Res: ::BuffyLovesWillow:: OT: Lost Authors and Fics

["Rod" <myself03@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey,

You know, just read your post and I believe you have made a nice point ..
one i don't completely agree with but still one that should be taken into
consideration...The authors that you mentioned , along with others like
Angeline , Janine , Pink Rabbit(Barb) , Selenay, Alyson, Heather, , Shadow 
Quin and many , many others haven't posted stories for quite awhile in the
lists and they have been greatly missed , no doubt about it , but there is
not much that the fans can do about it , by the end of the day it's the
writers decision...I know i'm probably being naive about it , but when a
writer decides to stop posting fics i always tend to think that it has
something to do with Real Life getting in the way, or them losing interest
in this particular ship or show or something like that...I never stop to
wonder that it may have something to do with a negative response or
something that has been done to them simply because i can't quite grasp the
concept of someone not having something nice to say about these authors...I
just can't...When an author stops writing i usually think of Badbard , the
one responsible by our lists names and who ended up deciding to give real
life a try, or Gillian , one of our primary contributors who left because of
her access dificulties and I even think of Pat, who once said that he felt
he had explored the ship enough and decided to give other couples a try...I
don't think the "worst" , I only think it's their decision and it should be
respected...And i think that where we disagree...

I don't think it is a matter of us being complacent or even taking the
writers for granted...I think everybody who is a member of one of these
lists is well aware that we wouldn't be here today , we wouldn't even have
800 members if it wasn't for the fantastic authors we have here...The truth
is that most of the people around here aren't really interested in
discussing the ship or talking about the eps or anything like that...they're
here to read the fics...That's why they subscribed , that's why they keep
coming back...These lists are , when it comes to fics , the the biggest
treasure of the W/B community ... A treasure yet to be discovered by many ,
but one that is cherished by a lot of people...When a story is posted here
it is read not by one or two people , but by a couple hundered of people who
for a few minutes are allowed to wander around in the author's mind, share
their point of view... Through the story the author allows us , mere readers
to see something that we always wanted but never quite knew and at least
to me that's damn special...Maybe we don't say it enough to the authors, we
are , after all , 800 and of those few are the ones that end up responding ,
but that in no way means that we don't care about their story or we don't
admire their work...If a story doesn't get a lot of response it doesn't mean
it hasn't put a smile in the face of a lot of readers or that it didn't stir
any reaction inside of us, most of the times it only means that we're too
lazy or in some cases even self-aware ...It's a problem, a really big one,
but by the end of the day it is something that happens in every ship , in
every list...

I said it a few posts ago and i will say it again, I take my B/W reading in
a very serious way...For the past few months my contact with B/W have been
almost minimal, the fics i did get to read had to be selected and printed by
a friend who is now in charge of my net connection, but it still gets to me
the same way...I know that this may seem very pathetic , but i have in my
flat a stack pf printed Buffy/Will fics that i just read over and over again
..Everytime i get a little time of at home, or when i'm on a break at the
hospital i just take one fic and read it ...I've lost count of the times i
ve read Pik rabbit's fic, or Pat's or Kimber's...and everytime it feels like
the first time...They still move me like they did the first time...By the
end of the day i have for these authors and their work the same respect and
admiration i reserve for Machado de Assis or Jose de Alencar( two of my fav
writers)...

And that is why i disagree with you , because while i admit that í'm not
being the best reader or even "fan" i don't think it's a matter of taking
for granted...I get extemely happy everytime i get to see the work of a new
writer , but that doesn't mean i ever think of him/her as a substitute for
one of the old ones...I think that would be diminishing the value of the
older and the newer writers and i just don't agree with that...If you had
seen my reaction when i combed through the archives and found Love is an
adventure, a B/W fic by Pat or the way i almost strangled my friend when the
hd crashed and i realized that not only i lost my entire B/W fic collection
but also unposted parts of Heather's The incredible adventures of two girls.
. you'd know that i don't ever take them for granted...That's why , for the
past five days , i check www.altfic.com around a hundred times, that's why
when i see a new post from Pat i'll keep my fingers crossed whishing for it
to be about B/W and that's why these lists and it's members will always hold
a piece of my heart...

As for it becoming like Willowslash, i really don't see it...If you're
talking about the original one(and i'm assuming you are , since the newer
one is normal...), as far as i know that was something that got out of
control and stirred mostly by the moderators...I don't see anything like
that happening here ...And about the Erin thing...you know, i think there
was a problem involving a member and an author or something , it's in the
archives, i think, i don't know if it was about Erin or who was envolved and
i don't even remember what it was about...but i think Kim took care of it
at the time...I'm not sure..If you can point me a direction on the list
archive or fill me in on what happened ....I can't honestly remember
anything that may have led to her departure, but that may have something
with the memory problems i'm having lately, but to think that something
happened in here that has driven her away is a sad thought...

Well, I'm done now...Really sorry about the rambling and all, i just can't
see a keyboard...And sorry if i sounded rude or anything and if i didn't
make a lot of sense...i never do...I just wanted to post a response from the
other side...

Tchau

-------Mensagem original-------

De: buffyloveswillow@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Data: Sunday, October 07, 2001 20:28:35
Para: BuffyLovesWillow (E-mail); BuffyWantsWillow (E-mail)
Assunto: ::BuffyLovesWillow:: OT: Lost Authors and Fics

To: All List Gutter Members & Lurkers

Hey, 
I'm sure right about now you're wondering what I'm talking about Lost
Authors and Fics. Okay, there are over 800 of us on the BWW list, when was
the last time any of you saw stories from Angela, Tony McD, Roman, Kimly,
ElizaLover, Chazzman, Kimber, Alex (who's having health problems), Keven
Beckett, Anne-Lise, Carol, Erin ( who was driven off this list and those who
did know who they are!). Well how many of you have given a second thought
and emailed them or even said anything about it on the list?? That is a damn
long list of authors missing in action on this list.
I'm not talking about feedback for authors, we're not going to go into
that. But the Gutter Dwellers and Members seem to have become very
complacent about the authors here, as if there is alway going to be someone
to take their place and write for you. They won't be. I suggest you think
about that carefully unless you want this list to go the way of the original
WillowSlash list.

BillGopher
Technical Support Representative
Barnes & Noble.com
Secaucus Call Center