Improbable Press Blog — Sara Dobie Bauer

By Sara Dobie Bauer   Arranged marriage. Forbidden love. Age difference. Enemies to lovers. Gay for you. VIRGIN!   These are all tropes. Tropes are so-called “overused plot devices.” They’re plots, conflicts, and characters we’ve seen a hundred times before. Some might say they’re clichéd. Why would you want to write something clichéd? Because these clichés, these tropes, work and they allow readers to relate to your writing and even find the exact sort of story that turns them on.   No surprise, I write BBC Sherlock fan fiction. That show is a trope magnet thanks to all the unresolved...

My name is Sara, and I’m addicted to Sherlock fan fiction. I’m also a published novelist, short story author, and journalist who gets paid to write—and you can be, too.   I first found Sherlock fan fiction after series two when I realized I couldn’t wait a whole freaking year to have more of John and Sherlock. Around the same time, I developed an infatuation with Benedict Cumberbatch. On sites like A03 and FanFiction.net, I could bathe in a warm bubble bath of Adlock, Johnlock, and even FreeBatch.   At first, I simply read. After a while, though, I started...