Do you know all those posts out here about being supportive of young artists and being careful with how you talk to them about their art? Or just appreciating fanart in general and not being a total asshole?
That doesn’t exist for fanfic writers.
I am so freaking tired of seeing posts talking about “what a pain it is to rake through shitty fanfic” and memes about “shitty fanfic existing in abundance” , “shitty fanfic being the only fics that update regularly”, “popular pairings having a ton of fanfic but only a few good ones”, and all this crappy attitude towards fanfics that may not be that eloquent or fandom famous.
Don’t be an asshole. Everyone needs to start somewhere. Maybe in a few years these writers will improve and make much better fanfic. Even if they don’t, they are doing something they love and should not be freaking criticized for it. Keep your ranting and opinions about “shitty fanfic” to yourself. You’re making a majority of fanfic writers feel self-conscious, unmotivated, and even more unappreciated.
Days like ‘fanfic writer appreciation day’ are super nice, but ultimately fall short unless we fix this horrid attitude fandoms have towards fanfic.
Young authors don’t get the breaks that young artists do. New artists will post a sketch and get boatloads of encouragement. New authors will most likely either get ignored or get hatemail (both have happened to me when I was 14).
Everyone writes “shitty fanfic” when they start out. But if you shit on artists when they’re going through their “shitty fanfic” stage then all you’re ever going to get is “shitty fanfic” because young authors won’t stick around long enough to get better
YAY SHITTY FANFIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WE’VE ALL GOTTA START SOMEWHERE!
also a lot of the time shitty fanfic still has a lot to offer – some of my fave repeat reads are obviously from the author’s early work, and maybe they’re not perfect but they effect me the way I wanna be effected
And finally: IT’S FREE.
It’s really quite rude to walk up to SOMETHING BEING GIVEN TO YOU FOR FREE, AT THE COST OF SOMEONE ELSE’S LABOUR and bitch about how it’s not exactly what you wanted.
You don’t have to take it (aka, you don’t have to read it, or say anything if you do and backbutton). But ffs.
I gotta weigh in: it’s not JUST the new and young writers that see that “shitty fanfic” dialogue everywhere and have a bad day. I may not be the best damned writer out there, but I’ve had a few that worked for a lot of people. And STILL, every time I see that go around, after 13 years pubbing online fanfic, I think it applies to me. Stop spreading the negative, folks, and raise up the people who are trying to make you have a better day, even if only for a five minute read!
Don’t dump all over the writers, folks. For one thing, you may not be the intended audience! (Plenty of things I loved as a teen and won’t reread now are still loved by teenagers, for example.) For another, as @violent-darts said, this is free writing. No one held you down and made you read it. (Don’t even start with ‘but internet access costs me money.’ It does, but those writers aren’t getting a penny of it, so from their POV, you’re getting it free.)
The writers can improve, their focus and intents can change as they age, their world- and character-building can get better… but none of this improvement and change will happen if they’ve already been chased off to other hobbies.
If you thought a story was all right but could use some work, ask if the
writer would like constructive criticism or a beta. If they say yes,
make sure you include things they’re doing right as well as wrong; if
they say no, honor their requests. (I am personally still
friends with people who sent me feedback that included, “You have this
typo/grammar error/factual error…”)Also, keep in mind: if you don’t know the author, personally, then you don’t know if they’re among the net denizens with mental health issues.
We reblog the hot line numbers and mental health suggestions around tumblr because they’re needed. We put trigger warnings on fic and posts for reasons. Please do not send feedback that would add to those reasons.TL;DR? If you really don’t like a fic, use your back button. And if you’re only giving negatives? Most people won’t read all of your letter; that doesn’t count as constructive.
Why ya need to shut up about “shitty fanfic”
Published
Question of Smoke 