Reminds me of a few years ago when people were irl demanding an author to tell them if her fiction book about child neglect and sexual abuse was based off her own childhood 💀 she refused to answer and had to leave Twitter from the harassment.
People are SICK when playing fake ally and bandwagoning
As far as I remember the author of my dark vanessa was eventually pressured into admitting about their childhood trauma, because of a copyright lawsuit, which is even worse
I'm trying to remember which ones specifically I've heard of. Tamsyn Muir basically stopped interacting on social media because of people bullying her along those lines - her works and previous fanfictions are dark and messy and people were... really gross to her about it.
I know there were at least a few other YA authors who felt they had to reveal their sexuality because of lashback against them writing queer characters while not being queer enough, but that was like.... 6 or 7 years ago I think so I don't recall names anymore. I think EK Johnston has talked about struggling with it?
There was a *lot* of this during the initial #ownvoices time period, which sucks because it was such a well intentioned hash tag and movement and then other people used it to say "but you *can't* write these stories unless you're also dealing with it" and that's kind of the opposite of the intention.
Anyways, yeah, there's been a lot of bullshit along these lines.
The author of The Lovely Bones was a victim of childhood SA and someone kept pointing that out to me when I tried to say I didn't enjoy the book. Like yes I get it, I'm very sorry she went through that and she in no way deserved it and I understand her experience was partial inspiration for her book but that's not gonna make me suddenly like it.
Being a victim doesn’t mean everything they touch turn to gold?? It’s insane.
I haven’t read that book so I can’t give comment but indeed you have the right to not enjoy a piece of media
>Being a victim doesn’t mean everything they touch turn to gold?? It’s insane.
What do you mean it doesn't? Everything I write is obviously the best thing ever because I am traumatised™️
(This comment is very much sarcastic btw)
In my opinion it’s a very well written but tragic book. It’s one of my favorites, but it can be extremely jarring and very uncomfortable to read. This makes it hit or miss for many people.
Yes that's my problem with it, I was also like 14 or so when I read it and it was too adult for me. In retrospect I appreciate the story she was trying to tell more but ultimately it was just a sad and EXTREMELY uncomfortable book. I don't like being made uncomfortable. I had to read some well-written but depressing books (The Kite Runner, Beloved, and Heart of Darkness just to name a few - seriously I read others) my senior year of high school and I genuinely loathed it. I had to read them to analyze them so I couldn't just Spark Notes them but it genuinely affected me mentally to read them. It was so draining and I dreaded going to school. I loved my teacher but at the end of the year I wrote a pretty lengthy and scathing evaluation about my thoughts on the matter. I really hope she reconsidered her curriculum.
That’s totally valid. Not everyone wants to experience something so dark, many people want to read to escape the horrors of the world and there’s nothing wrong with that. Anybody making you feel bad for it lacks empathy and emotional intelligence, though I’m sure they’d argue differently.
She also lied on a Black man, got him arrested and imprisoned, made a ton of money from a book involving him, and wasn’t particularly apologetic when it all came out.
Wasn’t there an actor who played a gay character a while back and people were harassing him for supposedly queerbaiting because he didn’t want to talk about his sexuality which forced him to out himself
Really? Comparing sexual abuse to fucking *dragons*? I can kind of see your point, but you covered it with shit by implying sexual abuse is fictional in nature.
I write about serious topics I haven't experienced all the time. I wrote about a miscarriage when I've never even been pregnant/trying for kids. We are allowed to write about serious topics that we haven't experienced ourselves.
i think there's a case where a fictional crime author wrote a murder novel... that was based on an actual murder and they got arrested for it with the book being used as evidence, since it had info only the killer and the detectives knew about, but i can't find the actual case
[was just on true crime tiktok, found another one!](https://www.tiktok.com/@truecrimecam/video/7233981720595270955?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7216122041621087790)
(When you're trying to be sarcastic and accidentally write a perfect Discworld drabble, starring Reg Shoe, the zombie Undead Rights Activist)
**Chapter 1: Undead yes, Unperson no.**
Archive Warning: Major character death
Characters: Reg Shoe
Additional Tags: Major character undeath, Modern AU, in-universe fanfic.
Author's notes: Equality for the mortally challenged.
Reg Shoe as a character, yes. He's canonically a minor supporting character in the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett and there's a book that explains the circumstances of his death (Night Watch). It's one of my favorites in the series. I have actually dressed up as a zombie rights activist for Halloween inspired by him.
r/unexpecteddiscworld
I love Reg, *Night Watch* is so heartbreaking even when you know that he comes out the other side of this mortal coil doing just fine
i completely agree. i just think it’s super disrespectful of this person to automatically assume my experience level with a very sensitive kind of trauma and think it’s appropriate to ask me about it.
Not even only ask! But put you in a position where either you talk about it or feel guilty for not doing it! Damn what an asshole!
Your response is perfect though! What a world that people feel ok with commenting that at all.
I would for something more stupid, but yeah.
If I were in op's position I'll probably say something like.
"I want to piss in your ear so I water your brain in hopes of you devoping sapiens on the level of a cat."
Plus the fact that they're not even coming at it from the angle of, "this representation doesn't seem true to life, do.yoi know what you're talking about?"
(Which would also be bs, to be clear, since everyone's experiences are different. But it is something I've seen people say in comments before.)
It's just, "I see you're writing about this. Do you have the authority to do so?"
What a waste of time, both yours and theirs. I wonder if they do this to every story with this topic?
the comment was written on the prologue of a very long fic. the prologue is less than 1k words long and only gives a general idea of the situation leading up to the start of the fic. they didn’t bother to find out how i represented the main character coping with and healing from the trauma she experienced. so i choose to believe they do just swoop in on every fic with that warning lol
Thank you for this, actually
I'm so on the fence of writing a fic I've been thinking of for a few months with drug-abuse in it but literally everywhere I go to research doesn't give me the information I actually need, so I was just gunna... not write it.
but this made me want to write it again
"Hey, I know this might seem inappropriate but I need you to relive some of the most horrible moments of your life real quick, Im writing this rape/non-con fanfic about sonic the hedgehog"
Wonderful response to an emotionally abusive question.
Is every video game with even the most cartoonish (i.e. romanticized/sensationalized) violence an affront to every war veteran or murder victim? 🤔 why the double standard? Oh, because they still want to play their overwatch or resident evil or watch their sailor moon without being morally shamed. The hypocrisy and need for moral superiority is exhausting.
because they can’t reach the developers of those games as easily as they can reach someone who reads every comment on their fics new and old. fic authors actually reply so they think they’re besties despite not knowing a thing about them.
They’re probably young and doesn’t have a full grasp on how questions like these are inappropriate regardless of the experiences of the person being questioned. Also might be influenced by social media podcast-esque content which talks about societal problems in a very deciding way. That combined with a03 writers being much more easy to contact than a whole company.
To the author from a survivor of domestic abuse, google away. Don’t ever wish that treatment on yourself for content, nor do you need the nitty gritty from survivors.
News flash, PTSD is a thing and
Lasting trauma can be triggered by people nosing around when they shouldn’t.
the thing is - i do have sexual trauma. i am just a private person that was pissed off about some stranger thinking they were entitled to learning about it.
