Dear Fandom

[mark_asphodel]

Not just the FE fandom, but pretty much everyone I've ever joined.  But since those of you out there on f-list land are from the FE crowd, listen up.

This has irked me for years, but since darling raphien  mentioned something about "a sinking ship," it's time for a reality check.  Or at least some perspective.

Stop bitching about how fandom is dying.  You know how inviting it is to join a fandom when all the regulars are already pissing and moaning about how everything is now not-good and used to be sooooo much better?  Not very.  And y'all were pissing and moaning when I showed up late to the party in '09 (that's two years ago, people), and from reading the then-extant archives on the FFNet fora, I already knew at the time that the pissing and moaning had been going on for a couple of years.  

So that's three or four years of the long, slow, demise of the Fire Emblem online fanfiction writing community.  And yet, the writers and stories keep coming.  Is the fandom what it used to be?  No.  Review counts and such are down by any quantitative measure.  The day of the epic long-form story seems to be at an end for this fandom.  But a lot of what was "so great" in those days really isn't all that good in hindsight ("Fourteen Days" is crap, sorry) and a lot of the shorter pieces were totally out-of-character (bad Kent/Sain slash-- also crap), but that's the fandom you came into and stuck with.  Of course you liked it better then-- it was fun!

Now, take off your rose-colored mirror-glasses and ask yourself why anyone would want to join a fandom where the old-timers are constantly screaming about the end times like it'll never be 2005 again.  Damn, people.  You're lucky anyone who came in the door from 2007 on stuck around.  So stop dragging up personality conflicts from a Very Long Time Ago-- it doesn't help.  Stop gazing misty-eyed at the fandom days of yore, because in your blindness you're stepping on the feet of writers who would like to be a part of the fun but have to wonder if there's any fun to be had.

After all, these old-time fans are so bloody miserable about everything.  Why join them?

This has been brought to you by the Committee to STFU.

Comments

[sarajayechan.livejournal.com]

I can understand waxing nostalgic about The Old Days for the fun of it, but these people sound like they sit there with their heads in their hands moaning "nooooooooo change is baaaaaaad". As if they expected the fandom to stay frozen in time.

[samuraiter.livejournal.com]

^_^; I, ah, have absolutely nothing to offer in my defense, I'm afraid.

[xirysa.livejournal.com]

I never understood the hype about the "golden oldies" of the FE section's days of yore--Fourteen Days, SUtOT, all that shenanigan. I was, what. 14, 15 or so when I came to fandom, just as it was "dying", so I guess I can understand the bitching from a nostalgic standpoint, but. Really? From what I noticed in that time period since then? Really, it's not that bad at all, but were it not for people like Manna and Qieru/Sain and Kender, I'd probably have left it a long time ago.

Hopefully more coherent response to come when I get back to my room after class.

[sailorvfan10.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the GET OFF MY LAWN attitude is really off putting. I often wax nostalgic about the Good Old Days in fandom, but I'm never complaining the fandom is dying or whatever. People might say it's because FE fandom is old or some shizz, but look at Weiss Kreuz fandom. The anime's been over since '01 and yet there's still fic, discussion, a kink meme, and a badfic sporking site. And icons. Look at Zelda! LOOK AT HARRY POTTER. And Gundam Wing! Gundam Wing's been over since like, 2000 or whenever the dub came out and finished, and it's THRIVING.

So age =/= activity of a fandom.

Also some games are more popular than others. Elibe and Tellius are still huge, and for people who want Magvel, Jugdral, or Archanea that's...well, not fun for them. Part of the reason I don't go looking for FE fic much anymore is because I can't FIND MUCH. And yet I don't complain, I just wait for people who do write Archanea to put something new out. Or I write it.

MAJOR TURN OFF FOR NEWBIES? Newbie bashing. People one minute complaining the fandom is dying and needs more people, and when more people arrive they say OH THE NEWBIES ARE RUINING EVERYTHING. So newbies then gtfo because they don't want to be bashed because some old timers just can't let go of the past.

