ATTENTION RESIDENT EVIL ARTISTS

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Yukamitsu dump pt.6

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So Franmaya is cute!

Best thing to happen to me today was finding out my Short Story teacher has played Portal.

I got this comment on a story from my Other AO3 Account this morning.

(Info redacted because I prefer keeping these accounts separate but no one follows me on the side blog I have for that account.)

The story was posted almost a year ago and is relatively “popular” by my average statistics even though it has tropes and themes that are big turnoffs for a lot of people (hence separate accounts). This popularity is undoubtedly because it’s a Marvel Loki story and that fandom is massive.

So there is obviously an algorithm or a bot scrubbing ao3 statistics and leaving this comment on fics that meet a certain metric with the main character of the fic inserted into the comment.

I had a little time to kill this morning so I decided to investigate further. And y’all this is so predatory. Come on this journey with me. It made me mad. It may make you mad.

First, if you go to Webnovel’s website, you HAVE to choose between male lead or female lead stories before you can go any further. WTF?

And that’s weird, but this gets so much worse. This is basically a pay-to-read site that has different subscription models. Which… okay BUT! The authors don’t get paid! Look at that comment again. They’re promising a supportive and nurturing community, but zero monetary compensation. It’s basically, “post your stuff here so we can get paid and you can get… nice vibes?” I mean look at this Orwellian writing:

Using the phrase “pay-to-read model” in the same sentence as “qualitative changes in lifestyles for authors” deliberately makes you think that you can get paid and maybe even make a living on this website. But that’s not actually what it says and authors will not receive one red cent.

Oh but wait, the worst is still to come. In case this breaks containment (which I kind of hope it does) this is where I mention that I’m a lawyer in the US.

I don’t do intellectual property or copyright law but I do read and write contracts for a living. So I went to look at their terms of service. It was fun!

Highlights the first, in which Webnovel gets a license to do basically whatever they want with content you post on their site. This is how they get to be paid for people reading authors’ writing without paying them anything.

Highlights the second, in which Webnovel takes no responsibility for illegally profiting off of fan fic. This all says that the writer is 100% responsible for everything the writer posts (even though only Webnovel is making money from it).

Highlights the third which say that by posting, the author is representing that they have the legal right to use and to let Webnovel use the content according to these terms. So if a writer posts fan fiction and Webnovel makes money from people reading the fan fiction, and the House of the Mouse catches wise, these sections say that that’s ALL on the writer.

So that’s a little skeevy to start off with but the thing that is seriously shitty and made me make this post was that these assholes are coming to ao3. They are actively recruiting people in comments on their fan fiction. And they are saying they are big fans of the character you’re writing about and that they share your interests.

They are recruiting fan fiction writers and giving every impression that you can make money from posting fan fiction on their site and hiding the fact that you absolutely cannot but they can make money off of you while you try, deep in their terms of service which no one but a lawyer who writes fan fic and has some time to kill will read.

I see posts on here regularly from people who don’t understand how this stuff works, don’t understand that they (and others) can not legally make a financial profit from fan fiction. And there are tons of people who will not take the time to dig into the details.

Don’t deal with these bastards. Fuck Webnovel.

"Don't put numbers into your stories." Jeezus.

Guide: Keeping Numbers & Number-Related Details Straight in Your Story

I was midway through my answer when I realized this would be a good opportunity for a quick guide.

About That Post...

Honestly, I think the OP was probably a bit of a tongue-in-cheek, hyperbolic rant from a writer who had a frustrating review or critique. The problem is, a lot of people seem to be taking it as genuine/good advice, and that really concerns me.

Obviously, it's fine to be vague about dates, ages, distances, or anything else if that's what you want to do. But don't leave numbers out because you're not willing to do the work to keep your story's details straight. Doing the work to figure that stuff out and keep it straight is part of your job as a serious writer.

Hey, Buddy! Let's Do Some Research!

Look, I get it... when you're excited about a story idea, you just want to go wild and start writing. But if your story uses real world people, events, locations, items, or other elements--or heavily relies on them as inspiration--you need to sit down and do some research.

This doesn't mean you have to choose exact dates for your story if you don't want to. But if your story is loosely set in the 1880s (or inspired by an 1880s setting,) you'd better have a good idea of what did and did not exist in the 1880s so you can be sure you're not using a 1914 fashion trend or 1700s slang.

And, doing research doesn't mean you have to research every single element of your story before you start writing. You can stop and research as you go. In the middle of my writing session tonight, I spent 15 minutes researching what kind of pine tree would grow near the coast in my WIP's inspiration setting. And even though that location will never be named in my story, I care about my writing enough to take the time to make sure my details are accurate.

WQA’s Guide to Internet Research Researching an Historical Topic Writing About Difficult to Research Topics

Timelines: A Writer's Best Friend

Whether or not you choose to be specific about dates in your story, I strongly advocate the use of a story timeline, even if you're not usually a "planner." Having a detailed story timeline (that includes important back story events) helps ensure that you don't mix up dates, lose track of how much time has passed between events, or create overlapping events.

There are loads of different ways you can create a timeline, and no way is better than any other. You can jot important dates and events down on post-its, use an app, draw out a timeline on a piece of paper, create something in Word... whatever you want to do is great! Here are some different timeline styles I've used. Some of these are timelines from actual WIPs.

Standard Line Timeline

Calendar Timeline (You can print these out at Time and Date...)

Basic Scene List & Timeline

Complex Scene List & Timeline (This one is based on Save the Cat!)

Color-Coded Timeline

And, if you're like me and you have trouble keeping character ages straight throughout important back story events, I give you...

The Color-Coded Character Age Chart

And, honestly, that's how you keep numbers and number-related details straight in your story. Research and timelines. It's just that simple!

So, don't be afraid to include numbers or number-related details in your story if you want them there. :)

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Lovestruck: Here, have this villain in our new Sin With Me series. She's mean and controls demons and she's hot.

Me: Nice

LS: Oh, and if she touches anything living, she fucken incinerates it. This is both a weapon and a curse.

Me: SPICE

LS: Oh, and now she's getting her own route.

Me: Take my money

LS: Oh, and by the way, she's highly successful, and values human life despite what her actions may initially suggest. Also she leaves ridiculously good tips for service workers and literally robs the rich after seeing them laugh about firing a waiter and taking away their livelihood

Me: VILLAIN ROUTES ARE THE BES

The book is back

For a limited time I’m doing another print run of A Snapping Sound. Happy Halloween 💀🪦

Order online at:

snappingsound.com

Please boost this post and/or share with anyone who may still want a copy!