About

SuperFolder Central started in 2012 as The Origami Yoda Expanded Universe – a fan-fiction site inspired by the Origami Yoda Series by Tom Angleberger – and ended its run in 2022, before being turned into an archive for our plethora of origami puppet-themed stories covering franchises such as Star Wars, Marvel, DC, and more.

ABOUT THE MODS

SuperFolder JC was one of the co-founders of the original OYEU, and one of the pioneers for the SFC Expansion. While he’s since moved on to writing his own book series, he’s always got a special place in our hearts. His writing credits included, but aren’t limited to, the first ever EU story (Origami Chewbacca: Return of the Wookiee), Revenge of the Felt, The Adventures of Origami Yoda, The Folds Unleashed, Origami Yoda and the Bounty Hunters, Splinter of the Mike’s Eye, Cut Bane’s Bounty, The End This Is, Origami Yoda’s Secret War, Twilight of the Student, and Minch.

The Evil Jawa, or Jawa, was the other co-founder of the original EU. He’s written a few stories such as Closed, This Case Is, Master of Puppets, Rise of the Summer Camp Six, and the Bag & Crinkle duology. He was to JC like WebMaster Sam has been to Tom, keeping the site in check and up to date. Basically, he kept the site in check and up to date. He’s moved on to making shorts on his YouTube channel, Alright Productions.

SuperDoodler CJ was one of the oldest viewers of the site, and one of the longest-serving moderators. Earning the title ‘SuperDoodler’ because of his Kellen-style doodles, CJ was a major staple of the website as a whole. His writing credits for the OYEU included The Rise of Jango Fortune, The Adventures of Origami Yoda, and Cut Bane’s Bounty. His writing credits for the MOU included Thorigami: Lord of Folders and Agents of F.O.L.D.

SuperFolder DarthNoah -er, D.N. -er, no, SuperFolder Noah joined the site in 2013 and gained moderator status fairly soon after. He has been known for his quick dialogue, overarching plot-threads, and cynical demeanor, and is credited with the creation of the Marvel Origami Universe, or MOU. Some of his writing credits included The Month of the Skyfolders, Origami Yoda and the Bounty Hunters, Heir to the Funpire, The Invincible Iron Fold, Captain Americrease: The First Fold, The OrigAvengers, The Imperfect Iron Fold, Captain Americut: The Fall, OriAvengers: Rage of Artron, Rise of Summer Camp Six, Unshreddible Hulk II, and T.H.A.N.O.S. and the Infinity Folds.

SuperFolder Cammy was one of the newer mods on the OYEU, and his projects were considered some of the most fun-to-read stories the site had featured. It was his leadership that helped sparked the OYEU into a new era. (Good on ya’, Cam!) His writing credits included The Folds Unleashed, The Unshreddible Hulk, Thorigami II, OrigAvengers: Rage of Artron, Unshreddible Hulk II, T.H.A.N.O.S. and the Infinity Folds, and Return of the Summer Camp Six.

SuperFolder OrigamiLuke100 was a viewer and writer for the site since 2012. He left in 2014 due to personal reasons, returned briefly in 2015, and returned to stay shortly thereafter! He was a part of several notable stories, such as the original Fold of the Rings and Batfold: The New 2012. He was also the head of the DCOU, for which he had written Batfold I and II. His credits for the MOU included Scissor Blade, Foldians of the Galaxy: The True OG’s, and Return of the Summer Camp Six.

SuperFolder Jar Jar, like OrigamiLuke, was a member of the site for many years, gaining mod status in the latter years of the website. He was meant to replace Luke after his retirement was announced, until he decided to finish the DCOU before leaving. Nonetheless, Jar Jar was still invited to join The Council of Mods for his longtime membership of the site. His writing credits included The All-Winners: Dawn of F.O.L.D. and The Peculiar Arrival of Shang-Crease.

SuperFolder Guillermo was on Superfolder Central since 2014. Author and doodler, mostly known for being the author of the Wizarding Folds OU (origami Wizarding World), his Namorigami series on the MOU, The Good Student as a Covid-related story, and many others in almost every other origami universe. Known for his ironic but kind humor, and his devotion to the site, he became a Mod and Council member for the final years of the SFC story initiative.

SuperFolder Daphne was the youngest member of the council, and due to this, she was most known for interacting with the community and generally being more playful with them. She was responsible for the creation of the Percy Jackson Origami Universe, the Kingdom Saga of the DCOU, as well as the Adam Papercut duology.

