What is it you're looking for?

[Guest Alien Pirate Pixagi]

When reading fanfiction or original fics, we're all looking for something in particular that tickles our fancy. Some of us, like myself, are looking for solid character development and true experimentation. Others are just looking for some smut to get off on.

I personally like reading alternate universe fics where the author keeps the characters IN character yet at the same time doesn't stick absolutly to canon and play with his/her own interpretation of the characters. Far too many people seem to just go with the cliche's (High School AU, anyone?). Instead of trying to really think of the characters as well rounded people they make them into cardboard cutouts. The Naruto fandom is NOTORIOUS for the crappy, cliche'd HSAU where Sasuke is almost always some super cool heartthrob who everyone loves and Naruto is the little outcast who everyone hates and makes fun of. Gee, folks. Thanks for taking the canon and making it into another crappy teen TV show on the WB.

There's a story on FF.net in the Naruto fandom that, while being a High School AU is still a great story. The author gives a bit of a more realistic view on Naruto who, while still being a bit of an outsider, is still a happy bouncy dude. Instead of simply being an outcast, he's truly a mix between every little type of group in his school. And this story is written by a BRIT! Common my fellow Americans, give me something not totally blad and unoriginal. PLEASE!

Another thing I look for (and the reason I like reading M/M stories) is for relationships that don't fall into the Dom/sub category. I'm tired of seeing the same relationship dynamics all the time and love to read fics where you have two guys, who are indeed guys, and are totally in love. It is possible to have a relationship where both people are strong individuals who don't cry when they first have sex gkthnx.

Experimental pieces are also a great love of mine. I love reading something where the author is trying out something in a new style and testing uncharted territory. A story here on AFF in the Harry Potter fandom called Lettered I absolutly loved. It was done completly in a series of letters written to Harry anonymously by Draco. Great piece. It was fresh and showed a great love of the actual character.

So what is it you all are looking for when you're browsing for stories? Is it character exploration, smut pure and simple, or something in between?

[redsliver]

Good villains. If I read an original story it has to have plot and good antagonists. (My story doesn't particularly have good guys and bad guys itself, just seven goals that often oppose allthough periodically respect or aid each other.)

That's all I need, because if someone's adversary is formidable there's a good chance she's formidable as well.

In fanfics? Ingenuity. I hate reading cookie cutter plots or standard pairings, I want to see a skilled writer do something old and make it new or take on something normally ignored or even create their own new little niche.

[Nanaea]

A story here on AFF in the Harry Potter fandom called Lettered I absolutly loved. It was done completly in a series of letters written to Harry anonymously by Draco. Great piece. It was fresh and showed a great love of the actual character.

Oh, man, I loved Lettered, and by the same author, Let's Pretend the War is Over. Brilliant stuff that!

When I first discovered fanfiction I was all about Draco/Harry and I almost gave up on the stuff completely because so much of it was complete and utter crap. Either Draco, or Harry was a total fem in most of them, and don't even get me started on the grammar! *shudders at the memory* I was just about to give up on fanfics when I stumbled upon an awesome piece (that was actually Draco/Hermione) and, well, now here I am.

For me the most important thing is that the story be well written. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it does have to show that the author is making a serious effort and takes pride in their work. Beyond that, equal partners in slash relationships (in Het I'm more forgiving), an attempt at keeping characters as in character as possible, and believable sex scenes. Blatant disregard for cannon irks me. That said, I don't mind a good AU.

[Guest Alien Pirate Pixagi]

A story here on AFF in the Harry Potter fandom called Lettered I absolutly loved. It was done completly in a series of letters written to Harry anonymously by Draco. Great piece. It was fresh and showed a great love of the actual character.

Oh, man, I loved Lettered, and by the same author, Let's Pretend the War is Over. Brilliant stuff that!

Oooh, I love that one too, Absolutly brilliant!

When I first discovered fanfiction I was all about Draco/Harry and I almost gave up on the stuff completely because so much of it was complete and utter crap. Either Draco, or Harry was a total fem in most of them, and don't even get me started on the grammar! *shudders at the memory* I was just about to give up on fanfics when I stumbled upon an awesome piece (that was actually Draco/Hermione) and, well, now here I am. 

I stopped reading the Harry Potter fandom for a long time. Indeed, when I first read it I was a Hermione/Harry shipper . Of course, I was also twelve at the time XD

The second time I got into it, it was because a friend of mine got me into M/M and Harry/Draco was one of her favorite pairings. Indeed, my first Harry/Draco fic was a birthday present to her (Curiosly enough, she was the only person who could request a story from me an actually get it).

