Dear Fanfic Authors, PLEASE stop deleting your stories! The number of times I have browsed my AO3 bookmarks, just to find several stories marked as deleted, makes me sad thinking about it.

People love your story. Yes they do. Especially when so many have taken care to give it kudos and add it to their bookmarks. So while as an author I understand wanting to distance yourself from old writing, for whatever reason, please remember others love that story and will be sad to see it go. It could have meant a lot to them.

So instead of deleting, please press that ORPHAN button. That way the story is no longer associated with your AO3 account or username (the story will now say written by Orphan Account) but the people who cherish your story can still enjoy!

EDIT, since people are getting mad:

I am not demanding anything from authors. I’m an author myself with several fics posted. All I’m saying is to consider it. Repeat, I’m not MAKING you do anything.

I have a story with almost 500 likes and 200 bookmarks. Am I a fan of my writing from 6 years ago? Not exactly. Will I delete it? No, because I know it would make my readers sad.

You don’t have to orphan it if you don’t want to.

But don’t come here on my post and call me freaking entitled for speaking my thoughts. I’ve orphaned several of my works already.

i don’t care if you hate tumblr but the total desensitization to having your privacy violated and the belief that making decisions for yourself about what content you want to see is too hard and so much work that you’d rather let an app — that was developed by people you don’t know and who you have no reason to trust — study you and everything you do so that it can make those choices for you about what you enjoy ….

A fun little bee comic commission for @tricksterdabi 💕

Happy Birthday Dipper and Mabel!!