#I don't know what's the etiquette when reviewing fics here on tumblr

[hazbinbabbling4ever]

My top 10 gomens fics

I decided to do this too, so here’s my fav fics from 2023 (but probably also 2022, this post has been in the drafts for a loong time), so here we are:

In mixed company, or the corporate retreat of Heaven and Hell (M) by Theoldaquarian

Probably my favorite fanfic ever: it’s not just the getting together story that is fun and entertaining to read, but it’s the world building surrounding them that almost feels like I’m reading the book all over again. From the inner workings of Heaven and Hell to the various secondary characters, it felt like I was reading a spin off written by the authors (and now that s2 is out and the two Ineffable Dumbasses kissed, even more so).

A few more rescues (T) by poetic_nonsense

I am a big fan of anything that sees these two dorks navigating history with all their quirks and problems and pining. This story is one of the best I’ve read on the theme, it offers some more rescues courtesy of Dashing Hero Crowley, with Swooning Maiden Aziraphale (mostly) grudgingly participating. It’s super soft, pine-y and also very funny.  Time Flies (When You're Having Fun) (E) by Mussimm

This is very much like a bodice ripper but with much better writing. The mistery is not the centre of the narrative, it’s not just “how will Azira stop the time loop”, but how he and Crowley will meet every time, how things change in slightly different scenarios, but in all of them they’re just so soft for each other. 

A Winding Path (T) by ZehWulf

The cutest retelling of Red Riding Hood. Amazing atmosphere, world building and interactions between all the characters. You can read the relationship between Azi and Crow how you want, friendship or more, it’s perfect whichever way you spin it. It’s eerie and soft at the same time, the fairytale tone is still very much present and it’s not disney-an in the slightest, it’s more like an old-fashioned grimm tales. 

Temptation (E) by TawnyOwl95

Vampire fic which veered from what I expected and I was so happy with it. Funny and with just the right dose of adventure and pining. 

The rose and the serpent (T) by Atalan

Probably one of my favourite fics ever. It has fairytale elements to the nines, but also a strong plot, splendid side characters and a love story that’s so soft and beautiful. 

The rose thief and the Priest (T) by Improbabledreams900

This wins the cake for random-est plot ever, but it’s super soft and a nice love story over all, Aziraphale is a little shit and I loved him for it, Crowley is your usual “wiley” mess. They sort it out beautifully in the end.

In the house we remain (M) by Commodorecliche

I’m not a fan of romances between a ghost and a living person but this was written in such a convincing, realistic, intriguing way that I was hooked from start to finish. It doesn’t shy away from the dark themes/gore-y details that such a love story entails and I can’t recommend it more.

So You Need To Get Into A.Z. Fell & Co.; Now What? (A Guide For Unfortunate Bookworms) (G) by C4llistrad

I love outsider pov’s anything. Fics like this one, where we get to see our fav characters through the eyes of strangers (who could as well be us), and we piece together bits of information here and there. It’s super fun. 

The Penthouse (G) by Worseomens

Another outsider pov, where we see the friendship between Crowley and one of his neighbors. Super funny.

[wordrage]

PSA: Fandom is a Party, Not a Market

It's been a couple decades since I first entered fan spaces (fandom). Overall the experiences I've had within a fandom have been extremely positive! However, there is a behavior I had to unlearn through trial and error, what the unwritten rules are of how to conduct myself.

Here are some tips if you're new to interacting with fanworks within fandom:

Fanfic/Fanart is a gift.

The writer/artist created something and it's being shared to the fandom. If you appreciate and enjoyed the gift, tell them! Joy is meant to be shared, and being in a fandom means we're all here to celebrate a shared story or experience!

Comments/reblogs/likes/etc are all ways to say "thank you" to the artist or writer that took the time and effort to create and share their joy.

Think of fandom like a massive, ongoing party. People are coming and going, having chats and discussions about the book, show, movie, etc. on and off. You can walk around saying hi and join in on these open conversations.

