What do YOU think? Fanworks exchange edition.

[apple_pathways]

You all realize that I see you as a ready pool of research subjects, don't you? I've spent far too long studying the social sciences. While I can appreciate the qualitative approach, when it comes down to it, I want DATA!

Feed me? Please???

The season of fic exchanges is upon us. This is my first year both writing fan fiction, and participating in these exchanges. While overall the experience has been fun, there's still some issues I'm trying to wrap my head around. Behind the cut I've compiled a poll about fanworks exchanges, and fic exchanges in particular. If you've participated in any at all ever, even as a spectator, I'd like to hear what you think. The results are viewable only to me, so feel free to be honest. (I'm not in a position to judge!)

Give the circle thingies a tick, and then we can have a lovely chat in the comments. :) What sort of exchanges do you do? Do you stress over them? Are you generally happy with your gifts, or do you get your hopes too high? Ever have a nightmare gift/recipient? Bad/good experiences? (I PROMISE SOME DAY I WILL WRITE A BOOK WITH ALL OF THE USELESS KNOWLEDGE I'VE TORTURED OUT OF YOU, MY DEAR FLIST! All shall not be for naught.) ;)



[Poll #1661044]



ETA: There's one more thing I'd like to get opinions on! Is MPreg something you need to warn for? I want to archive my 10, Donna, Jack fic, and warning for MPreg kinda ruins the ending. It works out fine here, where I can hide the warning under white text, and leave it up to sensitive readers to highlight for the warning if they're worried about being squicked, but that method wouldn't be an option in other places.

I know warning for MPreg is the convention in a lot of communities, but is that because it's a serious squick or because a lot of people just don't care for it? Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Comments

[sabriel75.livejournal.com]

You know I hadn't even thought of feedback when I wrote my stories this year and it's my first year ever doing fests and I did three.

The two stories that have posted received better squee from other people than the actual recipients. They both commented with lovely comments, but the capslock Squee wasn't in either of them after reading my story. I dunno. I don't think that I would ever be able to really write something magnificent for other people in fandom without them already liking my style. I'm quite distinct and very literary in my fandom writing and most people find it too thinky-introspective and so I struggled with whether to do any of these. But I think it was a good thing for me because it forced me to write other people's prompts and expand my offerings, but still hone my way of writing. Does that make sense? And maybe even though I didn't quite meet my giftee's expectations, hopefully, they did receive something worth reading and a little thrill having something personal for them.

And then I wrote three drabbles for an exchange but since it was planejane I really felt I could give her what she wanted.

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

I wish I could find out how to edit a poll after it's been posted, because I just thought of a couple more questions I wanted to add...that'll teach me for using the Poll Creator and not writing the code myself!

Anyway, yeah, this has been an interesting experience for me: one I'm still in the middle of, actually, as I still owe a couple fics for exchanges.

On the one hand, I think I'm well-suited to exchanges, because I like writing to prompts. On the other hand, as you said, I have a pretty particular style and I'm not always good at adapting it to someone else's preferences. Though I did write two fics that utilized fandom styles/tropes I've never written before, and since I enjoy the challenge of trying something new, I'm going to count them as a win, even if neither got much of a response! (Although I rarely get tons of comments on my fic as it is. Like yours, mine tend to be a little longer and more "literary" I guess--also, I rarely write slash and I don't do fluff, which are fandom favorites, so that cuts down my audience; also, my porn is not posted here, and the anonmeme I post to rarely gets more than a handful of comments per fic.)

I'm rambling again, aren't I?

[alt_universe_me.livejournal.com]

I participated in three fests this year, and one of my fics that I wrote hasn't even been posted yet (I may post it myself soon if the mod doesn't show up soon, because that's what another recipient did).

As for how specific I was when giving my prompts, it depended on the fest. I was more picky about my Torchwood prompt than I was about my Doctor Who prompts, basically because there are tons of writers who write my usual pairing in Torchwood fandom and I wanted something a little different this time. For the Doctor Who fics, I really didn't care what I received as long as they had my characters. Both turned out to be awesome, btw. Here's the link to the the other DW fic you may not have seen yet. I would suggest reading it even if you don't love River as much as I do, because it's just too hilarious! http://promethia-tenk.livejournal.com/17175.html.

