Getting an audience vs Improving in writing

[Scribbler]

As a writer you want more people to read your work. It is a universal truth. I myself started out writing whatever I wanted. I had no prior audience. I would say I still don't have an audience, after writing a story for two months. Now I'm sure there are many of you out there saying, "Two months?! Only two months?!". I'm sure there are those of you who have written for a considerably longer time and have also of course gained a considerably larger audience.

So after finishing an arc of my previous story I thought about a lot of things. One of those things being how to get more readers. I recall asking this a couple of times before, and people telling me to simply post often. But, you see, I'm not one of those people that can write two chapters in a day. Why I'll be lucky to write one in a day. Seeing no better option I rolled up my sleeves and started out on the story and gaining a comparatively small readership.

I couldn't help think about what I was missing. And now I think I know what it was. A bunch of popular creators don't start out writing original works. A bunch of them start out writing fanfiction, using premade settings and characters. I myself have been wanting to write power rangers, pokemon, and scooby-doo fanfictions. It's absolutely genius! Using a pre-established brand to create your own!

I actually did write a bit of pokemon fiction a couple years ago. Though it was only 1 or 2 pages. Sigh. But people hated it so I deleted it. It was only a couple pages so I didn't feel much attachment to it. But I digress.

Fanfiction is great for beginner writers because it allows them to not have to create a setting or character while allowing for them to build up a fanbase of like-minded individuals.

But a writer eventually has to make up their own things. Or a writer usually feels that they have to. It's only human nature to aspire for what is greater and all their own. Some start right away creating something original. And some start with fanfiction. There's no right or wrong way in this case. It simply depends on the kind of person you are and what you want out of writing, or what you believe you can give as a writer. So that's what this is all about.

Where did you start? Did writing fanfiction bolster your reader-base? Or are you the type that started with strictly original work? What are your thoughts on it?

I don't feel a push or pull either way. I'm confident in my ability to create my own characters and settings. But I also see the joy in fanfiction. Actually, I think I really, really want to write fanfiction since I really, really want to build an audience, so I can one day get paid for these words I say.

 

[Kotohood]

There is only one surefire way as far as I know to get more readers.

Exposure. The more exposure you have, the more potential readers you will have. The rest is all about how good is your story to keep the audience reading. Sometimes there might even be a feedback loop. Your readers recommending your work which results in more exposure which results in more readers which results in more readers recommending.

So all the tricks you heard is all to create more exposure really. Post every day so you'll be at the frontmost page. Interesting cover to drag the eyes of the readers. Interesting Sypnosis, posting on forums, advertising, writing the flavour of the month/year bringing over readers etc etc.

None of it will matter if your work is not up to par though. For me personally, I did start off writing a few pieces here and there on Fictionpress/Fanfiction, but I didn't get too much attention there either. So I decided to start fresh a new while bringing over the experience from that era.

So far... results have been decent I guess. But this time I'm determined to actually finish the story so there is that.

 

[Wintertime]

Fanfiction is just that. Fanfiction; and it should only just be that. If you write fanfiction in the hopes to attract readers, then your followers will only look at your writing ability, not your writing capability. God forbid anyone reads fanfiction for the riveting storyline and character development. They really just want to understand the thought process of the author.

Also, you're aiming too low. The plan isn't, "How can I transition to writing fanfiction towards an original work," It should be, "How do I transition and refine my original work, into a published book or e-novel."

If you want to write fanfiction to obtain a bigger following, go for it. It usually does the deed, but there are some drawbacks. For one, people will look to you as an author differently. Let's say you make an erotic fanfiction of x novel. Later, you want to switch it up and make a completely original work, with actual stakes and character development. Your fanbase will expect you to stick to your style; that's just how they see you currently as an author.

The thing I can only recommend you to increase your exposure is that you have to truly believe in the work you are creating. Do you think your novel/story is engaging to the readers, enough to show it to everyone? If so, then advertise your novel on various sites. Get in touch with people willing to host your novel on their site. You don't have to post consistently. Damn, you don't even have to post small chapters. If your work is up to par, then the readers will come naturally.

