Info post and grading of fics - please read!
All writers have to start somewhere and a fandom is a good place as it comes with a built-in reader base. The trouble then comes for the reader. Most popular fandoms have from 10 to 100 fics posted each and every day and it is difficult to know what is worth spending time on and what should be avoided at all costs. Rec lists help a lot with that. Unfortunately, rec lists often contain both exellent fics as well as well-written but unoriginal fics, simply because the latter can be just as good a read if that's what you're in the mood for. Therefore if you want to find that elusive amazing fic without having to trawl through all the ordinary ones you might have some problems. This even more so now as more people put their recs on 'delicious' where the only information available might be fandom and pairing. This is why we've decided to try our hand at reviewing slash (m/m only) and gen fics and graded them in a few useful categories.
We're not expert reviewers, but we have been reading slash fanfics for over 10 years and do feel that we know a bit about what constitutes a well-written fic. Some people will most likely disagree loudly with our choices, but the goal here is not to have everyone agree with us in what is good and what is not as that is simply a matter of taste, but to help those readers that share our varying tastes to find good fic they might have missed or to help them find good fic faster if they don't have time to trawl through the comms. That means that if you've liked some of the fics we've recommended chances are you'll like the others as well and this is a place for you to look for recs. If you've hated our choices, we most likely do not share the same taste and you should try some place else.
As we have a 1-5 slash system we will also be reviewing fic that we consider should be avoided, therefore we will post a review of fics that receive one or two slashes. We are not doing this to be cruel, but we feel that there is a lot of ”badfic” creeping into our slash and therefore we feel it is only right to warn other readers of the bad as well as the good.
Our main fandoms are Dean/Castiel (SPN) and Sherlock/John (SherlockBBC only), and therefore we will concentrate on reviewing fics from those fandoms. This might change later on. We will be reviewing mostly slashfic (m/m) as well as any well-deserving genfics that we happen to stumble across. We will review both new and old fics, as new readers may not have heard of some of them and we certainly haven't read all that is out there (yet).
Here is the way we grade the fics that we review:
Very highly recommended. Excellently written fic that stands out from the rest by having a storyline that is original and engaging and with a development of the characters and storyline that seems logical and solid. Original characters will be interesting and help move the story along. The fic does not have to follow the shows storyline, but most AUs will not be included here as most often the characters in one way or another end up feeling somewhat out of character because of the new environment they have been put in. For this category you should be able to read the story with the names of the characters changed and still end up with knowing exactly whom the author is referring to at all times. The language is engaging and without or with only a few grammatical and spelling errors and it is presented in an easy-to-read manner.
Highly recommended. Fics that will keep you entertained and engaged all through the story. The characters or the story might seem a bit generic at times, i.e. sex-pollen-made-them-do-it but that is made up for by an engaging language, interesting secondary characters and/or excellent use of humour, drama or twist. The story is presented in an easy-to-read manner, and only contains few grammatical and spelling errors.
Recommended. Fics where the focus isn't so much on the development of the character or the originality of the storyline and where the characters might be anyone if you didn't know what fandom you where reading in. An entertaining story that will get you in a better mood after a long day at work or at school. It is written in engaging-to-ordinary language that may contain some grammatical errors but few enough to overlook.
Not recommended. Fics written in an uninteresting language and not betaed or betaed by the dyslexic best friend. The storyline is boring and most likely comprises of enough fluff to suffocate you or badly-written sex scenes. Often contains mpreg with precocious children named after something from the plant or mineral kingdom or MarySues who'll give sage advice to our intrepid heroes and still manage to save the day in one way or another anyway.
Waste of time you'll never get back again. Badly-written language in a fic that has never seen a beta. Generic story and generic characters where the bottom of the slash pair will most likely be a male representation of the female writer. Storyline will be non-existent and character-development is not something this fic debases itself to include. Is often posted in tiny chapters every few days when the "author" needs a new boost of self-esteem from her closest friends who'll make delightful comments in her journal and ask for more which she will give only if given enough positive feedback. Can often be found on fanfiction.net under a penname that also includes the year she was born or part of the name from the character or actor she has a crush on.
We're not expert reviewers, but we have been reading slash fanfics for over 10 years and do feel that we know a bit about what constitutes a well-written fic. Some people will most likely disagree loudly with our choices, but the goal here is not to have everyone agree with us in what is good and what is not as that is simply a matter of taste, but to help those readers that share our varying tastes to find good fic they might have missed or to help them find good fic faster if they don't have time to trawl through the comms. That means that if you've liked some of the fics we've recommended chances are you'll like the others as well and this is a place for you to look for recs. If you've hated our choices, we most likely do not share the same taste and you should try some place else.
As we have a 1-5 slash system we will also be reviewing fic that we consider should be avoided, therefore we will post a review of fics that receive one or two slashes. We are not doing this to be cruel, but we feel that there is a lot of ”badfic” creeping into our slash and therefore we feel it is only right to warn other readers of the bad as well as the good.
Our main fandoms are Dean/Castiel (SPN) and Sherlock/John (SherlockBBC only), and therefore we will concentrate on reviewing fics from those fandoms. This might change later on. We will be reviewing mostly slashfic (m/m) as well as any well-deserving genfics that we happen to stumble across. We will review both new and old fics, as new readers may not have heard of some of them and we certainly haven't read all that is out there (yet).
Here is the way we grade the fics that we review:
Very highly recommended. Excellently written fic that stands out from the rest by having a storyline that is original and engaging and with a development of the characters and storyline that seems logical and solid. Original characters will be interesting and help move the story along. The fic does not have to follow the shows storyline, but most AUs will not be included here as most often the characters in one way or another end up feeling somewhat out of character because of the new environment they have been put in. For this category you should be able to read the story with the names of the characters changed and still end up with knowing exactly whom the author is referring to at all times. The language is engaging and without or with only a few grammatical and spelling errors and it is presented in an easy-to-read manner.
Highly recommended. Fics that will keep you entertained and engaged all through the story. The characters or the story might seem a bit generic at times, i.e. sex-pollen-made-them-do-it but that is made up for by an engaging language, interesting secondary characters and/or excellent use of humour, drama or twist. The story is presented in an easy-to-read manner, and only contains few grammatical and spelling errors.
Recommended. Fics where the focus isn't so much on the development of the character or the originality of the storyline and where the characters might be anyone if you didn't know what fandom you where reading in. An entertaining story that will get you in a better mood after a long day at work or at school. It is written in engaging-to-ordinary language that may contain some grammatical errors but few enough to overlook.
Not recommended. Fics written in an uninteresting language and not betaed or betaed by the dyslexic best friend. The storyline is boring and most likely comprises of enough fluff to suffocate you or badly-written sex scenes. Often contains mpreg with precocious children named after something from the plant or mineral kingdom or MarySues who'll give sage advice to our intrepid heroes and still manage to save the day in one way or another anyway.
Waste of time you'll never get back again. Badly-written language in a fic that has never seen a beta. Generic story and generic characters where the bottom of the slash pair will most likely be a male representation of the female writer. Storyline will be non-existent and character-development is not something this fic debases itself to include. Is often posted in tiny chapters every few days when the "author" needs a new boost of self-esteem from her closest friends who'll make delightful comments in her journal and ask for more which she will give only if given enough positive feedback. Can often be found on fanfiction.net under a penname that also includes the year she was born or part of the name from the character or actor she has a crush on.