Summer Review
| Meta | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Summer Review |
| Creator: | Sheare Bliss |
| Date(s): | September 15, 1997 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom: | The X-Files |
| Topic: | fiction recommendations and reviews |
| External Links: | the post is here, Archived version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Summer Review is a 1997 post by Sheare Bliss at alt.tv.x-files.creative.
It is in response to REVIEW: Fan Fic, Summer '97 by Lore, of some recs/reviews she'd made to alt.tv.x-files.creative regarding X-Files fiction she'd read and wanted to recommend to other fans.
It should be noted that Sheare Bliss, this response post's author, was very controversial in their communications and decisions.
For additional context, see Timeline of Concrit & Feedback Meta.
Topics Discussed
- who has the right to make a rec list of fiction?
- was the alt.tv.x-files.creative list the appropriate venue for these opinions?
- will fans' feelings be hurt if they do not appear on such a list?
- feedback
- mentioned in theory but not by actual name: Snacky's Law, The Lurkers Support Me in Email
The Original Post by Sheare Bliss
While I think it's a fine idea to share what you've found especially enjoyable, I think touting your review as the best of the summer fanfic is both narrow and insulting. The best according to one person. First of all, posting reviews here strikes me as inadvisable. Many of the authors are first time authors, some are very young and just stretching their fictional wings. Whether or not I appreciate their efforts is beside the point--I applaud them for writing at all. Too, I don't claim to sit as judge for the newsgroup. Judging from what's posted, most of what I find good writing and enjoyable stories, such as Joann Humby's marvelous post-Geth tale, are neither welcome nor appreciated. Therefore, I'd never dream of posting a review claiming to be the summer's best, because according to prevailing taste, I would be in the minority.
One of the many reasons I no longer post my own stories here is precisely the kind of attitude that leads to publishing an allegedly definitive list of "the best". Since I do not write according to the popular trend, I stay out of the way.
I just hope that someone out there hasn't given up writing because of this review. I hope they remember that only by writing can they continue to learn and grow as writers, whether or not they're judged to be "the best" by any one person.
Excerpts from Comments
[Megan]:
The impression I got from the posting was very strongly that it was one person's opinions and recommendations. Unlike other things that have gone on of late, this "review" did not proclaim itself to be definitive, IMHO. It seemed more like a long contribution to the "Read anything good lately?" thread, naming fanfics by name and saying both what they were about and what the post-er liked about them. It seemed no more harmful than the new recommendation section added to Gossamer. ... Everyone here is a minority of one. I think most of us realize that. Even in your post, you are only expressing your opinion. In this post, I am only expressing mine. Should we all stop posting *everything* merely because it is our opinion? I mean, I know what you're saying here, a lot of the time posts to newsgroups seem to scream, "Look at me! I can post anything I want to!" but I don't honestly see a lot of cries for attention around here. By the same token, going out on a limb and saying, "This was pretty good," might encourage 1. people to try it and 2. people to agree with you. I have a hard time seeing that well-written stories aren't appreciated and should be withheld from us. Are these stories "too good" for the common readership?... Would someone reading this review say, "Oh, gee, I didn't write one of these stories so maybe I should stop?" or "Hey, I'll never be as good as XYZ so what's the point?" A lot of the so-called "acclaimed" authors of this group - the ones who win awards and are the "superstars" of this group weren't on that list. That actually makes me think this person wasn't looking for the popular trend you mention above. Also, I seem to remember the author of the review saying something along the lines of, 'I don't generally read stories like X, so I can't recommend any of them...' That wasn't maligning a genre, it was explaining a personal preference accounting for exclusions. Every time you get a comment from someone privately, it's their judgement. And I sure as hell hope no one starts discouraging commenting. I like to hear opinions of people who are reading and I have the feeling other authors do too. I think readers may even, to help them decide what in this vast sea might appeal to their own personal tastes. I would never be able to grow as a writer if people didn't tell me what they liked. Of course, a writer must also take into account that it is one person's opinion and decide whether there are valid points made.
[Youkneek]:
Sheare, I may be mistaken, but I looked at that review briefly this afternoon and seem to remember the poster making it clear up front that it was one person's opinion and that he/she? wasn't speaking for the group as a whole. Misguided or not I think he/she (sorry I can't remember which) was trying to offer a service to readers, although I certainly understand what you're saying about how kudos for one writer can inadvertently hurt others who weren't included. The same argument can be made for all the awards shows. The finest performances aren't always honored, as David Duchovny could probably tell you:) And yes, a lot of authors, myself included, no longer post to the group, but that's the breaks. I think the reviewer was writing for the folks on the group and even listed the sources which he/she accessed in the research. Let's give this person a break. I don't think there was any intent to scare writers away in the review.