 

[jinxs2011]

two a day? one a day? I wish. My fans wish.
I get out maybe one or two chaps each month, at the moment at least.
Chapter consistency and frequent chapters are definitely important, but at the same time, if you're churning out chapters at the expense of quality, it won't go well.
I really don't know the answer to getting more readers. As i've said, I don't write heaps of chapters. I don't have a regular schedule. I don't advertise whatsoever, apart from in my signature and profile page.
I have two novels with the same chapter frequency, but one is vastly more popular than the other. That's not the main determiner. I think it's (at least partially) that the concept of my story is so different and out there. A unique concept apparently goes a long way (I mean, nothing is truly unique these days, but you know what I mean). If you say an outline of your story and it just sounds like a altered permutation of some other story, then it probably won't go very well.
...Also if the main character of your novel is neither and both weak to strong and strong from the start. Turns out most people aren't a fan of that.

 

[S-Scherr]

When I started writing online I was writing poetry, short stories, and flash fiction which eventually led me to serial novel writing... and I haven't gone back since. For me, I wanted to attempt an original take on the unoriginal zombie genre with my long-running serial novel that's been running since 2014. I considered fanfiction, too. I was entertaining the idea of writing a sequel to the television show, Lost. But when I started looking up the legal stuff surrounding fanfiction, not to mention the inability to make any money from it, I gave up on the idea. For me, it was too much work to do something 'for free' which was going to require a whole lot of research to keep it true to the original story. So I went with my story.

As far as readership, it took a good four months for my serial to gain traction, and by then I had enough material online for readers to sink their teeth into. I also did a lot of promotional junk that first year (hated every bit of it) and I still don't know if it yielded much. After four months, my readership started taking off, doubling each month for the first year and then steadily climbing after that. What killed me was taking a year off between my third and fourth books when I decided to edit and publish the first three books in my series. I lost just about all my readers in that time and had to rebuilt my base.

What I've learned so far is that readers come and go when you write something of considerable length that spans a few years. You'll always have your loyal readers in the background who may never comment on anything until you've reached the end of an arc, and that's just to let you know that they're still there. Some will comment often but then life gets busy and they just move on. Some come back eventually. And then there are those readers you'll never know who are just numbers in a hit count for the day. With some decent storytelling and a great deal of luck (assuming you're story is the 'right' story at the 'right' time) your readership could explode at any moment, or it might not.

I haven't figured out any strategies to increase readership. I don't do much promoting anymore. It's too time consuming and I'd rather be writing. What I do know is that I'm still enjoying this long ride that I'm on and I haven't run out of story yet. Eventually, I'll finish this long story and move on to another. Maybe the next one will strike gold with readership. Maybe not. Maybe the one I'm writing now will take off long after it's finished. Who knows. I'm in this for the long haul and will complete my story whether it has a million readers or five ;)

 

[ChubbyLiv]

I think the fastest way to gain readers is to use a cliche trope. (villainess MC, CEO, transmigration to another world, game settings, second chance novels, etc.) + daily updates. ╮(. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)╭

 

[Sunrhae]

When I started posting, I posted the rough version of my story to gather an audience and polish myself through each chapter. I learnt a lot and changed a lot. I started posting the new version this month.

HOWEVER!!! I made an ENORMOUS mistake! I had around 600 readers and was in the top 20 when I released a chapter. Then, I deleted my novel instead of my chapters! :eek::eek:???

I deleted my novel before publishing the new version.
I had to rebuild my audience from the ground.

My advice: publish rough, build an audience, when your arc or season is almost done, delete the CHAPTERS, then publish the new and more sophisticated version. You'll keep your readers and attract new ones.

Good luck!

 

[Mizu]

I think the way you frame it is slightly wrong. It makes the two mutually exclusive when they aren't really. If one is writing everyday they are bound to improve, while the speed may vary based on the individual it isn't going to be as bad as when they first started. As for updating twice a day, I stockpiled chapters and slowly crept up to my current area where I am doing a chapter a day. This is still super demanding. Balancing writing, school, and work is not a fun and easy task but I do it because I want to share with other people.
For a long time I simply wrote for myself and while fun it was hardly a consistent thing. I would often pick up and drop off different stories due to my interest in them moving. Having a rigid schedule of once a day allows me to actually work on finishing a story. Any story that takes longer than a month slowly starts losing my interest but the discipline of writing once a day has allowed me to actually get closer to finishing than I have ever been. That is saying something because there is another story with more words in it but it never really had any direction cause I would pick it up and drop it until it lost all identity.
In short: I write daily to set a standard for myself so that I can actually finish what I start. It is more of a discipline thing than anything else.

