A European project funded by Erasmus+ for

the teaching of multilingual interactive fan

stories for a more inclusive world.

March 2020
fantales.eu
Please cite as: The FanTALES Group. (2020). Fanfiction component of the rubric
framework. FanTALES Project Publication, Leuven. Available from
https://www.fantales.eu/results/ [or replace with URL from which this was retrieved]

The FanTALES Group are (in alphabetical order): Judith Buendgens-Kosten, Nicole
Casteele, Frederik Cornillie, Karla De Vuyst, Beate Derr, Ann Expeel, Anna-Lena
Godhe, Anna Hell, Ann Jonckheere, Carina Kaufmann, Stefanie May, Charles
Nordström, Cecilia Olsson Jers, Karolin Sahlin, Shannon Sauro, Ineke Stienaers,
Johan Strobbe, Björn Sundmark, Mark Turpin, Sara Ullman, Joeri Van der Veken,
and Helena Van Nuffel.

This publication was realized by the FanTALES project, co-funded by the Erasmus+
Programme of the European Union (grant agreement number: 2017-1-BE02-KA201-
034792) and is to be used in accordance with the Creative Commons license
applied.

The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not
constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the
authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be
made of the information contained therein.
1 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Title: Fanfiction Component of the Rubric

Framework

Introduction

These documents are part of the teaching materials developed by FanTALES, an Erasmus+
funded project to support technology-mediated transformative storytelling in the European
language classroom and beyond. This document contains rubrics and feedback tools for
teachers and for students to use when carrying out fanfiction tasks, which are stories that
reimagine or remix existing stories, characters or universes found in other texts and media:

1. Teacher's Evaluation Checklist and Scale

2. Peer Evaluation
3. Rubric
4. Explanations for Teachers

Please note, the rubric has been written in a general format so that it can be applied or
modified for different types of fanfiction stories. As with all rubrics, it should be used as a
guide and not a substitute for interpretation. Teachers will still need to determine what
constitutes sufficient evidence that the different criteria have been met for a specific type of
fanfiction task for their specific learner populations. Teachers may consider working with
students to elicit specific expectations and language to use with their particular class (see,
for example, Andrade, 2014).

For further background on and teaching resources for fanfiction, please consult the
Fanfiction Learning through Doing Module also developed by FanTALES.

References
Andrade, H. G. (2014). Understanding rubrics. Retrieved from
https://www.saddleback.edu/uploads/goe/understanding_rubrics_by_heidi_goodrich_andrad
e.pdf
2 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Teacher's Evaluation Checklist and Scale

Completeness: Is the fanfiction complete or is it a work in progress (WIP)
• Complete
• Work in progress (WIP)

Fictional Writing: The fanfiction includes characteristics of fictional writing such as plot,
setting, character, conflict, dialogue, imaginary events, and point of view to tell a story.
0 1 2 3

Meets Expectations: The fanfiction incorporates all the prompts and meets all the
instructions for the assignment.
0 1 2 3

Originality: The fanfiction is sufficiently different from the book, film, digital game or television
show it is based upon.
0 1 2 3

Within Universe: The fanfiction captures recognizable aspects of the book, film, digital game
or television show it is based upon.
0 1 2 3

Language: The fanfiction accurately captures the language of the book, film, digital game or
television show it is based upon.
0 1 2 3

Cohesion: The different parts of the fanfiction fit together well.

0 1 2 3

Complete or Incomplete: __________________

Total Score: __________________ out of 18

3 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Peer Evaluation
Students complete the peer evaluation below for each story they read.

Fanfiction Title:
________________________________________________________________________

The fanfiction is clearly based on the original story.

1 2 3 4 5

The fanfiction is interesting and makes a reader think or want to read more.
1 2 3 4 5

* * * * * *

(Optional) Favourite: Which fanfiction story was your favourite? Why?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________
4 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Rubric
Criteria 3 2 1 0

Fictional The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction

Writing includes many includes many includes lacks
characteristics of characteristics of characteristics of characteristics of
fictional writing fictional writing fictional writing fictional writing
such as plot, such as plot, such as plot, such as plot,
setting, setting, character, setting, character, setting, character,
character, conflict, dialogue, conflict, dialogue, conflict, dialogue,
conflict, dialogue, imaginary events, imaginary events, imaginary events,
imaginary and point of view and point of view and point of view
events, and point to tell a fictional to tell a fictional OR does not tell a
of view that are story. story. fictional story.
well-integrated
into a fictional
story.

