Ann, I didn't believe you were criticizing my story.
You have the right to do that anyway, if you want; I can take it with the best of them. What concerns and disheartens me is that, to my knowledge, every time someone's posted a deathfic or something close to it on the boards, yet
another thread is started - usually by you. Lara probably said it best above about "morality threads" and "masked complaints" and that we get it. We understand your dislike and your feeling's of injustice; we've heard them and we respect them, even if we don't agree. Yes, you have a right to post a subject for discussion, within certain limits, of course. But, with this subject, you're toeing a fine line. I'll bet that every author out there has a debate with him/herself before s/he posts anything that might be construed as a "deathfic". I know I did. I wondered, "Is this going to set Ann off again? Should I even bother posting this story that I'm really proud of and want to share? Is it worth all the drama it might cause?" I'm glad I posted my story, but I'm not sure it's worth all the drama.
You see, you've created an environment in which authors may very well be intimidated against posting fic. And that is what's disheartening. I'd hate to think we're missing out on wonderful fics and possible new authors. You're not explicitly telling people what not to write or post, but your repeated treatment of this subject is certainly accomplishing something very similar - discouragement of posting deathfic.
What's worse is that some of the people who
do feel intimidated just won't post - their stories or their thoughts. And that's a very sad thing. I'd like to think we're still a community that fosters tolerance.
Sara (who's only a little amused that Ann's muse felt the need to write a fic that included the death of so many women
)