FOR PARENTS

Parents, welcome to SuperFolder Central!

This site is an unofficial website based on the Origami Yoda Series by Tom Angleberger, and is meant to be a place for children to learn the basics of writing stories. We consider ourselves an educational resource, as we’ve been growing and teaching since the site’s establishment in April of 2012, before becoming a story archive in 2022.

Our site was started by two members of the Origami Yoda fanbase: Adam and Josh, although they are more commonly known on the site by their SuperFolder names, Jawa and JC. The site was originally called Origami Yoda: The Expanded Universe, as users only wrote unofficial stories based solely in the Origami Yoda universe – as seen in the “Origami Yoda EU” and “Origami Yoda: Legends” sections of the site. However, in 2018, we expanded to include our own original works based on Marvel and DC superheroes, and renamed the website to SuperFolder Central. The stories on this site are free, voluntary fan works inspired by the works of Tom Angleberger.

We among the moderation team have deemed the stories on this site its own sub-genre of fiction, called “Puppet Fiction.” Puppet Fiction usually makes use of intellectual properties, such as the Marvel Universe, Star Wars, or Percy Jackson by making those characters finger puppets that other human characters, usually students in schools, use as stand-ins for who they are. We think that what Tom Angleberger had started with Origami Yoda has made it accessible for children to learn how to write engaging characters, drama, and plots.

Members of the moderation team have written novel-length stories entirely for free, and have created “origami universes” that are 1.) kid friendly and 2.) upwards of a 100 thousand words in length, our longest being the Marvel Origami Universe, which spans three sagas (called “Folds”), and contains a total of around 200,000 words.

And this is not just thanks to us, but the aspiring authors that come to the site and contribute as well! Users, mainly ages 11-16, have written stories upwards of 10-16,000 words.

We wish to be transparent entirely with the operation of this site:

This is a 100% Free Resource. Nothing on this website involves money of any kind. We are not selling your child any product, we’re not scamming them out of credit card or debit card information. We’re earnestly, and freely trying to teach people how to improve the art form of story-telling.

Finally, we would like to include a couple more elements of legitimacy via these screenshots.

The first shows a link to our site on Tom Angleberger’s main website, and the other photo is where the “OYEU” (Origami Yoda Expanded Universe) is mentioned in Princess Labelmaker to the Rescue‘s acknowledgement. We are also mentioned in an article on the official Star Wars website, which can be found here.

Finally, we’re here to help YOU. If you have any concerns or comments, please contact us at origamichewbacca@gmail.com. Thank you, and welcome to SuperFolder Central!

– The SFC Mods,
AKA, “The Council”

CREATIVE RESOURCES

The following list contains a few helpful tips and tricks on the basics of writing and storytelling!

• 3 Act Structure
  • Every story has to have a cohesive beginning, middle, and end.
• Hero’s Journey
  • Many of fiction’s greatest stories follow the same structure, The Hero’s Journey.
• Outlining the Story
  • Don’t just start writing with only basic ideas in your head, instead come up with a broad outline of the major plot points, and then work towards them, kinda like a checklist.
• Character Arcs/Motivations
  • Every character in every story exists for a reason. What is that reason?
• Setups and Payoffs
  • Now that every character has motivation, make sure every item does too. Where does it show up? Does it come back later? What purpose does it serve?
• Convincing Dialogue
  • Instead of writing: “Blah blah.” I said. “Blah blah?” she said over and over, be creative. If someone is shouting, say they shouted it! If someone is asking a question, say they asked it!
• Proper Grammar
  • The biggest problem that many stories have is that they are filled with tons of incorrect grammar. Learn to follow basic rules such as how to use quotation marks, when to indent, and please use spell check when you’re done writing.

---

I wrote this in a comment to a SuperFolder recently, and thought it would be nice to also post it here:

I would recommend writing your story in Google Docs, Microsoft Word, or even Notepad. Then when you finish your story, just copy/paste it into the submission box. That way you won’t lose anything.

Stories also take time, and if you write them in the submission box, my guess is that you’re just coming up with it on the spot. Even you if you don’t have access to any of those programs I listed earlier, you could write it in an actual notebooks (which to me is cooler, because then it’s like you’re writing an original OY case file!)

