Question So... I wanna write but..

I don't know where to start! I mean I been checking out all the stories and been reading them but gosh dang. How am I suppose to write a character that fits into 2007 without colliding into everything else.

Help please . I have some pretty nifty ideas I would love to write in the Whateley Academy Universe.

You basically have 3 options.

(1)Write something set in the Whateleyverse but not at Whateley. This makes fitting it so much easier

(2) Write a story set in Gen2. This has a lot less accumulated clutter to work around.

(3) Write a story set in Gen1. This is hardest to fit in as there is a lot of acumulated stuff to avoid if you don't want to look stupid.

Gen 2 y2 is a bit easier. Or go really deep and write gen 0 stuff. Most of what I've written is Origin stuff, and when I actually got a character to Whateley... Well the story stalled with lots of loose ends that I failed to tie up.
Oh there is a discord channel I signed up and since I didn't sign in and out a dozen times, I promptly forgot the password I used for the site... I haven't attempted to recover it... 'cause I'm lazy I guess.

Trust me, we understand where you're coming from... it's tough when the sandbox is filled with everyone elses toys... one thing that we do is use the Wiki which has some pretty good descriptions of what happens on the specific days. That helps with the ovelapping days.

Now, that's if you're trying to be Canon-compatible... but there's always the option to do your own thing and ignore some of the inconsistencies. Some of my favorite fan fictions have been done this way.

We've got some forums set-up for the fan fiction authors to post stories and work on ideas... just let Kristin know that you're interested in joining that group and she can get your account approved for access.

I would add that the Micro-Scenes Thread (and its companion discussion thread ) is a great way to get your feet wet as far as WA fan-fic goes. Though hopefully you won't get stuck there the way I have.

Note that several of the current canon authors were recruited (along with their stories, suitably modified for canon) from the fan-fic writers. There's no guarantee that you'll be picked - there are far more fanfic writers than canon writers on this site - but it's a place to start.

I might add that there's no recipe for getting into canon. It's an invite process, not an application process.
But, looking at the past, there are some things that seem to help:

1. First and foremost, show professionalism. Show that you can write regularly and consistently, accept constructive criticism graciously (note that "constructive" does not necessarily means "coddling" or even "polite" -- criticism can be harsh AND constructive at the same time). I'll never get picked for canon for the simple reason that I can't deliver -- my projects seem to never get finished, for instance.

2. Consider that IF (and that's a hyuuuge "if") you ever get picked for canon, it's a virtual certainty that your stories won't be moved into canon "as-is." Either they will require substantial changes or rewriting from scratch. The process gets naturally easier if your characters and storylines have minimal interaction and impact on canon characters and storylines. Understanding and following the setting rules is good; interfering with other people's stories is bad.

Thanks so much for everyone's advice.

I don't plan to make characters that intrude the canon. XD I am just hoping to skirt around it.

More convenient and that way I won't mess up the canon and suddenly branch out to some alternate timeline thingy. I will check the links you guys provided. Thanks!

NatalieRath wrote: Thanks so much for everyone's advice.

I don't plan to make characters that intrude the canon. XD I am just hoping to skirt around it.

More convenient and that way I won't mess up the canon and suddenly branch out to some alternate timeline thingy. I will check the links you guys provided. Thanks!

For fan fiction, write what you want to write - on-campus or off. There is some good fan-fic that interacts with canon characters, and we all know it's not canon, and no-one worries about any inconsistencies or interactions. It's .entertaining reading - and that's your goal as a writer, no?

The easiest thing might be to read some of the micro-scenes (not Bek's macro-scenes or the serialized ones that span 42 episodes ) but the short ones to get an idea of what interactions people use in fan-fic. You might read a story that has an open ending or something that isn't yet resolved, and you can write a fan-fic short (microscene perhaps) to close the hole or resolve something. I did that with the whole Ayla-Vox thing - I milked it for 3 fan-fics (that was before I became a canon author). You can do on-campus, off-campus, origin, gen 1, gen 2, between gens - it's wide open.

Don't be afraid to stretch to non-Whateley writing, either. I'm not sure where or if that's posted in the fan-fic, but you can always link to it, mention it, ask for reviews or critiques, and get attention and help refining your talent.

I'm not a writer and I have found the stories that are easily adapted into canon are those that deal with an unknown character and how s/he reacts to the events on campus or in her/his home town. This was done in depth with Aquerna by Diane after much of the canon was written. She fit in nicely and was added to the fun. Same thing with Morpheus' Absinthe stories that became canon for fall 2007.

