A pox on both your houses! And your OC for good measure! · 10:10am Jan 7th, 2014
Recently I had the misfortune of finding one of the most tremendously moronic beliefs that has plagued the fimfiction.net community even before it existed (going all the way back to the beginning of the fic postings of EqD) still infects our halls.
Now, as I said, I encountered it, but it's nothing necessarily new to the point that I had a recent talk with a couple of people about it... although it still boggles my mind that people are willing to believe this bullshit, much less spout it out as if it were an irrefutable fact. Given the identity of the OP, it shouldn't surprise me, and yet... and yet! This is something that has popped up from time to time, making me wonder what, exactly, people that honestly believe it want. Is it simply to blame others for their incapacity to achieve something? Or is it the equivalent of just needing to convince themselves that they've done all they could? That their work is original and simply not appreciated?
Anyway, if you haven't guessed what I'm talking about, it's the idea that 'bad fanfics' (a.k.a. shit the OP doesn't like) are to blame for 'good fics' (a.k.a. the OP's work, obviously or if not, shit the OP DOES like) not getting featured/posted on EqD. This is not, however, a myth believed only by the deluded mind of the OP. No, this is something that pops up in forums dedicated to the self-glorification of authors of all sorts and has even been deemed a point of argument enough to actually send me an honest-to-Celestia PM about it's unfairness. Seriously.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen... and... other. THAT! Is still a thing.
"It's offensive! And plagiarism occurs! And obviously these stories degrade the quality of the site by being chosen over shit I like!"
No, Cartman, we know it's simply because you hate things and want to see them destroyed.
First of all, the idea that Cupcakes happened to be posted in EqD AGES ago actually prevented anything else from being posted is downright stupid. Think, for a minute. Cupcakes got posted. That means, that at that time, just about anything thrown at Seth would have been posted, regardless of whether it was written in gold by a maggot crawling out of Stephen King's pinkie, or it was the literary vomit of some overzealous purist or even quality work.
At that time, anything got posted, so using that as an argument for saying that people lose faith and get upset because a fanfic that predates most of the fandom got published there before there were even real pre-readers stole their spot is like saying Moses got pissed off with God because Adam got a chance to bang Lilith and he (Moses) did not. Yes. It's that stupid.
The Way Things Work© is not like you think, dear 'Bad fics steal the place of good ones' believer.
To begin with, most people that ARE frustrated with EqD are so because the pre-readers are usually blunt in their criticism, and pretty much straight out tell them a yes or no, or even a maybe-if-x-happens. They think that just because they write only Rarijacks or AppleDash fics, their fic is somehow different or truer than the 1700000000000000000000 other stories with the exact same basic premise. Worse, they make it a 'slice of life' and it's about a visit to a big city where shit happens just like in the other 16999999999999999999998 fics with the amazing caveat that they changed the character's names. ("My TwiLuna is different! They do the same things, but it's Luna and Twilight, not Apple Bloom and Scootaloo!" Whinewhinewhine.)
That is not a bad fic taking your spot, honey-buns, it's basically that you need something different to get a chance there. Yes, the pre-reader that happens to read your fic is the one to make the choice, and yes we can all agree that the guys are humans and end up posting stuff that makes you wonder what they were drinking, but you know what? That's not because the author of that particular story stole anything. They just hit the right buttons for the pre-reader, whether you, me or Dick Cheney like it or not. And guess what, sugarcube? That's their freaking prerogative.
Then, you'll say, "Aha, so maybe I was high and my twisted mind directed the argument towards EqD instead of the Featured Box! Surely, you can't say that horribad stories don't steal the place of good ones there!"
And to that, I say: "Patty-cake, that's still NOT The Way Things Work©." What you see in the featured box, on those five top stories that represent the most popular 5 stories just published? That has nothing to do with quality. That is not stealing anything. None of those people, from Shortskirtsandexplosions to Cold in Gardez to RainbowBob to Regidar to Obsy to FelixDawn to the lowest of the low, even down to AP, have stolen anything from you. Stop deluding yourself. It's really just that the shit you wrote wasn't popular enough in the short amount of time required to make it there. It's not even your fault.
(Although, coincidentally, and in reference to a recent blog about it, that is part of why short descriptions are as important as having an interesting idea.)
It's been a proven fact that it doesn't matter if you have 3000 followers or 20; people get there based on how many others are going in to see why the hell X is doing to Y while Z is O'ing D. If your little short about the same stuff you wrote before didn't make it there, it's more accurate to blame the time, or the 15k users that were online at the time looking at everything else other than your story, than shifting blame on any author or story in the featured box.
"That Bad Story Stole my Spot" is not an argument you should be having, if you stop to think about it a little.
i3.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/013/974/clap.gif
Well said. Simply well said.