Meets The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction

Expectations clearly follows all clearly does not clearly does not
instructions for incorporates all of incorporate all of incorporate any of
the assignment the fanfiction the fanfiction the fanfiction
and clearly prompts but does prompts although prompts and does
incorporates all not clearly follow it follows all of the not follow the
of the fanfiction all of the other other instructions. instructions for the
prompts. instructions. assignment.

Originality The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction

contains contains elements contains only lacks elements
substantial that are innovative superficial that are different
elements that are and not found in elements that are from source
innovative and the source different from the material.
not found in the material. source material.
source material.

Within The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction

Universe captures many captures some captures very few does not capture
details and recognisable or only any aspects of the
recognisable aspects of the superficially source material.
aspects of the source material. recognisable
source material. aspects of the
source material.
5 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Language The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction The fanfiction

captures many captures some captures few captures no
elements of the elements of the elements of the elements of the
language of the language of the language of the language of the
source material it source material it source material it source material it
is based upon. is based upon. is based upon. is based upon.
Thus, it includes Thus, it includes Thus, it includes Thus, it includes
many of the some of the few of the none of the
following: source- following: source- following: source- following: source-
text typical word text typical word text typical word text typical word
choice, sentence choice, sentence choice, sentence choice, sentence
structure, structure, structure, structure,
sentence length, sentence length, sentence length, sentence length,
use of dialogue, use of dialogue, use of dialogue, use of dialogue,
AND punctuation. punctuation. and punctuation.
punctuation.

Cohesion The completed The original The original The original

work represents elements and the elements and the elements and the
a unified whole, source material source material source material
where the elements are fairly elements are elements show
different original well integrated partly integrated little or no
elements and with each other. with each other. integration and
different source unity.
material
elements are
fully integrated
with each other.
6 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Explanations for Teachers

Originality:
One of the distinctive features of fanfiction is that it is innovative in some way and includes
elements not found in the source material (i.e. the book, film, game, television show or other
media the fanfiction is based upon). This might include the integration of elements of other
stories or media (also known as fusion), use of different fanfiction genres or tropes (e.g.
alternate points of view, alternate universe, race-bending, and other elements discussed in
the video accompanying the Fanfiction Learning through Doing Module). Some fanfiction
incorporates many of these innovations, while others incorporate fewer or just one. The
more of these innovations one incorporates, the more challenging the writing can be as it
requires writers to go well beyond the original story or media they are working with to
research, imagine and create, or bring together new and different things.

Example 1: A group of students write a story based on Assassin’s Creed, a series of

action adventure video games that incorporate real-world historical events and
figures. They use the same decision-making structure and the same combat and
stealth assassination elements from all Assassin’s Creed games, taking inspiration
from the version called Black Flag, which is based on pirates. They also draw
dialogue, characterisation, and setting inspiration from the Disney film series Pirates
of the Caribbean (an example of fusion) and add to the story real-world historical
women pirates, requiring a great deal of research.

Example 2: A group of students writes a story based on the popular British book
series about Harry Potter, a boy with magical abilities who must eventually battle an
evil wizard. They decide to set their story four hundred years in the future when a
new evil wizard emerges and long after Harry and all who knew him are dead. This is
an example of a sequel that is full of original characters. For their story, the students
must create new characters with abilities and histories that fit within the magical
Harry Potter world and must also create an entirely new plot and dialogue.

In other cases, students may make superficial changes to an existing story. This therefore
does not require much innovation in writing or analysis and understanding of the source
material that the fanfiction is based upon.

