"Advice" for Sailor Moon Fanfic Authors

suggested by your friendly neighborhood Corvus :>

Over the past few months, I've seen several pages of "advice" offered to authors of Sailor Moon fanfiction. What I've *read* is a lot of "don't do this or that."

Why not?

Admittedly, there are several very old, very tired plot devices that have had most of the juice wrung out of them, but think of it this way--how many times have those "overused plots" been thought of independently by people who have never even read SM fanfic beforee?

Not to plug shamelessly, but I broke a few taboos with "Moondust Memories"--a sibling for Serena/Usagi, a new Senshi, a male Senshi at that, a character falling for one of the original Senshi, and thee "trip" plot device. And in SSUSA I added *more* new Senshi, new Negaverse "ite" villains, and I even broke a rule that could mean my head in certain circles--I introduced Sailor Uranus recently... and *gasp* she made friends with some of the characters.

But that hasn't kept me from thinking that I was writing something that was at least okay.

With that, here's just a few suggestions and recommendations for Sailor Moon fanfics... "try"s, not "don't"s:

1.) Be original with the backgrounds and introductions of new characters. Only so many people can be brought into a school and coincidentally become enemies or allies before folks get suspicious ^_^

2.) Make some history. Give your world a spin, don't be afraid to look into the past as well as the future.

3.) Study how people talk and act, it really helps make characters come to life. Suddenly you might find them moving and talking on their own!

4.) Don't be afraid to make changes as long as you explain them! Nobody stays the same forever. Don't want an airheaded Usagi running around? Give her a reason to start paying attention. Think Ami's too nice? Show why she might get mean.

5.) Remember the "normal" folks. Not everybody is a Senshi hero or Negaverse villain. I myself need to remember this more ^_^

6.) Dangerous ground--thinking of resurrecting the Generals/Kings? Remember they're people too, and they have their own motivations. Would they really want revenge on the Senshi? Or would they give a rat's tail about fighting beside them? And where did they come from? What impact will their return have on the Negaverse? Asking yourself these questions can give you a lot to write about.

7.) Feel free to incorporate references to modern pop culture. The characters of Sailor Moon don't live in a vaccuum, but in a world very similar to ours.

8.) Should every day be a battle in the Sailor Moon universe? Or is the "downtime" just as interesting to you? What about a balance of the two? Find what you're comfortable with, whether a daily brawl against youma or a once-in-a-blue-moon confrontation with the baddies.

9.) More dangerous ground--new "super" characters. Think about how they relate to the Senshi and why we might not have seen them before. Are they Sennshi too? Are they "Knights" or some sort? Or do they have other origins?

10.) Dangerous ground number three--crossovers. Ask yourself why you're doing it, what you hope to accomplish, and how you plan to accomplish it. Ask yourselff what the possibilities are. Try a few things out, get a feel for the mix.

11.) Explanations, details, reasons... Ever wonder why something happens? Go ahead and invent the reason! Or change one, if you don't like the way it's presented. You're making an alternate universe just by writing a fanfic. Don't be afraid to flex your mental muscle a little.

Technical details can be pains. Some suggestions for the mundane side of things:
 
 

1.) Keeping it all together! Another one I sometimes have trouble with ^_^ Keep notes. Playing around with ideas on paper can often lead to new, exciting discoveries about your story and your world. And if you forget something, you can always look back. Don't be afraid to edit, especially if something you've just "discovered" requires you to change some things to make it fit. It's fun to watch the story grow!

2.) If you have friends willing to join in, roleplay! Make the characters walk and talk, watch what they do and how they react. Characters are people! Get to know them. Sure, we put them through things that would get us thrown in jail if we did them to people in the "real" world, but we can also help them get out of it.

3.) Every writer comes up against an almost invincible foe at one time or another--writer's block. It's okay... don't push. Try something else for a while. Let other people see what you've done and offer suggestions and interpretations. If you find yourself getting angry or resentful of the story, set it aside and ignore it for a while. An idea might just hit you in the middle of lunch, when you least expect it.

4.) Writer's block has a tag-team partner I call burn-out. You just don't care anymore. You're tired of it. Too many long days, too many revisions, too many confused ideas... you just want to quit and throw it all away. Just like with writer's block, the important thing is to step back and take a breather. Go ahead, put it down and walk away for a few days. Don't even think about it. Then, take another look at it and see if maybe you can't get a new perspective and some inspiration.

5.) Speaking of inspiration... What puts ideas in your head? Music? Movies? TV? Books? Give your characters theme songs, let 'em play when you need to get in the mood. Watch a movie and get hyped. Stop writing and watch your favorite show, or watch it, then start. Give yourself a bit of a routine, if you like structure. And most importantly, try and find a place free of distractions!

6.) Talk with other fanfic authors. Not only can they be an invaluable resource and a great support when you think things are all messed up, but you'll soon find great friends. I sure did!

Well, that's my two cents. Always remember, there are no real laws to fanfic writing. If someone badmouths or flames you, see if you can find something constructive in what they're saying so poorly. Maybe they've got a good idea amid the bad attitude. And when someone says they loved your story, you'll share in the great feeling we all have when we know we've done a good job.