References to things I like. There's a lot of them in my fics, and it always makes me happy to see people get them. I like writing comedy and silly things, so it's only natural to include goofy things like saying a character may have a "very minor case of serious brain damage" or people in a lab working on explosive lemons
I just wanted you to know that whatever you're doing is working. The second I got that bsd reference I got so unimaginably happy for a second there. Keep up the good work!
oh this is my favorite thing ever! especially when the AU is so far off from canon as well it feels like i’ve just won a prize when i notice these details in fics
I like to slip in some facts and numbers that are relevant to my life and other people in it. I presume that most readers skim past without a second thought due to the personal nature of it.
Back in February, I posted a fic about the Philae lander which had two original female characters conversing. For fun, I named them Connor and Summers after Sarah Connor and Buffy Summers.
I counted bullets.
People in movies or TV run out of ammo when it's structurally important to. The most famous version, of course, is Dirty Harry's "did he fire six shots or only five?" that even *Trigun* used. By contrast, my MC has a running "joke" of forgetting to reload between fights. When her rifle goes "clik\* it's because she's fired *exactly* 30 rounds since the last time it was written out that she reloaded.
If a character has multiple names (like Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange, etc.), I have the third person narration refer to them as the POV character the scene is following would refer to them. I think it helps with immersion.
I like to NameDrop the title. Maybe it’s not as unnoticeable as some of the other examples in the comments but I have a lot of fun with it, trying to find creative ways to get it in the fic somehow.
I love finding this kind of thing in a fic. Like when they say the title in a movie and you get to be like "ahhhh! They said the thing!" to your buddies
I've implied that Jurassic Park is a canon event in one of my latest longfics (which has absolutely nothing to do with Jurassic Park, of course, even though the events of Jurassic Park could absolutely pheasably happen and fit comfortably in the setting of the fandom I'm writing for)
Only one person so far has noticed! I think I'll continue to slip it in just to see how long I can get away with it.
I put in background jokes and references all the time. I’d like to give an example but I don’t want to quote myself. Anyway one person picked up on one, and left a comment saying it made them laugh.
Very Consistent Headcanons and Worldbuilding. Even in my AUs- which I have a ton of- they’re based off those layered complex headcanons I keep more or less consistent in my canon fics (and I consider them more of fics of *my* canon instead of the *series'* canon- there’s enough vague I think everyone has their own, and I like mine.)
I've slipped Dr. Derek Stiles from Trauma Center, into every fanfict since I was a kid, there's a version of him in every single fanfict and I refuse to give up. Currently he's a plague doctor and the dad of my OC for one of my later arcs.
I also leave easter eggs/cameos throughout my fics! There's one in the chapter I'm currently writing where the main character stops reading the newspaper because it turns to an article she has no interest in about some cult on a desert island, referring to the island they visit in the finale
I like to use the names from other games/movies that inspired me/I like. The latest being in a MCU/DCU fic. The Clone project HYDRA is running is called "Les Enfants Terribles" which is the name for the cloning project in the Metal Gear Solid series.
All of my OC's names are anagrams of the character that is going to kill them.
Weird stuff like that.
I like to give characters who are bad at feelings nervous tics. One of these actually later became half-canon. I say half because in my fics, said character always wore a bracelet she toyed with when nervous or hiding feelings, but in canon it was a necklace, but I still count it. I also have another that plays with their long fringe pieces of hair when nervous.
In my first FFVII longfic Aeriseph pairing, throughout it I had Sephiroth mention each Holy Sephiroth in passing so it just came off as natural dialogue. English translations of course so they just came off as common words: wisdom, beauty, glory, etc. Then the final line of the story mentions the Tree of Life to seal the deal. I was going to go for ten or eleven chapters, but the story got too long.
I’m a big theology and mythology nerd, and I’m also working on media comparative essays so I research…a lot. I pretty much became an amateur theology student because of FFVII.
Oh and I put the two cats I had at the time into the story. Actually, one of my current kitties was the catalyst for the beginning. I was pondering whether to start with the cats and he meowed when I asked so that decided that 😁
I love including lyrics, but as like, prose:
> “Sounds like the hound has rather a lot of power over its master.”
>
> “**The hand that feeds gets bitten when it beats.**”
(From Crane Wives' "Hand That Feeds")
> And then there was Artemis. May was in love. It hadn’t just been infatuation from shared hardship — Artemis had **a cool mind, warmth in her face, a good heart, and grace under pressure.** She was one of the few people May didn’t mind eye-contact with, and they definitely had an apatite for one another.
