Out of curiosity--can mods move posts from fdk to fanfic related in these situations? Or would it be too much of a pain for them to decide when something is irrevocably off-topic? I'm just wondering how things work in these situations.
We move out of place threads every day - that's part of the job and no problem. However, moving posts is very definitely much more complicated and really a hassle. It's fiddly and time consuming.
So it's not something we'd do as a matter of course and you can probably forget about moving several posts out of a thread en masse.
I would strongly reiterate other posts. There is
no embargo on new members discussing previously debated topics. So don't feel you need to look over your shoulder whenever you post. In fact, we pride ourselves on the fact that we're not a forum which leaps all over newbies and gets snarky about such things.
Posting a fic like this is extremely brave, given the current environment on this board. (An environment that has made it a place that I personally am far less inclined to visit.)
FoLCdom has always been less tolerant of 'controversial' topics than other fandoms. Nothing new there. In fact, I've been rather pleased to see how well the recent spate of deathfics from new authors has been received here. I was expecting much more negative responses to be honest.
Yes, there are a few FoLcs here and there who feel negatively about deathfic and who will say so, but I was both surprised and delighted to see so many postive responses to something a little more dangerous coming along and, on the whole, I've seen more positivity in the current atmosphere than negativity. I think that currently the majority viewpoint is in fact positive and open to exploring 'new' themes.
I've skimmed the thread in question and although I'd agree that adding some actual fdk to some of the debating posts might have been nice
(at least from those who'd read the story), I didn't see anything disrespectful to the author. Strong opinions, yes. A few negative opinions, true. But there's positive fdk in there, too. And I didn't read anything saying 'You shouldn't have posted this here'.
And don't forget that we haven't yet heard from Terry. Perhaps he's been enjoying the debate, for all we know.
Or not. Personally, I would have been disappointed that my fdk thread didn't contain more fdk. I do have to say that. And it might be a good idea for readers to remember that although debate and discussion leading on from a story is part of the fun of fdk, referring to the story and commenting on it should also be something to consider including when you post. I think people just got carried away with the debate and forgot that, in the main.
As in all things, it comes down to balance. Debate, discuss, question, gripe (politely)
. But do balance it with comment, please. And do remember that if the author indicates that they'd rather not answer your questions or debate an issue with you to respect that decision.
On another note, there are lots of stuff us newbies totally don't comprehend and people shouldn't assume we know what's going on. I've gotten brave and made posts such as 'I'm clueless as to what you are talking about'.
I should hope so, too! We were all newbies once. Something that some posters on internet forums seem to forget. I've never seen the need for jumping all over newbies for not instantly knowing everything. It's one of the things which seriously ires me on another forum I frequent. It's rude and unnecessary imo.
So, yes, please do post and ask if there's something you don't understand. That goes for all newbies. And if you don't understand something but don't want to post here on the forum for fear of looking dumb, just mail me or one of the other mods/admins and we'll be happy to answer any questions privately.
LabRat