Occasionally, someone goes up on stage to announce they are going to post a new piece of fanart on the wall for everyone to look at if they want. Everyone interested can make their way over to where the art is displayed by the artist and check it out.

Someone else announced they just put a new fic on the fanfic shelf. Everyone is over there reading and chatting about what they enjoyed with the writer and each other.

Just like in a real life party, if someone came over to any one of these groups unasked to start telling everyone why they dislike whatever is being talked about, it isn't going to be received positively. Some people might agree with you and join in, but most will see a person committing a social faux pas.

How Do I Return the Gift?

The polite and expected etiquette when coming across a fandom fic or fanart that you're not feeling is to either keep scrolling, or hit the back button. Don't like, don't read has been an age old saying in fandom, for good reason.

If the fanart or fanfic isn't to your taste, move on! There's no need or reason to tell the writer/artist you didn't like what they created. Unless you are specifically asked for constructive criticism by the writer or artist, your input is not needed nor asked for. To reiterate the above, fan creations shared are a gift. Just like if you received a gift you didn't like or want, especially one made by the gifter, would you immediately tell them all the reasons you don't like it? List reasons why they should rework it to your taste? Write critical "reviews" posted to sites like Tumblr, Goodreads, TikTok, etc. where the writer or artist can see them?

Why? What is your goal to do this? If the artist/writer didn't ask to be criticized, then you're doing the equivalent of telling someone that just wrote you a story or drew picture for you all the reasons it's bad. Who are you to decide what is good and bad?

How Will They Know They're Wrong?

Fandom means we are all here to celebrate something we all enjoy. You kill the mood of the party when you do things like complain how another fan's art failed to meet your expectations.

Also, please remember the artists and writers are fellow fans. Real human beings that put their time, effort, and a part of themselves in their work. Art is subjective, but there's a time and place to criticize that person, and at the public fandom party in front of everyone is not it.

Instead, form friendship's with fellow fans that share your tastes and are like-minded, and complain to them directly. Step out of the party into the yard for privacy and form a group chat where you can post your honest reactions. Run through the emotional reaction you're processing after seeing something you strongly dislike.

Warning: Unchecked snark and negativity can quickly turn toxic. Venting is fine, we all have to do it, but if you find your group space is only complaining about other people's fan works, or complaining about the people themselves, then maybe it's time to take a break and go home for a bit. Maybe go check out some other parties, or share your own fic/fanart.

Tag Responsibly

Lastly, if you're going to ignore everything above and continue to intrude at the party with toxicity, don't be a jerk and tag the fandom. Or ship. Or the creator's name. If people wanted your criticism, it would be asked for. Don't hurt someone's feelings because you wanted your 5 minutes of Internet fame.

[malice-mercy-miracle]

I normally stay out of interpersonal fandom drama because it's exhausting, pointless, and I'm too old for that shit. But I've been in online fandom spaces to varying degrees for about 20 years, and my short stint with the Bad Omens Tumblr fandom thus far is, without question, the most toxically selfish and immature community I have every stepped foot in. And I was in the A:TLA ship wars.

I'm going to try to keep this very simple.

Don't like; don't read. I truly cannot fathom the fact that this aspect of fandom etiquette has fallen by the wayside. If you don't like fic/art/ships/tropes or whatever else, just don't look at it. It's that simple.

You are responsible for your own triggers. Now this comes with a heavy caveat, in that anyone writing dark/traumatic content should tag it as such. But ultimately each individual is responsible for their own mental health. If a fiction has dark content and has appropriate warnings, just don't read it and you won't be triggered. If a fic has dark content and it's not tagged, politely ask the author to use appropriate warnings. And if they refuse? BLOCK THEM. Because 1) that's bad etiquette on their part, and 2) blocking someone who typically posts triggering content is a great way to not deal with triggering content!

Writing about illegal things is not illegal. I can't believe I have to say this. Depiction of illegal, taboo, or harmful things in media is allowed. The only context in which it should reasonably be constrained is when the target demographic is likely to try to replicate it - AKA children's media. I'm pretty sure no one here is an eight year old?

