How to Write a Believable Pregnancy Fanfiction
Choose which character(s) get pregnant and who the father is., Think about how the pregnancy will affect the characters' lives., Decide how the baby will be or was conceived., Decide how your character finds out she's pregnant., Do your research...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Choose which character(s) get pregnant and who the father is.
It's a good idea to make a list of all possible pairings that could result in pregnancy before you pick which one(s) you're going to use.
Make sure the two characters are compatible mates and not just two characters that you think who have cute children.
If your chosen fandom lacks compatible males or females, you may need to add an OC.
It's okay for more than one character to be pregnant.
For plot twists, try out "pregnancy confusion".
Perhaps pregnancy tests were mixed up, and some girls think they're pregnant when they are actually not, and the girls who actually pregnant are wondering what's happening.
Maybe one girl is faking because she wants her boyfriend to not dump her (but handle this scenario with caution, as this is considered abuse in real life). -
Step 2: Think about how the pregnancy will affect the characters' lives.
How will the mother feel when she finds out? How will the father feel? Does she even know who the father is? Will being pregnant keep her from doing her job? How will this affect the lives of others? You may want to make a chart of all possible effects of her pregnancy. , In many fanfictions, the girl wakes up one day and suddenly she's pregnant.
Any fanfiction written like this makes it sound like the author never passed health class (if you haven't studied this in health class, then you probably are too young to write one of these).
There are typically four ways for your character to get pregnant:
She's in a committed relationship and they have been trying for a while.
She had a one night stand, and/or her birth control failed.
She has a disease or condition that caused her to have a low fertility rate and didn't see birth control as being necessary.
She was raped.
However, if your character was impregnated by rape, put a warning at the beginning of the fanfiction that your story contains rape or rape mentions.
In other fanfictions, the character can get pregnant through magical means.
Make sure this makes sense for the story, though
- a character getting pregnant in Harry Potter through magical means is more realistic than in Warriors, for example. , Does she take a pregnancy test? Does her doctor tell her? Does she miss her period? Is she wounded in battle and the medics find out while using their equipment to check her wounds? The "morning sickness" method (where the pregnant character throws up in the morning and then ponders over the cause of it) is an "easy out" for many, but in real life, not all pregnant people experience morning sickness.
This tactic in stories is also extremely overused and gives away your character's pregnancy for many readers.
If you want the pregnancy to be a surprise to the story, avoid the "morning sickness" giveaway. , Chances are, if you're writing a pregnancy fanfiction, you have never given birth, so it's important to put in as much research into this, as you would a school project.
Research the basics of pregnancy, the effects of pregnancy on the body and mind, possible complications (if you want to write a complication), and how one needs to care for their pregnancy to keep the baby healthy.
Research the effects of pregnancy after the parent has given birth, too.
Nobody loses all their baby weight right when they give birth, and if you want your fanfiction to be accurate, you'll need to learn about what people would do to care for babies after birth in that time period, too.
Be aware that some descriptions of pregnancy and childbirth can be quite disgusting.
Prepare yourself! , Is she ready for a baby? How does pregnancy affect her, aside from just the baby bump? (Morning sickness? Hormones? Strange food cravings?) What does she look like in all three trimesters? Does she have any trouble giving birth? , This will be especially important if you intend to write sequels where the child is older.
Decide on the basics of the child
- what do they look like? What's their assigned sex? Do they have any problems during the birth? Make sure that the child resembles the parents, but is not a 50/50 mixture of their traits.
Genetics are complex; two people with brown hair can have a blonde child, and a family of tall people can produce a short child.
Similarly, don't base the child's personality off of a mixture of the parents'.
It's true that many traits can be passed from parent to child, but make sure you're giving the child plenty of qualities that are unique to the child.
If you're dealing with characters who have powers, you could go in a lot of directions.
Maybe the child inherits a parent's powers, only weaker.
Or because they're half human, the powers don't show up at all.
If your character is half-human or otherwise multiple species, how will they take on traits of either species? , Many aspiring fanfiction writers try to make their story different from other pregnancy fanfictions out there.
Be wary not to make any of these scenarios turn into a pitfall of your story.
Take care when writing a "male pregnancy" plotline.
Usually, male pregnancy stories involve a cisgender man getting pregnant and they have no clue how.
However, this can disappoint a lot of readers, since it's considered lazy writing.
Give the character a reason for their pregnancy (such as alien abduction) and an explanation as to how they've gotten pregnant (a rare genetic mutation).
Not all men are cisgender, and a transgender man could actually get pregnant if he hasn't undergone surgery to remove his female reproductive system.
However, if you choose to write a transgender character for a male pregnancy story, be very cautious to research transgender identity so you don't portray transgender people inaccurately.
Do not make an intersex character for the sake of a male pregnancy, as this is not only inaccurate, but can be offensive
- especially if you use insensitive terms to refer to intersex people.
Be sensitive with disability and birth defects.
It can seem like a good way to give the story a plot twist, especially in future sequels, but if you write it poorly, you may upset readers
- whether it's because of the accuracy issues or because they're disabled themselves.
Dramatic birth scenes may intrigue readers, but they can also be written terribly and disappoint readers.
Don't try and make the scene too interesting, or it'll fall flat on its face.
Very few birth stories involve ten complications at once. ,, They will make sure your story sounds good and fix all the errors. , -
Step 3: Decide how the baby will be or was conceived.
-
Step 4: Decide how your character finds out she's pregnant.
