How to Write x Reader and Self-Insert Fanfiction

You start your first x Reader fic, and a few scenes in, the character you love starts to feel like a stranger. Somewhere between all the looks across the room and the blushing, the person from canon disappeared.

Reader-insert fanfiction puts the reader into the story alongside a canon character. Self-insert and OC fics do something similar with a version of the writer or a character the writer made up. This guide covers building that character, choosing a point of view, and keeping the canon character recognizably themselves.

The examples use the same canon as our fanfiction guide: They Say I'm a Dark Mage, but All I'm Good At Is Digging Dirt. Clay Rowen, a commoner with almost no mana, gets labeled a dark mage when an ancient judging stone garbles “earth magic.” He'll be the canon character in our x Reader examples.

At a glance

1. Write the canon character's notes before you build the insert
2. Make the insert a different person from the canon character
3. Pick a point of view that fits the kind of insert you're writing
4. Don't let the canon character revolve around the insert
5. Say what the fic is in the summary, tags, and warnings

Reader-insert, self-insert, OC: terms to know

• Reader-insert (x Reader): the reader steps into the story, usually as “you.” Titles and tags often look like “Clay Rowen x Reader.”
• Y/N: short for “your name.” Writers put it where the insert's name would go, so readers can fill in their own. You'll also see L/N (last name) and H/C (hair color).
• Self-insert: the writer puts a version of themselves into the story. Often written in first person.
• OC (original character): a character the writer created to fit the canon world. A different person from both the reader and the writer.
• Canon character: the character from the original work the insert is paired with.

Romance is the most common, but friendship, family, rivalry, and one-sided crushes all count. On AO3, a slash (Clay Rowen/Reader) marks a romantic relationship and an ampersand (Clay Rowen & Reader) marks a platonic one.

Before you start: if the character is a real person

x Reader fics about musicians, actors, or streamers are common. Those are real people. Keep your fic where they and their official accounts won't run into it, and don't write anything that could hurt their reputation. Take extra care with romance. A love story that reads like fact can upset the person and other fans alike. Our fanfiction guide has more on writing about real people.

1. Start with the canon character's notes

The complaint x Reader fics get most often is “that's not them anymore.” Once a character is paired with the insert, it's easy for them to start acting nothing like their canon self. So write the canon character's notes before you build the insert.

Five fields are enough: voice, values, under pressure, never, and evidence. What Does OOC Mean in Fanfiction? has Clay's full notes and shows how to check a scene against them. For this guide, keep three lines in mind:

• Values: earn a license and a steady job so he can help his family. He isn't chasing glory
• Under pressure: assumes it's a simple mistake and tries to explain it
• Never: plays up the dark mage rumor to look impressive

2. Make the insert someone other than the canon character

When you build the insert, decide these five things:

Here's a reader-insert for Clay:

Notice two things. First, the personality pulls against Clay's. Clay spends the whole story trying to explain himself. You're someone who doesn't need the explanation. Put those two in a scene together and something happens before anyone says a word.

Second, there's a weakness and there are other relationships. An insert who's good at everything and adored by everyone is usually called a Mary Sue, and readers don't warm to one. That's true even when the insert is “you.”

Keep physical details light for a reader-insert. Every hair color or height you specify is one more reader who stops feeling like it's them. If you do set a gender or appearance, say so in the tags (more on that in step 5).

3. Choose your point of view

The same moment reads differently depending on who's telling it. Second person is the norm for x Reader. Self-insert fics often use first person, and OC fics usually use third.

• Second person: the insert is “you.” The reader becomes the insert, which is why most x Reader fics use it, often in present tense.

  Clay is kneeling in your flowerbed again. You don't say hello. You hand him a trowel.

• First person: the insert tells the story as “I.” It keeps the reader closest to the insert's thoughts.

  Clay was kneeling in my flowerbed again. I didn't say hello. I handed him a trowel.

• Third person: the insert goes by a name, or by Y/N in some x Reader fics. It steps back far enough to show the canon character's thoughts too.

  Clay was kneeling in Y/N's flowerbed again. She didn't say hello. She handed him a trowel.

Stick to one point of view per fic. If it changes from scene to scene, readers lose track of whose eyes they're looking through.

