Aspiring Author
Chapter 1: Introducing Fan Fiction
A/N: Hey, everyone! This story is being done for a request by the amazingly talented Cynlee. Go check out her stories because she's an amazing writer. Cynlee wanted me to write a story where Leo writes Space Heroes fan fiction, so I wracked my brain and came up with this little idea. The story will take place in my Truth and Lies universe right after "Holding Out for a Hero" and will go from there. I wanted to place it in this particular universe because I figured that maybe Madison would be the one to introduce Leo to Space Heroes fan fiction since she's a fan of the show as well. So I hope you enjoy this tale.
Disclaimer: TMNT and all related characters are property of Nickelodeon. I only own the plot and Madison Kinney.
Summary: When Madison introduces Leo to Space Heroes fan fiction, he wants to try to be a writer himself. But he soon realizes that being a writer isn't as easy as it looks. A Truth and Lies novel.
Leonardo sighed as he faltered in his kata. Normally, he was good at focusing his mind on the task at hand, but lately, it was getting harder and harder for him to do so. The longer there were no leads on April's disappearance, the worse he and his brothers felt. It was still hard to believe that April was gone and that she hadn't yet returned. Did that mean she was dead, or was she being kidnapped and held against her will? Leo did his best to try and not think of these scenarios, but it was difficult sometimes. Still, he tried to put on a brave face for his brothers because he felt that, as the leader, it was his duty to be their rock. It was hard though because Leo blamed himself for what happened to April. If he would have just walked her home instead of letting her go alone, none of this would have happened. April would still be here, ensconced in Donnie's lab as he explained an invention he was making and then coming out to join them for a movie night.
They hadn't had a movie night since it happened.
Knowing that he wasn't going to get through his katas today, Leo decided to call it quits and go visit his friend, Madison Kinney. He'd met Maddie shortly after April had disappeared, and they'd formed an instant bond over their love of Space Heroes. He'd been visiting her a lot, and it was these visits that made him feel a little better about everything even though he still harbored guilt over April's disappearance. He probably should have told Madison about it, but he didn't want to burden her with his feelings. She had enough on her plate with high school and trying to graduate.
Leo told Splinter where he was going, and Splinter gave his permission, warning Leo to be careful as always. Splinter liked Madison a lot and felt she was good for his oldest son and a way to distract him from his destructive thoughts.
"I'll be careful, Master Splinter," Leo promised him as he always did. He bowed and then left the dojo. He saw Raph on the couch watching wrestling. He looked up as Leo came into the living area.
"You goin' to see your girlfriend?" Raph teased.
Leo bristled. "She's not my girlfriend!" he insisted.
"Seems that way to me," Raph told him. "She's like that same stupid show you do."
"Space Heroes is NOT a stupid show!" Leo protested. "It's a great show with an engaging plot and engaging characters. You just don't want to give it a chance."
"Whatever," Raph muttered not wanting to get into it. "Have fun with your girlfriend, and remember to practice safe sex."
Muttering a few choice words under his breath, Leo escaped the Lair and hurried to Madison's. He wasn't sure what they were going to do, but Raph's comments really got under his skin. Yeah, Madison was a great friend, but he certainly didn't like her in a romantic way. Leo wondered if he ever would feel that way, but then he realized it wasn't a good idea to rush things like that. He didn't want to be like Donnie who had sometimes taken his crush with April a bit too far.
Madison smiled as she spotted Leo standing on her fire escape. She let him in, and he entered her apartment. Her parents were gone on a trip for the weekend and her sister, Leah, was at a friend's house, so they'd have perfect privacy. Leo noticed Madison's laptop was out, and he went over to it.
"Are you working on an English paper?" he asked her.
"No, I'm reading some Space Heroes fan fiction," she answered.
"What's fan fiction?" Leo inquired.
"Fan fiction is when someone writes a story based on copyrighted characters," explained Madison.
Leo was a bit shocked. "Couldn't you get in trouble for that?"
"Not as long as you put a disclaimer saying that you don't own any of the characters and that they're the property of whoever owns them," Maddie told him.
"Do you write Space Heroes fan fiction, too?"
Madison nodded. "Yeah, I do. You wanna see?"
Leo's eyes lit up. "Sure!" he said enthusiastically.
Madison went back to the home page and accessed her profile. Then she patted the place beside her so Leo could sit down and see it. He lowered himself onto the couch, curious as to what this was all about.
He saw that Madison's username was MaddieLuvsSpaceHeroes, and he thought that was neat. He scrolled down until he got to her stories and clicked on one titled "Forbidden Fruit." It was a story about Captain Ryan and Celestia and how they had to deal with their romance even though it wasn't allowed. Leo found himself really getting into the story, and as soon as he finished the first chapter, he looked impressed.
"That's awesome, Maddie," he praised her. "I really like this so far."
"You can leave a review if you want," she offered.
"Don't I have to be a member?"
"No, but if you're a member, then I can reply to your review."
"Do you think I could write Space Heroes fan fiction, too?"
"Of course you can, Leo. I think you'd be very good at it."
"Okay, but I don't have a computer, and Donnie won't let me borrow his," Leo told her.
"That's okay, Leo. I have an extra computer I don't use anymore. It still works and it still has Internet capabilities on it."
"Then why don't you use it?"
