Arawn:
Criticism is a funny thing. You never know if an authors that asked for feedback without no mercy appreciate it in reality. Or if the author’s fan base might leap to her defence creating an unpleasant atmosphere.
Yep, I absolutely agree. It's why I usually do criticism via e-mail rather than in a public forum. If the author doesn't appreciate it, she's welcome to throw it in the trash. I don't think any of us really
enjoy public criticism, do we? I accept the possibility as part of the bargain when I post fic, but I've also appreciated it when people have been kind enough to send more extensive criticism privately. I've gotten some incredibly good advice that way.
As in all things, our most honest thoughts are reserved for people we know and who know us. If someone discussed an authors story behind her back with close friends, I don’t think it’s necessarily a sign of disrespect.
No! I didn't mean to suggest that it was disrespectful or that there would be any malicious intent at all. I honestly think that if a fic was discussed in that way in chat it
would be because the chatters didn't want to hurt someone's feelings, discourage someone, etc., and not because they wanted to sneak off and laugh behind their hands. It's just one of my own personal weirdnesses that the idea of being discussed in that way - even constructively - kind of bugs me. I'd rather
know what was said, even if it made me go, 'ouch,' and I wound up licking my wounds for a little while.
So, Carol had suggested that maybe it was better to have discussions of Kerth contenders in chat, in order to spare people's feelings, and I was just presenting another side to that. I'm not suggesting that all authors feel the same way I do about it, though it seems that a few do. Basically what I was saying was that while yes, it is certainly possible that author A might be hurt by not being mentioned in the Kerth Buzz thread, it is equally possible that author B might be hurt if she found out secondhand that people had been talking about her plot holes in chat. I don't think there's any malicious intent in either scenario, but there's still the potential for hurt feelings.
Carol:
As for your lack of distress on never making anyone's favourite's list, I am in awe. But I know that not all the writers here feel that way.
Oh, don't be awed! I'd truly like to think it wouldn't bother me not to be mentioned, but maybe it would. I know for sure it would have a few years ago, so I really do understand your concerns. Of course it's lovely when people say nice things about my stories. Heck, I even confessed to squealing out loud when I realized I'd been quoted in the game
.
Mostly I was just trying to say that I was
more uncomfortable with the idea of my stories being dissected in chat than I would be with the idea of not being mentioned in a Kerth thread. And that's just a personal position and not something I would dream of trying to foist on anyone else. Because you're absolutely right - not all authors here would feel that way.
Best,
Caroline
