I really would like to start my own HP fanfic because there are alot of good fic's out there and i want to see if i can possibly write a somewhat decent one.. The question i have is this, what exactly goes into writing a story because ive never done it before and the closest ive come is writing an open mic with a bit of dialogue imbedded in it.. please can i get some tips?

 

First, you need a plot-bunny.

Then, write a general chapter-by-chapter outline. Select one main course and a few subplots. DON'T overdo it - plan the story to be 20-40,000 words long and it will then grow on it's own once you start writing it.

Go through your outline scene by scene. Start small. For descriptions use simple sentances. For dialogue, use lifelike sentances - imagine yourself speaking with someone.

Write in past simple, like that everything happened in some unindentifiable past time. Write from the 3rd perspective (it's the easiest one).

In each scene you need one POV (Point Of View) character - for him, you also write thoughts (in italic, for example). Some people write thoughts of several characters in the same scene - that works too sometimes, but it's harder.

Write in Ms Word with spelling checker turned on. If it marks some HP-specific word (Apparation, Dumbledore, etc...), right-click on it and add it to the dictonary. Be mindful of letter case and general typing conventions.

That's all I can think of right now.

 

yes Out line is very important as well as how you plan on ending the story and make sure you remember what you right.If you have to read your own story just to keep things stright....ohhh I can't wait to see what you write

 

Well I'm sure that many people here write in different ways from each other but this is how I go about creating a story.

The number one thing I do before even typing the opening line to a fic is write a plot outline. If you don't have a plot you don't have a story. A simple plot outline can be a great help when it comes to writing the actual chapters. I then tend to write a more detailed plan and a timeline. What goes where? When do this happen? Where does this plot point need to be? That sort of thing. I find I suffer less from writers block when I know exactly what I need to write next.

Only once I have everything planned out do I start to write the actual chapters. Stray away from reintroducing characters, people in the fandom know the characters and if they don't their in the wrong place. Once I have what I think is a finished chapter I leave it for a few hours and do something else.

After giving my brain some time to rest I re-read the chapter again. I delete anything I don't think needs to be there, I type nothing else just delete. I do this twice before actually adding to the chapter and repeating the process until I think it is the best it can be.

I have a beta, and recommend one to anybody especially if it is your first story. Your spelling and grammar may be the best in the world but a beta can help with many different aspects. A site such as www.perfectimagination.co.uk is a great site for finding a decent beta reader that can help you with your weakest points, be it characterisation or plot building.

I'm sure over time you'll work out the way that works best for you. Just keep trying and you'll get there eventually.

There's some great sites out there that can help you with information about specific characters and places in the HP world. www.hp-lexicon.org is the most famous of these. Ask around if you want a different opinion on something, folks here are always willing to help another author.

Most of all have fun, enjoy yourself as you write and the whole process becomes a lot easier.

 

Agreed with most suggestions here.

Though I'll suggest that perhaps, first just think of a scene or cool idea you want and try writing a one-shot. Post it somewhere or don't. But give yourself a few days after it's done, then re-read it and see if you can identify areas of your story that worked or failed. Parts that were clear or not. A lot of people can't recognize their own failings, but it'll probably be worth it to see if you can.

Starting right off with a multi-chaptered story gets more difficult, as you could quickly realize things you do or don't do well and it's harder to adapt. I just think getting a first fic attempt completely done and open to criticism is more helpful than posting a few chapters, then going back, re-editing those, posting more etc... You tend to quickly grasp things and stories will seem to improve drastically or be a never-ending series of rewriting the early chapters. And frankly, a first effort is often more learning for the author than any other time.

And with one-shots you can see how long it takes you to write x many words, and you have no rules on how long or short it is. Trying to cover an entire school year and training and defeat of Voldie and the Death Eaters etc... is pretty imposing to start with. And it always seems people's first attempts at writing fics are their least original stories, as they have a tendency to write a 'greatest hits' of the ideas they like best in fics they've read, rather than a great many ideas of their own.

You also can't abandon a one-shot and be stuck with that ugly spot on your record when you're writing your massive masterpiece further down the road.

And definitely I'd recommend spelling the word story correctly.

 

Oopsies.. I hate spelling errors and I actually pride myself on my knowledge to actually spell things correctly.. thanks for all the responses guys


I had planned on writing a story where harry goes into training by himself in seclusion and all goes well until he attempts the animagus transformation, Somehow it will go wrong and harry will be stuck in some sort of hybrid form and his animagus form will be some sort of extremely violent chaotic magical creature and its lust for carnage drives harry's friends away from him claiming hes dark and he also gets persecuted by the ministry of magic with all its anti-half breed laws and such the creatures i was thinking of were along the lines of Thunderbird [as depicted in miranda flairgolds "second chance at life" ] or a dementor

 

I'm a newbie writer, so I guess this may not count as much, but what I do is have what I want the characters to do, in just a general outline for the whole plot. The I start making another outline for each chapter as I write it, so if I start a fic, I get the main storyline, throw in a few twists so it doesn't get too cliche (nothing overboard), then write. I try to write what I see as I follow the character does whatever they need to do, and describe what I see in my minds eye.

Of course, that could just be me...

Anyway, the idea's certainly interesting. But remember, nothing overboard. Give R&Hr etc. good reasons for abandoning him, unless you're going to have the 'We've been spying on you for the past five years' thing. They're still his friends mind you, so I don't see them pushing him away unless something bad happens to them, or things they care about. Hope that helps.

