Fan Fiction of the Week: Dreamcatcher

Dreamcatcher is a gripping fan fiction featuring Twilight's Jacob Black. This romance is both fun and exciting, great for romance lovers and those who don't alike! In this edition of Fan Fiction of the Week, we take a closer look at this work.

Give us a brief summary of Dreamcatcher.

In Dreamcatcher Jacob Black is struggling to deal with major changes in what he's grown used to. His closest friend outside of La Push is gone, and so are his supernatural abilities when the Cullens leave. Though he doesn't want to befriend people from outside his small circle, somehow one will get past that sort of wall he's built up. Hannah Whitehawk, his tutor, gets close to him and helps him to realise that he is more than the people around him. Of course, that doesn't happen without conflict.

What inspired you to write Dreamcatcher?

When I first read The Twilight Saga I was in middle school, part of the cliche group of people that 'read it first.' Growing an attachment to the character Stephanie Meyer created was interesting, because this series helped me to spot different things in writing. I've always felt that she gave Jacob the most depth, as opposed to both Edward and Bella, and the story she had written for him was unfair. I won't even touch Breaking Dawn here, but my inspiration was just the fact that if Jacob was a living, breathing person, I don't think his story would be the same. I wanted to write something better for him. Not to mention I've been watching New Moon and listening to the soundtrack and score quite a bit lately.

How long have you been working on this story?

This exact story? I've been working on Dreamcatcher for a day. Literally. If you look at the Mibba Magazine Fandom Fiction Challenge forum, you'll see my post. Of course, I've been toying with the idea of a Jacob Black fiction for a while now, and some of the ideas I'll be using have crossed my mind in the past. I've been on a two year (writing) hiatus - according to the stories I have posted - because everything has fallen through, so a few small ideas are things that have been in my head that long or longer. Since this exact story and version of my ideas was a spur of the moment decision, I really hope to carry it out with a good pace and that it stays as interesting as I've planned it to be.

What is your favorite thing about writing Dreamcatcher?

So far, my favourite thing about writing Dreamcatcher is the name I chose for the female main character. Whitehawk. I searched for names that Native Americans have, as I don't have a Native last name. My original idea was Hannah Blackhawk, but I felt that was too similar to Whitehawk. If I would have recycled the last name Whiteley from one of my other stories, I felt that would have gotten rid of the diversity. I feel like having created this character is a big step for me as a writer, because I mostly always write about characters similar to the European side of me. When I started thinking about a Jacob Black story last week I knew I wanted my characters to be diverse, but that I didn't want them all to be from La Push.

What is the most challenging thing about writing it?

The fact that this is for the Fandom Fiction Challenge is most challenging, and it should be. Sure, I could have done separate stories or used the ten different prompts among ten different stories. When I was contemplating the prompts and a fandom, the idea of ten different stories written in the same fashion as Skins crossed my mind but then I thought that wouldn't be much of a challenge because it wouldn't take much for me to connect nine or ten different people for one chapter each. The fact that I've chosen to use a challenge to challenge me is the challenge haha but even if I don't finish in time to get the badge for all ten prompts I'll be sticking with this.

Have you ever experienced writer's block with this story? If so, how did you overcome it?

Writer's block has been a big issue with my writing for the past two years. For those of you who have read the summary for my National Novel Writing Month story Twenty-one (or will become readers) you can probably figure out why. Being a student in high school, trying to graduate early and then trying to complete senior year was really hard for me. I attended an underfunded school with friends who were always using me. And then I lost a friend. It was like every idea I had just fell flat. In order to overcome the block I had, I tried to write about my experience. That fell apart at least three times. By taking a break until I felt my fingers itching to type the ideas out as they were flowing through my brain really helped. Also, using the challenge to get the ideas going even more has made me really happy.

Do you write with an outline, or just wing it?

With each story I write my method of planning varies. With Dreamcatcher, my only outline is the order in which I've decided to execute the prompts given to me. Winging it is both a challenge and a help in overcoming my writer's block. All I Need had a partial outline of the order of things that will happen or things to be said, and Twenty-one is a bunch of plot pieces that I will carry out however it comes to me.

Do you have any pre/post writing rituals?

Before writing I usually watch some television, just to see how characters react to each other or get the look of some settings. My anxiety is really bad, so I don't really go out and people watch anymore, but television has been a great substitute. I also find face claims, research them and setting areas. I'm very big on music for the during portion, just as inspiration because music can really set a tone. Post-write things I do are usually make notes on my iPhone of any new ideas and create a blog entry here if I think there are people online who will stumble across it. Really, it varies with the story and/or chapter I'm working on.

Is there anything you would like to say to your readers?

Oh gosh, just thank you all for being so lovely. Whether you are a reader or will be a reader of Dreamcatcher or if you are a reader of one of my other stories, thank you. Watching the level of readers go up makes me really happy. Even though many of my stories have less than 100, it always makes me really happy to know someone enjoys it. For every subscription, recommendation, and comment, just know that you are making what has been a really tough year for me both inside and outside of writing so much better. The small gestures of appreciation you all show me really warms my heart, so thank you.

Special thanks to nearly witches. and Fandango for editing!