EXCUSE ME???? WTF did I just read?
So you know how yesterday I was all "Oh, the FF.net thing is irritating, but I'll just back up my fics and say to hell with it"?
Yeah, that was yesterday afternoon.
Yesterday evening I got this ... review. I'm posting the first part of it here because I forgot to save it in its entirety. Which is fine, because really just the first paragraphs are enough to piss you right the hell off.
We have been observing and waiting...Those who are kept waiting to long could
get creative and issue public notices like the one served to the author
Purplerhino (below*) . Consider this a compliment; your work is worth notice
and followup. Not that you need the ego boost. It has not escaped our notice
that your normally finish what you start. You could think about taking it down
or handpicking another author finish it. Otherwise it's just another in a long
line of the unfinished and no one thinks this story deserves to be on that
stagnate list.
*We the public on fanfiction have been waiting for "Purplerhino" to finish
"Perchance To..." for years. The aforementioned author has had adequate time
to finish this story. This is a clear case of story abandonment. *see fine
print below* Further more in the case of said abandoned story: "Perchance
To...", we the public on fanfiction claim ownership of Perchance To... and are
donating its creative entirety to any accomplished author willing to finish
this story.
*thepublicswish does not encourage or condone plagiarism of claimed,completed
material by active or inactive writers on . The exception being with the
express permission of owner or author(s)of abandoned incomplete material.
this public court finds this arrangement benefits all and could end the
plagiarism epidemic currently causin...
EXCUSE ME????
I'm supposed to be COMPLIMENTED by this? Thank FUCK they pointed that out, because otherwise I'd have just been insulted by the whole freaking thing.
Suggesting that they have the right to put my unfinished fic up for adoption by someone else... I have no words. Just streams of steam coming out of my ears.
If one wanted to be technical about this sort of thing, one might argue that what they want to do is write fanfiction about my fanfiction. And it seems kinda silly to be pissed about it in that light. Somehow I'm still pissed.
I found this tumblr entry which is talking about this same "reviewer" and they express my feelings on it much more eloquently than I'm capable of at the moment: http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/thepublicswish
So I read that last night, just before I was about to go to bed. I'd already finished backing up all my FF.net stories and most of my reviews, including the reviews on that particular story. Since "thepublicswish" (and who the FUCK made them the mouth person for public opinion? Oh, that's right, their own egotistical assery) is an anonymous account, I couldn't reply to them directly. So I replied on my FF.net profile with the following statement and apology to the rest of my readers.
My apologies to the thousands of incredibly polite wonderful people who have supported and loved my stories all these years. This is not for you.
Dear thepublicswish,
First of all, thank you for informing me that I should be "complimented" because my story was worth noticing. I barely noticed the compliment beneath the rest of the insulting pile of bullsh*t you just tossed my way. No, I "don't need an ego boost"--I'm absolutely arrogant enough as it is.
Arrogant enough, in fact, to say emphatically that what I write--no one else will finish except for me. No I will not adopt my fic out for someone else to finish. No one else lives in my head, no one else knows what twists and turns that story is supposed to take. I'm not one of those authors who just makes it up as she goes along. I plot my stories out from beginning to end. I have notes and backstory and reams written that YOU WILL NEVER SEE.
And I have all the end chapters. I usually write them about the same time as I'm writing the beginning chapters.
I know how "Dangers Untold" ends. Only two other people in the world have read it. One of them passed away.
I know how "DUST" ends... and I'm still writing it. I have ten chapters that I haven't finished editing.
Yes I do normally finish what I start. And I will finish all of my stories. Someday.
But I have a life. And a job. And a family. I have other hobbies and passions. I have a fickle muse that turns her nose up at me sometimes and refuses to come out and play. And until she does the story will wait.
But it sounds as if you do not have a life, if you have the time to send me such insulting emails. It sounds as if you've never had writer's block--which tells me you're one of those vain authors who are only in it for the reviews. It sounds to me like it's really bothering you an awful lot that I have an uncompleted fic languishing here for you to go back and re-read and enjoy.
So I'm taking it down until it's finished.
I'm taking all of my unfinished fics down, in fact.
Had you worded your email politely, maybe asked me if/when I was planning to finish it, or asked if you could adopt it... you probably wouldn't have pissed me off. Instead you chose to write me the most insulting (and poorly spelled) letter imaginable, implying that not only was I an ego driven author too lazy to get off my butt and write, but that it was an actual CRIME for me to not just hand it over to someone else to finish--and if I wasn't going to do it myself, you were going to do it for me.
Well, I hope you're happy. If anyone asks, you're the reason we can't have nice things.
Sincerely,
KnifeEdge
To everyone else,
I'm sorry. It's been bothering me for years that these stories are unfinished. I do intend to finish them someday, but between the entitlement queen who pissed me off this evening and the rumors of the site going on a censorship spree from this morning... I think it's safer if I take these stories down and post them elsewhere.
If you wondered what happened to "Dangers Untold", "Shove's Tale" and "DUST" ... the first two have been taken down completely and will be reposted when they are finished. I have archived all your reviews, because they have made me smile a great deal over the years and I've appreciated every single one.
"DUST" is up on several prominent Spuffy websites, as well as on my livejournal. You can find me there under the name knifeedgefic.
I have backed up all of my stories and reviews, just in case the censors decide they want to play hardball. I will always be available on Livejournal if you really do miss me.
Did I overreact?
Probably.
Am I somewhat relieved that my two longest "on hiatus" stories are no longer online to garner "PLEASE FINISH THIS!!!" reviews? Yeah, pretty much.
I probably will finish them someday, and then I'll clean them up and repost them here. Or somewhere else. And I feel bad because there are a lot of people who had favorited those stories and who liked to re-read them occasionally, finished or not. But that number wasn't substantial enough to make me leave it up when ass-hats like "thepublicswish" are prepared to offer my fic up to all and sundry to finish.
And if anyone even THINKS about suggesting I adopt out "DUST"... there will be blood.