Anyway, for my dwsanta fic my recipient left me a very long and lovely comment, and they said they loved it 'for real', so I can only assume they were serious and not just being nice. For the Torchwood fic exchange, my recipient didn't comment at all! I was pretty disappointed by that, but I did get several nice comments from other people, so I'm not sure what to make of it. For the fics I received, I was really happy with all of them, they were wonderful! But even if they hadn't been, I would never just not comment. I think it's pretty rude for someone not to comment, especially since I had their fic beta'd and way past the word count and everything. But, you know, it's all for fun, and all in all I would probably participate again next year. :D

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

I am DEFINITELY of the opinion that you should comment and say "thank you" no matter what, but I go back and forth about the "being honest" with feedback part. (Fortunately, that hasn't come up--I haven't received anything I didn't enjoy!) I'm generally one of those people who's too honest for her own good. But I ALSO firmly believe in "being nice", and since we're all amateurs and it's just for fun, I don't think it's wrong to exaggerate a little about how MUCH you enjoyed something.

Oooh, I'm reading your fic by promethia_tenk--it is FANTASTIC! Lucky you. ;) I'm about halfway through, and I can't believe how well she writes Stephen Fry's voice, not to mention the Doctor and River! ♥

Bah, I can't wait for the dwsanta reveals so I can see who wrote what! (Though I must confess to being REALLY behind in reading the entries! Mostly I've read stuff other people have recced to me.)

Eh, that person who didn't comment is RUDE. (Or busy? Clueless? Some combination of all three? I don't know.)

[alt_universe_me.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I wouldn't lie about loving a fic (I'm a very honest person) but I'm sure there would always be some way to politely say thank you anyway. Fortunately, the fics I received were all fabulous, so I didn't have that problem either!

promethia_tenk is awesome! I laughed and squeed so much reading my fic from her.

I think I might have an idea which fic you wrote. Was it Amy/Rory by any chance? (I'm going to kick myself if I'm wrong, lol). I'm pretty behind on reading stuff too. The fic I wrote for it wasn't exactly my best work, if I'm honest, not for the lack of trying, but for the fact that I was writing out of my comfort zone. Still, my recipient enjoyed it, so that's all that matters :)

I'm hoping my other recipient is just busy or something. I'm honestly curious why they haven't responded. Mainly because I was given a hugely vague prompt and only a couple squicks, which of course I stayed away from. I really want to know why they didn't like it, especially since it was their xmas fic and I want them to have something they liked. I'd even be willing to write another fic if they hated it that much, ya know?

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

Ah ha, I didn't write Amy/Rory for dwsanta! Can you believe it? ;) (No need to kick yourself...if it's the one I'm thinking about, it was be a good guess! And now that I think about it, I think I know who wrote that one...)

I will be honest and confess that I have no idea which fic you wrote! (Other than it's probably one of the 30-odd fics I haven't read. :/ )

If they gave a vague prompt without much to go on, I don't know why they would be disappointed in whatever they received! I would just write them off as flaky or shyish and leave it at that. Sure, you want them to have a gift they loved--but you wrote a good, enjoyable story, and that's all one can ask for in these things! Do you "know" the person you wrote for?

[alt_universe_me.livejournal.com]

Oh man, and here I was thinking that fic was so like you. Hmmm, now I really wanna know...

Ha, my fic was rather short and fairly silly. But, it kind of had to be, what with the sort of prompts I got, like 'Eleven being embarrassed' and 'Amy and Rory teaching him how to do regular things'. They were good prompts, I'm just not sure that I did them justice.

Yeah, it was really vague, and I don't know the person at all. I haven't even seen them comment on anything in fandom, so I don't even know what they generally like, or what they are like. We don't even have any mutual friends. I think after the reveals, I might send them a pm to ask them about it. I just don't like not knowing!

[roh-wyn.livejournal.com]

I just realized that my poll answers are somewhat inconsistent, lol.

Let me start off by saying that fic exchanges are bear to organize, and I appreciate that the mods only have so much wiggle room to play with.

This is the second time I've participated in any holiday exchanges, and both times, an exchange has left me going "bzuh?" The first time it was because I got a fic that was very clearly the opposite of what I requested, in terms of genre, pairing, etc. I could just NOT understand why that happened, and I was deeply disappointed. But I sort of grit my teeth and thanked the person anyway.

This year, for a fest I have not yet submitted my piece for, I've been asked to provide a gift that is (a) not one of the things I offered, and (b) for a ship I did not express interest in writing. I have no idea why this happens, but again, it puts me in a really tough spot. I have to write something well outside my comfort zone, and the giftee will almost certainly be disappointed.

IDK, it's tough all around.

