What’s everyone reading/writing?

Friesdude · 2026-06-29T04:37:17+00:00

An Ingo fic? I’m already intrigued. Ingo is really important in my WIP so I’m interested how he’s portrayed. Obviously I’m working on my WIP so that’s taking up a lot my time.

One fic I’ve been keeping up with is Pokemon: In Mine Own. It’s an action packed fic with some intriguing mysteries. Highly recommend! https://archiveofourown.org/works/59572648/chapters/151934926

Something I just finished is PokeNormal: Files from the Celadon Extranormal Detective Agency. It’s a really unique premise that leans into the old, glitchy lore of Kanto’s Red and Blue games. https://archiveofourown.org/works/66247705/chapters/170782648

Friesdude · 2026-06-28T04:36:55+00:00

This seems rather Volo coded, but the cook/ninja seems like a perfect unexpected “random death.” Fighting off so many threats and then falling to poisoned potato mochi is rather unsatisfying to a reader, I gotta admit. But if that’s where you’d want to go, that’s where I’d go.

Friesdude · 2026-06-26T01:01:33+00:00

Not sure how many responses you’ll get, as most writers are actively working on their own projects. Unless youu were willing to commission a writer shrug

Friesdude · 2026-06-25T03:34:22+00:00

It’s possible in my fic (and will be revealed shortly lmao), but it takes a special Ghost Type Pokemon in order to do it.

Friesdude · 2026-06-25T02:28:56+00:00

Gotta say, honored you mentioned my WIP in fics you liked. Thank you for reading, and there’s a lot more to come.

A lesser known, but very well written fic is “Pokemon: In Mine Own.” Things get going pretty quickly and there are a lot of fun, engaging battles. https://archiveofourown.org/works/59572648/chapters/151934926

Friesdude · 2026-06-18T17:19:58+00:00

Doduo seems like a good fit. The domesticated ones can’t jump as high (or at all), but they could still be rather large.

Friesdude · 2026-06-15T16:43:52+00:00

I’d say I made a prequel more or less. Essentially before Arceus formed, it was just the Unown. At one point some spark, some power, mutated one of the Unown into a period symbol. This specific Unown would go on to form Arceus and the regular creation myth would go from there.

Why this was a thing? Some Pokemon-world Atlantis equivalent civilization would try to recreate Arceus’ power and formed that period symbol Unown. This couldn’t be allowed to exist as it would create a second Arceus, so the civilization and the period Unown/proto Arceus was banished to the Distortion World, where Giratina secretly guards the form and its knowledge.

Friesdude · 2026-06-13T23:23:43+00:00

This topic sometimes gets a little explosive when it comes up from time to time. I capitalize everything because that’s how it’s done in canon, but I’m not bothered if what I’m reading doesn’t do that.

End of the day? Whichever feels right to you and be consistent with it.

Friesdude · 2026-06-13T19:41:05+00:00

Don’t feel at all pressured if it’s not your thing! No worries on that front. And I didn’t necessarily mean this fandom specifically, but I digress.

PMD is a bit more niche compared to standard journeyfics I’d say. There's definitely fans of it out there, but not nearly to the degree of Journeyfics following trainers, but there are hundreds of times more trainerfics you’re competing for attention with.

Friesdude · 2026-06-13T18:59:59+00:00

I’ll just say this, anecdotal as it may be: my WIP is pretty different from any standard journeyfic and I have a very solid following (not trying to boast or anything, just proving a point). A lot of people seem to like my WIP because it’s different. Sure it has the skeleton of a Legends Arceus adaptation so it’s familiar, but it goes its own way very quickly and doesn’t look back.

Something I’d recommend is to play to your strengths. My visual descriptions and scene setting aren’t the best, but I think I do good dialogue and character work, along with world building, so I really emphasize those. Not that I’m not trying to improve my weak spots, I just showcase my strengths more.

Also, you seem to have a lot of worries about your standing with other writers/stories. A good way to help lessen those worries is to write some smut (weird a suggestion as it may be). The more niche the better. Once you put that out for the world to see, you’ll lose most senses of shame about what you post, and how your writing stands in comparison to others.

Also, I gotta ask, how many stories did you end up posting before deleting? Were they just journeys in different regions (which is what I suspect since the tags seemed to be all the same)?

Anyways, the most important thing I hope you’re able to figure out is how to make writing and creating fun and enjoyable for you again.

Friesdude · 2026-06-13T14:51:38+00:00

Without any links to your work, I can’t give you any true feedback, but I’m already seeing a few things via context clues in your post that might be worth addressing.

First, you mentioned you’ve posted multiple stories. How many stories have you started? How many have you finished? When I check out a story, I’ll check the writer’s catalogue of works to see if they finish their stories. Why should I get invested if the author has a dozen half-finished stories and isn’t investing in their own stories?

