A big part of any fandom is the writing and sharing of fan fiction. People write fan fiction not for the money or the fame. They write it because they have a deep love for the fandom they are in. For many it is a creative outlet, a way to practice your writing skills anonymously and get anonymous feedback from readers.
Websites like Archive of Our Own (AO3), Fanfiction.net and Wattpad are staples in fandom spaces for being places to post your works for free and for everyone to enjoy. It can be a fun way to interact with your fellow fans. Some fan fiction have reached infamous status such as “My Immortal” and “Manacled” (both based on Harry Potter).
But as long as there has been a deep love of the practice there has been dislike of it. Opponents of fan fiction say that it is not creative because you are pulling from previously existing work.
There is an unwritten rule among people who read or write fan fiction that you do not make a profit off of it because it is based on an existing intellectual property. Many authors and copyright holders are fine with fanwork and encourage it because it builds a positive relationship and they know no profit can be made.
Fan fiction falls under fair use which, according to the NYU Journal of Intellectual Property & Entertainment Law, “is an area of copyright law that allows for freedom of expression when using unlicensed copyrighted works in very limited and specific incidences, as established in 17 U.S.C. § 107.” It can exist but the problem arises when a profit starts being made.
Fan fiction is considered a derivative work because its origins can be found in an existing piece of fiction. But within fan fiction, the author has taken this existing world and put their own spin on it through creating original characters that exist inside this universe or taking the existing characters and making up their own stories.
There has been a growing trend online of people taking somebody else’s fanfic making it into a physical book (bookbinding). They then sell it online (on websites like Etsy) and make a profit off of it.
Which if you have been reading so far is seen as a big no no because the binder is taking the work off the internet without the author’s permission (although some do get the author’s permission). Or paying self publishing websites like Lulu and Barnes & Noble Press to get on demand copies of the fan fiction.
But sometimes they are making a profit off of the work without the author’s knowledge. And some do find a loophole around selling the fanfic by saying the buyer is paying for the cost of materials and not the fanfic itself.
Like most topics these days I learned about this from TikTok with many longtime readers and writers of fan fiction reminding everyone that it already exists in a legal gray area and the monetization of it can result in the mass taking down of everyone’s favorite stories. With many videos giving the alternative of learning how to bind for your own personal library and pointing out the positive that you are gaining a new skill.
I agree with this statement. The reason why so many people like fan fiction is because it is written for fun and it builds a sense of community.
Now is fan fiction still being sold? Yes they are but they go through a process known as “filing off the serial numbers.” Basically the author changes the copyrighted material and changes them into original ideas, but still keeps the basic plot.
You have probably picked up one of these books while browsing at the bookstore or library. Some of the most famous examples of this practice are “Fifty Shades of Grey” (“Twilight”), “After” (Harry Styles) and “The Love Hypothesis” (Reylo/”Star Wars,” the cover people look suspiciously like Adam Driver and Daisy Ridley). The aforementioned “Manacled” is being reinvented as the upcoming fantasy “Alchemised.”
Some writers have gotten meta with incorporating fan fiction as a plot device within their books. Like in Rainbow Rowell’s 2013 young adult novel “Fangirl” where the main character Cath is writing a fanfic called “Carry On Simon” based on the Harry Potter-esque book series Simon Snow.
Rowell in 2015 released the book “Carry On: The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow” inspired by what Cath writes. She ended up releasing two sequels to the book “Wayward Son” (2018) and “Any Way the Wind Blows” (2021).
To say that fan fiction is not creative because it is not an original idea is ridiculous. Many of our most beloved works of fiction have their basis in something else. How many times have you seen a retelling of the “Cinderella” story?
George Lucas has said his inspiration for “Star Wars” were pulp heroes like Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon (the serials had an opening scrawl just like “Star Wars”). Along with Joseph Campbell book “The Hero with a Thousand Faces” which introduced the concept of the hero’s journey. Stories have been told and retold throughout human history.
And fan fiction has existed in some way for centuries. When Arthur Conan Doyle decided to “kill off” his most famous creation Sherlock Holmes in the short story “The Final Problem” (1893) fans in mourning and anger decided to write their own Sherlock Holmes stories.
The first modern fan fiction has its origins in the very first “Star Trek” fanzine “Spockanalia” (1967). Now with the internet, fan fiction is more accessible.
I am going to leave you with an author’s note. Please let fan fiction stay free; it is the only way it will be kept online.