elisi: Edwin holding a tiny snowman (Birthday Spike by kathyh (not sharable))
elisi ([personal profile] elisi) wrote2007-05-19 11:04 am
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Sum stuff.

Stuff to be cranky about:

I'd heard about the MJ statue, but not actually seen it until this morning. I've boggled until I can boggle no more...

The launch of FanLib.com. From the press release:

The launch of FanLib.com represents the coming of age of fan fiction, or "fanfic." Fan fiction is the original consumer generated media — original works of fiction written by fans and based on their favorite TV, film and book characters.

FanLib.com launches with co-promotional partners including HarperCollins, Penguin Books, Showtime Networks, Simon & Schuster, and Starz Entertainment. The launch partners are heavily featured and have customized marketing integrated on the site while providing promotion for FanLib.com.

Good post here with lots of links. (Thanks to [livejournal.com profile] ruuger for the link.)

As we all suspected, W&H are real! *shudders*


Stuff to be happy about:

It's [livejournal.com profile] treacle_a's birthday! Have a fantabulous day dear and may your husband spoil you rotten and the baby never cry! *smooches*

For those of you unfamiliar with this lovely lady, she's a brilliant writer, and if you've never read Mortal Wounds you must go do so immediately. (Yes it's a WIP that might never be finished. Read it anyway!)
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[identity profile] deborahc.livejournal.com 2007-05-19 11:01 am (UTC)(link)
The launch of FanLib.com represents the coming of age of fan fiction, or "fanfic." Fan fiction is the original consumer generated media — original works of fiction written by fans and based on their favorite TV, film and book characters.

FanLib.com launches with co-promotional partners including HarperCollins, Penguin Books, Showtime Networks, Simon & Schuster, and Starz Entertainment. The launch partners are heavily featured and have customized marketing integrated on the site while providing promotion for FanLib.com.

I don't get it. How can those commercial publishers and networks and such be "selling" fanfic?
elisi: Edwin holding a tiny snowman (WTF? by egeria_uk)

[personal profile] elisi 2007-05-19 11:14 am (UTC)(link)
No idea how it works. Well obviously all the fanfic is free, but nevertheless they're trying to make money from those reading and writing it. The one thing fandom has never needed is men in suits.
gillo: (worried)

[personal profile] gillo 2007-05-19 02:33 pm (UTC)(link)
The MJ thing even made the Guardian yesterday (thirds story down) - so it's getting around and I doubt if it will actually do the company much good in the long run.

The Fanlib thing is disturbing because I see it as an opportunity for wholesale plagiarism. I know lots of people are registering their writing names to stop people hijacking them and posting crap under them, but my instinct is to wonder if the opposite isn't more likely. There are already nearly a hundred and forty Buffy stories posted there, and I only recognise one of the names (but I'm a relatively new reader in the fandom, and it's not just possible but probable that I wouldn't recognise many you would) - but one or two of the wordings seemed oddly familiar. Could be I'm paranoid, but babybubblebutt isn't so very long ago, and it's very easy indeed to cruise LJ and lift stories to post under an alias.

In any case, it looks like the entire site should be treated with disdain. Possibly only at the end of two very long bargepoles at that.
elisi: Edwin holding a tiny snowman (It's a good fandom by killmebecomeme)

[personal profile] elisi 2007-05-19 08:59 pm (UTC)(link)
so it's getting around and I doubt if it will actually do the company much good in the long run.
Well that's something at least...

Could be I'm paranoid, but babybubblebutt isn't so very long ago, and it's very easy indeed to cruise LJ and lift stories to post under an alias.
Oh, I hadn't thought of that! Damn. I fear you may be right.

In any case, it looks like the entire site should be treated with disdain.
Indeed. As if fandom *needs* men in suits to run their world for them! The whole *point* is that this world is for fans, by fans. Trying to commercialise it will hopefully backfire!
ruuger: My hand with the nails painted red and black resting on the keyboard of my laptop (Writer)

[personal profile] ruuger 2007-05-19 09:15 pm (UTC)(link)
Could be I'm paranoid, but babybubblebutt isn't so very long ago, and it's very easy indeed to cruise LJ and lift stories to post under an alias.

Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they're not out to get you - one of the posts linked at [livejournal.com profile] metafandom actually mentioned that one FanLib's visions is to "make it easy to share your favourite fanfics". Which does not sound good to me...
gillo: (Fine man)

[personal profile] gillo 2007-05-19 10:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, I had a quick look at a few of the stories, and with a couple of exceptions most of them are the sort I tend to avoid - not because of teh ships but because of the quality.

The whole point about fanfic, though, is that it is regulated by the reader and the writer - by who you choose to read or where you choose to post. And suits will never get that in a million years.

gillo: (Authorship by angevin2)

[personal profile] gillo 2007-05-19 10:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"Easy to share" is remarkably close to "easy to steal" - and there's o evidence of any serious anti-plagiarism policy there. Not if decent fic keeps readers coming and thus encourages the adverts. So far there isn't a lot of evidence of particularly decent fic, mind you.
elisi: Edwin holding a tiny snowman (Writer by eyesthatslay)

[personal profile] elisi 2007-05-20 07:20 pm (UTC)(link)
because of the quality.
*nods* Since anyone can post, it'll probably have the same problems as ffnet.

And suits will never get that in a million years.
Here's to hoping they'll sink soon and fast!
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