People can have any variety of reasons to read or write taboo, traumatic, or illegal content into their fics. It's not your business why they do it. Genuinely. You are not entitled to that information. Nobody owes you justification.

Harassment IS illegal. Sending people repeated hate messages, threats, comments on their children or personal lives, etc. could all be construed as harassment and is actually fucking illegal. You do not respond to someone portraying something taboo, triggering, or "but that's illegal!" in a work of fiction by harassing them until they leave the fandom space because they feel unsafe. Given that these behaviors are typically happening on anon, I'm pretty sure you know this.

I'm coming at this as someone who is not only in fandom spaces, but also reading, writing, and reviewing outside of fandom. I have read books that contain wildly problematic content, but there's still a time and place for how I respond to that. I don't send authors anonymous hate mail because their book had a gratuitous SA scene for cheap drama; I write a professional review calling it out, explaining why it's an issue in terms of how it's framed and in context with the genre and target demographic, and I do what I can to make sure there's content warnings available for future readers.

Now you might be thinking, "This is Tumblr. We don't have any professional review spaces here."

You'd be right.

Because this is fandom. We're talking about fanfic. Something people write for shits and giggles as a hobby. For free. Chill the fuck out.

Anyway, that's my piece. Any and all vitriol or I Have Zero Reading Comprehension responses to this will be blocked/reported as needed. ✌️

Edit: Also wanted to add really quick: YOU CAN STILL BLOCK AND REPORT PEOPLE ON ANON. Here's a guide.

[consistentsquash]

Hi CS, I love reading your meta comments on fics and the healthy conversations they start. Can you share some tips for writing comments like those or longer comments in general?

Hiya! <3 Sorry for the seriously late answer. Real Life things and not much time for fandom now.

Really great to hear you like my meta comments!

I get psyched out if I am thinking about writing a long comment because analysis paralysis. I just need to set a timer for like 30 min, start quoting lines from a fic and then it kind of works out. Writing meta comments or longer comments is a lot of work. So it helps me a lot if I can break it down into some parts.

Loving the fic - Of course you can write long comments for fics you don't really vibe with. But for me personally I need to love something a lot to get into the zone. I don't really write long comments on fics I don't 100% love. Of course you can love something and find flaws with it when you analyze it.

Big themes - Any fic has got themes. Sometimes they are really easy to identify as a trope. Some authors work with the same themes in their fics. Tbh I don't really know how to identify these if I haven't read the author's longer works. But once you get those you can use them to write your comment.

Interesting things - a lot of times you can point out something the fic does which is pretty different from what the fandom trend is. It doesn't need to be a big thing. It can be just omg you made Crozier taller than Fitzjames. Noticing something outside the normal pattern helps a lot to write longer comments.

Google Docs- AO3 doesn't really have a lot of good tools for folks who want to bookmark lines in a fic. So if I want to write a long comment a lot of times I copy the fic into Google Docs to help me quote lines. This is a lot of work. Reason for my next point :D

Motivation - One thing that really helps me with writing longer comments is understanding my motivation. Because motivation is everything for me when I don't have the spoons. For me I am more likely to write meta comments if the fic is seriously underrated. I am talking <20 kudos here because there are lot of fics like that which are far more brilliant compared to the fics which get the most recs/most kudos and I really want those authors to stay in fandom because they are writing new/creative fics I love. HP fandom and a lot of other fandoms really dont love those fics like they deserve. But anyway, that's my motivation. I want there to be interesting movies outside the big three studios so I support movies outside those three way more and write reviews for them. Same logic for fic with me. I want there to be new/interesting/creative/experimental fics and I don't want those authors to be discouraged by fandom trends so I save my longest comments for those.

