You're a professional fanfiction engineer, and you've been commissioned to put together a fanfic that will receive the highest amount of views and reviews possible, while maintaining a certain level of quality.

What story elements do you include?

I'll start us off:

- Crossover with recently released, highly popular franchise
- Harry has multiple possible romantic partners, but the fic refuses to commit to any one of them, dragging out the UST.

 

You mean Hunger Games.

You mean Harry bangs Jennifer Lawrence and her boyfriend from District 12.

-Harry, a natural leader, rallies the oppressed against the oppressors (no matter the franchise, in recent YA novels you can always find some poor sod in need of help).

And I have to ask, is there a point to writing something like this besides generating views and indirectly interest for the author's other stuff?

 

Normally I'd say slash, but since we're talking about keeping a level of quality...

I'd include these elements:

- Fem!Harry.
- Time Travel / Dimension Travel.
- Slytherin!Harry.
- Mentor!Dumbledore.

So basically Harry attempts to go back in time to his first year, but something goes wrong and he ends up in an alternate universe in which he was born a girl and sorted into Slytherin. He confides in Dumbledore, who decides to mentor the troubled dimension traveler.

Guaranteed reviews.

 

Just because we don't like something doesn't mean it can't be written with a certain level of quality. Notice, Xandrel, that it doesn't have to be "Taure writes cliches like a boss", it just needs to have a semblance of logic. So make it slash. As much as I dislike it, it can be done well.

Fangirls will squeal anyway.

 

Hmmmm, Just write about your scientific beliefs and intertwine them with the story. People will gobble it up.

 

It doesn't have to be, but it can.

Oh, snap!

 

I see what you did there.

 

Definitely include slash, or at least the possibility of slash occurring later.
You need to include Draco and Snape in sympathetic roles and give at least one of them a major role in the story. (This assumes we're talking about HP fanfiction. Otherwise just look up the popular characters for the fandom you want to write in and use them, even if you think they're assholes in canon.)
Use either Angst or Humor as your secondary genre. The former probably makes it more popular among the existing fanbase, but the latter could help attract people from outside the fandom.

Update frequently. Rather than one 12k word chapter every month, release a 3k chapter every week. Preferably twice a week. This might be one of the more important points.

A really good scene (or short arc) early on that grabs people and causes them to recommend the story to their friends. You really want a lot of people reading in that phase of frequent updates so that you'll get multiple reviews per person.

Frequent cliffhangers and mysteries, that only get resolved later, might get the review count going, along with hints to different ships to get those wars started.

 

Oh, I just thought of another big one: frequent author's notes which make various controversial arguments about canon, forcing people who disagree to leave reviews.

 

If reviews and buzz were what I was after, I'd do the following:

• Ship it Harry/Hermione, but keep it slow to develop, low-key, and smart, not instantly lovey-dovey or soul-bondy. This pairing appeals to those new to the fandom, JKR endorses it every time she speaks publicly, and there's a dedicated, vocal following within the fandom and a hunger for quality among those forced to tolerate the likes of robst, old-crow, chem prof, Clell, Radaslab, etc. as their go-to H/Hr authors.
• Write lots of words, like 500k or more, broken into short chapters (3-5k words). Update weekly to keep the buzz going. Every several months, miss a week to make sure readers don't take you for granted.
• Smart dialogue, always.
• A credible set of enemies and a horrible set of circumstances for the heroes to overcome.
• Intrigue and foreshadowing. Hook readers early.
• Employ at least one novel idea or setting that lends the story its unique voice. (See DM's Firebird Trilogy as an example of how an idea can carry an otherwise flawed story.)
• Apply professional-quality polish to the prose.
• Keep bashing to a minimum, especially of canon characters. Even Draco and Ron have their fans and you don't want to alienate potential readers.
• Use carefully scripted arcs that tie the story together. Don't put in any natural breaks where a reader might be tempted to put it down.
• Put Easter eggs in that can be discovered upon rereading.
• Avoid raping one of the protags. (See Dagger and Rose.)
• Start story threads on sites like DLP, reddit, Spacebattles, etc. to promote the story. As an author, drop in very occasionally and participate in these discussions sparingly, always watching your image and staying above the fray. Consider using sock puppets to steer discussion in the directions that benefit the story's popularity the most.
• Keep a forum for the story on fanfiction.net where all WoG comments will go. This is the fuel for discussions on other sites.
• Cross-post the story as widely as possible: fanfiction.net, AO3, Portkey, Patronuscharm, etc. Once you have 50k or so words and have built some momentum, contact the moderators of the most popular C2s and ask to get the story listed there.
• Use nonjon's trick of ending chapters with a memorable scene or line. A clever takeaway is key to getting reviews. Occasional cliff-hangers are fine since you're updating weekly, but not every chapter.
• When you reach the conclusion of the story, leave open the option of a sequel and ask in an author's note whether readers would be open to one.
• Finally, go back in time and write the story when readers read on computers, not on tablets or smart phones from which leaving reviews is a pain.

