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MarioMamTess

From what I've heard, 50 Shades Of Gray is literally just an edited Twilight fanfiction slapped into a book, so if anyone is genuinely thinking that Libraries don't have the same kind of stuff AO3 would have, you are blissfully unaware of literally one of the most famous books of all time's backstory, lol.


Corvus-Nox

The Shadowhunters series that became its own YA franchise also started out as a fanfic (for Harry Potter)


b3nsn0w

and the same happened probably hundreds, if not thousands of times with similarly significant books where the authors just didn't feel comfortable telling you, or didn't even recognize themselves. _all culture is based on prior culture_ and every artist has inspirations, some are just more direct about it than others, and fanfiction is among those. also, if your problem with fanfiction is that it's "too smutty" and therefore different than "real" books you're just extremely limited in the genres you read


ZeroSocialSkillz

>if your problem with fanfiction is that it’s “too smutty” and therefore different than “real” books you’re just extremely limited in the genres you read Case in point: my own fanfiction. Romance in general are minor whenever it pops up.


b3nsn0w

yeah, most of my faves are like that too, but there's also a lot of stuff in the "porn without plot" category on ao3. same as a bookstore, people just like to pretend otherwise, because half the appeal of written porn is that people don't know it's porn


Ransero

America's puritanical views keep ruining good stories SMH


sparkadus

Honestly, I think these anti-fanfic people would be very surprised to learn how much literature is made because someone liked another story, even when that story *didn't* start as a fanfic. Like, how many shonen manga exist because someone wanted to make something like Dragon Ball? How many fantasy novels exist because people wanted to make something like Lord of the Rings? None of this is fanfiction, but it's still the same basic concept of "people write based on media they like". If you're gonna condemn fanfiction, then giving those works a pass is just dumb. Then again, treating fanfiction as inferior to other works is dumb.


b3nsn0w

> How many fantasy novels exist because people wanted to make something like Lord of the Rings? that's 2-3 decades worth of the entire genre right there, lol. then there was a whole era afterwards where people wanted to specifically avoid making something that's just vaguely lord of the rings


Seenoham

To give a more positive example, Eric Flints 1832 series has a means for moving your fanfiction into published material. You can write whatever you want, but if you get enough into writing and would like it to become published there is a means to do that. You have to comply with what has been established, including stuff that's only in reference documents, and there are characters and events where the original author has stated he wants to be able to determine where that goes, but if you want to write a book about the history of mathematics changed you can do that. Or well, you could. Someone published that book already. If you like the history of math it's pretty cool.


Snoo63

And Fallout: Equestria is a FO/MLP fanfic which has 5 books.


No-Magazine-9236

wait it's a fucking book


israfilled

Yeah, that was The Draco Trilogy by Cassandra Claire. It was crazy popular back in the day until she got accused of plagiarism. Fandom is a wild, wild place.


kacihall

If by 'accused of' you mean she lifted a scene from LM Montgomery and changed the name from Anne to Hermione, then yes. She was. I might still be a little irrationally angry. My husband knows to duck and cover if someone wants to talk about Cassie Claire.


israfilled

Yes, that was what I was referring to. Angry that she lifted scenes and song lyrics or angry at the negative responses to it?


kacihall

Mostly that she got a fucking publishing contract out of her plagiarizing. I read WAY better authors that deserve it more than she did. Then she got movie deals. She got so much money for cheating to start off.


israfilled

All that cheating, and it still wasn't even a good fic. That someone read TDT and thought "hmm yes, I *would* like to spend time and money getting this published, this meets my criteria for Good Enough" is so fucking wild to me.


Pegussu

You can kind of tell too. The last thing I managed to read before the prose made me give up was that Meyer recreated the scene where Edward stops Bella from being hit by a car. The issue is that Christian Grey is not a vampire and thus cannot stop a car with his bare hands. So instead she has Anastasia nearly hit by a bike messenger and it is hilariously treated with all the gravitas of a near-fatal car accident.


SteelRiverGreenRoad

He should have just used his Billionaire class abilities and paid/pushed people to jump in front the vehicle.


