To all my fellow fanfic writers...

Don’t ever let anyone tell you that fanfic writing isn’t “real” writing or that your stories aren’t “real” stories. You are writers, every one of you. You pour your heart and soul into those stories, and you love and respect the characters and the world from which they came. Best of all, you do it from pure passion, because you know you won’t get a dime from writing these stories, and you may or may not even get them read by people.

Your enthusiasm and dedication to the fandom is awesome and don’t ever be ashamed of that.

So the next time someone tells you that you’re wasting your time working on fanfic, tell them you hope they will someday find something they can be as passionate about as you are.

I owe so much to my days as a fanfic writer. I couldn’t have ever written the book I did without those hundreds upon hundreds of hours I devoted to working on my craft. And if I am fortunate enough one day to get fanfic for my own work, I will be so humbled by the fact that so many talented people are choosing to play in my world.

Carry on, people :).