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I should be putting on my socks.
Yesterday's f!s post had this secret: http://i25.tinypic.com/2j0xgya.jpg
"95% of what I read is slash. S: I'm still hurt that my PWP slash fics get ten times the feedback that my female-character-centric gen fics receive, despite the fact that my gen is linked to a larger audience.
"B!S: I should stop pouting and rest secure in the knowledge that at least I write the women better than the show ever did."
Now, I can immediately see a couple of reasons why:
1. 95% of the fandom reads nothing but boyslash just like the poster of the secret.
2. If the poster reads only 5% non-slash, they probably aren't giving feedback to others writing female-centric fic. Maybe they should start doing so (just a thought). A lot of people aren't going to feedback your stuff just 'cause you're writing it, especially if you're not reciprocating.
3. Gen, in Stargate terms, means no romance. So you're essentially writing non-femslashy, non-het female-centric fic. That's nice, on one level, but women like smutty girlfic, too.
4. Nice bit of arrogance about how you're writing them better. Maybe the lack of feedback is proof that you aren't.
5. I don't know about all readers, but I tend to ignore female gen fic written by boyslashers. Or at least approach it with trepidation. Especially when it's sort of obvious that they're writing their one, token, female fic piece so they can claim that, REALLY, they LOVE women, they just don't think any of them deserve those horrible men. Which is why everything else they write is boyslash.
"95% of what I read is slash. S: I'm still hurt that my PWP slash fics get ten times the feedback that my female-character-centric gen fics receive, despite the fact that my gen is linked to a larger audience.
"B!S: I should stop pouting and rest secure in the knowledge that at least I write the women better than the show ever did."
Now, I can immediately see a couple of reasons why:
1. 95% of the fandom reads nothing but boyslash just like the poster of the secret.
2. If the poster reads only 5% non-slash, they probably aren't giving feedback to others writing female-centric fic. Maybe they should start doing so (just a thought). A lot of people aren't going to feedback your stuff just 'cause you're writing it, especially if you're not reciprocating.
3. Gen, in Stargate terms, means no romance. So you're essentially writing non-femslashy, non-het female-centric fic. That's nice, on one level, but women like smutty girlfic, too.
4. Nice bit of arrogance about how you're writing them better. Maybe the lack of feedback is proof that you aren't.
5. I don't know about all readers, but I tend to ignore female gen fic written by boyslashers. Or at least approach it with trepidation. Especially when it's sort of obvious that they're writing their one, token, female fic piece so they can claim that, REALLY, they LOVE women, they just don't think any of them deserve those horrible men. Which is why everything else they write is boyslash.
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Word.
but I tend to ignore female gen fic written by boyslashers. Or at least approach it with trepidation. Especially when it's sort of obvious that they're writing their one, token, female fic piece so they can claim that, REALLY, they LOVE women
Yup. Unless it's by someone I know and trust, I don't read a lot of gen fic in general (cause yes, I'm one of the smutty fic fans) and especially would stay away from gen fic written by someone I know is a slash writer.
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Yeah that drives me batty. If you pair anyone up, it's not gen! Friendship is gen. More than friendship=not gen. How hard is this to grasp?
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With an added "Quit complaining." People who write female-centric fic of all kinds don't get as much feedback as the boyslash in almost every fandom. Fandom's like that. If your specialass snowflake self thinks you deserve more feedback on your particular stories, maybe you ought to, IDK, help out more. Feedback female-centric stories. Talk up the female characters positively when people are pulling out their bingo markers and smack down the misogyny when it's running wild again. Otherwise, you're an entitled fanbrat whining for feedback.
Not that I'm bitter.
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I'm not a boy slash fan really... for some strange reason, it mostly makes me want to run away.
But, this person's problem seems that as stated by others, that they are writing the female gen fic as a token effort, not really putting much into it. If you want to get readers for it, then you need to be out there talking about it, trying to get others to read it and talk about it. Which they will if it's a good enough story.
I actually look forward to seeing more gen female SG fics.
So, this person needs to quit complaining & put their money where their mouth is. If they want positive feedback, then they need to write a damn good story.
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I hate when people who write one genre get all bitchy about how people who write primarily their genre are the bestest writers EVAR OMG, and everyone else writes tired retreads, but not THEIR GENRE'S WRITERS, and no one appreciates good writing, which is why they never get decent feedback in other genres, and so they just stick to writing what's "appreciated" and gets them better feedback, because, clearly, the more discerning readers and writers are in their genre and feedbacking that genre.
Er, sorry, I got a little carried away in that vicious circle of snobbery there. I've most recently - or maybe most memorably - seen it amongst (SOME) slash fen, who say that all het writers do is write tired romance novel tropes, and that even het written by slash writers is better than het written by anyone else, because slash writers are so much more freed of tired heteronormative gender constructs. Ugh, please. 90% of everything is crap, and that includes ALL fanfic.
