Fan fiction

Fan fiction (also spelled fanfiction and commonly abbreviated to fanfic) is fiction written by people who enjoy a film, novel, television show or other media work, using the characters and situations developed in it and developing new plots in which to use these characters.

While it does technically violate copyright laws, fans keep doing it, and copyright owners tend to ignore it as long as no money is being exchanged. Some authors are extremely protective of their work and forbid any fanfiction writing, including Anne Rice and Anne McCaffrey. Other authors encourage fan work. Most authors post a disclaimer at the beginning of their opening chapter or fic with a general statement about how they don't own the characters, plot, or anything related to the media work they're writing about.

Most large fan-based websites have their own fanfiction libraries, including Bulbagarden. Other sites, such as FanFiction.Net or Writing.com deal strictly with fanfiction only.

Closely related to fanfics are fan comics (Dōjinshi), which are basically fan fictions using the comic medium. While hand- and computer-drawn comics exist, fans who feel they may lack artistic skill may create 'sprite comics', making use of the graphics available from video games to tell their stories.

Within the Pokémon fandom, fanfics may either expand on plot points that were otherwise abandoned (such as the appearance of the GS Ball in the anime) or focus on the further adventures of otherwise forgotten Characters of the day. Shipping is also a popular subject among many fanfic writers. Some writers will even make fun of the franchise's sillier aspects, such as those on the website Pokemopolis.

This article is a part of Project Fandom, a Bulbapedia Project that aims to write comprehensive articles on every aspect of the Pokémon Fandom.