Worlds Rewritten

As an aspiring author, I thoroughly enjoy the ability to create original stories.  Alas there is something compelling about writing fiction which continues an established author's work or creates a new story in that fictional Universe.

What if Spock had a goatee...

We see this genre of fan-written fiction (or "fanfic") in the popular culture aplenty. The recaptured fairy tales televised in Once Upon a Time and Grimm followed quick on the heals of the Fables graphic novels.  By weaving their magical plot-lines, these continuations connect us to the magical memories of our childhood with a desire to know what happens next and what happened before, often with adult themed implications. On the other hand, rebooted stories like the new Star Trek film series and the X-men movie prequels can look at alternate realities where things unraveled quite differently. In both cases the fanfic outcomes can be worthy experiences or total rot.

For me, writing fanfic usually takes the form of a short story length tale that speculates beyond an existing story ending that I found dissatisfying.  Perhaps it is hubris to attempt to tweak a tale to ones liking, alas what kind of world would it be where we didn't have the ability to change things, if only within our sphere.

To that end, or rather to three different ends, I present a trio of my fanfic entries for your consumption.  Certainly, I recommend reading the original source, each of which I found intriguing enough to inspire me.

Original: The Varieties of Religious Experience by John Updike (A September 11th inspired short available free online)
Fanfic: How Faith Almost Heals (super-short story)

Original: Enchantment by Orson Scott Card (urban fantasy novel)
Fanfic: Disenchantment: Trinity  (short story) by Brian Bohmueller

Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (superhero-noir graphic novel and film)
Watchmen: Reunion (short story) by Brian Bohmueller