Hey Reader!

I was inspired to write this chapter a while ago when I was surfing through YouTube, of all places. I found a discussion video relating to the subject of quality control in the MLP fandom. The video was inspired by a MLP writer and his views on the matter at hand. Even if you are not a fan of MLP, I highly recommend you read the full article. It's not long, I promise, and it is quite insightful. I plan on paraphrasing the most important points of it, but reading the full article would probably be better.

Here is the article title: On Writing Fics and Quality Control. By SilentBelle.

If any are interested and cannot find the full article, let me know!

This story was also inspired by my conversations with Zinc2100 and maybelady, thanks!

On The Subject of Quality Control (Part 1)

Maybelady's review reminded me I wanted to do a chapter on the subject of quality control. And from that review, we had a mini-conversation where I said I agreed with her that writers do not want a complicated story; they want one that takes no effort to understand. I wish to change/expand upon my opinion on that matter, but I will get to that later.

This conversation reminded me of an article I found a while ago, that I will now highlight (and by that, I mean copy and paste) the major points from it below. Please note that nothing I'm using in the next section is in my own words, and that all credit is given to SilentBelle.

A few days ago I watched a video that discussed quality control in the fandom. It's basically an opinion piece on fan-works within our fandom. And for my part, I'm just going to be applying it strictly to fanfiction, primarily because that's what I am concerned with.

XXX

One opinion on this topic is: There are fan works that are stunning and awesome out there. Things that are worthy of attention, and should honestly get more of it. Yet, quite often, we find these beautiful stories only after digging through a great deal of sludge. This sludge is composed of people who saw the success of those stories and authors and thought, 'I want to be like that.' They got on the bandwagon and began writing spinoffs. Yet what gets on the nerves of the reader sifting through this sludge, is the number of positive comments some of the sludge gets, praising it in spite of how awful it is. That popularity, and the nearly endless slew of poor quality stories have, in turn, slowly spread out as a stain and effectively has lowered the overall quality of the writing in this fandom. The good stuff gets buried in the sludge, causing the stories that truly deserve to be known, simply to go unread.

The best way to fix this problem would be to raise standards. Readers should be more concerned with what they read and find ways to cut the chafe away from the good stuff, by leaving comments that show a displeasure for the stories that are awful and discourage the production of poor stories, instead of being so supportive of someone's awful first attempt to the point where the new author tricks themselves into thinking that what they made was a really great story. Being so supportive is a disservice to the author, and it doesn't allow the author to improve as a writer.

XXX

Another opinion on this topic is: Many new authors start out making awful stories, but they will improve. Serving them a harsh critique only ends up dealing a harsh blow to their self-esteem as a new writer, that can often lead to them deciding to give up and not to pursue writing anymore when they could have improved and eventually written something great. Being kind to the new talent in the community provides a fertile ground for the author to grow and learn within. If we cut back on the praise, then new talent will be discouraged from ever taking root, and we'll be denied many potential great stories in the future.

Great stories will still be found in the murk of new authors writing their first stories, or in the swath of fics that some make to try and obtain the same popularity that an idol of theirs has. While there'll be more stories overall, there will also be more great stories in there. It isn't right to stop those stories by nipping the budding author in the bud. For if there is even just one person that is able to become a great author due to the positive reinforcement of the fandom's kindness, then it is entirely worthwhile to keep leaving those kind and encouraging words.

XXX

And that is pretty much the two sides to this situation. I am, honestly, very much torn between these two stances, and here's why: I am a writer, and like a majority of writers on this site (at least from my experience) my first real venture into writing was indeed on this site. I started off as an awful writer. My grammar was terrible, and I couldn't write more than two characters in a scene at a time. However, there were still people who read my story and commented on it. They said wonderful things that inspired me to keep writing. Truly, those comments kept a smile on my face for the whole eight months it took to write the story. It was certainly one of the—if not the—best year(s) of my life.

Because of that support, I do totally understand and have to support the second side of the argument. However, the other half of the argument has me held just as strongly, and here's why: I'm a writer, and I care about what I write. I'm also a reader and I care about what I read. I strive to improve, and I'll be damned if I don't also love to see others improve as writers as well. As such, it really wears on you when you sift through that sludge of stories looking for gems. You read a story that assaults your senses of proper grammar and just makes you cringe as you read it; it's nearly physically painful. You begin to doubt whether the one who wrote such a story really cares about what they are doing. And then to top it off, you read the comments and you can't help but shake your head at the people who say they enjoyed such a poor and battered mess of a story.

So that was basically, the rest of the article was spent talking about more of his personal views on the matter.

Now going back to maybelady's review and our conversation. I still feel inclined to believe that writers don't want a complicated story, all the time. That is what oneshots are for; quick, simple and to the point. But if a writer is writing an actual, full-length story, then they need to have complicated story elements in it (discussed in part 2). Otherwise, the story itself is "sludge" (as SilentBelle would say) and we as readers need to shift through.

The problems with writers who get undeserved praised, really boils down to the community being too nice. Which ties into what SilentBelle said about new writers tricking themselves into thinking that they are great and do not need improvement. Even though, their stories are mediocre at best.

The subject of quality control is a complicated one to address, as what makes a "good" story is very subjective to a reader's own tastes. Although, I'm sure as a community, we can all agree that butchering grammar and logic is completely unacceptable.

All stories start with an idea a writer has; the subjective part of the story, if you will. And usually the grammar and presentation of the idea come last, or not at all.

Most of the time, the writer just wants to get their ideas down for the world to see. And that is what I think the real problem of quality control comes from.

Potential writers see all the praise/ attention others get, regardless of how deserved it is, and they want to get that praise/attention in return. So, they create their own stories. But most of the time, they are too enthralled with the idea of getting favorites and followers, that they do not really plan ahead. And when they don't get the praise they want, they stop because they feel no one is listening to them or their ideas. Think of fanfiction like Facebook, in that regard.

If there is anything you can take from this chapter, my dear reader, it is that you should always plan ahead. Know what direction you want the story to go in, from the beginning to the end. Make a detailed outline and have a few chapters, if not a majority of the piece done with, before you even think of posting it. It saves you a lot of time and frustration in the long run.

I hate to break it to you, but writing on fanfiction is just hobby, not a popularity contest. I say this because I'm afraid that some- and only some- people have tricked themselves into thinking that if they don't get some type of praise, then they are a nobody. Hence why I hate it when people say, "review or I wont update". Or when they shy away from the prospect of harsh criticism, because all they really want is to be told they are good.

My conversation with Zinc2100 also inspired me to write this:

Remember, you should want to write because you want to. It can be hard to improve if no one comments, but you just have to accept it sometimes and learn from the experience.

This is a lesson I think everyone should be reminded about, every so often.

Do not let the prospect of "fame" blind you, because most of the time, the work produced is not as great as it could be. Writing takes time to prefect.

~Done

I'm making a list of the complicated story elements in the next chapter.

Thanks for the favorites and the reviews everyone!

Have a good day/night~