Fanfiction: An Exploration in "What If..."
Fanfiction, fanfic and fanwork are all terms used to describe when an author creates a fictional work inspired by preexisting fiction that is not their own. Authors theorize what could have been with fictional characters, settings or plots, and create brand new works of fiction.
The following roundup includes a small taste of fiction inspired by two famous works: "Sherlock Holmes" by Arthur Conan Doyle and "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll. The popularly admired author, Jane Austen, is also a source of inspiration for many contemporary authors. Visit here for works inspired by Austen's classic, "Pride & Prejudice."
The Original Work:
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
The first collection of stories featuring the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes, one of the most famous and beloved detectives in fiction. In these riveting tales, the sleuth of 221B Baker Street and his steadfast companion, Watson, set out on the dark, foggy streets of late Victorian London to solve England's darkest mysteries and unearth its most closely guarded secrets.
Works Inspired by Holmes:
Young Miss Holmes, by Kauro Shintani
In this graphic novel, Christie Holmes is a prodigy. At ten years old, she's as familiar with the sciences and classics as any older student at Cambridge or Oxford. And her facility with logic is reminiscent of her uncle, the eminent Sherlock Holmes himself. So, what's a brilliant young girl to do when her parents are away in India, leaving her behind in care of the maids and servants? Solve mysteries, of course.
The Crack in the Lens, by Darlene A. Cysper
If someone had asked Sherlock Holmes later in the year, there is little doubt that he would have said his life began that spring day in 1971 when he met Violet Rushdale upon the moors and ended in the winter some months distant. His mother would have disputed the former claim, and many, both friend and foe, would have come to deny the latter. Yet what happened that year nearly cost him his life and his sanity, and strongly influenced the man he was to become.
Sherlock Holmes in America, edited by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon L. Lellenberg and Daniel Stashower
A fascinating and extraordinary collection of never-before-published crime and mystery stories by bestselling American writers. From the bustling neighborhoods of New York City and Washington, D.C., to sunny yet sinister cities like San Francisco, the world's best-loved British sleuth will face some of the most cunning criminals America has to offer, and meet some of America's most famous figures along the way.
The Mammoth Book of The Lost Chronicles of Sherlock Holmes, by Denis O. Smith
Sherlock Holmes is one of the most beloved detectives ever created and many have been inspired to continue his adventure after Sir Conan Doyle's death. In that spirit, this collection brings together some of the more than two dozen stories that Denis O. Smith -- regarded as the best Holmes storyteller after Doyle -- wrote since the publication of "The Adventure of the Purple Hand" in 1982.
King and Klinger have assembled a stellar group of contemporary authors from a variety of genres and asked them to create new stories inspired by the Holmes canon. Inside you'll find Holmes in times and places previously unimagined, as well as characters who have themselves been affected by the tales of Sherlock Holmes.
The Original Work:
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll
One hot summer's day, Alice tumbles down a rabbit hole and finds herself in Wonderland, where everything is topsy-turvy, upside down and wrong-way round. Here begins a series of fantastical adventures as Alice's body grows and shrinks, she swims in a pool of her own tears, attends the maddest of tea parties, and meets such iconic and beloved characters as the smiling Cheshire Cat and the Queen of Hearts.
Works Inspired by Alice:
Are You Alice? by Ikumi Katagiri
In this graphic novel series, a disillusioned young man in search of something stumbles into the weird and wacky world of Wonderland, where, as "Alice," he is thrust into a muderous game of Kill the White Rabbit by command of the ruler of the land, the Queen of Hearts. But while Alice rails against the role that has been forced upon him, he has little choice but to comply. For in Wonderland, not sticking to the script can have deadly consequences.
This is the first in a series of three books in which a descendant of the historical inspiration for "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," sixteen-year-old Alyssa Gardner fears she is mentally ill like her mother until she finds that Wonderland is real and, if she passes a series of tests to fix Alice's mistakes, she may save her family from their curse.
"Go Ask Alice" is the diary of a fifteen-year-old drug user who chronicles her daily struggle to escape the pull of the drug world. It started when she was served a soft drink laced with LSD in a dangerous party game. Within months, she was hooked, trapped in a downward spiral that took her from her comfortable home and loving family to the mean streets of an unforgiving city. As powerful--and as timely--today as ever, "Go Ask Alice" remains a definitive book on the horrors of addiction.
The Looking Glass Wars, by Frank Beddor
When she is cast out of Wonderland by her evil Aunt Reed, young Alyss Heart finds herself living in Victorian Oxford as Alice Liddell and struggles to keep memories of her kingdom intact until she can return and claim her rightful throne.
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