[ SECRET POST #2307 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2307 ⌋

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

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 06 pages, 101 secrets from Secret Submission Post #330.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 1 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

So, there's something I don't get. If you're so opposed to warning because of spoilers and whatnot, why are you okay with putting a rating on your fic? Doesn't that also let the reader know in advance what they're getting into, especially if you're setting up a major surprise tone shift when something terrible happens?

I'm not saying you shouldn't use ratings -- but I see them and warnings as kind of similar. If an M rating says, "For mature audiences only," then a rape trigger warning says, "For people who feel safe reading about rape only." The trigger warning tells you that there will be rape in the fic, and the M rating tells you that there will be content inappropriate for minors in the fic -- the only difference is in the specificity, and shouldn't it be up to the reader to decide how much information will cause them to be "spoiled"?

[(Anonymous)]

Ratings are a lot less specific than trigger warnings.

[(Anonymous)]

Yes, I noted that there was a difference in specificity. But you're still giving the reader information about the content of your fic, so that they can make an informed decision about whether to read it or not.

[(Anonymous)]

I think the specificity difference is actually a big deal for a lot of people, though, whether right or wrong. Perhaps some of those who do resist specific warnings would argue that the form of presentation of the story should remain in the control of the author, and the manner of engagement is what is up to the reader. The reader can choose whether to read something that has a higher rating but no detailed tags, can try emailing the author, can ask a friend or someone who's read/commented to advise whether any content would be a problem....

I think the tension comes from a fundamental dispute of where the burden should lie and I can see both sides of it.

Someone with a trigger has doubtlessly suffered some kind of harm in the past and can hardly be blamed for not only wanting to avoid emotional upset, but probably also desiring at least one space in life - i.e. fandom - that is easier and less stressful/potentially traumatizing than the rest of life tends to be on a daily basis.

On the other hand, not only do some writers have strong views about "spoiling" content, I think that over the past few years the burden of even trying to exercise reasonable consideration has become sort of sisyphean. The kinds of things it is not unheard of anymore to have a warning demanded for has, I would argue, started to get way out of hand. I don't think it's all or even most warning advocates doing it, but I've been seeing it more and more often across numerous sites, and not just on stories. Just as an example, right here a few weeks or months ago, iirc someone wanted a trigger warning on a secret with an image of a pregnant woman's stomach. It starts feeling like anyone putting anything on the internet would have to be able to predict anything and everything that anyone might ever find upsetting in this world, or be at risk of being chastised - sometimes with a lot of vitriol - not only for the first lack of warning but even more if not willing to cater to the expectation.

Tangentially, I think tumblr might be contributing to a blurring of the lines recently in some ways. The way that platform works, content flashing in front of people's eyes too quickly to bail out in time unless there are tags that can be blacklisted, which has led to a proliferation of expected tags on many, many, many subjects. Without taking a position on that, since I don't post to tumblr and haven't put thought into how I would navigate any expectations there, I think there's been some crossing over of tag culture to places like ao3 without due consideration for how the immediacy of the tag function differs due to what each platform is actually delivering, and how.

[(Anonymous)]

I want to marry this comment.

[(Anonymous)]

This comment would like to know how you feel about fall weddings.

[(Anonymous)]

Fall weddings are great but summer weddings are even better. I mean, why wait?

[(Anonymous)]

In that case, I hear Vegas is actually nice right about now.

[(Anonymous)]

Ah, I really like how you explained the difference of immediacy between tumblr and other sites like AO3. It makes a lot of sense if people don't think about the platform differences, and usually post to tumblr first.

The amount of stories with tumblr-style tagging has increased so much at AO3 I'm hoping we'll reach some sort of plateau or critical mass soon and that it'll decrease again.