Clichés and Other Sins

Something that happens far too often in fanfiction is idea-thieving. Maybe you read a fanfic that you like so much that you want to write one with the exact same setting or plot. And hell, it's understandable to want to do that, but it's actually pretty shitty to go through with it. For one thing, it makes you a thief. Being a thief is not cool. Also, if too many people write one fanfic, it becomes overworked and cliché.

Let me come clean about something: I kind of stole the idea for The Scene from beggarsnotes on livejournal. She wrote a fantastic underground club story called Iron, Neon Lights, and Weed. HOWEVER, I made the idea my own. The concept is similar, but I altered the setting hugely to the point where I don't think anybody caught on. It was still shitty of me to steal her idea, but at least I was somewhat original about it. If you're going to steal someone's idea, I can't stop you, but do your best to change it up as much as possible.

And now we get into some renowned clichés. The first one, I've gotten some shit in the past for addressing, but it is absolutely vital that I do so, and I will not apologize for calling you shits out on it.

Self-harm in fanfics is so fucking cliché. Just because something is a common issue in real life doesn't mean it needs to take up an entire plot or subplot of every other story in bandom. And you know what? It's a sad thing. I'm not trying to minimize it. In fact, I've been recovering for almost three years (I'm only saying this publicly so you understand that I'm not just some kid who doesn't get it; and if you ever need tips on curbing the urge, feel free to message me and I'll help you out). But frankly, I don't want to read about Vic being depressed and cutting himself and Jaime being sad because his boyfriend is sad. Depression in general is not a solid basis for a fanfic. You can't convincingly tell me that it's not overworked. And I know a lot of people write to cope with things they deal with, which is fine, but I don't think it's wise to post one of five thousand generic self-harm fics. If you want to address your depression in your writing, do it in a setting besides high school and with issues besides self-harm.

Child abuse, too, is cliché. And, like self-harm, it's really sad and really serious, but that doesn't mean it's okay to include it in your story. It has been written about way too many times, and you can only have so many variations of the same story.

(NOTE: Trigger warnings don't excuse the inclusion of self-harm / child abuse / eating disorders. Yes, part of the issue is the trigger, but aside from these doing nothing to prevent the spread of self-harm culture, it also does nothing to aid the cliché.)

Something to accompany self-harm and depression: mental hospital fics are far too common for any of you to consider starting one. There are a LOT of them already. And don't get me wrong; some of them are really good. But they are cliché. To be honest, hospitals in general are cliché. A lot of people don't plan their stories before they start writing, so when they start running out of ideas, they decide to input some freak accident and get someone into the hospital. Do not do this. Don't even think about it.

(Disclaimer: Someone ends up in the hospital in one of my fics but this was carefully orchestrated and is relevant to the setting and character types).

Something else that is cliché is AHs or non-AUs. (AH = alternate history, AU = alternate universe). In simpler terms, a non-AU is a tour story that could be taking place right this second. An AH would classify as a tour story where current girlfriends don't exist or a band member's past is altered or anything similar. These kinds of stories are actually not all that cool. For one thing, there are a billion of them. Also, it's hard to realistically imagine Mike Fuentes the Ho Supreme Womanizer being cool with sucking Tony's dick. There are way better ideas you could come up with.

Something I've seen a lot in non-AUs is psycho exes. Austin is dating some bitch named Kelli and then decides later to fuck Alan's butt instead of her. Kelli then goes batshit crazy and kidnaps Alan screaming, "If I can't have Austin, no one can!" This is dumb. Don't do this.

If you're going to do a supernatural-themed fic (as in mythological, not SPN), plan it carefully. There are a lot of supernatural themes that are overworked, i.e. vampires, werewolves, angels, demons, ghosts, etc. You can still use those, but you have to make it original somehow. You could also choose mythological creatures that aren't overworked, like changelings or kitsunes or something. Just be careful not to copy anything.

Now, I'm not sure where the cliché of a tribe of evil British kids in an American high school came from, but mother of god, please stop including this in your fics. Even if you're scene trash and the only bands you know are PTV, SWS, OM&M, and BMTH, it doesn't matter because if it's absolutely necessary to create an evil gang, you can make your own characters. Aside from that many British people living in one random-ass American town being unrealistic, it's simply not original anymore. If you take a second to think about it and it seems iffy, just leave it out.

