[ SECRET POST #2093 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2093 ⌋

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

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 063 secrets from Secret Submission Post #299.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 1 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ], [ 1 - ships it ], [ 1 - posted twice ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

10. http://i.imgur.com/PC8jd.png

[(Anonymous)]

Translation: My fic only got 2 comments and it's WAY better than the stuff that super-active, super-nice, super-funny author that everyone is friends with writes!

I know OP. That bitch. How dare she get praised.

[(Anonymous)]

I think you're missing the point.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't even write fic.
Also, thanks for reaffirming my point.

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, I feel like some fandoms, especially more slash-based fandoms, are like that as well. If I want comments, I have to comment on every comment that my fic entries receive. I don't want to do this for every comment I get--honestly, I don't know how to respond to certain comments sometimes.

[ex_mek82]

I tend to agree with the OP for the most part, but when you really stop to think about it, any sort of social group with large numbers of people (i.e. work, school, social groups, et. all) are all like that, not just fandom, tbqh.

[(Anonymous)]

One of my fandoms on tumblr is like this. I see so many good fics & art get passed over because one of the more 'popular' people in fandom didn't do it.

[fingalsanteater]

Because people are more likely to recommend and promote the things of people they like. They are also more forgiving of flaws. If you are active in the fandom and behave pleasantly, then people are more likely to notice you and be curious about you and your work. It's the way life works, even off the 'net.

[visp]

You can't really blame folks for liking people that are nice to them.

[leinyan]

fandom is one big circle jerk

[tamabonotchi]

I dunno, I've gotten really good comments back and I have no friends.
But yeah, those people with more friends than you will probably get more comments- friends like to do that.

[(Anonymous)]

In my personal experience, responding to comments helps. If you actually show acknowledgement and gratitude for comments (and don't act like an asshole) then hey! More comments next time!

You don't have to be a social butterfly to be considerate, for Pete's sake.

[insanenoodlyguy]

I guess the only solution is if we stop paying attention to nice people.

Maybe we should all support assholes with good work? I'm sure that will help their personalities along.

[sondheimmcgeek]

To an extent I agree with you, but look at it this way: I only have so much time to spend reading fanfiction. This means I have to be selective. So yes, I'm more likely to read something by someone that I know than something by someone I don't know. That's not to say that I never read anything by a non-friend, but I'm going to read things by people I know first. A big part of this is because I know that I know these people and know that I will most likely appreciate the quality of their work (though sometimes I find it's not something I want to read).

Besides, what's wrong with being social? I like connecting with other fandom people beyond our fanfiction/fanart.

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, I kinda get where you're coming from. I knew one particular BNF whose work was... not of the highest quality. But she got popular because of her personality, she was easy to talk to I guess. And you know what, that's okay. Of course people will gravitate towards someone like that. Granted I never saw what would happen if someone ever tried to give them honest crit. I can understand getting pissed if they ignored it and let their fans have at you for DARING TO QUESTION THEIR GREATNESS or something, but yeah, I never saw any of that going on.

But yeah, it's not impossible to take part in fandom just because you're not social. Yeah sure, you probably won't get as much exposure, but hey them's the breaks. I prefer sitting off in my own little corner of the internet and getting a nice e-mail every now and then, and being able to respond to them personally, instead of having to pore through lots of comments or reblogs or whatever and responding in public. That stuff just tires me out so I just isolated myself a bit, and have been enjoying myself more since then.

Ahh... I dunno where I'm going with this anymore. Just have fun with fandom in whatever way works for you, and don't get mad at popular peeps and assume things about them, I guess.

[(Anonymous)]

I...wouldn't know, really. I've never paid that much attention to who got how many comments. That said, if someone has a lot of friends in fandom then it makes sense that they'd probably end up with more comments/recs/whatever because friends like doing that for each other.

Also, as sort of a counter point, I can understand people who entirely avoid a person's work because they don't like that person. -shrugs-

[(Anonymous)]

My niches are usually too small for me to pick and stick with specific creators and pass by others. So, I can't comment on that.

But the quality of an actual work will still remain subjective. I've raised many eyebrows at certain recs and been mystified when my favorite was not listed. Popularity will get you places, but at the end of the day, people still like what they like. Maybe that awesome work is simply not their cup of tea.

[darkmanifest]

Man, life is a giant popularity contest.

[countess_k]

Your fandom experience isn't universal OP.

I once posted on a kink meme, in a humongous fandom I had been only lurking in, and my fic got a lot of attention. It helped that I was filling a prompt that had been posted over and over with no takers but the fact is a)I was anonymous, b) I was a newbie, c) I wasn't that talkative even while posting. I just posted the chapters, thanked the commenters and gave references. Still people were very nice and attentive and some even asked me to claim the fic in the end (which I didn't, out of embarrassment of my empty journal.) Maybe you should post more chapters, polish your fics more, show more dedication to your craft to stand out.

[(Anonymous)]

Eh, that's not always the case. I'm in a fandom where we had someone who was considered a BNF only because she wrote a lot of stories for the pairing. The quality of the stories were not so great, but because she wrote so many of them, she got popular. But then people realized that she was a big asshole who was only in it for the comments and they dropped her like a hot potato.

I mean, I would get annoyed if people's stories were only judged by how nice the author is as well, but I guess it goes with that old saying that "you attract more bees with honey than vinegar." I mean, you could have the most IC, best fanfiction written ever, but if the author's an asshole, I'll probably end up avoiding it. *shrugs* That's just kind of how it is.

I don't think you have to be super social to get some friends/followers in fandom, but it does help. Usually there has to be at least some sort of quality to the work first.

[nyxelestia]

You're not the only one, OP.

Unfortunately, a significant portion of life works that way. For most of human history, governments basically worked that way - they were essentially institutionalized nepotism.

People take care of and promote and support someone we like or are close to regardless of how good they are, and no matter how good someone is at something we often don't give a fuck about them unless they are someone close to us.

:(

*hugs*

[wauwy]

Really? I've found that --> good shit gets lots of reviews. Unless you're writing in a small or niche fandom, in which the reviews are fewer but still quite positive.

For a long time I posted stories without author's notes, headers, footers, or replying to reviews, and I still got great feedback. I didn't participate at all in fandom beyond that, didn't even comment anywhere, and no one knew who I was.

Bad stories could indeed get great feedback because of social reasons in some cases, and I'm not saying my shit is PARTICULARLY good because I didn't get like, a hundred reviews per story, but in general, fandom likes good stuff. I find it highly unlikely that things have changed in that arena.

[b_dangerous]

It generally is, but that's because it's a social experience. Nearly all social groups are like that. Hence the animal kingdom analogy for Mean Girls. This is especially true for slash fan artists.

Then again, if you still have talent and treat people nicely, you're bound to get attention. Just stay away from the massive dicks in fandom and you'll be okay.

[augustbird]

hmmmm guess i'll just rehash the fifty other comments of "well that's how life works" that and a i'm a little amused that you seem to be disgruntled that authors have supportive friends? also, i don't find this trend particularly relevant to many of the fandoms i've been in, though admittedly i've been a lurker for most of them.

be the change you want to see in the world, etc, etc. start a rec list for all the antisocial authors you feel deserve more attention.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't like that either... When writers or artists just have 30 comments rooting for them or just saying "<3" and not really even looking at the piece at all but just ... having their own fan following. Not much you can do about it but deal with it and maybe move on to other regions of the fandom.