Another fanfic related question:
In the genre you feel most comfortable writing in (Can be more than one) offer five tips to what you consider makes a great story work in that particular style.
I don't think anyone ever answered this one, did they? Too busy talking about music, which is great! And since I'm too busy listening to said music to be able to focus enough to write, I will answer it!
The genre I feel most comfortable writing in is medical drama, so here are my tips for that.
1. Research! I don't believe in the old mantra of "write what you know," but you shouldn't write something you know nothing about without trying to learn something about it first. Google is a medical drama writer's best friend! (Actually, EMedicine is an even better friend if you want all the gory technical details.)
2. Don't get so bogged down in facts that you forget about the emotional stuff. Try to put yourself in your characters' shoes, but if you're finding it hard to relate to what they're going through, you can research that too - I find blogs and online support groups/message boards helpful places to go for more personal accounts of what it's actually like to go through stuff.
3. Medical professionals are not supposed to become romantically involved with their patients, even when said patients are hot Backstreet Boys. It's especially creepy/inappropriate when they're lusting after Backstreet Boys who are in comas or dying of cancer or something. If you want that to happen, you need to find a loophole (see: Curtain Call).
4. When someone is on a ventilator, that means there is a tube down their throat that's forcing air into their lungs, which means they are unable to talk. Don't write your characters having a heartfelt conversation while one of them is on a vent.
5. Contrary to popular belief, Backstreet Boys songs are not a cure-all for comas.
LOL Okay, so really I just have two serious tips for writing this genre, and that is to research and try to put yourself in your characters' shoes - which is just part of good writing anyway!