Fanfic Pet Peeves

[VSS]

I once read one that I loved, the author started to write a sequel but, for whatever reason, went off Stargate fandom half way through and actually never completed. He/She did have the grace to amend the first chapter to say it would never be complete and added a chapter with his/her intended outline for the remaining chapters but, if that author had already worked it out, I have to wonder why not just finish it... urgh, incomplete WIPs are incredibly frustrating.

Jumping into the fray here, why would someone leave a story up if it isn't complete and never will be? Why not take it down? Was the intent just to leave it there in case someone else wanted to pick it up and finish it?

Sky I like the concept of something being called chapterized rather than a WIP, I had not really realized the distinction before. I think there are several other reasons why authors might do that, in addition to increasing the number of reviews. It's not just getting the reviews that's helpful, it's also (at least on FF.net) looking at the patterns of the hits and the stats. I love that feature. If you don't break it down, you might not ever really know what people do or don't like- what is said in the reviews is a certain kind of feedback, but traffic patterns are an entirely different kind. Releasing the story in intervals increases the value of that data.

Also authors can change, correct or add to a story based on reviews themselves. Chapterization can also provide the discipline necessary to do a good job on each chapter and not rush through it.

[Skydiver]

for me, once a fic is done, it's done. i won't rewrite based on reviews. I think the only time i've considered doing it is if i've made a factual error.

I do know it's a double edged sword. some people won't read long fic, yet they can 'handle' it if it's in smaller bits per day rather than a 60,000 word commitment all at once.

to me, a wip is a work in progress and a fic that' being posted as it's being written. a chapterized fic is one that's posted in smaller bits but is complete and done.

i post my fic chapterized. it's done and beta'd and finished before anyone but a few friends get to see it. that's my preference but i know it doesn't work for everyone

[hedwig]

Jumping into the fray here, why would someone leave a story up if it isn't complete and never will be? Why not take it down? Was the intent just to leave it there in case someone else wanted to pick it up and finish it?

Sky I like the concept of something being called chapterized rather than a WIP, I had not really realized the distinction before. I think there are several other reasons why authors might do that, in addition to increasing the number of reviews. It's not just getting the reviews that's helpful, it's also (at least on FF.net) looking at the patterns of the hits and the stats. I love that feature. If you don't break it down, you might not ever really know what people do or don't like- what is said in the reviews is a certain kind of feedback, but traffic patterns are an entirely different kind. Releasing the story in intervals increases the value of that data.

Also authors can change, correct or add to a story based on reviews themselves. Chapterization can also provide the discipline necessary to do a good job on each chapter and not rush through it.

I have the same opinion of some unfinished stories. I've run across quite a few that were started several years ago and remain unfinished, and it doesn't look like they'll ever be finished. And it saddens, as well as annoys, me. Some of them were very good and I still look forward to the slight chance that the author may find the time and/or inclination or creativity to finish them. But, sadly, I'm pretty sure that most of them will never be finished. I sort of wish the author would put up a note on those stories that offers to let another fanfiction author finish the story if they want to, and then give them some guidelines as to how the original author would have wanted it to be finished. But maybe that's being too hopeful?

One of my all-time favorite fanfics will apparently never be finished, either due to real life situations the author had to deal with or she was upset about something and said she was giving up writing completely, thus leaving the story I liked unfinished, and took all her stories offline as well.

[VSS]

for me, once a fic is done, it's done. i won't rewrite based on reviews. I think the only time i've considered doing it is if i've made a factual error.

I do know it's a double edged sword. some people won't read long fic, yet they can 'handle' it if it's in smaller bits per day rather than a 60,000 word commitment all at once.

to me, a wip is a work in progress and a fic that' being posted as it's being written. a chapterized fic is one that's posted in smaller bits but is complete and done.

i post my fic chapterized. it's done and beta'd and finished before anyone but a few friends get to see it. that's my preference but i know it doesn't work for everyone

You're more mature in your writing style than I am, I think. I'm still evolving.

I'll change little things if people really want me to and it's not a big deal to me. I'll even change really big things (like posting an extra three chapters of an alternate ending i happened to have. Lol!) because sometimes the reviewers have a valid point.

Once someone bugged me about not putting in a certain scene that by all rights should have been there but I didn't want to do it because I hate writing "M" rated scenes. That story is six months old and just yesterday I got a review from someone who absolutely loved that scene. I'd never have written it if people didn't complain. I would be totally stuck in my old ways.

[Rachel500]

As a reader, I think WIP (my definition being not completed at the time of posting) really depends on your tolerance levels for unfinished fics.

