The Etiquette of Holiday fics
Dec. 7th, 2006 08:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
geovikiLike 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, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
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?
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?
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Date: 2006-12-11 11:00 am (UTC)In your opinion, is it uncouth to leave concrit that's negative on a fest fic?
Very much so. Fest fic are gifts, just the same as a physical box of chocolates, pair of ear-rings, CD, DVD, etc. etc. etc.
I am sure (or maybe I'm just too optimistic) that people wouldn't go to a party and when the hostess opened her presents go 'Urgh, that necklace/picture/whatever is dreadful' or even 'Nice enough, but look at the finish', in a loud enough voice for other people to hear - surely they wouldn't, would they? Well, it's exactly the same with gift fic. If you leave any kind of critcism, no matter how con, it's meant to be, it is still basically rubbishing the gift in a public forum.
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?
No, you're not. Not at all. I'm with you one hundred and ten percent. It totally bad manners. As an author I'd be devastated if it happened to me, as a comment leaver, it would just never occur to me to do so. I'm like you insofar as I don't leave any kind of comment other than positive anyway, unless asked and then I'd do in privately, and even then I feel uneasy. But for a gift fic, totally wrong.