"Because my dad got me a new one since the older model is obsolete." She hurried to her room and came back with another laptop. Leo noticed that it was an older model Gateway computer, and he was grateful that Madison was kind enough to give it to him. She plugged it in and booted it up for Leo then logged onto the Internet and accessed the fan fiction website.
"So is this just for Space Heroes fan fiction?" Leo asked her.
"No, it's for all sorts of fan fiction," she answered.
"Okay, so what do I do first?" he asked.
"First, you have to set up an account. Do you have an e-mail address?"
"No," he answered.
"Okay, we better set you up with one first," she said. She minimized the page, opened a new window, and went to Yahoo. She taught him how to make an e-mail account and he decided that he wanted to be called Fearless Leader. It was a name Raph called him, and though he hated the way Raph used it, he figured it would be the easiest thing to remember. So she used it and he told her what he wanted his password to be. After it was set up, Madison went back to the other page and got ready to give Leo his new account.
"What do you want your username to be?" Madison asked him.
"Fearless Leader will work," he answered.
"Do you want it to be one word or spaced out?"
"Spaced out," he replied.
"Okay, do you want the same password as your e-mail account?"
"Yeah, that'll be fine."
Madison did it and then clicked other things such as enabling him to answer private messages and making sure no one else could read his e-mail address.
"Okay now you have your very own account," she said.
"Can I start writing fan fiction now?"
"You can, but you have to wait three days before you can post it here. Once those three days are up, I'll show you how to post your work, but in the meantime, you can still read other stories."
"Cool," Leo said. "How do I find yours?"
"Just go to the Search bar and go that tab. Click it and highlight Writer then click on it."
Leo did as he was told, and Madison told him to put in her username. He did, and it came up as the only one on the list. He clicked on her profile, went to "Forbidden Fruit" and scrolled down until he got to the box where he could type his review.
"So, what should I say?" he asked her.
"Just tell me what you thought of the first chapter. I won't look until you post it, okay?"
"Okay," Leo said. He thought for a minute and then he had the perfect review. He typed for a bit and then hit Post Review as Fearless Leader. "I'm done."
"Okay, but it may not show up right away," she said. She clicked on the link that said how many reviews she had, but his review had shown up right away.
Fearless Leader chapter 1 1min ago
This story is awesome so far. I really like how you delve into how Captain Ryan and Celestia can't have a romance but how they truly love each other despite this. Your descriptions are wonderful, and I can't wait to see what happens next.
Madison smiled. "Thanks for that review, Leo," she said.
"So, what happens now?" he asked.
"Well, I could reply to your review," she said. She went to her computer, accessed her story and the Reviews page and clicked on a little talk bubble that was there. She explained that that was how a writer could respond to the reviews. Then she typed a response and then sent it off.
"So now what happens?" Leo asked her.
"Now you'll get a Private Message or PM," she replied. She showed him how to access his inbox and he saw the message she had posted.
I'm so glad you enjoyed the story so far. Welcome to the fan fiction club, and I can't wait to read your stories too. Thanks so much for reading.
"Thanks, Maddie," Leo said. "Can I respond to it?"
"Sure," she answered. "Just go down to the box, type, and then hit Submit."
Leo did as she asked and then sent her a reply.
Maddie went to her computer and found his reply waiting for her.
You're welcome, Maddie. I really do like the story so far, and I'll be sure to read more later. Thanks for the welcome.
Leo
"So now you know how it works. What do you think so far?"
"I think it's amazing!" Leo exclaimed. "I never knew there was anything like this!"
"So now you can do it on your own, too," she said.
"Yeah, I guess so, but I don't really know where to start," Leo confessed.
"Well, there are different ways to start a fan fiction. The first thing you want to do is think about what characters you want to use. You can use characters from the show or create an original character or OC for short."
"I think I want to create an OC," he answered.
"Okay, well, then create a character and then create a plot. Once you know what you want your character to do and how you want the story to go, then start writing it down."
"Awesome! Thanks, Maddie."
"No problem," Madison said. "Do you have any other questions?"
"No, not at the moment," Leo told her. "I think I've got it down."
"Great."
"I think I'll go home now and start writing before I lose my idea. When I'm ready to post it, I'll let you know so you can teach me how to do it."
"Okay," she said. "It was nice seeing you, Leo. I hope to see you again soon."
"You will," Leo promised her. He gave her a hug, tucked the computer into the laptop case she gave to him, and left the apartment. He hurried home and passed by Raph who was still watching WWE Monday Night RAW.
"So, how the visit with your girlfriend go?" he asked.
"My visit with my FRIEND went fine," Leo replied.
"You wanna watch the rest of the show with me?" Raph asked him.
"No, I want to go to bed," answered Leo. He hurried away before Raph could ask any questions and shut himself in his room. Then he put the laptop in a safe corner, grabbed a notebook and a pencil, and began to write out his very first chapter of his very first Space Heroes fan fiction.
A/N: I'm going to end the chapter here, but don't worry. The next chapter will include some excerpts from Leo's very first fan fiction, so you'll be able to see them. So what did you think so far? Feel free to leave a review and have a shelltastic day. And if you haven't read my other stories in the Truth and Lies series, you're certainly welcome to do so. I would recommend starting with Truth and Lies first and then go from there. Oh, and I also want to add that whenever I'm writing Leo, I always hear Seth Green's voice instead of Jason Biggs's. Maybe it's because I like Seth's voice for Leo a bit better and feel it's perfect for his character. Just thought I would mention that.