Does the identity of a writer inform on your opinion of their work?
Those of us who read ff know that we might know nothing about the identity of an author, not even their real name. And even when they share with their readers, its not like readers could usually check up on anything. (Nor should they, usually.) The other day i read a piece on AO3. A one-shot. It was well written, but the content was of a very explicit nature. (To the writer’s credit, they used appropriate tags.) Afterwards, i thought to myself that it was good, but it was also sexist and exploitative. Frankly, I felt guilty for liking it. Then i clicked around a bit and realized that the author was a woman. (Or, if you are cynical, the author has spent years representing that they are a woman.) Now I’ve read a lot of FF written by both men and women, and that obviously wasn’t my first impression when i read the piece. Almost immediately, i went back to the piece and re-read it. This time i said to myself: “Well, this is okay then. Yes, it could trigger some people with certain kinds of trauma, but the writer used tags responsibly, and i recognize that this is a sort of situation that many readers might fantasize about. So its harmless.” (I’ve re-read it several more times since then. To be honest, i really enjoy it.) My question is, is this reaction understandable? Relatable? Valid? SHOULD we think like this? Or does thinking about a piece in this way make us hypocrites in some way? Should a piece of writing not stand or fall on its own merits? Thoughts?
