(no subject)
Jul. 29th, 2013 06:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
babydracoThis is not in defense of something I wrote, but of something that was written for me. A fic I enjoyed reading, where the author basically did exactly what I asked them to do. People don't usually make stuff for me, even when the request is anonymous, so I was pretty happy with what I got.
So I found references to that fic on someone's fic rant blog. They don't like the fic. They really don't like it.
I think they have a right to their opinion, but I'm distressed at the way the opinion was expressed. Also, I don't agree, which I'll elaborate on in a minute.
First of all, that they became instantly enraged by it, when maybe it was all just a simple misunderstanding. They could've gently explained their concerns to the author, who might've been able to find a way to incorporate those ideas into the fic. Because I can see ways that could've been done, a simple tweak here or there. But the author can't do that if the author doesn't know people have those concerns.
Yes, a lot of fic readers are afraid to tell an author directly that their story might be better with some tweaks, because of how often authors flip out on readers who do that. But there are ways you can do this to minimize the potential damage, especially when the story is not irredeemable. You can even explain it anonymously if you, like the complainant, appear to have difficulty getting your point across without being rude and insulting and hurtful even over tiny nitpicky issues.
But now I feel like my entire fic reading taste in that fandom is being called into question (which is interesting because I have some of the complainer's fics bookmarked on A03 too, *GASP* how can this be? ). I mean, I've been getting the general impression lately that I can't do anything right when it comes to my own fic in this fandom but now I have to deal with people getting nasty about a fic I requested someone else write.
Second, they were mad because their favorite character didn't feature enough. It was for a kink meme for Steve Rogers/Bucky Barnes shippers. Therefore, you'd expect most-all- of the fic coming out of that meme to be Steve/Bucky focused, right? That's what shipper fic is, it exists to get those two people together. If the character you wanted to see a story about is not named Steve or Bucky, pretty sure that explains why they weren't the star of the fic.
So anyway, this fic was a Rule 63 Steve/Bucky thing. So Bucky and Steve are girls (cis gendered women as far as this plot is concerned). It's post Winter Soldier, and Bucky goes on this date with a man who calls her an unpleasant gendered insult while they're at his apartment. And Bucky not only allows this but continues to have sex with him.
This reader had a big problem with that. They are enraged that Bucky didn't knock his teeth out. It bothered them so much that they tagged their complaint as "badfic". The spelling, grammar, punctuation and command of English was fine. Readable dialogue. The writer used good descriptions and was able to create atmosphere. They also had at least a basic grasp of the characters and their relationships to each other. The fact that someone else had quibbles with a line or the premise does not make it badfic, it makes it "waaaaa! This fic doesn't cater to my opinions even though it wasn't even written for me!" fic.
And I'm like, what? Yes, the guy just insulted her, and she actually lets him. This is not a moment when Bucky Barnes strikes a blow for feminism. Nobody said she had to- female characters do not have to be shining models of empowered feminism 24/7, they are allowed to be confused and afraid and make mistakes and it still doesn't make your work misogynist or problematic, because empowerment is a *process*.
But look. If Bucky hits this guy, there's a chance he'll hit back. And if he does, then Bucky will obviously have to take him down. She could do this without killing him- some broken fingers, a headlock, knock him unconscious, whatever. But does she trust herself to? Maybe she's scared that if she starts this fight, it will end with the Brooklyn PD finding his body tomorrow. So her best option is to do nothing.
People with real power don't use it to hit everyone who insults them (especially if it's that person's first offense). Hitting someone who has not yet even threatened to hit you, no matter what it is that they just said, is not feminism, it's being a bully. Yes, 616!Bucky is hot blooded and gets in fights, but what the hell ever made you assume this was comics fic? I certainly didn't include a preference in the original prompt, and when you don't specify comics fic, you get movie fic.
She could have said something back, and then left. But then how would the rest of the plot move forward, since it required him seeing her naked? Maybe the author could've had him call her the insult while they were already naked, but hindsight is 20/20 and let's all scream about it instead of leaving politely worded CC.