[SUe, maintainer of the list's FAQ]:
But Bliss does have a couple of good points (argh! thanks, Bliss, now I have to go add something to the FAQ, and I thought it was about ready! <G>). While discussion should be encouraged, especially posts about what you liked and why (as in the "Read Anything Good Lately?" threads), detailed critiques that go point by point over someone's work is only really appropriate for the newsgroup if an author gives the go-ahead in their intro. Otherwise it's best kept to email. And to whoever wrote the original Summer Review, I'm not picking on you, so please don't take it that way. As I said, I haven't even read the whole thing yet (although it looked interesting, or I wouldn't have locked it) so I can't really say whether or not you went beyond what's generally accepted here. This just brought up good points that I wanted to call attention to.
[ InverNessie ]:
[addressing SUe, who'd just commented about perhaps making a change to the list FAQ due to this discussion]: I would strongly encourage you to read the post before you actually change any policy via the FAQ. I mean, do what you think is right, but I really don't think this post was a whole lot different from other story recommendations that commonly are done here, except that it provided a whole bunch of recommendations all in one package... I'm just sorry this person only did stuff posted in the summer - it would've been fine with me if she'd done the whole year.
[Rambo Dawson]:
Well, then what about movie critics? What gives them the right to publish in a newspaper their yearly "10-Best" lists? The fact is that the critics like Roger Ebert, Gene Siskel, et al, understand that <all> criticism is subjective, and only their opinion. The criticism only has validity for both the author and any potential reader if you find yourself agreeing (over time) with the thought processes of the critic.... <<First of all, posting reviews here strikes me as inadvisable. Why? I won't even go into the idea of creating alt.tv.x-files.creative.d for just such things, but it seems the obvious choice. The only problem there is that the newbies to both writing fanfic and the net might not understand the subtle distinction between the creative and the .d (for discussion,) newsgroup, and miss out on important feedback and constructive criticism.... Every single writer has to develop a thick skin. No one is going to be universally loved. The idea of 'shielding' the newer or inexperienced writers from criticism or insinuating that they would go crying into the night, taking their toys home and never sharing again because they didn't appear on ONE person's opinion of "What's Best" is insulting to THEM. It makes it appear as if we all have this huge duty to treat new writers, or young writers, differently than the superstars because of their fragile, delicate feelings. Gimme a break. Our duty to the newer and/or younger writers is to encourage them to write, write, write.
[Valoise]:
When I first read the Summer Review I found most of my favorite stories were missing from the listing. After reading Sheare's post I went back and reread Lore's review to see exactly what she said, and she did make a point of saying that it was just her opinion. But the parameters for what she selected as 'good' weren't really laid out until the very end. She apparently isn't comfortable with violence so any stories with a particularly violent content were not included. While I don't think the post was particularly out of place, I think it would have been much more valuable if she had stated how she chose her selections at the very beginning.
[InverNessie]
That this involved one person's opinion was really quite clear in her post. If it was insulting, so is every other recommendation that's ever been made here - what you're saying strikes me as inherently contradictory....OK, I give - what's the difference between a "review" and a "recommendation"? It's a pretty narrow distinction, don't you think? I'm not trying to be curmudgeonly just for the sake of it - I honestly don't understand your objection. I hope someone out there won't give up writing recommendations because this "review" created a little controversy. The fact is that, in fanfic, as in every other literary endeavor ever to hit the planet, there's a lot of crap out there - and that's true no matter what your taste is. We're not to going to grow if we start stifling the discussion. The "review" actually was quite complimentary of most pieces; anybody who would be scared off by that needs to grow some thicker skin pretty quick, before he/she gets the first private e-mail flame and really *does* give up writing.
