Is writing fanfiction good practice for writing original fiction and novels?

Now, obviously you’re not gonna get a whole lot of worldbuilding or character creating skills from writing fanfiction, unless you specialise in elsewhere fics with lots of OCs. But what about other aspects of writing, such as plot, characterisation, spelling and grammar? On the whole, is writing fanfiction good practice for writing original fiction and novels, or are you better off just practicing with original fiction?

It can be, definitely. You just have to be mindful as you write. If you tend to get bogged down in worldbuilding, like me, it's a lifesaver.

I started off my fanfiction "career" writing Azumanga Daioh stories, and it was practice for balancing scenes with lots of characters and getting voices right, for instance. In order to do that with original characters, I'd have to make a cast of six and decide on distinctive voices for them, which isn't a huge bother, but how would anyone else be able to tell me if I'd gotten them right? Sometimes it's a benefit to practice with characters your reader is familiar with.

Also, if fanstories are bursting out of you and you want to just sit down and write them, why, that's practice for making yourself sit down and write, isn't it? That's a skill many writers, myself included, need to do a lot more work on.

Yeah, that’s true! I definitely get what you mean by the “sitting down and writing” thing, too, although sadly other obligations might get in the way, or you might just feel too tired or sick to write. With me, though, procrastination definitely plays a part

It is at least good practice until you can get into a rhythm where you can start writing chapters for your first official novel.

For me, I use fanfics as prototypes for original ideas.

Depends on what you're trying to practice. There are plenty of skills that can be applied from one to the other, but it's important to understand the differences between the two.

With fanfics, you don't need to focus as much on characterization and worldbuilding, since that's already been done for you. You do, however, need to think about keeping everyone in-character, and making sure that any major additions or changes to the source material are well thought-out. If you're intentionally making dramatic departures from the source material, you need to consider how you're doing it, and whether or not it's believable. Making a character act noticeably different than they do in canon might seem OOC if it's done too quickly or without any explanation, but gradual changes that fit into the context of your story will likely be better received.

With original stories, you're coming up with your own setting and characters. You have complete freedom with your narrative, but that means you have to put extra effort into how you present it. With fanfics, your readers already have some level of investment in the source material, but with original stories, your story stands alone. If you want your readers to be interested, you have to spark that interest yourself. You also have to pay attention to which areas of your story you want to emphasize. Is it more plot-driven, or character-driven? Is worldbuilding something that's important to you, or would you rather keep the focus on the events themselves? You do have to consider those things with fanfiction, but since you're working off an existing framework, the priorities of the source material still determine what's available already and what isn't.

All that being said, there are plenty of skills that are useful across the board. The quality of the writing is always important, and the fact that you're writing at all is practice in itself. You might find that you're better at some aspects of writing than others. Maybe you can write great dialogue, but have no idea how to write action scenes. Or you might be great at descriptive narration, but not so good at making emotional moments believable. Both fanfiction and original stories can give you the chance to work on the areas you're not comfortable with. Same with stuff like plot progression. The approach you take to storytelling might be different with fanfiction, but the need to tell a good story is still there.

The areas you mentioned in the original post would apply to any kind of writing, original or otherwise. So if you want to write fanfics, write fanfics. It could be practice, or it could just be for fun.

edited 10th Mar '18 2:06:36 PM by SapphireBlue

For me, fanfic does help with a lot of things, many of which have already been brought up in this thread. That said, I've mostly dabbled in AU's. AU's are different from ordinary fanfiction in that you aren't nesciarilly working within the original show's continuity or even with the original versions of the characters. You should still be familiar with the source material, but it gives you a lot more freedom than if you were writing in the original universe and helps prepare you in ways that normal fanfics don't.

With most fanfics, you don't have to worry about worldbuilding or characterization because that's already been laid out for you, but in AU's, that isn't necessarily the case. Depending on just what the scenario for this AU is, you might still have to do a lot of world-building yourself. And some characters might have different characterizations depending on how far things are removed from the source material. For me, AU's are a middle-ground between ordinary fanfics and original novels. You still have something to work off of, but you're free to alter and add on to it however you choose. So in that sense, it's a good step towards building a professional career.

@Hawk. I dont think that's a good idea. People might steal your ideas from you and you'd have no protection from them doing so.

On Topic, Of Course! Just look at 50 Shades of Grey! And all other novels that started as fanfiction!

Ok serious Aegis P. I think it is! Because that way you can practice not only your creative muscles but also your grammar and spelling. Its great for that and more.

Fanfiction is great practice for original writing. You can experiment with different plots and scenarios as well as practice character consistency. Then, gradually introduce new stuff, the kind that would help you as a standalone writer.

Put it this way, if you've reached a point where you can file the serial numbers off your fanfic and create a new original story, you've done good.

Would agree.

If anything, it can give you an idea on what you're good at and what aspects of story writing that you need to improve in.