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.
You see a post like this? Where OP might hurt/kill themselves? You hit that button that I circled
Hit that.
Click Suicide or Self-harm Concern
Yes.
Fill in the rest of it, and hit submit. The "content you reported" will fill itself in
Tumblr will follow up and help them.
This could SAVE SOMEONE'S LIFE.
My favorite part of the Teen Wolf movie was when Liam and Theo kissed. Really was perfect.
I also loved that Derek and Stiles were married. Oh and Isaac and Kira came back.
Wow that movie was good!!
*at a bar*
Isaac: so... your place? *winks*
Scott: no haha I have no idea who owns this bar
*two days later*
Scott, lying awake in the middle of the night: DAMN IT
I wasn't expecting how accurate it is
jacob mccarthy looks like if you put Draco Malfoy and Tadej Pogačar in a blender
Like
What
someone please help me. for the past two months, i have been working non-stop on an essay for an essay contest. i was stupid, though, and didn't check what country the contest based in. their time zone was different and I entered the essay in the day it was due, instead of the day before, like I planned. they wouldn't accept it. i worked 40+ hours on this essay and I can't even submit it. i'm panicking and on the verge of a breakdown. does anyone know of any essay contests that specialize in media or tv analysis, or will allow an essay with that topic so i can submit it somewhere else? i am absolutely desperate. (for my merlin-fan followers, it was an essay analyzing magic in the merlin universe and how it was a metaphor for queerness.)
Introducing the hot new quiz show: Pride vs Place!
It's simple: you just have to identify whether the flag belongs to a place or is a pride flag.
Easy Mode
Hard Mode
In case you've missed it:
Here's the link to an EU citizen's initiative to ban conversion practices, it ends on Saturday (June 17th), so it is kind of a pressing issue now: https://eci.ec.europa.eu/043/public/#/screen/home
Traduction française :
Au cas où vous l'auriez loupée :
Voici le lien vers une initiative européenne contre les pratiques de conversion : https://eci.ec.europa.eu/043/public/#/screen/home
Elle prend fin samedi (17 juin), donc ça devient pas mal urgent.
In case you've missed it:
Here's the link to an EU citizen's initiative to ban conversion practices, it ends on Saturday (June 17th), so it is kind of a pressing issue now: https://eci.ec.europa.eu/043/public/#/screen/home
- filter your searches like you would on a library website or in an online catalogue
- don’t post placeholders, fic searches, or recommendations as fics. DON’T! It’s against ao3 TOS
- there is no algorithm. ao3 sorts by date posted/updated unless you filter with specific search criteria
- ao3 is a non profit. that means it doesn’t sell ads to make money — it only survives on donations. this is why it can show you so many fics without ever flashing an ad or pop up at you!
- report fics that break TOS when you see them (I.e., placeholder fics, searches) to help other users navigate better
- the tag “dead dove, do not eat” doesn’t equate to gore/awfulness automatically. it is a complementary tag that enhances current tags. E.g., if the fic is tagged “gore” and “dead dove, do not eat” the author really wants you to mind the gore tag
- most fandoms have a variation of “no beta, we die like (x character)” and they all link back to the “No beta” tag
- publishing a new fic sometimes means it won’t show up in the fandom/pairing tag for a few minutes
- subscribers receive update emails at different times, depending on when you update/publish your fic. there’s no good way to predict when an e-mail will be sent — it can be in 30 seconds, or two hours later
- some fics are restricted by authors to those with ao3 accounts only. if you see a blue lock in the upper right corner, that fic is only visible to logged in ao3 users
- you can block commenters now! this didn’t use to be a thing
- updating a fic just to stay at the top of the pairing tag/fandom tag is a dick move. unless you’re legitimately editing or adding chapters, this just annoys readers and fellow authors, and people will skip over your fic
Merlin:
Alright, you prat! Shut up about being a girl boss and a gatekeeper. I get it!
Arthur:
You're forgetting one.
Merlin:
What? No. Wait. Which one?
Arthur:
Which what?
Merlin:
What am I forgetting about your prattishness??
Arthur:
I don't know what you're going on about.
Merlin:
🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ - they/them or whatever as long as you're nice ig - Learning Swedish - Fanfic reader - Recently got into F1, a bit (uh, who am I fooling) into cycling too If you ever wanna chat, feel free :)
37 posts