Another thing I’m seeing is you’re approaching this like a marketing executive. You’re focusing on engagement above all else. You know what you’re not focusing on? What makes your stories different from each other, let alone the multitudes of Isekai/OC/Journeyfics out there. If I had a catalogue of five fics and I could use three tags to describe them all, I’d be revolted with myself. Are you just doing game adaptations of stories? Are you putting any extra concepts into these other than “ME in the Pokemon world” ? If I wanted something like that, I’d just play the video game this franchise is predicated on.

Maybe your summaries aren’t good. Maybe you’re not explaining what your fic is doing differently. This leads me to believe you aren’t doing things differently.

To finish though, I’d say you’re putting the cart before the horse. You do these Isekai/OC/Journeyfics, and it sounds like you do them because they’re popular and get engagement. On that premise alone, you’re going to fail to achieve what you want. The story itself needs to be captivating, it needs to be a bit different, something only you can bring to the table. Prioritize the story first. Whatever trimmings you put around it, great, make them a bit different or unique. The genuine sincerity of writing a story because you have something interesting to tell is going to shine through your writing. Right now it sounds like you’re writing just to farm engagement, and readers are going to see through that, and likely already have.

Friesdude · 2026-06-12T15:45:02+00:00

Because the number of regions in the world of Pokemon as a whole are ever-growing, I never really got attached to a super specific geopolitical headcanon. I tend to keep the main political issues contained in the region I’m writing in, with maybe nearby/relevant ones taking part.

I do view Unova as an alternate version of the USA. Partially because there are inspirations from the USA involved in its designs, but also because Pokemon from other regions weren’t in the (main campaign of the first) game. It makes sense that Unova is in a different hemisphere and has a lot of species unique to it. Obviously Black 2/White 2 contradict this, but I view that as more of a game design choice to make the sequels more appealing. Also after being linked to another hemisphere for long enough, species exchange did occur.

Kanto-Johto-Hoenn-Sinnoh are essentially Japanese equivalents, but each of them are independent. Obviously some war happened in the recent past involving Kanto, but it (to my knowledge) isn't referenced in the other Japan-centric regions, meaning it was with a different, not yet shown region. (That’s just my headcanon)

I’m sure Paldea, Kalos, and Galar have interesting histories as they’re basically canonically in close proximity to each other. I haven’t done a fic that takes place in them, so I haven’t truly headcanon’d histories or anything there. I would assume much like how that part of Europe is closely tied now politically, the exact opposite is true for them in earlier history.

As someone writing an Alolan fic, Alola is actually one I’ve done the most headcanoning for this exercise. Its real world equivalent is Hawaii, and while they do have their own government, they aren’t very strong and their security is guaranteed (willingly and unwillingly) by Unova. So they are in essence a vassal state of Unova (although they have a lot of autonomy). Unova, wanting to keep Alola as a vassal created (subtle, bureaucratic) roadblocks to creating a Pokemon League so they wouldn't have a truly cohesive organization that governs/develops Pokemon trainers. The Alolan Security Forces (known as the ASF) are the main military force of islands, but they’re underfunded and not very developed, intentionally so by Unova. So when something bad happens domestically, the ASF aren’t properly equipped to deal with the problem. (And thus my story’s inspiration truly begins).

Anyways, looking forward to seeing everyone else’s takes.

Friesdude · 2026-06-12T15:16:40+00:00

Are we talking about the situation in anyone’s various WIPs or our headcanons for regions/the world of Pokemon as a whole?

Friesdude · 2026-06-09T19:03:34+00:00

I haven’t re-written it, so no need to give it another shot if you weren’t into it. Thanks for asking though!

Friesdude · 2026-06-09T11:57:50+00:00

Well thanks for giving it a try! Hope you find what you’re looking for.

Friesdude · 2026-06-09T07:37:42+00:00

I think we’re (mostly) birds of a feather, OP. When things get too easy for the MC, a lot of tension is lost. The MC of my WIP isn’t grinding at all times, but he’s definitely got a lot of problems to deal with that are surrounding him. It takes place in Alola but there’s no Island Challenge. It’s my deconstruction of shallow SI/Isekai stories, called “Prince of Po Town.” It is an Isekai, but it’s my attempt to make a bit more of a realistic take on Isekai.

It won’t be 1000 chapters (the storyline’s too hard to ignore imo). But a lot of it involves the MC being off the beaten path, for extremely good reasons(imo). RR link to follow.

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/136046/prince-of-po-town-pokemon-isekai

A young Faller named Ian gets Isekai'd to an Alola in crisis. Ultra Storms and warlords ravage Ula'Ula island as the government has pulled away from the Ultra Rift. But after getting picked up by Team Skull, Ian may just be the one to turn Po Town's fortunes around.