[lore]:
Hello. I wrote the "review" in question. Let me say up front that I struggled with what to classify it. In retrospect, "My Recommendations on the Summer fan fic" would have been best, and probably would have avoided at least half of this misunderstanding....It is my mistake that in the first story I talked about, I omitted "I think" from the line: "The best post-Geth fic, and, really, the best fic to come out all Summer..." I used first-person throughout the review. I had a disclaimer that it was just my opinion up-front. I typed "I" so many times, the key sticks now. I thought it was clear that it was my opinion only that I was representing, but I do not think I touted my post as a "best" list for anyone but myself. Still, there's been confusion, so it is a failing on my part to be clear in my statements, and I am sorry for it. Also, someone said I should have put my "tastes" up front, instead of at the end. In looking back, I completely agree, and when I write another one, that is what I will do. Just because an author's story was not in my post does not mean it wasn't worthwhile fan fic. And I hope authors have enough self-esteem not to give up writing based on what one person has to say. My motivations for writing the "review" were to lead returning internetters to stories I thought deserved to be read. I am also on the XF Fictalk list, where most authors were commenting all Summer about how "down" the feedback was because a lot of readers were off-line. It's very hard just to keep up with the world of XF fan fic, and I didn't want to see the stories of Summer go unread by over half of the regular readers. I hope no one took what I had to say as a review of this newsgroup. The stories were pulled from all the major XF fan fic arteries, including here. My piece was posted here and to the Fic Talk list, the two most appropriate places I could think of to place it. The SUe, I also hope you read the entire "review" before you re-write the FAQ. I think if I had categoried it as a recommendation list, which I have said I should have and will in the future, it would have been perfectly on-topic here. It is a tough job to give feedback on stories. I feel it is egotistical to write someone and tell them what you think about their story. Still, I do it because most authors want feedback and some beg for it. I also feel it is the least I can do for enjoying the world of XF fan fic. My Summer roundup was as much *my* gentle feedback as it was an attempt to gain some Summer authors other feedback, so that they won't feel like they are writing in a vacuum. I *am* sorry for the misunderstandings and mistakes. But I would write and post it again (as a recommendation!). And I hope to do a smaller one for the Christmas holidays. Thank you, everyone who said positive things about my piece. I appreciate the feedback, too!
[CiCi Lean]:
If you don't want feedback, don't post publicly. It's that simple. Just the act of putting your work out there is the invitation for discussion and that's the way it SHOULD be. Or what's the point of all this? Look, no one can please all the people all the time. I found the list of this author's Summer *picks* interesting and helpful in pointing out some works that I had missed. And yes, I didn't agree with some of her picks, and yes, I feel she missed some great works but she's NOT me! Therefore, I don't expect us to agree on everything. Now, I'm more than willing to give my opinion on what I think was great this year, (in fact I built a web page of my faves...) and I don't see anything wrong with it at all. I mean, what greater feedback can we give authors then publicly announcing that their works were among our favorites? What better compliment and encouragement of a writer could there possibly be?
[jamrhein]:
I will politely disagree with the reviewer and say that most of what I see posted here is badly spelled, badly edited, excessively sentimental, and has more resemblance to Harlequin romances than to the show I watch. But what the hey, as long as he or she makes it clear that it's one person's opinion, I don't care. It's their vision of the show. My opinion is that Viv Wiley's Skinner arc, Joann Humby's Another Swim and her Tears of Betrayal, even the odd Synapses Hellraiser crossover were all better than any one of her choices. Big deal. That's my opinion. But maybe there's a little truth here. Maybe some of the junior writers could use a little more encouragement and fewer top ten lists.
[Rebekah]:
Can I offer a suggestion? In another creative newsgroup, reviews recently became common. However, I believe that those writing the reviews always check with the author of said story first to be sure it is OK. Could that be a compromise? I, for one, would love to read the reviews.
[Sheryl Martin]:
just thought I'd jump in here, seeing that the water is a wonderful steaming hot and the lobsters are running for cover.... ;-)seems to me that there's a variety of problems here that are being discussed; dissected; misinterpreted... fill in the blank here... the original poster might have worded her essay better - and she's admitted same... so, the next time she does post a review of the fanfic she's been impressed with in the past few months, she'll call it other than just "Summer Review" and include the disclaimer that it's only HER opinion... hey, we all learn from our mistakes and it's to be noted by all of us - it did take a bit of inner fortitude to post it in the first place, I might remind everyone... because she must have known that someone would be offended, right? not that anyone's opinion is worth any more or any less than anyone else's here, to remind everyone... I must admit I had a twinge of annoyance at reading the original post 'cause I wasn't there... and immediately went to the thought that somehow I had gotten worse, not better with more writing... but then I thought: it's not MY post, it's not MY opinion that's being put out here for all and sundry to read, think over, discuss and obviously tear to shreds when it's misunderstood... and would I have the guts to do this? nah... if there were a list posted of MulderAngst, I doubt I'd make the cut for some reason... grin... and everyone reading this would come up with a different list of what they like/dislike from the various genres... some people abhor Romance of any type or sort, while some live for the newest Rasch story... (hint, hint...)