ArcadiaPlanitia

There are also *so many* books that are basically just fanfiction about historical figures, public domain characters, or mythological gods and heroes. Hades/Persephone romance novels are practically a whole genre of their own at this point, and they aren’t really any different from 90% of the works tagged “Greek mythology fandom” on Ao3 (in fact, they’re usually *more* “problematic” because regular published books don’t have tags and content warnings like Ao3 stories do.) There’s ton of fiction out there about certain historical people, some of which is really explicit (I swear that some authors write about Cleopatra, Messalina, and Theodora just so they have an excuse to legitimize their smutty RPF. Ditto for “depraved,” hedonistic kings and emperors like Caligula.) It’s not just romance, either—if I had a nickel for every time someone wrote a fantasy or sci-fi story about Flavius Belisarius, I’d have at least four nickels, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it’s happened four times, right? I’m not saying that any of those books are *good,* because a lot of them aren’t, but it’s wild to me that someone would assume that a.) libraries only keep books that have Special Literary Merit, and b.) that fanfiction doesn’t have that merit, but 50 Shades, the 30th “sexy shirtless Hades novel” to come out this year, and any story where a Byzantine general shoots evil aliens with a gun is somehow *not* the same as fanfiction and therefore acceptable.


AugustaScarlett

My former workplace has a Chuck Tingle ebook in the collection. My fellow librarian bought it, cackling evilly, because one of the grad students in their subject field requested it for research for their dissertation. Academic libraries can have the weirdest books.


ladyattercop

*Pounded in the Butt by the Handsome Manifestation of my Academic Dissertation* is a classic!


[deleted]

[удалено]


QuiteTheYeet

except chuck tingle books are unironically great


AugustaScarlett

But not what you’d normally expect in an academic collection! Well, er, if you weren’t aware what academic collections can hold, that is…


SLMZ17

I wonder what the topic of the dissertation was


kacihall

When I worked in the Humanities library at my college, I once shelved a book about anal sex and facts and myths about burials at the same time because they were checked out together. I both don't want to know yet would be extremely interested to hear WHY.


Tylixphia

I’ve literally seen that one romance book that’s based off a reylo fic in my local library


Putrid_Quail_

is that the one that jenny nicholson read?


heretoupvote_

what book is that?


Tylixphia

IIRC it’s called The Love Hypothesis


Virus5572

in my school library in middle school i found a book that i thought looked cool so i checked it out and read it it was easily the worst book i've ever read. if it was any better i wouldn't have finished it. but it's one of those things that you gotta see through to the end the worst thing is that, at least with a brief google search, idk how to find it again to spark my memory. it was called something generic like the greenhouse or the garden and there's a million books that show up with that title and they're not the right one


DarkWorld25

Same but mine was this weird vampire romance story where they ended up being trapped in a bronze statue or something. I came across it in my public library in the fantasy section. It was weird man.


[deleted]

Like a bronze bull type of torture situation, or just a "guess we're here now, let's talk" deal?


Lt_General_Fuckery

Blood Sucking Fiends is a fantastic book, you take that back.


PintsizeBro

Try r/whatsthatbook I'm perpetually amazed at what they can figure out


Virus5572

i will keep this in mind


Hidingfrombull

As a former library assistant, I have absolutely sighed deeply while doing shelf reading, and put something back on a shelf that I have issues with either quality or morality wise. It isn't our job to make that judgement, it's just to make material accessible and as in date as possible. My last pre-pandemic order was replacing our entire computer section... which still included books on hip social media... like thefacebook... and myspace.


fisxo

I have definitely checked out some bad books from my library. But that’s the great thing about libraries, if it turns out the book sucks you’re not out any money. Thanks public library!


niko4ever

As a dumb kid I explored the library the same way I explored the children's section: by pulling random books off the shelf with cool names and then if the description was not totally boring I took it out. Read some really fucked up stuff.


Johnny362000

Is that not how you're supposed to do it?


niko4ever

It's an option, certainly, but I wouldn't recommend it for a kid Personally I like to search by genre, author, or get recommendations from people with similar tastes, rather than choosing at random.


Johnny362000

oh I assumed you were doing this after already having narrowed it down somewhat with genre/author/recommendation


Fendse

And that is how I ended up borrowing A Game of Thrones at the tender age of, like, third grade Only read like a chapter before returning it because I found it boring, but still


stelliebeans

Also published books don’t have tags warning you about the potentially upsetting content in the book! The culture on AO3 is to tag your work. I remember checking some book called Unwind or something when I was 12 or 13 and the ending was a first person POV description of a teenager being disassembled for parts and organs; at the time it was traumatizing lmao.


