The new archive phenomenon.

[icarus]

Is this happening to other people?

I've had requests to archive my stories - which is great, I love it, I always say yes.

But lately people have been sending me these forms to fill out with all the information for the fics they want. They even want me to fill out a separate form for each fic they dictate. This is starting to seem a little lazy. When wicked_elf wanted my fics, The Elf did the work. switchknife, same deal.

Maybe this is churlish, but I'm a little pressed for time these days and haven't the patience to do this for everyone, as grateful as I am for the request. I've had three in the last week and a half. It just seems a bit rude or demanding or somesuch.

Comments

[keelywolfe.livejournal.com]

I think you're right. It IS rude. They aren't doing you a favor by asking for your stories, and then they want you to do all the work, too? I've had requests like that before, although not often, and I don't do it. I have a website of my own to work on, I don't have time to work on someone else's.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

It's a relief to hear that. I found this to be really strange, and I'm glad I'm not just being a selfish prima donna.

Icarus

[wyomingnot.livejournal.com]

It's rude in any case, but I suppose if you didn't have your own page/site it would be slightly different.

Either way, geez.

I archive a couple different slash authors (one active archive, one inactive - she got her own page), and I have never asked either one for more than permission (well, in the case of the active archive, I ask her to send me the .txt or .doc of the story once she posts onlist). If I want to archive, it's my page, my problem.

Can't believe the nerve of some people.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I do have my own site and I'm on about seven-ten Harry Potter individual sites as well as a lot of archives. I'm a firm believer in spreading my stories around.

But it seemed to be asking a bit much and I was wondering if people are getting this these days, or if I was just turning up in some kind of general search. You know, trolling for stories.

Most people who've asked for my stories have just swiped the header information off my website and I've been more than happy to send the .doc file though only one person's ever needed it.

Hmm.

Icarus

[wyomingnot.livejournal.com]

Given that your stories are already readily available, it seems silly to me to actually archive them in yet another place.

One of these days I'm going to build a recs page on my site. And unless the author has no page of her/his own, I'm just going to be asking permission to link.

(the only reason I archived the authors I did was because they had no page of their own... that makes sense. Doesn't make sense to me to archive something that's archived several times over... and then feel the need to pester the author for more than permission)

Okay. Stopping now.

[wickedelf.livejournal.com]

I'm not objective obviously, but I think it's a bit rude. As an archivist it seems like if you want the story, you do the work. Are they asking you to actually send them an html copy of the story, or are they asking for the header info?

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

"...can you please fill out the info for each so I can archive it?

Author Name:
Email Address:
Title:
Genre:
Pairings (If any):
Spoilers From the Books (If any):
Rating:
Summary:"

I've had three people in the last week and a half send me something like this. It sort of makes you feel like... you don't know this, then how can you know if you like the story?

[tinderblast.livejournal.com]

Just to play devil's advocate, part of me can see this request as being conscientious and making sure that the information submitted at the site is entirely correct and up-to-date. You might have changed things since the first publication of the story, particularly the summary and e-mail address. With at least two of your stories as well, I can think of why the stated pairing is an important for YOU to decide ;)

-brodie

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Hmm. It's a good thought, good reason to do it. But usually people with such good intentions say so. Most of the requests I've had like this have sounded... hmm... a bit immature in the rest of the message. So I suspect simple thoughtlessness.

Icarus

[tinderblast.livejournal.com]

That's a shame. It's probably just thoughtlessness, or is fatigue/panic setting in when they realised how much work an archive is. Or they just don't understand fandom etiquette.

Look at me, making excuses for them. I'm always accused of backing the underdog. I guess I just don't know much about what constitutes good archiving policies.

Speaking of fandom issues, I've been wondering lately about statistics - I started a thread at my LJ about it - and I'd be curious about what you think. Now that you have time to post ;)

I was at skyehawke looking at the 'popular stories' and the ratio of number of hits a story received to the number of reviwes received was staggeringly bad. No other sites, to the best of my knowledge, offer these kind of stats, and I was really shocked. Like over a thousand hits, anf five responses. There's a number of qualifying factors, I know, but surely there's something wrong with that level of non-feedbacking.

-brodie

[wickedelf.livejournal.com]

That's bizarre. I mean, it's not like you don't usually have that info easily available with the story when you read it (to decide if you want to archive it) anyway. I've contacted a few people about summaries if they don't do one and I can't think of a good one, or if they change their summary every chapter - I'll ask them for what they'd consider an overall summary of the story itself to be.

Lazy buggers.

[taricorim.livejournal.com]

At least they are asking. It's worse when they archive without permission.

But, yes, very rude. Since you're the one filling up their archive page, they should show some respect.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Oh. I hadn't even considered that angle. How would find out if a story's been archived without permission?

Icarus

[taricorim.livejournal.com]

When you find a neat little archive created by a 15-year-old girl one day in mid-August when she was bored and wanted to collect the "best fanfic on the Internet" (in her opinion). Then--surprise, surprise--you see your fic there.

where he can't see it

[tinderblast.livejournal.com]

Percy/Harry! Percy/Harry! Percy/Harry! I don't know why, but just at this point in time that's what I'd kill to see. I also meant to ask - I feel like I mised something in the Percy/Harry/Ron interaction - what did Percy do with Ron that he feels/felt guilty or odd about?

Re: where he can't see it

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Heh. Heh. Heh.

We shall see. ;)

I'm working on the second half that short Harry/Percy story as we speak though.


Icarus

Re: where he can't see it

[tinderblast.livejournal.com]

I can see a great set up happening with Harry and Percy in the dungeons. I have a feeling I know what they're talking about in their owls, but ... well, I hope I do, at any rate ;)

-brodie

[harveywallbang.livejournal.com]

no no no, icarus, you're not being a prima donna. they should've just asked if they could, and done it themselves.. it'd be an honor to be able to archive your fanfics...silly people...*scoffs*

[cursive.livejournal.com]

How much do I love your Percy? It's disturbing and must be wrong, that's how much.