but that doesn't make any declaration of preferences invalid, nor should it hold the poster up to a fiery roasting because they put up their thoughts on what they liked over the past few months... methinks we're all getting a little too touchy as the season premiere is still so far away... and that's to be expected, really... I think we've all learnt a few things from this thread...
first, that if you want to post a review or opinion of what you think is good fanfic, clearly label it as YOUR opinion and yours alone - and define the limits of what you judged by... like I said, I don't plan to see my name up for any Angst awards anytime soon...
second, no one's opinion is worth any more or less than what you, the reader of the post, give to it... if you agree then you'll obviously defend the poster, if you disagree you'll flame away with righteous indignation because *** was left out and so forth... which is your right on this public forum to agree to disagree... but to encourage anyone to NOT post their opinions is a bit anal, to me at least... and hey, who can stop you anyway???
third, ALL stories are valid and ALL writers are welcome here... remember, no one controls the Usenet here and this is a public forum, which means that any story or comment can be posted, with popularity being the only way presently to judge the quality of the story.... fortunately or unfortunately, that's the way things are in the world, and everyone's top ten list will be different - which doesn't make any of them more valid or less valid in the long run...
but that doesn't mean that the envelope can't be stretched or bent or warped to your reality - but you have to have the balls to post here and for all of us; and a hearty cheer to those who have the guts and the courage to do so... because it does take a lot of chutzpah to hit that "send" key, folks... whether it's a full-fledged story or just a comment... and last... Can We All Just Chill Out, Everyone???
[Sheare Bliss]:
Perhaps I wasn't clear in what I said. Honest criticism is the only way to improve one's writing. I wasn't suggesting that people don't need to learn to deal with criticism. I was suggesting that perhaps there needed to be more effort made to specify that these were recommendations from the review writer's point of view. Specifically, what I was told in private email by people thanking me for posting originally was that the reviews and recommendations have begun to sound like junior high school popularity contests, with all the clique members praising each other and ignoring any works that don't come from that clique.
[jamrhein]:
[Kipler] :
I've never had Mulder and Scully make kissy-face in a story. And still I've received lots of wonderful criticism about plot, characterization, mechanics and detail. I've met some wonderful, talented people through this group. Sure, there are a number of poorly-written stories out there, but certainly there always have been. I haven't noticed much of a change in the overall quality lately. Good authors stand out, as they always have. Good writing will receive feedback from readers who appreciate it. I'm not sure what the original "Summer Review" post said - I'll have to go look it up - but there've been lots of posted "favorite" lists that didn't include my favorites (or my work!). But sometimes they do recommend stuff I would have missed, and I'm grateful for them. As for cliques... well, I haven't noticed that. There are subgroups in here - readers and authors who have similar tastes and who respond well to each other. I tend to skip over writing that involves things that don't interest me, as I'm sure many people skip over my stuff because it doesn't interest them. But that's the same thing we do with movies, TV, and non-fanfic writing. <shrug>
[LochNess]:
<<I simply moved to a different sandbox where quality isn't judged by how many times Scully and Mulder make kissy-face in a story, but rather on plot, characterization, mechanics, and detail. And you thought the review was insulting?!? No, *this* is insulting, not only to every writer listed in the review, but basically to every writer who posts here. If you don't want to play here, that's your choice - but if you're going to sit outside, please refrain from firing potshots in.
[Teddi] :
>>It's also slightly bizarre, in my book, to expect someone to label their posts "OPINION" in big, bold letters. Of COURSE it's opinion. EVERYTHING HERE is opinion--including the fan fic, in which we portray the characters on the show in the way we OPINE that they are or should be. Amen. Come on, why would anyone in their right mind consider a statement like, "The story, 'XYZ', is good." to be anything but a personal opinion. If I were eating chocolate and stated, "Mmmm this chocolate is delicious," should a person who dislikes chocolate be offended? Would they be justified in demanding that I clarify my statement to "In my very humble opinion, mind you this *is* just an opinion, I find this chocolate to be delicious. This is in no way intended to discount the feelings of those very intelligent people with very capable taste buds who happen to dislike chocolate,"? BTW, I find it somewhat ironic that the same poster who was concerned that one person's list of favorite stories would offend writers here is not at all concerned to state her own opinion that this group is filled with "kissy-face" romances and that where she chooses to post her stories has better quality stories. Just to clarify... no, I don't think there was anything inappropriate in Bliss stating her beliefs on popular stories; I do feel she is being rather hypocritical in discounting Lore's opinions as "inappropriate" in the process, however. Disagreeing with an opinion is fair game and in fact, good for the newsgroup I believe. Stating that opinion has no right to be posted (i.e. inappropriate for the group) is just not fair game.
