{"id":966,"date":"2022-03-10T11:25:31","date_gmt":"2022-03-10T16:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/?page_id=966"},"modified":"2024-03-24T11:21:22","modified_gmt":"2024-03-24T15:21:22","slug":"check-your-story","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/read-online\/check-your-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Check Your Story!"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>\r\n@media screen and (min-width: 768px) {\r\n  .su-tabs-nav {\r\n    display: flex;\r\n  }\r\n  .su-tabs-nav span {\r\n    flex-basis: 100%;\r\n    text-align: center;\r\n  }\r\n  .su-tabs-nav span:last-child {\r\n    margin-right: 0;\r\n  }\r\n}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"su-tabs su-tabs-style-default su-tabs-mobile-scroll\" data-active=\"1\" data-scroll-offset=\"0\" data-anchor-in-url=\"yes\"><div class=\"su-tabs-nav\"><span class=\" tabmoji-cover\" data-anchor=\"cover\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">&nbsp;&nbsp;Cover<\/span><span class=\" tabmoji-pubdata\" data-anchor=\"pubdata\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">&nbsp;&nbsp;Publication Data<\/span><span class=\" tabmoji-note\" data-anchor=\"the-article\" data-url=\"\" data-target=\"blank\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">&nbsp;&nbsp;The Article<\/span><\/div><div class=\"su-tabs-panes\"><div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-cover\" data-title=\"&nbsp;&nbsp;Cover\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4059\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4059 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">Publication Data \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\">\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Check-Your-Story.png\" alt=\"Cover art for \u201cCheck Your Story!\u201d by Ardath Rekha\" align=\"center\" style=\"width:100%\" customlink=\"false\" \/>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4059\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4059 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">Publication Data \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-pubdata\" data-title=\"&nbsp;&nbsp;Publication Data\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3995\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3995 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#cover\">\u00ab Cover&nbsp;<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4141\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4141 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#the-article\">The Article \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1312\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1312 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><b><u>Check Your Story!<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <h4 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 30px;\">By Ardath Rekha<\/h4>\r\n\r\n<span data-post-id=\"4479\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4479 \"><p><b>Synopsis:<\/b> New to writing fan fiction and hoping to get a positive response from readers? Ardath walks you through the things that you should look for, and fix, in your work before you post it.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p><b>Note:<\/b> This article was originally written in late summer 2001, when the Art of Vin Diesel message board was still brand new and many new writers were asking for help with self-editing. The instructions given here were designed for new fanfiction writers with little or no proofreading experience, but who were worried about being derided by more experienced writers on the site. Over the years, as the article was picked up for use on other sites, additional fandoms were substituted to make the references a little more universal.<\/p><\/span>\r\n\r\n<p><b>Category:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-genre\/#nonfiction\">Non-Fiction<\/a>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><p><b>Number of Chapters:<\/b> 1 \r\n\r\n<p><b>Net Word Count:<\/b><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53730_button\" class=\"su-tooltip-button su-tooltip-button-outline-yes\" aria-describedby=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53730\" data-settings='{\"position\":\"top\",\"behavior\":\"hover\",\"hideDelay\":0}' tabindex=\"0\"><sup><i class=\"fas fa-question-circle\" style=\"color:#243a68;\"><\/i><\/sup><\/span><span style=\"display:none;z-index:100\" id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53730\" class=\"su-tooltip\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-inner su-tooltip-shadow-yes\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%);color:#D9ECFB;font-size:16px;border-radius:5px;text-align:left;max-width:300px;line-height:1.25\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-title\"><\/span><span class=\"su-tooltip-content su-u-trim\">For individual anthology articles that appear in the Read Online section, net word counts include only the story text on the actual story page, minus the title.