Any fiction writers want to chime in? The fact that I accidentally successfully used this strategy is one data point. And then you look at amateur fiction websites, and see a lot of poorly written work that nonetheless has fans is another.
I write fanfiction set in the Mass Effect universe. My work is probably “amateur” as I make no claims of being a writer. It’s all just for fun for me.
I wouldn’t try this technique personally, as I’m not interested in meeting people who I’m compatible with, but geographically isolated from. The odds that one of the people responding would be from the same city as me seem pretty slim.
What I can tell you about my traffic stats is that I get about a thousand unique views every time I post a new chapter. Of the people who add my story to their favorites or set an author alert for my work (so that they are emailed every time I post new content), the majority seem to be people identifying as women on their own profile pages. (My fanfiction includes a popular “ship” meaning that romance is an important focus in it.) I get anywhere from two to around six written replies to each chapter I post. The majority of people who write to me identify as men, however, while less women write to me, I would rank the average quality of correspondence higher among the women who do choose to write than the men. I’ve actually become very good friends with a woman who I met through fanfiction, but I’ve never met her in person as she lives in Germany and I in the States.
What is the fanbase of a median fiction or fanfiction? Probably somewhere between 0 and 1, including the author and their mother?
Any fiction writers want to chime in? The fact that I accidentally successfully used this strategy is one data point. And then you look at amateur fiction websites, and see a lot of poorly written work that nonetheless has fans is another.
I write fanfiction set in the Mass Effect universe. My work is probably “amateur” as I make no claims of being a writer. It’s all just for fun for me.
I wouldn’t try this technique personally, as I’m not interested in meeting people who I’m compatible with, but geographically isolated from. The odds that one of the people responding would be from the same city as me seem pretty slim.
What I can tell you about my traffic stats is that I get about a thousand unique views every time I post a new chapter. Of the people who add my story to their favorites or set an author alert for my work (so that they are emailed every time I post new content), the majority seem to be people identifying as women on their own profile pages. (My fanfiction includes a popular “ship” meaning that romance is an important focus in it.) I get anywhere from two to around six written replies to each chapter I post. The majority of people who write to me identify as men, however, while less women write to me, I would rank the average quality of correspondence higher among the women who do choose to write than the men. I’ve actually become very good friends with a woman who I met through fanfiction, but I’ve never met her in person as she lives in Germany and I in the States.
My mom has never read my story.
Thanks for your input! It’s interesting that most of the people who favorite your work are women, but most of the people who write to you are men.