With so many different fandoms out there in the world, there’s bound to be some fan fiction stories centered around them. When it comes to anime and manga however, there’s practically TONS of stories to be found on the web, especially on sites like Fanfiction.net! For those of you who don’t know what it is, Fan Fiction is a fictional story written by a fan that features characters from his/her favorite anime, manga, superhero, or TV series.

If you trying to figure out how to write your first fan fiction story, or you might want some tips and pointers on how to improve your fan fiction writing skills, then check out these awesome tips from the good people of D&A Anime Blog! 🙂

Tip No. 1 – Research: Find a series that you really like, then watch it!

This is the first step to take if you’re unfamiliar with writing fan fiction. Find a series that you happen to really like or enjoy, then make sure that you study the characters, the dialogue, the plot of the story, and the setting(s) of where the series takes place. Writing great fan fiction requires research, because if you want to feature your favorite character(s) in your story, then you’re going to want to make them as in-character as you possibly can!

Tip No. 2 – Be Creative: Brainstorm original ideas for your story!

Sometimes when writing and creating fan fiction, fans tend to write stories within the confines of the original plot produced by the series’ creator(s). That’s great if you’re not used to writing fanfiction a lot, but if you’re a bit more intermediate and possibly advanced in the ways of fan fiction writing, then you might wanna step your game up and make your own story arc! Original fan story arcs are awesome because they’re originally created by the fans of the series that they love. Doing this will not only net you some awesome reviews on your story, but if you’re really good, you could get the series creators to produce a new season of your favorite series based on your story. (Trust us, we’ve seen it happen!)

Tip No. 3 – Avoid “Mary Sue’s” and “Marty Stu’s” when creating OC’s!

Everyone’s got their own set of strengths and weaknesses, so the same can be said for the characters of the series that you enjoy. If you’re thinking about introducing an original character (OC) in your story, then make sure that you list all of their strengths and weaknesses. Character development is one of the most crucial elements in creative story writing, and although “Mary Sue’s” and “Marty Stu’s” are cool in some cases, poor character development can cause some not-so-good results from other fans of the fandom.

Tip No. 4 – Fix any grammatical errors before publishing your story!

We’ve had the pleasure of reading fan fiction from time to time, and noticed that while the stories themselves are good, there are a few mistakes in grammar that even the most skilled fan fiction writers can miss. After uploading your chapter onto your fan fiction website account, use some of the story editing features they have available in order to clean up any grammar mistakes you might’ve made while writing your draft. This will make your stories look more professional and less childish when being viewed by other fans.

Tip No. 5 – Get other people to read your stories!

The best way to see how well you did on your story or what you can improve on, is to get other fans to read your fan fiction. Don’t be upset or embarrassed if you receive constructive criticism for your work, that just means that the feedback your getting is helping you become a better fan fiction writer. Post links to your stories on some social media sites like Facebook or Twitter, and if you have a deviantART account, be sure to post the links to your story there.

Hopefully these tips that we gave you will help you become a better fan fiction writer, or at least give you an idea of where to start if you’re unfamiliar with writing fan fiction in general. The best way to learn is through practice and taking some writing composition classes in college. We hope to see some great stories from you guys in the future, so happy fan fiction writing!! 🙂