#and they are incredibly unlikely to change as I've thought abou it a lot

[bookwyrminspiration]

i'm sure i can guess, but. thoughts on the kotlc smut debate? do you think it's appropriate?

I'm not interested in getting into discourse, so I'll try and keep this short and sweet (also, none of this is angry or targeted at anyone and I’m fine talking about it—I’m just not interested in senseless, unproductive arguing!!)

As the subjects are fictional, I don't care. They aren't real people. Smut written about them does not impact or hurt them in any way.

What someone chooses to write about and why is not my business. If it's smut written by teens about teens as a means of exploring sexuality, if its a means of processing experiences or abuse, if its for fun--whatever it is, that's their business. Including for adult authors. They can have just as valid motivations, not that they need to justify themselves. They literally cannot hurt these characters

As for real people, such as fans, no one is forced to read it. If you find yourself in the middle of something that makes you uncomfortable, you can stop reading and walk away. And yes, there may be initial discomfort as you realize--for which I am sympathetic, but it happens and that is on you to manage, not the author.

Authors are also not responsible for rule breakers who access sites they're not old enough for. We're responsible for tagging and adhering to the rules of hosting sites

Also, smut as a whole is a valid form of writing/creation. Sexuality is a normal (note: I am not saying it is the ONLY normal. ace here), widespread part of life, and sexual gratification and enjoyment are morally neutral

Am I personally gonna write any kotlcrew smut? No. Am I gonna read any? Probably no. Not my kind of kotlc fic. I by and large don't enjoy it. But fic writers who chose to engage with the subject here are not writing about real people, and not responsible for real people's comfort with their work beyond tagging.

Smut is always going to exist. It is safer for all parties if it is freely allowed to exist so no one has to disclose potentially very personal justifications (e.g. processing abuse/experiences), and so it can be properly tagged and avoided by those who want/need to--otherwise individuals will not tag appropriately in the interest of not being taken down, and that helps no one.

and since this was brought up last time: this is my stance. I can't tell you how to think, and I don't decide for anyone else what is right from wrong. i can only share my reasonings

Oh also: I don’t hold it against anyone who’s disgusted or uncomfortable with it! That’s fine. I don’t enjoy it either! Valid! But that doesn’t mean we can say it shouldn’t exist or harass people who write it (not saying anyone has, this is just addressing the broad question)