Fanfiction sites and Everything in between!

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Fan Fiction
noun
noun: fan fiction; noun: fanfiction
  1. fictional literature written by a fan of, and featuring characters from, a particular TV series, film, etc


As a digital writer and reader, you must have tried comparing 'Fanfiction.net' (a.k.a- ff.net) and 'Archive of Our Own'(a.k.a- ao3)- two of the most popular sites for posting fan-fiction (ie; stories where we say screw it and mess with our fav books/movies/fandoms/bands,etc). 
Well, you don't have to compare it on your own because I'm here to do it for you! In the end, I hope you find about the pros and cons of both sites and which one might be the best one for you!
Image result for fanfic.net
Logo for Fanfiction.net
Image result for ao3 logo
Logo for ao3

      
In the steadily popularizing world of online fiction, 'Ff.net' and 'ao3' are two sources for authors to publish their works for any known fandom(the following of some popular show, movie, book series, etc) or for readers trying to find stories for their fandom.

 So which one is better? 

1) TAGS AND FILTERS

While publishing a story, the author might want to 'tag' it.
For example, if X tags their story as 'humor' or 'action', and the reader searches for stories with 'humor' or 'action', X's story along with other stories tagged 'humor' or 'action' will show up.
The same can be done for relationships, characters, etc.

 In this HP fic, if someone searches for 'Time Travel' or 'Runes Magic' or 'Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley' ( / indicates a relationship) this story, along with many others having the same tags will show up.
Harry Potter fanfiction from ao3

Overall(for readers), tags are used to filter stories until you find the ones that suit your preference.
Tagging is something that can only be done in ao3 (like the above), whereas ff.net only has the bare minimum.

Some authors feel that tagging on ao3 takes too much time and therefore prefer the much more streamlined format of ff.net but all the extra tags can help people find specific fics on AO3 that they have to dig for on ff.
filters in ao3 also includes an 'exclude x/y/z' option of the same


Also, on ff.net your story can be posted only under one fandom so for example, if you write a story combining 'Marvel' and 'Percy Jackson', you will only be able to tag one fandom but on archive, you can tag multiple fandoms; which is nifty for cross-over works.


2) FONT AND LIGHT ADJUSTMENTS

While slinking about on ff.net, the reader has the ability to increase/decrease the font size, change the text alignment, and enter dark mode (white letters on a black screen) while reading.
Reading settings on ff.net
Reading on ff.net may be easier than reading on ao3 where the font is default and minute. I know I have spent many a time trying to find an ao3 story on ff.net simply to be able to read without eyestrain.


3) PRIVATE MESSAGING (PM)

PM is a feature only available on ff, where you can send messages to another user. This attribute is useful if-

                  1. You want to ask the author something it
                  would be stupid to write in a comment.

            2. You're asking someones' opinion on
 something that may be sensitive to mention publicly in a comment

3. You're finding a beta reader.
               (more on that later)

100% of users feel that PM is a useful service that should be included on ao3.


4) MISCELLANEOUS

Beta readersBeta readers are people you can find on the sites who proof-read your story before you release it into the wild. 
On ff.net, you can make a resumé to act as a beta reader although there are some pretty strict qualifications.
But if you truly want an experience as a pseudo-editor, sign up!

Bookmarks
On both sites, you can mark stories that you like, maybe to read later or something. You can also see other users' bookmarks- if they keep it public.
Because of the filters, on ao3, you can easily find bookmarked stories that you would like, rather than idly browse through hundreds of bookmarks in a wild goose chase.

Kudos
Image result for kudos archive of our own
Being a reader on 'Archive of our Own' gives you the opportunity to send a virtual 'thumbs up' to the author of a story you liked. As an author, it is gratifying to see that people have liked your story, especially after you worked hard on it!
Trust me, it makes a writer's day if they see people have sent them virtual cheers on a piece of theirs.
ff.net doesn't have this option, which doesn't really matter but is a small, wholesome part of writing on ao3.


So there you have it! The small intricacies of 'Fanfiction.net' and 'Archive of our Own' that make them the most widely used fanfiction sites on the internet. 
Of course, there are other sites like Wattpad, etc. But we don't talk about Wattpad unless you want a weird AF story about the reader being sold into slavery working for One Direction. (What even was that?)

I hope you liked my blog and if you want more, check me out at ficguru.blogspot.com.

Until next time!
FICGURU






















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