(You guys are doing a great job with sherlockmas, on the other hand. No complaints! :))

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

Thank you. Honestly, Rachel has done most of the work with sherlockmas. It's almost crunch time! As the deadline approaches, we'll see how it all comes off. (You did an awesome job with your gift!)

This is my first year doing exchanges, and the problem I've run into is that I OFFER to write things I'm probably not qualified to! I mean, I'm willing to write just about anything and give it my best try. I didn't realize until later, when I was assigned something I DID NOT expect, that even though I was willing to give something a try, my recipient might not be so pleased if my experiment failed! (They left very nice feedback and seemed to genuinely like what I wrote, so that's good.)

Did you alert to the mod to their mistake? (Because if you were asked to write something you didn't offer, that IS a mistake! No one wins when you have to write something you're not comfortable with.)

[roh-wyn.livejournal.com]

Did you alert to the mod to their mistake?

I considered it, but I honestly think they were between a rock and a hard place. It's a huge fest, they had hundreds of sign-ups and to match everyone perfectly would have been impossible.

I did learn my lesson though. By being all vague and open-ended in filling out my want/give list, I basically was asking to be given a bad fit for the exchange. Next time, I'll be very specific. Or hey, I just won't sign up, lol.

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

By being all vague and open-ended in filling out my want/give list, I basically was asking to be given a bad fit for the exchange.

I do the exact same thing! I'll say: "This is what I usually write and this is what I think I'm pretty good at" but then I always throw in at the end, "but I'll write pretty much anything!" and then I'm surprised when I am, in fact, asked to write pretty much anything. (I did get lucky this year--though there was much dithering and to-do about my assignment, in the end, I think I was able to fill my request pretty well!)

Lesson learned: be specific about what I will or won't write, and what I am/am not willing to try. (Hey, I wrote MPreg! Never thought I'd write that!)

[ladylovelace.livejournal.com]

I am not going to mess up your poll data by being the odd one out, and here's why:

I love fic exchanges. LOVE. Except for the part where I can't ask for anything because a) I just can't ask for things and b) as horrible as it is, I don't trust anyone else to write my ideas. And the ones I've been tempted by always ask for a prompt :(

So I sign up as a pinch hitter whenever I get the chance.

I have a basic theory on srs warnings: If it is potentially triggery, it gets warned for.

I also have a theory on what is actually triggery and what makes people go 'eww' - MPreg falls under the 'eww' category, because logically you cannot have been traumatised by past experience of something that is physically impossible. If you think you've been traumatised by something written, well... go read De Sade and get back to me.

So yeah. Sex and violence get warned for like they do on ~tv~ (because I am aware it would be expecting too much of the majority to have actually picked up a novel for their own entertainment) and everything else, they can go cry in a corner for being the whiny brats they are. I am no longer interested in their opinion after that. (Seriously, if I'm terrified of cockroaches and I can read The Metamorphosis, everyone else can suck it up).

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I always have trouble with my requests, too! I rarely have a specific idea for what I want, and even if I do, I feel awkward asking for it. I know, as an author, I wouldn't want to receive a super-specific request I didn't know how to write. (That's one of the questions I forgot to include in the poll: how specific do you prefer your recipient's prompt to be?)

Do you think you'd be more comfortable participating in a fic exchange if the recipients as well as the authors were anonymous until after the reveal?

I tend to agree with you on the whole "MPreg is eww, but no triggering" question. I know a lot of people don't like it, and I can see people finding it icky, but I almost feel it's one of those "caveat reader" situations.

It isn't that I'm not sympathetic to people with serious squicks. I grew up with a serious, legitimate blood phobia--talk about being triggered? How about fainting in the middle of a class? TWICE? (Not counting the number of times I've fainted other places...) I've dealt with most aspects of my phobia (I've even worked in a hospital), but there are still several very specific scenarios that will trigger me. (I cannot deal with blood in any sort of erotic context. Just: NO!)

However, growing up with an anxiety disorder and a blood phobia, I've learned that I need to take care of myself, and not expect the rest of the world to bend to my mental illness. (When I fainted in my ninth grade history class, I was too shy to tell the teacher, who was talking about donating blood, that I was uncomfortable. Well, after that I learned that warning people about my phobia was A LOT more comfortable than waking up on the floor with a headache and a room full of people staring at you!)

[ladylovelace.livejournal.com]

Anonymity does nothing for me. I just get really, really awkward about getting things, from an inward perspective. Hell, I feel awkward about making meals just for myself - I've gotten to the point where if I can't benefit someone else by doing something, I won't do it. It's like the neurotic version of being charitable.