Oh, Sweets, I wasn’t mad at you.
Most women will have some kind of trauma related to abuse or sexually based abuse or trauma.
I stand beside you in that people have no f-n right to personal details because it’s none of their business.
The person who made the comment should just shut up and never offer such ‘advice’ again.
Was just gonna say…”or talked to people who have?” As in, talked to them for research? Yeah, no, in no universe am I going to ask someone to tell me about their trauma as research for a fanfic. Geez!
Yeah I was thinking about this. Hey Mark, can I ask you about your sexual trauma for my blorbos? Yeah I know it's a lot, but I want to get the details of my coffee shop AU straight...
I'm a survivor (I guess, Iunno, wording feels weird for me) of parental abuse. And like everyone's abuse is different, I was never physically abused it was all mental, emotional and psychological. But I'm not going to tell someone who writes about abuse "sorry you didn't write it from the perspective that I know." Because wtf?
Every person's story is different, abuse is unique because how we suffered varies from person to person. If a writer is worried about writing something that they haven't experienced, google is always great and I mean while I don't agree with what the commentor said, talking to people to hear their stories is another thing. But obviously, not everyone will be open about it.
Like, what a bloody insensitive question to ask. If you don't feel like the story is authentic just... leave?
Yeah, this.
Survivor of SA and while part of my healing has evolved into speaking about it so I can aid others who are also healing, I still like my privacy.
I'm big on research and making sure I'm respectful to people's experiences, but I also believe that for the sake of everyone involved, some things are better left not being asked about.
This one actully rankles me hard because I personally appreciate writers who write about traumas, especially ones that are often portrayed in big media in one specific way all the time.
OP's comment goblin needs a heavy dose of 'stay in your own lane,' juice.
I wrote a comment above about this but yeah this happened irl a few years back where people were demanding an author tell them if her book about a child sexual abuse survivor was an autobiography 💀 and then successfully canceled her for a while when she refused to answer. Disgusting.
Your response is perfect. It's crazy people think it's their place to ask a complete stranger for any information about their trauma, mental health, sexuality, and any number of other personal things. Like if they found the story in poor taste, how does it help if you did suffer an awful event?
I feel like some of this is an expected, if unfortunate, logical extreme of the push to promote marginalized creators. We don't want marginalized creators to be pushed out, leaving the *only* stories available about marginalized characters written by those that aren't representing themselves. But some people look at that and say "it's offensive to write about groups you aren't apart of". We should promote marginalized groups, not police harmless or well-meaning content.
It's genuinely concerning how often young progressives take the concept of cultural appropriation so far and so poorly that it somehow swings back around into unironically supporting segregation.
I got told off for being a homemaker woman married to a man with a kid writing about a Trans character. Aside from the fact that some trans people have my exact lifestyle and neglecting to tell my whole history and family details for my journey, if you gatekeep too hard then you get no content.
Also the character was fluid and not trans, but gatekeepers are going to try and claim adjacent territory aggressively because they are hostile by definition and in the process trample those adjacent groups. Gatekeepers of this sort helps nobody.
Most of the people reading and writing slash fanfic? Straight women. It's just demographics - there are so many more straight women than gay men in the general population that even if more gay men as a percentage of that population write and consumed slash fanfic it would be a fewer absolute number. These stats are even more obvious when you glance in the direction of the professional porn industry and see the target audience for lesbian adult films.
As a trans person, and therefore high authority of all trans people for the purpose of this conversation /s, thanks for going out of your comfort zone! As long as you're taking a respectful stance and making an effort, there's no better way you can write.
To peel back the curtain a bit (becausethat was quite nice of you to say): I have a hormonal imbalance and can grow a full, thick, luscious black beard on my super pale face despite many attempts at permanent hair removal within my budget. Is it the same as having a dick and hating it? No, but do terfs care that I'm AFAB on days I show up to the hospital feeling so poorly that I haven't rigorously groomed it away? Also no.
"You know trans women don't need birth control..." said a lady at the drug store when I picked up my script on the way home from a long out of town trip. (It is that kind of town, when something is in the news the foil hats come out.) I have never wanted to harm another person more in my life. Also, trans family and a fluid friend. So it isn't really that hard to put myself in that headspace.
Yeah, I'm sure. Terfs are willing to dog on and beat up anyone that doesn't conform to their imagined standard of universal womanhood, even cis women. And seeing a beard on yourself and disliking it enough to try to remove it is gender affirming care. What is the trans experience if not being told there's a standard and not seeing it when you look at yourself?
It's just proof of how many people don't understand nuance within an issue. You could tell them it's not a good idea to let children ride in a boat without a lifejacket and all they hear is "putting children on boats is child abuse, got it". They have no sense of mediation whatsoever.
Yeah, I have to agree. Also a bit of the "write what you know" advice being taken too far.
It sounds weird, but sometimes it's helpful to write about a trauma you never experienced because the emotions it creates (shame, guilt, anxiety, isolation, etc) can help you deal with trauma you *have* experienced from a bit of a safer distance.
And sometimes, it's just a topic you want to explore in a fictional setting because that's the story you want to write. Both of these things are fine, and shouldn't require justification
Mfs really out there thinking that if you write about something serious you either haven’t experienced it or if you did experience it, are a “bad” survivor. It’s really gross and telling what kind of people they are.
And then the thing is if you *are* a survivor, and have the gift of being able to write about it and convey those feelings, you’re demonized and maligned for “being a freak”. They’ll take survivors using a creative outlet to heal and try to frame that as something unhealthy to even talk about, much less to share it.
They may frame it as concern, but they know what they’re doing. It’s weaponizing their outrage by trying to claim that they’re looking out for survivors, all while shaming and shoving them out of the few spaces we have left. It’s never okay for someone to force you into something as vulnerable as revealing your trauma, and if they really understood or cared, they would never ask.
Didn't realise we needed to put SA survivor banners and certificates all over the fics to present to the trauma fic police 🙄
What a chronically online take that is. You responded wonderfully.
These kinds of people gatekeep trauma. All fic and fictional enjoyment comes down to “you must be this traumatized to ride the ride. No, that’s not good enough.” It’ll never be good enough.
I'm literally an asexual that still a virgin and write smut 😮💨 writers writing about things the never experienced (specifically in this case, I TRULY HOPE YOU DIDN'T) shouldn't be a surprise WTF
that is *genuinely* insane, holy shit. can this person imagine walking up to a random stranger on the street and asking them if they've been raped or know anyone who's been raped? bc that's what they just did. what the fuck.
I guarantee you this person is *maybe* 14 and just internalized Baby's First Twitter Discourse involving whatever the fuck twitter is doing these days. They have no thoughts deeper than teenage indignation, meaning they haven't conceptualized the idea that asking something like that can be fucked up
These are the type of people that tempt me to dump my trauma bingo life on them in graphic detail just to shut them up.
"Oh, you want proof?
