I want my MTV; or Money for Fanfic
So in some discussions that have been happening on my flist and in other places, the idea has been put forward that money in exchange for fanfic wouldn’t necessarily be a bad, evil, immoral, wrong thing.
Some of the people I was discussing this with were unaware of the fact that Rockfic, for example, exists. There's an archive that charges a ( Read more... )
Some of the people I was discussing this with were unaware of the fact that Rockfic, for example, exists. There's an archive that charges a ( Read more... )
I don't have a philosophical problem with fanfic writers making money off their stories. If they can, that's fantastic for them. But, depending on the amount charged, it would eliminate me from the fandom. Not now, not if it were a fee as minimal as $2, but from the very beginning. It's not only that I don't have the income if the price gets too high, it's also that I don't have the means. I don't have a credit card, mostly by choice, and my paypal account is empty because I can't justify spending money through it when I'm working my ass off to make sure I get through school without debt. If fanfic authors I liked started charging something small of fic...now I'd probably find a way.
But if I was just coming into the fandom, then it wouldn't be worth it to me because I wouldn't have the ties to people I have now. So I just wouldn't get involved. And I have to say, thinking about that breaks my heart a little, because, though I'm nothing big to any fandom, it's been a very positive part of my life through a really bad time. I know not everyone would charge for fic either, but if there was a big archive or something where most authors published, even if it was a very small fee, I wouldn't participate unless I was already involved because it requires me to jump through a lot of hoops. Plus...some of the people I consider my best friends I met through fandom, and a lot of them would totally qualify as authors who would have no problem charging for fic. I wouldn't and if there was that charge, we could have easily never met.
I guess what I'm saying in all this is, depending on how wide spread fanfic for money became, it would be a deterrent for people joining fandom, which I don't think is a particularly good thing, just from personal experience.
Fanfic published in zines and book format, or anything where there is a monetary cost involved in putting out the fic, like a website fee, is a bit different and I wouldn't have a problem paying for that if I could. But I can't afford to. Not even zines now that I want to purchase if only because my friends have stories in them.
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