I don't mind doing specific requests, though. In a lot of ways, I'd rather have the direction, because I'm the painter with the blank canvas and a bunch of paint and get nothing done, because I've been given free reign. I crave direction.

It's not that I'm not sympathetic to squicks - I've seen/read some things that I would really, really like to unsee. But, and this is a big, hairy but; I got over it. Squicks and triggers are different animals. There is a major difference between going 'eww' and closing the window and hyperventilating/fainting/crying in the corner because of a genuine issue.

And yeah, like you say - it's the world. Bad things happen. If you can't learn to protect yourself from seeing the things that upset you, you either will eventually or you'll die of fear. Because it's not going to stop happening.

(I have been the faint-y kid, although not for the same reasons. It's no fun at all :()

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

Hey, a fellow faint-y kid! Aww, we should form a club. :) (I also fainted due to illness/injury, and not just because of my blood phobia; I have low blood pressure, and get light-headed easily.)

There is definitely a huge difference between a squick and a trigger--and there are some very strange, very SPECIFIC cases of both out there, so that you can't possibly account for all situations. (I, for instance, am squicked by puppets. I CANNOT expect the rest of the world to warn for puppets!)

I'm thinking a general "sensitive people beware" warning should suffice for my fic, especially since the MPreg in it is so incidental; if someone were seriously bothered by the brief mention of it in the story, then the word MPreg itself in the warning should have just as much of an effect!

I V MUCH APPROVE OF THESE SOCIAL EXPERIMENTS, EVEN BEING A TEST SUBJECT, JSYK

[lemniciate.livejournal.com]

I didn't answer that last point just because I agree with both extremes of it. It's perfectly within the recipient's right to bitch about something but I think it should be done where the gifter won't see it. Double standards, me? Of course not.

As for the mpreg: if that's warned for, unless it's an author I love and trust I wouldn't click on the fic. Sometimes I backspace even if it's by authors I like. It's a borderline squick thing for me, I guess? Furthermore, if I read an mpreg fic that wasn't warned for I'd probably harbour burning hatred for that author forevermore. Uuuh, this could just be because I'm a bitch, I'm sure most other people are much more reasonable! :OOO

Anyway! Back to exchanges: I love the idea of exchanges and always look forward to them. I didn't do any this year simply because I've been in a dry writing spell and didn't want to have to default. I don't really care too much about receiving a brilliant fic; for me it's the excitement and stress of writing something good for someone else that's the fun part, if that makes sense? The deadline and pressure of not disappointing someone motivates me more. Following on from this, usually I love comments (WHO DOESN'T XD) and I'd love for people to like whatever gift fic I write, but as long as the recipient (seems to) likes it then I'm all good.

Ummm, good/bad experiences: I tend to think if the mods are on the ball with the exchange chances are things will end up well. Even if participants drop out, if the mods are great and organised then people will still be happy.

Re: I V MUCH APPROVE OF THESE SOCIAL EXPERIMENTS, EVEN BEING A TEST SUBJECT, JSYK

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

Ah, it's very good you approve of my experiments, because I am always pestering my flist for opinions on random topics. (I've only recently discovered polls, though, so look out for more of those in the future!) Not only do I want to know what people think, but I want to know what they think in very specific, well-defined topic categories!

MPreg is something I'm kinda neutral on! I don't seek it out, or avoid it. The fic in question is one I wrote for a gift exchange; my recipient listed it as a like, alt_universe_me suggested an idea for it, and I thought, "What the hell?" (I like to try new writing challenges.) The fic is really short and focuses on the banter between the characters, rather than the MPreg, so I dunno...I'm still on the fence about warning for it.

I don't really care too much about receiving a brilliant fic; for me it's the excitement and stress of writing something good for someone else that's the fun part, if that makes sense?

Oh, I feel exactly the same way! I'm terrible about articulating what I want in a fic, and I'm always way more excited trying new things and trying to please my recipient. It's hard, though: I always offer to write way more than I'm probably qualified for!

The mods definitely make the difference in a fic exchange! The exchanges I've been in this year, so far, have had excellent mods, and the results have been a lot of fun!

[rewindclunkplay.livejournal.com]

OMG, dub-con tentacle watersports fic where they adopt kittens at the end ARE MY FAVOURITE BUT I CAN NEVER FIND THEM ANYWHERE.

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

OMG, I know, right??? I keep hinting and hinting, but NO ONE ever writes it for me! ;)