fandom snowflake challenge Day 14

[kaixo]

Day 14

In your own space, create your own challenge. Whatever your challenge is, and have fun with it! Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

For writers, I just want to challenge yourself to put a transformative statement on your work, tbh. Have a think if it's going to be yes, no, or maybe, then make a decision.

My friend is outchere looking for fics in a fandom to podfic. Out of 125 fics on her spreadsheet, none have transformative statements. Come on, writers, we need to do better.

Comments

[analise010]

As her co-podficcer, also searching for fics, I AGREE WITH THIS SENTIMENT.

P.S. To all those here from Snowflake Challenge - You can also make a transformative works statement if you are NOT a writer. If you don't think that you have anything transformable, YOU DO! If you don't think these statements are important, THEY ARE.

[mekare]

Thanks to analise010 I already did this last year :-)

you are a good 'un

[kaixo]

Thank you!

[kiki_eng]

Yeah, I think some writers don't get how important that permission statement is, and having someone make a transformative work of yours is like the best comment and compliment ever.

Thanks again, for challenging people to this.

erm... it's not really about me or 'my work'

[kaixo]

having someone make a transformative work of yours is like the best comment and compliment ever.

The thing is, it's really not about me or 'my work', and I'm hesitant to look at it that way.

Once the work is posted, and it's out there, it doesn't belong to me anymore in a lot of ways. I have no control in how people read it or perceive it.

Especially the fic is either based on intellectual property (be it Harry Potter or Marvel) or ... Real Person Fiction. The work is just an idea that spurs another idea from another creative if you're lucky, and each idea is its own work. As much as I'm appreciative of said transformative mixes of the work (I've had my stuff remixed, sequelled and podficced), I'm well aware that each person is their own universe and brings their own eyes to the work and in a lot of ways, their work is separate to mine and not mine.

I keep going back to loose ends, the podfic that itsadrizzit did with a story I just posted and moved on. She made it a lot bigger, a lot better and in a lot of ways --- she made me realise that the story didn't belong to me anymore. I think a healthier outlook is that the writer can realise that it's about the story and not about the writer per se and leave it at that.

I don't know how to say this without being any more indelicate, but this pov having someone make a transformative work of yours is like the best comment and compliment ever shouldn't be the point. Especially since with Transformative Works, there's an alchemy between the original bit of work vs their work. It's not about the podficcer wanting to spend all this time with 'my story' as much they're using it as a launching point for their work, tbh.

I'm sure I'll have a different pov if I owned Harry Potter, Marvel, and Real People (LOL), but I don't. I'm just a spinner of ideas, and I like the fact that people are inspired by what I do to feel free to do what they do. The danger is that their ideas might be a lot better than mine, but that only makes the fandom tapestry richer. As long as they link me (in terms of say, credit me as the base to their remix), I'm good.

Re: erm... it's not really about me or 'my work'

[kiki_eng]

*nods* Yeah, I find it an interesting cultural thing that permission needs to be given in a way because, yeah, if you're transforming my work it's not mine anymore and that's cool.

I think that's what's awesome about it from that italicized place, that someone found a spark in someone else's work and went and built something from it and poured themselves into it. I think that's a really neat interaction, between texts and creators.

...and I guess because I see it as a kind of dialogue I find the "please put up a permission statement" and "please comment on fic more" interesting because they're both about encouraging a kind of dialogue but they're not statements I see alongside each other very much? Though sometimes the "comment more" ones are spun as "fuel creativity". I think how fans interact and create and bounce ideas off each other and bounce off each other's ideas is all really interesting and I think there is a thing in this where fic gets privileged over other types of fanworks and I think it's bizarre.

I fucked up with my phrasing there a bit, writing something that feeds into that privileging of fic or of privileging of the remixed work over the remix or what have you. (having someone make a transformative work of yours is like the best comment and compliment ever)

Thanks for linking to that meta of akamine_chan's - I'd missed seeing that when it came out - and thanks for pointing out the problems with my phrasing.

Re: erm... it's not really about me or 'my work'

[kaixo]

"please put up a permission statement" and "please comment on fic more" interesting because they're both about encouraging a kind of dialogue but they're not statements I see alongside each other very much?

Yeah. The thing is, there are a lot of writers in my TL on tumblr who moan about the fact that the feedback culture is dead, people not leaving comments on their fics, etc, etc. So I'm like, "Do you have Blanket Permissions? Are you commenting on other's work?" Because you do have to give to get, be it saying that you're open to Blanket Permissions or you're going to get out of your navel and comment on other people's works.

It's also further compounded the fandom I'm in is changing a bit, and I think writers need to realise that they have to change too. It's not enough to post fic and wait for comments, because fandom is too fragmented for that. You have to get involved and socialise.

I think there is a thing in this where fic gets privileged over other types of fanworks and I think it's bizarre.

Yeah, same. On one hand, I get it, because I guess fanfic is where the ideas are, but the whole "Let me ask you permission of an idea from an intellectual property which isn't yours" is erm... yeah, awkward. As long as you don't dox me, and h/t me in terms of say, your remix, I'm good.

[sophinisba]

Thank you for this post!

no problem!

[kaixo]

As much as I'm all for writers to post Blanket Permissions, I won't lie, I do think writers need to sit down and have a think about BP and ask themselves some hard questions such as, "Suppose the transformative output is better than the piece I posted, can I live with that?"

