Fanfiction Reference Works
This is a collection of AO3 works and other resources for creating fan works. (See also the Fanwork Research & Reference Guides tag.)
Some fandoms have wonderful on-line communities (e.g. The Harry Potter Lexicon and Marvel wikis) devoted to creating canon references. Many more do not, but fans still have created deeply thought out essays, maps, tables, histories, and other world building. Hopefully, you can find them here.
AO3 allows custom formatting using limited HTML and CSS (workskins). This collection has a number of formatting "how-to's" in addition to the AO3 docs below.
Note: Works added as bookmarks do not add their tags or fandoms to the collection. Please add your own works
(Open, Unmoderated)
Recent works
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This is a workskin meant to mimic the Reddit mobile UI, updated as of 2026. Features include customisable default display pictures, cross-posting, pinning, locking, archiving, having moderators, lightmode, darkmode, and more.
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A Beginner's Guide to HTML and CSS on AO3 by the_untamed_poet25
Fandoms: No Fandom, Fandom - Fandom, AO3, Original Work
15 Jun 2026
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You've seen it. A fic formatted like a classified document. A chapter that looks like a real social media feed. An interactive game, somehow, inside an AO3 work. You clicked the kudos button. You thought: how.
This is the tutorial that answers that.
A beginner-friendly guide to HTML and CSS on AO3 — no prior coding experience required. By the end of this series, you'll know enough to write formatted fics, build your own workskins, style your entire AO3 interface, and maybe make something that makes other people stop and think how.
Series
- Part 23 of Izzy's HTML & CSS Experiments
- Part 2 of HTML/CSS AO3 Skins & Tutorials
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Userscript and CSS, as you prefer, to return overflow and sticky effects client-side by 𝖀𝓷ᶦ𝕔ⓞðə E Ⓜ️🅾️j̵͍̟̝̝̖̮̓ͭͨ̂̐̚ℹ️ (Charles_Rockafellor) for feindcode (feind)
Fandoms: CSS abuse - Fandom
12 Jun 2026
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What can I say that isn't pretty self-evident from the title?
On Mon 08 Jun 2026, AO3 updated some stuff that broke a lot of things in a lot of people's CSS-works (and at least one userscript). I fixed it. This fix is only client-side, so that you can re-enable some of the magic that some people have wrought and see it once more as a reader — it doesn't act from within a work skin to force a rollback to the actual server-side site-level underlying code itself, so it's not much good directly for authors (indirectly: your readers might use this to see your effects).
Have you seen some of my CSS demos, or mystyrust's do you believe in coincidences?, or Mewsmodeus (Mewzebub)'s I'M NOT AN FANFIC AUTHOR PLEASE DON'T CURSE ME, or mackerel_cheese's Íkaros in when the wax melts ? If so (before the “update”), then you know and remember; if not, then you're going to want to do so, and you'll want this CSS or JS with which to view them in all of their glory.
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Diluc-Inspired Site Skin & Workskin by the_untamed_poet25
Fandoms: 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game), Original Work, Fandom - Fandom, AO3
05 May 2026
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The Darknight Hero keeps his own counsel. Your AO3 interface can keep his aesthetic.
A free site skin and workskin inspired by Diluc Ragnvindr, the brooding wine tycoon and vigilante of Mondstadt (Genshin Impact). Reskins your entire AO3 in void black, scorched wine-red, and burnished gold, with ember glow and fire-touched details throughout. Includes full installation instructions for both the site skin (which reskins your entire AO3 interface) and the workskin (which adds drop caps, glowing scene breaks, ashfall dividers, spoiler boxes, and ember-lit styling to your own fic text). No prior CSS knowledge needed.
Series
- Part 26 of Izzy's HTML & CSS Experiments
- Part 3 of HTML/CSS AO3 Skins & Tutorials
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Olive Pine Moon site skin theme by 𝖀𝓷ᶦ𝕔ⓞðə E Ⓜ️🅾️j̵͍̟̝̝̖̮̓ͭͨ̂̐̚ℹ️ (Charles_Rockafellor)
Fandoms: Site Skin - Fandom
03 May 2026
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This theme uses an olive tone as its basis, and was built at the request of a Redditor.
It requires ravenothere's Closer to Home BASE site skin in order to function.
Recent bookmarks
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This is my list of workskin, how to add workskin to your work, and how to use each of the class in my workskin.
If you use it I would appreciate a credit so that more people can be able to use it! -
The Ultimate Guide to Writing Smut Fic by QuinnAnderson for kali_asleep
Fandoms: Original Work
05 Sep 2013
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A comprehensive guide to writing both queer and het erotic fiction, written by published novelist Quinn Anderson. Includes lists of sexy words, references, and some general writing tips. Please feel free to use without credit.
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How to Make iOS Text Messages on AO3 by CodenameCarrot, La_Temperanza
Fandoms: No Fandom
10 Apr 2016
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This is a tutorial/live example on how to mimic iOS text messages on AO3 without the need to use images. There's also a chapter on how to have emojis displayed on AO3 as well.
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- Part 3 of AO3 Work Skins/Tutorials
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A mock-up of a fake article about a TV series, with CSS and HTML code and a brief guide on how to use it.
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A Discord workskin that supports most Discord-style markup. Includes layouts for channels, DMs, and Group Chats. Darkmode only.