How NOT to write a Vampire Diaries Fanfiction (including TO & Legacies)

summary

this guide is a way for writers to better understand how to write a vampire diaries fanficition

the great thing about a vampire diaries fan-fiction is that it offers multiple advantages:

1. They're a pretty popular source material if you're going for The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, or Legacies, which is just getting on its hind legs so this fandom isn't dying out any time soon. The fact that they're popular will make more readers come to your profile and see what else you've written, in other words, it's a pretty good way for people to find any original books you've written.

2. The universe is pretty well laid out so there aren't that many plot holes and you have a number of fantasy creatures to work with, especially since Legacies. Not to mention a butt-load of messed up characters to analyze and really get into different psyches. The Salvatores, Bonnie Bennet, Katherine Pierce, the entire Mikaelson clan, Lizzie Saltzman-Forbes, these are all characters that have gone through many harsh ordeals and respond to it in different ways. So you get to explore different people and different creatures all at the same time, it's a great way to write people with abandonment issues, PTSD, grief, paranoia, etc. Remember that it's fanfiction, so you won't be perfect at it immediately but you will learn and that's the important thing.

3. Fanfiction is a great way to start writing, and the TVD universe is a pretty good place to start.

For those that are into high school specifically you've got Legacies

they display teenage romance, friendships, and all the tough stuff better in a modern world and better than the 2009 TVD ever will.

For those that want a bit more adult writing experience, The Originals is a great place to start,

they're definitely a lot darker and nastier but also more mature seeing as they deal more with family than with romance.

And if you're interested in a mix between the two then just head on over to the tried and true OG Vampire Diaries.

It's teenagers that don't look like teenagers and don't act like teenagers that continuously try to save their loved ones, they're a pretty basic balance between the two, but a classic I will admit.

4. Honestly, sometimes it's just fun or maybe you haven't read a gxg fic on the best female of the show, the MVP, Bonnie Bennett and you think to yourself, "Well, I might as well write it."

Now, I will warn you, this guide book is not going to be sugar-coated,
I am going to be very blunt about a lot of the common mistakes and no-no's that people do and must not do. Just know that I mean no disrespect to anyone and this is me just having fun slash bashing slash trying to help writers on this specific fandom.

reminder: i am not gina linetti nor sebastian stan, i am not a perfect human being, i make mistakes, i probably won't have great grammar or proper capitalization because this book is meant to be both helpful and comedic

have fun!

now,

allonsy!

and thank you to void-dreams for this awesome sign off gif!