The Importance of Fan Fiction

When you hear the words “fan fiction”, what comes to mind? If you picture greasy, spotty faced man children eating nachos with their sticky fingers in front of a computer then you are an ignoramus.

For whatever reason, fan fiction has always been frowned upon by not only the “writing elitists”, but by anyone who's aware of this particular genre.

Fan fiction shouldn't be scoffed at, or ridiculed in any way. It should, in fact, be praised because it means creative writing is still happening.

Fan fiction is exactly what it sounds like; fans writing about a subject they love, be it a television program, movie or video game franchise, throwing their own “what if” scenarios around with characters they know full well. The majority of fan fiction writers range from teenagers to young adults, as they are the most likely to be inspired by whatever they write about, and I should know as I was one of them.

I use the term “was” loosely, however, as even though I haven't written anything fan fictiony in a LONG time I still do like to come up with my own ideas relating to my favourite mediums, and I reckon any person considering themselves to be creative does the same, and not because we think we can do better but because its fun like writing should be.

Writing is writing, whether it be an original piece or fan fiction, and did you know even huge companies have put out fan fiction related materials? Look no further than the Star Wars, Star Trek and Alien franchises. That's published fan fiction right there, I don't care what anyone says. You can search your local book stores or shop online to find them if you're ever curious.

And what about that Fifty Shades of Grey? The worldwide phenomenon that sold millions and is now a series of successful movies. Those books began life as Twilight fan fiction, until author E.L. James saw money and rewrote it as an original work of fiction. Crazy, but true. Makes you wonder where we would be without the interests of geeks.

That said, you shouldn't look to sell your fan fiction stories, hence the reason James removed any references to Twilight. You don't own the source material. Fan fiction should only be for no other purpose than harmless, free fun.

So, what possessed me to write about fan fiction, let alone defend it? Well, lets just say I encourage creativity, and any established author should encourage this type of work. Its a form of flattery, knowing people enjoy the characters you've written, taking them to heart and continuing their adventures in ways never before conceived.

I will never abide by putting down someone's creativity as doing so can severely stop an artist from fulfilling their potential.

Fan fiction is a great way to keep those creative juices flowing, to keep up the practice of writing. I encourage all aspiring writers, who solely write fan fiction, to keep going as it could lead to a greater future in the world of literacy. You create a world for familiar characters, and soon you'll be creating new worlds with original characters all of your own.

Its a start, and we've all got to start somewhere.