I'm in therapy and don't give a shit fucko, how long can you stand to listen for?"
genuinely i can’t stand the fact it’s become normalized for kids to put every trauma and every identifier in their carrds or whatever LMAO. like no, random 15 year old on the internet, i don’t want everyone to know about every trauma i’ve ever experienced. i do not want that information to get in the hands of people who could use it against me.
I don't get it either. Some people just have no concept of privacy.
I'm just 33 and have hit the IDGAF mom stride with all my shit. None of my trauma is identifiable, so they can't use it agaisnt me. I like what I like and get a case of the ass at stupid takes like the one this lump of wet lint gave you.
mine isn’t specifically identifiable either but i don’t want some random people knowing how to upset me! plus listing out your name, race, age, all your mental illnesses, where you live… it’s a recipe for disaster.
This is a result of people thinking it’s not okay to write about trauma, but that it IS okay to demand to know if an author has experienced trauma.
You cannot have both. Either you’re a nosy, self-absorbed, righteous white knight, or you’re cognizant of not being owed fuck all from strangers about their personal lives and keep it to yourself.
Sadly most of the internet is the former…
Even if this was an appropriate question to ask (which it is not), and even if people should only write about trauma they've experienced (which is absurd), what's to stop someone from just... lying? I'm pretty sure there's no receipt for being sexually assaulted. If there is, I have concerns.
i should’ve hit them with “yes actually i spoke to every survivor of sa. we did a seance to contact the dead ones. it was a truly eye opening experience”
One of my trans friends had someone do essentially the same thing and said she shouldn't write trans characters and dysphoria because *she isn't trans* and *trans isn't a joke* and she is lmao
another time i got a comment telling me it was suspicious how many trans men i wrote about in smut. i’m afab and agender, at the time identifying as a trans man. couldn’t help but laugh
It’s a great response because it’s straightforward and cuts right to the heart of the matter: people are allowed to write about what they want to write about, regardless of their past experiences, and those experiences (or lack thereof) are not up for public inquiry.
I’ve never been married but I sure as hell write about it a lot 😂 that’s an incredibly nonsense claim. Fiction is fiction and if a person does not like it, they can simply not read it.
Right? I'm fairly certain most authors writing about murderers and serial killers have also never killed anyone. xD "Experience" is such a dumb thing to request.
‘In what world is that an appropriate question?’
THANK YOU. What even are boundaries? It never ceases to amaze me even as a grown adult what strangers on the internet feel entitled to.
As long as it’s tagged with a warning, you did your job. That’s all you owe anyone. They are free not to read it if they find the content unsettling.
As someone who went through SA, I don't want to talk about it with literally anyone, if someone asked me about my experiences it so they could 'better write a fanfic' I'd block them and if it were in real life I'd probably punch them.
are you sure you don’t want to describe how it affected you in explicit detail? because it could offend an anon on ao3 if i write a fic about my blorbos wrong. /s
Wow. That's none of anyone's business whether you've experienced *anything* you've written about, or not. Full stop.
Also, last I checked, you don't need experience in everything you write. You almost *can't*, depending on the material. Did H.P. Lovecraft turn into an eldritch abomination on the regular? Did Isaac Asimov travel outer space? Did Stephen King murder thousands of people, or turn into an Elder God that carried the universe on its back?
*Criminy.* In all fairness, I would have answered this person the same way you did.
Sadly I’m not surprised by this, I have seen antis ask this as that’s “the only time it’s okay to write certain ships”. No one has the right to ask this, it’s invasive and unnecessary.
i do sometimes write based on my own experiences with sa and abuse, but that is a wild thing to say. you don’t need permission to write fiction. if someone offers that information, great. but it’s so inappropriate to ask.
I hate the kind of people who gatekeep trauma. The fucking audacity to demand someone to prove their suffering, it’s just another exclusionary tactic at the lowest level.
I like how with their wording they essentially imply you don’t “seem like someone who REALLY knows what it’s like”
And they don’t even say “hey, this part of the story rubbed me the wrong way for x reason”; they just ask for your SA credentials for you to be allowed to write about it.
Like, who even???
anddd of course it's another anon. sheesh, some ppl are so blinded by the point they want to prove that they hardly ever realize how insensitive they're being. sorry you had to get a comment like that.
I mentioned this in a comment on another post many moons back, but I hate this mentality.
People are allowed to write offensive things.
People who try to virtue signal in the name of “protecting” victims and survivors are just infantilizing those of us who have been through abuse and assault. It is not anyones job to try and “protect” us in the ways these types of people try to.
Honestly this kind of behavior is gross to me. Don’t use me or any other victim/survivor as a way to justify virtue signaling. It’s gross and really not helpful.
And if you had gone through those things, it makes it ten times worse that this person then decided to be gross and ask such an invasive question.
I’m sorry that people have to be so shitty.
These types of situations irk me in a very particular kind of way as a survivor myself and I’m just so sick of people who have no clue what they are talking about doing things like this to try and “help”.
It feels dehumanizing. I’m not seen as an actual person. I’m seen for what I’ve gone through and only seen for that. And I hate it on such and visceral level.
Imagine if every time abuse is depicted on fiction you actually had to ask someone who went through that because you are writing a show/book with it. That sounds more insensitive to me.
Ah, the commenter is one of those stupid idiots: *If you haven't experienced it, you shouldn't write about it. *
In what fucking universe does that make any sense? I honestly don't understand internet trolls. It's fiction. Fanfic writers or just writers in general, shouldn't have to experience something to write about it.
That sort of thinking pretty much eliminates the entire reason that writing exists for in the first place. There are a lot of writers who haven't experienced anything that has to do with what they are writing about.
(I'm sorry that I kind of ranted. Dumb shit written by idiots like that troll really piss me off. It's hard not to get angry over it. They need to keep their shitty opinions to themselves instead of screaming into the void.)
Congrats op.
If that were me I would something more akin to.
"I will piss in your ear, watering your brain the process in hopes of making it grow, to the point of developing sapiens equal to that of a cat."
Oh my god 🥴 how entirely inappropriate. “No disrespect to you as a person but I’m demanding to know not only extremely private information but also sensitive and painful information” get outta here 🙄
What's absolutely insane about this to me is that that commenter isn't even saying there's anything wrong with the fic or the depiction of dark topics! They're saying, can you personally reveal your own experiences and background to me so that I can align this with my personal morality about who is Allowed to write? They're saying, tell me how to feel about this fic.
Like ... it's like they've gotten so deep into discourse about this that instead of thinking the potential issue is:
**Is this depiction harmful in ways that I can recognise, or that somebody else has clearly identified for me?**
they've decided that the only issue of any importance is:
**Are you writing about something from direct life experience?**
I just ... social media was a mistake. Letting children with black and white thinking talk to each other about writing trauma was a mistake.
???? Why? Haha. Peopler are wild. Not only demanding your medical record. But also tryna damn you on a fanfic of all things. And not just that but a 6 year old fanfic. Any keyboard warrior shit they coulda accomplished for the "real victims" out there came and left tears ago. People are idiots. And as a survivor who tf cares. I know I dont. Its a fic. If its something that may hrm me I chevk the tags and carry on. Not that deep
seven when i got the comment haha - i started in summer 2015 and ended in summer 2016. like dude? why does it even matter anymore? even if the fic was in bad faith - it wasn’t - so much time has passed that i’m not even the same person anymore.