<\/span><\/span><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53730_arrow\" class=\"su-tooltip-arrow\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%)\" data-popper-arrow><\/span><\/span> 2,074\r\n\r\n<p><b>Total Word Count:<\/b><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53ebe_button\" class=\"su-tooltip-button su-tooltip-button-outline-yes\" aria-describedby=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53ebe\" data-settings='{\"position\":\"top\",\"behavior\":\"hover\",\"hideDelay\":0}' tabindex=\"0\"><sup><i class=\"fas fa-question-circle\" style=\"color:#243a68;\"><\/i><\/sup><\/span><span style=\"display:none;z-index:100\" id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53ebe\" class=\"su-tooltip\" role=\"tooltip\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-inner su-tooltip-shadow-yes\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%);color:#D9ECFB;font-size:16px;border-radius:5px;text-align:left;max-width:300px;line-height:1.25\"><span class=\"su-tooltip-title\"><\/span><span class=\"su-tooltip-content su-u-trim\">For individual anthology articles that appear in the Read Online section, total word counts include all text present within the story tabs, excluding tab text, forward\/back page links, and tooltips. This count tends to be slightly different from the eBook Total Word Count reported in aggregate on the anthology title page.<\/span><\/span><span id=\"su_tooltip_6a8e455c53ebe_arrow\" class=\"su-tooltip-arrow\" style=\"z-index:100;background:linear-gradient(to bottom, #4474BE 0%, #243a68 100%)\" data-popper-arrow><\/span><\/span> 2,352\r\n\r\n<p><b>Article Length:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-story-length\/#short-story\">Short Story<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><p><b>First Posted:<\/b> August 7, 2001\r\n\r\n<p><b>Last Updated:<\/b> August 7, 2001\r\n\r\n<p><b>Status:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/browse-by-status\/#complete\">Complete<\/a><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n\r\n<span data-post-id=\"4432\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4432 \"><p><small>The views expressed in these articles are solely the views of Ardath Rekha. References to specific works, actors, and writers are done in keeping with the Digital Millenium Copyright Act\u2019s fair use policies. eBook design and cover art by <a href=\"https:\/\/laraklaber.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LaraRebooted<\/a>, drawn from a photo by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/@ann-nekr-3111643\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ann Nekr<\/a>, licensed through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pexels<\/a>, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.1001fonts.com\/great-vibes-font.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Great Vibes<\/a> font from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.1001fonts.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">1001 Fonts<\/a>, and background graphics &copy; 1998 Noel Mollon, adapted and licensed via Teri Williams Carnright from the now-retired Fantasyland Graphics site (c. 2003). This eBook may not be sold or advertised for sale. If you are a copyright holder of any of the referenced works, and believe that part or all of this eBook exceeds fair use practices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/contact-me\/\">please contact Ardath Rekha<\/a>.<\/small><\/p><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><small><i>Rev. 2022.10.09<\/i><\/small><\/p><\/span><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3995\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3995 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#cover\">\u00ab Cover&nbsp;<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4141\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4141 \"><p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#the-article\">The Article \u00bb<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"su-tabs-pane su-u-clearfix su-u-trim tabmoji-note\" data-title=\"&nbsp;&nbsp;The Article\">\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3996\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3996 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">\u00ab Publication Data<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<span data-post-id=\"1356\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-1356 \">  <h2 style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><b><u>Check Your Story!<\/u><\/b><\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">We\u2019ve all been there. It\u2019s one in the morning and you\u2019ve just watched <i>Pitch Black<\/i> for the twenty-seventh time, and your mind is buzzing. A \u201cwhat-if\u201d scenario with Riddick and Jack has popped into your head. Or maybe you just finished watching the season finale of <i>Angel<\/i> for the tenth time and you have this powerful idea for a story in which Illyria and Spike embark on even more outrageous adventures. You grab some paper and begin to scribble frantically, or boot up your computer and begin typing like a maniac. Hours later, the idea setting your brain on fire has been transferred to paper or disk, and you sit back feeling a sense of inordinate satisfaction. You\u2019re <i>done.<\/i> Now it\u2019s time to post it to your friends on the Internet!<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Just a minute, though, because you\u2019re nowhere <i>near<\/i> done.