You get more bees with honey.....
Yes this is another random musing that also happens to be a bit of fanbrats rant. It's also a rant about people feeling so damned entitled as well as veering into a discussion on the appropriateness of warnings. Confused yet? Keep reading.
I've been sifting through Fanfiction.net again. There ARE some gems to be found among all the crap. And I found one such gem called Monsters and Men by ShadowThorne. Now one thing I dislike about the Pit is how limited their tagging system is. There is no room for warnings. So unless there is an Author's Note at the beginning of a fic/chapter, you've got nothing. Well almost nothing.
Monsters and Men is a LONG fic with 20 chapters. In Chapter 10 (which is where I am now) I decided to have a peek at the reviews. And my heart dropped when I found one wailing about Grimmjow's death. I checked what was being responded to and sure enough, it was the last chapter. Now I have to be honest, one of the few things I really can't handle in a fic is major character death. I know, I'm a wimp, but I just can't do it. Torture them, break them, all that good stuff, but please don't kill them. So I avoid reading such things.
But now I'm in a quandary. Here is there really well written fic that I'm enjoying immensely, but it might result in something I know I can't handle. So I decided to PM the author and simply ask. Does Grimmjow die? And if so does he come come? See if he comes back, I can handle that (*grabs a squirming Jason and hugs him close*). But if dead is dead then I have to stop reading and cut my losses. And I told ShadowThorne that. Not as a threat, but just politely explaining my feelings as I asked for information.
The response I got back made my day.
She told me what I needed to know (I won't repeat it in case anyone else wants to read the fic) and was very polite and understanding. She explained what will happen and what is implied to happen. She then thanked me for my polite inquiry and said she understood whatever my decision was.
I have to say, I'm absolutely thrilled that there are people out there like her. She was kind and understanding, rather than mean and nasty. She didn't take my question as a personal slight (and that's sooo refreshing these days) where many others would. The entire exchange just illustrated the old saying, "You get more bees with honey than with vinegar".
The thing is, I KNOW there are people out there that would have flamed her for not warning in her Author Notes. There are a lot of folks that seem to think it's their god given right to be warned for every little thing and heave help the person that doesn't read their mind to know what their triggers are! Its just stupid.
Yes, I have triggers, yes there are things I avoid. But why on earth would it be the AUTHOR'S responsibility alone? Warnings CAN spoil upcoming events and there are lots of people that hate spoilers. So if the only onus is on the author the person is in a no-win visitation. But it's not. Readers have to take responsibility for themselves. We CAN ask questions. We CAN look at reviews. We CAN ask for recommendations. We can do so many things to make our own lives easier and a fanfiction selections more enjoyable. But still there are people that would rather ignore their own abilities and blame the author. It's annoying. And it's sad.
So yeah, there's a recap of today's events and a rambling little rant for you. Off to go give my horse a bath :P
I've been sifting through Fanfiction.net again. There ARE some gems to be found among all the crap. And I found one such gem called Monsters and Men by ShadowThorne. Now one thing I dislike about the Pit is how limited their tagging system is. There is no room for warnings. So unless there is an Author's Note at the beginning of a fic/chapter, you've got nothing. Well almost nothing.
Monsters and Men is a LONG fic with 20 chapters. In Chapter 10 (which is where I am now) I decided to have a peek at the reviews. And my heart dropped when I found one wailing about Grimmjow's death. I checked what was being responded to and sure enough, it was the last chapter. Now I have to be honest, one of the few things I really can't handle in a fic is major character death. I know, I'm a wimp, but I just can't do it. Torture them, break them, all that good stuff, but please don't kill them. So I avoid reading such things.
But now I'm in a quandary. Here is there really well written fic that I'm enjoying immensely, but it might result in something I know I can't handle. So I decided to PM the author and simply ask. Does Grimmjow die? And if so does he come come? See if he comes back, I can handle that (*grabs a squirming Jason and hugs him close*). But if dead is dead then I have to stop reading and cut my losses. And I told ShadowThorne that. Not as a threat, but just politely explaining my feelings as I asked for information.
The response I got back made my day.
She told me what I needed to know (I won't repeat it in case anyone else wants to read the fic) and was very polite and understanding. She explained what will happen and what is implied to happen. She then thanked me for my polite inquiry and said she understood whatever my decision was.
I have to say, I'm absolutely thrilled that there are people out there like her. She was kind and understanding, rather than mean and nasty. She didn't take my question as a personal slight (and that's sooo refreshing these days) where many others would. The entire exchange just illustrated the old saying, "You get more bees with honey than with vinegar".
The thing is, I KNOW there are people out there that would have flamed her for not warning in her Author Notes. There are a lot of folks that seem to think it's their god given right to be warned for every little thing and heave help the person that doesn't read their mind to know what their triggers are! Its just stupid.
Yes, I have triggers, yes there are things I avoid. But why on earth would it be the AUTHOR'S responsibility alone? Warnings CAN spoil upcoming events and there are lots of people that hate spoilers. So if the only onus is on the author the person is in a no-win visitation. But it's not. Readers have to take responsibility for themselves. We CAN ask questions. We CAN look at reviews. We CAN ask for recommendations. We can do so many things to make our own lives easier and a fanfiction selections more enjoyable. But still there are people that would rather ignore their own abilities and blame the author. It's annoying. And it's sad.
So yeah, there's a recap of today's events and a rambling little rant for you. Off to go give my horse a bath :P