A Guide to Fanfiction, Part Four

Here we are now, Part Four of this little (ha!) guide. I hope this is helping some of you would be writers out there. Today, we'll just tackle one entire subject:

Setting

Now, I'm sure there are people out there who are thinking "Why do we need to focus on setting for a fanfiction? It's already there!" True, but that's not even half the work. Remember how in the last section we discussed description? I mentioned that good description can make the setting its own character and used the example of Hogwarts. Naturally then, Hogwarts is generally the setting of many a Harry Potter fic. Likewise, Rivendell or Gondor or Rohan end up used as various settings for a Lord of the Rings story. However, just writing "The Fellowship was resting in Lothlorien" or "Harry and Ron were in the Gryffindor common room" isn't enough setting. Of course, the authors have described these places so RESIST the temptation to merely open up The Fellowship of the Ring or a Harry Potter book and copy what Tolkien or Rowling wrote word for word. That's called "plagiarism." It's illegal and can get you kicked off most reputable fanfiction websites. It is okay to open those books and read what the author wrote so as to make sure YOUR description is similar to the original vision. In fact, that would be preferable than to you redecorating the Gryffindor common room as long as it is in YOUR own words.

Just a few words to the wise regarding certain settings. In the Lord of the Rings, neither Rivendell nor Mirkwood have castles. Rivendell is NOT a city. It is located in a valley and is a haven. It is an outpost, just the Last Homely House. Likewise, Mirkwood is called so because it is mirky. It is being invaded by Sauron's darkness and spider attacks are common. For safety, the elves live in caves. So describing Thranduil and Legolas' living quarters in grand statements that would better suit Versailles is rather laughable amongst Tolkien fans. Now, that's not to say there AREN'T times when you can play with setting. There are places that aren't really expanded on in Lord of the Rings where you can't use a little creativity to describe. Ithilien is rebuilt by Faramir and Eowyn after their marriage--what do you think the city would look like? Also, what about where the Haradim live? What is Mordor like now that Sauron is gone? Also, Hogwarts in Harry Potter is a large castle that has many nooks and new passageways that Harry and Company never explored. Why not have them explore those now?

But setting isn't just the place your characters are located at the time. There is also an emotional setting. How do the characters feel? The setting of a dark woods, properly shown and not told, can inspire your readers to feel the fear your character feels. A well placed rain shower or thunderstorm can reflect the character's sadness or inner struggle. Sunshine or bright settings can evoke an air of joy and peace.

In conclusion: Just because you are writing a fanfic, don't think your work on setting is done. It is a greater challenge because you must describe some place in your own words someone else has already written about. Rise to it, get it right and the fans will be more appreciative.

Next up: Dialogue!