01. Lack of detail.
02. Bad spelling.
03. Bad grammar.
04. Lack of care.
05. Length of chapters.
06. Bad formatting.
07. Constant typos.
08. Lack of editing (which was BLUNTLY noticeable).
09. Not true to character.
10. No plot.
11. Weird plot that goes nowhere or happens far too quickly.
12. No well thought out plot.
13. Copying a plot from someone else, or just plain copying it from yourself.
14. Not taking advantage of certain things.
15. Predictability.
16. Simply dialogue.

Many authors write speedily. They forget the true objective of writing, to create an environment for the readers that is pleasant and imaginable, that entertains them, that lets them see what you see happening. They often forget that readers can't read minds. They will not know what you are saying if you don't state it clearly. And lack of detail is what ruins MANY stories that have amazing potential.

There has been many cases where I wished that I was the author of certain stories, simply because I thought that the plot was a killer! That it could be an excellent story. But many times when an author does not care enough to put details in, it ruins it.

Example:

That was simply terrible! It could've been done like this:

Courtney glared at Elizabeth from where she stood, her eyes shooting daggers at the short brunette. Her face reflected the anger she felt towards the woman whose only purpose in life seemed to be making her life miserable. "You are a bitch Elizabeth," she spat out angrily, ready to strike at the woman.

"Yeah? Well you are a whore!" Liz retorted in a pathetic attempt to get one over Courtney. She had stolen so much from her. Jason was supposed to be hers. Jason was hers! Courtney had no right to act so selfish and self-righteous! She couldn't stand the woman.

Do you see the difference? Do you see how those TWO sentences could be turned into something like that? Can you picture it? Can you see the anger and tension there? That is what detail can do. It can be your best friend or your worst enemy depending on how you use it. This is one of the reasons why I don't read many stories. Because they lack in detail!

This drives me INSANE! I can't stand people who don't bother to check their spelling. It is such a SIMPLE thing to do. An easy way to get this done is by using the spell checker on the Microsoft Word, or Microsoft Works Word Processor (depends on what kind of computer you have and/or what program you have). But spell check takes only a few minutes to run and it can be easily corrected. This drives me away from stories. I used to want to release the chapters as soon as possible and wouldn't run a spell check. When I look at my previous work, I am disgusted by the number of spelling mistakes I have. I now see that my work could've been a lot better had I bothered to run a spell check. It's SIMPLE people. You don't have to be a spelling genius. You just need to run a spell check! The computer will do it for you!

Also, try varying your vocabulary. Instead of saying "She said" or "He said" all the time, use words such as "She asked" "She yelled" "She screamed" etc. It helps a lot! Also, EVERYONE needs to work on their vocabulary. The better it is, the better your chances for a great audience. Plus, it not only helps your writing, but it also helps in other parts of your life!

This is my biggest pet peeve. Bad grammar just drives me away from fanfic. I cannot stand it. I have absolutely no tolerance for it. Now that doesn't mean that you have to be perfect. By all means, no one is perfect. I usually let little things slide, but when it's in every sentence written, it's something that drives me crazy. I don't even like it when people talk that way.

I am not sure if I can pull of an example of bad grammar, but just know that common sense can help. Your grammar does that not have to be perfect. Just legible. The better it is, the better the chances that someone as picky as me will be reading your work!

Oh how I've had the unfortunate misfortune of accounting authors who've written stories that was sooo obvious they didn't even care about! Lack of care can be expressed in many ways. Everything in my list goes under lack of care really. The bad spelling, the bad grammar, the lack of details, the length of chapters, the just dialogue. All of which falls into this section. Think about it this way. If you don't care about your story, then what makes you think the readers will? I know that I certainly wouldn't. I need to feel like you are aiming to get my attention when you write. I need to feel that you give a damn about what you are writing and publishing on the web. Lack of care can be your worst enemy, so take the time to sit down and actually LOOK at your writing. Don't just write it and think that it's perfect, let me just post it on the web. It doesn't work. It isn't good. It doesn't attract readers. It's bad for you.

An quick example of lack of care can be that you don't put quotation marks where they need to be, or you don't put spaces after your periods or commas (that's wrong btw for those of you who are curious). It makes for a terrible read and I find it to be very annoying. You can rest assured that I won't be reading your story if that does occur.