I feel the same about the scene on the train. I thought it was supposed to be ironic that the man with the briefcase tries to extend protection to her when those boys look like they're going to bother her- because they have no idea what they're dealing with. Any of them. It's a very Whedonesque moment. Aha! Pretty young woman traveling alone at night, let's get her- while pretty young woman traveling alone is actually a superhero. And we all breathe a sigh of relief when the standoff ends without incident because we don't want to have to feel embarrassed for potential rapists. The impression I got wasn't that she was afraid of them but that she was afraid of what she is capable of doing to them.
And that was why Steph was waiting up for her. To make sure Bucky didn't hurt anyone.
I mean, Bucky could've accidentally gone Winter Soldier on someone that night...and then had to go home and freak over whether she should tell Steph or not. And maybe she does and Steph holds her while she spends the night puking and shaking and having flashbacks. And Steph has a moral conundrum over whether to tell S.H.E.I.L.D that Bucky had some sort of relapse. Because if she tells someone, they'll take Bucky into custody again. But if she says nothing and Bucky hurts someone else...
That would've been a cool fic. But it wouldn't have been the one I asked for. And one thing I've learned about prompt memes and fic exchanges is that the most important part is to give the OP what they requested, not something you think is a better concept.
I *asked* for a fic about 63!Bucky and Steve being confused about modern grooming habits. That is exactly what I got. If this concept was not to your taste (apparently merely introducing the subject of a character being confused about whether or not she should wax was so offensive people flew into rages. No, you're right, she shouldn't have to, no one should have to, that wasn't the frigging point, merely mentioning the fact that this pressure exists and that people struggle with it does not indicate that I or the author had come down on one side or the other ^&#$(@!!!) I only wanted to see the conflict addressed. If this concept is not to your taste, that's fine. It wasn't written for you. It was written for ME. For a kink meme, not a general Avengers or Marvel meme but for a specific pairing, and it didn't violate any of the meme rules.
Furthermore! The Bucky as depicted in this fic matches up well with the current fanon view of the MCU Winter Soldier so the fic was just slightly ahead of its time.
So I found references to that fic on someone's fic rant blog. They don't like the fic. They really don't like it.
I think they have a right to their opinion, but I'm distressed at the way the opinion was expressed. Also, I don't agree, which I'll elaborate on in a minute.
First of all, that they became instantly enraged by it, when maybe it was all just a simple misunderstanding. They could've gently explained their concerns to the author, who might've been able to find a way to incorporate those ideas into the fic. Because I can see ways that could've been done, a simple tweak here or there. But the author can't do that if the author doesn't know people have those concerns.
Yes, a lot of fic readers are afraid to tell an author directly that their story might be better with some tweaks, because of how often authors flip out on readers who do that. But there are ways you can do this to minimize the potential damage, especially when the story is not irredeemable. You can even explain it anonymously if you, like the complainant, appear to have difficulty getting your point across without being rude and insulting and hurtful even over tiny nitpicky issues.
But now I feel like my entire fic reading taste in that fandom is being called into question (which is interesting because I have some of the complainer's fics bookmarked on A03 too, *GASP* how can this be? ). I mean, I've been getting the general impression lately that I can't do anything right when it comes to my own fic in this fandom but now I have to deal with people getting nasty about a fic I requested someone else write.
Second, they were mad because their favorite character didn't feature enough. It was for a kink meme for Steve Rogers/Bucky Barnes shippers. Therefore, you'd expect most-all- of the fic coming out of that meme to be Steve/Bucky focused, right? That's what shipper fic is, it exists to get those two people together. If the character you wanted to see a story about is not named Steve or Bucky, pretty sure that explains why they weren't the star of the fic.
So anyway, this fic was a Rule 63 Steve/Bucky thing. So Bucky and Steve are girls (cis gendered women as far as this plot is concerned). It's post Winter Soldier, and Bucky goes on this date with a man who calls her an unpleasant gendered insult while they're at his apartment. And Bucky not only allows this but continues to have sex with him.