These people want dead fandoms? I'll give them dead fandoms. I'll point them in the direction of G-Gundam fandom. It was dying even before the fandom started, all the way back in 2002. Once the show ended, it pretty much died. Sukisho fandom is pretty much dead as well--one of my fics from TWO YEARS AGO is on the front page.

Fire Emblem isn't dead, but it will be if people don't let go of being miserable about how "nothing's like it used to be" (oh, when a lot of fic was OOC and badly written?) because not only are we not going to get new people, but people like myself are going to get fed up and leave.

In fact if it wasn't for all of my friends in this fandom, I would've left a long time ago.

Then again what do I know I joined back in 2005.

[writerawakened.livejournal.com]

Word. Nostalgia goggles are stronger than beer goggles. Oh yes. This sort of pining for the fjords "good old days" makes me wonder if people actually remember how things were back then. I don't even necessarily think there's a huge downturn in reviews--the old stuff has more reviews in part because they've had more time to gather passersby. But how much traffic/material/reviews stuff around LJ/ff.net gets is something that we as a community can have some influence over. Honestly? If half the people bitching that "oh ff.net is dead nuuu!" spent half that time trying to actively make things better, there would be a lot less to complain about.

Although I'm starting to think the complaining itself is what gives many people so much enjoyment. :|

So stop dragging up personality conflicts from a Very Long Time Ago

Yes, this. I've heard people around the anonmeme and elsewhere throw around the name of one author who isn't active around ff.net anymore--and it really ticks me off. From my experience, she was a good author and never known for being a malcontent around the community, so it utterly baffles why she seems to suddenly be a persona non grata.

[sarajayechan.livejournal.com]

Ahaha, yeah, about that last bit...I did bring up Atarashii, but I wasn't trying to start a bashfest or anything like that. She was just one of the big names when I first joined the fandom and was curious as to who else remembered her. (The bit about her stuff feeling OOC to me now was just an observation)

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

Um... I believe I was actually thinking of her stuff when I mentioned "bad Kent/Sain slash," as I've read her stories and whoa baby were they out-of-character.

Saying someone's 'fic collection is, in retrospect, way OOC? Not a problem, really. That's just perspective. Bringing in all kinds of issues as to who did what on this message board or this RP thread or this chat room or who didn't want to make nice way back when... hey man, I can show you my enemies list from Usenet circa '99 and it's about as relevant. If someone in the community is an actual threat to people, different story. Very different. But if you just don't like someone 'cause they got on your nerves, or they don't like your OTP, or they're friends of a friend of your worst enemy, or they were a dipshit fourteen-year-old and sort of grew out of it but never apologized? And all of this started nigh on a decade ago?

That, as Bob Dylan said, is really not my problem. Nor is it fandom's problem. Especially when some of these troublemakers/trolls/whatever aren't even in the fandom anymore! It's over and done with-- let go.

[sarajayechan.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, I had a feeling that's who YOU were referring to. XD; I was responding to Writer Awakened, lol.

Bringing in all kinds of issues as to who did what on this message board or this RP thread or this chat room or who didn't want to make nice way back when... hey man, I can show you my enemies list from Usenet circa '99 and it's about as relevant. If someone in the community is an actual threat to people, different story. Very different. But if you just don't like someone 'cause they got on your nerves, or they don't like your OTP, or they're friends of a friend of your worst enemy, or they were a dipshit fourteen-year-old and sort of grew out of it but never apologized? And all of this started nigh on a decade ago?

Ohh...so that's what WA mean, then.

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

In your defense, I sure don't recall you among the Chicken Little squad on the ffnet threads. Though I'm glad I found those, as it allowed me some insight into the situation that I wouldn't have had otherwise.

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

and a badfic sporking site.

