Senad

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Mailing List
Name: Senad - The Sentinel Adult Discussion list
Date(s): 1996-present
Moderated:
Moderators/List Maintainers: Ann Teitelbaum
Founder(s): James Walkswithwind
Type: discussion
Fandom: The Sentinel
Scope: slash
URL: http://www.senad.org/ (Senad info page updated 2006) another version
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Senad, which stands for SENtinel Adult Discussion, is an adults-only, slash-centric discussion list for The Sentinel. It is hosted on squidge.org.

The feeling by some that Senad was insufficiently tolerant of critical discussion led to the founding of other Sentinel lists such as Prospect-L.

Policies Regarding Feedback and Discussion

Following a vigorous late 1996 debate on Virgule-L about the the role that feedback should play in fandom, Senad put two rules into place.

The first was to stress that the mailing list was not for the purpose of in depth discussions of fan fiction.

The second rule was that if there was any discussion about fan fiction, list members had to had to think of authors first:

Remember that the author of the story put time and effort into it, and that comments about stories are likely to affect people on a very personal level. This is especially true when naming specific stories and/or individual authors. A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself if what you are about to say is something you would say directly to the author. Please keep this in mind even if you know the author is not a member of SENAD. [1]

ObSenads

Members of the list were expected to stay on topic; the penalty for posting off-topic was for the offender to write an ObSenad, a short "obligatory" story or vignette featuring Sentinel characters.

Fan Comments

2000

I quit Senad before there was an SXF, when no one did anything but post (usually) bad fic or effusively praise the (usually) bad fic that had just been posted. Haven't been back since. I have enjoyed hearing about all the foolishness over there, though. [2]

SXF was created in early 1997, as I recall. I mention this to help clarify (to anyone who cares...or remembers) that there were very few of us posting fiction to Senad in the first few months.

As I recall, much of it was quite good. Not all, but not drek, either. I'd love to hear some good discussion on the early fic, both good and bad, in part because that's the stuff I was reading and because there were some wonderful stories that newcomers probably have never found, wading through

the archive. (Cesca! List!) ;-) [3]

there have always been and always will be fluffbunnies who can't stand any negativity at all, who firmly believe that making things *look* bright and happy means that things *are* bright and happy, and who have no understanding of those of us who want to see the truth no matter how unpleasant it might be. And, for that matter, who have no understanding of those of us for whom snarking is *fun*. This fandom... has more than its share. And [A] made Senad a home for them, which is fine - they deserve to live, too, and all that. The problem was, it was the only home available for the rest of us, too - for way too long. Whether the fault lies with Ann for making the major Sentinel Slash discussion list a writer-oriented, reader-unfriendly place where nothing but praise is allowed <cough>, or with the rest of us for not starting a different list sooner - I don't know. [4]

I left Senad June of 99 with the idea I might go back after the summer. Imagine my surprise to find that not only didn't I miss it -- leaving reduced my stress level by 1000%. <bwg>[5]

References

  1. ^ Senad List Policy as updated in 2006, accessed Feb 12, 2012.
  2. ^ from Prospect-L, quoted anonymously (June 2000)
  3. ^ from Prospect-L, quoted anonymously (June 2000)
  4. ^ from Prospect-L, quoted anonymously (June 2000)
  5. ^ from Prospect-L, quoted anonymously (June 2000)