Yeah though, I don't see as much fan-fiction online anymore.
Really? Because there's a lot of Pokemon fanfiction still being published today, and I'm not even thinking of fanfiction.net, which has a lot of fanfics added to it every day. People are still writing and posting online. They're just not doing it as much here on PC as it used to be.
But Pokemon introduced me to some really great friends and to writing. When I was younger, I didn't have many friends until Pokemon came to the States and I became a fan. That was when I finally had something in common with a lot of people. Talking about Pokemon to other friends helped me start to gain confidence so my social anxiety wasn't as strong as it was. And from joining forums to talk about Pokemon, I met some amazing people who have stuck by my side for quite a few years.
Also, writing. I mean, I was always a writer, but it wasn't until I started writing Pokemon fanfiction that I thought that writing was something I could do seriously. While I changed my career path, I'm still writing fanfiction for Pokemon (and other fandoms). Writing Pokemon fanfiction especially helped me to begin my fantastical escape from all the trouble in my life. I could explore a world and be who I wanted to be while writing. And though I don't really need to escape my life anymore, writing Pokemon fanfiction now allows me to hold onto my childhood and the strong imagination that I had.