Will my Fanfic get readers?

[kn1is7otaku]

I just finished watching the latest entry in the Psycho-Pass franchise and was inspired to write a fanfic that fills in some gaps in the timeline of the story (time skip) with a original plot of my own (new cast that I wrote rather than using the characters from the series as main characters). However, I'm a bit worried about the potential readership. The Psycho-Pass fanbase is relatively small, and I want to make my story accessible to those who might not be familiar with the series.

I’m planning to write it in a way that newcomers can still enjoy the narrative without needing extensive background knowledge on the series. But I can’t shake the feeling that it might be hard to attract readers.

So, I’m curious: do any of you read fanfics for franchises you’re not familiar with? Do you think people would be willing to give my Psycho-Pass fanfic a shot, even if they haven't watched the series? Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Xcalibur_Xc]

Fanfics always depend on the fanbase, as you said. If you are writing for fun, go for it, who cares? If you are writing to get readers, choose a subject with a big fan base. That way, you'll have a proper mindset to complete your book. And considering the number of abandoned ffs, most simply drop their books due to lack of readers.

 

[Woodhammer]

Hey! Personally I don't like fanfics all that much. One way to possibly get a lot of readers is if the fan fic has alot of nsfw elements. Se* sells and all that. Otherwise, I would probably stick with original stories with characters you really understand and can empathize with.

 

[foxoftheasterisk]

I do actually read fanfics of unfamiliar series*, but one thing I tend to run into is fics where, because the author assumes you're familiar with the series, it's difficult to understand what's happening if you aren't. I don't stick with those ones.
Actually that's occasionally a problem with original fics as well, but less often.

So, if you want your fic to be accessible to people not familiar with the series, you'll have to make clear things that are probably obvious to those who are familiar, and balancing that with staying interesting to the people who already know those things can be tricky. But it is doable.

(Also, though I do read fanfics for unfamiliar series, I still mostly read ones that I'm familiar with or that are from authors I've read other fics of and like.)

Anyway, I don't think you need to have sex/ecchi to attract readers—there's people who are more likely to read smut, but there's also people more likely to read gen. Write what you want to write.

Writing for a small fanbase will limit your readership, there's no doubt about that, but the readers you do find may appreciate it more for that.

*sometimes i become familiar with the series by reading the fanfic—and in one case I'm now writing a fanfic without having read the original series

 

[FRWriter]

Hey! Personally I don't like fanfics all that much. One way to possibly get a lot of readers is if the fan fic has alot of nsfw elements. Se* sells and all that. Otherwise, I would probably stick with original stories with characters you really understand and can empathize with.

Sorry, man, but this is the worst advice possible! Just going for sex instead of real worldbuilding and innovations is the one thing that instantly ruins your story and turns it into garbage slop. Just my opinion.

Most people who enjoy these large series and Psycho-Pass fit the bill IMO, want innovative plots and interesting SI characters. Turning it into a generic fuckfest will turn these people off.

 

[Hush25]

I think Fanfics are definitely a niche area. I read ones only of works I'm familiar with because either I wasn't satisfied with an element of the original work, I want more - an extension of the world/characters, or someone's writing really catches my eye.
As @Xcalibur_Xc pointed out, if you're writing for fun or for practice - who cares? But, if you want to attract loyal readers, then well-written stories with loveable characters and excellent world-building (and thorough editing) is the go. There are many authors who've gone on a side quest writing a story that doesn't have mainstream appeal because they wanted to get the idea burning a hole in their brain out.
In some cases the side quest becomes a bit of a main quest... for example, I shifted from being published in PNR to BL Cultivation.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Love BL? Love Cultivation? Check out my story that has both!
Secretly, I'm a Cultivation Genius

 

[Placeholder]

Crosspost to Ao3

 

[crmsn_conqueror]

I just finished watching the latest entry in the Psycho-Pass franchise and was inspired to write a fanfic that fills in some gaps in the timeline of the story (time skip) with a original plot of my own (new cast that I wrote rather than using the characters from the series as main characters). However, I'm a bit worried about the potential readership. The Psycho-Pass fanbase is relatively small, and I want to make my story accessible to those who might not be familiar with the series.

