Fandom Snowflake Challenge 2021 #7 - Create a Challenge
This prompt seems pretty flexible, so I'll list a couple challenges for anyone who wants to get some ideas.
1) Remember to back up the stories you write! Rewriting when you otherwise wouldn't have to is daunting.
2) Remember to back up the stories you enjoy! I know I'm not the only one who hates being confronted with the "This has been deleted, sorry!" notice. As for how you should back these up, Archive.org, perhaps, or just a Word document for personal use. I know FF.Net has a save/backup/download feature on their app that works well for this, too. Also, on this note, don't forget to backup your own journal.
3) Comment on those stories that have very few or no comments. As writers, I think we all know how disappointing it is to get no reception whatsoever. Even a simple "I really liked this!" or a "<3" is a nice thing to get in the Inbox. Likewise, other types of artists also enjoy this kind of attention.
4) Remember to rec things (this is mostly aimed at myself because I keep forgetting to). This can be done with the "recommend" feature when you bookmark on AO3 or it can be done manually by making lists.
5) Make more icons and then actually make a post about them (also aimed at myself XD). Lately I've been using Paint.net and there have been several editing features I've really liked even if I haven't quite figured out layering yet or how to add all the really fancy effects I've seen people do. I also still don't know how to make gifs. Hmmm... Oh, there's also the Dreamwidth Icon Table Maker for anyone who wants to use that. It's pretty handy with getting them laid out nicely!
6) Fully utilize Dreamwidth. There are lots of nice features that I think get glossed over, such as RSS feeds and the like.
And now for some things that aren't really challenges aimed at anybody, but rather things I'd like to see more of or just plain miss.
1) More gen stories + more diversity in fanfic. I love that fanfic has its tropes and favorite types of AUs and all that, but I also feel like anything that doesn't follow the mold doesn't get much attention, and that's a bummer. For myself, I've also been trying to branch out with what I read. Different pairings than usual, different types of stories, etc. Interestingly, I've found this is a lot easier to do as a writer than a reader. I wonder why that is.
2) More comedy in fanfic. I feel like I used to see a lot more crack in the 2000s and now it's just gone away. I mean, it doesn't have to be crack, but some more humor in fanfic would be nice to balance out the angst we all seem to revel in. (^^)"
3) More active communities/alternate Web sites/forums. Yes, this is me entering nostalgia mode. Back in the 2000s, discovering a new Web site or community dedicated to something I was a fan of was so much fun, and a real score, too. Oh, the fantastic sites I found for Shaman King and Cardcaptor Sakura... Now we don't have to do that much searching for the most part and I feel like that is both good and bad. On one hand, we can all find each other easier! On the other, we're losing that flavor that went with these individual sites and communities. I don't know. However, for anyone interested in capturing some of that old flavor (and Dreamwidth just isn't enough) I discovered NeoCities through
twinklehana. My coding skills aren't quite up to par to make it the site of my dreams just yet, but the fact there's a place designed to make building your own Web site easy is pretty cool!
4) In contrast for my longing for the old Internet, I wish more people would give Pillowfort a chance. I'll admit I'm not on there as often as I'd like to be either, but if you've ever wanted a Tumblr/LiveJournal/Dreamwidth hybrid, it's really the place to go.
5) I sure would like all my old/niche fandoms to suddenly awaken with tons of new fic, art, etc. XD
I think that about covers it for now. I think out of the challenges I managed to come up with I'll probably focus most on backing things up. Can never be too careful! And as for missing communities/Web sites, I think I'll try to devote a little time to adding stuff to communities when I have something related to them (regardless of whether they're inactive or active) and I'll continue to learn more about coding.