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">A great deal of Internet fanfiction, for whatever reason, gets posted just like that. Right after the initial creative frenzy is over, the writer puts it up on their favorite boards, without a single editing pass or even checking their spelling. Most of this fiction is difficult  \u2013 if not impossible  \u2013 for others to read. This defeats your purpose  \u2013 you want to share your work with others, right? So, before you put it online, here are a few things you should do first:<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>1. Check your spelling! <\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">This is one of the most common omissions of new writers, despite the fact that it\u2019s one of the easiest mistakes to correct. If you\u2019re using a word-processing program, chances are it has a spell-checker built into it. Find it and use it. But <i>don\u2019t<\/i> rely exclusively on it. It won\u2019t tell you when you typed \u201ctoo\u201d but meant \u201cto.\u201d If you\u2019re using technical language, it may not have a particular word in its internal dictionary. If you\u2019re serious about writing, it\u2019s time to get yourself a good dictionary anyway. Print out a copy of the story and go through it. Try reading it backwards  \u2013 that will help you concentrate on the spelling of the words, and help prevent you from unconsciously interpreting an incorrect word as the correct one. If you\u2019re not sure whether the word you\u2019re using is the one you mean  \u2013 or even one that really exists  \u2013 <i>look it up.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>2. Check your grammar! <\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">>Once again, your word processing program should have grammar tools that you can use. However, once again, do not rely exclusively on the program. Use it, but think about what it\u2019s suggesting. Microsoft Word comes up with some pretty bizarre suggestions from time to time, so don\u2019t just hit OK to everything or you\u2019ll give yourself a huge headache. There are several useful grammar reference books out there for writers. All writers should own a dictionary, a thesaurus, and one or both of these:<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"margin-top: 20px;\"><div align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Elements-Style-William-Strunk-Jr\/dp\/1989862004\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i>The Annotated Elements of Style<\/i> by William Strunk, Jr.<\/a> <\/div>This book is small and concise, and can almost be considered the Writer\u2019s Bible. After the dictionary and thesaurus, this should be at the top of your to-buy list. And, given its size, it\u2019ll be the cheapest of the books you buy, too.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"margin-top: 20px;\"><div align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Essentials-English-Practical-Handbook-Educational-dp-0764143166\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i>Essentials of English<\/i> by Vincent F. Hopper, et al<\/a> <\/div>This is another excellent reference book for grammar rules. Like <i>Elements,<\/i> it features many examples of grammatical errors and the ways to correct them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 20px;\">Spelling and grammar errors happen to everyone. All writers misspell words. All writers make typos. There\u2019s no shame in it, as long as you\u2019re willing to take the time and make the effort to correct your mistakes. When you read a story with no spelling mistakes or grammatical errors, don\u2019t think \u201coh, that\u2019s way beyond me.\u201d What you\u2019re seeing there is the result of the writer\u2019s <i>hard work,<\/i> and that\u2019s well within your reach.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>3. Check your Tense!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">A lot of new writers have trouble with tense. One sentence will be in present tense (\u201cRiddick grabs his shiv and lunges forward.\u201d) and the next will be in past tense. (\u201cJack flinched back as one of the creatures flew by.\u201d) Sometimes, a single sentence will move from one tense to another (\u201cRiddick laughed as Jack wipes the mud off of her face.\u201d) This is a fairly common mistake, so don\u2019t be ashamed if you catch yourself making it, but it\u2019s one that you need to correct. You need to choose your tense, past or present, and <i>stay in it.<\/i> There are a lot of other rules that govern the use of tense, but we\u2019re not going to get into them now. The books listed above will help you deal with tense issues in greater detail  \u2013 use them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>4. Check your Point of View!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Do you switch perspectives with no warning? Do you go from First Person (\u201cI\u201d) to Third Person (\u201che\u201d or \u201cshe\u201d) and back again? This is another common mistake. <\/p>\r\n\r\n <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If you\u2019re writing in First Person, you need to <i>stay in it.