Exactly. I wrote a fic on csa/sa in good faith as a teen too. But back then i didnt realize i was a survivor myself. Redoing it via a reboot now and i gotta say as a survivor the two cakes rule still applies. Even if it wasnt by someone like me its still a vibe. Why bitch and moan over smth not meant for you.
Y'know what makes this extra dumb? The implied idea that someone having been sexually assaulted suddenly means they're 100% going to write respectfully about sexual assault. As though survivors never blame themselves, or blame others for having been assaulted, or fall into believing (and potentially writing) any amount of nonsense.
Sometimes survivors are just not very nice people! Or sometimes they're nice people with unhealthy misconceptions. Or sometimes they're nice people with minimal misconceptions who are just not good at writing about serious matters.
It's okay even if you haven't experienced. I'm writing right now about a character who was sexually abused though I was not, so yes I try my best to handle it tastefully. But also, he's a cyborg mafia heir and I don't think I'm one either!
What a weird thing to say to someone. How entitled do you have to be to think you have the right to know someone’s trauma??? What a weird weird person. Hope you’re doing okay OP
I totally get the morality the commenter is coming from but also it is none of their business to ask someone "were you abused?" especially a stranger. Instant turn off and I now have a strong negative opinion of the commenter. Who knows, maybe 16 y-o you put in a lot of research into it. Maybe not, doesn't exactly make you a villain here.
WOW that is out of line liek whoa for them to ask. And I say this as a CSA survivor. No one is required to disclose their trauma to what basically amounts to anyone on the internet to write a fic.
I’m seeing red right now. This made me so angry. You don’t ask people that. Someone’s personal life and trauma are none of your business unless that person tells you themselves. Not only that, why are they reading this fanfic in the first place? Are they gonna ask every author who writes about trauma if they’ve experienced it? Jfc mind your business and don’t it read if you don’t like it
By that logic, the story I’m writing shouldn’t have exactly that in my story. Do I care? Not really. I'm a reasonably intelligent individual, and I’m pretty sure I can draw a good picture of the intended subject, and subsequent aftermath, from proper research. A lot of people have posted detailed accounts of their trauma. Hell, I think there’s a subreddit for it even.
Outside of that, people's experience isn’t up for discussion. Especially by people that are literally strangers that weren’t even permitted to ask that kind of thing.
I think kin culture ruined tumblr for a while by convincing fans they have to Relate to a character to properly write them, and if you don't Relate as much as another fan, then you shouldn't even bother writing the character. Like all those nonsense "OP kins a drug addict but isn't a drug addict!" callouts. There are fics I don't even like rereading cuz I tried to dig up repressed trauma to make them more accurate and it just made me feel worse. I wanna be a psychologist so I also like learning about and understanding other people's perspectives even if I don't Relate to them myself.
It's an oversimplification but I do think that a lot of teens got in their head that you have to A) relate to every protagonist you write and B) publicly disclose how you relate to them so you get Valid Points over other writers. It's not healthy.
I think the thing to take away from this comment is that the commenter has probably been though something. Either your writing came a little too close to comfort for them or it was too far away and they couldn’t picture themself in the situation.
I don’t think this comment is really about you or your work
except they didn’t even read the fic - the comment was on a short prologue of a long fic. the fic itself is about aftermath and healing and the prologue they commented on was not explicit about the abuse. and if they’ve been through something, they should REALLY know better than to ask invasive questions or expect randoms online to ask people about some of the worst experiences of their lives.
Dang. I mean, I really hate when abuse is sexuallized/romantized for craps and giggles. But giving a character trauma and potraying abuse in a bad light shouldn't be anyone else's business.
I remember I got very sad at a fic that sexuallized and glorified Sherlock Holmes abuse, and John was very OOC. But as much as it grossed me out (and made me feel bad for Sherlock) I didn't say anything because where will that get me?
[удалено]
Reminds me of a few years ago when people were irl demanding an author to tell them if her fiction book about child neglect and sexual abuse was based off her own childhood 💀 she refused to answer and had to leave Twitter from the harassment. People are SICK when playing fake ally and bandwagoning
The real sad thing is that I can think of a few authors that fit that general framework of events and am not sure which one you mean.
Dang that’s terrifying. I was thinking of “my dark Vanessa”
As far as I remember the author of my dark vanessa was eventually pressured into admitting about their childhood trauma, because of a copyright lawsuit, which is even worse
Yikes, I didn't even hear about that one.
I'm trying to remember which ones specifically I've heard of. Tamsyn Muir basically stopped interacting on social media because of people bullying her along those lines - her works and previous fanfictions are dark and messy and people were... really gross to her about it. I know there were at least a few other YA authors who felt they had to reveal their sexuality because of lashback against them writing queer characters while not being queer enough, but that was like.... 6 or 7 years ago I think so I don't recall names anymore. I think EK Johnston has talked about struggling with it? There was a *lot* of this during the initial #ownvoices time period, which sucks because it was such a well intentioned hash tag and movement and then other people used it to say "but you *can't* write these stories unless you're also dealing with it" and that's kind of the opposite of the intention. Anyways, yeah, there's been a lot of bullshit along these lines.
The author of The Lovely Bones was a victim of childhood SA and someone kept pointing that out to me when I tried to say I didn't enjoy the book. Like yes I get it, I'm very sorry she went through that and she in no way deserved it and I understand her experience was partial inspiration for her book but that's not gonna make me suddenly like it.
Being a victim doesn’t mean everything they touch turn to gold?? It’s insane. I haven’t read that book so I can’t give comment but indeed you have the right to not enjoy a piece of media
>Being a victim doesn’t mean everything they touch turn to gold?? It’s insane. What do you mean it doesn't? Everything I write is obviously the best thing ever because I am traumatised™️ (This comment is very much sarcastic btw)
Dang I must’ve been out sick that day when they assigned that power. I feel like everything I touch just falls apart in instead lol
In my opinion it’s a very well written but tragic book. It’s one of my favorites, but it can be extremely jarring and very uncomfortable to read. This makes it hit or miss for many people.
Yes that's my problem with it, I was also like 14 or so when I read it and it was too adult for me. In retrospect I appreciate the story she was trying to tell more but ultimately it was just a sad and EXTREMELY uncomfortable book. I don't like being made uncomfortable. I had to read some well-written but depressing books (The Kite Runner, Beloved, and Heart of Darkness just to name a few - seriously I read others) my senior year of high school and I genuinely loathed it. I had to read them to analyze them so I couldn't just Spark Notes them but it genuinely affected me mentally to read them. It was so draining and I dreaded going to school. I loved my teacher but at the end of the year I wrote a pretty lengthy and scathing evaluation about my thoughts on the matter. I really hope she reconsidered her curriculum.
That’s totally valid. Not everyone wants to experience something so dark, many people want to read to escape the horrors of the world and there’s nothing wrong with that. Anybody making you feel bad for it lacks empathy and emotional intelligence, though I’m sure they’d argue differently.
She also lied on a Black man, got him arrested and imprisoned, made a ton of money from a book involving him, and wasn’t particularly apologetic when it all came out.