BUT, why not take a stab and write a non-canon story with potential for canon. Perhaps there is a member of the tigers or dragons who has gotten little mention (there are many of them) but don't have their own backstory. Or it could be a devisor or underdog. Your call. Have fun with it and don't care so much about fitting into canon. If it works out, great. If not, we will enjoy the ride. As Kristin said, write and write and write. Maybe your 1st story will catch on, maybe it'll be your 8th.

Looking forward to reading them!

Cheers

P.S. I still have a dream to some day explore prom in spring of 2007. I have given it much thought but haven't written anything or even sketched it out.

That is probably the best advice ever. That is concentrate on writing a good story. Everything follows from that.

Coming late to the show but

Remember that the school has several hundred students, most of whom only know of the Kimbattes that they are crazy and dangerous beyond what is to be expected of Poesies. And of the Kaydattes only that they are from Poe too and got outed in a spectacular fashion.

Students are mostly too busy with their own problems and won't be involved with (or even know of) what the canon groups are doing.
You can write your own story without having to do much in the way of acknowledging what is canon. E.g. notice how Mischief and her group just do their own thing and pretty much have nothing to do with what Team Kimba is up to. Different year group, different headaches and theirs of course is, in true teenager fashion, the most important and dramatic thing that is going on.

Or you could take a leaf from Gen 2 and focus on a character who is inmate in a different cottage. Gen 1 focuses heavily on Poe for obvious reasons, but there is no reason to not place your character(s) in a different cottage with its own dynamics, teen drama and angst.

You wouldn't even have to resort to name dropping when you put your character somewhere in the low middle, power-wise. Not weak enough to run into the bullies / designated punch lines, and not powerful enough to be up there with the power players on the campus. You can just refer to things you know from the timeline that are going on, if they affect the entire school (things like Halloween, the murder of Jamie and the trial of Kayda) but otherwise keep the plot centered around /your/ character, not around the canon characters.

Based on a conversation on the discord, the cabal authors are going to do what they're going to do. Just like JG said. Some of what they have for their own resources is extremely well laid out and there's really just no way for you to really avoid their unreleased details.

So just go for it. And yes, I need to take this advice myself.

I believe null0 avoids worrying about the inconsistencies by just rolling with the concept that his stories are set in a parallel Whateley. Mostly the same, but different where it has to be.

Katssun wrote: I believe null0 avoids worrying about the inconsistencies by just rolling with the concept that his stories are set in a parallel Whateley. Mostly the same, but different where it has to be.

"Pictures of You" could have been written without Lancer, as the story is more about the mothers, but it's an example of "What If?" as it is. Whether JG would like what I did with Dimes? Who knows?

For the rest, I do try to stay close to canon, which can make things interesting. By Winter 2008 ("Running With A Devil") it's safe to say I'm writing in an AU. Hopefully, all the places and people held in common are recognizable, but there's a limit to how much my storylines can intersect with the canon stories without personality transplants and a side order of deus ex machina. For crossovers to work, there has to a reason for both sides to be in the same place at the same time.

Spoiler: I have no plans to involve the Lost Puppy Patrol in Zulu Hour, and have already laid out some of the how and why.


Post script:

Katssun wrote: So just go for it. And yes, I need to take this advice myself.

Yes, indeed!

You'll never avoid all the canon plans. Like we will never be able to avoid all the WhatIF that's been written. For that reason, many of us are wary of reading WhatIF - we don't want to copy what the fan-fic authors have written. Will we? Yes. But it's not deliberate. And it doesn't stop us from writing. As was said above, you can't worry about what is planned in canon. Just write, and if it fits, it fits. If it doesn't, no biggie.

If you write, you share your ideas to the benefit of all. If you don't write, everyone is poorer.

elrodw wrote: You'll never avoid all the canon plans... For that reason, many of us are wary of reading WhatIF...

Bonus points for using "wary" corrrectly!

In many cases, the conflicts between planned events won't matter to either story. Even then, a little lampshade hanging in the WhatIF playroom works wonders.

elrodw wrote: Like we will never be able to avoid all the WhatIF that's been written.

My preference is for the canon authors to do whatever's the best fit for the canon storylines.

If you haven’t already get WhatIF access to the site and read this thread .

That thread is the one where the Canon Authors and the WhatIF authors hammered out the WhatIF licensing terms, a lot of things were discussed about how WhatIF and canon stories interact, it may help you understand better how we run things and how you can get started writing here.