Has anyone here done a crossover story with another Lit author?

[NikkiSparrow]

I have been working on a series for a number of months now, and another author here has a similar established series to mine and we have been corresponding. We floated the idea of perhaps putting our characters together in a crossover story a while back, but haven't talked about it seriously since then.

But I'm intrigued by the idea. Has anyone ever done this? Someone who has a series, in cooperation with another author who has a series, and successfully done a story together with them? How did that work, and was it a good experience?

 

[ElectricBlue]

Several times.

I've collaborated with three different authors, three quite different styles, and it worked.

In each case, we took our own established characters and placed them together, writing turn and turn about, passing the text back and forth. No handover notes, no nothing, we each wrote the next section off the last, as long as we wanted a scene to last.

Editorially, we gave each other the right to say, "No, my character wouldn't say or do that," and make careful changes, but the key was to leave our own expectations at the door, knowing our character was safe in the other writer's hands - which is why stories started in the first place, because of a love of those other characters.

I can talk more about the mechanics, but the way we worked out whose account name to publish under becomes obvious, from these stories:

The Floating World Part 4 - a collaboration with Jason Clearwater. His Jesse meets Adam, from previous Floating World stories. GM.

An English Summer's Tale - another collab with Jason. Jase found it too hard to keep writing, so gave me his character, Lucy, to finish, with my character, Alex. MF.

American Girls Down Under - a collaboration with LoquiSordidaAdMe, with my Adam character and his characters Quinn and Leslie. We got this one written for an Oz Stories Anthology. MFF (and beaches).

Transgendence - written with StickyGirl. I'd approached her for advice on a transgender story, and she fell in love with my Jude character, and with my permission, wrote her own spin-off story with Jude and her character Hannah (who features in more StickyGirl stories).

Transgendence then put Hannah with Adam. The main story was published in Sticky's name - the link is to an intro section, published In my account. MF.

Their Summer in France - another collaboration with StickyGirl. This one is quite short, and a bit of a sleeper. It contains some of my most delicate writing, and some of Sticky's most lyrical. It's a good place to start, I think. Anonymous characters, but both beautifully seen. MF.

 

[Rustyoznail]

I've written three such stories.

I edited some stories for an Indian lady, Sweetdreamsss. We got talking about the differences in Indian and Australian culture, and the idea came up about her MC coming to Australia for a visit. I spent a fair bit of time researching little things like Indian pizza menus and sending her snippets to make sure I was being true to her vision of her MC. Originally, it was to be one story, but the way it grew, it became three.

It was a challenge, but rewarding for both of us.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Not sure if this qualifies, but there was a tribute to Oggbashan a while back, with a bunch of writers taking their plots from his.

 

[KeithD]

In each case, we took our own established characters and placed them together, writing turn and turn about, passing the text back and forth. No handover notes, no nothing, we each wrote the next section off the last, as long as we wanted a scene to last.

that's how Sabb and I cowrite here under the Shabbu account.

 

[lovecraft68]

Years ago I created a tag team challenge. Writers signed up for it then a non participant put everyone's name in a hat and drew partners. The theme was team work and it was a lot of fun although a couple people dropped out and others ended up working with more than one person

My partner was XElliebadeX and our novel length story which is on her page, won a monthly and at one point was a #1 story on the top list.

With her permission, I later wrote over her character-but kept many of her ideas-and published the new extended version myself for sale.

 

[HeyAll]

I've never done a cross-over but I've written with different co-writers. On my stories.


1) use Google Docs because both people can look at the exact same Doc and put notes on it, and write on it

2) someone has to be established as the leader, someone who makes the final decisions and finalizes the plot, otherwise it could be a train wreck.

3) the person who's in charge has to smooth over and edit the story so that the writing style is consistent

 

[Blind_Justice]

I've taken part in LC's tag team challenge and was paired with Zeb Carter, who graciously allowed our crime/road trip story to live in my portfolio. I learned a lot about collaborations working with him and the end result ("The Big Catch") - even if it got downvoted to hell and back - is among my favorite stories.

The second collaboration was with LoquiSordidaAdMe, who dragged me out of a horrid slump. Together we wrote another of my favorite stories. "Red Tsonia And The Witch In Dark", an unashamed tribute to the sword'n'sorcery stories of yore and Robert E. Howard's redhead in particular.

A crossover, as in "my characters in someone else's world" or vice versa, didn't happen yet. I don't know too many of our resident SF/Fantasy authors that well. I wouldn't mind giving that a shot though. My "Western Continent" setting is big enough for other spellcasters or sword-swingers to hop around in...

 

[shakna]

Mepher did the introductory scene for our A Very Toofy Christmas, bringing across their Lori into my Toofyverse. Kinda.

