There have been so many highlights, probably too many to count! Every comment that I receive is a highlight, for me – although I  must admit, those that are long and thought-out, that take quotes from the piece and discuss that, truly mean a lot and are nice because it shows what the reader enjoyed or what stood out for them; and I’m a very talkative person, so discussion is always fun. Seeing my writing improve has been good in an odd way, because part of me can’t believe how I used to write, and another is impressed by how much I have improved. I feel now that I am worth the compliments my writing receives, and it’s more fun to write because I like what I am producing. Working with Lu (Vulturemonem) on our collab has been a definite highlight; I’ve loved combining our styles, and handing a chapter over to both receive feedback and leave the direction of the story to Lu is exciting, because even though we plan things out, I can never really guess where the story will go. Getting recognition is surreal, and something I’m still not used to, especially when it’s from other fic authors that I really admire and find inspiration from, because it’s almost a reassurance that what I’m writing is good. Perhaps the biggest highlight is the opportunities: I’ve met so many friends since and through fics, and my recent series of coda fics has provided me with the chance to explore my writing style and character dynamics different to what I’ve previously written.

I discovered fics only maybe one year ago and instantly became a greedy reader. I love these multiple hints in which canon characters are developed, with ideas that could be exactly from the original author and I think this represents a deep knowledge and a great love and appreciation for him/her. I thank fic authors since they bless us with this love and are able to enlarge characters analysis in somewhat unexpected sides of them, even respectful of their traits. I appreciate fics so much I asked my favourite authors for their permission to translate their works to my mother language in order to give anyone that does not know English the chance of reading them.

I would like to thank you for organizing this. Being a fic author can be challengeing – the work we do takes time and the only reward is satisfaction… But not only reward, is it? Because ultimately, while we write what we want to read, fanfiction writing goes both ways. The feedback, the comments, they power us, they make me push forward, they are the reason I keep writing. So I want to thank every reader, the silent and the loud ones – but also encourage those who rarely comment – do that! If you have something you like or not, talk to us! I love discussing things in comments. It’s the comments, after all, that make the fanfiction world go round. Let’s unite, readers and writers. Let’s talk!

Being able to read fics is probably one of the best things ever. You could be watching a TV show and something happens that you don’t really like, a few hours later, someone will have written a different version of that scene. Not only that, but you are allowed to read these works for free. The authors are taking the time of writing good stories and they are out there, 100% free of charge.