Questions about Recs

[gracerene]

In honor of Rectober having wrapped up (SO MUCH FUN! all the kudos to birdsofshore for being awesome!), I thought I would ask ya'll a few questions about recs.

Obviously reccing is a big part of what I do on here, and I read a ton of fic with a variety of pairings and in multiple different fandoms. But I was wondering how other people went about recs. My "

Comments

[sdkshelly]

Back when I was reading and reccing semi-regularly, I definitely had those moments where I'd want to rec something but in order to feel comfortable about it, I'd have to put the caveat in and so I'd always go back and forth--should I mention these few negatives or just not rec at all? I'll be interested to hear what you decide to do going forward...I always sort of took it on a case by case basis though

[gracerene]

LOL, your babble was definitely helpful! :D

You know, I think I'm leaning towards reccing with caveats when necessary. It seems to be the general consensus, and I'd feel bad if somebody did trust my recs, and then I rec something without disclaiming ans then that trust sort of disappears? Like some fics I read have light character bashing, which in general I don't like, but on occasion fits the story, so I'm okay with it. But I feel like I would have to disclaim things like that (assuming the weren't in the warnings) because I know some people really don't like it at all. Though I think case by case is sort of the way to go

[amorette]

Haha... I laughed so hard when I saw this post :D Because I was feeling a bit guilty for making all those noncon recs and not leaving my actual feedback on why they are good. In that case, I was actually just really, really lazy. I had been coding that post for so long that the idea of going back and thinking about things to say was, ugh. Thinking is hard sometimes.

But in general, I prefer people leave a reason why they liked something. It will help me determine if I will like it too. Like if someone recs something and says, "It broke my heart and it was wonderful!!!!" I'll be like, "Ooookay, so not reading that..." xD

[gracerene]

LOL. But I thought since it was a themed list, and you had all that other info about what you like in non0con etc, that they almost didn't need your individual comments, at least for me. :)

HAHAHA, yeah, generally if somebody says, "my heart was shattered into a million pieces and I loved it", I sort of back away quietly...my heart can't handle that kind of pain!

[writcraft]

I wasn't around in the days of Painless J's recs, but they were pretty much where I started in HP fandom in terms of choosing what to read. I read mainly on archives, coupled with the recs on those lists. So yes, I find rec lists enormously helpful. I think the recs Painless J wrote go to your final question about the hesitation in putting caveats on recs. It seems that's more recent perhaps, as opposed to having been the HP fandom norm. I don't mind caveats on recs at all, just looking at Painless J's list again I remember why I found those comments really helpful as a reader and I also appreciate that the reccer is clear to explain how their own personal tastes might have had an impact on what worked for them less well

[gracerene]

Yeah, I remember browsing through Painless-J's recs when I first got into fandom, and I defintiely appreciated their candor. And recs are obviously so subjective, which is part of why I want to disclaim, because I know some things that maybe only bothered me a smidge might be a bigger dislike for others. :D

Aww, thanks!! I basically started "reccing" just to keep track of my favorites, and I started trying to include all the things I had appreciated in other rec lists, so I'm glad they work for you. <3

[who_la_hoop]

I miss painless_j's recs. I was lucky enough to be recced by her a number of times, and while her blunt comments sometimes made me wince, I was always extremely pleased to be recced by her. She was extremely influential, and to be honest I think people took more notice of her recs *because* she wasn't 100% positive - I would always noticeably get more readers after a rec from her.

I think it probably helped though that she didn't seem to want to actively be friends with writers - so I don't think she worried if a rec would offend the writer in question. The rec wasn't *for* the writer; it was for fellow readers. (I know that I dither sometimes about including anything that's concrit-like in recs if the writer is, or could be, a friend!)

[who_la_hoop]

What I like in a rec is the pairing, the word length (or just a ballpark short/novel-length), a very short summary, and a longer 'why'. It's the why that makes me take notice of a rec - and it's the hardest part of a rec to do, I think! Which is why I don't rec that often :D

I definitely think that recs should include concrit where appropriate - it's a rec, so that should balance out any criticism. But I know that others can be more sensitive. It's another reason I don't rec that often!

[gracerene]

LOL, yeah, the why is definitely my favorite part, and it's also he hardest to come up with! I always feel like I'm not doing a very good job of explaining why I loved something.