I don't plan to get into the debate on the merits of 'to surprize' or 'not surprize'. I have my opinion on that, and I respect the rights of others to have differing ones.
But I think that we're being short-sighted to restrict this discussion to TE's alone. If it is felt that a warning of some sort is needed in the case of TE's then wouldn't that also be true in the case of all general warnings?
There are many on the boards who don't enjoy, or won't read stories that contain an intense physical or emotional wham, or the often mis-named deathfic. Perhaps, rather than create a separate thread or folder to house TE warnings, it could be a more generalized warning folder. If a writer is creating a post that she/he considers could possibly be offensive or unwelcome to the tastes of some of the gentle readers they could post an explanatory warning, along the lines of: Warning, part 666 of 'Lois Gets a Haircut' contains scenes of extreme physical violence which some may find distasteful. Or; Warning, part 23 of 'Lois Gets Another Haircut' contains a Tank Ending.
That way a reader can be warned that something they might not like could be in that part without giving away too much. And for those who like to take their fics 'as they come', they can ignore the thread all together.
This does put the onus on the writer to make a judgement and be courteous enough to actually post a warning, but I think that if it becomes the practice, it will become second nature. And those writers who may have shied away from something controversial in the past might find themselves being a bit more daring. (Even if it will cost them some readers)
Tank (who wouldn't have to worry about such things if the gentle readers would have just let him stay retired)