This is yet another thing. Now don't get me wrong. I am not saying that you have to write a fifteen-twenty page chapter or anything. By all means, that's not what I am talking about. I have encountered HUNDREDS of stories (at least that is how it feels. If you didn't already know, when you submit your fanfics to Journey Online, I am the one who posts them up) that have length issues.

I've seen stories that range from two paragraphs to half a page. That is not a chapter! I am sorry, but it isn't! I hate it when authors do that. Sure it is your freedom to write as you please, but when you have two paragraphs or half a page, it's not a chapter! This is something that just ticks me off really badly, especially because I have to post up so many stories and many authors have length issues.

Your story does not have to be supremely long. Three pages at the least are suffice. You don't need to have a six page or ten-page chapter. I am not asking for it, but length also represents how much you care for the story. Now if you are wondering HOW to lengthen your story, then the simple solution is details. Many times when chapters are short, I've noticed that it is because they don't put enough details in there. It's like the example I used for lack of details. In that example you saw how two lines ended up to be two paragraphs! It's really simple and all it requires is a little effort and some thought. Length is important when you are writing. I just don't think that two paragraphs can be a chapter... at least not one that I would have any interest in reading.

There are authors who don't know how to format a story. Formatting is VERY important in writing and it's especially important when you publish stories on the web. On the web there are new rules to follow. There are certain things that just do not work. Here are a few of those things:

Indenting your paragraphs. It won't work online. When I use a HTML editor, indenting does not show up. It doesn't show that you are trying to put a new paragraph. So do not use the tab key to put in indents. Don't bother with indents at all. Write it in block format. Double space between paragraphs and you should be fine. This is just an HTML thing that all authors should know. Indenting IS possible, but I don't recommend it. The fast and easy way to do it is to just double space when you want to create a new paragraph.

Knowing when to create a new paragraph. Many times an author just puts everything in one paragraph. Like this: "But Jason--" Courtney started. "No Courtney. Don't start," Jason replied. "But Jason I love you." You see how everything is just joined together? I hate it when authors do this. It's very confusing because it's hard to distinguish who is saying what. It annoys me greatly. Instead of doing that you can simply do this:

See how that makes things better? It also gives you an opportunity to add details to the work. You can write the way Courtney looks when she says this, how she feels when she says it, how Jason feels and looks, and so on. This is very important in writing.

Knowing when to put spaces. There are many authors out there who don't know when to space. Always space after a period. Always space after a comma. Some people just stick it together, like this: You don't know what you are talking about.Yes I do,can't you see? That is WRONG. Always space after period and commas. This is very very important!

Knowing when to use quotation marks and HOW to use them. Another important part of formatting. You need to know when to use quotation marks. Quotation marks are used when the character is saying something. The rule to quotation marks is that once the character is done talking and you want to include a "he asked" or "she said" then always do this:

"I love you Jason. I always will," Courtney said passionately.

Notice the way I used the comma after will and then added the quotation mark. Now here is the same sentence, but with Courtney replaced with the word she.

Notice how I did NOT capitalize S in SHE. Why? Because you aren't supposed to when you finish a quote and actually write who it was that said it. Now say you use an exclamation point at the end of the sentence to show a certain feeling. Do you use the comma before ending the quote? No you do not. Just put the quotation mark after the exclamation point and continue on. Like this:

"JASON!!" Courtney yelled.

I used two exclamation points and then placed the quotation mark. The same rule about the not capitalizing also applies to this.

Overall, formatting is very important. You need to be careful how you do it. Formatting helps make your writing legible and it's pleasant to read it. I don't read stories that have bad formatting. It drives me away.

Everyone is allowed to make mistakes. That's just the nature of life. I know I make mistakes all the time, but there is a way to make a mistake. You need to take the time to FIX that mistake and that way you aren't accused of this crime. Typos are all right, as long as you take the time to fix them BEFORE you post your story online. A simple spell check can also help with that. Also, read over what you write to make sure that you aren't doing something like writing "sea" when you actually meant "see". Stuff like that really makes a reader wonder whether or not you even give a damn about what you are writing. Typos are annoying, but they can be easily fixed. Just run a spell check and review your work a few times before putting it on the web.

