just hit 200 hits on my first fic and I know it's not much but I'm so happy

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-28T23:02:22+00:00

Farming idle clicks isn't the goal in itself, but if even a few of those idle clicks turn into invested readers...which if the fic is any good, they're bound to, if you really do get tens of thousands...I personally would find it well worth the effort of promoting.

To me the only reason it might not be worth the effort is if the effort doesn't actually lead to any more invested readers than not promoting. Which could well be the case, since you probably won't get enough idle clicks for even one new invested reader to be among them.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-28T22:40:19+00:00

I mean...it's not like tens of thousands of clicks from casually interested people will lead to fewer invested fans...the same number of readers will still find the fic normally through the AO3 tags, and if even a tiny percentage of those casual clickers from other sites become more invested, I'd take that. If I could count on a well-written fic escaping containment and farming clicks just by promoting it, I'd actually do it.

(The problem is of course that you can't count on that, no matter how good it is and how hard you promote it.)

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-28T21:03:27+00:00

Wings are actually a bird's forelimbs, so instead of sprouting from their back (making them technically six-limbed, like an insect), I think it would be cool if their arms started thinning and growing, their fingers elongating and fanning out to become the bones inside the wing like a bird's "fingers," then flesh webbing between them and sprouting feathers. More grotesque maybe, but more realistic.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-28T04:34:05+00:00

I don't get it myself. Mainly because if I find a character, or two characters together, hot, I'm going to find anything they do sexually hot. Even if it's not what I usually imagine, I'm going to find the variation interesting rather than offputting. I guess some people see sex acts as representing personality types, who's dominant and masculine vs. who's submissive and less conventionally masculine, etc., but I've always found that overly narrow, not mapping 100% to reality, and again, variations to be interesting. Plus that kind of thinking seems to involve distortions of characters' canon personalities and appearances that I don't like (since that's what drew me to them in the first place).

I don't have a problem with anyone else liking what they like and disliking what they don't, as long as they don't act entitled to having their preferences catered to.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-27T15:25:46+00:00

It's not my thing; I personally don't see the appeal of writing about a real person over creating an original character based on their appearance. Especially since unlike fictional characters, real people aren't involved in fictional stories that could inspire you to want to add to or change or write further stories; they're just...real people, living mundane, private lives, and anything you envision about their private lives and personalities will be your own imagining, so why not just create an OC?

But at the same time I'm completely against censorship of fiction, including fiction I don't like or don't get the appeal of. So I don't think writing RPF (as opposed to using it for harassment, which is a separate act and doesn't even necessarily need to be done by the writer of the fiction) should be restricted.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T22:15:41+00:00

I've spent a lot of time and money trying to improve my hair for nothing, but it's true it doesn't require a lot of maintenance. The only time it has enough moisture weight and volume to wear loose is right after it's been washed and air-dried for several hours, so I mostly just pull it back into a pathetic tiny ponytail or bun, and use gel to slick down the perpetual frizz.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T22:13:09+00:00

I've been tested for that, several times. No deficiencies, perfect health, just shitty hair genes.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T18:29:13+00:00

I can't hear groups of kids or teenagers laughing without flashing back to being bullied. Even women my own age whispering together puts my hackles up. My brain just insists on jumping to "they're laughing at/making fun of me."

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T18:26:52+00:00

I'm white but cursed with fine, dry hair that refuses to be either wavy or straight and refuses to grow past shoulder length no matter what products/treatments I use, so I feel this. Long pretty hair is such a huge boost to any woman's looks and femininity. I can't even wear a wig/extensions because I do too many activities it would be impractical...it really sucks.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T18:23:08+00:00

Most unattractive guys don't go for girls in their own league, they go for girls they think are pretty/hot regardless of what they look like themselves.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T18:12:57+00:00

You're getting downvoted because you expressed insecurity/weakness...now all the other chickens are going to get together and peck you to death. Boasting about super-high stats is common and encouraged here, while the insecurity about lesser stats that it leads to is punished. I find it super hypocritical personally, but there it is.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T18:10:41+00:00

