The Etiquette of Holiday fics

[geoviki]

Like all the rest of you, I'm delighting in the reams and reams of new stories and art (and this year's art is especially terrific!). There's the granddaddy, merry_smutmas, and then others like harry_holidays, hd_holidays, smutty_claus, lupin_snape.... an embarrassment of riches!

As we are encouraging each other as writers and artists, I'm trying to leave feedback as well. One thing that caught my notice, though, has left me feeling uneasy, and I wondered what your views are: In your opinion, is it uncouth to leave concrit that's negative on a fest fic? (Disclosure: this is not anything that's happened regarding my own fic, just other folk's.)

I don't see the author requesting any, for one thing. Personally, I won't do it, but then I never leave anything less than praise unless I'm asked specifically and privately. If I don't like something, I just pass it by. Which unfortunately is the same response to something I've not yet read, so the writer is never sure if I'm unhappy or just behind (if the writer even cares what I think), but there you go.

But IMHO, these stories are gifts. And I can't see criticising a gift. Am I over-sensitive? What do you authors and artists think?

Comments

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

My main thought is that I see concrit from anyone other than the giftee as being more irrelevant than anything else. Yes, tasteless, but mostly irrelevant. The fics written for these exchanges sometimes have extraordinarily specific parameters given and the gift is tailored to one individual's request, rather than having been written for the wider enjoyment of the fandom at large, or a specific segment of it. I mean, larger enjoyment is certainly hoped for, but it's icing. If the recipient is happy, that's the main thing, IMO. If not, then I think that they have the right to give concrit, but I think that's fairly tasteless, too. UNLESS the author specifically disregarded the requests in some way. For instance, if my gift fic came with an A/N that went to the tune of: "Sorry, I know you said any of these pairings [list], but I hate all of them, so I wrote you Kreacher/Filch instead. Also, I can't write bottom!Kreacher like you requested at all, it just squicks me, so you'll just have to deal", I'd be pissed off. And probably make mention of that in my comments. If the author, and I think that the vast majority do, has tried to fulfil the requests and the recipient is happy, then everyone else's concrit is sort of beside the point, as I see it. Oh, and also inappropriate. :P

[mayflo.livejournal.com]

"Sorry, I know you said any of these pairings [list], but I hate all of them, so I wrote you Kreacher/Filch instead. Also, I can't write bottom!Kreacher like you requested at all, it just squicks me, so you'll just have to deal"

Good grace, that'll piss off anyone, even if it's not your request. The whole point of an exchange is totally void there XD

But I feel sorry for whoever had to write for me cos I might've overdone and asked too many things... *sheepish*

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

The very first exchange I ever did, it was the MOD OF THE EXCHANGE who wrote for me and did that!!! It was a wank-themed exchange, wherein you could specificy whether you wanted solo wank or mutual, and if mutual, which pairing. I requested, very specifically (or so I thought), H/D mutual wank and got DM solo wank while sort of noticing in passing that HP was walking by or something, with an apologetic note about H/D squicking the author. So why, as the mod of the fest, s/he didn't give my request to one of the five hundred million fangirls or -boys who isn't squicked by H/D, I'll never know. But that's neither here nor there. :P

I always think I ask for too much, too, and then I see other people's requests after and realize with horror that I forgot to specify, like, "no Roman showers" or something, and panic. :P But then, there will always be someone who left a longer and pickier request than you did, I'm sure. :P

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Okay, here's a question: everyone always says (if they remember) No Scat! Yet have you ever read a fic that had poop-play in it at all? Why do we think our writers are gonna hit us up with this unless we warn them off?

I'm laughing at myself here. I'm sure I've said it too.

[catrinella.livejournal.com]

I was thinking about this just today!

I'm half-tempted to run a scat-fest just to see if anyone would write, but then I'd have to mod it. Ooops.

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

Ahahaha, I know! :D I think it's partly because of Gina's dire, dire warning that if you don't say it, anything goes! The only poopy fic I've ever read was written for a squick fest in the first place, so I should have known better. But really, I mean, while I enjoy the occasional watersports fic, I wouldn't just go and write it for some person when they hadn't requested it specifically, because common sense tells me that this is most decidedly not everyone's kink. On the other hand, some things which I hate are considered commonplace by some, so... caution. :P

I always think I'm pretty easygoing about fic reading and such, but then I read everyone else's requests and go, "right, that! Oooh. Must mention not that, gross! And that!! Disgusting!!" and on it goes. :P

[mijan.livejournal.com]

That's horrendous! The MOD did that? *balks* That's just RUDE. I mean, if she hated the ship, she should have assigned it to someone else. She had the option!

