When did fanfiction begin?

Answer 1

It's not known when or where fan fiction (also called fanfiction or fanfic) was created, although derivative works based off of those already published have been around since the 17th century, including spinoffs, sequels, and parodies of such works as Don Quixote and Alice in Wonderland.

Many people attribute what we think of fan fiction today to Star Trek-centric fanzines (fan magazines) during the 1960s and 1970s, though some definitions referred to the fiction as being strictly related to Science Fiction fandoms or the fans thereof.

Answer 2

Fanfiction has been around as long as the printed word! People have always written "what if" stories about their favorite characters. Before the printed word, people told those stories -- technically, you could call those stories fanfiction, too.

Slash fanfiction began with Star Trek -- so many people wrote stories in which Kirk/Spock had a romantic relationship that they began abbreviating it as just "slash" instead of "Kirk-Slash-Spock."

Answer 3

Fanfiction has been around since at least the 18th century, but gained popularity with the rise of the internet in the late 20th century. Fans have been creating their own stories based on existing works for centuries, evolving into the modern fanfiction community we see today.

Answer 4

FanFiction.Net was created in 1998.