Fandom etiquette - Also one more thing. I don't do meta comments if I don't know for sure the author's preference on that type of comment. I feel like a lot of times folks can get super critical for no reason in fic comments and think they are doing the right thing but that's kind of missing the whole point of fanfic as a fun activity/fandom as a fun community. Of course there are folks who want to use this as experience for profic or get better at writing in general but unless the author is soliciting it I don't really go there. You are on Tumblr so you probably either write yourself or get to see a lot of author blogs. So maybe you already know how sensitive folks can be because fic writing is a seriously creative activity and whenever you are doing anything creative and sharing them with other people it makes you feel super vulnerable. Anything you are sharing with the world can make you feel vulnerable. So definitely respect the author's boundaries. They are not AI they are just another person with emotions and lots of creativity they are sharing <3

Get the vibe - you know the thing about lurking before participating? You don't really need to do that. But for me I am super self-conscious so I generally lurk on a couple of fics to get the vibe of an author before commenting. Some authors are going to totally nerd out with you if you identify themes in their works. Others probably not so much. People like different things.

Burnout - Of course this isn't something I can do for every fic I read so I just save it for the most underrated fics which profoundly changed my life and that type of thing. It can be pretty hard because sometimes writers can get sad if readers don't comment on their new fic after commenting on their old fic or readers comment longer comments on other authors fics and that type of thing. Of course that's totally valid. But I need my own boundaries to motivate me without feeling burned out. This part is kind of hard for me because people pleasing and guilt problems but the boundaries are important because it's not my job to make everybody feel valued for the amazing fics they write. Other commenters are going to do that.

Do it for yourself - Anything you do in fandom you got to do it for yourself. Write for yourself is the big one. But same goes for comments. Sometimes you write the best comment of your life and you don't get a reply or you get a reply which really gives you the vibe they didn't like something you said. It happens! But you got to write comments for yourself which means you have to accept that happens and move on. You know what I mean?

Sorry about long answer but it's amazing that you want to write longer comments. Go for it <3 Hope you have lots of fun with commenting. Definitely lmk how it's going <3

[astraldepths]

I posted 2,566 times in 2022

10 posts created (0%)

2,556 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@sherlockholmesmypiratesociopath

@in-mutual-weirdness

@vaspider

@knitmeapony

@actualaster

I tagged 179 of my posts in 2022

#personal stuff - 13 posts

#nd - 13 posts

#leverage - 11 posts

#xd - 9 posts

#wonderbound - 6 posts

#long post - 6 posts

#goncharov - 6 posts

#dnd - 6 posts

#asks - 5 posts

#yes - 4 posts

Longest Tag: 127 characters

#this is traffic hell and hannibal and will would be spending a significant portion of their lives stuck staring at brake lights

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Hello, my name is Rocco and I'm part of Tumblr staff. I'm sorry something went wrong with your crab gift. Here's an other one! if anything goes wrong with this one, send us a detailed bug report. It will help us a lot as we try to fix any bugs with crabs.

thank you!

2 notes - Posted July 22, 2022

#4

hey, what's the etiquette when it comes to commenting on old livejournal posts?

there's this fic I love that's about 13 years old, and the community it's in hasn't had any new posts in over a decade...is it still cool if I go comment on that fic?

I know with ao3 and ff.n it's always good to comment on fic of any age, but I haven't been active on LJ in a while, and I don't remember what the general rule is on there re: commenting.

help? :s

2 notes - Posted June 23, 2022

#3

Send this to ten blogs you think are lovely and deserve a boop on the nose ❤️💛💚💙💜🤗🥰 😎👉👉

aww thank you! :D

2 notes - Posted May 26, 2022

#2

hey, question about your tags on the braille post: wouldn't you have to get braille books to do that? why didn't that tip your mom off that you were reading at night

oh! I got them from the library, which was close enough geographically that I could go there by myself, and my mom didn't really notice what books I was checking out.

(and don't worry, I only checked out the ones that didn't have a wait list for them. I think I probably confused some librarians, though.)

4 notes - Posted April 29, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Read More

7 notes - Posted May 13, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[ineffectualdemon]

I posted 2,994 times in 2022

That's 183 more posts than 2021!