[Sheryl Martin]:
gotta agree with InverNessie here... [Bliss, your post is] a tad insulting to all of us; readers and writers alike... and you're kinda stating your position here that all romantic fanfic is bad, bliss... while that's your *opinion* and you're entitled to say it, I think it puts the previous posts and discussions into a different light... Angsters and Romantics and Slashers and Filkers all have their place in this group... as of late I don't remember seeing a lot of romantic stories filling up my mailbox; and if others consider this to be a place to post their MulderAngst and so forth, that's great... but don't try and label this group in that or any way - it's taken a lot of work for atxc to rise above the automatic label of all fanfiction groups as just being for "smut" or "Mary Sue" stories; and it's produced wonderful works of serious and dramatic stories among them... and I'd hardly call a work like "Therapy" or "Oklahoma" a story where "Mulder and Scully make kissy-face" - but yet those two hold a high place in the fanfic arena here... disproving your statement, hands down... if it were truly only a forum for the type of stories you claim; no one would want to read MulderAngst or write it - and yet it does show up here, in probably the same amount as the romance stories you abhor... (automatic apologies to all other authors - but those came to my mind as the best anti-romantic stories I can think of; sorry...) methinks you're tipped your hand... and it's nothing but a pair of twos; a three, a six and an eight... ;-)
[Sheare Bliss]:
Yes, it was insulting, and for that I apologize. Like Dawson, my temper was indeed up.And with regard to romances, not all romances are what I refer to as kissy-face stories. A number of them even have a plot, in addition to the kissy face. I not only don't mind these personally, I've read several, including some by those so heatedly disputing my right to take exception to the tone of the review. And enjoyed them. I even recall writing you a short note commenting on my enjoyment of one of your Dragon pieces sometime early last year.
With regard to angst--it's true, Therapy and Oklahoma were posted here initially. It is, however, my understanding from both of the authors in question that they will no longer post in atxfc for reasons of their own. Since I'm not holding any cards, Sheryl, I'm not sure what you mean by tipping my hand, outside of bluntly and tactlessly stating my opinion. And frankly, my right to comment here on what I consider quality or lack of same is obviously just as real as the reviewer's right to list the best of summer fanfic.
As to InverNessie's comment, quite right, there doesn't seem to be much point in continuing to check the newsgroup when I'm clearly a minority, particularly since the people who wrote to me were evidently too intimidated to post publicly.
[Kipler]:
As someone said, we're all a minority of one, here. I agree with some folks on some things and other folks on other things. I don't belong to any group that agrees to hold the same opinion on all subjects, so the odds are that whatever I do say, I may be the only one who feels that way. And once in a while, the majority disagree with me. So be it! But ceasing to post my stories because not everyone will like them, and ceasing to post my opinions because not everyone will agree with them, seems counterproductive to me. I come in here to post and read fanfic. All the flame (well, spark) wars that crop up from time to time and all the politics and all the personalities recede, eventually, and we're still left with some very good fanfic. I would selfishly hate to think that I'm not getting to read some good fanfic because authors are boycotting the non-fanfic stuff that goes on (whatever it is). And I'd also hate to think that there are good authors who are removing their work from a large part of the reading public. It's certainly their choice, and I respect it, but if the point of writing is to be read, then it would seem to make sense to post as widely as possible. To me, a single appreciative reader makes all the unappreciative ones worth it.
[ Hindy Bradley ]:
To find out what the fuss is all about I went back and read the Summer Review. Surprise! The only stories I'd read on that list were the NC-17s. (Sorry, probably way more information about me than you wanted to know, but then through reading your posts, I already know way more about some of you than I care to, so we're even.) I don't believe that that list constitutes the majority of this group's opinion as to the best of this summer fics. Certainly, not many of my favourites were there. (Apologies to the great writers who *were* on that list, but this was an outstanding summer for fanfic.)It seems that each place for posting and discussion of fanfic has its own dominant group. (My fingers are crossed that it's not the same few people running around dominating *every* group.) This doesn't mean that people in the minority should turn tail and leave. I think that the more places a story is posted (or talked about), the more opportunity the author has to find a new audience, even if it's only one reader somewhere, who has never ventured into that genre before.
