Ok Good...Ok Fine: Editors' Soapbox
| Open Letter | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Ok Good...Ok Fine: Editors' Soapbox |
| From: | Jeanne Cloud |
| Addressed To: | Beauty and the Beast (TV) fans |
| Date(s): | April 1990 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | Beauty and the Beast (TV) |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Ok Good...Ok Fine: Editors' Soapbox is a 1990 open letter by Jeanne Cloud, one of the two editors of Once Upon a Time...Is Now.
It was printed in that letterzine's twenty-first issue.
Some Topics Discussed
- the fracturing of the fandom due to decisions made by TPTB regarding casting changes, plotting, and characterizations in the the show's third season
- free speech
- referenced are three open letters
- one by Stephanie Wiltse, editor of Pipeline: I have wrestled long and hard with my conscience whether to reveal what went on behind the scenes of fandom itself during the last several months.
- one by Pat Almedina, editor of Promises of Someday: This fandom is destroying itself and this has got to stop.
- one by Kathy Cox, editor of Destiny: I never thought I'd live to see the day when this fandom would be in such a state.
For fan commentary on these for letters, see "Once Upon a Time...Is Now" Open Letters (April 1990).
The Letter
I received a letter in the mail the other day that contained an opening paragraph that broke my heart... It contains the sentence "If this is fandom, I quit." which is becoming a growing sentiment among more and more fans. People, what are we doing? This in-fighting is not getting better and I, for one, am SO weary of it. From the personal letters and phone calls I am getting, so are many of you. We all got into fandom to celebrate the joy of this unique show. It was supposed to be fun. I ask you — is this fun??? I don't think so. More and more people are dropping by the wayside and soon our "house of cards" is going to collapse. There has to be a change and maybe someone has to take the bull by the horns and initiate it.
Joyce and I are going to try such a change and see what happens. We both agree that we would prefer to shut this publication down rather than continue to deal with these depressing, angry letters concerning the Catherine/3rd season issue. It is perpetuating all that is harmful to fandom and that was never our intent.
Lest there be any confusion, let me point out that we are not talking about literary disagreements. We are talking about the demoralizing disagreements many fans are having against one another. So, with that said, we would like to propose something to you. This publication, like the series, tried to keep hope and promise alive. We would like to get back to that. With the May issue (#22), you will see the last of the negative letters. If your letter has not been printed by then, it has been dumped. We are not saying that we will never discuss the third season again, but we feel it needs a rest until things calm down. What would you think about a topic of discussion to put us back on a more hopeful, creative, and positive track? If you have other ideas, we welcome your input. We are not so dictatorial that we don't want to consider your needs and wants. After all, this newsletter was designed for you, our reader. The May issue will announce what the new direction will be. The response you give us will determine whether we stay on a monthly basis, go back to bi-monthly, or fold.
I would like to refer you now to a letter written by Kathy Cox. She states very eloquently how this in-fighting is killing our creativity. We have also printed editorials from Stephanie Wiltse, editor of PIPELINES, and Pat Almedina, editor of PROMISES OF SOMEDAY, to show we are united with most of the major publications across the country.
There are a few fans waxing words about how it is a newsletter/zine editor's duty to present a neutral unbiased view of all issues. I would like to respond to that with whoever said editing a newsletter was a democracy? We aren't a newspaper. These are letters of comment. All newsletter editors have the right to refuse to print anything that does not meet personal policy standards. These policies are set and shaped by personal opinion. OUR policies were printed for you last issue. The ONLY responsibility fanzine editors have is to make sure that what we do print is accurate to the author's written word. The only editing generally done is for punctuation, spelling, and grammar. We have all tried our best to be as fair as possible in printing letters from both sides of this debate as can be well document in back issues. I am getting very tired of hearing that we are telling you that YOU have no right to state any/or all of your opinions. We have never said that, nor, to the best of my knowledge, has anyone else. You may write to your hearts content. No one, however, has an OBLIGATION to print it. There are some publications out there that will still continue to print all of this bickering if you have to express it. By all means, write to them. Joyce and I simply have chosen to walk a lighter, brighter path. The change may destroy this publication. That remains to be seen. We expect and hope to still see controversy within these pages. However, we expect it to be more constructive than destructive in nature. Thank you for your past words of encouragement and please, please write us and tell us your thoughts on our future plans pf action. We need your input.