786 posts created (26%)

2,208 posts reblogged (74%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@ineffectualdemon

@adoratato

@vaspider

@linguisticparadox

@cum-villain

I tagged 890 of my posts in 2022

#svsss - 194 posts

#shang qinghua - 103 posts

#not safe for esmes - 82 posts

#moshang - 75 posts

#shen qingqiu - 62 posts

#cumplane - 56 posts

#conversations with my husband - 50 posts

#mdzs - 50 posts

#conversations with my kid - 49 posts

#bingqiu - 44 posts

Longest Tag: 135 characters

#actually i would love a fic where its just mobei and binghe trying to figure out whats haunting their husbands and how to get rid of it

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Another reason I love Tolkien is what he does with character death

When characters die (or are perceived as having died) the others characters grieve their loss

When Gandalf falls in Moria once the rest of the fellowship is safe in Lothlorien they take time to mourn and grieve and remember

When Boromir dies Aragon, Gimli, and Legolas stop to give him as good a funeral as they can before going after Pippin and Merry and even that's not the end of his effect on the narrative.

Denethor allows his grief to destroy him (and nearly allows it to kill his other son) Faramir fights with his grief and his guilt for not going to Rivendell instead

And Frodo, who was betrayed by Boromir, is heart broken to hear of his death

The story of the Eo family is one of a family touched deeply by grief and that's why Eowyn and Faramir bonding in the houses of healing is so important

Because they do heal, by sharing their individual grief and carrying that combined pain between them

Because when death happens in LOTR it is always with intent, with purpose, and it allows for mourning. And while grief can be destructive mostly it's not, because it's shared.

(and I know there are a lot more examples these are just the first that came to mind)

Too many times I have read fantasy novels that don't let characters support each other when a character dies. And often if a character dies it's sad in the moment and then the narrative just stops caring

Tolkien's work is a story about grief and healing from it. People are changed by grief but it doesn't have to be a bad thing, it's just something that happens and that love and mutual support can carry you through

"I will not say, do not weep, for not all tears are an evil."

This is why I love Tolkien

5,418 notes - Posted February 11, 2022

#4

Opening the Tumblr app to find that dark mode is broken:

EDIT: ITS BEEN FIXED

5,675 notes - Posted November 15, 2022

#3

Hey people coming here from Twitter or tiktok?

Tagging your posts with unrelated trending tags doesn't "manipulate the algorithm" or whatever the fuck you do it for

It just clogs the tag with posts people don't care about and pisses them the fuck off

Tagging trending tags onto unrelated posts isn't something we do here and is actually against Tumblr etiquette

So for the love of Christ knock it the fuck off

We have a barely functioning search function. Don't fuck it up more

16,672 notes - Posted October 6, 2022

#2

Me: so apparently Looney tunes Instagram declared that Bugs Bunny and Daffy are canonically a couple

Husband: *long long long pause as they process this*

Me: I mean it makes sense

Husband: well since they're both men I hope Bugs tops because ducks have corkscrew dicks

Me: oh bugs definitely tops

22,598 notes - Posted July 19, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

This lady I follow on tiktok has been creating character designs to encourage people to make fantasy characters who wear a hijab and they are so incredibly cool!

This is a compilation of looks they have done so far and they are all really awesome

Here's the link to her tiktok profile btw

46,559 notes - Posted May 21, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[graylingtheodor]

I find Romaine’s @romaine2424 post very interesting and it touches some important things.

First, this fragment: „But why are they so mean? Well.... have you looked at Twitter, Reddit, Comments on new articles, even FB? People are used to arguing and being forthright about their opinions. And suddenly they come to AO3 or Tumblr or wherever and they're supposed to be kind”. Yes, I think this is the core of the problem. People come to AO3, and they don’t understand why they should behave differently. And for me, it isn’t something they should know just like that. It’s not like they see written rules about the necessary kind of approach. I didn’t. Many years ago, I also thought that this was a forum just like any other, where we could discuss things and argue. If I didn’t write nasty comments, it was only thanks to my kind-heartedness. 😉 I think that during creating an account on AO3 or Tumblr, there should be a strong reminder about the „be nice or shut up” rule.

