I'm seeing a lot of discourse on fanfiction right now thats kind of disappointing.... People feeling like they should monetize their fics which could potentially get them sued and websites like this, ao3, quotev, wattpad, etc. banned. I even saw someone put an entire unsolicited advice of someones writing in their kudos today.
Fanfiction much like most fan made things are (or at least were) made with love for that medium. These people will probably never publiclly claim this work as theirs in their real life. It's for the love of the game with no real beneficial gain then maybe being noticed by the creator (if that).
Because of that it has always been an unspoken rule not to critic other peoples work but simply move on to something else. This attitude has changed recently though and I can't really say I like it much.
I feel llike once money and clout became involved a lot of yall stopped doing things for the love of the game in fandomhood from cosplay, fanfiction, fan art, edits, etc.
I am a creative writer in real life. How I write my fanfiction and my original work is completely different. Fanfiction allows me to explore and sometimes even expand in a world that is pre-built for me. I understand that I am simply BORROWING characters. It allows me to freely write whatever I want without fear of harsh judgement from peers or guilt it wont sell because I'm not selling it(that's illegal!). It's also a great way to sharpen my skills with the freedom to make mistakes. Mistakes I wont be held accountable for like bad grammar, over use of composition, etc. Do I sometimes put my own spin on them? Of course I do! Thats what head cannons are for. So to come online and see people get treated like this is their 9 to 5 is... odd.
Yes, some of the greatest and worst fanfiction known to man have been rewritten and became New York Time Bestsellers. That's not everyones goal.
Yes, the lovely editors behind the Creed edit and the infamous google drive Heated Rivalry edit got a job out of it. That's not eveyones goal either.
They did it for the love of the medium. Shared their talent with the world and the world loved it so much now they get to pay their bills with it. All of that is amazing but you're average person contributing their talents toward these things aren't trying to become famous or well known and that's okay!!!
So let's go back to being weird in our sacred spaces. Without criticism or judgement. Share your art! And if you don't like something guess what you can do? Scroll :)
P.S. And AI fanfic is lame! Fuck AI!