FanFiction Terms and Tips
Terminology
First, let's tackle some common fan fiction terms. Even people who have read quite a bit of fanfiction can sometimes be unfamiliar with certain lingo of the fandom.
Since this is the official gen/het/slash fanlisting, I suppose I should define those terms first, right?
gen: Short for 'general', denoting fan fiction of a general nature and usually safe for all age groups to read.
het: Short for 'heterosexual', denoting fan fiction that features either implied or bluntly portrays a heterosexual relationship between two or more characters.
slash: This one is trickier - even I was fooled for a long time thinking it had to do more with horror (think 'slasher' film). It's actually a fan fiction depicting a homosexual relationship between two or more characters - male/male or female/female. Note the slashes in the notation I just wrote and you'll realize why this type of fic is called slash ;)
shipper: Derived from 'relationship', it means someone who's gung-ho for certain romantic pairings in fan fics. Say, if you love fics that pair Lion-O with Cheetara, you could be said to be a shipper for them.
canon: Refers to the history of the characters as laid out by something official - for ThunderCats, that would most likely be the 130 episodes of the TV series. Accepting that as canon means anything that happened in the show is acceptable to assert as probable in a fan fic. Of course, most fics go off-canon by their very nature but many writers find canon as a helpful reference when trying to lend their story and the characters in it the 'feel' of the show.
Arguably, other things like the comics, can be considered canon as well. But those notions vary from fandom to fandom, and really, the ThunderCats fandom has pretty much decided their canon is so full of plot holes and inconsistancies that anything goes.
Alternate Universe (AU): Term used to warn readers that a story is going to stray much from the original canon, usually with some kind of major 'what if' scenario as the main plot line. Eg: What if the ThunderCats landed on the original planet they were headed for instead of Third Earth? What if Jaga never died during the journey? What if Lion-O never aged in stasis?
Mary Sue: For the most part, a despised original character used by the author of a fic as a thinly veiled version of herself as to live vicariously in the ThunderCats universe (for the male writer, Gary Stu). Usually, the presence of a perfect and gorgeous Mary Sue causes the canon characters to act out of character by either falling madly in love or becoming insanely jealous. Mary Sue redeems herself by saving the day or dying tragically for the sake of the others. That isn't to say all Mary Sue characters are horrid, but authors must tread lightly when writing one, and most importantly, recognize they have one on their hands in the first place.
Crossover: A fan fic that brings in characters from another show, book, movie etc and mingles them with the ThunderCat universe.
Beta Reader: Someone who reads rough drafts of a fic to check for spelling, grammar, usage mistakes, as well as gives feedback on plot and characterization. A proofreader, basically.
Point of View (POV): In writing, POV denotes from which character's unique viewpoint you are writing. Some authors write an entire story from a single character's POV, while others may switch from chapter to chapter or even scene to scene. However, it's recommended to stay in the same POV in a scene and not switch back and forth between characters, as it becomes jarring to the reader.
Hentai: Usually used in anime fandoms, it describes fics that have many sex scenes that are usually of an explicit nature.
Lemon: A term more popularly tossed around in the TC fandom, it often denotes a fluff piece that's short on plot with gratuitious sex scene(s) tossed in.
Writing Tips
The following are just some things I've found useful as a writer. They were brought to my attention either by someone kind enough to impart their wise criticisms of my work, or simply by writing long enough to learn what really works. If you're a writer or are thinking of writing a fic, you might find these tips useful.
Know Your Subject: Become familiar with ThunderCats, even if you plan to write the most off-canon farce ever seen by the fandom. Even stories that are a major departure benefit from that grain of truth to your characterizations that studying the show will bring. Of course, if you want to write a more serious piece, this point is even more important. If you want to draw your readers in and make them feel they're back in the TC universe again, you've got to portray the characters speech patterns, mannerisms and personalities accurately. Otherwise, readers will feel the only thing ThunderCat-ish about your work is the characters' names.
Edit, Rewrite, Edit: Go over your drafts. Several times. And if you feel spellcheck and your own knowledge of the language isn't enough, get a Beta reader. No, fic doesn't have to be flawless and perfect, but sporting proper spelling and decent grammar will help guarantee readers stick with your story past the first sentence.
Presentation is also important - meaning, don't write in a tiny font or as one huge block of text, etc. If reader's eyes are going to blur and cross just by looking at how you've formatted the thing, then all your hard work will be for null.
Stick to a Style: Firstly, if you're going to write a story as a narrative fic in the third person, don't switch mid-story to first person narrative. Same goes for Point of View. As I described in the POV definition, when you go inside a character's head to describe and make readers 'see' things through their eyes, stay with that character. At least for the duration of the scene, as switching back and forth too much will alienate readers. In other words, if you start a climatic fight scene and you're in Lion-O's head - describing his perceptions, his thoughts, his feelings, etc don't switch mid-battle to get Mumm-Ra's take on things. Your readers just got comfortable in the mind of the hero, don't jar them out of the moment by switching perspectives. As a writer, it's a challenge to you to let the reader know how Mumm-Ra is feeling - either by his dialogue, Lion-O's perception on what the mummy's state of mind is, or you could wait and do a post-battle scene that's entirely from Mumm-Ra's POV where you flashback, so to speak, to the battle as Mumm-Ra.
To Describe or Not to Describe: Descriptions can be good, but they shouldn't seem bland or like you're force-feeding your character's stat sheet down the reader's throat. Let me explain.
Instead of starting out a chapter describing in a flat way that it was a clear, sunny day on Third Earth, have WilyKit zooming over the countryside on her spaceboard thinking about what a nice, peaceful day it is as she passes the Berbil Village. Tis a much more interesting way to set the scene, and it'll help set up the plot by placing your characters within the scene.
Where decriptions seem forced is when, especially when introducing an original character, you spend a paragraph describing their appearance in detail. Of course, it's important to know what a new character looks like - no doubt about that. But it's better, and a sign of a better writer, to let the reader know this information through the eyes of another character or during a scene where it makes sense to mention your character's unique eye color, hair, etc. Likewise, don't keep reminding readers of your character's long, silky blonde hair every other paragraph - only mention it when it 'fits' logically into the scene. When your character is doing something and the hair is somehow involved, make note of it; work to work it into the story in a way that flows.
In the same vein, we know Lion-O is Lord of the ThunderCats so it's unnecessary to remind us everytime you mention his name. Try to only note his title when it has actual relevence in the moment - someone is calling him by his title, thinking about it, he's introducing himself with his title, etc. Not like this: "I think I'll eat this candy fruit," said Lion-O, Lord of the ThunderCats.
Do you see a pattern here?
Read, Read, Read!: Read as much as you can. Reading a good book will not only lend you the feel of how to make a plot flow, but structuring scenes, dialogue, etc will become second nature the more you read.
Most of all, if you have an idea, a story you feel must be told, but you're too timid to do more than dip your toe in the pool - jump in! Just start writing. Mistakes might be made, over-indulgences could occur, constructive criticism may come your way - but you'll only grow as a writer the more you write and you'll be so glad you did.