This is something that almost everyone doesn't do. As sad as that is, it's true. Almost everyone doesn't do this and it's evident in his or her work. This is something that annoys even me. I hate to edit, but it is a MUST. Editing is very very veeeeeeery important people. I can't express how much. When you first write it, it might sound great in your head, but you NEED to go over it. You might be surprised with all the mistakes you see when you do. Plus it is also a great way to add more details and such. In order to do a GOOD edit, leave the story for a day or two. Just stay away from it, so that when you DO come back to it, your mind is fresh and you can see things clearly. This is something even I fail to do sometimes, but it is very important.

This is another turn off. If your character is not true to itself, then it can push readers away. If you write Jason all out of whack, making him all mushy and fluffy, it will certainly push me away. There is a difference between what you want to project and what the character would actually do.

For example: If something bad was to happen to Courtney and she ended up in the hospital, whom would Jason be relying on? What would he do? Sometimes authors have him turn to Monica, or Carly, or Sonny. But would the actual Jason just start crying like a baby and pour out his soul? Not really. He'll probably keep it inside or speak of it in a really low voice, and be true to HIS character. Authors need to be careful with the way they write a character. This can hurt them badly!

You may think you have a plot, but make sure that it's really there! Don't just write a story for the sake of writing. Make sure that there is a POINT to it. That doesn't mean it has to be melodramatic, or full of disasters. It can be fluffy and good too. But if it's too fluffy, it usually is like the kiss of death, especially if it is a chapter fic. When writing, make sure that you have a plot. It's the biggest part of the story. The point of writing is to convey a message to someone, to tell him or her something interesting. If there is no actual plot, then there is no actual point, which makes a very boring read.

There are instances when an author actually has a plot, but it is so unbelievable that it doesn't make any sense. And then there are instances where the plot is over with the snap of a finger and you are back to wherever. That kind of stuff really bothers me. A really fine example of a too quick ending would be the ending of my very own fanfic "Date" or "Lost But Not Forgotten". Both of these stories had a very driven plot throughout the whole story and right around the end of it I got tired of it. In an attempt to at least finish the chapter, I kind of gave it a whack and ruined a lot of it.

This is a big mistake on anyone's part. As stated above in #10, having a plot is very important. But just any plot won't do. Make sure you have a legible plot.

This kind of fits in with the weird plot scheme, but I thought it deserved a number of it's own. Make sure that you think about your plots before you start to write it. Make sure it makes LOGICAL sense. There is just some stuff that I've encountered that makes absolutely no sense. Put yourself in the reader's position. Think about what kind of questions they might ask. It's important to have something that makes sense.

Copying a plot from someone else is obviously wrong. It's kind of like plagiarism, only in a different form. If someone else has already done the story, then don't go ahead and do it. You want to be unique and creative. The idea is to be original, not copy from everyone else.

Sometimes authors even copy from their previous work. Jess mentioned this to me and I see that happen quite often. Try NOT to copy your own work either. Best advice is that if it doesn't seem original, don't write it unless it's going to be really really different.

This is a MAJOR pet peeve! People who have good plots sometimes don't take advantage of certain situation. Say for example, Jason & Courtney are stuck in a mine hole that Ric put them in. Instead of just cutting straight to the point where they yell for help and then Sonny comes to the rescue, there are a few things you can express. What about the time when they were in there? What about how they reacted to each other?

A better example would be say a simple kiss between Jason & Courtney, perhaps a first kiss. Take the time to describe it, to show the nervousness or excitement on both parts. Little things like that makes the writing a lot better. If you don't take advantage of situations such as that, it really hurts your writing. So please, take advantage of what you can!

Another thing that can drive readers away is predictability. Sometimes an author can be so damn predictable it's absolutely boring. Try and be creative, be assertive, and surprise the readers from time to time. Unpredictability is GOOD!

And the last pet peeve: simply dialogue. There is nothing wrong with writing dialogue, but there is something wrong with JUST dialogue. It can take away from a story if you don't write excellent dialogue. When you use details to describe the scene, especially when it comes to writing, it's really good. Simply dialogue is really script writing, which I personally don't enjoy reading. The previous part of "How Not To Write A Fanfic" that Jess wrote explored this theme. This is one of the major pet peeves that I have. Remember, details can help a lot in length, growth, and enjoyment! Don't just go dialogue. Add some details for flavor. After all, plain vanilla ice cream isn't really as tasty as vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup and sprinkles!