There has been only one instance where I've read something, got to the end of what was posted and realised the author hadn't updated in two years and so was unlikely to do so - and importantly, I've regretted that she would never finish it. I have read others where I've read, realised but really haven't been bothered - I've just shrugged and moved on.

A couple of my favourite authors do WIP and make their readers wait eons it seems at times for an update because they have a busy real life and fit the writing in around that. I tolerate it because they're really fantastic.

Hence I will read WIPs but admittedly these days I tend to be more selective; if I read a couple of chapters and I'm not really engaged I may dip in and out until its finished and I wouldn't be bothered if they didn't finish it. On the other hand, if it catches my attention and I want to keep reading, I may wait until its finished so I don't incur the disappointment of an unfinished fic.

As a writer, I don't post WIP. I often find that I'll tweak the fics as I write so will wait until they're fully finished before I start posting. I do, however, post long completed stories (novel length) in a chapterized version usually posting a chapter a day until the fic is fully up.

My primary reason is marketing: the Stargate SG1 page on fanfiction.net moves fast. If I posted a long story all at once, it may get 1 day or 2 days on Page 1 for people to see it and read it (beyond those on my alert list); if I post it in chapters, it's likely to remain on Page 1 for several days attracting more readers. And yes, that generally does translate into more reviews as some people will review each chapter rather than just the finished fic.

As a writer, I accept some people will only read it once its completely posted just as I accept some people will wait and only read a long fic when they have time.

The only incomplete work I have is my TAG series Aftershocks (in the sense that I haven't finished writing TAGs for all episodes of every season) but each TAG is a story in itself and can be considered stand alone so ultimately if I got knocked down by a bus, the series would be unfinished but the readers wouldn't be left with an unfinished story. However, I know I have some readers who wait until I finish a volume/season.

[Rachel500]

You're more mature in your writing style than I am, I think. I'm still evolving.

I'll change little things if people really want me to and it's not a big deal to me. I'll even change really big things (like posting an extra three chapters of an alternate ending i happened to have. Lol!) because sometimes the reviewers have a valid point.

Once someone bugged me about not putting in a certain scene that by all rights should have been there but I didn't want to do it because I hate writing "M" rated scenes. That story is six months old and just yesterday I got a review from someone who absolutely loved that scene. I'd never have written it if people didn't complain. I would be totally stuck in my old ways.

I really think its whatever works for you.

I may tweak a future chapter of a long story based on feedback if I think it was valid but more often than not, I will generally leave it as I wrote it, and use whatever constructive criticism I receive to inform the next fic I write.

[VSS]

I really think its whatever works for you.

I may tweak a future chapter of a long story based on feedback if I think it was valid but more often than not, I will generally leave it as I wrote it, and use whatever constructive criticism I receive to inform the next fic I write.

Yes, I imagine that's what many writers do, and I would too except I don't really have plans to write more once I finish the one I'm working on right now.

I have to have an idea, and be motivated. Right now I don't have any more ideas, and my motivation comes and goes!

[Tittamiire]

Abandoned WIPS make me sad. I don't get annoyed per se, but it is a bummer to invest time in reading a story and not get an end...that's one reason I don't post WIPS...the other reason is frequently stuff I write in the middle of a story means I have to go back and tweak something at the beginning...or I get ten thousand words in and realise that I've been getting my 'bad guys who begin with A' confused again. I have a terrible tendency to write Anubis when I mean Apophis and vice versa.

same here. if i'm interested in a WIP, i'll watch it and then, when it's done, i'll read it

when i write a longer fic, i do often post it chapterized. it's done, just being posted in batches. and people are the same way, they won't read it until i finish it.

I do know why some post fic chapterized. you get reviews that way. If i take a 100 page fic and post it in one chunk, i'll get a few to a dozen or so reviews. but it i post it in 10ish chapters (i go back to the early days of fic posting when many e-mail programs truncated messages after 10 pages, thus many people break their fic up into 10 page segments so their fic aren't cut off) and when i post it chapterized i'll get a half dozen or so reviews per chapter.

People do what gets them the most reward

I know that part of why I post fic chapterized is because you do get quicker feedback and more of it, it's an easy ego boost. The other reason, as already mentioned is reader kindness, "here's 3000 words and tomorrow there will be another 3,000." Rather than "Here's 50,000 words, happy reading!" which suit some people, but personally, as a reader I also enjoy reading chapterized fic....not because I can't read long books...but because I usually read fanfic in short batches in between other things and reading one chapter at a time is handy.

The other reason I write chapters is for my own sanity and the sanity of my betas...they might all be the same story, but having one file where 'this to this' bit of the story happens and then another where 'this to this' bit happens makes it much easier when you're working on weaker bits. If it's already chapterized you might as well post it like that.

