It's too hot to do homework.

[nendil]

I guess it is rather amazing how, when I flip back and forth through my progressive drawings, how much I was able to improve upon the characters' appearances and how (relatively) terrible the previous pic looked, even though at the time it was taken I thought it was the best I could do and even though I thought I haven't done much work at all between "snapshots." ::breeeaaathe::


So here's a thought. What if FF.net was split into two sections/categories?

One for the serious authors who are looking to hone/improve their craft. Only constructive, intelligent reviews here. There's no restriction to the quality of the stories posted here, but you MUST be willing to listen to others' advice, or else get tossed.

One for the fangirlz who just wanna have fun. They can post any inane sugar-rush brainspew they want, and the only feedback they can get are the gushing netspeak raves. No quoteunquote "flames" allowed, nothing that'll hurt their widdle feelings, and they can beg each other for their precious "r/r plz" all they want.

The two policies are not allowed to mingle. If you're a teenybopping author who wants to venture into serious ficdom, no problem, but your story posted in the serious section will be held to the serious rules, and vice-versa of course.

So now, anyone want to let me know how this won't work in reality?

Comments

[nendil.livejournal.com]

Nothing wrong with devil's advocate, I'm throwing out the idea to see if it can be shot down. After all, a brilliant idea like this, there must be something wrong with it else someone would've done it already eh? ^_~

I know there are specific, smaller communities that are selective regarding quality. Heck, I'm in one right now. =P I was just thinking if there could be any way to help ff.net, because it is THE largest, most centralized fanfiction network, and most influential. Even if another, "better" fic archive site overtook it in popularity, it too would soon be overrun by the rampant fangirl mentality.

Part of where my idea originated was from Worth1000 (http://www.worth1000.com), where they have a check box where you can choose "" or "" It could be that by default stories are listed under "no 'flames'" unless the author specifically marks that they want constructive comments. They could even toggle it back and forth depending on how thick their skin is today. And then there could be a view option where you can filter out one or the other category. Or there could be some other system, but there's one possibility which will favor the sensitive souls.

I think clear, established rules can help a lot, if it's outlined clearly what is accepted behavior and what isn't. One of my peeves is how there is NO official FAQ for ff.net anywhere to be found. Regarding technical issues, sure, there are a few explanations, and an outdated TOS. But nothing about what to expect from the community in terms of quality, content, interaction, nothing describing how certain features of the site works, etc. A few rules like:

- Personal criticisms towards the author are not allowed.
- If you're going to criticise a story, you must offer constructive suggestions on how it can be improved.

And so on, would give people a better idea of what to expect. It will certainly require a whole lot of mature, sensible moderators. I don't believe that's impossible, thought it will be quite a task to take on.