universe. Example: A guardians of the Galaxy AU will take place in a galaxy or A Marvel’s Universe AU will take place in Marvel’s universe. Death Note AU would involve a character getting the power to kill people with a book! Many people who want to write original plot lines but want to have a setting in one of these universes, also write fan fictions. Other verses could be A/B/O verse which have alpha beta omega dynamics like werewolves have. This universe is the most popular in all time.
4. Characterisation
Usually in a new movie, anime or novel, the writer has to set up a character which is a really complicated process. However in a fan fiction, you can use a existing character, like Temperance Brennan from Bones or Tony Stark from Iron Man, and use them in the story and build a plot around their personalities.
5. Personal Inspiration
Most people write fan fictions from personal experiences or inspiration. This makes them relate close to such a plot line. Other readers who have had similar experiences would also love to read such fan fictions and become more closer to their fandoms.
6. Writing Experience
Fan fictions give a good writing experience to new authors. They have help from.already existing characters and can hence find their own writing style with ease. Intact many fan fictions have become so popular that they are approached by publishing companies!
7. Genres
There are many genres in the fan fiction world which are enjoyed by many across the globe yet many novels are not on them. These wide range of genres are really indulging for the reader and writer. What is more is that in a fan fiction, the writer can change the genre as per their moods.
8. Doesn’t cost a penny!
Fan fictions are pieces of true literature and yet they don’t cost anything! Most of the novels and books and TV shows cost a lot while fabrications don’t cost anything at all. Unless of course the author decides to take the fan fiction down and publish it as a piece of original art.
Fan fictions are taking over the world. Their isn’t only a big crowd of readers but also a very big crowds of writers. Fan fictions are still written in various languages and it’s reach is far wide.
One of the Twilight fan fictions had become really popular and is now known as the book and movie “fifty shades of grey” written by E L James.
Fan fictions provide a great start to writing careers and also a good hobby to be expressive.
