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leethet ([personal profile] leethet) wrote2004-01-23 01:14 am
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I was thinking...

...as I am wont to do, about fanfic and response, and it occurs to me ... am I the only one who finds that the strongest responses do not come for the fics I think are best? There seems to be no correlation between my favorites of my own stuff and readers' favorites (if one can assume based on locs). Do other fanfic writers find that to be the case?
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[identity profile] pigeongirl99.livejournal.com 2004-01-23 01:45 pm (UTC)(link)
With me I seem to get the most positive feedback on the fics that I don't like, and don't think were well written. The ones I spent real time over are often given nice "Well done", or "enjoyed" feedback, but little in the way of specifics or obvious enthusiasm.

With mine I think some of it may come down to how my lesser fics are done with a slightly greater air of fun, the prose may be a bit jerky in places and it might not make any deep insights, but it's quick and easy to read and not at all demanding on the reader.

The ones I struggle and believe I've gotten, more or less, right, don't always seem to be understood the way I intended. I love the idea of reader-response and how everyone reads everything differently, but it does sometimes worry me when no-one even vaguely seems to get what I was going for in the first case. I makes me wonder just exactly how bad and obscure this fic, that I thought decent enough, really is.

Other than that it's the most dramatic, sexual, and over-the-top stuff that gets the good reviews, not the quiet, contemplative interludes.

[identity profile] dinahmt.livejournal.com 2004-01-23 08:25 pm (UTC)(link)
You have a point here, Lee. Feedback from readers seems to be a fickle thing. To me, feedback from betas and friends is so valuable that I don't really mind not getting a lot of it from the readers. Some are nice enough to say something, others obviously don't feel strongly enough to comment either way. I think the short, intense type of story is the most popular with the lists. Perhaps the people who go for the longer stories buy zines and feedback is less immediate.

[identity profile] st-crispins.livejournal.com 2004-01-23 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)
Do other fanfic writers find that to be the case?

Yes and no. Di makes a good point that on the internet, short, sexy (but lightly so) and/or amusing draws the most feedback. I've been thinking about this lately and I'm not sure why. The most feedback online I've ever received was for a story called "The Lottery" which was light and breezy and many readers apparently identified with the OC. I was actually surprised because OCs are not generally welcome.

However, I've had a few similar experiences in print, too. Once, two stories of mine were nominated for a FanQ, and I would not have picked the one that won over the other. [shrug]

On the other hand, usually my beta readers are in sync with my perspective. Of course, I sometimes match a beta reader to a particular story so that's not surprising.

Feedback is a funny thing. My usual response is simply to be grateful. :)
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