downloading fan fic for dummies

[spnmomma.livejournal.com]

Ok, bear with me please. I know this information is out there somewhere, it's probably been asked a million times, but please keep in mind, I'm old!!

A couple of times, I've downloaded fanfic and successfully gotten it on my Nook. But, I do a bunch at a time, so it's usually quite a while before I need more. Then of course, I have no idea how I did it. What I want to do is write down the way to download and then keep it on file. That way I always have it and don't have to waste time figuring it out, and just get to reading!!

So please can I have downloading fan fic for dummies? Probably most of what I want to download is archived stories that you just click on and read. How do I get those downloaded? I've used squeebook, I have Calbre and the fanfiction downloader, but like I said, I don't remember what to do.

Thanks!

Lori
And contrary to my name and icon, I don't read a whole lot of SPN fanfic any longer!! Back to good old S&H!

Comments

[mremre.livejournal.com]

First and easiest is to trawl AO3 for your fandom fics. There is a download button that gives you the epub option for instant gratification.

If you are using fanfictiondownloader, the current version (0.6.7) gives you the option to download the ff.net (or other supported archive) fanfic as an epub outright.

If you are copy/pasting fic into a Word document, save as RTF, drop into calibre and convert. For chapter headings, make sure to set the 'style' for chapter text to Header 1 or Header 2.

www.squeebook.net is a great resource for concatenating LJ-posted fic. In Squeebook, enter title/author/cover if you like, click on 'Add Story Chapters', select 'Copy Story from URLs'. Paste the URL of the LJ story part(s). Hit enter to create a new line per URL. When the URLs are all listed, hit the 'Load' button and wait for the text to appear in the text box below (this might take time). Click on 'Build ebook' select preferred format and hit GRABBY HANDS.

(FWIW, I would personally check archiveofourown first, as the download function canNOT be beat for ease and convenience. =)

[agent-jl36.livejournal.com]

I don't have a Nook, but for my eReader I hook up the reader to my pc via a chord and simply copy over those books I want to load. Do you remember if you did that or were you able to download without it?

[spnmomma.livejournal.com]

That part I can do well, I've had my Nook for over 3 years now and have been borrowing ebooks from the public library since day one.

What i'm shaky on is getting a fanfic story in ebook form. I dont read much from fanfiction.net and only a little of Lj fiction. There are a couple of archives that I want to get stories and read on my Nook. So....if i get it right, i copy and paste the story to save it right? What about multiple chapters or long stories?

[agent-jl36.livejournal.com]

AO3 has the ability to download fanfiction in several file types: http://archiveofourown.org/works/526018/chapters/931162

For stories that are on places like LiveJournal and are several chapters long, I do the copy and paste to a word document, then save as a pdf for easier ereader reading. i have also been experimenting with OneNote, copying to a single page and then re-saving as a pdf.

Lately, all my fanfiction reading has come from AO3 because it's so easy to download!

[ambrdrgn.livejournal.com]

Are you using the FanFictionDownloader plugin for Calibre? Because that is, hands-down, the easiest way to get fic from large archives. If you're not, grab that plugin, set it up to your liking, and follow these steps:

1. Copy the address of the fic you want to save.
2. In Calibre, hit the FanfictionDownloader button on your toolbar.
3. The address you copied should automatically be in the window that pops up. If it's not, paste it into that window. You can paste multiple addresses into this window if you want to download more than one fic at a time. Just make sure you only have one address per line.*
4. Hit "Ok".
5. Click through the confirmation windows that pop up and enjoy you new ebook(s).

*If you want to download all the stories from a page - all of an author's works on fanfiction.net, for example - there's an easier way than copying and pasting multiple addresses. Just do this:

1. Copy the address of page with the stories you want - an author's page on fanfiction.net, a series page on AO3, etc.
2. In Calibre, hit the FanfictionDownloader button's dropdown arrow.
3. Pick "Get Story Urls from Web Page".
4. The address you copied should automatically be in the window that pops up. If it's not, paste it into that window.
5. Click "Ok".
6. A window will pop up that has the url of every story on that page listed. Click "Copy to Clipboard" at the bottom of that window.
7. Click "Ok" to get rid of that window.
8. Follow steps 2 - 5 above.

[mremre.livejournal.com]

OMG thank you for this! I didn't know FFDL had a calibre plugin, and it could generate SERIES. No more copy/paste RTFs for me!

[spnmomma.livejournal.com]

I'm glad I asked then! I always hesitate to ask what should probably be a basic thing in a more advanced forum like this. I thank everyone for their help

[ambrdrgn.livejournal.com]

Glad I could help! I'm always happy to spread the Calibre+FFDL word.

[nickygabriel]

THANK YOU!

[ultra-maniac.livejournal.com]

If you're using Firefox, there's this great plugin called "GrabMyBooks" and it will allow for saving various parts of webpages, links or even the whole page you're currently reading. It grabs art and just about converts everything into readable format (sometimes there are errors but mostly with complicated html coding, I usually just scroll through what I've saved just to ensure it grabbed everything).

It's quite a fabulous ebook convert for fanfics, especially if you're saving off of LJ or something specific from an author's page (or from a kink meme). It saves in epub or mobi, and you can even edit parts in a chapter or save multi-chapter stories into one file. I love it!

Link to the official page - http://www.grabmybooks.com/

[spnmomma.livejournal.com]

It doesn't appear that my archive is a supported site. So then do I have to do the cut and paste method?
And can someone give me a simple cut and paste method workflow?

I enjoy Calibre, but I have problems with it crashing on my Macbook all the time. For example, every time I try to click on the list of supported sites for FFDL, it spins awhile and then Calibre closes down. I've upgraded to the latest version.

Once I figure this out, I'm going to make a file because I go through this every time I need to download new reading material!

[valiha.livejournal.com]

What's your archive? I think i saw some comments on mobileread.com that the fanficdownloader plugin maker adds new archives if they're large enough, so it might be worth making a request.

[sassyinkpen.livejournal.com]

I think I had a lot of success just saving webpages as HTML Only.

I have rooted my Nook and now use a different reader and I know they work for that, but I was pretty sure they worked before if I remember correctly. It's worth a try because it's really easy if it does work for you. I never used Calibre with my Nook, though, I just sideloaded the fics and that seemed to work well.

[spnmomma.livejournal.com]

What seem to be working for me (right now anyway) is Grab My Books, a firefox plug in. I just bring up the page I want, and right click and then there's an option to save the page. Then go to the next section, do the same. You can grab any cover art, and then when you're done you just add the cover, title, and it makes the book for you. It seems to be working pretty good.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm keeping hold of everything for future reference!

[nickygabriel]

I think I love you! :)