The Fandom Writing Meme

This is a fandom writing meme I saw on an LJ friend's blog and so decided to have a go at it myself. If you've read my bio you know I am a big advocate of fanfic and fandom so this sounded like fun :). If you would like to see my fanfic it is all here: AO3 and here of my old archive.

1. How did you first get into writing fanfic, and what was the first fandom you wrote for?
   I was writing fanfic before I knew what fanfic was. I think my first real fanfic was for V the series although I had written lots in my head before, that was what I first wrote down. Before that it had mainly been hurt/comfort ideas in my head. Online the first fandom I wrote for was Highlander. I discovered the mailing lists when I was doing my PhD at Uni and never looked back. In those days I was a het writer :).
2. Name the fandoms you've written in, and how much you've written in that fandom, and if you still write in it.
   Um ... this may take a while :)
   
   Before the Internet (i.e. the notebook era) not current
   V - 4/5 unfinished stories in notebooks - I occasionally think about writing something, but no, it's not an active fandom
   Star Trek: TNG - 1 epic and several small fics
   Starcrossed (James Spader) - one epic never finished
   The Lost Boys - 2 stories
   Babylon 5 - 1 in a notebook, 1 short online
   Fandoms written for Challenges with 1 story, not currentJayce and the Wheeled Warriors, Being Human (UK), Tremors: The Series, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012),  Scooby Doo, Blake's 7, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Bagpuss, Fright Night 1985), Morph (BBC Shorts), Masters of the Universe (1987)
   
   Fandoms with 1 longer story, not current
   Doctor Who, The Invisible Man (TV 2000), Torchwood, The Lair (TV),
   CI5: The New Professionals (although I do have lots of bits I always meant to write), Charmed (1), Buffy - many unfinished, 1 posted online (I had totally forgotten this existed until I looked), SG-1 - 1 long gen fic, Kindred: the Embraced - 1 crossover with Highlander, I do have a couple of others I occasionally poke at, but nothing close to being finished.
   Non-Current Fandoms
   Highlander - 6 het, 4 slash and I occasionally dip my toe back in
   Friends - 1 Highlander xover (het)
   Poltergeist: The Legacy - 1 long het fic, 2 slash fics
   Gackt (Musician)/Hyde (Musician) (18),
   Tokio Hotel (101)
   Supernatural (31) (all season 1)
   Merlin (TV) (15)
   Weiß Kreuz (7)
   Killerpilze (5)
   Figure Skating RPF (18)
   Speed Skating RPF (4)
   Panik (10)
   Primeval (8)
   Cinema Bizarre (8)
   Sherlock (TV) (4)
   Blood Ties (TV) (4)
   Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies) (3)
   Avatar (2009) (3)
   Adam Lambert (Musician) (3)
   Virus Buster Serge (3)
   Blade (Movie Series) (2)
   Eurovision Song Contest RPF (2)
   Moon Child (2003) (2)
   Mutant X (1)
   