I’m planning to write it in a way that newcomers can still enjoy the narrative without needing extensive background knowledge on the series. But I can’t shake the feeling that it might be hard to attract readers.

So, I’m curious: do any of you read fanfics for franchises you’re not familiar with? Do you think people would be willing to give my Psycho-Pass fanfic a shot, even if they haven't watched the series? Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated!

i myself am writing a fanfic from a series under-represented here on scribble hub, Umamusume. i think it really depends on your ability to sell the original series as a concept, and then your work as a story.

 

[kn1is7otaku]

I do actually read fanfics of unfamiliar series*, but one thing I tend to run into is fics where, because the author assumes you're familiar with the series, it's difficult to understand what's happening if you aren't. I don't stick with those ones.
Actually that's occasionally a problem with original fics as well, but less often.

So, if you want your fic to be accessible to people not familiar with the series, you'll have to make clear things that are probably obvious to those who are familiar, and balancing that with staying interesting to the people who already know those things can be tricky. But it is doable.

(Also, though I do read fanfics for unfamiliar series, I still mostly read ones that I'm familiar with or that are from authors I've read other fics of and like.)

Anyway, I don't think you need to have sex/ecchi to attract readers—there's people who are more likely to read smut, but there's also people more likely to read gen. Write what you want to write.

Writing for a small fanbase will limit your readership, there's no doubt about that, but the readers you do find may appreciate it more for that.

*sometimes i become familiar with the series by reading the fanfic—and in one case I'm now writing a fanfic without having read the original series

This is the plan actually, I wanted to write it in a way to make new readers familiar with the series while also gifting fans with references. The official Psycho Pass series inherently does this since it changes protagonist every season, it explains the world again to viewers so if I am to write a fanfic I will just emulate that, making new readers familiar with world while also not making it feel out of place from the main series.

I am not really writing the fic for smut, the idea is a pet peev of mine with the original series, it does a time jump skipping a particular event's fall out I really wanted to see (I at this point don't think they ever intend to show it on screen ?) so I was thinking of writing that..

I am mostly afraid that low/no readership might discourage me from finishing it, this is a side project that I don't really intend to earn from or anything.. but since I will be writing it alongside my main novels, I just fear that for the first few days I will write it with enthusiasm but never finish once I start feeling like I am writing into a void.

 

[Eldoria]

Honestly, if you want to write as a hobby, not for the market, not for the money, then writing an original story is a wise choice. It will be difficult to gain readers at first. Look at LOTR, it took 11 years before it exploded. A lack of readers is not a failure, it's an existential struggle.

But if you feel lonely and can't stand the lack of readers, maybe you can compromise by writing a mainstream story using popular tropes but adding a unique twist to the story's premise. Most popular stories use this pattern. Look at Death Note: detective (mainstream) + (unique twist) a book of death held by a genius high school student who wants to become a god in a hypocritical world. And the result is a popular work that exploded.

Ultimately, write what is worthy to be written according to your conscience.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

I do actually read fanfics of unfamiliar series*, but one thing I tend to run into is fics where, because the author assumes you're familiar with the series, it's difficult to understand what's happening if you aren't. I don't stick with those ones.
Actually that's occasionally a problem with original fics as well, but less often.

Two of the four or five fanfics I tried to read fell into this, one so heavily I had to abandon it (or watch three seasons of Naruto and come back to maybe make sense of it). The author actually apologized (but then kept on going... :D).
The ones I liked were all short (except for one that was ongoing but only had the first five and five most recent chapters for free and everything in between - all 100 chapters at that point - you had to pay for, and, while it was good, it was not THAT good).... And about half were for fandoms I'd never heard of before.

Well, I'm not counting series novels (Star Trek, Doctor Who, comic-book-universe tie-ins) as "fan-fiction" as that is kind of a different animal. Most of those I've read I liked (even if a few, like some of the "Kirk-Spock" Star Trek stories were laughably bad, so I liked them for the wrong reasons...).