 

Next quote: “Helpful but not helpful: This is when the commenter points out you might need a beta or that you've diverged from canon” – is connected with the first one. Yes, people treat every fic like a published (and paid) one. In their opinion, that gives them the right to criticize the style, the plot, the characters, etc. I faced it several times, and because I am not a confident writer, it stopped me completely, because it is not like betas grow on trees in my country. But again, we are taught at school how to write reviews, and we are proud to use that knowledge somewhere. Not everybody grew themselves a heart that could understand that people in AO3 write for pleasure, not income, and therefore have to be treated kindly and with respect. 

The third connected thing: “Sometimes, many times, readers just want to engage. They want to participate. Many readers don't have anyone to discuss what they're thinking about when they read your story. They aren't on Discord or Tumblr.” And they don’t have to. Isn’t a “comment box” under each fic for this? Why not think this is a good place to express one’s ideas? They may rightfully think that. It's not called a "praise box", is it? On the other hand — many authors don’t have Discord or Tumblr. At least they are not in their AO3 profile. So, where can a reader put their urgent thoughts, their brilliant summaries? 😉 And how can they know that AO3 isn’t the right place? Where is this rule — again this problem — written? When something is interactive, people tend to treat that like one. So, when they can comment, they do this. I know that there is an option for moderating the comments, so those not welcomed can be removed by an author. And I think writers who don’t want everything to be exposed at once, should use it. 

I think that you explained the whole problem here: “more often than not, they don't know the etiquette of interacting with an artist or author. They are new or they're used to engagement that is rewarded on other types of Social media.” Yes, ‘etiquette’ is the crucial word here. Every society and group has their own one, or many. And in this case, I am afraid that people just don’t see the difference between AO3 and other Social media, and I’ve tried to show, why it can be an issue. But with time, they’ll learn, just like me. They’ll even create a Tumblr account ;)

The last thing. “I want more…” Yes!!! I want more of your, @romaine2424, works and nothing can stop me from yearning, even you, ha, ha! The stalker I am…

HP and That Neg Comment...Why?

First of all, let me say that this is going to be a bit long.

All authors, artists, podcasters get the random negative comment. And the question of why someone would do this arises. I have some ideas and how to respond to them. And feel free to Neg Comment me on this post. I'll state up front, I'm a fan of engagement and passive-aggression.

1. The troll. The one who just comments on every fic that is slash or bdsm or whatever because they want to make you feel icky about yourself. These are kind of funny because it means the person read or looked at the medium with the tags in place to comment. Options are Ignore, Delete, or "Thank you for your comment."

2. The Why did you?: This comes in many flavors but the commenter usually disagrees with your ship, your treatment of a character, a situation they find not in line with their thinking or headcannon. I find these commenters interesting. Many have never read canon and are going by the movies or just having read HP fanfiction. I'll usually engage and mention what my thinking was and why. And mention that it looks like they have a different interpretation so they might want to move on. Disagreements on canon, fanon, whatever are okay. But, yes, it many times comes across as mean and vindictive.

But why are they so mean? Well.... have you looked at Twitter, Reddit, Comments on new articles, even FB? People are used used to arguing and being forthright about their opinions. And suddenly they come to AO3 or Tumblr or wherever and they're supposed to be kind on a subject matter that they are passionate about? They haven't learned the etiquette of interacting with fanfiction writers or artists. I engage.