   Current Fandoms
   Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling (63) (I will never not be in HP fandom :)).
   Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter - Laurell K. Hamilton (1) - crossover with HP
   Marvel Cinematic Universe (11)
   Teen Wolf (TV) (11)
   X-Men: First Class (2011) (4)
   Welcome to the Punch (2013) (2)
   Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) (1)
3. For each of the fandoms from question two, what were your favorite characters to write?
   I think I'll just go with a few of the fandoms ;)
   Harry Potter: Harry, Draco
   New Professional: Sam
   Highlander: Richie, Methos
   Poltergeist: The Legacy: Philip, Nick
   Tokio Hotel: Bill
   Figure Skating: Johnny Weir
   Marvel: Loki, Tony Stark
   Teen Wolf: Stiles, Derek
   X-men: Charles, Erik
   Welcome to the Punch: Max
4. Do you have a "muse" character, that speaks to you more than others, or that tries to push their way in, even when the fic isn't about them? Who are they, and why did that character became your muse?
   I tend to have a 'muse' character which is why I write in a fandom full stop. Even when I have an OTP is it usually because one character is apart of it so them forcing their way into other fics doesn't usually come into it. They're mostly always there anyway. My muse character is the first one listed in each above.
5. If you have ever had a character try to push their way into a fic, whether your "muse" or not, what did you do about it?
   Never happened
6. When you write, do you prefer writing male or female characters?
   In fandom I tend to prefer writing male characters because I'm a slash writer and I like pairing the pretty boys. I don't have anything against female characters, but I admit I'm shallow, I usually writer the characters I fancy. I write more female characters in original fiction.
7. Have you ever had a fic change your opinion of a character?
   Not that I can think of off the top of my head, other than I swore I would never write Harry/Draco and then one day I read a fic and that was it, I was gone! :)
8. Do you write OCs? And if so, what do you do to make certain they're not Mary Sues, and if not, explain your thoughts on OCs.
   I don't often write OCs, but I have a few from my het days. My biggest, hugest Mary Sue is luckily in a notebook and will never see the light of day :). As for why I don't tend to write them these days, it's usually because I'm writing to pair off existing characters and simply don't need them. I tend to read and write in fandom for the existing characters, although I have read some very good OCs over the years.
9. Pairings - For each of the fandoms from question two, what are your three favorite pairings to write?
   I'm going to pick the same fandoms I used for Q3 or we'll be here all day :)
   Harry Potter: Harry/Draco
   New Professional: Sam/Dean
   Highlander: Richie/Methos
   Poltergeist: The Legacy: Philip/Nick
   Tokio Hotel: Bill/Tom, Bill/Georg, Bill/Gustav
   Figure Skating: Johnny Weir/Evan Lysacek, Johnny Weir/Stephane Lambiel
   Marvel: Loki/Tony Stark, Loki/Clint, Loki/Thor
   Teen Wolf: Stiles/Derek
   X-men: Charles/Erik
   Welcome to the Punch: Max/Jacob
10. Pairings - Have you ever gone outside your comfort zone and written a pairing you liked, but found you couldn't write, or a pairing you didn't like, and found you could?
    I've written dark fic outside my favourite pairings and enjoyed it, especially in the Harry Potter fandom. I enjoyed pairing Harry with Lucius in Blood and Surrender, I also had fun with Harry and Snape a couple of times. I usually find that I write more outside my comfort zone for challenges.
11. Genre - do you prefer certain genres of fic when you're writing? What kind do you tend to write most?
    Vampires - I love vampires and creature fic. It is my mission in life to try and write vampires into every fandom I play in if they don't already have them and sometimes changing them up even when they do :).
    Crossovers - I love it when two fictional universes are brought together, either in a merge or with one set of characters stepping into the other world.
12. Have you ever attempted an "adaptation" fic of a favorite book or movie but set in a different fandom?
    No, I love crossovers, but don't tend to try fusion adaptions.
13. Do you prefer canon or fanon when you write? Has writing fanfic for a fandom changed the way you see some or even all of the original source material?
    I prefer canon as a starting point, but some fanon is so good that it's possible to forget it's not canon :). Writing in a fandom usually gives me much more insight into the canon because I can't write it unless I've researched it, and sometimes that makes me think a lot more about the subtexts and things like that. I'd say it tends to deepen my experience of the source material rather than completely change it.
14. Ratings - how high are you comfortable with going? Have you ever written higher? If you're comfortable with NC-17, have you ever been shocked by finding that the story you're writing is G-rated instead?
    I write lots of adult fic at the high end and usually, yes, it's a bit of a shock when the fic turns out to be G rated :). I tend to go with whatever feels right, however. I know some people complain about fics that have a pairing, but they never get it on, but sometimes that's what a fic needs. 
15. Warnings - What do you feel it most important to warn for, and what's the strangest thing you've warned for in a fic?
    I find it most important to warn for rape and non-con. I would also warn for character death, but since I hate it I don't write it :). I think the strangest thing I've warned for is plant sex ::g::.
16. Summaries - Do you like them or hate them? How do you come up with them, if you use them?