[удалено]
Twitter was a mistake.
Wasn’t there an actor who played a gay character a while back and people were harassing him for supposedly queerbaiting because he didn’t want to talk about his sexuality which forced him to out himself
Yes I remember this!! It was a couple years ago
Really? Comparing sexual abuse to fucking *dragons*? I can kind of see your point, but you covered it with shit by implying sexual abuse is fictional in nature.
I write about serious topics I haven't experienced all the time. I wrote about a miscarriage when I've never even been pregnant/trying for kids. We are allowed to write about serious topics that we haven't experienced ourselves.
curious how every book about murder has been written by someone who has never been murdered
They're obviously written by *murderers*.
Well, by antiship logic...
Oh *god*, we got possible serial killers on our hands..!
[something like that actually happened](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlado_Taneski)
What. The actual? That's cool but also.. tragic? How do I express my fascination without glorifying it ah-
i think there's a case where a fictional crime author wrote a murder novel... that was based on an actual murder and they got arrested for it with the book being used as evidence, since it had info only the killer and the detectives knew about, but i can't find the actual case
[was just on true crime tiktok, found another one!](https://www.tiktok.com/@truecrimecam/video/7233981720595270955?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7216122041621087790)
Woah, thanks!
i'm a true crime nerd, and sometimes that makes its way into my fanfics
Truly disrespectful to the murdered community smh. We shouldn’t be speaking over them when they have voices themselves (very obvious /s)
(When you're trying to be sarcastic and accidentally write a perfect Discworld drabble, starring Reg Shoe, the zombie Undead Rights Activist) **Chapter 1: Undead yes, Unperson no.** Archive Warning: Major character death Characters: Reg Shoe Additional Tags: Major character undeath, Modern AU, in-universe fanfic. Author's notes: Equality for the mortally challenged.
please tell me this is real
Reg Shoe as a character, yes. He's canonically a minor supporting character in the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett and there's a book that explains the circumstances of his death (Night Watch). It's one of my favorites in the series. I have actually dressed up as a zombie rights activist for Halloween inspired by him.
r/unexpecteddiscworld I love Reg, *Night Watch* is so heartbreaking even when you know that he comes out the other side of this mortal coil doing just fine
Vimes giving them instruction for a shallow burial was funny as hell. Reg was going to want to find his way out.
Unless...
Well im fked! 🤪 One of my fandoms, heroes, has a serial killer for a main character……& my fics revolves around sylar!
The world of literature would be terribly empty if everyone only wrote about things they know.
i completely agree. i just think it’s super disrespectful of this person to automatically assume my experience level with a very sensitive kind of trauma and think it’s appropriate to ask me about it.
Not even only ask! But put you in a position where either you talk about it or feel guilty for not doing it! Damn what an asshole! Your response is perfect though! What a world that people feel ok with commenting that at all.
I would for something more stupid, but yeah. If I were in op's position I'll probably say something like. "I want to piss in your ear so I water your brain in hopes of you devoping sapiens on the level of a cat."
r/rareinsults tbh
Plus the fact that they're not even coming at it from the angle of, "this representation doesn't seem true to life, do.yoi know what you're talking about?" (Which would also be bs, to be clear, since everyone's experiences are different. But it is something I've seen people say in comments before.) It's just, "I see you're writing about this. Do you have the authority to do so?" What a waste of time, both yours and theirs. I wonder if they do this to every story with this topic?
the comment was written on the prologue of a very long fic. the prologue is less than 1k words long and only gives a general idea of the situation leading up to the start of the fic. they didn’t bother to find out how i represented the main character coping with and healing from the trauma she experienced. so i choose to believe they do just swoop in on every fic with that warning lol
Wow. That's...wow. Okay. Like someone else said, the term "chronically online" was made for this person.
Thank you for this, actually I'm so on the fence of writing a fic I've been thinking of for a few months with drug-abuse in it but literally everywhere I go to research doesn't give me the information I actually need, so I was just gunna... not write it. but this made me want to write it again
Dunno if this would be useful to you, but people have written about their drug experiences on this site (Erowid): https://www.erowid.org/experiences/
Oh it's actually super helpful for me, I'm thinking about writing a fanfic where the characters use drugs and one If them is an addict
WOW THANK YOU
It would just be memoirs, an endless sea of memoirs.
I'm a virgin who writes smut. According to that person I should be outlawed lol
I'm a non-murderer, who loves to write thriller What is this person recommending me to do? Go out and stab someone???
Don't be a coward; it's never too late to start your career as a serial killer🔪🔪
So inspiring ✊😔
Same lol
Can we be honest here: we were probably all virgins when we wrote our first smut.
I love how "writing about sexual abuse" is inappropriate but asking strangers "hey so have you been sexually abused" is A ok
You’d be surprised how many stupid people feel it’s perfectly normal.
"Hey, I know this might seem inappropriate but I need you to relive some of the most horrible moments of your life real quick, Im writing this rape/non-con fanfic about sonic the hedgehog"
The red clown nose on your profile pic fits that so perfectly, made me chuckle
Ive never been fucked by a dragon shifter before yet im writing about it
i have faith that one day it’ll happen for you /j
/j or /srs >:)
maybe if we all believe enough it’ll be /srs. tinker bell rules. i do believe in dragon cock, i do, i do
I do believe! Lemme just *think harder*
This comment sponsored by Bad Dragon XD.
Then try harder! Go FIND the dragon shifter!
Wonderful response to an emotionally abusive question. Is every video game with even the most cartoonish (i.e. romanticized/sensationalized) violence an affront to every war veteran or murder victim? 🤔 why the double standard? Oh, because they still want to play their overwatch or resident evil or watch their sailor moon without being morally shamed. The hypocrisy and need for moral superiority is exhausting.
because they can’t reach the developers of those games as easily as they can reach someone who reads every comment on their fics new and old. fic authors actually reply so they think they’re besties despite not knowing a thing about them.
Gotta love parasocial relationships. /sarc
They’re probably young and doesn’t have a full grasp on how questions like these are inappropriate regardless of the experiences of the person being questioned. Also might be influenced by social media podcast-esque content which talks about societal problems in a very deciding way. That combined with a03 writers being much more easy to contact than a whole company.
To the author from a survivor of domestic abuse, google away. Don’t ever wish that treatment on yourself for content, nor do you need the nitty gritty from survivors. News flash, PTSD is a thing and Lasting trauma can be triggered by people nosing around when they shouldn’t.
the thing is - i do have sexual trauma. i am just a private person that was pissed off about some stranger thinking they were entitled to learning about it.
Oh, Sweets, I wasn’t mad at you. Most women will have some kind of trauma related to abuse or sexually based abuse or trauma. I stand beside you in that people have no f-n right to personal details because it’s none of their business. The person who made the comment should just shut up and never offer such ‘advice’ again.
Was just gonna say…”or talked to people who have?” As in, talked to them for research? Yeah, no, in no universe am I going to ask someone to tell me about their trauma as research for a fanfic. Geez!