It takes me weeks, sometimes over a month to shape a story into how I want it. You don’t have to use this if you don’t want to, but my process is something like:

1. Idea
2. Synopsis
3. Characters and Plot Outline
3. Complete Draft One
4. Keep editing the story until it’s something I’m proud of.
5. Post it.

RESOURCE 1: CREATING AN ORIGAMI UNIVERSE

What’s up, everyone? Welcome to the first little “Resource” thing that I decided I wanted to write. I may be doing more of these, just about stuff that I’ve learned from my years on this site, and also some things that I’ve learned while at school – stay in it, guys! You really do learn a lot.

This one will be about Setting Up an Origami Universe, something that, with the rise of BTFolds stories, is something I feel is very much needed.

Here’s a quick definition of what an Origami Universe is, although I’m sure you guys know already:

An Origami Universe is a collection of stories set at the same school, focusing on characters of a specific franchise. Collections of stories are placed into “Folds,” and, usually, at the conclusion of each fold there is a team-up story, depending on the franchise.

Examples of Origami Universes include: The Marvel Origami Universe created by Noah, The DC Origami Universe created by me, and the Wizarding Folds Universe created by SF Guillermo.

In this resource, I’ll describe how the Folds ought to work, although it’s not set in stone, and then at the end I’ll be explaining what makes an Origami Universe successful with three specific points: 1.) Connectivity, 2.) Specificity, and 3.) Accessibility. 

So, let’s begin!

The goal of the first fold is to set up how the other folds will follow. Think of you folding an origami Yoda. That first fold down from the top is the base, it’s the rock that makes Yoda what he is. That’s how the first fold of your origami universe should work too. The Wizarding Folds is setting up the big bad of the next couple of folds, the DCOU and MOU introduce the big players of their select origami Universes. A first fold should:

1. Introduce the characters, the setting, and who’s attending
2. Build up a conflict that leads to characters uniting
3. Showcase the potential of that universe going forward.

The first fold builds up hype and interest in a reader. But it’s YOU who must plan it out. When I sent out the emails to writers for Fold One of the DCOU, I explained the basic plot of the story, what the characters should be like, and how it should end. Notice how the DCOU stories end on Alan recruiting a character, such as Alan recruiting Theresa, or JC in “Wonder Folder” and “Aquapleat.” The stories set up the next story.

Like most stories on here follow a Beginning, Middle, and End structure, so should your Folds. 

In the beginning of “The Legend of Zelda-Gami,” by Origami Master, Linkin gets a puppet of Link, in the middle, Linkin faces students that have puppets of enemies from the game, and in the end, he defeats Dark Link-agami and saves the princess. 

Fold One of the MOU introduces the members of the Origavengers, Fold Two raises the stakes of the characters as T.H.A.N.O.S. is a looming threat, Fold Three is an “End,” with T.H.A.N.O.S. defeating the Origavengers, and Fold Four will be that aftermath.

Your folds should be building up to a climactic ending, something that makes the readers excited to see the conclusion of, to see it all become worth it in the end. And that leads into…

Enjoying the Crossovers! Most stories need them! Now, there’s special exceptions to this, such as the Wizarding Folds and Riordan Origami Universe. Universes based on Book Properties are fairly easy to go through without an “OrigAvengers, assemble” scene. In a universe such as the Video Pleats Origami Universe, a crossover is almost necessary. It answers the question “what’s the point of having these students attending THIS school?” And the interesting thing is, if you know where to look, you’ll find crossovers to be your basis!

The Marvel Universe and the DC Universe got off really easy with, y’know, the Avengers and Justice League. Video Pleats could do crossovers like “Super Smash Bros” or “Playstation All Stars Battle Royale,” Heck, FORTNITE is getting so big that crossovers with anything could feasibly happen, haha.

The Anime Folds Universe could have different anime heroes unite for a cause in a “Shonen Jump” story, and the Origami Cartoon Universe could have a “Crossover Nexus” like what OK KO had with Ben 10, TTG, and Steven Universe. There’s so much potential, and if you’re stumped on that end of the fold crossover, you could shoot me an email and I could give suggestions. 

You’ve been setting up the big crossover, you should have fun doing it, y’know?