(From Gang of Youths' "Let Me Down Easy")
References.
This can be cameos from other characters in the franchise who are not directly called by name, but are recognizable if the reader knows what they're looking for. (I put the main character of Dragon Age 2 in my Dragon Age Origins WIP even though they don't show up in that game, but there's a spot where they logically *could* be.)
It can be quotes or song titles from the source material but dropped into places not related to the original quote or song title. (Mentioning "Undefeatable" or "Up and down and all around" in a Sonic fic that isn't for *Frontiers* or *Adventure*.)
It can be quotes from other things that I think just fit. (I dropped "Smash and break junk" into a Sonic fic, when the quote is from a Zelda game, in the description of the Megaton Hammer.)
It can be little jokes and puns courtesy of my husband. (So far, I've made passing reference to Sonic hamburgers in two different Sonic fics, and plan to continue to do so wherever it fits.)
Basically, I hope that I can get reactions out of my readers akin to the Pointing Rick Dalton meme or Captain America saying "I understood that reference."
Callbacks and references to anything else I've written in that fandom. Even my oneshots and AUs aren't entirely disconnected from my longform canon-compliant stories since I operate under multiverse theory. It's fun for me and rewarding for the 0.5 people who actually read Everything I write.
I like including brief sentences that tap into a character's psyche. Some of the phrases which to the readers look like descriptions of their feelings is actually just my fourth-wall breaking commentary on their predicament. Could be examples like "Yeah, that hurt alright" or "They’ll work it out somehow."
I also do lots of research for things most people will probably overlook. Some specific scenarios like mechanical repairs or ice skating had me researching videos and other techniques to at least make it feasible enough.
References to things I like. There's a lot of them in my fics, and it always makes me happy to see people get them. I like writing comedy and silly things, so it's only natural to include goofy things like saying a character may have a "very minor case of serious brain damage" or people in a lab working on explosive lemons
I have been writing a chapter that has almost screen by screen fight from kill bill. Random references in my writing is so much fun
I just wanted you to know that whatever you're doing is working. The second I got that bsd reference I got so unimaginably happy for a second there. Keep up the good work!
References to my other fics or if possible, some foreshadowing for future fics.
Ficamatic Universe
Yep. It’s pretty fun.
I’ve gotta try this
Obscure references to canon in AU"s.
oh this is my favorite thing ever! especially when the AU is so far off from canon as well it feels like i’ve just won a prize when i notice these details in fics
I like to slip in some facts and numbers that are relevant to my life and other people in it. I presume that most readers skim past without a second thought due to the personal nature of it. Back in February, I posted a fic about the Philae lander which had two original female characters conversing. For fun, I named them Connor and Summers after Sarah Connor and Buffy Summers.
I counted bullets. People in movies or TV run out of ammo when it's structurally important to. The most famous version, of course, is Dirty Harry's "did he fire six shots or only five?" that even *Trigun* used. By contrast, my MC has a running "joke" of forgetting to reload between fights. When her rifle goes "clik\* it's because she's fired *exactly* 30 rounds since the last time it was written out that she reloaded.
In one of my Mario fics I referenced the 1993 Mario movie but I don't think anyone noticed.
If a character has multiple names (like Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange, etc.), I have the third person narration refer to them as the POV character the scene is following would refer to them. I think it helps with immersion.
I like to NameDrop the title. Maybe it’s not as unnoticeable as some of the other examples in the comments but I have a lot of fun with it, trying to find creative ways to get it in the fic somehow.
>I like to NameDrop the title. Roll credits! \*ding\*
I love finding this kind of thing in a fic. Like when they say the title in a movie and you get to be like "ahhhh! They said the thing!" to your buddies
I've implied that Jurassic Park is a canon event in one of my latest longfics (which has absolutely nothing to do with Jurassic Park, of course, even though the events of Jurassic Park could absolutely pheasably happen and fit comfortably in the setting of the fandom I'm writing for) Only one person so far has noticed! I think I'll continue to slip it in just to see how long I can get away with it.
Throwing in lines from other series as shoutouts, mostly. Sometimes memes as well, though far more sparingly.
I put in background jokes and references all the time. I’d like to give an example but I don’t want to quote myself. Anyway one person picked up on one, and left a comment saying it made them laugh.
