- Word Count must be equal to the chapter times a thousand.
You're laxer than me on this one. I only read things that average less than 2k words per chapter if they either have the exact premise I've been wanting, or are oneshots.
- Reread your stories.
Yes. There are times when I'm worn out and trying to keep to a schedule and post without proof reading, and I always find some embarrassing error going through later that a lot of other people got to see.
- Don't drag out your Author Notes. I consider that cheating with your word count.
Agreed. They're there to read the story, not you ranting about the story.
- Do your research. Take a minute to google stuff you don't know.
This one is a given. Make sure you know your source material. Make sure you understand anything technical you try to explain. If you use terminology from a field you're not into, make sure you've got that down too.
- Don't write 'I suck at summaries' in your description. Same goes for 'full description inside.'
So much yes. I'll cut some slack if you can give me a basic summary, and there's a more detailed one inside, but I hate when people write "I suck at summaries. Just read it." Why would I read it? The only thing I know about the story is that the person who wrote it thinks they suck at writing things.
*6. Don't give out what your plans for pairings are, unless the story's stories main focus is that.
Yes.
- You need to transition the medium into a writing medium
I see this one in a lot of bad fanfics for manga, where people will try to describe visual gags. "That thing where everyone falls over" is probably my least favorite. You don't have those kinds of visual gags in writing. Work with your own tools.
- Does your story have an OC? Are they the main focus? If yes to both, then no.
All the yes. Not only are you almost guaranteed to get a Mary Sue out of this--especially if the plot is a romance, but even if you don't, when I'm looking for fanfics, it's because I want to read about the characters I'm a fan of. I would be reading published stuff that went through a much higher standards quality filter than I use to get legit published if I wanted to read about someone new.