 

[TLCsDestiny]

When I first put my books up for people to read for free I didn't get all that many readers. I decided not to care too much...After all, I was a nobody author...
I've already done a few original novels, but I've come to notice that my novel that has a weird title is my most popular one when it comes to readers.
I've also noticed people like the (sex scene) or (M 15+) on a chapter lol.
I've been writing for years but found myself more happier doing whatever I wanted, which was mostly fantasy. I haven't done fanfiction at all...
I'm stubborn so I will continue doing things my way lol.

 

[OliviaMyriad]

Be aware that fanfiction and original fiction doesn't even have that much of an audience overlap. The former is reading for the original author's work and the latter is all you.

 

[Underload]

Persistence and don't forget to read books (Published books)- they will change the way you think and write.

 

[Ninetailed_Furball]

You're asking quite a few things at once, but I'll try to do what I can.

First of all, if you just want new readers, then exposure is the way to go. Put a link in your signature and go around all over the play and be friendly. Post tons of releases so you're on the front page all the time. Advertise actively where ever you can.

But that'll only get you new readers. People will check out your story, and if they like your cover and summary, then they'll have a look at the story. If you want your story to be popular, you need to retain readers as well. To do that, you need quality.

Or at the very least, you need to satisfy an itch that isn't being satisfied. Do what's popular, or figure out what it is that people want to read where you're posting it. This is actually what I did, though a bit by accident. People only talk about the pure quality of my writing, but in reality, that's only the most critical of readers. The vast majority are finding that my story is scratching an itch they can't get to through other stories, or as well.

Going after the popular trends might sound cheezy, but there's a reason why there's so many successes while doing so. But you also need to stand out from the crowd if you do so. Quality is a simple way of doing that, and so is finding a more specific niche. If you can achieve both, then you're on the road to success.

Personally, while people say that you'll eventually get readers if you keep writing your story, I believe that it's not true. At least not how it sounds like. People would read it simply because it's long and survived a long time. Markers like that attract certain groups, and those are the people that your long story that doesn't have it's own niche gets it's niche.

There's also the idea that your writing will improve as you write, but that's not true. You get better at whatever you're doing. If you're quickly pumping out low effort chapters, you'll simply become faster at writing chapters that require little effort. They'll even take less effort the more you do it. But the quality won't improve at all. It might even go down as you get faster.

To improve the quality, you need to strive for it. Work for it. If you make the effort to polish your skills, it'll shine brilliantly someday. But if you just take it easy and release without much thought, without much research, without much learning, then you won't improve no matter how long you spend.

That story of mine people often praise and mention all over the place. That's the first story I've ever put out to the wild. But I've been writing off and on for the better part of two decades. That's a lot of writing fiction that I've done over the years, and that doesn't take into consideration things like essays and reports I've written on top of that.

So how do you write a popular story? Write what people want to read, and do it well. I think that's all there is to it. Unfortunately, those two things are also the hardest there is. If it wasn't, then the big companies would have one giant hit after the next.

 

[GDLiZy]

It's either your story or theirs. That's the dynamic between you and the readers.

Want more followers? Write wish-fulfilment. Want a high-quality plot? Write what you planned. High quality doesn't equal big fanbase.

Ex: Many people didn't like losing. However, losing is a big part of character development.

 

[wintersky]

It's either your story or theirs. That's the dynamic between you and the readers.

Want more followers? Write wish-fulfilment. Want a high-quality plot? Write what you planned. High quality doesn't equal big fanbase.

Ex: Many people didn't like losing. However, losing is a big part of character development.

simply, put quality over quantity.

 

[gaylolis]

I don't really think much whether I have readers or not.

I just like the freedom of writing whatever I want and having the final say in what I do.

 

[Yamazaru]

Since i'm writing a series, which was some amount of attraction. I'd say put quality first, in both the content and cover, then put quantity next, make sure your story shows up on the front page!

 

[Derin_Edala]

I write both original fic and fanfiction. They take different skillsets but one isn't harder or easier than the other and they're both fun to write. I started with original fic but branched into fanfiction awhile ago, maybe about 7 or 8 years ago?

It is a lot easier to get readers for fanfic, yes. The original readerbase for The Cursed Heart were people who liked my fanfic and wanted to read more of my stuff.