grunge-fic-hub - Tumblr blog

[grunge-fic-hub]

Hello! I’ve got a survey question!  Writers often wonder why they don’t get more comments on their work. I would love to hear your thoughts on the topic.  Have you ever read a fic, and liked it, but NOT left any comments or a like/kudos?  If so, why not?  Feel free to response anonymously if you want.  Would really love to hear feedback on this!  

[grunge-fic-hub]

I feel like this is an unpopular opinion, but more people should read incomplete/unfinished/in-progress fanfics.

I've noticed this huge trend where creators on tiktok and tumblr who will be explaining how to use Archive Of Our Own to new users and they always say "and make sure to scroll down and click completed only" or how people will go out of their way to mention they only read completed fics 'because they were traumatized when they forgot to check the dates and didn't realize this fic hadn't been updated since 2012'.

The thing is - I think by not engaging with and/or actively avoiding writer's WIPs readers are potentially adding to the aggregate of abandoned works. Now this obviously isn't the case for all abandoned fics, anything from major life events, to loss of interest, to getting busy can be a reason for a fic getting abandoned - but at least on some level I just know that writers are quitting while they're ahead when they aren't garnering any response or feedback because reading WIPs has become unpopular. If you're worried about reading something that hasn't been updated since 2012 then you can use the date updated function to sort out old fics.

Anyways, support your favorite fanfic writers by engaging with their WIPs.

[grunge-fic-hub]

Their stories have disappeared, but in case they ever read this I wanna say thank you to yellowrose who had their stories on ao3 and Wattpad. I can't believe the stories have been taken down, they were easily the best fanfic I have ever read. Butterflies got me through COVID, honestly. Hoping they are doing OK and will come back someday.

Completely agree. :-( Loved their work and very sad that it disappeared.

[grunge-fic-hub]

Hello grunge-fic community!  With the holidays approaching, now is a great time to show some love to the authors who have been working hard and sharing their stories this year!  Send them an Ask, drop them a Comment, tell them what you like about their work, your favorite line, your favorite character, whatever you want to say!  Compliments from readers is the best gift an author can get!  

Happy Grungy Holidays!!!!

[grunge-fic-hub]

Reasons to keep writing:

it brings you joy

somebody has to take care of the characters

you have a lesson to teach

it gets you through everyday life

there's people excited for the next chapter

to provide hope for yourself and others

if you don't tell the story, no one else will

it's a way of expressing yourself / what you go through

to make yourself and others feel less alone

people adore your writing

your characters would miss you if you left

nobody can take your place / write your stories for you

to leave something behind to be remembered by

to release your emotions

to inspire other people

[grunge-fic-hub]

I hope every writer who sees this writes LOADS the next few months. Like freetime opens up, no writers block, the ability to focus, etc etc you’re able to write loads & make lots of progress <3

[grunge-fic-hub]

the tiktokification of ao3

or: some of you fundamentally misunderstand ao3 and it really, really shows

i was talking about this with a friend a few days ago and since then i've seen multiple posts of various sorts that have just made me think about it more, so. here is me breaking down a disconnect i see particularly with younger members of the marauders fandom (i say marauders specifically just bc that's the only one i'm plugged into):

okay, so i've seen many (usually younger) marauders fans either talking online about how they wish ao3 was more like social media (specifically regarding algorithms) OR talking about ao3/fanfiction/fanfic writers as if they are operating under the same etiquette/guidelines/assumptions they would bring into social media platforms. this ranges from being mildly irritating to genuinely harmful, and i want to talk abt why.

first - you have to understand that social media, in this day and age, exists in a profit economy. and when i say social media here, i'm referring to platforms like tiktok, twitter, instagram, etc. all of these platforms exist in a profit economy where content is a product that can be monetized. this leads to a few important distinctions:

people posting on these social media platforms are generally posting with the intent to get their content seen by as many people as possible, as quickly as possible

they post with this intent because once their content is consumed by enough people, it becomes a product that they can monetize

therefore, if that content gets popular enough, these people can become influencers, where content creation is an actual job and their audience are, in a sort of vague and obscured way, similar to consumers purchasing a product

because of the profit economy surrounding social media, there are certain assumptions + forms of interaction that bleed across almost all social media platforms. the ones relevant to this little essay include:

operating under the assumption that anyone posting anything on the internet wants to go viral, ie. be seen by as many people as possible as quickly as possible in order to grow an "audience"

these influencers are creating content for us, their audience, so they should want to please us. they should also be trying to appeal to the broadest possible audience. therefore, if we dislike their content, we have a right to make that very, very clear.

in that same vein, we have a general right to critique content creators, as they are making a profit and we are the consumers purchasing their product--much like you might feel entitled to a certain standard of service in a restaurant where you are paying for the food.

when you carry these assumptions over to a platform like ao3, it creates problems. why? in a nutshell: because ao3 exists outside the profit economy

ao3 is a non-profit. it does not have an algorithm because it is not trying to sell you anything. this means that the writers posting their work on ao3 are not making a profit. we are not influencers. we are not creating monetized content to sell to a consumer-audience. where consuming content on other social media platforms might be comparable to eating at a restaurant, reading fanfiction on ao3 is more like coming over to someone's house and eating cookies that they made for free. you are in their house. the cookies are free, given as a gift. so what happens when those assumptions outlined above start to bleed over from other social media?