Example 3: A student writes a story based on the popular British children’s novel
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which primarily takes place at a magical
boarding school called Hogwarts. In this story, the student retells what Harry
experiences on his first day at Hogwarts. The student recycles the sequence of
events, the dialogue and the setting, but makes superficial changes to names and
descriptions of characters and objects: Harry is now called Jerry and has blue eyes
instead of green eyes; he has a pet wolf instead of a pet owl; the name of the school
is changed from Hogwarts to Wolfports.

In extreme cases where no originality is shown at all, a student will have merely copied the
source text or even another piece of fanfiction.
7 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Within Universe:
Another key aspect of fanfiction is that it is based on characters, stories, and universes other
people have already written about. This means that while fanfiction must be innovative in
some way, it must also contain authentic details and recognisable elements from the
universe of the source material. These recognisable within universe elements can include
scene descriptions, objects, locations, prior events, the names and personalities of both
major and minor characters, the style of language of the source material, and even the
specific dialect of different characters.

To do this fanfiction writers may incorporate detailed information from the source material
(e.g., authentic scene descriptions, objects or locations, personalities and names of the
characters etc.) A story that is innovative while also remaining within universe requires
careful thought and coordination:

Example 4: A student writes a story based on the German fairy tale Aschenputtel,
(Cinderella in English) in which a young girl is raised and mistreated by her
stepmother and stepsisters, when her father remarries after the death of her mother.
The student has decided to retell the story from the perspective of the dead mother,
who is watching over her daughter as a ghost but who can only be seen and
understood by birds. The student relies on the events of the source material, in which
animals play a key role, as well as the older language of the source material to
capture the voice and thoughts of the mother that are true to the time period in which
the story takes place. To do this, however, the student must create the personality of
the mother, who only appears in the first few sentences of the source material and
must also imagine the emotions of a mother who lives as a ghost and can only help
her daughter indirectly.

In less successful cases, only a few details from the intended source material are
incorporated, such as character names, but so much else is either original or taken from
other source material.

Example 5: A group of students challenge themselves to write fanfiction based on

the popular digital game Assassin’s Creed, which incorporates real-world historical
events and figures engaged in combat and stealth assassination. In their story, the
students decide to include characters from the Irish novel The Blue Lagoon, a
romance about young people marooned on an island, and plot elements from the
U.S. television series Thirteen Reasons Why, a teen drama about suicide, gossip,
and sexual assault in high school culture. In their final story, the teen drama and
romance dominate the story, there are no historical events or real-world characters,
and although there are character deaths, none die in combat or through stealth
assassination (which are key features of Assassin’s Creed). As a result, it is no
longer clear how Assassin’s Creed served as the source material.
8 Fanfiction Component of the Rubric Framework

Cohesion:
Cohesion in fanfiction describes the seamless integration of original elements and the
source material/within universe elements. It is what allows a piece of fanfiction that borrows
from many different sources of inspiration to read as a single unified story.

Example 6: A group of students decides to write a story based on the popular British
children’s novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. However, instead of
situating their story in a British boarding school, they set their story in a magical
secondary school in their home country, Sweden. Their completed story therefore
includes original place and character names that draw inspiration from whimsical
English names used in the source material as well as naming and spelling
conventions from Swedish. They also carefully explore how an English speaking
British boy, Harry, might be initially confused by but then later adapt to different
cultural educational norms found in Sweden (for example, the use of first names with
teachers instead of titles and last names) while also negotiating the reality of living in
a world with magic (a major element of the source material).

In some cases, cohesion can be particularly challenging. It requires students to think

carefully about how to integrate both original and within universe elements but also requires
that they pay attention to specific linguistic and literary features that are typical of the source
material.

Example 7: The previously mentioned student from Example 4 who wrote fanfiction
based on Aschenputtel from the perspective of the ghost of the dead mother
struggled in places with matching the language of the source text. This lack of
cohesion was most obvious where the student reused certain quotes or descriptions
from the source material, interspersed with the internal thoughts of the ghost
mother’s as she observed her daughter. Specifically, the language of the ghost
mother tended to be more informal and more common to the 21 st century (as
opposed to the 19th century) so that the different parts did not read as if they fit
together.