Yes, I'm aware that het and gen writers do the same damned thing. (Femslash has its own series of bitchfests, but they don't usually involve the enlightenment of its writers and the superiority of femslash above all other genres. Oh, femslash, I love you so, AND YET.)
As to ignoring female gen fic written by boyslashers, I tend to eye it with serious amounts of trepidation. It's oftentimes not really about the female characters, or the female characters are HORRIBLY mis-characterized and weakened, while the men are written as strong and competent around them.
Of course, you have to remember that I'm the person who was That Bitch at the Stargate slash panel at Dragon*Con who listed the excuses for people not writing female characters, then asked the panelists why they didn't write female characters AND GOT THOSE SAME EXCUSES REGURGITATED AT ME. (I was also told there would be actual het and femslash talk. But the het was all about how Hathor was an evil rapist, and the femslash was me and one other person bringing it up before the conversation was rapidly derailed. My tolerance for this kind of shit is low right now.)
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zomg you're totally talking about me, I know it! *spazzes*
Sorry, been working on a database all morning. My brane is fryed and a bit warped atm. :)
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Sorry, been working on a database all morning. My brane is fryed and a bit warped atm. :)
My brain is in about the same place, really, so all is well. :)
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Pretty much all the time, though, I want good writing. Unless I'm of a mood to point and mock.
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Do not touch the balloons.
Do not look at the balloons.
DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT THE BALLOONS.
Sheesh.
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I feel as though I need that on a shirt.
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This. Yes. *nods enthusiastically*
Also this:
all het writers do is write tired romance novel tropes, and that even het written by slash writers is better than het written by anyone else, because slash writers are so much more freed of tired heteronormative gender constructs.
So so very sick of the whole heteronormative gender constructs argument. Half the time I get the distinct impression that the people who go there don't really even have a clue what it means.
And, um, not to add fuel to the fire or anything, but it sure seems to me that there's a metric ton of slash fic out there that feminizes one of the male characters and plugs him into a heteronormative role.
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For example, an adult Elizabeth Weir does not stick a lace window curtain over her hair, pretend to be at her wedding, and recite made-up vows to John Sheppard. Or wonder which of her "white knights" are going to rescue her when she's stuck on a transporter in Atlantis. Also, John Sheppard doesn't suddenly turn into a dewy-eyed person who swoons when Ronon overpowers him with his masculinity and kisses him. (The first two are real fics I've read. The last one, I just made up. I read way less boyslash than I do het, girlslash, or gen.)
Though now I have this image of one of Lorne's duties being to follow John around with smelling salts and catch him every time Ronon makes him faint. Seriously, why is my brain in crackfic mode today?
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Now I want to read the fic where Elizabeth thinks this, and then realizes wow, she must have hit her head harder than she thought, and rescues herself. Or, barring that, thinks that in an utterly sarcastic tone since she'll have to be the one rescuing the "knights" since they all ended up in far worse situations. (The Queen is the scariest piece on the chessboard for a reason, people! If you're going to use chess motifs, use 'em right.)
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By the way, I blame you for me starting on the sequel to The Hidden Lore of Old Ocen. The maybe brilliant idea to
let Vala take over the damn storywrite it from Vala's POV, though, I blame me for.no subject
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I will happily take blame for that one.
Also, Vala's POV taking over the whole story? Really, this is unexpected? You should know better by now.
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Well. It's more a matter of "want" than "need," but still.
Also. Yes. Vala's POV taking over wasn't entirely unexpected, but I had no idea that I wasn't going to have as much of Daniel's POV as I thought would end up in there. Did that sentence even make grammatical sense?
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Ah, the old "want" vs. "need". Yeah, I fail that hard at times.
I don't know if it made grammatical sense, but it made logical sense? I understood what you meant. However, I am half-brain-dead right now and want a nap.
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Okay, now I really want to read this story.
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*growls*
There's so much bullshit wrapped up in that line of thinking. It pisses me off.
(Erm, that is, it's not you that's pissing me off, it's that excuse and people who wield it, which are not you.)
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(I figured it out. *g*)
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Hah. But the bar is set so looooooooooooooooow. It's not a lot of arrogance, when you look at it that way. ;)
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Wow. That's just ... Wow. Serious arrogance there.
And whining about feedback - on anything - makes me twitch.
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So, it seems like everyone has a different definition. :)
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There were a couple of other fandoms that used "gen" to mean "m/f," but I can't for the life of me remember which ones they were.
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Weird.
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...that, and I won't write sex, period, with live-action shows. It's too weird when the character is actually a real human being, even if they're just an actor.
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