Thrills and spills

On the thrills and spills of amateur fiction on the Internet


Get the poison arrows and flamethrowers out, folks. And I'll just add an extra coat of 'patented rhino-hide paint'. But here goes. Take it as you like, whether as an all-out attack aimed at you, whoever you are (it's not) or simple reflection (it is).

My thoughts here are based on what I've seen in many Internet writers' groups, lists and communities. Read and discuss if you will, and go brew poison if you feel personally targeted, thus proving me right on certain points below. Formulate your own opinions and draw your own conclusions. I'd be interested to hear them. Oh, and just one additional comment: I haven't seen any of the unpleasantness I mention here on Stories.com.

I suppose fiction groups are no different to other groups on a great many counts, so some things I'm going to say here apply just as well to any other type of community. It's simply that writers have that particular knack with words, and in my opinion the keyboard can most definitely be mightier than the sword.

I've seen and joined in a lot of discussion revolving around many aspects of amateur writing in general and fan fiction in particular over the last three years. A lot of it has been sane, intelligent and fascinating. Some, on the other hand, has simply been a case of vitriolic attacks on the part of a few, plus anything from equally vitriolic defence, indignation or sheer unhappiness on the part of victims. And yes, I'm talking about vitriol not honest, open discussion, differing opinions or well-meant criticism. Some of what I've seen has also been a hymn to that delightful phenomenon that is subtext.

My definition of vitriol might be different from that of others, so let's make how I see it a little clearer. Saying something like 'you're a sad, stupid bitch who can't write / don't belong here' is vitriol in my book, whereas 'I personally didn't like this story because of its lack of characterisation and bad grammar' is not. That's one tiny example among many I could quote, but I presume you get the drift.

Other issues such as not bothering to give anyone the benefit of the doubt on certain misunderstandings, making accusations about other writers with the flimsiest of foundations, spreading rumours and stirring trouble behind their backs belongs to the vitriolic side, too. But it happens, and often, and it's so petty. There's nobody like a writer for this. Think somebody pinched your plot or even a phrase? Don't bother to think the author might be innocent, just haul out a few well-chosen words and sling them in the right place.

Yes, writing is close to our hearts. Yes, it inspires a lot of passionate outbursts. Yes, there are some cases where something like plagiarism or sending obscene, anonymous letters needs to be stamped out and fast. However, this is amateur fiction. A hobby. Don't we get a little carried away at times? Do we, as a friend of mine once said, tend to act as hormone-drenched adolescents once we don our writer's cloak and engage in discussion on it? I think there's a lot of truth in that.

Following this line of thought, I don't think any writer (or even any individual) can claim to be as white as snow about being a little quick on the draw with a keyboard and to have acted at best without thinking and at worst with intention to hurt, and I'm no exception. Who doesn't love a little bitch at somebody else's expense now and then? If you can say 'never', then please head for the exit and polish up your halo on the way out.

There seem to be few places where mud sticks faster or a misunderstanding turns into war more easily than via the Internet, though. What could be probably be slogged out over a drink, face to face, can turn into a massive, tangled web of unpleasantness flying around the cyberwaves. And once again, writers being writers are extraordinarily talented at this. A little twist here, a little nuance there, and hey presto – it's time to count the bodies.

This leads me to subtext (yes, my favourite rant), which can be more insidious still. What is it? One good definition is "between the lines communication that conveys powerful messages indirectly". Take one person who is clever with words, another equally so, and the basic ingredients are in place. From there on, it's easy. Even worse, it's all too simple to start reading things into everything or sliding in some very subtle messages yourself. Sometimes it soon becomes hard to even see how it all began (the chicken and the egg, Internet style). Ending it once the slippery slope has started is well nigh impossible. Writers are often as proud as they are sensitive.

Finding an example of subtext is not easy when none of the parties involved are present, but how about this: X writes to Y: "I'm just so happy with this story I've just finished. Oh, and I just can't wait to see A, B and C this weekend and gossip about writing – shame you can't make it." Y, at the time, is suffering from writer's block and is really hurt that she hasn't been invited along with the others. It isn't hard to start wondering whether X is conveying a genuine message or a snide one if you know that X dislikes Y for some reason or another, is it?

Subtext hurts. And no, there is none here. As I've said earlier, I'm writing this after reflection and taking a little distance. If I'd have written it much earlier than now, it might have been very different and probably would have been directed at a few individuals in particular. As things stand, I'm aware that shit, Internet fiction style, happens to more than myself and probably won't stop tomorrow unless George W's finger strays too close to the Big Red Button and a lot more than petty bickering comes to a sudden end in a hurry.