<\/i> Your narrative perspective needs to remain with the <b>one<\/b> character you have chosen. You see only what he or she sees; you know only what he or she knows. The only information you or your readers can have about the thoughts, emotions or motivations of other characters is what can be interpreted from their expressions and actions. And remember, the character whose perspective you\u2019re writing from <i>isn\u2019t always going to interpret those expressions and actions correctly.<\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Second Person is, as a rule, something to avoid altogether in fiction. You\u2019ll notice that it\u2019s being used in this paragraph  \u2013 <i>you<\/i> are the subject, and the article is written about what <i>you<\/i> are doing and seeing. However, aside from the \u201cChoose-Your-Own-Adventure\u201d books you may have read as a child, or Fantasma\u2019s \u201cFive-Minute Fantasies,\u201d it usually doesn\u2019t work in fiction. Avoid it for now.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Writing in Third Person allows an author to be a little more flexible. Some transition between different characters\u2019 POVs is acceptable, but you\u2019re still playing with fire. Any time your POV switches without warning, it will jar your reader out of the narrative. Stay with a single character throughout your chapter. If you switch POVs, do so at a chapter, scene or section break. A very few experienced authors can successfully switch between POVs in a single scene  \u2013 during, for example, heated dialogue  \u2013 but this takes practice and extreme care. Many professional writers who do it are <i>not<\/i> successful, and it weakens their stories. I\u2019m sorry to say that the novelization of <i>Pitch Black<\/i> itself is a prime example of this: some of the point-of-view transitions were difficult for readers to follow. When your readers have to stop and think about what they\u2019re reading, they step outside of the story, and that\u2019s the point when you as a writer can lose them. The best rule for now is to pick a character and stay with him or her for the duration.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>5. Check your dialogue!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Do your conversations run together? An important rule of thumb is this: any time a new person speaks, a new paragraph starts. If you have more than one person speaking in a single paragraph, you\u2019re just going to confuse your readers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Remember to indicate who\u2019s speaking. If you have just two speakers, you don\u2019t have to tag <i>every<\/i> paragraph with their names, but do it often enough to make sure that the readers  \u2013 and you  \u2013 are keeping track of who is saying what.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Do your characters talk like real people? This is another place where a lot of new writers can get in trouble. Listen to the words and cadence of your character, if it\u2019s a canon character from a movie. Riddick, for instance, has several \u201curban\u201d linguistic patterns. I\u2019ve read many fics that had him using a much more formal, \u201cproper\u201d speaking style, and it always jarred me out of the narrative. The more your character\u2019s speech patterns resemble the original portrayal, the easier it will be for people to believe in the character in your story. Also, finding the characters\u2019 natural voices will often help you understand them well enough to portray them convincingly in your narrative.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>6. Check it again!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Set your story aside for a day or so and come back to it with a fresh eye. Sometimes grammar errors and spelling mistakes you didn\u2019t notice before will become glaring when you reread your tale. Look for things you didn\u2019t notice before  \u2013 overuse of a word, for instance (when I edited a recent chapter of my fic, I found myself gasping \u201cgood grief, I used the word \u2018suddenly\u2019 more than a dozen times!\u201d). If it\u2019s part of a multi-part work, go back over your previous chapters and make sure what you\u2019ve written in your latest chapter doesn\u2019t contradict anything you wrote before. Make sure you\u2019re not reusing a phrase or concept that you\u2019re particularly fond of  \u2013 many writers have done that by accident. One published author inadvertently reused about six or seven pages of storyline in a sequel to the book those pages first appeared in! That can be a very large embarrassment.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>7. Read your story aloud!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">A lot of times, just hearing the words spoken will show you where your flaws are. You can hear the hitches in your dialogue, and can feel it when a sentence is too long-winded.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>8. Check the board requirements and follow them!<\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">The board you\u2019re posting to may have rules about ratings and content. Some boards (The UVDFC, for example) have separate forums for general fiction and sexually explicit material. Make sure you\u2019re posting in the right place.