4. Don't make the canon character revolve around the insert

An x Reader fic usually starts to read as OOC the moment the canon character only has eyes for the insert. Their friends, their work, and their habits fall away, and all that's left is how they react to “you.”

Say you wrote the first time you praise Clay like this:

“You're the only one at this academy who's done anything useful,” you say.

Clay stares at you, red to the ears. Across the courtyard, the bell for his practical rings. He doesn't move.

That breaks two lines in Clay's notes. He's at the academy for a license and a steady job, and here he lets a practical go by. And when something catches him off guard, he explains it as a simple mistake. Here he just goes silent. Rewritten to fit his notes:

“You're the only one at this academy who's done anything useful,” you say.

“It's only earth magic,” Clay says. “Loosening soil isn't hard. Anyone back home could do it.” The bell rings, and he grabs his bag and runs for his practical.

The next morning, there's a sack of seed potatoes by the shed door, with a note in careful block letters: For the bed by the wall. The soil's good now.

Clay still explains, and he still goes to class. But the seed potatoes show how much your words meant to him, in the most Clay way possible. When the canon character reacts in their own way, the insert's lines land harder too.

The same goes for canon relationships. Don't erase them to make room for the insert. The people the canon character cares about, and the habits they keep, stay in the fic.

5. Write a clear summary, tags, and warnings

Readers who love reader-inserts look for them, and readers who don't want them would rather skip them. A clear summary and tags help both.

• Say what kind of fic it is. On AO3, add Reader to Characters, put “Clay Rowen/Reader” or “Clay Rowen & Reader” in Relationships, and tag Reader-Insert and Second Person in Additional Tags. On Wattpad and Tumblr, “Clay Rowen x Reader” in the title or post header does the same job.
• Describe the reader. Note whether the reader is gender-neutral or has a set gender, and any fixed details like appearance or background. Common tags look like gender-neutral reader or female reader.
• Name the relationship and the rating. Say whether it's romance or something else, and rate and warn for violence and mature content using each site's own options.
• Flag changes from canon. If it's an AU or there's lore canon never established, say so up front.

If this is your first x Reader fic, start with one thing today: fill in the Weakness field for your insert.

Common mistakes

• A perfect insert. An insert who's good at everything and loved by everyone stalls the story. A weakness is what gives the relationship somewhere to go.
• Erasing canon. If you remove the canon character's friends or love interest to make room for the insert, readers who love canon will leave.
• Front-loading backstory. Don't explain the insert's past and abilities in chapter 1. Let them come out in scenes with the canon character.
• Too much description of “you.” In a reader-insert, every fixed detail is a place some readers stop seeing themselves.

Keeping both characters' notes side by side with TypeTak

TypeTak is an AI writing editor where you write alongside an agent. For x Reader and self-insert fics, it helps you keep both characters' notes in one place and check that the canon character still sounds like themselves.

• Both characters in your World. Keep the canon character's notes and the insert's details side by side in your World. The agent reads it before answering, so when you ask “What would Clay say if the gardener thanked him?”, it answers from both sets of notes.
• Feedback on finished scenes. In the editor toolbar, open the menu next to Proofreading and click Feedback. Along with the scene's strengths and weaknesses, it flags anything that contradicts the lore in your World. Use it as a second check that the canon character hasn't drifted from their notes.

TypeTak helps with writing you do yourself. Who your insert is, and how close the two characters get, stays your call.

FAQ

What's the difference between reader-insert and self-insert?

In a reader-insert, the insert is whoever's reading, usually written as “you” with Y/N for a name. In a self-insert, the insert is a version of the writer, and is often written in first person with a name of its own.

What does Y/N mean?

Y/N stands for “your name.” It marks the spot where the insert's name would go, so each reader can put in their own. Some writers avoid it and simply never name the insert.

Does a reader-insert have to be in second person?

No, but it's the norm. Second person lets the reader be the insert without any name at all. Some x Reader fics use third person with Y/N, and that works too as long as you stick with it.

How do I keep my insert from becoming a Mary Sue?

Decide on one weakness and one relationship with someone other than the canon character before you write. When the insert gets things wrong and talks to people besides the canon character, readers start to see them as a person.

How is an x Reader fic different from a ship fic?

A ship fic pairs two canon characters. An x Reader fic pairs a canon character with the reader, a self-insert, or an OC. Keeping the canon character in character works the same way in both.