Holy hell, what a sporking site. She actually is pretty funny, too- not as epic as ficbitches, but better than what the Potter sporkings degraded to.

and when more people arrive they say OH THE NEWBIES ARE RUINING EVERYTHING.

I actually don't recall seeing this. Maybe some people got the impression, but FE has been a delightful change from the norm in this regard. I didn't ever feel like I had to "present credentials" to be allowed an opinion. Though I do recall when Raphi got jumped last year-- sad.

But if you want new blood, screaming about how bad things have gotten is NOT the way. Who wants to set up shop in a place that's about to implode?

Fire Emblem isn't dead, but it will be if people don't let go of being miserable about how "nothing's like it used to be"

It'll be interesting to see what happens if FE12 actually attracts new writers.

[sailorvfan10.livejournal.com]

I check there every week too because I like her sporking style. Sure, it's not as awesome as Ficbitches, but I've found that good, funny, and TACTFUL sporkers are few and far between these days. Normally I don't even bother with sporking sites because I can do that myself, so when I find a good one, well... I'm excited.

I got that impression from something I read off of a forum, so maybe that was the thought process/general consensous there, but from my end of the fandom, I haven't heard much. Then again I feel I run in circles that aren't filled with elitist assholes who go BAAWWWW about newbies. So. Also, the FFN forums are known for their stupidity, so I should take everything said there with a grain of salt.

When I was a newbie in FE fandom I had to give over my fic credentials in some sort of discussion simply because they "hadn't seen my name before", mostly because I wrote for the then tiny FE6 fandom. I showed them, my ten or so fics written for FE6, and they slinked away probably feeling like an idiot. But it's not like I'm applying to be a quantum physicist or something where experience and references and what have you is necessary.

First FE12 needs to make it over the pond, and if it doesn't, someone's gotta make a fan translation. But I'd welcome them all the same because yay new people! And that's what fandom needs--people, new blood.

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

Sporking is like MSTing-- most of the "sporks" are no better in quality than the material they intend to eviscerate.

But it's not like I'm applying to be a quantum physicist or something where experience and references and what have you is necessary.

Well, a lot of fandoms do act this way. I was expecting some kind of "border guard" shakedown in FE fandom.

Fanbrat Guard: What are your credentials?
Me: I played one FE game through twice.
Guard: Which game?
Me: FE11.
Guard: There is no FE11! Access DENIED!

I was pleasantly surprised that nobody was in the guard shack and I could walk right in.

[writerawakened.livejournal.com]

Heh, I wonder if all three of us are talking about different people XD;;;

But yeah. It's one thing to air out a grievance about someone who said something stupid in the present, and another thing to say stuff about people/comments from way way back (especially in the context of anonymity; then again, I have a problem with slinging dirt anonymously in general. The GIFT, if you will, coming into effect.)

[sarajayechan.livejournal.com]

Could be. XD;;

Yeah, I know what you mean. It's the fandom equivalent of going "hey, remember that girl who got toilet paper stuck to her shoe in 6th grade????".

[sailorvfan10.livejournal.com]

In fact sometimes the fics they're MSTing and sporking are better written than the MST or sporking.

Aww, if that were the case, I'd have to dig a tunnel and sneak in D: ...maybe. I came here because of Tellius and Elibe, so I might have been thrown out then instead? idk. Good thing there is no guard shack.

Yet.

[samuraiter.livejournal.com]

I have always regarded the FFN forums as a "Me, too!" add-on designed to try and steal users from dedicated fandom boards, and I have never posted there at length. Nor do I pine for the good ol' days because, from my perspective, there never were any. (My "Good Ol' Days" are Sailor Moon fandom, anyway.) The 1st Generation of FE 'ficcers was (is?) dysfunctional to the point of hilarity, and I think echoes of a number of those attitudes are still passing through the (current) 2nd Generation.

As for personal animosities, I have but one, and everybody knows who it is. I do not try to hide it, but it does not seem to hamper anything, thankfully.