On 2/24/98 -0500, Doug Murphy wrote:

I've been thinking about my plans for my fanfic works-in-progress, and it
led me to ponder a simple but valid question: How do you plan out a good
fanfic?
Do you make an outline of the whole fic and stick to it like crazy glue?
Do you just come up with an enemy that the characters from the anime have
to >face and work out the plot as you go?  How do *you* decide how the
plot unravels >in your storylines.

Doug, for me, despite whatever outlines I may come up with at the start, it
always comes down to plain old hard work. Sometimes the writing flows
easily, sometimes I need a little push, and sometimes it doesn't flow at
all and I have to take a break away from it. But every day I force myself
to sit in front of my computer, no matter how unmotivated I may feel, and
at the very least, review what I have so far (time permitting). Many times
this has been the spark I needed. But more often I will end up cutting and
pasting bits and pieces, and adding in new bits as I think of them. The
main baddie in one of my fanfics changed mid-stream after reading a manga
related to what I was writing about. The outline went out the window and
I've been winging it ever since <g>

To answer your question though, I just muddled about until I found my own
ways to get the idea onto "paper". As to how to plan a *good* fanfic, I
wouldn't know. I just write whatever I'm keen about and toss it out there.
What happens after that is entirely out of my control :)

Andy Skuse

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