HD_WORLDCUP: To squee or not to squee?
I spent an hour going back and forth on this. I just read the first four fics in the fest and while I want to ramble a bit about it all, there are some peeps on the f-list who might be staying mum till the end.
Yes,
hd_worldcup is a competition. Yet it's also a celebration of all things H/D. Reading the fics today made me incredibly happy, especially after recent events.
And I know myself. I'll probably forget half of these thoughts in my head by the end of the fest. I won't remember my gut feelings. All the H/D fic will merge in memory and become one rollercoaster ride of fandom love - well, at least that's happened with other fandoms and fests in the past.
So I decided during my shower that y'know what? I need to get this out. I'll put it behind an lj-cut so that spoilery stuff won't be revealed.
Disclaimer of sorts: It's all relative.
I'm not going to tell you which fic is the best because it's all a matter of opinion and wholly subjective. However, I will say which fic I enjoyed the most and if there are any particular favorites.
Honestly in this particular fest, I don't expect to find many fics which I actively dislike - and so far everything posted has been a delight to read. Still, there are going to be fics that I like more than the rest.
I might mention things I found unexpected, unusual or not quite satisfactory. I might make comparisons between fics because most likely, I will have read them at around the same time.
If the thought of someone going ahead and doing this makes you angry, please feel free to defriend or skip the posts. Everyone has their own way of doing things and I won't hold it against you. And if anyone else is interested in talking about their reactions and thoughts and comparisons - well, do comment ^__^
Yes,
hd_worldcup is a competition. Yet it's also a celebration of all things H/D. Reading the fics today made me incredibly happy, especially after recent events. And I know myself. I'll probably forget half of these thoughts in my head by the end of the fest. I won't remember my gut feelings. All the H/D fic will merge in memory and become one rollercoaster ride of fandom love - well, at least that's happened with other fandoms and fests in the past.
So I decided during my shower that y'know what? I need to get this out. I'll put it behind an lj-cut so that spoilery stuff won't be revealed.
Disclaimer of sorts: It's all relative.
I'm not going to tell you which fic is the best because it's all a matter of opinion and wholly subjective. However, I will say which fic I enjoyed the most and if there are any particular favorites.
Honestly in this particular fest, I don't expect to find many fics which I actively dislike - and so far everything posted has been a delight to read. Still, there are going to be fics that I like more than the rest.
I might mention things I found unexpected, unusual or not quite satisfactory. I might make comparisons between fics because most likely, I will have read them at around the same time.
If the thought of someone going ahead and doing this makes you angry, please feel free to defriend or skip the posts. Everyone has their own way of doing things and I won't hold it against you. And if anyone else is interested in talking about their reactions and thoughts and comparisons - well, do comment ^__^
.....defriendings?
Whut.
The way I see it, it's like a H_E competition. You submit your crap and people vote for it. There are no rules against praising this entry or that -- it doesn't usually happen (well, not in public channels), but so what? I'm not even sure why this is supposed to be an issue. It's a fest like any other: you like something, you rec it. You aren't under obligation to do anything.
And yeah, it IS all relative, because unlike you, I rolled my eyes and clicked my back button a lot this morning. :-P
Yeah, that's the whole reason I was like, to hell with it - I'll post what I want XD
And yeah, it IS all relative, because unlike you, I rolled my eyes and clicked my back button a lot this morning. :-P
What can I say? I am easy to please :) Especially after not reading H/D in what feels like ages, haha *frollicks*
Recs/Reviews/Comments comparing fics - it's sort of like friending/defriending where there SHOULDN'T be an issue but peeps still end up in arms about it. So I just wanted to get this said and done and move on.
I've already gotten peeps on my f-list who're going to abstain from any comments/posts about the competition until after it's over.
FIIIIIC, FIIIIIC.
'
Edited at 2008-04-01 09:04 pm (UTC)
I like to think that my f-list is beyond it but *shrugs* one can never really be certain. If there are peeps who aren't going to say anything till the end of the fest, they've probably got their reasons.
There'll be lots and lots of fics to come so \o/
I always try to be mindful of others' feelings and speak tactfully when discussing fics I didn't think were 100% awesome, but I think anyone who posts something online knows that even if it's brilliant, not EVERYONE is going to like it, and that once it's out there, others will have opinions and perhaps share them. I'm not crazy about fic bashing, but I'm sure that's not what you're talking about here.
Personally, I think it would be wonderful if someone wanted to take the time to compare/contrast my fic with the other three takes on its prompt. I think it would be really interesting, and probably a good learning experience.
Yeah, I wanna be able to just throw my thoughts into a post and get to discuss the fics. That's the awesomeness of LJ - you don't just blog but you can really get some awesome dialogue started too.
I kinda appreciate it when people are honest and state they don't like a fic, because either a) I agree and comment or b) I disagree and comment. The plethora of "I like" comments can seem incredibly vapid and really, just a comment for the sake of a comment.
Haven't really compared/contrasted yet since each fic so far has been so different from the others - which is awesome XD
After putting a lot of thought into this issue over the last year or so, I still haven't completely made up my mind about it, but what I seem to have settled on is posting positive feedback when I have a positive reaction to a story, offering concrit when I think it would be welcome or appreciated, and publicly discussing individual stories when I have at least as much positive as negative things to say about them. Meanwhile, if there's a story I just have nothing positive to say about, or if I have reason to think my thoughts might be particularly hurtful to someone, I'll keep my discussion of things I dislike in fanfic to more general terms rather than focused on a specific fic. I obviously don't expect the rest of fandom to play by my rules, but that's what I personally feel comfortable with doing.
Of course, this is a fest where every participant knew ahead of time that their fics would be evaluated/judged by the readers, so it would seem like discussion of the fics would be more rather than less acceptable in this case. (Though I still wince for the authors when I see negative feedback in those initial comments, because it's hard, having a fic posted, and waiting to see what the response is going to be. Also, since the fest is anonymous, it would be hard on the author to have to wait until reveals to respond. Hmm...this is really making me think.)
I agree. There will always people who love a thing and others who dislike that same thing, and putting your fic up emans that both categories can read and comment on it.
As long as the comments are reasonable and at least explain what's wrong, I'm ok with them.
Yes, I'm on team fanon - but if I read a fic that I love - I intend to tell my flist. And this is my opinion. lol
My big fear is that I'll say something (or not be able to say anything) when it comes to my fic and I'll give myself away. There is the option of commenting the other teams' fics, and I think I will give in and do that. After all, my team mates know how I feel about their stuff.
It's my intention to read all the fics - and to be honest(ish) about them. If I can't stand a fic I'm not going to leave a comment, but I think if a fest is set up as a competition, surely a little bit of constructive criticism won't go amiss as long as there's praise as well? (I'm having second thoughts already... :D )