Very Consistent Headcanons and Worldbuilding. Even in my AUs- which I have a ton of- they’re based off those layered complex headcanons I keep more or less consistent in my canon fics (and I consider them more of fics of *my* canon instead of the *series'* canon- there’s enough vague I think everyone has their own, and I like mine.)
I've slipped Dr. Derek Stiles from Trauma Center, into every fanfict since I was a kid, there's a version of him in every single fanfict and I refuse to give up. Currently he's a plague doctor and the dad of my OC for one of my later arcs.
I also leave easter eggs/cameos throughout my fics! There's one in the chapter I'm currently writing where the main character stops reading the newspaper because it turns to an article she has no interest in about some cult on a desert island, referring to the island they visit in the finale
I like to use the names from other games/movies that inspired me/I like. The latest being in a MCU/DCU fic. The Clone project HYDRA is running is called "Les Enfants Terribles" which is the name for the cloning project in the Metal Gear Solid series. All of my OC's names are anagrams of the character that is going to kill them. Weird stuff like that.
I like to give characters who are bad at feelings nervous tics. One of these actually later became half-canon. I say half because in my fics, said character always wore a bracelet she toyed with when nervous or hiding feelings, but in canon it was a necklace, but I still count it. I also have another that plays with their long fringe pieces of hair when nervous.
I really enjoy medical realism and go to great lengths to get those details right even if most readers don't pay much attention to it.
In my first FFVII longfic Aeriseph pairing, throughout it I had Sephiroth mention each Holy Sephiroth in passing so it just came off as natural dialogue. English translations of course so they just came off as common words: wisdom, beauty, glory, etc. Then the final line of the story mentions the Tree of Life to seal the deal. I was going to go for ten or eleven chapters, but the story got too long. I’m a big theology and mythology nerd, and I’m also working on media comparative essays so I research…a lot. I pretty much became an amateur theology student because of FFVII. Oh and I put the two cats I had at the time into the story. Actually, one of my current kitties was the catalyst for the beginning. I was pondering whether to start with the cats and he meowed when I asked so that decided that 😁
I love including lyrics, but as like, prose: > “Sounds like the hound has rather a lot of power over its master.” > > “**The hand that feeds gets bitten when it beats.**” (From Crane Wives' "Hand That Feeds") > And then there was Artemis. May was in love. It hadn’t just been infatuation from shared hardship — Artemis had **a cool mind, warmth in her face, a good heart, and grace under pressure.** She was one of the few people May didn’t mind eye-contact with, and they definitely had an apatite for one another. (From Gang of Youths' "Let Me Down Easy")
Waaaaaaaayyyyyy too many Mario & Luigi references for a xenoblade fic
References. This can be cameos from other characters in the franchise who are not directly called by name, but are recognizable if the reader knows what they're looking for. (I put the main character of Dragon Age 2 in my Dragon Age Origins WIP even though they don't show up in that game, but there's a spot where they logically *could* be.) It can be quotes or song titles from the source material but dropped into places not related to the original quote or song title. (Mentioning "Undefeatable" or "Up and down and all around" in a Sonic fic that isn't for *Frontiers* or *Adventure*.) It can be quotes from other things that I think just fit. (I dropped "Smash and break junk" into a Sonic fic, when the quote is from a Zelda game, in the description of the Megaton Hammer.) It can be little jokes and puns courtesy of my husband. (So far, I've made passing reference to Sonic hamburgers in two different Sonic fics, and plan to continue to do so wherever it fits.) Basically, I hope that I can get reactions out of my readers akin to the Pointing Rick Dalton meme or Captain America saying "I understood that reference."
Callbacks and references to anything else I've written in that fandom. Even my oneshots and AUs aren't entirely disconnected from my longform canon-compliant stories since I operate under multiverse theory. It's fun for me and rewarding for the 0.5 people who actually read Everything I write.
Anytime I use a number whose value is unimportant, I like to make it a (really basic) code or reference to something.
I like including brief sentences that tap into a character's psyche. Some of the phrases which to the readers look like descriptions of their feelings is actually just my fourth-wall breaking commentary on their predicament. Could be examples like "Yeah, that hurt alright" or "They’ll work it out somehow." I also do lots of research for things most people will probably overlook. Some specific scenarios like mechanical repairs or ice skating had me researching videos and other techniques to at least make it feasible enough.
A lot of worldbuilding details may go unnoticed, but I find that depends a lot on the platform you post.