Confessions of a Glory Hound: On Fanfic and Feedback
So, I've been meaning to write a big old thing about feedback for a while now and I'm finally getting to it. It seems particularly timely since there's been a lot of discussion, not always civil, in Big Bang Theory fandom lately.
( Cut for some pretty major tl;dr. )
( Cut for some pretty major tl;dr. )
I completely agree with you that the stories I write are things that I wrote because I wanted to, or I needed to, and that they're all special to me. And I further agree that I would have written them anyway-- hell, I've got a whole folder of WIP's in the Google Docs that may never see the light of day, but that I still tinker with because they're important to me, and I think that's a testament to the idea that I write for me (and also that I am a serious, serious procrastinator of the highest order, but that's a different comment entirely). ;)
I see art-- and sure, I'll call fannish works art, because they fit definition that I'm working with-- as a communication between the artist and the person who is reading, viewing, hearing, et cetera, the art itself. It's because I define art in this way that I've always said that I don't write in a vacuum, and that's why feedback is so valuable to me. I absolutely create because I feel an internal motivation to do so, but the nature of the thing I'm creating gives me an external motivation, too. When I call, it's nice to get an answer. It enhances the experience to share it with someone else. It's not my primary motivator (most of the time, more on that in a second), but it's definitely a factor. It's similar to the experience I have with fandom itself, and I think it's part of the reason we join fandom, actually-- to communicate about the communication that we're viewing or reading or hearing, to not have that communication exist in a vacuum.
That said, I don't feel like I'm entitled to feedback. It also doesn't really amount to hill of beans for me if receiving feedback does happen to be someone's primary motivator in writing. I mean, we can't get paid for this shit, so maybe some people want to get paid in comments? I'm not the arbiter of what's right and what's not when it comes to fanworks or any works. Who am I to say if it's acceptable or not? At the end of the day, that seems a little silly. What are we going to do, install motivation-meters on fanwork sites that measure the artist's reasons for posting? I think we create for a variety of reasons, and that those reasons may differ depending on a multitude of factors. The nature of the piece itself may matter. If I'm writing fic for someone as a present, external motivators are going to matter a good deal more to me than they might if the piece is something that just hit me in the middle of the night and wouldn't let up 'til I sat down and wrote it out. And I'm not really bothered by that, at least for me. If glory's the aim, well, it ain't mine. At the same time, though, I'm not begrudging anybody their measure of joy, as long as it's not gained by maliciously or intentionally harming someone else.
But that's me as a creator of fanworks, and not as a reader or viewer. Does it change my perception of a work when someone plainly states that glory is the goal? I don't know. I could certainly see how that might put folks off, but that puts us into discussing fandom as a community, and I'm supposed to be learning First Amendment law, so, I'll just say that basically, I agree with you, D, and that we need to have fakaritas again sooooooon. ♥
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I agree with every damn word in this. I'd hug them if I could.
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I was just responding to your total awesome smartness! WHY ARE YOU SO GREAT ALL THE TIME. I FEEL SO OPPRESSED, D.
::HUGE SQUISHY HUGS FOR YOUUUUUUU::
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*THE LARGEST HUG IN HUMAN EXISTENCE FOR YOUUUUUU*
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This, and what dashakay said about having the need to create and share-having a story that needs to be told-is the fundamental reason that I write fic and, more recently, create art. So, I suppose I'm vouching for it applying to both mediums.
I get these images and stories in my mind, inspired by something truly random mostly, and then, writing a story or doing an illustration is the best way for me to share my ideas. Feedback is what lets me know that others may have been thinking the same thing, too.
With my art in particular, feedback is like fuel. I get an amazing sense of accomplishment whenever I complete a new piece, but my main reason for creating it is to share it with others, because it makes people happy or causes them to think of something in a way they never before considered.
However, I certainly don't think I deserve or am entitled to feedback. I put my art out here (on the internet for a reason). Like you said, I'm not creating it in a vacuum. I want someone to see it and appreciate it, and it's gratifying for me if they take the time to let me know. :)
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