Journey Fics

[Neptune]

Most people know what journey fics are--the main character goes off on adventures with Pokemon, generally following the game plot as far as collecting badges and perhaps foiling Team Rocket a few times. A lot of times these stories are just excuses for self-insert fiction and/or Mary Sues, and they don't always have the best reputation. But will you give them a chance if they seem to be different? What kind of hook does a journey fic have to have for you to keep reading? Or do you really love journey fics and will give any of them a shot?

As far as my thoughts on these types of stories go, I'll usually give them a shot. I think they can be quite interesting if given the right hook. I'm more likely to keep reading if it isn't a carbon copy of the games; I can play those myself. As long as the writing seems good, though, I'll try them. I write them sometimes, too. XD

[LordZangoose]

In general, I find journey fics the most enjoyable of all Pokémon fanfiction genres. Although very few are made enjoyable, those that are can give so many thrills and enjoyable chapters that other fics simply cannot.

Journeys are the reason the fandom exists in general. It was the magic of traveling through the wilderness of unexplored regions with your trusted Pokémon and best friends at your side, with all of the challenges of rivals and evil forces thrown at you that got many of us into the fandom. I, for one, will read any good journey fanfic that has a flair to it that makes it original. Even if it's something like good writing and an interesting romance thrown in, I'm hooked easily. As a matter of fact, I'm writing one myself.

[Orange_Flaaffy]

People often mix up journey fics with trainer fics :). Journey fics can be about anyone traveling someone for any reason as long as it has pokemon in it. It could be a breeder, a Team Rocket member, a ranger, a researcher, a professional pokemon catcher (to sell them, give to the labs as starters, raise to be police pokemon etc), or it could be a group of vampire pokemorphs like in my story ;).
A journey fic is just that, a journey, and it is not limited to the gyms and such of trainer fiction :). It can have things like gym battles in it, but they are the focus all the time :)

[Neptune]

People often mix up journey fics with trainer fics :). Journey fics can be about anyone traveling someone for any reason as long as it has pokemon in it. It could be a breeder, a Team Rocket member, a ranger, a researcher, a professional pokemon catcher (to sell them, give to the labs as starters, raise to be police pokemon etc), or it could be a group of vampire pokemorphs like in my story ;).
A journey fic is just that, a journey, and it is not limited to the gyms and such of trainer fiction :). It can have things like gym battles in it, but they are the focus all the time :)

Actually, when I think of journey fics, I do just think of people traveling with Pokemon. The one I'm writing focuses on twelve different trainers (it's more of a collection of short stories, although that may change) who all end up doing different things. I was referring to the stereotypical starter-badges-champion one, though, in my original post, because I assumed that was what most people thought of when they heard "journey fic". But it does start with the children all getting starter Pokemon (for the record, the standard starters; no Eevee or Dratini or Mew XD), and I wanted to know if that would be all it would take for people to hit the back button.

[Orange_Flaaffy]

I was just saying that the two are different things to most people in the writing world, in more recent years many have used the terms for the same thing but overall the trainer fic focuses more on the training and battling of pokemon by trainers and the journey fic focus is more on the characters and the journey while not being limited just to trainers as the main characters.
All and all, both types of fics are only as good as the writer who is writing them. If you characters are cardboard cutouts of course you story is not going to be very good, and not even the best plot idea will save it.

As for self-inserts, it is possible to write a good one, the key is to make sure you write all sides of your personality, not just the good parts, and basically do not name the character after yourself, make them godlike (or other Mary sue-isms), or make them look like you.

In a sense, nearly every character you write is a self-insert, each being symbolic on some deeper level of parts of yourself or your own dreams.

The key to good writing is balance, a anti-sue who never wins anything and hates the world is just as annoying to read as a Mary-sue IMHO :)

Journey and trainer fics are actually my number one favorite types of pokemon fanfic :). In my nearly nine years in the fandom nothing I have ever read, for the Ash and Misty stories to the Evil Team Takes Over The World War stories, have ever made me as happy as journey fics do :3

[Eiyoko]

I'll just say this point blank from the beginning.

For me, a journey is just that: a journey. For me, when it comes to trainer fics versus journey fics, my opinion tends to be a bit different, if not strange.

For me, a trainer fic mostly/completely focuses on a pokemon trainer aiming to become the best trainer in the world, whereas a journey fic has nothing to do with badges or becoming the best. It's about a journey, whether you're saving the world or saving the pizza in the oven from burning because you forgot to set a timer.

Okay, the latter probably doesn't qualify as an example for the word "journey", but I think you get what I mean. ^^;

Just my two cents. *cowers*

[Saremu]

I know what you are getting at Neptune, so there is no need for me to create a definition of what you are thinking.

They are my favorite fics. I haven't seen many good ones though, which is surprising and dissapointing. I like to see creative characters. Something that also bugs me sometimes is the way people dress their characters. (I know that is stupid, but it is a pet-peve of mine.) I do like the traditional starting where the character recieves a starter from a lab, but there are tons of other possibilities as well. I want to make my own journey fic, but I have too many ideas to organize right now. I'm also busy with Pearl.

If any of you can give me links to good journy fics, or even your own journey fics I'd appreciate it.:biggrin:

[Shiny Loser]

Well, neptune, for ur info, I'm about to write a journey fic, but it's actually 2 partners' journeys, and it has a lot of twists in the story and a lot of references to my previous fic.. I think that's what makes a journey fic good, a lot of different twists.

[Deathspector]

Well, neptune, for ur info, I'm about to write a journey fic, but it's actually 2 partners' journeys, and it has a lot of twists in the story and a lot of references to my previous fic.. I think that's what makes a journey fic good, a lot of different twists.

Actually, twists aren't what marks out a good Trainer/Journey fic from another.

What does mark them out is how many levels the fic possesses. You could follow the plot word for word as the game does, and still make it a good story. If you've read Pokémon Revelation Cross of Fates by xXSaberXx on Serebii, it's one of my favourite Traner stories, yet it is a carbon copy of Pokémon FR/LG. What she does to make it so good, is put emotion into the whole thing. Give reasons for being a saviour. give reasons for saving a Pokémon. Give reasons for training a Pokémon.

I'm writing one that's pretty stereotypical. Son of one of the kanto trio goes around and fights gyms and then saves the world. However, I've spent years planning this out, and had it in mind even before joining PE2K, and I've done my best to make it good.

Deathspector

[Sceptile Frost]

Actually, twists aren't what marks out a good Trainer/Journey fic from another.

What does mark them out is how many levels the fic possesses. You could follow the plot word for word as the game does, and still make it a good story. If you've read Pokémon Revelation Cross of Fates by xXSaberXx on Serebii, it's one of my favourite Traner stories, yet it is a carbon copy of Pokémon FR/LG. What she does to make it so good, is put emotion into the whole thing. Give reasons for being a saviour. give reasons for saving a Pokémon. Give reasons for training a Pokémon.

I'm writing one that's pretty stereotypical. Son of one of the kanto trio goes around and fights gyms and then saves the world. However, I've spent years planning this out, and had it in mind even before joining PE2K, and I've done my best to make it good.

Deathspector


AMEN TO THAT! Twists, while they can be nice, are getting so overrated. (Nonetheless, Now and Forever remains a journey fic with three or four MAJOR twists, like Anakin Skywalker is Darth Vader or something along those lines.

The simple journey fics - those without twists, can be the best and easiest to write. If you strip it down to its basic level, the journey fic is all about the character, and how he changes from Point A (insert hometown here) to Point B (insert pokemon league here). If you do it right, that can be very exciting.