There's a lot more I can say about high school AUs. I'll repeat this: no self-harm. If you're writing as an outlet for the struggles in your life (which is how the worst writing I've ever produced came to be), that's okay, but otherwise, leave it out. And whatever you do, do not romanticize it if you're publishing it online. There are little twelve-year-old scene girls who log onto Wattpad to see if her favorite Kellic was updated, and if you romanticize self-harm, you are corrupting her. It is not glamorous. It is not cool. But she'll think it is. You are responsible for what you imply to your audience, and not only is a self-harm fic so goddamn overworked that I want to impale my skull with scissors, but it is educating your readers about a dangerous coping mechanism that, frankly, should be a lot more taboo than it is.

When creating your characters, assuming you are dead-set on a high school AU, avoid bully/victim, popular kid/loser, badass/nerd, and teacher/student. As far as plot goes, make sure it's realistic. I am aware that high school meth dealers exist because I know a few (don't do meth; meth is gross), but this is still something that comes across as far-fetched. Just because you know someone in your high school who's in a gang doesn't mean that you should be able to write a fic about scrawny-ass Pete Wentz, gang leader. However, your plot should still be interesting. Interesting things can happen to high school kids without guns or drugs being involved. High school AUs, though, should probably center around interesting characters rather than an interesting plot; if you have good characters, a good plot will follow.

(NOTE: Your characters are in high school, so they should not have more than one or two tattoos, if any. Tattoos are very, very expensive, and if you know someone with a machine who will do it for free, chances are, they're self-taught; thus probably not any good. Not to mention that you have to be eighteen or have parental permission to get a professional one done.)

I advise against inserting your typical high school house party into a fic. For one thing, I have never seen nor heard of a huge, alcohol-ridden house party in real life. Also, it seems like there's one of these in every high school AU. It's at the point where not only is it unsurprising to read about, but it's disappointing as well. You know that if your characters go to a house party, there will either be a fight of some kind or Mike will get drunk and "accidentally" cheat on Tony. If you value your dignity, don't even think about it.

Something that isn't partial to HS AUs -- in a lot of fics, especially non-AUs, character A gives a huge speech in front of a crowd about how much they love character B, typically after a falling-out. Then, of course, character B has no concern for how they were just forcibly outed to their entire family or fanbase or whatever and instead runs into character A's arms. I can't be the only one who sighs heavily whenever this happens. I know that one guy from Sleeping With Sirens proposed to his wife that way, but this is really cringeworthy. It is not cute. It does not make a good ending. Just don't do it.

Endings can be hard. It may seem impossible to tie up every loose end and resolve the central problem in a realistic manner. If that's the case, you could consider an unhappy ending. Not necessarily to be surprising or pull the rug out from under your readers, but to present the story in a way that makes sense or means something. If you can end it happily and the thought doesn't make you vomit in your mouth, then by all means, write a happy ending. But a happy ending is not a requirement. If your characters have a problematic relationship, they can break up. If the villain seems to be succeeding, they can succeed. Unhappy endings are an option. But if you go for an unhappy ending, don't make it too abrupt. "Suddenly, I heard a huge boom and then everything went black." A little commentary at the end is a good idea. Don't write something upsetting if you can't write it well.

In closing, I have a few more things to point out:

· Don't include your main character's dream in the story unless the story is about dreams. Either it sounds too realistic for a dream, it throws off the flow, or it's just pointless.

· DON'T say, "Aw. He's so cute. Wait, what?! I'm not gay! (and/or) He's my best friend! I can't be having thoughts like that!" For one thing, this is not how the thought process works at all when you're questioning your sexuality. For another thing, every eleven year old with a word processor uses this phrase. It's overused and it's not realistic.

· Don't have your characters run out of the room for no reason, an example being Frank accidentally saying he loves Gerard and Gerard saying 'wut' and then Frank is like, 'aw, shit, I guess it's time to run away with no explanation, because that will solve my problems and not create more stress for me.' There are better ways of going about saying something regrettable.

· A bad example of going about saying something regrettable is as follows: Sigh, Gerard is so sexy. "Um...thanks?" Oh, shit, did I say that out loud?! "Yup." If your characters have not learned which brain impulses regulate speech by now, they should go back to preschool. I know that tourettes is a thing but they would exhibit other symptoms besides accidentally calling Gerard sexy one time when it was convenient.

· Don't call eyes 'orbs' when you're describing them. It doesn't sound sophisticated or eloquent; it's not good imagery; it's overused. You can say 'eyes.' How many times have you read a fic where Vic says, "Kellin has beautiful, sea green orbs."? I'd be willing to bet a lot.

· "Posh" accents in fics are just annoying. "'How are you on this fine day, sir Alan?' asked Austin in a fake-posh accent. Unfortunately, though he knew Austin meant well, Alan did not find this attractive at all and even threw up in his mouth a little."

That's all for now. I'm sorry that took so long; I was extremely fucking busy.