Fanfiction -a spotter's guide.

Introduction- Fanfiction is a semi-illegal but apparently highly entertaining act of creating a story using characters and settings belonging to a published author, this is termed a "fandom" and there are many breeds and sub-breeds of fandoms.

Although only now being discovered by scientists, Fanfiction has been around for many years, but due to their rapid adaptation to the Internet environment, they have become far more common and easy to find.

Breeds and sub-breeds- Breeds of Fanfiction are called Fandoms, these are very varied, ranging from the obscure '1984' fandom which are classed as an endangered species, to the common-or-garden Harry Potter fandom, which is found almost everywhere.

Sub-breeds of Fanfiction can be found in ever the smallest fandom; these include the well-known 'Crossover' breed and the popular 'Alternate Universe' pedigree.

The 'Slash' breed; also know as a 'Yaoi' or more rarely 'Shounen-ai', is a massive sub-breed, which is found in almost any fandom. These are by far the most common sub-breed and the most successful, having near-total immunity to the most virulent of Fanfiction plagues, the Mary-Sue. Slash fanfictions are easy to spot; developing a bright rainbow along it's back to ward off potential flamers, fanfiction's natural predators.

Life cycle- Fanfictions are varied creatures, some can grow to be massive, 100 chapter creatures, imposing and awe-inspiring, while many remain small yet elegant, a sub-breed commonly known as 'one-shots'.

All fanfictions tend to begin in the same way, starting with a small, but vicious creature termed a 'Plot Bunny', this will attach itself to a potential author, who acts as a catalyst, bringing a Fanfiction into full bloom.

Some fanfictions actually skip their larval form and appear into the world as fully fledged adults while some fanfictions spawn their own young, most commonly know as 'sequels'.

Fed on a natural diet of author's pride, fanfictions have also adapted to their new habitat by feeding on the reviews that spotters leave out for them, this has prompted some to grow to impressive sizes in order to attract more.

Fanfictions only die when the pride they are fed on fades away leaving shame and making them vanish from the Internet to be tended in a folder somewhere in peaceful retirement.

Behaviour- Behaviour of fanfictions are very varied, ranging from the melancholy sorrow of the 'Angst' sub-breed, to the vicious mental ravages of the deranged 'Badfic', which will be explained later in this booklet.

As a spotter, you must decide which breed you wish to study, this is not set in stone and you may decide to switch breeds at any time, however many spotters have a small pen of preferred breeds and within those, sub-breeds.

The behaviour of a fanfiction are one of the ways that sub-breeds are recognised, as well as their distinctive pelts, 'Romance' fanfictions are friendly creatures, but spotters may be nauseated if approached by the wrong breed.

'Horror' Fanfictions and 'Darkfics' (two very similar breeds) are gloomy and reclusive creatures, some of which hold a MSW (mental scarring warning).

'Suspense' fanfictions are nervous creatures, which must be approached with care.

Habitat- Although hailing originally from the magazine habitat, Fanfictions are most common on the semi-infinite plains of the internet, popping up in any shape or form, a species prone to mutations, new breeds and sub-breeds are spawned often.

Some prime spotting points are:

wood (a varied and excellent place to observe fanfictions of nearly every species, the only drawback is that diseased spread quickly and maddened 'Badfics' are on the prowl).

forest (A specialised place to observe the best of that most common of fanfiction breeds, the 'Harry Potter' fanfiction)

grove (A point excellently situated to watch the mating rituals of all breeds of Fanfiction)

Other points are situated throughout the Internet, while others provide meeting places for spotters to discuss their work.

WARNINGS-

It is my sad duty to inform every would-be spotter that while many fanfictions can be enjoyable to observe, SOME ARE DANGEROUS!

As with all animals, these dangerous fanfictions are most often so due to diseases, where the best and most merciful option is to put the poor beast down.

These fanfictions are known widely as 'Badfics' and have fallen prone to one or more plagues.

A list of the most common diseases is as follows:

Mary-Sue plague (dangerous and frighteningly common, though often easy to spot. The Mary-Sue Litmus Test provides inoculation against this)

Spelling deficiency (not very deadly and easily cured with the application of a spellcheck)

Cliché disease (unpleasant and hard to spot, subject must be put down)

Shock!Horror! (Not really a disease, but a predatory sub-species which has evolve to hunt spotters by horrifying them, a mental scrubbing brush is a spotter's only defence)

As well as this, the constant mutation of fanfiction has given rise to some poor breeding, these unfortunates are deformed and grotesque, hiding behind the mistaken impression that they are in fact healthy individuals, these tend to horrify and disgust spotters and should, again, be put down.

A Spotter's kit: All a spotter will need to start Fanfiction spotting is a computer or laptop with an Internet connection, a search engine, a mental scrubbing brush in case of Badfics, and this guide!

Enjoy the hobby that is Fanfiction spotting, and remember, beware of plot bunnies!

Skull Bearer.