i began reading fanfiction in 2002 and have been reading it ever since. my two main fandoms are harry potter (as evidenced by the majority of the stories in my favorites and in my c2 community here on ffn) and Buffy the Vampire Slayer (which i mostly read over on twisting the hellmouth and tenhawk presents). I also read stories in the categories of the X Men, Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect, and Stargate SG-1.

as for the type of fiction i read, that varies upon the category.

For Harry Potter: i generally prefer ships that are not the usual (IE, not HP/GW or HP/HG) though i will read those and other ships if they are well written. I also prefer to read stories where Harry is not a whining, incompetent, incredibly lucky pussy who lets other people walk all over him like he does in cannon (as you can tell, i am NOT a fan of HBP or DH in any shape, way, or form). my favorite HP books are goblet of fire and prisoner of azkaban, in that order, and i generally prefer stories that are, at the most, post Order of the Phoenix. I Like Political!Dark!Grey!Independent!Intelligent!Powerful!PissedOFf!Harry stories where he is his own man and not simply Dumbldore's Lackey. again, as long as it is well written i do not mind stories that portray Dumbledore, Potion Masters, or certain traitorous, idiotic red heads in a positive light, but i generally prefer stories that show Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, and Ron Weaslely for the scum that they are. it always irritates me when people get confused and mix up Snape with Alan Rickman. Alan Rickman is an excellent, talented Actor (Diehard and Dogma come to mind) while Severus Snape is a pathetic bitter little man.

For Buffy The Vampire Slayer i generally prefer stories that are Xander-Centered due to the fact that he is the most underutilized character in the show and had so much potential that was wasted due to the pathetic attempts to show case the strength of the female leads by tearing him down.

for the other fandoms, i honestly don't read them enough to really have much of a preference either way other than to say that i generally prefer stories in which the lead characters are males in the Mass Effect and knights of the Old republic series.

some of my favorites, in no particular order:

Steven Erikson's and Ian C. Esslemont's Malazan Books.

Robert Jordan's Wheel of Times Series is an excellent series overall, though i confess that i have not read any of the books that have been published since his death in 2007 for fear that Brandon Sanderson will not live up to the quality i am used to in that series.

Terry Goodkind's Sword Of Truth Series.

Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series

R.A Salvatore's works both inside and out side of the forgotten realms are also good for a light read, with notable series outside of the Drizzt chronicles being the spearwielder's Tale Trilogy and both Demon Wars sagas.

Frank Herbert's Dune series, especially up to Children of Dune, where it starts to go downhill.

David Weber's Honor Harrington series

James Axler's Deathlands series. i like to read these when i feel like a change of pace from what i usually read, i have read the first 15 or so, there about 100 total, most of the ones I've read so far being less than 300 pages each. it is essentially a post Nuclear Holocaust Wasteland meets the Wild West.

Other Authors I Like Include

Tad Williams

Kate Elliott

Elizabeth Hayden

S M Stirling

Michael Chrighton

Tom Clancy

Robert Ludlum

Eric Van Lustbader

Keith Decandido

Philip Athens

Paul S. Kemp

Lynn Abbey

J.R.R. Tolkien

Jonothan Stroud

John Marco

Robert A. Heinlein

Favorite Comedians:

Ron White, Gabriel Iglaceas, Christopher Titus, Jeff Dunham, Rich Vos, Jo Koy, Daniel Tosh, Greg Giraldo, Dat Phan, Steve Byrne, Jimmy Carr, and Dennis Leary.

Favorite TV Shows:

Supernatural, Smallville, Buffy the Vampire Series, Angel The Series, V(The Remake), Andromeda Ascendant, Stargate SG1 and Atlantis, Mutant X, Special Unit 2, Law and Order, NCIS, NCIS LA, Charmed, Fastlane, Dark Angel, Kindred The Embraced, Star Trek: DS9 & Voyager.

Favorite Cartoons:

X-Men Evolution, Wolverine and the X-Men, Justice League, Batman Beyond, Batman: The Animated Series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Favorite Movies: Aliens, The Punisher (1989 and 2004 versions), Blade, Iron Man, Wolverine:Origins, X-Men: First Class, Judge Dredd, Watchmen, 300, From Dusk Till Dawn 1 & 2, Forsaken, Dark Prince: True Story of Dracula, John Carpenter's Vampires & Vampire Los Muertos, Halloween 1 (the original), Star Wars Episodes 1-6, Babylon AD, Deep Blue Sea, Law Abiding Citizen, Gamer, Falling Down, Idle Hands, Die Hard 1 & 3, Predator 2, Righteous Kill, Prince of Persia, Primal Force, The Devil's Tomb, The Departed, The One, Evolution, Eraser, the Hangover, The Underworld Series, Pitch Black, Chronicles of Riddick, Scream, Terminator 1 & 2, The Dark Knight, Lord of War, American Gangster, Star Trek (JJ Abrams Version), Tango & Cash.