controversial take on the super soaker incident but i'm kind of glad it happened, NOT that i'm supporting that the author used AI ofc, but i think the Byler fandom needed to realize that a fic being popular doesn't necessarily make it any better than a less popular fic, and likewise a fic author being popular doesn't necessarily make them a better writer than a less popular author. on one hand having the "big 3" mentality felt like a fun little book club, but it was also getting annoying asl. new fic writers (me included) felt pressured to make their fic "the next ytmh(iws)" or "the next addition to the big 3" in order to feel like our work was good, valid, worth it, in order to feel like we had attention or recognition. and as cool as it is to have a fic that pretty much the whole fandom has read, it often feels so forced, super soaker especially always did. tbh i quit reading it a few chapters in bc it js felt like such a generic byler smut fic, and i'm not even usually a big smut reader but already got bored by it. now i get why, but still. the whole "big 3" mentality has honestly been ruining the byler fandom and making it all about clout instead of passion. which destroys the whole point of fanfic. it's always been one of my favorite aspects of fandom because the incentive behind it is so pure and fresh especially compared to fandom on other social media. fanfic isn't paid, there's no income. nobody's writing fanfic cause they want money, bc they don't get money!!. which is why the ppl who do it usually have such a passion. maybe it's the fact that they wanted a ship to be canon so badly, so they wrote an ending that they would've preferred instead of the one they got. maybe it's the fact that they love a rarepair and want to introduce more ppl to it. maybe it's the fact that they want to bring their own experiences to a fictional character/ship/fandom. maybe it's the fact that they have a unique idea, like an AU/variant or specific plot, that they find would suit their fandom/ship/character so well and want to bring it to life. it's the love of the game. that's why most readers love fanfic sm, bc it's fandom content made by fans bc they like the fandom (or aspects of the fandom, or the fandom's potential). that's it. so to see such a thing become turned into something about recognition and pleasing people is so sad, because when writing fanfiction u should first off write for urself and write bc u want to. bc if U don't like what ur writing, if U don't enjoy writing, why bother? it's ur art. it's each person bringing what they personally can contribute to the fandom, be it their writing style, their characterization, their headcanons, their ideas-- and to use AI to make ur fic is taking the soul out of it, and honestly disrespectful to yourself, ur fandom, and other authors. one thing i'm glad, at least, is that this can help the byler fandom realize that js bc someone is famous-- a "Byler legend" -- or js bc a fic is very popular -- one of the "big 3" -- doesn't make the fic or the author perfect, or infalliable, or superior to others. support small works based on what YOU like and care abt and appreciate and enjoy, not what's popular. bc wouldn't that be ironic? the whole point of the byler fandom is to go against the mainstream of mileven and stranger things canon and to find our own way based on what we prefer. write ur own fics. bring ur vision to life. a fic with 5 hits where it MEANT SMTH to the readers, and the author truly put their heart into it, and is creative and done with the human mind, is infinitely better than a fic with a thousands of hits and thousands of kudos that was done js for popularity and recognition, where AI was used.
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