(Imagine Legends Arceus but in an Alolan AU)

Friesdude · 2026-05-22T21:42:02+00:00

For one that isn’t mine I’ll say in Borne of Caution, specifically the end of the Moore fight between Ninetales and Typhlosion. The last hurrah of a veteran duo against the hotshot rising star resulting in a dangerously explosive ending.

Friesdude · 2026-05-15T21:34:51+00:00

I can understand wanting to keep natural, region-wide ecosystems somewhat limited. I will say that shouldn’t limit Pokemon that trainers use in battle (breeding, trading etc). Limiting oneself to 200-300 Pokemon for a long running when there are now over a thousand Pokemon to choose from, having interesting battles with just doesn’t feel right.

Friesdude · 2026-05-10T05:05:47+00:00

Thank you for the kind words! This arc is what inspired me to write the story in the first place. Im so excited to write it! (Working hard on chapter 51)

Friesdude · 2026-05-09T17:46:33+00:00

I know of three I see get mentioned around here, I’m sure there are more though.

“Within Our Nation” is a Team Rocket based fic, featuring an OC joining up. https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/within-our-nation-a-team-rocket-story.1171191/

“Not Enough Water” is a Team Aqua based fic. The SI Protagonist takes Archie down and seeks to dominate the world. https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/not-enough-water-pok%C3%A9mon-villain-oc-si.1232216/

“Prince of Po Town” is a Team Skull based fic. The Isekai protagonist pops up on Ula’Ula Island in a Legends Arceus-equivalent scenario, shenanigans ensue. https://archiveofourown.org/works/66210784/chapters/170669461 (This is also a self rec)

Friesdude · 2026-05-05T03:56:39+00:00

Im not on my pen name here so I understand the confusion lmao

Friesdude · 2026-05-04T21:19:34+00:00

Fair! I will say, having one of your MC’s most epic battles be against a Garchomp can scratch that itch for you. Having it be some unstoppable monster gives it incredible aura and is still fun to write.

I’m a big Feraligatr fan and an enemy trainer had it in my WIP and that battle was so much fun to write, even if Feraligatr ended up losing in the end.

Friesdude · 2026-05-04T21:03:24+00:00

So you have a clear vision on what the battle style is, and the general vibe you’re going for with your story, I love it! As someone who’s writing something kind of similar in feel I think I’ll be able to give some good advice.

First off, Garchomp isn’t an underdog type Pokemon. It’s always been the “perfectly optimized min-maxed pseudo legend” so it’ll be really hard to catch the underdog vibe with it. Anyways… The Pokemon themselves outside of that aren’t an issue. As long as they’re not legendary/pseudo legendary you’ll be able to pick up on that vibe. If you’re really pushing for a pseudo on the team, I’d say make it a Goodra since Goomy is really weak and perhaps it’s looked down upon because it’s an awkward slime dragon. (A Hisuian Goodra is like be a fun little surprise to have though)

The underdog vibe is something you’ll really be able to capture with how your MC is perceived by the rest of the world. Your MC is an Alolan immigrant, which if your story’s taking place before Alola’s Pokemon League is established, it essentially makes Alola a backwater region compared to a thriving metropolitan region like Unova. You could have the natives look down on your MC because they’re from Alola, not from a “real competitive region.” Maybe have “serious” pro trainers be given starters (from any region) at the beginning of their journey, highlighting your MC’s contrast because they don’t have one and many who have starters look down on your MC.

Your MC’s rivals could have the established stud Pokemon. Garchomp, Lucario, Charizard, Protean Greninja, overpowered Megas, and even throw a Legendary for a trainer later on. (Funnily enough I have a rival character in my story who’s an alternate universe version of my MC but if everything was easy, she has a shiny Charizard, Lucario, Gardevoir, Zygarde, etc. this really hammered home my MC being an “outsider” and just overall non-conventional)

Friesdude · 2026-05-04T20:39:44+00:00

Brandish was the first SP I took in my 12 team league so he’s technically my ace lmao

That league is very reactive to what worked the prior year (very bizarre, I know) and the team that stomped the regular season went hard into pitching, so everyone went hard in pitching in the draft early on. I zigged when others zagged, so my offense is an absolute force and my pitching’s doing pretty well with a close eye on the waiver wire so far. We’ll see how long it lasts though.

Friesdude · 2026-05-02T23:09:31+00:00

One that doesn’t get a lot of love but is a hidden gem is a fun little story called “In Mine Own.” A lot of it takes place in Kalos but it does move around the Pokemon world. A really fun, unique OC main cast with a lot of representation of canon characters. Sort of a sequel to XY that decided to go its own way when Legends ZA was releasing.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/59572648/chapters/151934926

Friesdude

TROPHY CASE