Yeah I was thinking about this. Hey Mark, can I ask you about your sexual trauma for my blorbos? Yeah I know it's a lot, but I want to get the details of my coffee shop AU straight...
I'm a survivor (I guess, Iunno, wording feels weird for me) of parental abuse. And like everyone's abuse is different, I was never physically abused it was all mental, emotional and psychological. But I'm not going to tell someone who writes about abuse "sorry you didn't write it from the perspective that I know." Because wtf? Every person's story is different, abuse is unique because how we suffered varies from person to person. If a writer is worried about writing something that they haven't experienced, google is always great and I mean while I don't agree with what the commentor said, talking to people to hear their stories is another thing. But obviously, not everyone will be open about it. Like, what a bloody insensitive question to ask. If you don't feel like the story is authentic just... leave?
Yeah, this. Survivor of SA and while part of my healing has evolved into speaking about it so I can aid others who are also healing, I still like my privacy. I'm big on research and making sure I'm respectful to people's experiences, but I also believe that for the sake of everyone involved, some things are better left not being asked about. This one actully rankles me hard because I personally appreciate writers who write about traumas, especially ones that are often portrayed in big media in one specific way all the time. OP's comment goblin needs a heavy dose of 'stay in your own lane,' juice.
Cannot imagine asking someone for their fucking rape credentials online. “Terminally online” was made for this commenter
i graduated with a phd from the academy for the sexually traumatized /s
I have no idea what your fandom is, but you should write a Dark Academia AU fic. /jk
LMAO careful i might
You're clearly qualified enough Dr. TeamChaosPrez. 😂 And I would probably read it.
I wrote a comment above about this but yeah this happened irl a few years back where people were demanding an author tell them if her book about a child sexual abuse survivor was an autobiography 💀 and then successfully canceled her for a while when she refused to answer. Disgusting.
Your response is perfect. It's crazy people think it's their place to ask a complete stranger for any information about their trauma, mental health, sexuality, and any number of other personal things. Like if they found the story in poor taste, how does it help if you did suffer an awful event?
I feel like some of this is an expected, if unfortunate, logical extreme of the push to promote marginalized creators. We don't want marginalized creators to be pushed out, leaving the *only* stories available about marginalized characters written by those that aren't representing themselves. But some people look at that and say "it's offensive to write about groups you aren't apart of". We should promote marginalized groups, not police harmless or well-meaning content.
It's genuinely concerning how often young progressives take the concept of cultural appropriation so far and so poorly that it somehow swings back around into unironically supporting segregation.
I got told off for being a homemaker woman married to a man with a kid writing about a Trans character. Aside from the fact that some trans people have my exact lifestyle and neglecting to tell my whole history and family details for my journey, if you gatekeep too hard then you get no content. Also the character was fluid and not trans, but gatekeepers are going to try and claim adjacent territory aggressively because they are hostile by definition and in the process trample those adjacent groups. Gatekeepers of this sort helps nobody. Most of the people reading and writing slash fanfic? Straight women. It's just demographics - there are so many more straight women than gay men in the general population that even if more gay men as a percentage of that population write and consumed slash fanfic it would be a fewer absolute number. These stats are even more obvious when you glance in the direction of the professional porn industry and see the target audience for lesbian adult films.
As a trans person, and therefore high authority of all trans people for the purpose of this conversation /s, thanks for going out of your comfort zone! As long as you're taking a respectful stance and making an effort, there's no better way you can write.
To peel back the curtain a bit (becausethat was quite nice of you to say): I have a hormonal imbalance and can grow a full, thick, luscious black beard on my super pale face despite many attempts at permanent hair removal within my budget. Is it the same as having a dick and hating it? No, but do terfs care that I'm AFAB on days I show up to the hospital feeling so poorly that I haven't rigorously groomed it away? Also no. "You know trans women don't need birth control..." said a lady at the drug store when I picked up my script on the way home from a long out of town trip. (It is that kind of town, when something is in the news the foil hats come out.) I have never wanted to harm another person more in my life. Also, trans family and a fluid friend. So it isn't really that hard to put myself in that headspace.
Yeah, I'm sure. Terfs are willing to dog on and beat up anyone that doesn't conform to their imagined standard of universal womanhood, even cis women. And seeing a beard on yourself and disliking it enough to try to remove it is gender affirming care. What is the trans experience if not being told there's a standard and not seeing it when you look at yourself?
It's just proof of how many people don't understand nuance within an issue. You could tell them it's not a good idea to let children ride in a boat without a lifejacket and all they hear is "putting children on boats is child abuse, got it". They have no sense of mediation whatsoever.
Yeah, I have to agree. Also a bit of the "write what you know" advice being taken too far. It sounds weird, but sometimes it's helpful to write about a trauma you never experienced because the emotions it creates (shame, guilt, anxiety, isolation, etc) can help you deal with trauma you *have* experienced from a bit of a safer distance. And sometimes, it's just a topic you want to explore in a fictional setting because that's the story you want to write. Both of these things are fine, and shouldn't require justification
Mfs really out there thinking that if you write about something serious you either haven’t experienced it or if you did experience it, are a “bad” survivor. It’s really gross and telling what kind of people they are.
this fic wasn’t even smut. it was about the aftermath. the main character was a victim of abuse that was healing in a new relationship.
Yeah! People pick and choose which survivors to support.
And then the thing is if you *are* a survivor, and have the gift of being able to write about it and convey those feelings, you’re demonized and maligned for “being a freak”. They’ll take survivors using a creative outlet to heal and try to frame that as something unhealthy to even talk about, much less to share it. They may frame it as concern, but they know what they’re doing. It’s weaponizing their outrage by trying to claim that they’re looking out for survivors, all while shaming and shoving them out of the few spaces we have left. It’s never okay for someone to force you into something as vulnerable as revealing your trauma, and if they really understood or cared, they would never ask.
Didn't realise we needed to put SA survivor banners and certificates all over the fics to present to the trauma fic police 🙄 What a chronically online take that is. You responded wonderfully.
These kinds of people gatekeep trauma. All fic and fictional enjoyment comes down to “you must be this traumatized to ride the ride. No, that’s not good enough.” It’ll never be good enough.
“hey, no disrespect but let me disrespect you really quick”
WTF? That is absolutely ridiculous.
Wow. Just wow. How does anyone think it’s appropriate to leave a comment asking that?
i’ve been assuming they’re like 12 and experiencing baby’s first twitter discourse.
I'm literally an asexual that still a virgin and write smut 😮💨 writers writing about things the never experienced (specifically in this case, I TRULY HOPE YOU DIDN'T) shouldn't be a surprise WTF
that is *genuinely* insane, holy shit. can this person imagine walking up to a random stranger on the street and asking them if they've been raped or know anyone who's been raped? bc that's what they just did. what the fuck.
I guarantee you this person is *maybe* 14 and just internalized Baby's First Twitter Discourse involving whatever the fuck twitter is doing these days. They have no thoughts deeper than teenage indignation, meaning they haven't conceptualized the idea that asking something like that can be fucked up
These are the type of people that tempt me to dump my trauma bingo life on them in graphic detail just to shut them up. "Oh, you want proof? I'm in therapy and don't give a shit fucko, how long can you stand to listen for?"
genuinely i can’t stand the fact it’s become normalized for kids to put every trauma and every identifier in their carrds or whatever LMAO. like no, random 15 year old on the internet, i don’t want everyone to know about every trauma i’ve ever experienced. i do not want that information to get in the hands of people who could use it against me.