Take it from me, I've had works that have been remixed, sequelled, etc and more times than not, the Transformative Works have gotten more positive reactions than the original stuff I've done. The only reason why loose ends hasn't had more positive responses than say, the fic itself is because (a) the fandom is Balkanized and (b) there's a resistance to podfic in the fandom and idek why.

So, if that means that you have to go through your stories one by one and go, "You know, I like this story, and I don't want anyone to touch it," versus, "Go 'head, go nuts, go apesh*t." I'd advise you to please do so. Have an honest talk with yourself about that, so if your stuff does get transformed, you aren't carrying misplaced feelings for the artist transforming your work, you know?

Personally, for me once the fic is posted, I don't think about it anymore. If you're one of those writers who tend to tie themselves into knots over fics, and are very protective about what you think your fic ideas are, and what they should be, you need to really think about the extent of your BP, because everyone is their own universe and they are going to come up with options that you might have never made (which is half the fun for me), but again, something to think about.

That being said, I'd love writers to give podficcers and other artists a break and put forth BP, but I want them to be at peace with what it means.

Re: no problem!

[sophinisba]

That's interesting and not a perspective I'd run into before. I've participated in a lot of remix challenges and sometimes had remixes of my fic that are more popular than the originals, though I tend to think that's more about my remixers writing boyslash after I wrote het or femslash. :D In my experience comments on podfic are pretty minimal and that's not limited to specific fandoms.

Anyway, I consider it a real treat when someone else engages enough with my stuff to respond to it creatively, whether that's as fic or podfic or art or whatever. I once had the nicest comment on a remix I wrote, the author said that when they read their own fic they could always see the seams, were too aware of how the whole thing was constructed, but that reading my remix made the story feel real and lived in.

[spikedluv]

I did this because of a previous Snowflake!

Grand, you're grand

[kaixo]

Thanks for doing this!

[itsadrizzit]

Thanks for this post and for continuing to be a champion of the cause. It's frustrating for me to finally be in a large-ish fandom and STILL not be able to find fic that has any sort of transformative works statement. I think it's getting a lot more visibility and more authors are giving statements than ever before, but clearly there's still a lot of work to do about spreading the word.

Thanks to all the people that responded to this post and said you've done this. I appreciate it greatly as it makes my life as a podficcer much easier and means I can find a fic today and record it tomorrow if I want without having to wait for someone to get back to me or feeling like I'm bothering an author by sending them messages across platforms.

I also appreciate the perspectives here. It's not incorrect to say that someone creating a podfic of your work is a rec of sorts, because it can be, but very few (if any) people making transformative works do it to make the author happy (unless the author happens to be a friend of yours). Certainly I have podficced things just because I loved the fic so much and I needed to record it and share it and spend more time with it, but podfic takes TIME, which is something I think isn't often spoken about. It's not as though I just read a story, decide to record it, read it into a microphone for half an hour, then post it. It's hours of my life spent recording, editing, re-recording (sometimes), adding music/effects sometimes, making cover art, uploading, creating a post...it's an effort so if I'm going to do it it might be as a thanks to the author for a story or a recommendation, sure, but it's also because I wanted to create my own art with it, and I don't want people to lose that perspective.

Anyway, as someone who is accumulating a list of things to podfic and NONE of them has a transformative works statements, thanks for the advocacy and I ask all of you with statements and all of you reading this to share this with your friends so we can spread the word across fandom and hopefully help out our fellow fen.

[siberian_skys]

I finally lit a fire under my butt and got this done earlier today. I don't know why I've been dragging my feet. I found other peoples's comments on your post interesting. I didn't realize just how many opinions there are on this. I fall strongly on the ask first side of things, but reading other peoples' opinions on this has me re-thinking my position. For now I'm leaving my transformative statement as is, but that may change down the line. Your post and the other responses to it have given me a lot to think about.

I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[kaixo]

Especially if you want to be asked about your fic re: transformative works. As long as the artist can get in touch with you in good time, that's fine! I do tend to be distant when it comes to my own stuff (once it's posted, I'm over it), and I do think that writers should think about BP and what they are expecting from said BP vs what they might get.

But thank you for putting up BP just so that transformative artists know where they stand (or... don't).

Re: I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[siberian_skys]

I'm not good at letting go. :-)

Re: I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[kaixo]

That's fine! From my dealings with other transformative artists, they just want to know. If you put up a BP that says, "I really can't let go, so I'mma need to say...no." At least everyone knows. It's the Dance of Permissions and steeling oneself for rejection or acceptance that everyone wants to avoid, tbh.

Re: I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[siberian_skys]

What's a BP? I thought it was a transformative statement.

Re: I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[kaixo]

Blanket Permission/ Transformative Statement - the terms are used interchangeably, but the end game is the same.

Re: I'm all for writers doing what they feel comfortable with!

[siberian_skys]

That makes sense. I've been sitting here trying to work out that abbreviation.

[lilly_c]

My transformative work policy is here

Thank youuuuuuu!!!

[kaixo]

You have done a good thing today!

Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

I have part of one anyway.

Re: Well ...

[kaixo]

Thank you! Thank you so much.

Re: Well ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

Thank you too! I've gotten a couple of nibbles from it today.

[silveradept]

Where would a good place be to stick it? I've added something to my AO3 profile about all of my works. Should they also brew on each individual bit?

An AO3 profile is good enough

[kaixo]

I know that is where podficcers look first for Blanket permission statements.

No, you don't have to do it individually- unless there's a story under flock you don't want to be touched for any other reasons. But I think Blanket permission statements on your AO3 profile is enough.