fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #3189 ]

[ SECRET POST #3189 ]

⌈ Secret Post #3189 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

01.

__________________________________________________

02.

__________________________________________________

03.

__________________________________________________

04.

__________________________________________________

05.

__________________________________________________

06.

__________________________________________________

07.

__________________________________________________

08.

__________________________________________________

09.

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 045 secrets from Secret Submission Post #455.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Disagree

I can get not wanting to see them, but I don't understand why they make people SO ANGRY that they want to nuke them off the face of the Internet

Because tags are for tagging things. If you want to write about random things, do it on your blog or add it at the end of your fic.

I don't see any reason tags can't be used as a communicative medium.

Again, I think if it bothers you there should be a way to not see them. And there's definitely a tension between those different uses. I just don't get why it pisses people off so much. Just, you know, take it easy, whatever.

Again, tags are a tool. When you misuse them, you're making it more difficult for people who want to read actual tags and know what the fic is about.

If you want to use comment tags in your blog, go ahead, but A03 isn't your personal space, is an archive.

If you want to use comment tags in your blog, go ahead, but A03 isn't your personal space, is an archive.

oh come on

they're not wrong though.

You contribute to Ao3 *not only* as a way to share your work, BUT ALSO as a way to contribute it to the greater body of fanwork; if you don't want to do that, just share it on your own blog.

My point here, and it's pretty much the only point I really have, is that I think it can be multiple things at once. Same way I think tags can be.

I completely agree, anon! I'm cool with OP's desire to have the option of filtering out comment tags, because then everybody can be happy. But personally, I love lots of tags on fanfic, and I tend to read almost all the tags on a fic before I actually start reading the fic itself. For me they're like an appetizer or a trailer (resisting the urge to make "coming attraction" jokes rn).

Well, things CAN be multiple things at once. But I would argue that with some things (such as tags), attempting to use them that way makes it impossible to use them in the specific way they were intended to be used. So some things SHOULD only be used one way.

I don't see any reason tags can't be used as a communicative medium.

Tags aren't for communicating. That's what author's notes and summaries are for. Tags are for sorting, cataloging and filtering. To treat them as a forum for communication not only defeats the purpose, but it makes it really hard to get their intended use out of them, and then you don't have anything you can use for sorting, cataloging or filtering, and that sucks.

nayrt

+1 million

This. Exactly this.

This!!

Exactly.

Tags are for sorting, cataloging and filtering.

So very much this.

Right now it's too much like doing a subject or keyword search on a library system and getting useless crap back like "idk emotions are complicated guys". THAT IS NOT A TAG.

Because sometimes people write an obscene amount of tags, which sucks when scrolling on mobile.

Also, it can make it hard to search for fics. Oh, you want a fic about Steve Rogers and cats? So you search for Steve Rogers and cats. But like 5 of those fics is just someone tagging, "#oh man #this fic was so hard to write #my cat is all over the keyboard #lol".

Sure. There are real issues here. And like I said, there should be a way to not display them.

I also think people get way disproportionately mad about it tho. In what seems like a really NO FUN ALLOWED way. Like, way out of proportion to the moderate hassle they can cause.

Depending on the fandom or tag you are searching, it can be really fucking annoying. And no one wants their free time to be wasted because authors want to write all their feels out in tags that are unrelated to the story.

Also, it is just bad for organization.

To follow this up, someone has to manually sort free form tags into the system. Unnecessary tags add work for the volunteers.

BUT WHAT ABOUT THEIR FUN

What about it? Unless their idea of fun is breaking the sorting function by misuse.

And my fun involves staying the fuck away from authors that use these tags. It's a veritable carnival of glee.

I thought I read somewhere once that the tag wranglers don't bother sorting "Tumblr-style" comment tags, so it doesn't actually add any work for them. They just ignore them.

I read that once, too.

But they still have to slog through it, to sort the shit from the Shinola.
Bet that feels like it's worth it. /irony

(no subject)

(Anonymous) - 2015-09-28 01:14 (UTC) - Expand

When it gets to the point where the tag isn't even relevant to the content of the fic at all, then yeah, that seems a bit silly (still doesn't annoy me personally, but I can see how it would annoy others). OTOH, if the tag does pertain to the fic, but is just a bit less formally structured, I'm totally for it. Some of my favorite tags to date have been:

"when people say consent is sexy they are not kidding believe me"
"it's not a date" "oh but it definitely is"
"the giant angsty porn fic of angst and porn"
"do not put the Thames in your mouth"

Variety in tagging just makes for a richer reading experience in my opinion. But I do support OP's desire for the option to opt out if one so chooses.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only