3. Helpful but not helpful: This is when the commenter points out you might need a beta or that you've diverged from canon. And you roll your eyes because, yes, there are some grammar errors but couldn't they have just sent a message. Fix the errors! and then thank them but also mention that from now on they should message the author so as not to embarrass them publicly. Seriously- thank them. They read your story and obviously liked it enough to point errors out to you to improve your story... My first story back in the day....say 2006, I spelled Ginny's name as Ginerva instead of Ginevra in the first 2 chapters. A commenter mentioned it to me. I thanked them profusely because it saved me some major embarrassment. They replied back that they were shocked I was so kind to them for telling me. Ah, I made a fandom friend.

Now for canon divergence...Sigh... Some of these can be funny. I got a comment on why I had Albus Severus in Gryffindor in one of my stories. Um... well I wrote it before we knew what house he was sorted in... Also, many of us have our own idea of what is canon or not. Is it just the 7 books? Can the movies be canon, too? Cursed Child? JKR interviews? Pottermore? I see Hermione with Mudblood engraved on her arm from Bellatrix in so many stories. That is from the movies. In canon, she just has the scar on her neck. I engage and explain how I came to the decision to write what I wrote. And sometimes that can be saying I tossed canon out the window but tried to keep with core of the character. And that this may not be the story for you.

4. Interaction: I'm a big reader of fanfic and also write. Sometimes, many times, readers just want to engage. They want to participate. Many readers don't have anyone to discuss what they're thinking about when they read your story. They aren't on Discord or Tumblr. So they say something to the effect of Why did you do this? Oh no! I can't believe you had Charlie do that.... I can't see Lucius every behaving that way. I had a comment recently saying that they thought Harry was being a total jerk to Lucius in a scene. I replied that given the story I wrote that Harry was being a bit of a jerk but with cause. However, I also said I didn't agree with their statement that he was a total jerk. It was true. Harry was being a bit of jerk and we know that is something that Harry can be.

5. OMG you have Harry as a bottom! This discussion/argument about top/bottom has been around forever. I was hoping after taking a 10 year hiatus from fandom that it would have been settled that it doesn't matter. However, apparently it does to some folks. One of my best fandom friends from long ago, loved Top Draco. She read all kinds of H/D stories but I knew she had her preference. And when I had to write a story for her in a fest, you bet I wrote Top Draco. It used to be common to put in your tags, which way you were writing the story. Most of mine were switch and I tried to stay away from putting it in the tags. And we can say people that have a preference are misogynistic and some probably are. However, we have no problems saying that your kink may not be my kink but that's okay, however, if you like Top Draco only stories you have psychological problems. I usually respond to these comments with that in my thinking it doesn't matter who tops or not but if it matters to them for whatever reason to please move on from this story. Sometimes they'll try and explain why Harry should only be a top and then you get into the generalizations and crap. Cut them off and say that you won't engage further with them on the subject matter but what they are saying can be perceived as problematic to the LGBTQIA+ community.

6. I want more... or can you write my idea? These to me are not a negative comments. These are Fans!!! For the More: This is someone who loves my story and wants more. I usually don't have more and can feel like Damn I thought i wrapped up the ending pretty well. But OMG they loved my story and are fully engaged in the universe I created... I feel thrilled when I see these comments. Can you write my idea? OMG not only did they love this story, they like me as an author and trust me to write something they want to see. Sadly, I say No because my muse doesn't work that way. And I'm not really into redeeming Voldemort. However, thank you for asking. I'm honored you would do so.

7. The stalker: They comment on all of your stories, sometimes every chapter with neg crap. Delete (block if you can depending on the site).

In summary: Take some deep breaths. It hurts our artistic soul to get a negative comment or sometimes what we perceive as a negative comment. Unless it's a stalker or troll, I will usually engage. If they bite me back, I write them off. But, more often than not, they don't know the etiquette of interacting with an artist or author. They are new or they're used to engagement that is rewarded on other types of Social media. It is always your option to Delete, tell them to fuck off, Ignore, or engage.

My preference is not to let them know they got to me. And certainly not to let them hinder my future writings. Giving the power to one person's negative comment not only hurts you but those other dozen (or even 100s) of readers who loved your story and commented also. Their opinions should be weighed more heavily than the one negative comment.