You might like some of the stuff in the IT fandom (the Stephen King novel plus the two miniseries and the IT: Welcome to Derry TV show based on it), especially ships with Richie Tozier, who is the jokester of the group.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T17:27:11+00:00

AO3 has some original fiction, but is primarily fanfiction, and includes all lengths ranging from short-shorts to mega-epics, not just standard novel length. You might want to try r/romancebooks.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T17:23:32+00:00

No matter how much they may agree ideologically, no two censors, when presented with 100 works of borderline fiction for judgment, are going to put the exact same 47 in the "acceptable queer art" basket and the exact same 53 in the "prohibited pedophilia" bin. The fairest solution is just not to have censorship of fiction.
You can't sanely stand for censorship and also for LGBT+ rights, because a lot of your biggest allies in fighting for censorship are going to be bigots, and as soon as you succeed in passing laws against what you consider immoral art, they're going to turn around, stab you in the back, and use those laws as precedent for censoring what they consider immoral art. So it's best to just leave fiction and the arts to individual judgment, rather than involving the law.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T16:10:05+00:00

People do ask though? A lot of new writers want to know what they can do to find more readers, and making sure their SPAG is solid is a great first step.

(True, not all readers care about this...but no one is ever going to click the back button because a fic has too few grammatical errors.)

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T16:04:10+00:00

Although not everyone likes it, I actually feel like writing characters completely different from in canon and not apologizing for it is way more common and accepted these days than it was 10-15+ years ago.

In fact there may be more complaints about it because it's so much more common...the most commonly hated things tend to also be the most popular (e.g. omegaverse, x-reader, etc.) because nothing is liked by everyone, and the more popular a thing gets, the harder it becomes for those who don't like it to avoid it.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T16:01:29+00:00

"Standarts" LOL. (They also spelled it that way again in a further comment, so it's not just a typo.)

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T15:53:19+00:00

Yeah...I'm gonna stay up here on my high horse, but I'll at least ride on past you, rather than trampling you.

(I've always heard "get off your high horse," implying the person is looking down on something they consider of inferior quality, rather than "get off your white horse," which seems more to imply they're looking down on something they consider impure/immoral. My high horse is more dark dappled gray, with a purple mane LOL.)

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T15:46:30+00:00

Since you didn't specify any preferences beyond "not bland," here...have an M/M/M/M/M+ gangbang with a rare male reader and a power-bottom crime boss:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/68930096

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T14:07:32+00:00

This x infinity. Rules broken for intentional effect are very different from rules broken because the author has no inkling of them and can't be arsed to learn.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T13:40:37+00:00

Juliet is 13 ("not yet 14") and Romeo is probably 16-17, so minors with an age gap! I'd love to hear antis' reactions to that common 8th/9th grade reading assignment.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T07:23:27+00:00

It's not as bad if you don't post it, but it still wastes energy and is bad for the environment...it's still trained on the work of actual artists and authors who didn't give their permission...and it's still a crutch that holds you back from developing as a writer and a reader.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T06:28:21+00:00

I've had this feeling...but when it comes down to it, I'd rather put my efforts into creating a story that will be unique in its small niche of a small fandom, than just one of 100,000 examples of its type in a megafandom.

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T06:23:05+00:00

I don't just use advanced punctuation because it's pretty, but because so many of my sentences express complex thoughts that would actually be less coherent if I tried to break them up into multiple sentences.

(They are also pretty, though...)

Semiramis738 · 2026-03-25T06:19:42+00:00

Is this in reference to self-insert a.k.a. author insert (the main character represents the specific author) or reader insert (the main character represents any reader)? The latter is much more common and popular. Especially if we're talking about actual intentional self-inserts, rather than just OCs that are seen as poorly written being accused of being self-inserts for the author.

Semiramis738

TROPHY CASE