It was a whole heap of fun, running thoughts and ideas by each other.

I think it worked as well as it did, mainly because we gave each other free rein, and also understood and respected each other's works.

 

[sweetdreamssss]

I've written three such stories.

I edited some stories for an Indian lady, Sweetdreamsss. We got talking about the differences in Indian and Australian culture, and the idea came up about her MC coming to Australia for a visit. I spent a fair bit of time researching little things like Indian pizza menus and sending her snippets to make sure I was being true to her vision of her MC. Originally, it was to be one story, but the way it grew, it became three.

It was a challenge, but rewarding for both of us.

What a coincidence,i was about to write this but Rusty had already written. It was fun, we took around 2 years of emails to come up with the 3 stories.....
The main characters were part of the Landlord series.
Landlord series

Rusty helped edit me the second and third chapter and the original idea I gave him was about a girl with no pants getting caught with a bunch of guys in a road trip. But it slowly evolved in a series where Madiha and later Neha move to australia and meet a guy named Rusty.

On a note,I shared with Rusty is that we should have an option to create a series and have multiple writers to contribute.

Eg, I wrote a series which is supposed to end in a FMF threesome but I dont have the expertise to pull it off. It would be better if someone can try a hand while not ghostwriting for someone else

 

[Rob_Royale]

No, but I'm pretty new here. Sounds intriguing and fun if the coauthor was like minded.

 

[Duleigh]

If given the opportunity I will jump right on it!

Currently I'm doing a crossover within my own world, I have several story streams or "universes" that have a common core so I will be posting a cross over between two of these streams in March.

 

[Voboy]

Not on Lit, but a publisher once prevailed upon me and another writer to write our "take" on the other's female main character. Both were valkyries, but of quite different type and temperament. I put his character into one of his settings, and he did the same with mine.

It was an interesting experience, but not one I'd care to repeat. It felt contrived, as indeed it was, but I was being pretty well paid. So I did a good job. I've worked in a limited way with some of my readers here on Lit to write "inspired by" pieces, and those have gone well as long as I've been able to find something I could sink my teeth into.

That's the key, I think, to anything like this: whatever else, you cannot subordinate your "process" to another writer's wishes, if you plan to make it a work you can be proud of.

 

[MediocreAuthor]

I'm currently writing a story set in another author's universe, with their permission.

@AlectaShadow sadly doesn't really write for Lit much anymore, but I am writing the Rescuing the Fallen mind control series in the Fall of Women universe.

It's been a blast, and the author has given very helpful giving me insight into the design of the world.

That said, if any author would like to actively co-author a story with me, I think that'd be awesome! Hit me up, and we can work on it together. I don't even need to be the one who publishes it, as long as I get a mention in the Forward.

 

[Duleigh]

A Neil Gaiman/Terry Pratchett kind of thing? I would be down with that after I get my Geek Pride story launched.

 

[oneagainst]

Does this count? @AlinaX 's meta cafe got some new customers in Critical Response 3

Generally, I'm happy to work in a shared universe. There's always people who think about the things you don't. To that end, maybe take a look at the Midnight at the Lost and Found story challenge if you want to have a play with characters and locations outside your usual neck of the woods.

 

[Djmac1031]

Not a "cross over" per say, but I am currently working on a collaboration of sorts with a fellow author.

Hoping to finish the damn thing soon lol.

 

[SeraphNocturne]

I’ve never done it, but I would love to, I feel like it would be such fun!

 

[Rustyoznail]

The "Tales of Leinyere" and Amorous Goods" events would also count as collaborations. They're a shared world.

 

[KeithD]

I've done some crossover references between separate pen names. For instance, I've had a character in a work by habu signaling his sexual preference to someone on an airplane by reading a book authored by Dirk Hessian. They are both marketplace pen names of mine.

 

[ElectricBlue]

The "Tales of Leinyere" and Amorous Goods" events would also count as collaborations. They're a shared world.

Sort of, but isn't each story individually written? The OP is talking about writing a story with another writer.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Sort of, but isn't each story individually written? The OP is talking about writing a story with another writer.

True, but there was a lot of work establishing the ground rules upfront. They aren't like a normal event/competition.

 

[KeithD]

Sort of, but isn't each story individually written? The OP is talking about writing a story with another writer.

That's not what I see the OP talking about. I think it's where an author takes characters and/or a setting/world from the story of another author and includes them in a new story of their own.

 

[ElectricBlue]

True, but there was a lot of work establishing the ground rules upfront. They aren't like a normal event/competition.

True that. A collaborative world, followed by writing. I reckon It's great how you guys have fed and nurtured the world. Has anyone jointly written anything yet? I can see it eventually happening.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Not sure if there's been a true collaborative story. I've pinched ideas from others to keep the world consistent.