Discussion Fan Fic Pet Peeves?

The last PM sounded just like some of the Spam emails I get about women wanting to date me (You know Hot XXX GIRLS! emails that come along with advertisements for Viagra). What makes me think they are not real (meaning they are not even from a real reader) is they never mention a story name. The last one was "I loved your story" (But they didn't say which one in the PM). They mentioned a character I almost never write about. And they say they want to be my friend and get to know me better. I showed the PM to my roommate and he said, "Block her!" Now, if this person ever ONCE wrote a review for any of my stories...then I might not be so paranoid. But they have never wrote a review or faved my stories once. It is just an out of the blue PM.

 

I get similar stuff here and elsewhere about drawing someone else's characters or writing in someone else's fandom continuity that I only barely partake in, or draw characters from a franchise that I don't care about.

All under the guise of "oh, it'll help you get your muse back!"

No it won't. You (the person) just want free art/stories.

 

Oh my god, that reminds me of the time I got a PM (this was on ff.net) from a person I'd never interacted with asking me if I was willing to write Luke/Vader slash. I mean, first of all:

• no
• absolutely not

but second of all, I've never even written a fic with the original trilogy characters (let alone anything with incest), so I have to imagine they were sending the same request out to all sorts of Star Wars authors in the hopes that someone would take them up on it. I mean, why.

 

Sorry about asking you to do that skygawker. I was young and going through my Sith/farmboy incestial slash experimental phase.

(I'm joking people. I wasn't the one who asked)

 

I think someone asked me to do a slash pairing and my jaw hit the floor. I do know that the situation they asked me to write was one that I was uncomfortable with to the max. I did write three fics for someones because I had done contests attached to my fics and the reward would be a short one shot featuring the character(s) of their choice. One I posted here since the person that made the request was here and that was fun since I had never written Kyp Durron before.but since it was an AU it was interesting to explore his character a bit. The next two were requests for an Obidala and Ahsoka/Rex. Personally I don't think that Obi-Wan could have stood Padme's mentality without pulling out his hair. And for Ahsoka/Rex physically Rex is twenty or twenty-one and Ahsoka is fourteen, chronologically Rex is ten. Even if you throw out age Ahsoka is one of his commanding officers which is against the rules last I knew.

 

Lady_Misty Personally I don't think that Obi-Wan could have stood Padme's mentality without pulling out his hair.

 

I believe one for me is that I read many stories, but at times I don't comment on them. I just feel at times that I don't have much to add to what has already been said by others. Yet at times I do get messaged to comment on a story, or to comment more. I've had to tell some that I appreciate their enthusiasm but I choose what I want to read and what to comment. If someone pesters me to continually read their story it turns me off from what may actually be a great read. Now I do tell some to update me when they post more, and those are messages I enjoy getting.

 

I meant without mentally pulling his hair out!

 

It means a lot to people to know that somebody is genuinely interested, especially when they're writing about less popular stuff, so...there's got to be something to add.

I don't have a problem commenting once I've managed to focus and read. But yeah, I have serious attention issues, likely because of my strabismus. >_<

 

I know it is awful of me to say this...but when I start reading a fic and the author writes, "Please review!" I make the decision not to review. I am okay with a gentler request like, "Any reviews are appreciated or I'd appreciate any comments", but when it looks like an order I have a tendency to not want to review. I have people PM me asking me if I have read their story and if they are my friends that is cool. I do that myself with my friends. But if I reviewed the first post to a new writer and then I get PMs asking me if I read the second chapter...then I don't want to read it. I think I am obstinate.

 

Yeah, I'm the same way, particularly with fan art posts. I see the "Please tell me what you think!" and then study the image very closely and think to myself, "Do you really want me to tell you what I actually think, or are you just fishing for compliments?"

Unfortunately, that mentality stems from dealing with someone who was indeed only fishing for compliments and I tired of commenting on their stuff very quickly.

 

I concur tone does indeed count for a lot but it's a both ways deal. Some people aren't merely looking for compliments.

 

Unfortunately the tone of the comment is often up for interpretation. Now, if the request is in all caps "PLEASE REVIEW!" Then I will assume the worst.

 

It is but one can choose to not make blanket assumptions. I have found in my time here that many make far too many broad assumptions about others and it's needlessly hostile and damaging. That's why I actively seek clarification much more now. It helps tremendously.

 

I just avoid commenting altogether, so I don't inadvertently piss anyone off.

 

I agree with Cushing's Admirer ...and here is why:

It could be a kid with no prior fandom experience who is waaay too excited and wants to share the excitement. This may steam from social networks which function differently and they think likes equal popularity and thus quality, because that's what the niches they were exposed to previously taught them.

It could be somebody older than most of us who's a bit clueless about the internet and such. I had people on Flickr comment on my photos with their photos. I more or less told one of them off and then he gave me that "how dare you, I can be your father" talk. While he was obviously strange, I realised that he probably didn't listen to people closer to him about this, either.