For me the most important thing is that the story be well written. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it does have to show that the author is making a serious effort and takes pride in their work. Beyond that, equal partners in slash relationships (in Het I'm more forgiving), an attempt at keeping characters as in character as possible, and believable sex scenes. Blatant disregard for cannon irks me. That said, I don't mind a good AU.

See, if it fits, then I can read a sub/dom type of relationship dynamic, but only if it fits. This works with both Het and Slash. I mean, honestly, can you really imagine Zoe from Firefly being on anything less then equal footing with Wash? Or ANYONE on that ship, for that matter? How about Kaylee? Yes, she's innocent on the surface, but she's not a shy woman by any means. So if I come across a MaleDom story with Zoe as the sub, I'd ignore it completly.

[Nanaea]

See, if it fits, then I can read a sub/dom type of relationship dynamic, but only if it fits. This works with both Het and Slash. I mean, honestly, can you really imagine Zoe from Firefly being on anything less then equal footing with Wash? Or ANYONE on that ship, for that matter? How about Kaylee? Yes, she's innocent on the surface, but she's not a shy woman by any means. So if I come across a MaleDom story with Zoe as the sub, I'd ignore it completly.

You've got a point there. Of course, I haven't ventured into Firefly fanfics yet. It'd be the same with BtVS - then again, Joss tends to write strong women (just one of the reasons I Joss). Farscape too. Aeryn sub? No freakin' way! Chiana maybe, but not Aeryn.

Man, I've really gotta venture outside of the HP fandom once in a while.

[Guest .:Deathbringer:.]

I look for Yuri. Plain and simple. Of any series, with any character, any universe. I'm especially a fan of DBZ, Naruto, Burst Angel, BGC 2040, Tenjho Tenge, R.O.D the TV and various games including Final Fantasy, Dead or Alive and others.

Yuri, Yuri, Yuri... I love yuri. X3 Some yaoi smut is good every so often but I loooooooooove yuri... XD

[redsliver]

Plenty of Yuri in the The Orgy.

Just ask, I can hook you up. [/advertise]

[Guest Agaib]

I'm not a great big fan of Yaoi, not because sex between men grosses Me out though. I don't like Yaoi because I see too much of it. I'm into hard core domination and submission, willing or unwilling, it doesn't really matter. Of course I refuse to read a story that's been written without any shadow of paragraphs of spell check, but I wont completely chew someone out for accidentally misspelling a word or two. Of course I'm also into bestiality though I have an odd way of doing it really. On occasion I'll read a F/F work to please the occasional manly urge.

[Iggy_lovechild]

It really all depends on my mood. Sometimes I just want a something naughty to lubricate my brain, especially when I'm working toward a lemon in one of my own projects. Puts me in the right frame of mind. But ya know what I seriously love? Hot smut and a great storyline along with character exploration. Nothing better.

It's hard to find. Happily, I'm reading one right now (sadly, it is not on AFF).

Oh yeah, and if it weren't painfully obvious. I pretty much only read yaoi these days, because I love reading about two men in love and/or getting it on. (mind that men, of course...it's hard to find good male protrayals in fanfiction's yaoi department, I'm afraid.)

[Guest DarthSaad]

I read and write the bondage material based on comic characters, and one reason I write at all is that I hated seeing the comic heroines turned into fawning love slaves or mewling submissives the moment you get handcuffs on them.

The reason we find these women [or at least for me it is] attractive is their attitude. They wear it is tightly as those spray on costumes. So if they are captured, I want to read about them mouthing wise, glaring, basically doing anything but meekly surrendering to their fate. Courage and pride are what I look for in my super-damsels in distress, and the ruthless pleasures of the villains as they take their revenge.

I guess this couples in with what a lot of people have said about keeping the fanfic characters IN character.

[Leonhart29]

I read it all, and it's more the writing style and the story line that gets me and keeps me. I can't tell you how many stories I've started to read that I've had to stop and rinse my brain out because they were so bad (grammar and rehashed trash really). I try as hard as I can to keep my characters cannon, and if I can't for some reason or another I make sure I explain it in an author's note.

I really could care less if it's yuri , yoai or het as long as it's well written and the characters are acting realisticly. I need a good story line to go along with the smut. There are several authors on AFF that I have read that can do that really well (Iggy, Squallfan, DB2020 just to name three), and nothing inspires me more than reading something that makes me loose myself in the story and cry when it's over.

It's what I try to put into my fics - realistic situations, love (or lust depending on the character), angst, completely evil vilians and just a touch of the soap opera ingredient to make it smarmy.