 

Could be good. I just hope you do the whole hybrid thing on psychological plane and maybe a few physical manifestations here and there (color of the eyes etc). I hate it when they give Harry wings, whiskers, horns, tails, cat ears, snout, claws etc... I like Harry's outlook for what it is, thank you very much.

 

Don't know about that InuYasha thing, but small bits here and there aren't too bad.

You can also go for the magical effect - like if you do Dementor, you can have that familiar unhappy feeling around him, or constant darkness etc. Or you can have him constantly sucking life out of beings around him, like in Fallen.

Oh, and there already is a story with similar idea. Check out The Demon Within by Thor Nairda.

 

I dont think i would have alot of physical manifestations but more physchological ones, such as harry feeling the need to suck the souls out of those he's defeated and then it becoming a sort of drug addiction where the inevitable happens he makes out with ginny and he senses her "pure" soul and just sucks it out or something like this.. its just one idea im really trying to come up with a feasible plot because i dont want to make harry superman or anything because his duel with Snape showed that he really wasnt that good but if i do want to make his power increase id do it through rituals or perhaps overcoming a small block in his magic... but i could also make him gain these dementor defects in a ritual thats been messed up, it could be that he wanted to gain the ability to project the dementor aura ala vorlon and then screws it up.. who knows.. this is tough

 

Anything that involves Ginny soul sucking has got to be worth reading

I like the general idea as well... but, I don't like the use of rituals to explain Harry suddenly becoming a decent wizard. Harry allready has the power, what he lacks is the knoweladge and application.

 

Having finishd a number of chapters this morning I advice you to stay away from using WELL too much... three different stories had that in ever bit og dialog...

"Well blah blahblah blah

Well fucking suck off... that is soo fucking annoying >_<

 

Sounds alright but my main beef (if i may use my local slang) with it is that it seems you may fall into the trap of thinking of an idea, writing a few chapters and then abandoning it after everyone's souls have been sucked out. You need to plan an outline then a chapter-by-chapter plan until you know exactly what's going to happen in each and every chapter before you start writing. This is a pitfall I fell in (Freelance Hero). Making it up as you go along rarely works well.

Another thing is don't be dismayed if your first fic doesn't turn out as well as you'd hoped. Learn from it and become a better writer. It's rare to find an author who produces outstanding work at their first crack.

Please, please don't write 2D characters. I've now reached a point where I destroy something everytime I read a story with no characterisation or originality. Best thing to do is base your characters loosely on someone you know, that way, you're guaranteed a great character. You might want to do a spider diagram or something about the characteristics, appearance, problems (plot-wise) etc of your main characters.

Don't be afraid of cliched ideas, as long as you keep them sparse and well-written.

Make sure there's conflict. Don't be tempted (as some newbie writer do) to make Harry more powerful than Voldemort (or whoever your antagonist is). If Harry's invincible, you have no story. This is where most Azkaban stories fall down.

Last thing, make sure it's written to the best of your ability. They say some of the best writers in the world can write an exciting accunt of a shopping trip. Despite what others say, filler chapters are not terrible and are needed here and there. Just make sure you make them interesting and you'll rise well above most fanfiction out there.

Good luck.

 

Hmmm...

I think I wrote a thread about a general overline for how to write somewhere on this forum... Let me check for it.

Ok here it is, Giovanni's Writing Guide for Dummies. Basically it is all common sense, and most all of them can be applied to normal original fiction writing as well.

#1. Good Writing creates, then resolves tension. Moderation is the key. To much tension and it annoys the reader, to little and well, remind me why I am reading your story again?

#2. Details. Yes we all like details and descriptions, but to many just get annoying. For example if you spend an entire paragraph describing a shirt.

#3. PLOT HOLES ARE EVIL! Try to keep them to a minimum, or if possible, remove them from existance.

#4. Good noun and adjective choices are a must. Also NO WEAK VERBS!

#5. Clarity is important. If your writing style lacks clarity or your native tongue is not English get someone to read over your work with a metaphorical red pen.

#6. In regard to song lyrics you should not use an entire song. Merely use a small excerpt 5 lines at most, and even then use it sparingly. It should also be of HIGH relevence to the story... Not just romantic music when your characters are dancing/screwing each others brains out/making out/depressed/moody/any other random situation.

#7. Quotes at the beginning of chapters should be kept to a minimum. Again unless the quote is of high relevence to the ENTIRE chapter and the rest of the story, DON'T use it, if you really want it in there anyways because you think it sounds cool have one of the characters say it during the time that it is.

#8. Run your story through spelling and grammer checkers, both man and machine. No on liks seeng astry ritten like this,

#9. In regard to character interaction, if you've written your story well you shouldn't have to explain your actions in an authors note... and speaking of authors notes...

#10. Don't write them in the middle of chapters. If you need it in the middle of the chapter then your chapter is shoddily written.

#10a. Don't write 5 pages of story and 5 pages of authors note.


These are just some of the most common things I have seen done wrongly in fiction, not just fanfiction. Though 5 or 6 of them actually carry over to non-fiction writing as well.

 

I fucken hate those A/N in the middle of the chapter.

I feel like beating them over the head with my rolling pin.

Nothing is quite as satisfying as hearing the nose crack as you bludgeon their face.

 

Dont make it to cliche