After a big crossover happens, the Second Fold builds up yet another, this time bigger than the last with more characters and higher stakes. The Origavengers now have Black Pen-Ther and Black Widow. The DCOU will have more Justice Pleats people on the roster for the next crossover. These stories should also be more fun for the reader to read, since they know the characters now, they understand their motives, and they also know how this school works. This would be a good time to introduce:

Side Tales!

Side Tales, One Shots, Magical Tales, Myths, are stories that don’t have to do with the main storyline, but allows readers to have fun in the universe you make without affecting the main canon of it. Assassin’s Crease, for example, is probably a One-Shot in the VPOU, as it’s not going to affect what’s going on in the Nintendo realm. These Canonical stories flesh out your world more by adding LIFE. 

Be aware though that other writers have different ideas for characters, plots, and sometimes they’ll add a flu to your school that the editors can’t simply write out without removing full on chapters, so you have to just deal with it. Sigh, yeah. I’ve dealt with it.

Anyways…

Now, let’s get onto those three points I mentioned earlier. You want your universe to have connectivity. The best way to have this is by having it all happen in the same school or town! If one story involved a fire happening in the lunchroom, have a different story mention it. Keeping these consisting beats adds life, it adds familiarity. We recognize Kirby as the school where the earth heroes attend, because Fold One of the MOU set it up that way. 

An issue I notice is in the naming structure of a universe. Let’s say that there’s a universe called the “Origami Cereals Universe.” First of all, why a universe around cereal characters? Second of all, what cereals? Is there a specific branding of cereals (General Mills? Store-brand? Kellog?)? This is where Specificity comes in. You want that name to be specific. It was one of the issues we had with names of Universes that made it too broad. I could’ve called the DCOU the “Warner Brothers Origami Universe,” and suddenly, things would’ve gotten more wider, right? And More confusing, I’m sure. The ROU is perfect in the specificity example because it’s based around the works of Rick Riordan, and also the Greek Mythologies of the past. So, there’s a clear specificity to it. The Wizarding Folds Universe is also perfect, since it’s based on the characters and world of Harry Potter. 

The last point is Accessibility. Here at Superfolder Central, we want to promote that you can write an origami universe around anything, but I’ll be real, this comes at a price. Some people just aren’t going to know what you’re talking about. Don’t expect everyone reading your universe to have seen the show or read the books. Something to keep in the back of your mind should be “Am I writing something that people that have never read/watched/played ___ could enjoy and understand?” 

One of the subgoals of your universe should also be to write something that will get the reader interested in the real thing. When I started the DCOU back in 2018 and tried recruiting writers, I had a lot of people decline because they simply didn’t know much about DC. This taught me a lesson that you need to write firstly about what you enjoy, and then secondly something that could get people interested in the real deal. Did you know I never saw Star Wars until I read the Origami Yoda series? Little OL100 picked up the book and read it, and then I wanted to see what it was all about, so I watched the movies, and I understood things more. Tom Angleberger wrote something accessible to children who never watched the films, and that’s what you should be aiming to do too. If you’re writing a story about Horton Hears a Crease, aim to write it for those that had never read the Seuss classic.

And that’s it! With that, I conclude my little seminar on making an Origami Universe. Remember that writing is a process, and we grow and we change and we IMPROVE. The only way to go with this medium is up. Also remember that this stuff is subjective, you can go against the grain, this stuff isn’t set in stone. If YOU have any tips, put them below in the comments!

Here’s the important notes:

1. The first fold sets up the universe and establishes the main setting, character, tone, and theme.
2. The other folds (be it two folds, three, four, or six!) follow a beginning, middle, and end of the story at that universe.
3. Learn to write those fun crossovers as the treat to making a fold.
4. Side Tales flesh out the world more
5. Connectivity is made through being at the same school and other stories/characters referencing past events
6. Specificity helps not only you as the planner but also the readers understand what the universe is about
7. Accessibility is if people reading your OU could become interested in the universes the Origami Universe is based on.

RESOURCE 2: THE HERO’S JOURNEY

What’s up everyone? It’s Hades here, and I’ve been taking a few writing programs in school, and also I’ve been learning from the much more competent mods. One of the greatest things I’ve learned from these courses- and with a little help from Peyton- was The Hero’s Journey.

But what exactly is the hero’s journey?, you ask. Well, I’ll be happy to give you a little but of context.

Coined by Joseph Campbell, it’s the story structure that many of the world’s most famous characters have followed in their adventures, including Luke Skywalker, Bilbo Baggins, Harry Potter, Spider-Man, Simba, Percy Jackson, essentially, every famous character ever. But what makes the hero’s journey so great?