-
Step 5: Do your research.
-
Step 6: Decide what your pregnant character is like from the beginning of the story to the end.
-
Step 7: Decide what the offspring will be like.
-
Step 8: Be cautious with certain scenarios.
-
Step 9: Actually write the story.
-
Step 10: Get a beta reader.
-
Step 11: Post your story online for others to read.
Detailed Guide
It's a good idea to make a list of all possible pairings that could result in pregnancy before you pick which one(s) you're going to use.
Make sure the two characters are compatible mates and not just two characters that you think who have cute children.
If your chosen fandom lacks compatible males or females, you may need to add an OC.
It's okay for more than one character to be pregnant.
For plot twists, try out "pregnancy confusion".
Perhaps pregnancy tests were mixed up, and some girls think they're pregnant when they are actually not, and the girls who actually pregnant are wondering what's happening.
Maybe one girl is faking because she wants her boyfriend to not dump her (but handle this scenario with caution, as this is considered abuse in real life).
How will the mother feel when she finds out? How will the father feel? Does she even know who the father is? Will being pregnant keep her from doing her job? How will this affect the lives of others? You may want to make a chart of all possible effects of her pregnancy. , In many fanfictions, the girl wakes up one day and suddenly she's pregnant.
Any fanfiction written like this makes it sound like the author never passed health class (if you haven't studied this in health class, then you probably are too young to write one of these).
There are typically four ways for your character to get pregnant:
She's in a committed relationship and they have been trying for a while.
She had a one night stand, and/or her birth control failed.
She has a disease or condition that caused her to have a low fertility rate and didn't see birth control as being necessary.
She was raped.
However, if your character was impregnated by rape, put a warning at the beginning of the fanfiction that your story contains rape or rape mentions.
In other fanfictions, the character can get pregnant through magical means.
Make sure this makes sense for the story, though
- a character getting pregnant in Harry Potter through magical means is more realistic than in Warriors, for example. , Does she take a pregnancy test? Does her doctor tell her? Does she miss her period? Is she wounded in battle and the medics find out while using their equipment to check her wounds? The "morning sickness" method (where the pregnant character throws up in the morning and then ponders over the cause of it) is an "easy out" for many, but in real life, not all pregnant people experience morning sickness.
This tactic in stories is also extremely overused and gives away your character's pregnancy for many readers.
If you want the pregnancy to be a surprise to the story, avoid the "morning sickness" giveaway. , Chances are, if you're writing a pregnancy fanfiction, you have never given birth, so it's important to put in as much research into this, as you would a school project.
Research the basics of pregnancy, the effects of pregnancy on the body and mind, possible complications (if you want to write a complication), and how one needs to care for their pregnancy to keep the baby healthy.
Research the effects of pregnancy after the parent has given birth, too.
Nobody loses all their baby weight right when they give birth, and if you want your fanfiction to be accurate, you'll need to learn about what people would do to care for babies after birth in that time period, too.
Be aware that some descriptions of pregnancy and childbirth can be quite disgusting.
Prepare yourself! , Is she ready for a baby? How does pregnancy affect her, aside from just the baby bump? (Morning sickness? Hormones? Strange food cravings?) What does she look like in all three trimesters? Does she have any trouble giving birth? , This will be especially important if you intend to write sequels where the child is older.
Decide on the basics of the child
- what do they look like? What's their assigned sex? Do they have any problems during the birth? Make sure that the child resembles the parents, but is not a 50/50 mixture of their traits.
Genetics are complex; two people with brown hair can have a blonde child, and a family of tall people can produce a short child.
Similarly, don't base the child's personality off of a mixture of the parents'.
It's true that many traits can be passed from parent to child, but make sure you're giving the child plenty of qualities that are unique to the child.
If you're dealing with characters who have powers, you could go in a lot of directions.
Maybe the child inherits a parent's powers, only weaker.
Or because they're half human, the powers don't show up at all.
If your character is half-human or otherwise multiple species, how will they take on traits of either species? , Many aspiring fanfiction writers try to make their story different from other pregnancy fanfictions out there.
Be wary not to make any of these scenarios turn into a pitfall of your story.
Take care when writing a "male pregnancy" plotline.
Usually, male pregnancy stories involve a cisgender man getting pregnant and they have no clue how.
However, this can disappoint a lot of readers, since it's considered lazy writing.
Give the character a reason for their pregnancy (such as alien abduction) and an explanation as to how they've gotten pregnant (a rare genetic mutation).
Not all men are cisgender, and a transgender man could actually get pregnant if he hasn't undergone surgery to remove his female reproductive system.
However, if you choose to write a transgender character for a male pregnancy story, be very cautious to research transgender identity so you don't portray transgender people inaccurately.
Do not make an intersex character for the sake of a male pregnancy, as this is not only inaccurate, but can be offensive
- especially if you use insensitive terms to refer to intersex people.
Be sensitive with disability and birth defects.
It can seem like a good way to give the story a plot twist, especially in future sequels, but if you write it poorly, you may upset readers
- whether it's because of the accuracy issues or because they're disabled themselves.
Dramatic birth scenes may intrigue readers, but they can also be written terribly and disappoint readers.
Don't try and make the scene too interesting, or it'll fall flat on its face.
Very few birth stories involve ten complications at once. ,, They will make sure your story sounds good and fix all the errors. ,
About the Author
Jacob Brown
A passionate writer with expertise in creative arts topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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