Ass-Kissing Fans, Part II

Recently, Kara Wild asked why I seemed to be tacitly approving a “Best Fanfic” contest when I’ve gone on the record as having disdain for such things. The answer is that too many times in the past, Daria fan fiction “best of” contests have been not much more than popularity contests that confirm the popularity of the person holding them.

Why? Three reasons: a) usually the person running the contest writes Daria fan fiction himself or herself, and b) people naturally want to make other people feel good, and c) people want to avoid the situation of saying one thing about a work of fiction in public, but believing something else about it.

The biggest thorn was “a”. “A” gives people a chance to send the contest runner nice mail, but it is no way to determine who is writing good fiction. Dr. Mike’s contest removes “a”. It’s been a long time since Dr. Mike wrote any fan fiction, and the idea that the process can be automated – people could vote by computer – gives a bit more credibility to the process. In any event, he could simply exempt his work from nomination if that’s a problem.

Will the “b” or “c” problems be solved? No, but they become different problems in an automated contest. True, there will be sycophants galore who will say, “I WUV YOU! YOU ARE THE BESTEST FAN FICTION WRITER EVER! I WILL NOMINATE YOU!!” The difference is that the process of ass kissing STOPS at nomination. It HAS to stop there. Yes, Popular Writer #8 might get lots of nominations – but in a computerized, supposedly objective process, there’s no guarantee that Popular Writer #8 will WIN anything given a secret ballot. “Behind the curtain”, as it were, people will vote for the works that best deserve the vote.

Yes, it still is a “popularity” contest. But it’s a different kind of popularity contest. Certainly, the most known, most talked-up works, written by the more popular people, will get the most nominations. Works that aren’t talked up or aren’t popular will suffer in the nomination process. However, it will still be an objective contest among these supposedly popular works – “yes, all the works are popular, and all nominated by ass-kissers – but which of those works is truly the best work?”

I’ve long been waiting for Daria fandom to get off its ass. To be something like more mainstream fandoms, but it always seems to lack the willpower – too much work. Other fandoms do have awards. Science fiction has the Hugos and the Nebulae. Hell, even alt.sex.stories has erotica awards!

Even if the effort turns out to be an absolute failure, a disgrace, a spectacle worthy of mockery – at least Dr. Mike made the effort to present something different, and that deserves some praise.

My last and final complaint will simply deal with what happens AFTER the nomination process. I’m not sending in a ballot this year. Why? Because frankly, I’ve not read a lot of fan fiction, or what I have read (with rare exceptions) was just skimming the surface. I hope that Dr. Mike will ask that no one VOTE for a category unless they’ve read all the works in questions – and that people will not just look at five names and pick the guy they think is SUPER KEWL. Let’s decide to give a damn, people.