If that's not true, then why is it (Four Score Ponyfalled by a Changeling over Detrot) keeps getting the featured box and not my shitty shipfic? It's like the tides; You can't explain that shit!
1691823 Because sadly, people are more interested in looking at that than something else. It's still not stealing your spot, sugar-crust.
1691825 B-but... Muh slash pairings! M-muh pohniez!
It's fun to inflate numbers into hyperbole by holding down one key for a second or so.
[alt txt]I've told you a million times not to exaggerate young man..pony..pokemon..thing.[/alt]
Wait, why are people messaging you, of all people, about EqD? What, they think you posted all their content too?
1691836 I'm secretly all the pre-readers.
media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lm8ictdzqR1qe9d07.gif
No! My grammar deprived rape fic that's a sequel of a sequel of a fic that's based on another fic should always hit the feature box because I say so!
Bah! People need to learn to deal with EqD's prereaders the same way one deals with the DMV:
It's the exact same bullcrap that everyone else has to put up with. Getting mad at workers or jealous of other applicants will not make the line move any faster for you. It's best to just sit back and calmly wait, hoping that you get through the line in a timely manner. And if you're turned away; yelling, screaming, writing harassing e-mails to the manager, and acting like an ass in front of everyone else waiting in line at the DMV will get you precisely nowhere. Just go home, make sure you find all the right forms, and return when you think you have the proper documentation. [/metaphor]
1691837 This picture suddenly makes a lot more sense...
4.bp.blogspot.com/-rj2D-QJUhvA/UTZ4ZMfJ4EI/AAAAAAAAZ1o/chFQEGMjjn0/s1600/Iron_Man_3_Trailer_2_2013_h41m18s225.png
The best thing to come out of this is the mental image of Dick Cheney reading pony fanfic.
People don't seem to understand the inflationary expansion of the pony fandom since the early days of Equestria Daily, when they did not get half a billion fics every week, and the popular ships were still fresh and new and just finding a story about Rarity and Applejack in love was exciting.
*golf clap*
The 'they stealin mah spotz!' shit is REALLY old. Well said, my dear <3
Good fics don't get posted on EQD because we are two goddamn months behind still.
It's getting better.
Also if we tell you "Hey, we could post this, but we need you to do some work on it first", for crying out loud, do the work! It means you've written a good story and no one's perfect! You wouldn't believe the number of authors we "Mars" and never hear back from.
I really hope FelixDawn doesn't read your blog posts, or you'll be receiving barely readable insults and memes. At least his abundance of emoticons is well readable :p
And my problem with what this post is about, is that some fics really don't deserve to hit the box. Whenever a fic that has terrible grammar and has 6 OC's with the names of the Mane Six, hits the feature box only because of the hype, the idea behind it or by being buildt around a fic that in fact is good, I cringe.
1692088
>implying felixdawn isn't our god
Are you high?
1692100
Sillyness aside, I
hatedespise him. Practically nobody can read what he writes and his ego makes it so that it's all our fault. It's not his fault that the rest of the world can't comprehend his reading. The rest of the world just needs to getdumbersmarter.Sillyness included, ALL HAIL LORD FELIX
1692088
Either that, or he'd quote the whole thing while 'making' an argument.
Actually, I'd LOVE to see that happen, if only to watch D obliterate him in kind.
~Skeeter The Lurker
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...
...
Le sigh.
The Bob is capitalized, Wanderer d.
Now I'm just going to go to my corner and cry.
Five? Is this whole rant copypasta from ages ago?
I don't really use EqD for any reason other than the Music... I've never really cared to submit my fics to the site, nor do I intend to cause I like fimfiction better. All around, fimfiction is just a more friendly environment (most of the time, that is. I've seen some EPIC hate being thrown around...)
Anyway, you bring up a lot of good points, Wanderer D, as usual. Now, if you lot will excuse me, I'm gonna go curl up with my Spike plushie I got from Build a Bear.
People complain too much. You also seem to be bombarded by a lot of annoying people. I agree with you.
1692141
Exactly, you can't tell me that shit isn't hilarious. He is epic trole 2013.
On the off chance that he's being serious, well, that's even funnier.
1691910
These are ALL Wanderer D.
1692165 IT WAS 4AM IN THE MORNING!
plz forgive me? Yesno?
1692166 No, the five top are actually new stories. The lower 5 are updates. Or top 7 lower 3. I forget. The point still stands.
1692232 Yeah, it's 7 and 3.
1692229
For u bby, erraday.
Kisses and hugs?
I've had the fortune of not bumping into this argument so much. "Complaining about EqD for X reason" has been in vogue since I entered the fandom (2011), though.
1692022
While I agree with the sentiment (and I know the pre-readers do a thankless and stressful job), it does depend on what kind of changes you've been asked to make.