assuming that anyone posting fanfiction online wants their work to go viral -- i've seen this with popular fic writers getting questions like, "are you worried x isn't going to be as popular as y?" those questions are usually not ill-intended, but they demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding about why writers post work on ao3. it's not to go viral. it's not to build any sort of online following. most of us who post on ao3 have jobs or schoolwork or other commitments, and writing fanfiction is something done for fun, out of a love for writing. those sharing their work online might be seeking community, but that is fundamentally different from seeking an audience, and in no way involves internet virality. if someone is posting fanfic on ao3 with the hope that it'll "go viral," then they likely either won't continue writing fanfic for long or will reach a point where they have to re-evalute their motivations, because seeking joy and validation by turning your art into a product for consumption just isn't very sustainable.

influencers are creating content for us, so we have a right to let them know if we don't like it -- nope!! fic writers are not influencers. yes, even the popular ones. no matter how much other people might blow their work up on social media, fic writers are still outside the profit economy. they are not creating content for an audience. they are not creating content for you. they are writing because they love it, and they are generously sharing it. if you don't like it, don't interact with it. you are never entitled to loudly and publicly proclaim how much you dislike a fic. i talk about this more here

we have a general right to critique fic writers, the same way we do with content creators/influencers -- again, no. you should not be treating fic writers the way you would treat an influencer on another social media platform, no matter how popular they may be. this is not to say fic writers are beyond all reproach; rather, it is a call-in to check your entitlement. fic writers are not little jesters entertaining in your court. they are not subject to your whims. they do not have to do things for you. they do not have to write things you like. in that post i linked on point 2, i talk about what etiquette might look like if you're really concerned that a fic writer is doing something harmful, but that is not what i'm talking about here. i am talking about the proliferation of negativity i have seen, especially on twitter and tiktok, where people essentially just talk shit about fics or fic writers as though they are entitled to have those fic writers working to please them. this is gross, and it needs to stop. you wouldn't go over to someone's house, eat the cookies they baked to share, and then spit those cookies back in their face and start shouting about what a shitty baker they are. or maybe you would--in which case, congratulations! you are Not A Good Person.

anyway, at the end of the day, a lot of this can be boiled down to: Because ao3 exists outside the profit economy, fic writers are not influencers, and you should never be treating them as though they are. i think i see this disconnect largely with younger people just because they've maybe only ever really understood social media within this sort of influencer-consumer-culture economy, and genuinely don't understand how to interact differently with the internet. so, consider this post a call-in to reevaluate the way you interact with fic writers and the etiquette you use when it comes to engaging with fanfic on ao3! i promise that ao3 being different from social media is a very, very good thing, and also a very, very rare thing, so let's treasure it and focus on fostering community rather than trying to morph it to fit the mould of influencer-audience dynamics that we see almost everywhere else <3

[grunge-fic-hub]

Hi, I also noticed a fanfic called thesoundwriter here on tumblr, its a beautifully written fanfic about grunge bands sadly it has only seven chapters but absolutely amazing

Thanks for the tip Anon! I found the chapter list for The Sound and have added it to the list. This looks like a good one, with a fresh approach, and I had never noticed it before. I'm excited to read it!

[grunge-fic-hub]

Thank you for your work and i m great fan of grunge fanfics, especially pearl jam fics!!!!!

Hi! Thank you so much for the ask! So glad to hear you are enjoying the blog! The real thanks goes to all the authors, and the hard work that they put into their writing!

[grunge-fic-hub]

Links Updated

Hello Grunge Fic lovers!  I noticed (sadly!) that some of the fics that were included on this list are no longer with us.  I have removed the broken links. Let me know if you see anything else that doesn’t work.  And as always -- feel free to send me links to additional stories that are out there.  Happy reading!  

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actually @ every fanfiction writer whether you wrote something that got thousands of reblogs and comments and became a staple in your fandom, or you wrote one fic and deleted it, or you write mutilchaptered fics that never get a final update, or write short fics, or long fics, or used to write and now you don’t, or you deleted/orphaned your works, or you only share with friends:

thank you.

sharing your writing is hard. and sometimes it’s thankless. sometimes it’s such a negative experience that I wonder how anyone does it at all. but you are needed; you are wanted. whether or not we properly acknowledge it, you are a vital part of fandom culture. thanks for sharing.

[grunge-fic-hub]

I don't think fic writers know how much they matter

Do you know how many times you distracted me when I was hurt or lonely? Do you know how many times a line or a scene from fanfic marked me so much that I remembered years later, even though I can’t recall my own phone number? 

Even if the fic isn’t perfect or popular or multi-chaptered… Sometimes there’s just one sentence that changed me.

You, miles and miles away, changed me.

[grunge-fic-hub]

Hi grunge fic fans! I'm so thrilled by the response to this page! It's been up for less than 24 hours, but we've already had SEVEN new fics added, requested via reblog and/or Anon Asks.

Thank you! I'm excited to share and promote these stories, and will do my best to keep up with requests!

[grunge-fic-hub]

Links to Grunge Fic Blogs and Stories

Listed in alphabetical order:

90s Grunge Story

Amongst the Waves

Birds of a Feather

Cradle Broken Glass

Do You Wanna Dance?

Grunge Slash

GrungeFic

In Too Deep

I've Been Told Dreaming's Free

PJ Behind the Sun

Some Words When Spoken

The Sound

Taking Liberty (2 stories)

The GEEKs

There's a Light

Wait Until the Music's Over

State of Love and Distrust

I know there's more . . .

[grunge-fic-hub]

Welcome to the Grunge Fic Hub!  This is a consolidated listing of grunge-related fan fiction blogs by various authors across Tumblr.  The intent of this hub is to increase exposure for the writers, and to provide a place for readers to find links to all their favorite grunge fic blogs in one centralized place.  

Feel free to send Asks and let me know if there are additional works out there that I’m missing!  Also feel free to send your thoughts and comments on your favorite stories to let the authors know how much you love their work!  

Finally - if you are an author and don’t want your work listed on here for any reason, please let me know, and I will remove it promptly!