Tips For Ed, Edd, N' Eddy Fanfiction

Tips For Ed, Edd, N' Eddy Fanfiction is a forum on Earth to Edd and The 3 Eds forums written by "Yoshermon" on how to write good fanfiction. The following is the entire guide as seen on the forums written out for quick reference. Note: All credit goes to Yoshermon for writing the guide.

The Guide
I've seen a number of fan fictions on this site, both new and old, that repeat many mistakes and "no-no’s" of fan fiction and general story writing. So this topic is for tips on how to improve your stories about Ed, Edd, n' Eddy!

Overused Concepts in Ed, Edd, n' Eddy Fanfiction
I've seen many fanfictions in my years of....life, and I've also seen many overused concepts and ideas. Here is a list of them in many Ed, Edd, n' Eddy fanfictions:


 * A new kid moves into/visits the cul-de-sac. - This is probably one of the most overused concepts in Ed, Edd, n' Eddy fanfiction. It is where the writer has an original character move into or visit the cul-de-sac. Often they'll have the character befriending the Eds, much to the other kids' (especially Kevin's) surprise and sometimes to their (especially with Kevin also) jelousy. Some people have pulled this off rather well mind you, but that is because they have good spelling and grammer, they put great detail into the description of their character(s), and have a solid, thought-out story.


 * A new kid becomes the fourth Ed. - This is a subsection of the concept above, however it is overused almost as much and I feel it should be described with more detail. This is when a new kid moves in with a fourth variation of the name "Edward" and hangs out with the three other Eds. This is used a lot and some people get so wrapped up in the idea of a fourth Ed that they don't even think of a story to go with it. Like the above concept, however, it too can be pulled off well if the conditions above are met.

Thanks Muji.
 * Kevin is extremely angry at the Eds for some reason and goes to great lengths to kill/hurt/humiliate them. - This often goes along with "the new kid moves in" concept and is highly overused. We all know that Kevin is a jerk in the show and many people like to exploit that in their stories. So they make Kevin become the main antagonist in the story, often times to the point where he'd go so far as to injure or kill the Eds. Another popular trend with Kevin is that he gets extremely jealous by the fact that the new kid(s) in town hang out with the Eds, so he tries to kidnap/harm/kill them along with the Eds. Doing this, ironicly, makes Kevin out of character. He may be a jerk, but he wouldn't go so far as to permanently harm someone, even the Eds. The only way I can think of to pull this off well is to give Kevin an emotionally painful history and a good reason to want to kill/hurt the Eds or any other character in a fan fiction.


 * An apocalyptic event or natural disaster happening in or to Peach Creek. - This is a bit less overused but I've still seen many an incomplete story having to do with the apocolypse or natural disaster happening in the cul-de-sac. This kind of plot can be hard to finish, for you have to answer the rather large and difficult question of "What happens to the kids after the world ends/the earthquake/flood/tornato/hurricane/alien invasion/all hell lets loose/giant monster attack is over?". One must have a creative mind and a solid plot to pull this off, but those can sometimes be hard to find in the right place at the right time in the right story.

I admit to having written a story involving an earthquake hitting Peach Creek. I won't post a link in fear that people will consider me advertising my own fanfictions, but I personally think I finished the story well....


 * Edd making an invention that defies the laws of physics/is too advanced. - We all know that Eddward Double-D can make some pretty crazy things, but some people take it a little too far in their fanfics. The boy is smart but I think that building teleporters, reality-warping devices, advanced battle equipment (he is nonviolent anyway), and other things in that area are a little out of his league. However, this can be somewhat simple to get around sometimes by having a good explanation as to how or why he built the machines. Maybe he found a material that has space-time warping capabilities or he needed to make the war machine to stop the aliens from coming. A good explanation is essential in most stories, the exception being stories that are not supposed to make sense. But either way, don't have Edd doing something over-the-top without a good support behind it.


 * Rolf knows everything about what's going on because it relates to his mysterious heritage. - Rolf is a strange kid and his family/country's origins are quite the mystery. This is often exploited in stories, but sometimes people go a little too far. Rolf knows a lot of things and has been proven during the show to know many strange things about his heritage. However, it isn't always a good idea to have him be the one who knows what the heck is going on automatically when the demons come out of the ground or the portal to hell opens up coincidentally near the cul-de-sac.


 * Crossovers or plots involving the Eds suddenly becoming heroes or "chosen ones" for no real reason. - This goes well with the crossover section of this guide. Basically, far too many crossover fanfictions have the Eds suddenly going on a quest with some famous video game/comic book/tv series/movie character because they are "the chosen ones" or "have special powers that have yet to be realized". Like all overused concepts, this can be pulled off (not easily, of course) well enough with good writing skills. My biggest pet-peeve of this concept is when the crossover element is rushed or there is not explanation of why the Eds are "the chosen ones" or "are unlikely heroes destined to save the Earth/universe/galaxy/cul-de-sac".


 * Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, or Dragonball/Dragonball Z/Dragonball GT crossovers. - This is mainly a personal grudge, but I'm pretty sure a lot of people are sick of (bad) crossovers of Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, or Dragonball. Those series are apparently the easiest to crossover with or have the (Omg EEE are dragonbaall chars!! lol!!!1!) hype that usually comes with the hope of reading a good fanfiction. However, many people break most if not all of the crossover guidlines below and their stories turn out very bad. Like all other overused concepts, a rare few people have made a few decent fanfics with these crossovers.


 * Using members or names of members of the forum the story is being posted on in the story. - Everybody likes to have them star in someone else's Ed, Edd, n' Eddy fanfic. But putting members or their usernames in a story makes it seem more like roleplay than it does an actual fanfic. I think this concept would be better suited for forum games and things like that rather than official fanfiction.

If anyone is using these concepts, please don't be offended by my saying that they're overused. I'm not trying to bash anyone's story or anything, I'm just posting a lot of concepts and plot outlines that are used in over 60% of the stories I have read over the years. Any concept, now matter how overused can make a story shine if the person writes it well enough.