reminders and positivity

But here's to the shitty second drafts! The shitty third drafts. The fourth drafts, the fifth drafts, whatever iteration of your work you're on right now.

It's okay if you're on your fifth draft and it sucks. It probably doesn't, we are our own worst critics after all, but it's also okay if it does suck. That's how we learn. That's how we grow, that's how we improve our craft.

"Write a shitty first draft!" they say. Well, I'm saying write a shitty second draft. Write a shitty third draft. A fourth draft, a fifth draft.

You don't have to worry about characterisation. You don't have to worry about them being OOC.

You don't have to worry about getting all the little details correct. You don't have to worry if you're remembering canon events or worldbuilding exactly right down to the last detail.

Don't worry about the source material. You're here to have fun with these characters and these worlds.

Stop. Hold up. Wait a minute.

If they make you stop and think about a character and get inspired to write something new and different for you, then great! If they help you with your fics in ways that you're happy with, that's awesome!

"What's the point in writing this fic? Everyone has moved on to something else."

"What's the point in writing this fic? It's a small/tiny/non existant fandom."

"What's the point in writing this fic? No one is here to read/kudos/comment."

"What's the point in writing this fic?"

Well.

The fandom is dead? You can keep that fandom alive with your fics. And a fandom never really dies, not even when the last person has left. They go dormant, decorated with the fics and fanart of the past, waiting for the next people to come along to create new things.

Everyone has moved on to something else? That's okay, people lose interest in things. And there are always people discovering new interests. Your fics will be a welcome discovery for new fans coming into your fandom. And, sometimes, old fans return and will be delighted to read new things they haven't seen before.

It's a small/tiny/non existant fandom? Then your fics are needed more than ever. Someone needs to write these fics, someone needs to put these blorbos into situations, someone needs to write the fix-it fics and AUs. You have that magic and power. And your fics will be appreciated in such a small space.

No one is here to read/kudos/comment? Yeah, maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow either. But even in big fandoms there are fics that are discovered by new readers years after they've been posted. I know it's hard not to get any response now, but your fics are like gifts in the eyes of readers desperately searching for them, especially when they're thinking this fandom might not even have any fics at all, or any fics like your fics,, and then they discover that they do. Because of you.

Sometimes we put messages into bottles and throw them into the ocean. Sometimes we put them on golden records and launch them into space. We might never know if they reach someone. We might one day get a response.

Either way, I think it's a beautiful and brave thing to do. To send something of yourself out there into the world. To leave messages behind for someone to find at the right place and the right time. To create something out of nothing, and to leave it as a gift to others.

So keep writing.

Maybe no one has told you this in a while. Maybe no one has told you it ever. Well, I'm telling you now: I believe in you and I'm sending you so many good writing vibes!! I want to see you finish your fic!! Because it is worth it. There are people out there who are dying to read a fic just like yours. Your fic is so good, trust me it's amazing despite what you might tell yourself, and I think you should keep up the good work! You can do it, I'm rooting for you!

♡ I love you fan artists.

♡ I love you gif makers.

♡ I love you photoset editors.

♡ I love you video editors.

♡ I love you headcanon and analysis writers.

♡ I love you readers who comment/kudos/bookmark/like/reblog.

♡ I love you readers who are silent/lurk/too shy.

♡ I love you ask meme/game creators.

♡ I love you event organisers.

♡ I love you zine organisers.

This is your interest, so only you get to decide how you have fun with it. Not others.

Yes, they may have the same interest as you. And so they get to decide how they want to have fun with it.

And that's the beauty of fandoms. That's what fandom is for. We all come together with our own passion and love for this special thing. We celebrate it in our own unique ways, and we bring those unique ways together.