 

Put in as many indy! and Twilight! tropes as you can.

The authorities were wrong!
They were manipulating us all along!
The're really, really dumb!
Dark! But not Evil!
That vaguely condescending lecturing towards canon, so that the reader feels superior.
Put in older tropes, like princess rescuing and destiny!

Endless training and romance arcs!

Looking over popular fiction again, it seems that changing stuff to much isn't mainstream. So it'd be smart to keep a certain framework around, even if I'm not a fan of that. No character death. But betrayal is great.

 

You just described HPMOR .

 

To within author douchbaggery, yeah. Say what you want about his story, he did a very good job of engineering a rabid fanbase.

Forgot an important one:

• Reply to every review. Readers are more inclined to leave reviews if they know they are being read and considered carefully.

 

^That. Making every reader think he close to you makes them always review more.

-Romance is a must. But don't focus on one, add at least other 3 credible LI, even if they are obviously not the ones who will get him.

-Foe Yay, always add a good looking villain that will do this.

-A powerful monstrous villain, that will probably just be evulz, but is a certified manace.

-An assholish enemy/adversary/character, that you just love to hate and will keep getting fucked over.

-Humour. Not every hour, but always add a likable comic relief like the Twins or Ron in some parts (he was the funniest bt far in HP). Extra points if he is a lovable rogue or a lovable coward that becomes cowardly lion.

-Angst. Not an amgfest, but readers seem to love characters wanking their shitty life and then getting things done while whining.

-Sexy time, not NC-17, but at least sexual innuendo.

-Vengeance. A personal vendetta is always fun to read and easy for the reader to indentify and experiment some sort of catharsis.

-Sarcasm in abundance. Pop culture references are a must for the quick witted characters.

-A shallow 'deep' morality, a pseudo-Ubersmensch personal morality, rejecting society's rules, black and white etc and makimg a personal moral system that is just wishful thinking and selfishness, and no consequences or going too deep with it. A grey morality is the best.

-Reject any estabilished, older people are more experienced 'but they do not get reality.'

 

"Please review" is not working, but asking question in the AN at the end of chapter is a great way to encourage reviews. Bonus points for one that is not utterly dumb and completely transparent way to generate reviews.

Also what was listed by Perspicacity plus responding to reviews.

 

Pay attention to your reviewers.

Let them know that their feedback/opinions/thoughts are appreciated. Don't use the word 'review', use synonyms.

Create a twitter account.

Don't be defensive when people criticize you, answer intelligently. Let your fans insult the critic. -That one is a classic-

Slash. As a background pairing that gets a few POVs once in a while. No need to get too explicit, in fact it's better if you don't -for both slashers and those who dislike it-

And what Pers said.

 

Give Harry a katana. People love that shit.

 

Poll reviewers on pairings, and get suggestions for plot from readers. Some readers really seem to get into stories without a planned plot that they can help with.

 

- drop the name of my story in any review I leave (and leave lots of reviews for other popular stories)

- ask authors of other popular stories, who favourited my story, to mention me on their author's page

- invite people to make fan art for my characters

- make forum for discussion where I, the author, recently post, ask questions, make polls (I wouldn't change my plot depending on the outcome, but maybe I'd let readers believe they have influence on my decision making)

- Keep my A/N short but personal to create a bond between the readers and me, make myself seem accessible to readers, no whining though

- In a way a fanfic with regular (weekly) updates is like a tv-series, so I'd try to recreate their strategy to keep viewers/readers interested.
1) Have an overarching storyline for the whole book/s: a slow developing love story, a hero/villain situation that gets close to being resolved a few times over the course of the story
2) If the story is very long, split it into different books and have a big finale at the end of each book, a subplot that is part of this one book and gets the hero one step closer to defeating the villain.
3) create smaller problems that are resolved after four to five chapters to keep the readers interested while they are waiting for the real finale


- Harry Potter = main character

- main pairing is het, side pairing is slash > something for everyone

- no explicitly described sex or gore, story rating should be T

- make Harry a person the readers want to be and can still identify with. A person with strengths (independent, a bit more powerful than the other students (but within reason), popular, funny, learns from mistakes) and weaknesses (a bit lazy, allows himself to be guided by emotions which leads to mistakes (readers sympathise with Harry), Harry depends on others from time to time, love problems, vulnerable at times)