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further thoughts on anonymity
Still musing over my reactions to a mandatory anon policy, and though I haven't reached any major conclusions, I've made some further inroads into mapping out my reactions.
First, a small revelation: I went back and read the comm's rules, and while they're still a big damp blanket over my enthusiasm, I have at least determined that I misread one thing that had concerned me, and archiving fic written for the meme is allowed. (You're not allowed to link to the archived version on the meme itself, though, which puts me right back in the irked!Lance position.)
Second: Bits that irritate me the most include the 'explanation' of the anonymity policy, in which I'm informed that the "best way" to avoid kink-shaming is to enforce anonymity. Which sounds a lot, to me, like: "No one should say anything bad about anyone's kink. The way to do this is to keep anyone from acknowledging that they have a kink." -- Wait, what?
I find that I disagree entirely -- I think the 'best way' to handle it is to let people choose their comfort level regarding openness, especially given the emphasis placed on "do not engage trolls, report offences to the moderators" elsewhere in the policy. If the meme is already set up to handle trolling, how does forcing everyone into anonymity further this goal? Wouldn't it be just as kink-positive to let those who are comfortable with it be role models against shaming?
Third: All right, I'm still working on a third. :D Except the voice near my cerebellum pointing out that the "no linking to an archived version" thing feeds right back into this -- I can write a kink anonymously, and I can post that kink on, say, AO3 under my own name... but I'm not allowed to let the person who requested it know that I wrote it? Someone who, justifiably, is probably pretty interested in knowing they're not alone in their kink, and might like to have a perma-link version of the story written for them? Baffling to me, not to mention frustrating!
First, a small revelation: I went back and read the comm's rules, and while they're still a big damp blanket over my enthusiasm, I have at least determined that I misread one thing that had concerned me, and archiving fic written for the meme is allowed. (You're not allowed to link to the archived version on the meme itself, though, which puts me right back in the irked!Lance position.)
Second: Bits that irritate me the most include the 'explanation' of the anonymity policy, in which I'm informed that the "best way" to avoid kink-shaming is to enforce anonymity. Which sounds a lot, to me, like: "No one should say anything bad about anyone's kink. The way to do this is to keep anyone from acknowledging that they have a kink." -- Wait, what?
I find that I disagree entirely -- I think the 'best way' to handle it is to let people choose their comfort level regarding openness, especially given the emphasis placed on "do not engage trolls, report offences to the moderators" elsewhere in the policy. If the meme is already set up to handle trolling, how does forcing everyone into anonymity further this goal? Wouldn't it be just as kink-positive to let those who are comfortable with it be role models against shaming?
Third: All right, I'm still working on a third. :D Except the voice near my cerebellum pointing out that the "no linking to an archived version" thing feeds right back into this -- I can write a kink anonymously, and I can post that kink on, say, AO3 under my own name... but I'm not allowed to let the person who requested it know that I wrote it? Someone who, justifiably, is probably pretty interested in knowing they're not alone in their kink, and might like to have a perma-link version of the story written for them? Baffling to me, not to mention frustrating!
no subject
That said, not being able to link to a non-anonymous fic at the end of the meme is annoying. I know that the first time I do when I'm linked to the kink_meme for my fandom is to scroll down and see whether the OP has posted a archival link, because it's both easier to read and easier to bookmark.
no subject
And yeah, archival links are extremely useful! I'd be all for those after the work has been finished, and the initial feedback received on something other than name-recognition. Or in the case of something that winds up so long it has to be chaptered; one meme I'm on doesn't care if you're anonymous or not, so when I wound up accidentally writing a gigantic plotty genfic, it was such a relief to just post it at AO3 and go "Rather than spend 100+ comments on this, here you go."
no subject
Me, too! It's just so much easier for reading/bookmarking/reccing.
The second thing I do is try to see if the writer has their username anywhere in the posting, to track them down and see if they've archived it in their own journal... :D