Spuffy Snarry Mary Sues: Entering the World of Fanfiction

Fanfiction has been around almost as long as mainstream writing. Anytime someone is captivated by a character someone else created, they can be tempted to put that character into their own adventures - before copyright laws, unauthorized sequels and spin-offs were often printed, sold, and distributed. Along with Star Trek came the first fanzines, which soon branched out to shows like the X-Files and the Star Wars series. These 'zines often contained fanfiction, and were largely distributed at conventions and through word-of-mouth.

By the late nineties, many people had welcomed the Internet into their homes. Fanfiction took off like a rocket. The same enduring shows and movies branched out into cyberspace, along with new phenomenons like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the book series Harry Potter. Fanfiction websites were established all over the internet, including the massive FanFiction.net. Thousands of writers, most falling into the teenage/young adult female demographic, descended upon fanfiction servers and even created their own sites.

Authors have varying opinions on their work being used for fanfiction. Anne Rice famously said the idea of other people writing her characters made her "sick," while authors like J.K. Rowling say they are flattered and encourage budding young authors. George Lucas has been known to discourage pornographic fanfiction involving his characters, going so far as to send "cease and desist" letters to fanzines. No one is quite sure where fanfiction stands, legally, but major fanfiction archives honor the requests of authors like Rice.

Since the fanfiction boom, it has gained popularity in many different demographics. While over-20s in fanfiction are a rare breed, they tend to rule the genre in which they write - their greater education, life experience, and ability often makes them stand out in a crowd of millions. It's a nice ego boost, but more importantly, it allows amateur writers to hone their skills and occasionally gain valuable feedback.

Creating new characters and new universes is the most difficult part of writing, but it's easy to step into someone else's world. If you're passionate about a book, movie, or TV show, there's no better way to practice plotting and dialogue.

Should you try your hand? These days, some hopeful professional writers are concerned their fanfiction might be tracked down and held against them. While there are ways to prevent this, so far there have been no stunning exposés that ruined someone's career. It's fun, it's probably harmless, and if you want to write fanfiction, you should.

A quick breakdown of some important terms:

Canon: Whatever is created by the original author of the work upon which fanfiction is based. Canon may be ignored, manipulated, or changed in fanfiction, but everyone is expected to know what it is and to understand the implications therein.

Fanon: If a work or series of fanfiction gains wide popularity, the universe in which it exists may be referred to as "fanon," a play on "canon."

Mary Sue: Any original character who is, consciously or not, the author in disguise. This is greatly frowned upon, since it usually leads to unrealistically strong, savvy, and downright perfect characters who outshine the original author's creation. After reading a certain amount of fanfiction, you'll learn to recognize Mary Sue. There is a rare male version, dubbed Gary Stu. Debates abound as to whether published authors have created Mary Sues and Gary Stus in their original work. Ian Fleming's James Bond, James Fenimore Cooper's Natty Bumppo, and other classic characters have fallen under scrutiny.

OOC: Generally means "out of character," and is often frowned upon. It's thought to be overused by authors, since characters should change and grow in stories anyway. If you begin a story with someone being OOC, why not just create your own character?

Fluff, PWP: Both of these terms can refer to a short fanfiction that doesn't contain much plot, typically with a focus romance and/or humor. PWP can mean "Plot? What plot?" or "Porn Without Plot," which is self-explanatory.

Slash: Refers to fanfiction with homosexual pairings, usually men. May or may not contain explicit sex.

OTP: Means "One True Pairing," and is a way to express loyalty to a particular romantic couple in a favorite canon or fanon. An OTP may or may not be a part of the canon, and it may or may not be implied by the original author.

Crossover: When one or more canons/fanons appear in the same story, it is a crossover. This fanfiction genre is viewed with suspicion, although many crossovers have gained great popularity.

MSTing: Based on the television show Mystery Science Theater 3000, this is a special kind of fanfiction. The author of a MSTing copies the text of someone else's story and inserts comments, usually in scripted format, assigning different comments to different characters. These characters generally behave as if they are being forced to read the fanfiction against their will, and mock it mercilessly.

The commentators could be almost anyone. Original characters, characters from the fanfiction's canon, or Mike, Joel, Tom, and/or Crow from Mystery Science Theater may be featured. MSTing can be controversial: FanFiction.net does not allow anything written in script format, and many fanfiction authors are angry at their stories being used. Some MSTing authors only MST stories upon an author's request, in which case they will maintain the author's anonymity; others make sure to give full credit to avoid being ostracized for plagiarism.

Drabble: A short fanfiction. In its strictest definition, exactly 100 words, though the term is often taken more liberally. Some fanfiction contests involve writing strict drabbles.

Spuffy/Snarry/JAM/Other portmanteaus: These are compilations of the names of popular romantic/sexual pairings in fanfiction. Spuffy is Spike and Buffy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, while Snarry is the controversial pairing of Harry Potter and his Professor Snape. JAM refers to Jim and Pam from The Office. The practice of forming these portmanteaus is called "smushing."

The world of fanfiction holds many delights for the casual author who can maintain a sense of humor about their work. Try it out - you just may like it.