A Guide to the Beginning Fan Work Author

The Story

Every story starts with a good idea. Whether it be a werewolf romance, a horror thriller, or a lighthearted comedy, each story needs to start somewhere. In some cases, ideas come in the forms of characters being created first and story after. In others, it is plot first and then the characters. It doesn't matter how or why, however in fan works the most important part is delivery of said idea.

One of the worst things in the world is good ideas executed badly, and that is no exaggeration. People had good intentions for nuclear energy but bad execution led to events like the incident in Chernobyl. The same can happen in stories. 

Poor punctuation, bad grammar, confusing format, unlikable characters; these will murder your story. However, they can be fixed! Making balanced characters, concise writing and grammar, easy to read structure, and a capturing story line are the ingredients to a good work. 

Let's see what makes a prime story line!

Stories need a beginning, middle, and end. The beginning will set the scene; Who is in the story? What are they like? Where does the story take place? The beginning will answer those questions and as you progress to the middle of the story it will answer other questions and ask more. 

The middle is characterized by the  conflict and climax. What is the big problem that the characters will face? How does it affect them and others around them? Is there an enemy and if there is, who are they? The middle will the develop the characters as people and give them a sense of more depth. They are real people and will act in both favorable and unfavorable ways. I will discuss characters and character development in a future chapter. 

In terms of climax, what is the rise to it? The problem the characters need to resolve. See the Disney film Inside Out, the rising action is that Joy and Sadness are lost in Riley's head and need to get back to Headquarters to ensure Riley is happy. Along the way, they meet characters that can complicate or assist their mission. 

Ask yourself the following questions: What are your characters trying to resolve? What got them there in the first place? Did they meet anyone that can help or hurt them? What steps do they take to resolve the conflict. Make sure you pace you story nicely, not too fast or too slow.

Now the exciting part: the CLIMAX. It can be the big fight with the villain, the rush to the train station to stop their true love from disappearing forever, or the argument between a father and daughter that threatens to destroy their relationship. This is one of the most important parts of the story!

The conflict will be resolved during the climax. Everything falls together and decisions the characters made during the rising action will either help or comeback to bite them. Did your character neglect to tell someone something? Have that play into the climax! Did a character treat someone bad? They have a new villain to face! Were they nice to an unknown villain? Maybe that villain has second thoughts about hurting them! 

Pull everything together and make sure it is balanced! No one likes an easy defeat so add some twists and turns that will leave the readers gripping their phones with their nose to the screen! However, don't make things impossible for the character. Make victory feel genuine. Have the relationships your character has made help them; the girl your character helped come to his help, or the villain he showed mercy to lend a hand in their hour of need! This will make facing impossible odds so much richer! No hero can truly do things on their own. 

Moana needed Maui. Harry needed Ron and Hermione. 

If you decide to have the protagonist do things on their own, that can still work. See Ripley from Alien (1979). She has friends at first; good relationships, trusted allies, and her friendly coworkers. The characters are realistic and well rounded, like Parker who is comedic and strong, yet reacts as a real person would in dangerous situations, sometimes not making good decisions and paying for it.

If you want to go down the solo hero route, strip them of their support. Ripley's crew is killed off, one by one. This leaves the reader with a sense of hopelessness as they watch Ripley face off with a seemingly omnipresent predator with no weakness. This makes the victory all that sweeter as Ripley bests the xenomorph with strategy, rather than brute strength. Brute strength failed everyone before, so she applies what she learned, and she outsmarts the clever creature. 

The same must go for your character. Have them think, plan, and work to survive. However, no one likes a Mary Sue or Gary Lou. Don't have them start off as the perfect fighter or strategist. Have them work hard to achieve their goals. I will expand in my chapter, the Problem with a Mary Sue.

For now let's take it down a notch: the Falling action. The fight is over, the issue is resolved, and the sweethearts are together. The falling action is the effects of the fight. Did anyone die? How does everyone react? Explore as the characters learn to heal and as we realize how much they've grown as a person. Did the naive character grow a little wiser? Did the coward learn what it means to be brave and selfless? How does your hero cope with the loss of a friend or partner? Does the love interest tell the one they love how much they mean to them? 

The falling action will show how everything falls together and finally we can close. Do you leave the end with finality or a sense that the fight isn't over yet? Is there a big cliff hanger? Is the work really done? The ending should leave the reader with a sense of satisfaction, like everything is done. 

Don't misunderstand, not everyone will love your story. That happens. Sometimes the ending will be upsetting and demand a form of reconciliation, but that may not happen. What matters is that the story flows in a realistic and heartfelt way. Tragedy ending or not, it's up to you to deliver an ending that leaves the conflict resolved and the characters better people.