Fandom Etiquette: A PSA from a very tired college student.
OKAY SO! I’ve not been in any fandom long enough (nor had the exposure) to be considered a big face of any fandom, HOWEVER I have been alive long enough to know at least the basics of fandom etiquette. And guess what, Maple RP and ASK people? Sending a message with ill intent and the intent to attack/harm anyone and/or any part of their well being, be it their confidence in what they do, their self-esteem in general, their relations with other people, how to do what they do, etc, let alone outright harrassing them on or off anon is the biggest red flag and very much a big “DO NOT DO”!!!!
If it’s an interpretation of character, interaction, or headcanon that you dislike and must express said dislike of it, @ozhawkauthor makes it very clear in their Three Laws of Fandom post that a) there are tools for you to use here on tumblr to block what you don’t wish to see (as well as the unfollow button), and b) everyone does things differently and if you don’t like it, that’s tough shit!!!
The Second Law of Fandom
Your Kink Is Not My Kink (YKINMK)
Simply put, this means that everyone likes different things. It’s not up to you to determine what creators are allowed to create. It’s not up to you to police fandom.
If you don’t like something, you can post meta about it or create contrarian content yourself, seek to convert other fans to your way of thinking.
But you have no right to say to any creator “I do not like this, therefore you should not create it. Nobody should like this. It should not exist.”
It’s not up to you to decide what other people are allowed to like or not like, to create or not to create. That’s censorship. Don’t do it.
(Taken from the above linked post)
There is a difference between giving constructive criticism and outright bashing someone. Constructive criticism is asked for and what you would expect from others, not completely trashing someone’s ideas/interpretations/etc.
Q: But what if I hate their guts and what they do isn’t according to my standard? Nope, you don’t do it. And put it this way: would you like it if someone started to harass you the way you’re doing to whomever you refer to? Exactly.
Q: What if they ship a ship I hate/they don’t ship a ship I love/they ship differently in general? A: 1) FUCK NO BECAUSE TO EACH THEIR OWN. 2) You’re an asshole. 3) In case you want context and reasons why please see to this post on ship wars in fandom, as well as again the Three Laws post, both of which this entire post is influenced by.