For example, I wrote a story that used Applejack as the narrator. Now, a story like this usually takes some liberties when it comes to how good the narrating character's memory is. How do they remember everything that happened/everything that was said well enough to retell it? Whenever I've seen this style being used, it's not really addressed, since it doesn't actually matter all that much—it's just a way to tell a POV story with some added flavor.
However, the pre-reader didn't like that when I submitted it. The proposed change basically required me to rewrite more than half the story, and that's not something I've sat down to do yet (this was like half a year ago, mind you). I've never had problems with the pre-readers—I'm mostly amazed at what they do—but this is probably why you don't hear back from authors from time to time.
I'd like it if there was a way to actually communicate with your pre-reader once they've given you their feedback. If only to say "Thank you for your time, but I won't be resubmitting for X, Y, Z reasons." I feel uncomfortable writing to a communal inbox—which is probably already full of unread mail—for a personal message, but I also feel bad for not giving anything but silence as a response
I do understand why you don't have direct lines to the pre-readers, though. I imagine you'd get a lot of "why wont u post tis wen uz posted X story before?!?! rage, rage, rage" messages.
Seriously, you expect them to think?
Props for mentioning Lilith. You either know your Jewish mythology or watched/read too much of Evangelion.
1692022
I'm kind of against the idea of editing something that's already published, that is unless a link to the original is put in the A/N or something. I just worry that the people who read the original won't like the new version as much.
1692386 Both, but I like the Jewish myth better.
1692287
Just respond to the email, it'll be forwarded back to the pre-reader in question. You won't always get a response, depending on what you have to say, but it will be read.
But writing the same thing as everyone else is my whole business model
1692386
Or you were into Vampire: The Masquerade as a teenager
1692287
You can totally tell them "this is an intentional style decision and I'm not going to change it" and not completely kill your chances of getting posted. I wouldn't recommend picking fights, but I actually got some non-standard grammar through back in the day. Ironically, many chapters later, one of my personal proofreaders eventually convinced me to go back and fix all the occurances of it anyway
It's important to remember that prereaders are readers and they should be treated as such. If they have a problem with something, no matter what it is, it's a valid complaint that damaged the experience they were having, and chances that someone else—maybe lots of someone elses—will have the same experience.
On the other hand... it's important to remember that prereaders are readers. They can be wrong, and the best thing you can do when they are is to be nice and cooperative while you try to sort it out. Maybe there's something you can change to minimize confusion, maybe not. You don't yell at your readers, though (I hope), and prereaders deserve at least that much consideration.
Either way, think twice before trying to get a complaint ignored. You'll feel really silly if it turns out to be valid.
1692917
Well, I wouldn't want to ask them to ignore it. They did seem to have a genuine problem with it, and those are definitely grounds for rejecting a fic.
If it had been an objective error, I would've fixed it right away, no questions asked. But this seemed to fall into the realm of subjectivity and opinion, much more than objectively flawed writing, so that's what I took it as.
I don't like picking fights with the pre-readers—or anyone, for that matter—so I simply went, "Oh, well, I'm sorry you feel that way (sadface)" and left it at that.
I know the instance you are speaking of. And I won't mention the other story this was in regards to because that dead horse is getting soupy from being beaten so much.
I will mention that Cupcakes was not put on EQD because Seth was accepting everything at the time. Seth actually repeatedly refused to post it and only did so due to the overwhelming demand and in regognition of the massive impact the fic had on tue fandom. So it was the people who got Cupcakes on EQD. And once standards went up it was removed.
1693087 this is true. The point still stands though, that you shouldn't blame others for stealing your place. That's... egh.
Eh, EqD's prereaders are just shit in general because of the reasons they give for why things pass or fail. One of the best examples being "The Third Person Omnipotence doesn't work well here," when the entire section of the story submitted and reviewed was in first person.
Not to mention that I sent in an email asking that a friend of mine be credited since his art was being used (every other piece of art that I'd seen was credited, but his was just marked as "unknown") for one of the drawfriends or whatever, and instead they removed it, put up his name, and put quite a few scathing comments up about how ungrateful and dickish he was for wanting him to take it down, when it wasn't even him asking about it. He never even knew it had been up.
1693102
Come on
Can't you just leave it alone?
It doesn't have any soul
Just find a thing of your own
And stop pretending to know
As the countless numbers hunger for worldwide renown
All the pimping sons of plunder will roll up their sleeves
All searching for the answers they don't even care to know
Give it to me
Give it to me
You like it?
As it's blown apart, hundreds thrown away
Makes me question just what I believe
Brothers torn apart, mindless drones enslaved
Makes me search for an answer
I don't want to know
It's like a plague from below
Killing all that I know
One hundred voices the same
Drench their sorrow in flame
Only Wanderer could make a rant like this hilarious simply by channeling his inner Apple.
I really don't care for the Daily story posts anymore,most of the fics I read are here.PH is really the only one I care about that only the daily will tell me has updated.