Getting Over the Fear of Posting

First Post

You’ve tossed the idea around in your head a thousand times. You’ve read dozen of
fics; some made you afraid to try writing a story that could stand alongside it. Then there
are those fics you wonder how the author ever thought to pass it off in your fandom! But
you decide to take the dive.

You come up with the best story plot ever! Or, at least it’s awesome to you. You’ve
spent days writing the first chapter, using your favorite character as the hero and the
worst characters as the villains. The Terms of Use and Guidelines have been read and
agreed to. It all comes down to the click of a button and it’s done.

Two hours have passed and you can’t help but go back on the site and see if anyone
has read your first chapter of your very first fan fiction. Your heart skips a beat when you
see you’ve had 5 visitors and 20 hits to your tale; but no reviews. You read the chapter
over again, smiling at your accomplishment . . . that is until you find the three missed
spell words and two homonyms. And more time passes.

You check your emails but you’ve got squat. You change the notification on your smart
phone to push your email every 15 minutes. So what if your cell phone battery will
be dead within 4 hours. This is important! The day is almost over; 19 hours since you
posted your first fic and not a single review, not even to say that you suck. You are
ready to deem yourself a horrible writer, delete your fan fic profile, and hide under a
rock.

As you are trolling through your email you get the best notification ever.

[New Review] for (Insert Story Title)
You have received a new review from FanFicCrit
“It doesn’t suck . . . Update”

Then you get:

[New Story Follower] FanFicCrit is now following your story (Insert Story
Title)

Your faith in your writing is rejuvenated and just in time too. You’ve already started
working on chapter 2!

If You Write It, They Will Come
Let’s face it all fan fiction readers are simply obsessed with their characters. And it is
because of this obsession that they will seek out everything they can. Your fiction will be
in the mix that they choose from. Be sure to craft your summary to read as awesome as
your fiction. After all, this is your reader’s first glance at what you have to offer.

Don’t Compare Yourself to Other Writers
We all have that hero on our favorite fan fiction site: we have read all of their stories;
they seem to come up with the most unique plots, use the best characters, and rack up
hundreds of reviews. It’s great to have a role model but your writing should be yours!
Don’t worry if your story doesn’t read like any others; that’s the point. Your writing
should be as unique as you are.

You Too Will Soon Know the Tricks
What’s the best day to post on? How does a beta work? How do I design these pesky
story covers? What the hic does A/N, canon, O/S, PWP, and AU means?
There is so much to writing fan fiction, it’s no wonder it’s its own little world. There
are countless resources out there that can help you get over the fear of posting and
reposting and posting again. Awesome sites like You Write What!?! Can help you learn
all those abbreviations, plus show you how to pimp your own fics to gain readers, and
what’s the best day to post (I personally have no luck when I post on Wednesdays . . .
go figure). Don’t be afraid to join sites and read up on how to be become a great writer,
even if this is just a hobby. In time you will know these little gems too.

You’re Obsessed Now So Keep Going
You’ve gotten over the hard part. You’ve put your thoughts on display for all to see.
You may not have gotten a hundred reviews your first time out but guess what NO ONE
DOES! We all have to put in the time and energy and as you will see most of us laugh
at our own first fics. My first fic is far from unique . . . Bella the vampire and Edward a
human . . . oh yeah, that’s original. Not to mention, I used more clichés than should
ever be a loud in a single story. But just like every other multiple story writer, I pressed
on and with it I grew and I am still growing. You will improve and evolve as well.

The fear of that first post is like an initiation process for all fan fiction writers. Those
who get over the fear, get the reward . . . The Fandom Obsession! Now go forth and
write. If you’ve gotten pass your first post than go read your first story and reminisce
on how far you have come both in your writing and understanding of fan fiction. If you
are still considering taking the dive into fan fiction, fear not! Remember you are not
alone and we have all been in the same boat. The fear to post doesn’t really go away;
it just changes. You will always experience a nervousness of posting a new story, a

new relationship idea, or a different plot with unheard of changes (like killing off main
characters or making the bad guy the hero). But use that nervousness to fuel you. It
could mean you are onto something new and great.

So Fear Not and Happy Posting!!

Author: Challa Fletcher, Staff Blogger