[scifithinker]

You're more mature in your writing style than I am, I think. I'm still evolving.

Sky's had lots of practice.

[cflat]

One of my top pet peeves is when people don't put the actual story summary in the summary.

Like for example, I saw one story where the author's summary went something like this: This will be an interesting story.
When I saw that, I was thinking well, that's nice that it's going to be an interesting story, but what's it about?

I've been seeing that kinda thing lately on ff.net, and that's just pretty annoying to me.

[sbz]

Or the "is better than it sounds" and "I can't write summaries, please just read" etc. I'm sorry, but that doesn't give me much faith in your ability to write, period. The summary, especially on ff.net, is the only recourse a writer has to sell themselves and is all the more important since there's so much garbage on that site.

I understand not liking writing summaries (I don't) but there are options. I let a (representative) line from the fic do the talking for me.

[Skydiver]

if you feel like you can't write summaries do what some people do, snag a sentence or two from within the fic and post that.

seriously, all a summary is is a 1-3 sentence 'this is what happens' or 'this is how it starts' for a fic. so what was your plot bunny? write that down:
What if Hathor had gone into Jack in Into the Fire?
What if Cassie hadn't have visited Sam in ITLOD?
A long forgotten booby trap may spell Earth's doom.
Going rogue isn't all it's cracked up to be.
A series of stories as Jack and Sam's friendship evolves...and maybe into something more.
Set in the FireFigher AU: Sometimes some things seemed destined to happen.

etc.

those are all fic summaries. and they're just one sentence. You just need to give people an idea what the heck they're getting into, not sum up the whole entire fic in 2 sentences.

[Tittamiire]

As a writer I also hate coming up with summaries.

However, as a reader I really appreciate them and I don't expect much from them. All I really want from a summary is a) an indication that the writer isn't a moron and has at least a basic grasps of English (which a single coherant sentence usually manages to convey) b) There's a character/bit of fandom I am familiar enough with to enjoy the story (i.e I haven't seen enough Atlantis to really enjoy missing scene stories, but know the characters enough to appreciate a larger fic)

Beyond that (assuming all other information about catergories, warnings, pairings etc has been provided) any other information is a bonus.

I also hate the 'please read my story' and 'I'm not very good at summaries, please just read okay?' summaries because they haven't told me anything at all about the story...or even worse the 'review or I won't post the next part' summaries. Nothing turns me away from a story quicker.

[Trillian52]

I see the summary as the only opportunity I have to really sell my story as something people will enjoy reading. The fact that it's restricted to just a couple of sentences is a good way to keep it tightly written but I know it can be quite intimidating for some people.

I haven't seen any of the 'review or I won't post' type summaries but it seems an incredibly negative way of approaching things. I write because I enjoy the creative outlet it gives me but I also hope people will find my stories entertaining. I like getting reviews, especially if I've put quite a bit of time into a story, but can't imagine holding back the next chapter because noone has reviewed the previous one. Still I suppose we're all different...

[Khentkawes]

Or the "is better than it sounds" and "I can't write summaries, please just read" etc. I'm sorry, but that doesn't give me much faith in your ability to write, period. The summary, especially on ff.net, is the only recourse a writer has to sell themselves and is all the more important since there's so much garbage on that site.

I understand not liking writing summaries (I don't) but there are options. I let a (representative) line from the fic do the talking for me.

I think that one's the worst for me. Why should I believe an author who claims their story is "better than it sounds"? If they know it sounds bad, why are they posting it?

But what really bugs me are vague summaries. Like "SG-1 finds a piece of alien technology that causes problems when they return to the SGC." Or "An alien artifact leads the team on a quest that will change their lives forever." The last one has the added problem of being melodramatic. But in both cases (and I totally made those descriptions up on the spot), the descriptions tell me absolutely nothing. Some archives don't list main characters in the story heading, so in that case I prefer that summaries reveal who the major characters are going to be (is the story Jack-centric, Cam-centric, Teal'c and Sam focused, all about Walter, etc.). I have been known to actually skip over stories if I couldn't tell from the summary which characters are most important.

With that said, if I'm really in the mood to read fanfic, I may ignore a vague summary and click on the story anyway. But in that case, I'll probably just skim the first chapter or two. And once I start skimming, the chances of me actually reading the whole fic are very slim. When I skim, it means that I'm not interested, but I'm giving the author one last chance to catch my attention. So basically, a vague summary means that I won't take a story seriously or even give it a decent chance, unless something really jumps out at me as unique/original/interesting/thought-provoking.