    Summaries are so important and I love to see them on a fic, however, they are a complete nightmare to write. Having to write blurb for books over the last couple of years I have come to realise quite how bad some of my fandom fic summaries actually are :). I would say the way to write them is to note down all the points that are important, then weed out any that are too spoilery and try and make it make sense. In the past I have mostly just guessed when writing summaries.
17. Titles - Are they the bane of your existence, or the easiest part of the fic? Also, if you do chaptered fic, do you give each chapter a title, or not?
    Titles are a nightmare! They are really really hard to come up with. Occasionally they just happen, but usually I throw my hands in the air and just pick words. In very long chaptered fics I often choose chapter titles, which, ironically are actually easier to come up with. I think the main title is harder because it has to encompass the whole fic, hence titling shorter fic is easier than long fics.
18. Where do you get the most inspiration for your fics (aka "bunnies") from?
    Random ideas that come to me lying in bed at night. Often as a way to torture my favourite character at least a little bit ;). I used to enjoy taking part in prompt grabs as well, but haven't had much time for those since I started writing professionally :(.
19. When you have bunnies, do you sit down and start writing right away, or do you write down the idea for further use?
    I like to let ideas percolate and only the ones that stick end up being written down. Of course starting to write them doesn't guarantee anything and I have literally hundred of unfinished fics on my hard drive. Occasionally they have notes to tell me where I had intended to go with them, but I don't write in a linear fashion so sometimes I have just written a couple of scenes which were stuck in my head.
20. Do you ever get bunnied from other people's stories or art in the same fandom?
    Occasionally, but not often. If someone has written something and resolved it then I don't feel the need to come up with something myself, so it tends to be the source that is missing something I want or is not finished that gives me bunnies.
21. Sequels - Have you ever written a sequel to a fic you wrote, and if so, why, and if not, how do you feel about sequels?
    Yes, several times :). I love a good sequel, but a sequel is not an excuse not to finish the previous fic properly. Everything does not have to be resolved, but there has to be some form of conclusion or you're writing chapters, not sequels, IMHO.
22. Have you ever participated in a fest or a Big Bang? If so, write about your favorite experience in relation to one. If not, are there any you've thought about doing? And if not, why not?
    I love fest and Big Bangs, I wish I had time to write in them these days. I think my favourite experience was with the vampirebigbang where I wrote Ice Skating RPF with vampires (After Night Comes Dawn) and I was paired with beadslut for the artwork. I had a blast writing the fic and the artwork is utterly amazing. I still have one of the images as my backdrop for my netbook. 
23. When you post, where do you post to? Just your journal? Just an archive? Your own personal site?
    I post to LJ and DW as well as AO3 and I used to post to my own archive, but AO3 is so good I prefer to use that now.
24. Betaing - How many betas do you like to use to make sure there aren't any major flaws in your fic? Do you have a Beta horror story or dream story?
    I use one beta, my sister, mostly. It's simply a matter of convenience - she is always there on the end of an email and she's very good at grammar and punctuation. She also isn't afraid to tell me the whole truth - if part of it is crap, she will let me know.
    I did have one beta once that apparently totally hated my story and seemed to want me to rewrite the whole thing, so that didn't work out well.
25. Music - Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain "mood" to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?
    I love using music to write; it is fabulous for distracting part of my brain and letting the words flow. I don't really have any particular playlists, but there are some I just can use sometimes because all I want to do is sing along :).
26. What is the oddest (or funnest) thing you've had to research for a fic?
    I once had to go and look up a request for a fic fest because I had no idea what it was and it turned out to be a term for water sports I had never seen before :). Had to decline that part of the request, but managed to get the other parts in. Recently I was researching the effects of and how long date rape drugs remain in a person's system.
27. Where is your favorite place to write, and do you write by hand or on the computer?
    Computer, always the computer, I can't hand write fast enough for my brain. It drives me batty. My fav place to write is at my desk on my PC because it's the most comfortable.
28. Have you ever collaborated with anyone else, whether writing together, or having an artist work on a piece about your fic?
    See Q22 about art work and yes, I have written with someone else, namely my sister, but not in fandom :)
29. What is your current project or projects?
    I have several fics in Teen Wolf, MCU and The Listener on the go, but I don't know when I will have time to finish them.
30. Do you have a favorite fic you've written? What makes it your favorite? And don't forget to give us a link!
    I love Gold Tinted Spectacles (Harry/Draco) because it's the fic that really launched me into LJ fandom land. It has some issues in places, but it was my first big Harry Potter fic and it has a very special place in my heart.
    I also really love Black Magic by Moonlight, my HP/Anita Blake xover - I'm quite proud of the way I managed to marry the two universe.
    After Night Comes Dawn (Johnny/Evan/Stephane - figure skating RPF) is another of my favs - turning Johnny Weir into an almost vampire seemed so right :).
    The Loco of Loki - (Loki/Tony/Pepper) vampires and Loki - too much fun :)
    Destiny Sucks (Stiles/Derek - Teen Wolf) - I'm pleased with the mythos I came up with for this one.