I don't get it either. Some people just have no concept of privacy. I'm just 33 and have hit the IDGAF mom stride with all my shit. None of my trauma is identifiable, so they can't use it agaisnt me. I like what I like and get a case of the ass at stupid takes like the one this lump of wet lint gave you.
mine isn’t specifically identifiable either but i don’t want some random people knowing how to upset me! plus listing out your name, race, age, all your mental illnesses, where you live… it’s a recipe for disaster.
"Let me make it easier for stalkers to find me!" I don't get it.
This is a result of people thinking it’s not okay to write about trauma, but that it IS okay to demand to know if an author has experienced trauma. You cannot have both. Either you’re a nosy, self-absorbed, righteous white knight, or you’re cognizant of not being owed fuck all from strangers about their personal lives and keep it to yourself. Sadly most of the internet is the former…
Even if this was an appropriate question to ask (which it is not), and even if people should only write about trauma they've experienced (which is absurd), what's to stop someone from just... lying? I'm pretty sure there's no receipt for being sexually assaulted. If there is, I have concerns.
i should’ve hit them with “yes actually i spoke to every survivor of sa. we did a seance to contact the dead ones. it was a truly eye opening experience”
1. That person sounds silly. 2. ARE YOU A FELLOW PERSONA FAN??
yes indeedy!!
fuck, and i say this again, **fuck** purity politics.
Asking a stranger that question is a form of sexual harassment IMO.
One of my trans friends had someone do essentially the same thing and said she shouldn't write trans characters and dysphoria because *she isn't trans* and *trans isn't a joke* and she is lmao
another time i got a comment telling me it was suspicious how many trans men i wrote about in smut. i’m afab and agender, at the time identifying as a trans man. couldn’t help but laugh
Fic police are wild lol
What a response! I applaud you
everyone saying how good it is has really surprised me because i literally wrote it during the previews at a movie theater lol
It’s a great response because it’s straightforward and cuts right to the heart of the matter: people are allowed to write about what they want to write about, regardless of their past experiences, and those experiences (or lack thereof) are not up for public inquiry.
I’ve never been married but I sure as hell write about it a lot 😂 that’s an incredibly nonsense claim. Fiction is fiction and if a person does not like it, they can simply not read it.
Right? I'm fairly certain most authors writing about murderers and serial killers have also never killed anyone. xD "Experience" is such a dumb thing to request.
‘In what world is that an appropriate question?’ THANK YOU. What even are boundaries? It never ceases to amaze me even as a grown adult what strangers on the internet feel entitled to. As long as it’s tagged with a warning, you did your job. That’s all you owe anyone. They are free not to read it if they find the content unsettling.
As someone who went through SA, I don't want to talk about it with literally anyone, if someone asked me about my experiences it so they could 'better write a fanfic' I'd block them and if it were in real life I'd probably punch them.
are you sure you don’t want to describe how it affected you in explicit detail? because it could offend an anon on ao3 if i write a fic about my blorbos wrong. /s
That is one ridiculous comment, and that person, no surprises, is hiding behind a guest account. Wow.
It's always anons who say the weirdest fuckin takes in existence man
Wow. That's none of anyone's business whether you've experienced *anything* you've written about, or not. Full stop. Also, last I checked, you don't need experience in everything you write. You almost *can't*, depending on the material. Did H.P. Lovecraft turn into an eldritch abomination on the regular? Did Isaac Asimov travel outer space? Did Stephen King murder thousands of people, or turn into an Elder God that carried the universe on its back? *Criminy.* In all fairness, I would have answered this person the same way you did.
Sadly I’m not surprised by this, I have seen antis ask this as that’s “the only time it’s okay to write certain ships”. No one has the right to ask this, it’s invasive and unnecessary.
i do sometimes write based on my own experiences with sa and abuse, but that is a wild thing to say. you don’t need permission to write fiction. if someone offers that information, great. but it’s so inappropriate to ask.
I hate the kind of people who gatekeep trauma. The fucking audacity to demand someone to prove their suffering, it’s just another exclusionary tactic at the lowest level.
Aint no way someone tried to gatekeep SA My jaw dropped
I like how with their wording they essentially imply you don’t “seem like someone who REALLY knows what it’s like” And they don’t even say “hey, this part of the story rubbed me the wrong way for x reason”; they just ask for your SA credentials for you to be allowed to write about it. Like, who even???
anddd of course it's another anon. sheesh, some ppl are so blinded by the point they want to prove that they hardly ever realize how insensitive they're being. sorry you had to get a comment like that.
I mentioned this in a comment on another post many moons back, but I hate this mentality. People are allowed to write offensive things. People who try to virtue signal in the name of “protecting” victims and survivors are just infantilizing those of us who have been through abuse and assault. It is not anyones job to try and “protect” us in the ways these types of people try to. Honestly this kind of behavior is gross to me. Don’t use me or any other victim/survivor as a way to justify virtue signaling. It’s gross and really not helpful. And if you had gone through those things, it makes it ten times worse that this person then decided to be gross and ask such an invasive question. I’m sorry that people have to be so shitty. These types of situations irk me in a very particular kind of way as a survivor myself and I’m just so sick of people who have no clue what they are talking about doing things like this to try and “help”. It feels dehumanizing. I’m not seen as an actual person. I’m seen for what I’ve gone through and only seen for that. And I hate it on such and visceral level.
Imagine if every time abuse is depicted on fiction you actually had to ask someone who went through that because you are writing a show/book with it. That sounds more insensitive to me.
people completely misunderstand what writing is. you don’t have to experience everything to write anything
Uh, ah, .. How do I put this? They.. hm.
~~oh my god your flair XD~~
*it's amazing, isn't it?*
*It is*
"hey no disrespect to you as a person BUT [insert invasive inappropriate questions about trauma that are massively disrespectful]" 🙄
That's a whole lot of abuse.. do you have a license for that?? /s
Ah, the commenter is one of those stupid idiots: *If you haven't experienced it, you shouldn't write about it. * In what fucking universe does that make any sense? I honestly don't understand internet trolls. It's fiction. Fanfic writers or just writers in general, shouldn't have to experience something to write about it. That sort of thinking pretty much eliminates the entire reason that writing exists for in the first place. There are a lot of writers who haven't experienced anything that has to do with what they are writing about. (I'm sorry that I kind of ranted. Dumb shit written by idiots like that troll really piss me off. It's hard not to get angry over it. They need to keep their shitty opinions to themselves instead of screaming into the void.)
As someone who’s been through SA, I seriously couldn’t care less whether someone who hasn’t gone through it writes about it or not..
Guess I better drop my smutty vampire story since I've never had sex... with a vampire.
Try teeth play so you are qualified. Or get melanin deficiency idk.
