In my never ending war on bad Fanfiction, I have noticed that recently, it has all been just more of the same, especially from some people. (No names) So, to assist in my eternal crusade, I thought I might suggest some ideas for more original Fanfiction.
First, combining anime with classic literature:
Most stories are based/influenced by the ancient works, so why not just go the more direct route? Just put anime characters in a work of Shakespeare! If you’re in high school, you already know a lot about at 1-4 works of Shakespeare due to your English class, and you may have to write an alternate version of one of Shakespeare’s plays for homework anyways.
But don’t do a Romeo and Juliet of your favorite couple unless you can write it REALLY well. We’ve all seen way too many of those already. Try something more original, like, say, A Midsummer’s Night Dream with Inuyasha or Bleach characters. Or combine Deathnote and Macbeth? Maybe ‘King Lear’ starring Jiraiya?
If you’re going to take my advice, you should first consider a few things:
1. Are you smart enough to write this sort of Fanfiction? Because let’s face it, Shakespeare isn’t for everyone.
2. Do you know the Shakespeare and the anime well enough to pull this off?
3. Will it be funny? Because, even in his most tragic plays, Shakespeare showed off his sense of humor. You should be able to modernize his jokes and insert joke related to the anime.
4. Can you fulfill its potential? If not, hand it over to someone who can, and be sure they give you credit for the idea.
Of course, classical literature is by no means limited to the works of Shakespeare, there are countless other fairytales to modify. Some are as obvious as Sasori=Pinocchio (shuuder) while some are more subtle such as Aladdin and the Genie of the Lamp=Gaara and Shukaku of the Gourd (I’m looking right at you, Jessica. And I’m looking so hard you’re gonna go blind in a few seconds. Hope you can read Braille!)
What may be most obvious is using Japanese mythology. Some characters are based on Japanese myths. The theme of Japanese mythology is particularly strong in Inuyasha (which deals with a variety of demons) Bleach (which concerns with the afterlife and ghosts) and Naruto (every frigging character has a link to some myth). I once suggested combining Shukaku with the Bunbuku chagama story to a friend. The story goes that a tanuki had his life saved by a monk. In gratitude, he turned himself into a teapot, and insisted that he be sold. However, the new owner held him over a ferocious flame, and he transformed back into his usual self before scampering his way back to the monk. The monk then got an idea. He offered seats to a display of a dancing teapot for small sums of money. Then, the tanuki would transform into a teapot but retain his legs and dance across a tightrope. Now, she corrupted it beyond recognition, but meh.