It can also be a lack of knowledge on more than one subject - I know people who were using all caps because they "couldn't see well". When I told them that browser font can be enlarged and that writing in all caps is considered yelling online, they got it.

It could be a person with different social norms, whether because of their neurology or their culture.

Combos of the above factors can probably create a lot of confusion.

...

Re:commenting

Some of us state that we want constructive criticism and are experienced enough to handle it and smart enough to recognise if it's legit criticism or trolling, so...no need to be afraid. Plus, we're all here to improve our writing. Doing anything without making progress in it is not as fun.

 

The formula I was taught for giving criticism is designed to be positive overall, while leaving room for suggestions for improvement:

• Start with a positive remark (something the author/artist did well)
• Try to intersperse positives with negatives
• When pointing out points for improvement, offer some possible suggestions so that the author/artist can learn
• Always, always end on a positive.

Any time I've ever offered criticism (and I use the word in its intended, neutral sense), I've done my best to keep to this method. Not only to make an attempt to mitigate the potential for hard feelings, but also so that I can see for myself how such things might work for my own improvement. For example, just knowing that I can spot such a thing in a piece of art means that I can try to avoid a similar mistake myself—not that I'm any good at art, mind you. Another example can be that by noting how an author went about using a unique turn of phrase, I can spice up my own writing.

 

Yep! I have found from experience that asking for clarification often ends up badly. I misinterpret their tone. I ask a question and they misinterpret my comment. It is just easier to not say anything. Of course this is why some new writers sometimes accuse the forums of being too cliquish. People don't comment that much.

 

It's a vicious cycle.

 

I dont like being called cliquish because I won't read a Darth Bane/OC love story or something similar. I don't know those characters. I want to read L/M stuff.

 

For me, comments and reviews mean a lot because I can get very insecure about my writing so even a comment saying "I enjoyed this" is appreciated because it lets me know that they're still reading. But hey, that's my issue, not anyone else's and I understand that people have their reasons for not commenting. I don't ask for reviews or bug people (at least I hope I don't).

This is why as a reader I try to leave comments on most every fic I read to let the author know that I enjoyed it and try to say why, because that is valuable to me as a writer.

I know that I should write for the love of it and not reviews, but hey, validation is nice. That said I don't mind concrit because I'm always aiming to improve. But everyone has their different thought processes and experiences, and people like what they like.

 

I agree, Lotus. Cushy does write simply for the need of writing (it's my chief balancer besides weeping) but someone willing to give me an ear and a kind word can do wonders. I too am constantly aiming to grow and improve.

*Shrugs* Personally, I think seeking clarification is better than assumption but everyone's different. I dislike assumptions because 8/10 they are incorrect to a degree in my experience and such things severely limit one's potential to enjoy something. Of course everyone wants to read and write what appeals to them. I get that.

 

I bolded the parts that apply to me as well.

This! There are so many normative frameworks of sorts, dictating people how they should feel about certain topics, what certain expressions and reactions mean and so on; and while a lot of folks will go for it, in each niche there could be somebody, or more people, breaking those stereotypes. And asking them about it helps.

In the most commented chapter of my first fic, I had a situation that looked very typical. And that's how the reviewers approached it. I did not mind, as I am aware of how the norms extend from real life towards fiction; but I happily went and explained that there's more to it than they think.

Yes, but one should more or less motivate themselves to explore when they have the time. That's how life works, in general. Deciding that something sucks before one has ever seen it could result in missing on a lot.

 

I don't think having a reading preference means I've decided stories outside that preference suck. That sounds a little harsh. I know there are probably thousands of brilliant stories written in the BEFORE era but I am not familiar with the time frame or the characters. Fanfiction is different from professional novels. They are usually written with the assumption that the reader knows the characters. This makes it very difficult to start reading about characters you are not familiar with and really understand what is going on. I think reading about OCs is actually easier than unfamiliar canon characters for that reason. The writer is forced to describe his/her OC. If somebody is writing about Darth Plagueis they most likely are going to assume the reader has some passing knowledge of the character. For this reason many readers don't feel motivated to expand their horizons and read about unfamiliar characters.

My pet peeve is long paragraphs. If I see a story that doesn't have any paragraph breaks on the first page...I don't even bother reading it.

 

I've read stuff outside of my preferred category and I've found stuff I've enjoyed. Would i read stuff like that again? Sure, but since I generally don't read stuff in certain categories, then having to go through story after story in a category that I don't often read just to find that one story I will read can be daunting.

For me, it's like how I approach reading a book; I need to take time out of my day to do this. This is time that I would otherwise use for something else. Therefore, I'd much rather be sure that I enjoy what I'm going to spend that time on, rather than end up slogging through something that I otherwise don't like.

I've read some stinkers in genres that I enjoy reading, so I'm particularly choosy. It boils down to that I have to invest time in it. When I have other options for that time, then those options generally take precedence.

I'm picky. I'm a picky person. That fault is my own.