also not a gripe, so much as just bemusing, but: a fic, posted on AO3 in the year of our lord 2014, with the description "[ship name] lemon and smut warning." (i wondered if it's an older story that was just re-posted to AO3 in 2014, but there is nothing to indicate that being the case. just a writer who was still using the term "lemon" in the twentyteens. amazing.) edit: also anytime people write things like "smut warning" in the tags or description of a fic that is clearly rated E on AO3 it makes me laugh. like, yes, i would hope so.
To be fair, there are circumstances in which a fic without anything smutty could be rated E, but...yeah, most of the time I’d hope so too. :P
true, but on AO3 the vast majority of fics rated E are E for sex. if the rating is there for something else like violence or noncon, writers typically will tag for those things (or else get LOTS of angry comments.) but a fic rated E without other tags or archive warnings is usually assumed to be smutty.
i unironically love it whenever someone posts a fic to ao3 (or anywhere else) with quaint terminology and stuff like that. like, i love that there are people in fandom who just haven't been touched by fandom's latest crazes, and who use the terminology of 2000s fandom 'cause that's what suits them best or 'cause that's when or how they got into fandom. :D:D:D it is just so sweet and earnest to me! :D:D:D
Homestuck AUs which seem unable to make up their mind whether they're Humanstuck or not. When blood colour is repeatedly mentioned but horns and fangs aren't even in circumstances where they logically should be (like when one character brushes another's hair), young characters are called babies/children instead of wigglers, an apparently non-grub baby version of a troll character is there, humans are mentioned as a separate thing but the word "troll" doesn't ever show up, and a troll character has non-black hair now, it's kind of hard to determine.
I think for my own mental health I need to get back into writing something but I don't WANNA because it's HARD and I SUCK at it :(
I sorta want to take some fics I thought had an interesting idea and poor execution and rewrite them, but it's waaaay too much effort.
... I’m usually fine with second person narratives as long as it is clear that “You” is not you, or rather, me. I’m me. I think I would know if I was You. (Except possibly in cases where I can’t be Clubs Deuce because I am too busy being Hearts Boxcars.)
I just. I feel like something cannot be /reader and /original female character at the same time. Unless the writer is god or something.