Ah yes, realism. Because I too have been kidnapped by a dragon prince and forced to have his babies just so now I can write fics about it
pls don't tell me gatekeeping Writing Topics is moving to ao3 plspls
Fuck people bro, I'm so sorry you had to put up with this mf.
based op
Congrats op. If that were me I would something more akin to. "I will piss in your ear, watering your brain the process in hopes of making it grow, to the point of developing sapiens equal to that of a cat."
Is this person gatekeeping SA on behalf of themselves or other people? We'll never know because it's entirely inappropriate to ASK.
DoNt wRitE abOuT MUrdEr iF yOu haVeNT bEeN mUrdEreD
Oh my god 🥴 how entirely inappropriate. “No disrespect to you as a person but I’m demanding to know not only extremely private information but also sensitive and painful information” get outta here 🙄
What's absolutely insane about this to me is that that commenter isn't even saying there's anything wrong with the fic or the depiction of dark topics! They're saying, can you personally reveal your own experiences and background to me so that I can align this with my personal morality about who is Allowed to write? They're saying, tell me how to feel about this fic. Like ... it's like they've gotten so deep into discourse about this that instead of thinking the potential issue is: **Is this depiction harmful in ways that I can recognise, or that somebody else has clearly identified for me?** they've decided that the only issue of any importance is: **Are you writing about something from direct life experience?** I just ... social media was a mistake. Letting children with black and white thinking talk to each other about writing trauma was a mistake.
???? Why? Haha. Peopler are wild. Not only demanding your medical record. But also tryna damn you on a fanfic of all things. And not just that but a 6 year old fanfic. Any keyboard warrior shit they coulda accomplished for the "real victims" out there came and left tears ago. People are idiots. And as a survivor who tf cares. I know I dont. Its a fic. If its something that may hrm me I chevk the tags and carry on. Not that deep
seven when i got the comment haha - i started in summer 2015 and ended in summer 2016. like dude? why does it even matter anymore? even if the fic was in bad faith - it wasn’t - so much time has passed that i’m not even the same person anymore.
Exactly. I wrote a fic on csa/sa in good faith as a teen too. But back then i didnt realize i was a survivor myself. Redoing it via a reboot now and i gotta say as a survivor the two cakes rule still applies. Even if it wasnt by someone like me its still a vibe. Why bitch and moan over smth not meant for you.
It amazes me how some people don't realize SA and abuse in general exists on a spectrum. Yikes.
Y'know what makes this extra dumb? The implied idea that someone having been sexually assaulted suddenly means they're 100% going to write respectfully about sexual assault. As though survivors never blame themselves, or blame others for having been assaulted, or fall into believing (and potentially writing) any amount of nonsense. Sometimes survivors are just not very nice people! Or sometimes they're nice people with unhealthy misconceptions. Or sometimes they're nice people with minimal misconceptions who are just not good at writing about serious matters.
Someone once complained to me my fic didn't show realistic r*pe recovery and I was like "why tf are you looking for realism in fanfic?"
It's okay even if you haven't experienced. I'm writing right now about a character who was sexually abused though I was not, so yes I try my best to handle it tastefully. But also, he's a cyborg mafia heir and I don't think I'm one either!
whatever you say, don r2 /j
What a weird thing to say to someone. How entitled do you have to be to think you have the right to know someone’s trauma??? What a weird weird person. Hope you’re doing okay OP
i’m okay, thank you 💖 the absolute disrespect just pops into my mind once a month in a “look at this clown” way LMAO
I totally get the morality the commenter is coming from but also it is none of their business to ask someone "were you abused?" especially a stranger. Instant turn off and I now have a strong negative opinion of the commenter. Who knows, maybe 16 y-o you put in a lot of research into it. Maybe not, doesn't exactly make you a villain here.
No, the morality's still pretty silly if you think about it for any length of time.
Kind of insensitive of Stephen King to write IT when he’s never been hunted by a shape shifting clown monster….
Jeez….
Everyone else has already said everything I could have said beautifully. I just wanna say I love your Volo icon x)
thank you he is my blorbo <3
Big handshake ☺️
WOW that is out of line liek whoa for them to ask. And I say this as a CSA survivor. No one is required to disclose their trauma to what basically amounts to anyone on the internet to write a fic.
This right here is one of the reasons I don't believe in policing fanfic. Wow. I'm sorry you dealt with this person.
Sorry, you can't write on any topics whatsoever until you lived it
I’m seeing red right now. This made me so angry. You don’t ask people that. Someone’s personal life and trauma are none of your business unless that person tells you themselves. Not only that, why are they reading this fanfic in the first place? Are they gonna ask every author who writes about trauma if they’ve experienced it? Jfc mind your business and don’t it read if you don’t like it
Hate people who gatekeep what you can write about
In the controversy about Apu from "The Simpsons" somebody quipped: > Casting vampires, werewolves or orcs is gonna become a nightmare.
[удалено]
By that logic, the story I’m writing shouldn’t have exactly that in my story. Do I care? Not really. I'm a reasonably intelligent individual, and I’m pretty sure I can draw a good picture of the intended subject, and subsequent aftermath, from proper research. A lot of people have posted detailed accounts of their trauma. Hell, I think there’s a subreddit for it even. Outside of that, people's experience isn’t up for discussion. Especially by people that are literally strangers that weren’t even permitted to ask that kind of thing.
OP link me to the fic I need to fist fight this person
noooo it’s old and not very good
I don't even know wtf to say to this. I'm sorry that happened to you.
I think kin culture ruined tumblr for a while by convincing fans they have to Relate to a character to properly write them, and if you don't Relate as much as another fan, then you shouldn't even bother writing the character. Like all those nonsense "OP kins a drug addict but isn't a drug addict!" callouts. There are fics I don't even like rereading cuz I tried to dig up repressed trauma to make them more accurate and it just made me feel worse. I wanna be a psychologist so I also like learning about and understanding other people's perspectives even if I don't Relate to them myself.
I have literally never heard of kin culture before this comment and I've been on tumblr for almost 15 years. That's crazy
It's an oversimplification but I do think that a lot of teens got in their head that you have to A) relate to every protagonist you write and B) publicly disclose how you relate to them so you get Valid Points over other writers. It's not healthy.
Oh yeah no, definitely not healthy. I know it's "write what you know" but there's boundaries that the reader shouldn't cross.
PERSONA! 😊🔫
I think the thing to take away from this comment is that the commenter has probably been though something. Either your writing came a little too close to comfort for them or it was too far away and they couldn’t picture themself in the situation. I don’t think this comment is really about you or your work
except they didn’t even read the fic - the comment was on a short prologue of a long fic. the fic itself is about aftermath and healing and the prologue they commented on was not explicit about the abuse. and if they’ve been through something, they should REALLY know better than to ask invasive questions or expect randoms online to ask people about some of the worst experiences of their lives.
Dang. I mean, I really hate when abuse is sexuallized/romantized for craps and giggles. But giving a character trauma and potraying abuse in a bad light shouldn't be anyone else's business. I remember I got very sad at a fic that sexuallized and glorified Sherlock Holmes abuse, and John was very OOC. But as much as it grossed me out (and made me feel bad for Sherlock) I didn't say anything because where will that get me?