#ao3 reader

(this came out of a conversation in the comments on a previous post about an author threatening to stop updating a fic because of lack of engagement)

So there’s this idea that fic writers should write for themselves and not care too much about stats or engagement,

and i totally get the sentiment behind that. if writing becomes entirely about stats and external validation, something important does get lost - creative freedom and joy, conviction in your own writing

but i also think:

“i write for myself, but i post for others.”

because posting fic is not only self-expression. it’s social. ao3 is called an archive, but emotionally it often functions as a community space.

people post for connection, for participation, for others to bear witness to their pain and trauma and grief,

and i don’t think most people are asking to be admired so much as acknowledged. there’s something deeply human about wanting another person to encounter something that mattered to you and go:

“ok, yeah, I see what you were trying to say. I see you.”

especially because fanfic is often people processing very real feelings through fictional characters at a safe distance, one step removed,

and then uploading that deeply personal thing into a shared archive and hoping somebody else might connect with it.

And i think that’s why it hurts so much when you summon up the courage and post a fic into the void and you get nothing back,

and then it’s like,

LGBTQ+ color coded tags — part of my AO3 Tweaks collection

an Add-on that color-codes LGBTQ+ tags on AO3 using their corresponding pride flag colors — so you can see at a glance what identities are in a fic while you're browsing✨

covers up to 30 orientations and the code is really detailed so hopefully any related tag variation will get picked up!

How to install?

Log into AO3 and go to Dashboard → Skins → My Site Skins → Create Site Skin (or click on the link it will take you straight to it)

Give it a name, then paste the code into the CSS field

Click Submit and then Use to activate it!

Code found here : lgbt-tags-light.css — for light themes lgbt-tags-dark.css — for dark themes