The Internet is a very dangerous place for the sensitive. Writers are usually sensitive. Things get ten times worse when an online personality is light years tougher than an offline one or at least different in some way. I've thought about that a lot too. Who exactly are we dealing with? The person as she comes over on the Net, or as she is when she's sitting facing you and you know her a bit better? Are we the same on a keyboard or wrapped around a gin and tonic? Do people actually exist whose online personality is exactly what you get when you are face to face? Good questions, and yes, I think there are a few of them around or at least those where I can see beyond a facade constructed to protect or disguise in some way when a few barriers are broken down. Life would be so much easier if we knew where we stood on this front with other individuals, just as it would if we could start a discussion without it being seen as an attack by some. Rhino hide is a wonderful thing, but even that can rip when the right nerve is touched and the most surprising things can trigger it: what seems innocuous or insignificant to one person can seem like the end of the world to another.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing to have an 'Internet persona', by the way. It can be very useful for shy people who can actually blast through their timidity barrier thanks to it. I just find it easier – again a personal take on the matter – to actually know who I'm dealing with. I've said this before, but there is a great deal to be said for body language or the expression on a face. It doesn't cure all ills, but it can certainly clear up a lot of crossed lines. Sure it's not always possible. I'm just saying it can help. The Internet is a wonderful means of communication and has been instrumental in making writing a lot more accessible to authors and readers alike and for that I appreciate it hugely. On the other hand, it can also lead to relationships that are extraordinarily complex and in many cases tricky. And just as intense as face-to-face ones.

A lot of hostility related to writing sites, lists or groups also seems to be frequently linked to people jostling for position within the Inner Sanctum. Again, it's a question of relationships and interaction, which can easily go astray once things start to be misinterpreted. After all, who is better placed to start a conflict than those who pull strings of some kind - or who would like to do so? Fortunately, not everybody wants that degree of involvement in a group, or it would be even worse!

This wish to get 'in with the in crowd' often includes trampling on a few other people along the way. What's more, once they get there Top Dogs can also quickly turn into Top Bitches with a view to keeping this hard-won position. Again, the need to reach the top and the abuse of power when you get there are not things that are limited to amateur fiction alone, but also again, words are a very powerful weapon.

I do think both the world and fiction groups need Top Dogs; don't misunderstand me here. The idea of total democracy just doesn't work for me because somebody has to be in charge of or co-ordinate something whereas others prefer to be on the 'we like sheep' side, whether this applies to running a galaxy or three or the local gardening club. It's just a matter of how it's done by those who lead. I can't think of any greater minefield than trying to 'run' a group of amateur writers, however. One word wrong and pens are sharpened, and trying to keep the peace must be hell.

I've seen places where the leading lights of a writers' community manage to create it and/or and maintain it with sensitivity, fairness and humour and even succeed in making newbies feel welcome and integrated – just as we've all seen politicians or other world leaders who actually get a few things right. It can't be easy. Thank God such places exist, though!

However, I've seen other places on the Internet where it looks as though the sole aim of a few people is to mutually feed egos, while eliminating those who represent a potential threat by means that range from the subtle to the downright dirty. Find a weakness, exploit it, and the deed is done. Perhaps it makes them happy. Was Hitler happy? We all know what happened to him, right?

Of course, if you join a group of any kind you have to take it as it is once you're in it. I'm saying this because these days I join or stay in a community knowingly and if things get difficult it's a case of either taking the heat or getting out of the kitchen. I've done both. I was a whole lot more naïve at first, rather stupidly imagining that writers, because they shared a passion, would therefore be 'nice'. In that respect, I've left adolescence behind, thanks.

So what am I getting at here? Apart from sounding cynical and disillusioned?

First, I'd like to think that my own thoughts on this won't be interpreted as 'oh, she just wants to play Top Dog herself and have a swipe at others because she thinks her fiction / personality / ideas are better than theirs'. It isn't that, and I have few illusions about my talents or my character shortcomings let alone precious little time to lead much more than a very busy life. I just like stimulating discussion, and have made some extraordinary friends through writing.

Sadly, I've made a few enemies along the way as well, for a number of reasons that range from clumsiness, irritation, the need to jump in and defend something and – let's be honest – that basic human need to engage in a little 'ganging up' too, ugly as it is. In this latter case, whether with fiction or with life in general, I think you live and learn, always bearing in mind that the next target can always be you.

Life in the wonderful world of fiction is something of a rollercoaster and I can live with that, frustrating and sad as it can be in some cases, because writing means that much to me. There's good there too, however bitter or sanctimonious some of this might sound. Being realistic, whatever I say is open to misinterpretation anyway so feel free to react, dear reader. As the French say, I'd like to think I'm pretty much 'vaccinated' against many things now, although I'm probably still as over-sensitive as I ever was beneath it all.

What I would like to see within amateur fiction communities on the Internet is a little more mutual respect and tolerance. I'd also like to see far less vitriol, subtext in discussion, and downright vicious behaviour. Mind, it would be nice to have world peace, see disease eradicated, the globe to stop warming and the whole world knowing where to put the apostrophe or semi-colon, too.

Got those poison arrows ready?


June 2002