I know, I know.

It's just that I'm looking at, f'rinstance, "but we're wanking" disclaimers, and realising that it's hard to tell which side is taking itself more seriously.

Question: What room is there in fandom for non-ficwriters? I just remembered a fandom quiz from a ways back that ranks you in fandom, but if you've never written fic, it's impossible to place.

I realise that although I barely participate as even a consumer of fic, I have no idea how I'd hear *of* fans in other fandoms if they're not a writer.

I wasn't looking for some long detailed piece of feedback, but I wasn't sure how recs worked. I mean, do you just rec something, or is it standard to let someone know that you are reccing their story?

Mostly just ignorance on my part.

What room is there in fandom for non-ficwriters?

Readers, webpage builders, filkers (if you don't consider that writing), fan artists (whether original or photomanip), transcribers, analyzers...

I mean, do you just rec something, or is it standard to let someone know that you are reccing their story?

I don't let people know they're up on PolyRecs, and I don't think shrift does, although I don't speak for her. To be honest, putting the updates together is a fair amount of work, especially in the quantity we turn out. I'd like to notify people, but I don't have the time/energy.

I realise that although I barely participate as even a consumer of fic, I have no idea how I'd hear *of* fans in other fandoms if they're not a writer

Well, their LJs, but it's a good question.

I know that most of the peeps I know in other fandoms, I know from lists and LJs and cross-fandom friends. I get way more feedback from writers than from non-writers, which is the only way I'd stumble across people who aren't here or on my lists if they aren't writers or vidders or the like.

Cereal: and I can't think of any rec'cers who notify the rec'ees.

No, I know they exist, but is my perception skewed in that I don't hear of them? And I'm not counting readers, or fan artists, or filkers, really, since I consider that part and parcel of the same stuff as fanfic.

Or is my location skewed? I hear of the Tes and the Rivkas because ... well ... Dana mentioned them. I don't bump into personas of people who don't write, so much, barring someone whose name escapes me but hosted a JM site.

Are they not getting press? Am I just not reading it? Are they the support staff of fandom?

I know more about fandom and how it works, I can't say I participate more, but I lurker more places and have a better feel for it.

I wasn't looking for some long detailed piece of feedback, but I wasn't sure how recs worked. I mean, do you just rec something, or is it standard to let someone know that you are reccing their story?

I don't. Some people do. I think it's a personal preference thing.

I remember how chuffed I felt when I was recced , but it felt weird because she didn't send feedback.

It's understandable to think it's weird. Or even people who get a little upset or whatever by it. But what drives me crazy are the 17 page long rants about it in LJ. How reading fic is a privilege and it's your god-given responsibility to feedback and blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. There's one BNF that's sort of the B-ist BNF who did that. It was this huge thing and reading it felt like I was being spanked or something. I stopped reccing that person. I also stopped liking them.

Or is my location skewed?

Eh. It's all context, and forum-based. I started in fandom on an analysis newsgroup, and so at the time the BNFs to me were people like Loligo and Maggie Helwig and Matt Hale and Sarah Stegall, people who posted long, thoughtful episode analyses.

But then I moved into fic, and onto mailing lists, and the names all changed. The big names in XF fic were Jill Selby and Sally&Rivka and DashaK. The big names in analysis on the mailing list I was on were Fialka and BarbaraD and Melymbrosia and Marasmus, but they were all ficwriters because it was a fic-and-analysis list.

Now my experience in fandom is mostly through this board, one discussion list I moderate, a couple of fic lists, and LJs/blogs which are mostly Farscape or former XF-folks I consider personal friends. My concept of BNF is going to depend on how I know them, whether lots of people link to them or comment on their LJ/blog, or how often they end up in COMM. *g*

I posted an XF fic recently to all the standard places. At one point I was, maybe not a BNF, but a MNF in XF fic. Now? NSM. Context is everything, forum is everything, and history is very very short.