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Intermission - Some warning would be nice
Mar. 28th, 2007 05:29 amPeople really need to put warnings up in their stories if there's going to be explicit content, especially if it's content of a sexual nature, whether het or slash. I've been traipsing around, reading stories here and there where I can, and keep running into these ones that are warning free, start out okay, then... Hello! Totally didn't want to read that!
People who write slash are always good about labeling it as slash or preslash, even going as far as saying if there's explicit stuff or if it's just fluff. People who do torture stories are the same. I know I try to put up warnings if there's torture, violence, etc, even if its not explicit. (though I will admit that sometimes I do forget.) But there are stories out there containing content that is very detailed and in depth, and yet do not have any kind of a warning for the reader. Ratings aren't enough of a warning as I've come across stories rated as Mature and yet the story could easily be PG! And there are stories out there rated PG or PG-13 that should really be M.
Not all of us find detailed descriptions of the male or female anatomy amusing.
I think what people don't really realize is that once this stuff gets in your head, it stays there whether you want it to or not, and will pop up at the most inappropriate times. For some this isn't a problem. For others it can be very annoying. I have a very strong imagination and just one sentence of the explicit stuff will get stuck in my head to play havoc for quite a while. And trust me when I say that I don't want that crap in my head.
I always immediately stop reading once things start getting raunchy, but even then it's too late. So I appreciate it when people put up warnings. Doesn't mean I won't read the story - if it's just one part that can easily be skipped over, I'll skip it and read the rest - I just like to know what I'm getting into when I start reading.
I think it should become common practice that when reading a story with explicit content of any kind - the kind of content of a squicky nature - and yet contains no warning, then something should be said. I encourage people to do just that. Most people are good about putting up warnings, but a few either feel warnings aren't necessary or just forget to put one up. For me, it's made reading a little less enjoyable as I'm afraid I'm going to end up running across something that I will regret reading. I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in the boat on this one.
This goes for any kind of fic, by the way, not just fan-fic.
People who write slash are always good about labeling it as slash or preslash, even going as far as saying if there's explicit stuff or if it's just fluff. People who do torture stories are the same. I know I try to put up warnings if there's torture, violence, etc, even if its not explicit. (though I will admit that sometimes I do forget.) But there are stories out there containing content that is very detailed and in depth, and yet do not have any kind of a warning for the reader. Ratings aren't enough of a warning as I've come across stories rated as Mature and yet the story could easily be PG! And there are stories out there rated PG or PG-13 that should really be M.
Not all of us find detailed descriptions of the male or female anatomy amusing.
I think what people don't really realize is that once this stuff gets in your head, it stays there whether you want it to or not, and will pop up at the most inappropriate times. For some this isn't a problem. For others it can be very annoying. I have a very strong imagination and just one sentence of the explicit stuff will get stuck in my head to play havoc for quite a while. And trust me when I say that I don't want that crap in my head.
I always immediately stop reading once things start getting raunchy, but even then it's too late. So I appreciate it when people put up warnings. Doesn't mean I won't read the story - if it's just one part that can easily be skipped over, I'll skip it and read the rest - I just like to know what I'm getting into when I start reading.
I think it should become common practice that when reading a story with explicit content of any kind - the kind of content of a squicky nature - and yet contains no warning, then something should be said. I encourage people to do just that. Most people are good about putting up warnings, but a few either feel warnings aren't necessary or just forget to put one up. For me, it's made reading a little less enjoyable as I'm afraid I'm going to end up running across something that I will regret reading. I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in the boat on this one.
This goes for any kind of fic, by the way, not just fan-fic.
