Or perhaps you've gotten so involved in a story line only to have it veer off into a totally different direction than you wanted it to go.

If that sounds like you, never fear, nowadays you can right any wrongs done to your favourite characters or continue to read about their lives just by logging onto the internet.

Fan fiction has become so popular that it's only a matter of a quick search before you can once again delve into the lives of the fictional characters you've grown to love.

From Harry Potter to Xena: Warrior Princess, general to adult storylines, the list is endless when it comes to everyday people putting pen to paper (or in this case finger to keyboard) and bringing the stories and characters back to life.

And it doesn't end there.

If you'd rather see character X involved with character Y instead of Z you're probably not the only one, so chances are someone else has written about it. From cannon stories (those that follow the relationships etc. as set out in the show) to unconventional (relationships using characters that are not featured as part of the original storyline,) from slash (same gender pairings) to uber (uses the same characteristics/features as set out in the original but places them in new characters) the choices you have are limitless.

Of course if by chance you can't find what you want, or would rather put your favourites into an entirely different situation you too can give it a try and see if you can write your own fan fiction story. With the multitude of sites available for both submission of your story and to get any help you need, it's quite possible that your fan fiction will be read by millions of others. And not just online, do a search through places like Amazon and you'll see that many novelists got their start submitting stories to the internet only to have them, or future novels, published.

A quick peek into places like Yahoo Groups and you'll soon be satisfying any cravings you may have to catch up with some of your favourites. You can join or start your own discussion group, read the latest snippet of what of your favourite characters/television shows are having written about them, or even come across a pairing that you never thought possible. In many cases the writers are able to take the characters to places that while not possible on television are incredibly easy to envision.

So if you've been wondering about what your favourite television character has been up to, put the kettle on, find a nice comfortable spot in front of your computer and be prepared to be amazed as you get carried away with the imagination of thousands of other like minded people.

Why do you write fiction?
What makes a work of fiction worth reading? Is it the plot? Character development? When you are done reading a “good” book, what are you left with? Fiction has been looked at in recent decades as entertainment, pleasure reading. However, a look at the classics and 19th century writings will show that novels weren’t written mainly for entertainment but to convey a message. Storytelling has often been used by politicians and religious figures to make their message affect their hearers personally. Parables, fables, and myths all seek to teach us a lesson in a way that we can relate to.

A look at the story of David and Bathsheba is a good example of this pattern. David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, and murdered her husband to cover up his wrongdoing after she was pregnant with his child. Nathan, an old prophet, came to him and told him the story of a poor man and a rich man. The poor man had a pet sheep that he loved as part of his family; the rich man had many flocks. When the rich man had a guest, instead of killing one of his animals he stole the poor man’s sheep to use for his feast. David became furious, vowing to bring the rich man to justice. Nathan brought out the purpose of his story with four words, “You are that man.” Nathan had told his story in a way to make David see his wrongdoing in black and white.

Dickens used this approach in his classic writings. He creates a bond between his characters and us. Their trials in life move us as we see injustice and power affecting their lives. It makes love the characters, live their lives with them page by page, and when we finish we have seen the world in a different light and have “walked” in another man’s shoes. From mysteries to fantasy, we can allow our readers to step away from routine and escape to another world. A world that in some ways they can relate and in others they can learn from. This is the mark of a good work of fiction.

However, our quest for a classic will never succeed if we do not create characters worth the message we are conveying. Characters in best selling books do not stay on the page. They draw us into their world. We become silent observers, seeing the world from their eyes. Their trials become our trials; we laugh when they laugh, we weep as they are betrayed and when they learn the hard facts of life. Well-written books are more descriptive than any movie ever made. We do not only hear the spoken word, we are ushered into their thought life. The characters remind us of a family member or co- worker and by living in their shoes for a while we understand those around us in a different light.

It is equally important that our fictional writings do not become our thesis on the world’s social and political faults. Fiction is meant to be an escape from our everyday routines and a journey to another life. When we attempt to make it meaningful, it is easy for us to get on our soapbox and become distracted from the art of creative writing. Our books will become truly well written when we write about what we know and understand. Then the bond between fiction and reality will become something with which our readers will relate.

About the Author

Tenille is currently a freelance writer and editor. She is a former professional ballet dancer and actress.

The novel, set in the urban town of East Orange, New Jersey, chronicles the escapades of Tamara Hightower, a young woman who must learn the hard way to prioritize her family life over her personal one.

"All About Me" has been endorsed by Essex County Sheriff Armando B. Fontoura as a "terrific, modern-day Cinderella story laced with healthy doses of humor, pathos, sincerity, and realism....[the novel is an intimate slice of today's life, filled with vibrant and memorable characters, lively and gritty dialogue...with a plot that makes you want to laugh one minute and cry the next..."

Darden is a graduate of Rutgers University, where she obtained a degree in English and Communications. "All About Me" is her first novel. She divides her time between East Orange, New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania. Darden is actively working on her second novel, which is scheduled for release winter 2003.