Stop the excuses and embrace the reality.
This isn't an essay, analysis, or study of any kind. Just a rant on a topic that has been bugging me after a controversy that happened in the MX booktube community a year ago, after two popular MX booktubers published a new take on " The Swan Lake." They co-wrote the book, and most of the reviews were bad due to the lack of writing quality from two authors who have been actively writing for over 10 years.
You might know where this rant is going, but no, that isn't where I'm going. That was the tip of the iceberg before I got sucked into the rabbit hole of what I want to get to.
Then the topic deviated to the quality of female (traditionally or self-published) authors, the themes/genres written, aimed, and consumed by female audiences. Including the apparition of new genres into the mainstream, propelled by social media and content creators. Promoting novels with zero plot, character development, world building, prose, grammar, and a never-ending etc, marketed as "Dark romance," "romance," "Y.A.," "Romantasy," with a touch of erotism that in fact is PORN. Romanticizing toxic behaviours or spicing up trauma.
Now this isn't groundbreaking. We all ARE AWARE about this. I'm not trying to lecture anyone here. I didn't think of any YA novel; fanfiction came into my mind after reflecting on it.
A certain fic, from a certain author, from a certain fandom. And, nope, I'm not mentioning fic title, author pseudonyms, fandom, or platform. I refuse to promote it.
Before you all come at my throat, I used to dig that fic. USED to. The way it is "marketed" follows the tropes aforementioned: "romance, toxic relationships," which seem fine, right? They're self-aware. I thought so too; however, as the chapters came in, I also noticed a certain contradiction within the tags/summary/chapter content. A few more chapters and I started to feel uncomfy. Something wasn't adding up. I keep checking it up, but I just scan or skim through it. Way too many chapters, no action, no real conflict, and zero growth.
Then the "controversy" unfolded, and it left me pondering. Not just about that fic, but an insane amount of other stories from whatever media of your choice following this pattern, and the issue is not being the same; it's the discrepancy.
Let me elaborate on that a bit further.
It's the fact of denying what you're writing is not what you're labeling as what's shown in the actual content.
Example: Don't say it's a "slow burn" when the first thought of one of your characters (or even both) is humping the other as soon as they meet.
Don't say it's romance where there are only toxic behaviours (like extreme jealousy/harassment) being normalized.
Don't say there's gonna be a lot of character development and introspection (insert here trauma of your choice), then MC/OC faces no consequences for the choices they made (like cheating on their significant other), and every other character cuddles them.
Don't say the sex will come in after forging an emotional connection when, after three days of having met, they solo in the bathroom, picturing MC or OC.
Not to mention, sometimes the main plot line is totally butchered cuz OC has to become the OFFICIAL MC, or worse, the original characters are pushed to the side and their personalities reduced to a freaking joke.
That's what I mean in the title of this rant. Stop the excuses and embrace the reality of what you're writing and/or reading.
Instead of "I mean, yeah, there's a tad of toxicity, but it's cute (biohazzards have never being good), and yeah, they're gonna go at it, but there are feelings involved (when there are none), and it's gonna be erotic (they're explicit AF), and we have a plot (plot never had a place here to begin with).
OWN it and say: "Yes. I'm effing writing a fast burn story where everyone is unhinged; they give zero fucks about morals/mental health/communication, and just wanna bang on every surface at any given chance, why? Like that, huh? Welcome!"
I know in commercial literature this is not gonna fly; however, in fanfiction should. Why? Because it is FANfiction.
Stop being pretentious.
Fanfiction should be entertaining for the writer and the reader. If they wanna go "more in-depth," or "lecture" or whatever, write an original story.
Hum, then why don't they? Easy, they want to be read, which is fine. It can function as practice if they're looking to be published one day.
To ME, fanfiction shouldn't be as dense because, for ME, I wanna have fun, unwind, and not be tricked into reading a story that has little to nothing to do with what the tags/description/summary sold ME.
Again, this is not an analysis, reflection, or essay.
IT IS MY OPINION. I'm not basing this upon facts, just dumping my completely anecdotal feelings.
