about this year's FOTY...
i feel like there should be some compromise made. there has been an OBVIOUS mixed response towards this, and each side has very legit responses to back them up. but i do miss the old FOTY.
why?
because PEOPLE could vote for THEIR favorite FANFIC of the YEAR. who cares if it's a popularity contest? no one is FORCING them to vote for their favorite fanfic. it is their choice. and doesn't it say something if there is THAT much of a positive response to a fanfic that so many readers are voting for them? does it MATTER if the writing quality isn't up to par with the mods? what if OTHER people like it? aren't you discriminating against the other readers' judgment as well?
the mods of the fanfic section are saying that they're bringing back the roots of fanfic to what is WAS. but fanfic NOW wasn't that same as what they were talking about. fanfic is constantly changing. fanfic isn't writing about a specific topic. it is the author's OWN CREATIVITY that makes the fanfic what it is. NOT a set topic/theme/genre. no. it is what the AUTHOR does. there should be no set boundary or else you shouldn't even call it a fanfic.
who cares if people are writing it for FOTY or not? does it matter? Soompi is used as an OUTLET, whether it is creative or if it is just a good way to get attention. but can you really put a stop to that? is that fair? this isn't the real world, folks. this is a way where people can read other people's works, regardless of the motive behind the author.
soompi MIGHT not be a democracy, but for pete's sake, LOOK at the reader response. LOOK. at least TAKE something from it and compromise instead of making this a 2 month period writing contest that just takes on the title of "FOTY."
Comments
and this challenge honestly just sounds like another writing contest. it honestly does, and i don't see the difference between those monthly writing challenges and this new FOTY one. it is dissatisfying for me, as a regular reader, who comes to the fanfic section for relief from the real world. i don't really need a great piece of literature to thrill me [though there have been a few knockout fanfics]. i need something entertaining and easy to get immersed in.
i don't think there has been any "passion" lost from fanfic. there are definitely more fics, that's for sure, so it's harder to separate the good ones from the not-so-good-ones, but you honestly can't compare fanfic from 3-5 years ago to present day fanfic, where circumstances have changed, whether you like it or not.
sometimes, change is good, but there is also tradition that gives soompi that homely feel, something that readers can look forward to, only ONCE a year, for goodness sake.
ugh.