This reader had a big problem with that. They are enraged that Bucky didn't knock his teeth out. It bothered them so much that they tagged their complaint as "badfic". The spelling, grammar, punctuation and command of English was fine. Readable dialogue. The writer used good descriptions and was able to create atmosphere. They also had at least a basic grasp of the characters and their relationships to each other. The fact that someone else had quibbles with a line or the premise does not make it badfic, it makes it "waaaaa! This fic doesn't cater to my opinions even though it wasn't even written for me!" fic.
And I'm like, what? Yes, the guy just insulted her, and she actually lets him. This is not a moment when Bucky Barnes strikes a blow for feminism. Nobody said she had to- female characters do not have to be shining models of empowered feminism 24/7, they are allowed to be confused and afraid and make mistakes and it still doesn't make your work misogynist or problematic, because empowerment is a *process*.
But look. If Bucky hits this guy, there's a chance he'll hit back. And if he does, then Bucky will obviously have to take him down. She could do this without killing him- some broken fingers, a headlock, knock him unconscious, whatever. But does she trust herself to? Maybe she's scared that if she starts this fight, it will end with the Brooklyn PD finding his body tomorrow. So her best option is to do nothing.
People with real power don't use it to hit everyone who insults them (especially if it's that person's first offense). Hitting someone who has not yet even threatened to hit you, no matter what it is that they just said, is not feminism, it's being a bully. Yes, 616!Bucky is hot blooded and gets in fights, but what the hell ever made you assume this was comics fic? I certainly didn't include a preference in the original prompt, and when you don't specify comics fic, you get movie fic.
She could have said something back, and then left. But then how would the rest of the plot move forward, since it required him seeing her naked? Maybe the author could've had him call her the insult while they were already naked, but hindsight is 20/20 and let's all scream about it instead of leaving politely worded CC.
I feel the same about the scene on the train. I thought it was supposed to be ironic that the man with the briefcase tries to extend protection to her when those boys look like they're going to bother her- because they have no idea what they're dealing with. Any of them. It's a very Whedonesque moment. Aha! Pretty young woman traveling alone at night, let's get her- while pretty young woman traveling alone is actually a superhero. And we all breathe a sigh of relief when the standoff ends without incident because we don't want to have to feel embarrassed for potential rapists. The impression I got wasn't that she was afraid of them but that she was afraid of what she is capable of doing to them.
And that was why Steph was waiting up for her. To make sure Bucky didn't hurt anyone.
I mean, Bucky could've accidentally gone Winter Soldier on someone that night...and then had to go home and freak over whether she should tell Steph or not. And maybe she does and Steph holds her while she spends the night puking and shaking and having flashbacks. And Steph has a moral conundrum over whether to tell S.H.E.I.L.D that Bucky had some sort of relapse. Because if she tells someone, they'll take Bucky into custody again. But if she says nothing and Bucky hurts someone else...
That would've been a cool fic. But it wouldn't have been the one I asked for. And one thing I've learned about prompt memes and fic exchanges is that the most important part is to give the OP what they requested, not something you think is a better concept.
I *asked* for a fic about 63!Bucky and Steve being confused about modern grooming habits. That is exactly what I got. If this concept was not to your taste (apparently merely introducing the subject of a character being confused about whether or not she should wax was so offensive people flew into rages. No, you're right, she shouldn't have to, no one should have to, that wasn't the frigging point, merely mentioning the fact that this pressure exists and that people struggle with it does not indicate that I or the author had come down on one side or the other ^&#$(@!!!) I only wanted to see the conflict addressed. If this concept is not to your taste, that's fine. It wasn't written for you. It was written for ME. For a kink meme, not a general Avengers or Marvel meme but for a specific pairing, and it didn't violate any of the meme rules.
Furthermore! The Bucky as depicted in this fic matches up well with the current fanon view of the MCU Winter Soldier so the fic was just slightly ahead of its time.
