Over the past few years, fanfiction has become a worldwide phenomenon. For those not familiar with fan-fiction, it is fiction written by a fan of a TV show, movie, band, or book. It gives aspiring writers a structure for a story by using famous characters, but coming up with a different reality that is not portrayed in the original context. It has become so popular that there have been actual books published from fanfiction stories.

Fan-fiction in its own way is its own culture. There are people so passionate about the topic they are writing that there have been published fics longer than a Harry Potter book. It’s a way for fans to connect with each other. It’s a way for a story to go on once it has ended whether that be on the big screen or a band breaking up. In many ways it becomes cathartic to the writer because they can take what is going on in their life and have it transposed on a page with their favorite characters or celebrities portraying it.

About six years ago I stumbled across a story that featured my favorite band members, and from that moment on I was hooked. However, the stories that I was reading weren’t as fluid and concise as some books I was reading. There were obvious grammatical mistakes and plot holes within the structure of the story, and there was this instant when I told myself that I could write the stories I wanted to read and have them be free of all these errors.

When I first started writing my story, it was as bad as all the rest out on the Internet, but I didn’t care. I had found this creative outlet where I could make these characters my own. I must have spent hours each day typing on my iPod trying to perfect the chapter I was working on. It was also nice to get feedback from fellow writers and lovers of the band when I posted it on a website specifically for fanfiction. Although I never finished the story, I still hold it near and dear to my heart because it’s where my passion started.

Now over the years my intense love for writing has grown. It has evolved to the point where there are days that I write for hours on end. Even though I no longer write fanfiction and instead center around creating new and unique characters, it is still something that I value. I’ve written loads of short stories that will (hopefully) never see the light of day, and even submitted some of my better ones to writing contests.

I took a Creative Writing course in high school that pushed me to write in genres outside of my comfort zone. I was on the school newspaper where I was shown how to write for the news and not just fictional stories that I had been writing for years. And now I have found a home at Odyssey where I can express myself on any matter I choose. It has given me a creative outlet each week and allows me to have an excuse to sit down and write.

If I had never found that one fanfiction all those years ago and become inspired to write my own I may have never found something I truly love to do. I aspire to someday have my own book published, whether that be a full novel or a children's book. I have yet to finish working on a story, and I have loads saved on my computer with the hope that one day my dream will come true.