I give you - the anti-rant.
This is my bigass (ffnet) profile-rant.
Now sit down and fucking listen.
I am SO fucking tired of hearing everyone bitch about how damned this fandom is, about how noobs are dominating what was once a beautiful sanctuary of good!fic, and how the “old school” KH is so much better.
I’m tired of amazing writers just getting up and leaving, because they don’t get enough reviews, or because the fandom is a lost cause, and all sorts of similar, fickle reasons.
I am tired of people blaming certain genres or pairings for the entire fandom’s demise.
And, most of all; I am sick of how a lot of people invest more time in ranting and bashing others, than actually writing and improving their own work.
This fandom is not damned. Repeat after me; this fandom is not damned. Commit it to memory, get it memorized, and shove any opposing ideas up your ass.
I agree that this section of the fanfic archive has drastically increased in writers recently. Naturally, a large percent of that member surge is obviously comprised of the dreaded “noobs.” And, of course, it’s extremely annoying when you can’t find a good story to read.
BUT.
You cannot change the fact that this is a popular section. All of the ranting in the world cannot stop a flow of noobs; this is reality. Your witty superiority may be amusing, but, FACT: in the end, it hardly has any impact at all.
Who reads rants written by elistists?
More elitists.
Who’s affected by rants written by elitists?
Exactly.
So, kids with superiority complexes eat up these rants, and what do they do? They get the idea in their heads that the fandom is doomed. Then they decide to leave. While, simultaneously, noobs are happily strolling along without a care, and aren’t affected at all by the ranting.
Now, how much sense does that make? -_-;
Bottom line: sitting around and bitching about all the negative aspects of the fandom .. is just going to encourage more people to give up.
Yes, in some ways, the harsh critiques found in many rants can help. Rants about OOC tendencies, and that sort of thing - those are okay. It’s when every one of those rants has some sort of offhand comment about “O NOZ DEMISE FOR OUR KH FANDOM!” or “As I was strolling through the Pit” . . . that’s when people are affected for the worse.
Another thing that a lot of people seem to enjoy is comparing the current state of the fandom to how it was in the “old school” days.
This is especially stupid if it comes from anyone who hasn’t even been actively participating on ffnet long enough to know how it was, okay? It was not sunshine and rainbows and omg!goodfic on every corner. Sure, it wasn’t as hard to find good reading material as it apparantly is now. However, that doesn’t make it perfect, nor does living in its memory make the present day any better. Comparing is doom.
So, because this rant seems like it’s all over the place, let’s summarize a few things that I wanted to get across:
1. Crack!Pairings, f@nCy-ŞŶmßŐĹž, and OH NOZ ALTERNATE-UNIVERSE are not to blame for your inability to find good reading material. They can get annoying, but they are not entirely at the root of any problem.
2. The world is not divided into Good Writers vs. Bad Writers - we are all sitting here, obsessing over the same fandom, so get used to it.
3. The fandom is never going to be how it was two years ago - this can be a good thing, or a bad thing, or a bit of both. No amount of complaining will bring anything back.
4. Writing good!fic is more productive than ranting about bad!fic. Really.
Now, I have a challenge for you, if this is possible for you to do. It’s mainly meant for the people at khfanficrants, even though I’m posting this both on livejournal, and on ff.net.
Go back through your rants. Add up the word count for each one, including the ranting you may have added on via commenting. Now, take that total number, and make it your goal to write enough fanfiction to rival that word count.
There’s no deadline, obligation, or reward. It’s just for the sake of the fandom that you care so much about.
*sits down and patiently expects to get tomatoes thrown at her*
Now sit down and fucking listen.
I am SO fucking tired of hearing everyone bitch about how damned this fandom is, about how noobs are dominating what was once a beautiful sanctuary of good!fic, and how the “old school” KH is so much better.
I’m tired of amazing writers just getting up and leaving, because they don’t get enough reviews, or because the fandom is a lost cause, and all sorts of similar, fickle reasons.
I am tired of people blaming certain genres or pairings for the entire fandom’s demise.
And, most of all; I am sick of how a lot of people invest more time in ranting and bashing others, than actually writing and improving their own work.
This fandom is not damned. Repeat after me; this fandom is not damned. Commit it to memory, get it memorized, and shove any opposing ideas up your ass.
I agree that this section of the fanfic archive has drastically increased in writers recently. Naturally, a large percent of that member surge is obviously comprised of the dreaded “noobs.” And, of course, it’s extremely annoying when you can’t find a good story to read.
BUT.
You cannot change the fact that this is a popular section. All of the ranting in the world cannot stop a flow of noobs; this is reality. Your witty superiority may be amusing, but, FACT: in the end, it hardly has any impact at all.
Who reads rants written by elistists?
More elitists.
Who’s affected by rants written by elitists?
Exactly.
So, kids with superiority complexes eat up these rants, and what do they do? They get the idea in their heads that the fandom is doomed. Then they decide to leave. While, simultaneously, noobs are happily strolling along without a care, and aren’t affected at all by the ranting.
Now, how much sense does that make? -_-;
Bottom line: sitting around and bitching about all the negative aspects of the fandom .. is just going to encourage more people to give up.
Yes, in some ways, the harsh critiques found in many rants can help. Rants about OOC tendencies, and that sort of thing - those are okay. It’s when every one of those rants has some sort of offhand comment about “O NOZ DEMISE FOR OUR KH FANDOM!” or “As I was strolling through the Pit” . . . that’s when people are affected for the worse.
Another thing that a lot of people seem to enjoy is comparing the current state of the fandom to how it was in the “old school” days.
This is especially stupid if it comes from anyone who hasn’t even been actively participating on ffnet long enough to know how it was, okay? It was not sunshine and rainbows and omg!goodfic on every corner. Sure, it wasn’t as hard to find good reading material as it apparantly is now. However, that doesn’t make it perfect, nor does living in its memory make the present day any better. Comparing is doom.
So, because this rant seems like it’s all over the place, let’s summarize a few things that I wanted to get across:
1. Crack!Pairings, f@nCy-ŞŶmßŐĹž, and OH NOZ ALTERNATE-UNIVERSE are not to blame for your inability to find good reading material. They can get annoying, but they are not entirely at the root of any problem.
2. The world is not divided into Good Writers vs. Bad Writers - we are all sitting here, obsessing over the same fandom, so get used to it.
3. The fandom is never going to be how it was two years ago - this can be a good thing, or a bad thing, or a bit of both. No amount of complaining will bring anything back.
4. Writing good!fic is more productive than ranting about bad!fic. Really.
Now, I have a challenge for you, if this is possible for you to do. It’s mainly meant for the people at khfanficrants, even though I’m posting this both on livejournal, and on ff.net.
Go back through your rants. Add up the word count for each one, including the ranting you may have added on via commenting. Now, take that total number, and make it your goal to write enough fanfiction to rival that word count.
There’s no deadline, obligation, or reward. It’s just for the sake of the fandom that you care so much about.
*sits down and patiently expects to get tomatoes thrown at her*