The way I figure it, if a person gets an assignment and can't do it, then they need to say something to the mod and get reassigned, if possible. And then, if a person accepts the assignment, I figure it's their obligation to give the recipent their best possible effort to give them what they want. If the person WANTS Filch/Kreacher, then they get Filch/Kreacher. If they want some combination out of a list of ten different kinks, try to get at least a few of them, and don't include any squicks. If they want PWP, write PWP. If they want plot, write plot. Doesn't matter if their "Christmas list" has stuff that other people don't like. You write it for the recipient, not everyone else.

Now, if someome requests Kreacher/Filch with rimming and watersports, most of the people in the exchange probably won't like it. If someone requests Harry/Draco, you know that most people will like it. But no matter what, you write for your recipent. [/RANT]

I just still can't get over that the MOD did that to you. I hope you get what you want this year! Is it Kreacher/Filch? ;)

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

Yeah, pretty much. And then was surprised that I didn't want to do the exchange again the following year!! I actually said something of a complaintive nature to the mod while the fics were still anon and got no response whatsoever, so the unhappiness was definitely conveyed. If I had known s/he wrote it, obviously I wouldn't have done that!! But honestly, you don't expect the mod to give her/himself an assignment s/he didn't want to write!!

And really - my request was for H/D, mutual wankage. How difficult is it to find someone who wants to write that? :P No, I didn't request Kreacher/Filch, lol. I think they were all pretty standard ones. :) It wasn't for Smutmas either, don't worry!! It was a much lesser known (non-holiday) exchange.

[mijan.livejournal.com]

Hey! I saw that you'd received your Smutmas gift, and I remembered this conversation and what you'd said about the exchange you did where you got something that wasn't at all what you'd asked for. Did Smutty Claus give you wanted you wanted for Smutmas this year? :)

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

Heh. Yeah, I really liked it! :) I think half the fandom seems to know who wrote it, though I'm always clueless that way! :P It was great! Very smutty and funny and managed to incorporate two of the main pairings I asked for without betraying my OTP - nice little trick! :D

[mijan.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... maybe I ought to give it a read. I saw the summary. H/D is my OTP, but I've read some hot Harry/Fred/George, and I don't mind it. Wonder how (s)he combined the pairings. It looked really long though, and I've got the flu. Brain can't handle much right now. I haven't read nearly enough of the fics, but I haven't had the time or energy. The only long one I've read was the one I received on HD_Holidays (OMG, I LOVED IT!).

I wonder if I could figure out who wrote it. I suck at guessing (even though it's fun to try), and I haven't been able to figure out ANY of the others yet. Do you have any guesses?

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

I haven't read the one you got for HD Holidays, but I'll put it on my list of Things To Read. :) Actually, there, I've only read the one for Emma. H/D is my OTP, too, so I can vouch for you liking this fic, I think! It's definitely the primary pairing. :) It is long, but it's not a fic you have to plough through, you know? It's very handle-able, heh. :)

I can never guess at this kind of thing!!! Ask Rachel; it totally sounds like she knows! :P

[mijan.livejournal.com]

Pppphhfffbtt!! Leave it to Rachael to keep a secret from me. I shall have to poke her.

I read the one for Emma, but found it a bit flat. However, I DID read the one that she *wrote* (because I beta'd it), and it was fan-bloody-tastic. And the one I received... I completely fangirled it. It had an incredible H/D dynamic (yay for revenge-sex!), far more plot than smut, and the smut that was there supported the plot. However, I like really well-written smut, too. So... I'll give yours a read. Will I need a cold shower? LOL.

[mijan.livejournal.com]

Okay, I'm an idiot. I was talking with a few people today about the fanfic exchanges, and something someone said reminded me of this conversation, and... I realized I mixed up the HD_Holidays fic for Emma, and the Smutmas fic for Emma. I haven't even read the HD_Holidays one. It was the Smutmas one that fell a bit flat. That's what I get for following two exchanges and not paying careful enough attention. *headdesk*
*meep*
Actually, the one from HD_Holidays is on my to-read list, and it looks really good. Gah... I feel st00pid now. Too many fics... too many authors... can't keep up...
*brain fry*