#imnottherealharrystyles

Tell us why Harry is your muse.

He’s just...the best. He’s so kind and genuine; I’ve never heard anyone who’s met him say anything negative about him as a person. He makes me feel better about myself, which is hard to explain, but I’ll give it a shot. It’s mostly because he’s so confident in himself, especially with his fashion choices, and he doesn’t care what other people think, which is a huge change from when 1D first started out. He’s grown to love himself over time and that’s really inspiring to me. He’s also got an amazing muscular body with some soft spots here and there, and that makes me feel better about my soft spots. If Harry has them and can be seen as so perfect by so many people, maybe mine aren’t so bad.

Do you tell people you write fanfic? Do you tell people you write at all?

I don’t usually tell people in regular conversation, but if the subject of writing comes up, and I feel comfortable enough with the person to share that it’s fic that I write, then I’ll tell them. Most of the time, it’s something I keep to myself.

Do you have a writing playlist, or do you need complete silence to write?

Definitely complete silence. It’s hard for me to listen to something and try to string words together at the same time, especially when I’m making up dialogue or trying to describe something.

What’s your favourite thing you've ever written.

I have a couple WIPs that I’m really proud of, but my favorite fic that’s been posted is We Gamble With Desire, my Zirry fic. I love writing those characters so much, and I’ve got so many timestamps and continuations planned for that verse. I could write in it forever, honestly.

What's your favourite thing you've ever read? Fanfic and non-fanfic?

Favorite book has to be either The Outsiders or The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. It’s a children’s novel kind of like The Chronicles of Narnia in that it’s about three kids who go on adventures in a fantasy world, but this world is created by the kids in their own imaginations. I’ve read it about ten times over the years and it never fails to make me happy.

Favorite fic, that’s a little more difficult. I’ve read so many! The first one to pop in my head is Landslide, one that I’ve only read once but has really stuck with me ever since. I think it sticks out because it’s the first actual AU that I read, one that takes place in 1976 with Harry as an undercover FBI agent and Louis as a suspected cult leader. It’s long, about 140K if I remember correctly, but it really gets you hooked fast. There’s also Big White Lie, an OT5 A/B/O fic (which I know some people aren’t into), and the Working For The Skin Trade series, in which girl!Niall is rich and hires male escorts to keep her company.

Do you tend to stick to one genre, or do you like to change things up a little?

I think all of my writing ends up being kind of the same. Mostly smut, some angst here and there, maybe some feelings sprinkled in. I’m trying to branch out a bit with some of my WIPs, so we’ll see what happens with those.

Do you have a fixed plan of what you're going to write, or do you just see where the story takes you?

A little bit of both? Sometimes I start with a fixed plan, then get to the end of that plan and go where the story takes me. Other times I start with a plan but it all goes right out the window once I start writing. It really depends on what it is I’m writing and what kind of mood I’m in while I’m working on it.

Is there a schedule you follow in terms of when you write? Or are you more impulsive and just write where and when you can?

Where and when I can, definitely. I can make plans to write on certain days, usually whatever weekday I have off from work, but sometimes motivation doesn’t line up with that. An idea will occasionally strike me when I’m at work or busy doing something else, so I’ll jot it down in my phone real quick so I don’t forget it. Maybe I should try and make a schedule for writing. It might work better than my current process.

Are your stories driven by plot or character?

Plot, I think. The ideas I have are usually more about the plot and less about the characters. If I feel like it’s going to be a long fic, I try and plan out the plot first and then figure out who I want my characters to be after. The main pairing probably changes two or three times before I find a couple that sticks and fits with the plot best.

Some readers are wary of leaving feedback because they're unsure how the writer will take it, how do you personally like to receive feedback? Do you want to be critiqued, or would you like to just know if they did or didn't enjoy what they've read?

I like people to let me know what they liked and didn’t like, and also suggestions of what they want to see next or what they think could have made the story better. It helps to know what people want to read so I can post things they’ll like.

Do you use a beta? If so, feel free to give them a shout out! How do they help you?

I don’t, but I would love to have one! I have a few friends who I can bounce ideas off of, but an actual beta would be lovely to have.

Is writing a hobby or do you have aspirations of writing professionally outside of fanfiction?

100% a hobby. I’ve played with the thought of writing professionally, because I love writing and getting paid to do it would be amazing, but I’m terrible at keeping to deadlines so professional writing probably wouldn’t be a good idea for me.

Do you post your writing in other places? Where do you you find to be the best place for your work?

I’ve only posted my writing on Tumblr and AO3. I think they’re both good platforms because it’s easy to post writing on them and feedback is easy to give and to get.

Favourite writing trope?

Oh, man. There’s so many to choose from! I like writing “they’re in love and everyone knows it but them” and all of its variations, and I love reading “oh no! There’s only one bed/couch/seat left! Whatever are we to do??”

AU or OU?

AU. I’m not great at coming up with original characters but I can come up with alternate universes in a heartbeat.

Preferred types of writing: Blurbs, short stories, or full fics?

Either blurbs or full fics, depending on what kind of mood I’m in. I like blurbs for second person/self-insert pieces because most of my blurbs are based on things that have recently happened to me or certain feelings I’m having and need to get out, but I like full fics because I like being able to take my time telling stories with more complex plots, and full fics allow me to take all the time I need to tell them.

Do you draw anything from your personal life? What inspires your subject matter?

I draw a good portion of the blurbs I write from personal experience. A lot of my early writing was me turning my daydreams about my various crushes into little things I would keep to myself, just things I would use to get the ideas out of my head so I could move on to other impossible and unrealistic daydreams. A lot of my big fic ideas stem from me wanting to read a certain thing and not being able to find it anywhere so I just write it myself.

What's your purpose for writing? What do you hope to accomplish?

I’ve never really thought about it, to be honest. The main reason I started writing was to get stuff out of my head. My first Tumblr fandom piece was written for somebody because they had an idea and didn’t know how to flesh it out, so I figured I’d do it. More recently I’ve tried to come up with ideas for things that may not exist yet, try to cater to the parts of the fandom that don’t always get things written for/about them. I just like being able to give people the opportunity to read something different and maybe make them happy along the way.

And finally, do you have any advice/tips for your fellow fanfic writers?