As for people feeling too intimidated to post to this group, it doesn't matter. As long as they're not off pouting in the corner, but expressing themselves to someone, somewhere, then they have found an outlet. And so the community grows.
[Katie]:
I'd hate to see this kind of list of recommendations -- and it WAS clearly stated as one person's opinion, not presented as the definitive be-all and end-all -- discouraged. Considering how often authors going begging for feedback, I think this sort of list should be *en* couraged, not discouraged.I liked Dawson's movie-critic analogy. The better we understand how someone else's tastes mesh with our own, the more useful reading their opinions become. It doesn't mean much to know that Jane Doe likes a particular story if we have no sense of what kind of things Jane likes.
That said, I'm also at a loss to know what to do to help continue encouraging more feedback. I haven't read a whole lot this summer myself -- having been caught up in the throes of the first creative burst I've had in a very long time, I'm writing, writing, writing -- but I've been trying very hard to give positive feedback to everything I've read that I've liked. What's baffling to me is the LACK of feedback I've gotten in several situations: [several detailed descriptions of lack of a variety of feedback snipped]
I used to think of this group as a friendly community, but after experiences like the above, coupled with the really ugly flamewars of this spring over Gossamer-Gil-Chael-Chaos-fiction mailing lists-etc., and now *this* -- it's starting to feel more and more like an anonymous bureaucratic monolith. To me, anyway. I even stopped reading the group for a short period, I was so discouraged (Part of the reason I haven't read much recently -- I kept downloading stuff, but put it all aside for "later" and am only very slowly catching up a bit.) Somebody, please prove me wrong!
Do I sound bitter? I guess I do, at that. After being involved with this group for more than three years, I guess it hurts to feel ignored. It also makes me wonder how many other people might feel this way. I guess I've gotten away from the original topic -- so I'll reiterate -- I think that we should encourage not discourage people to post their opinions -- and the original writer of "Summer Review" clearly stated it was one person's opinion at the beginning. I appreciated the summary overview, as it gives me a starting point to try to jump back in the pool of reading ATXC after a period of not reading.
[Sheare Bliss]:
Well, before I lost my temper and behaved badly, for which, as I've said, I do apologize, that's what I intended to point out in the review. If I hadn't seen as many people in private correspondence complaining about the same thing in various ways, I probably would have started out the whole thread with a more even tone--although hellish heat in the area may certainly have exacerbated my lack of restraint.... despite my snarky comments earlier, I fear that the community only grows more and more divided with each exchange. And yeah, folks, I recognize my own culpability in that. Hindy, thank you for the voice of reason and courtesy. You said what I meant far more gently and courteously than I did, and I appreciate that more than you can possibly imagine.
[Pamela]:
If a reader thinks a story isn't getting as much attention or appreciation as it deserves, the obvious solution is to tell everyone about it! If a well-written, enjoyable story seems to have passed through the newsgroup without due notice, then *post* a followup article here telling everyone else how much you enjoyed it and encouraging more readers to look for it. Otherwise, if the rest of us did somehow miss it inadvertently (which is far more likely than our ignoring it intentionally), how will we ever know? I remember how dismayed I was by the fact that "Playing Goddess" hadn't received *any* feedback on the newsgroup for over a week after it was first posted (sometime in 1996). Could it be that no one else liked it? (impossible!) Or that they had *missed* it? (unthinkable!) Clearly, the best way to rectify the situation was to post an article exclaiming over how utterly wonderful this story was. Sure enough, as soon as I did, other posts in praise of "Playing Goddess" came pouring in. Far from being unwelcome or unappreciated, all that was needed to inspire a flood of positive feedback for this seemingly overlooked story was for someone (in this case, me -- an all-too-rare occurrence) to finally get motivated enough to *post* something about it here. Of course, including the *titles* of stories like Joann-Humby's--marvelous-post-Geth-tale-which-shall-apparently-remain-nameless would be a biiiiiig help ... ;-D If the stories you like are going unnoticed, that's all the more reason why you should post rave reviews about them here -- so that more people will notice them! How will the majority know what they're missing if the minority don't remind them? (Though it probably would be more diplomatic to substitute "My Summer Favorites" for "The Summer's Best," no matter what one's choices may be ... ;-)
[Andrew in Amherst]:
I myself saw only two problems with this review: (1) part 3 never showed up on my server; (2) the parts I saw didn't mention my fanfic.