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Make sure you\u2019re not breaking any of the content guidelines (on the Rhiana Griffith Fan Club site, for example, fiction featuring Rhiana Griffith as herself is strictly forbidden). If you\u2019ve never posted to a particular board before, do yourself a favor and read some of the posts already there, especially ones by veteran board regulars. That will give you a feeling for the kind of fiction they like. If your story\u2019s too different, you might want to wait on posting it until they\u2019ve become acquainted with you through other pieces that are more to their tastes. They\u2019ll be more receptive to something different at that point.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Check the ratings structure, figure out what rating is most appropriate for your work (if you\u2019re not sure, err on the side of caution and use the harder rating) and post the rating in your title. Post it again at the beginning of your piece, along with an explanation of what sort of content qualifies it for that rating (examples: R for violence and language, or NC-17 for extremely explicit sex) so that readers can avoid content they\u2019d prefer not to be exposed to.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0;\"><b><u>9. Be ready for an honest reaction. <\/u><\/b><\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">Most of the boards out there tend to be noncommittal in their responses. You may hear a lot of \u201cI like it, write more\u201d with no specifics about what a reader likes or dislikes. You may hear nothing at all at first. Or you may get honest responses along the lines of \u201cI really don\u2019t like what you had Riddick doing in chapter 2\u201d or \u201cI don\u2019t think Dom would say that.\u201d Be prepared to take it on the chin, and give serious consideration to what people tell you. You can\u2019t grow as a writer if nobody tells you where your weaknesses are.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If you don\u2019t hear anything at first, don\u2019t assume that means no-one\u2019s reading or that everybody hates it. I would guess that as many as 90% of the Internet readers never say a word about what they\u2019re reading to any of the authors. If you continue your story, and work hard at it, you will begin to get a response. Hard work shows, and the knowledge that you\u2019ve been working hard to entertain your readers will make them more responsive, and more willing to give you genuine feedback on your work.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 0;\">If you\u2019re not getting enough critiquing and want some serious help, try looking for a beta reader. This is someone who can approach your story with a fresh and critical editing eye and help you improve it. Go <a href=\"https:\/\/fanlore.org\/wiki\/Beta\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a> to learn more about what a beta reader is, what one does, and how you can find one.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-indent:.25in; margin-bottom: 20px;\">But once again, don\u2019t just throw your first draft out onto the net and expect the praise to roll in. Check your story, and your readers will thank you.<\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 20px;\"><i>(And a big Thank You to <b>my<\/b> beta reader, Tkilmer, for her support and advice.)<\/i><\/center>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"text-align: right; margin-bottom: 0;\"><i>August 7, 2001<\/i><\/p><\/span>\r\n<div style=\"margin-top: 20px;\">\r\n<div class='content-column one_half'><span data-post-id=\"3996\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-3996 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a href=\"#pubdata\">\u00ab Publication Data<\/a><\/p><\/span><\/div>\r\n<div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span data-post-id=\"4127\" class=\"insert-page insert-page-4127 \"><p style=\"text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0;\">&nbsp;<\/p><\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n<div align=\"center\" class=\"button\" style=\"margin-top: 10px;\">\r\n<a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/anthologies\/articles\/check-your-story\/\">Return to the Title Page<\/a>\r\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Return to the Title Page","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":308,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"bgseo_title":"Read Online: \u201cCheck Your Story!\u201d by Ardath Rekha","bgseo_description":"New to writing fan fiction and hoping to get a positive response from readers? Ardath walks you through the things that you should look for, and fix, in your work before you post it.","bgseo_robots_index":"index","bgseo_robots_follow":"follow","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-966","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","no-wpautop"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=966"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/966\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4939,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/966\/revisions\/4939"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/fanworks\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}