Firstly, there’s character arcs, which alot of current stories lack. Clark Largent had to learn how to take things more seriously and step up to the plate, Alan Wade is still overcoming his own inner-demons, Mac Astley is simply learning to grow up, and Jacob Minch was learning how to redeem himself.

The Hero’s Journey comes with a character arc pre-written, you just decide the flaw, and the hero’s journey map takes it from there. Now come, sit down, children, and let me guide you through, the hero’s journey.

The Ordinary World: You meet your main character and their ordinary life, think about how Luke Skywalker was a moisture farmer before he became a Jedi Knight, or Peter Parker was just a plain nerd before he was bitten by the radioactive spider and became one of the greatest heroes of all time. Normally, you make the hero feel like a small part of a larger world so that when he overcomes his challenges there’s a sense of importance. You also introduce your character’s flaw(s) here.

The Call To Adventure- Your character is called to an adventure, maybe by another person, or maybe by an event, either way, this is how they get involved in the story’s main conflict or problem.

The Refusual- The main character refuses the call to adventure, likely because of his/her flaw(s), though that’s optional, either way, the reason why your character refuses the call can say alot about who your character is. Take for instance, Luke Skywalker refusing to go with Ben Kenobi. His reasoning is that he has to stay at his homeworld to continue his moisture farming, though Mark Hammil’s performance shows that he longs for adventure, the writing and the acting combined gives Luke a feeling of being trapped, all in one or two lines!

Eventually, however, something happens that pushes your character into the centeal conflict that makes them change their mind. Take for instance, Luke’s aunt and uncle dying. Now, he has a bone to pick with the empire.

The Mentor- Your character meets their mentor, an older, wiser, figure who is in many ways there to bring character development for the main character. The Mr. Miyagi to your Daniel LaRusso, the Obi-Wan to your Luke, the Gandalf to your Bilbo.

Crossing The Threshold- With your mentor’s help, they cross the threshold, which is a fancy way of saying that they actually start to get involved in your story’s central conflict. Think about Harry Potter’s arrival at Hogwarts, or Captain America after gettign the superSoldier Serum. That sense of fun, the calm before the storm, though of course, there still is the central conflict to be dealt with.

Test, Allies, and Enemies- Arugably the most fun part of the story, this part introduces alot. This is where your hero meets their enemies, their allies, and learn what they’ll have to do to stop the central conflict. Think about Percy Jackson, how Percy meets Annabeth and Grover, but also meets Clarisse and his soon-to-be enemy, Luke, at the same time, he is issued his first prophecy. Or when Luke and Obi-Wan need Han Solo and Chewbacca’s help to destory the Death Star. Things are getting real, now.

Approach To The Inmost Cave- This is where your main character finds themselves in their most dangerous and suspenseful situation, like how Luke boarded the Death Star. Please note that this is not when they solve the central conflict. They didn’t blow up the death star right then and there, did they?

The Ordeal- This is where your hero faces rock bottom. Their flaws are used against them, and they hit rock bottom.

The Return- Your hero is at their low point. They’re typically alone, either they pushed their allies away, or their allies abandoned him. This is when he realizes his flaws, what lead him to his failures. And that is when the hero becomes a hero, he rises above his flaws in triumphant cheers, ready to get back and fight the bad guy. The hero is now the hero.

The Reward- The hero still has problems to face, but his return brings a glimmer of hope, a sign that he can overcome the challenges, maybe the team reunites, maybe Percy just escaped the underworld, maybe Luke just got the death star plans, either way, the hero is about to win.

The Road Back- The hero realizes that the light at the end of the tunnel is a little further than he thought. Just because he’s returned and got the reward, doesn’t mean that it’s smooth sailing. The rebels know how to blow up the death star, now let’s see if they actually can.

The Ressurection- This is it. The final battle. Your hero solves the central conflict, defeating your antagonist, gettign the girl, whatever.

The Return With The Elixir- Your hero returns to their new life, their flaws have been vanguished, they’ve been hailed a hero, now, life is good for your hero.

And that’s the end of my little mumble, so let me remind you of a few things. These rules are subjective, you can switch their order around, cut certain rules out, heck, I shouldn’t even call them rules, they’re moreso guidelines.

Advertisement