Where to Write, and other questions

[Surfing HalfOrc]

OK, I've been bitten by the writing bug again, but I had a few questions.

1. Where should I post to be read and get feedback? I opened an account on Writing.com, and posted an outline, a prologue and about half of the1st chapter. I got replies on the outline and prologue, but not on the 1st chapter (yet). Since I didn't finish the chapter before posting, I am wondering if I made a writing faux pas...

2. What constitutes "Fan Fiction?" The book I am currently working on is an original, but I am kicking around another idea. Back in the late 90's and early 00's, Wizards of the Coast published a series of novels based on some of the early D&D Adventure Modules. White Plume Mountain, Keep on the Borderlands, Against the Giants, etc. One of my favorites, The Desert of Desolation was NOT included, nor was The Isle of Dread. If I wrote a novel based on these adventures, would that be Fan Fiction, or would it fall under something else? When I think of Fan Fiction, I think of "The Other Adventures of Goku" where the DBZ characters have an adventure not included in the shows.

3. Another story idea I have is based on an old computer game: Starflight, Trade Routes of the Cloud Nebula. Fan Fiction, or normal science-fiction/action-adventure?

I'm sure more questions will come along, but that's it for now.

[meltodowno]

Not sure on the first one, but as to the second two.

If it is based around someone else's IP and you have not been licensed to write it by the IP holders, it is fan fiction. If you portray is as original fiction, you are leaving yourself open to a whole storm of trouble.

[Surfing HalfOrc]

Duly Noted on the Fan Fiction. It's an easy thing at Writing.com, as they have Genre tags, and Fan Fiction is one of them.

None of my stories are ready for paid publication, but writing anything tends to improve my writing overall.

[meltodowno]

Oh yeah, the first rule of learning to be an author - write.

Write as much as you can, as often as you can.
Write observations.
Write descriptions of interesting people you have spotted.
Write short stories of interesting characters.

Keep them all in an idea's book.

When writing a story?
Write everything. Edit later. Avoid editting before you are finished, as only once you are finished do you know what to cut, and what story arcs need tightening and cleaning up.

[Surfing HalfOrc]

That's how I do it, when the bug is upon me! I write, write, then write some more. I write in a lot of different places, such as Play by Post RPG game sites, forums, and of course Facebook.

The hard part is getting feedback. While I enjoy writing for the sake of writing, I want to tell a tale and have people read it. Feedback is nice too. "That was good." "That part kind of, um, sucked."

That's why I asked where is a good place to both read and review other people's work, and get my stuff reviewed?

I suppose I could use my Internet money/points to get more reviews.

[Lissou]

You can also try posting on reddit. There are several subreddits just for that. You should be able to search and find some. There are also some for requesting writing prompts, which can help too because it gets you to write about things you wouldn't have thought about.

[Tartra]

I may or may not have made an account to reply to this.

So, places to post writing and get feedback. Just as a heads up, feedback can't guaranteed on any site. You might get a flood of happy, chatty readers while others get crickets. Everything comes with a bit of luck, which is why it's so important to keep writing: it gives you more rolls on the giant dice of 'Is someone gonna love this thing?'

Fictionpress is good for original works, if you do go down that route sometime, and Jukepop - although it's smaller and has a submission review process - is another neat place for your own stories.

FanFiction.net and ArchiveOfOurOwn are the two big stand-outs for fanfiction.

Wattpad is a mix of both. They have tags for fanfiction as well, so you shouldn't feel too lost out there.

As for Reddit, which is by and large a strict 'No self-promotion ever' place, you have the critique subreddits like /r/Shutupandwrite, /r/DestructiveReaders, and /r/KeepWriting that lets you link to your work and gather peer edits. The same goes for Scribophile.com, which does peer editing, too.

To be clear, editing isn't the same feedback as what a reader would give you. If critiquers like parts, they'll certainly say so, but they're there to point out your weaknesses to help you improve. Don't count on them to be your readership, but to put a better foot forward when you go looking for an audience.

And then, like Lissou said, Reddit subreddits like /r/WritingPrompts or /r/NoSleep are places where you can get into short stories, build a writing portfolio, and maybe even get some Redditors' attention for your next work.

Hopefully that helps!

[Surfing HalfOrc]

Yes, everyone's input has been helpful.
Now I'm struggling with two Muses, writing a fantasy/western and developing ideas for a space opera story.

On the space opera, I'm trying to figure out the major arcs right now. I have a vast universe, lots of characters and alien races, an economy, and strange and interesting things to discover. What I don't have is an End Boss. I mean, why are Our Heroes doing their thing so far from home?

How do I end this thing? Should I even worry about it? Or should I just write adventures and stories, and let the end create itself organically from the events that came before?

[Kianlon]

Okay, is there a reason they can't go home (exile, family trouble, nothing for them there, no home in the first place)? As for an end boss... yeah you're kind of stuck here. Arc bosses could be threats to specific planets, races, or characters, but the end boss has to be more than that. Just throwing out random ideas here, but maybe it's something that threatens the whole universe a la the Anti-Moniter or Extant. Or a previously established character becomes corrupt/unstable.