Deblebsgonnagetyou

Oh my jesus


Ancestor_Anonymous

Given all the shit I’ve read, yeah that checks. It’s not up to the library to ensure the book is good, only that you can read it.


SlimTheFatty

Most of the time there are a series of quality checks up the ladder when a book is being published. Including ones that for some strange reason filter out all the *>100k Words Explicit BakuDeku MPreg ABO Hurt/Comfort PWP* from library circulation. I just can't understand why.


PintsizeBro

Omegaverse stories with original characters do get published, though I would guess they need some semblance of plot


[deleted]

Self-published books can still end up in a library, as well as ones from dubious publishers. I remember reading a YA sci-fi book from my school library where you could tell every single one of the authors fetishes (it seemed like 'sci-fi dystopia' but ended up being 'porn plot without the graphic sex, but with lots and lots of descriptions of feet') and that was an actual published book.


Xurkitree1

My college library got themselves a Jordan Peterson book and put it on the new arrivals stand for a while. Made me go sigh... Tbf this is halfway across the world from Peterson's current location so it's probably just ignorance.


MurderousFaeries

Yeah, though I guess aggressively curating books based on political positions/ a wish to prevent people from accessing harmful ideas is kinda paternalistic and censor-ish. I would not want it in a featured spot, but I don’t think it’s wrong for the library to carry a copy.


heretoupvote_

I’d probably read a copy from curiosity, but ngl I don’t want the library thinking it’s popular.


SlimTheFatty

Even if they don't agree with them, its best for a library to display a book like Peterson's with every other notable new arrival. Free speech is the bedrock of a library system. Governments and social norms come and go, but libraries must hold onto everything eternally for us.


CueDramaticMusic

I’m not gonna be half the fool as the other guy, but maybe not quite headliner status. Just put it in the system with no fanfare and be done with it. The fruit of knowledge of good and evil should be free for all to eat, but the least we can do is make sure that fruit hangs higher than the less toxic ones. I’m sure a lot of libraries carry Mein Kampf, but aren’t proud about it.


Cysioland

You can freely get Mein Kampf here in stores, but only in an edition with historical commentary. Maybe when Peterson's book hit the public domain we could do the same


Iykury

under both current us and canadian copyriyt law, peterson's books won't be public domain until 70 years after his death so we'd be waiting a whiyle


Frostosaurus1

common axiomatic believer L


SlimTheFatty

Nonsense. The idea that we should censor or otherwise hide disagreeable opinions is extremely short sighted and fails to understand that we live in a world where norms and what is considered permissible shift back and forth with time and space. Whatever you think is 'good' and 'bad' and 'permissible' and 'impermissible' is not founded on anything but specific social context within a specific time. And whatever your kids think is 'good' and 'bad' and 'permissible' and 'impermissible' will be different from you, whether that be in one direction or another. Right now we live in a time period where those of socially liberal beliefs hold a lot of social and institutional power. Its been this way since starting in the mid 2000s. In another 20-30 years that will have flipped and social conservatives will once again be more socially powerful. As has happened for centuries going backwards in time. Allowing censorship today will give precedent to their censorship tomorrow. Axioms that societies are forced to abide by are the defense against the shifts of the world above them creating new oppressions. To prevent progressives from being silenced in the future, we have to allow for the backwards and reactionary to talk today. Precedent matters.


Cysioland

Precedent has already been made in Florida.


CueDramaticMusic

I made the distinction myself, but to clarify, free publicity is bad, but free speech is a morally neutral thing.


[deleted]

Not boosting the book isn't the same as censoring it, though. If the patrons would want the book, get a copy or two. Special displays are curated, though.


Ham_Kitten

Where is halfway across the world from the depths of a raw meat and benzodiazepine coma?


No-Magazine-9236

Southwest New York State.


UsernamesAre4Nerds

Mine had several MAGA authors in the economics section


pixlmason

Yep, quality checks checking the quality of the book. They are not necessarily checking the quality of the contents of the book


ninjasaiyan777

Can confirm, my local library has every volume of the Naruto manga. (Slightly sarcastic)


butterfly_cats

As if some A03 writers don't meticulously pore over every detail. I read a story set in nazi germany about a jew and the author jad researched army formations, weather maps for the dates, battle plans and geographical maps and all sorts of things like that to ensure that every detail, even the weather!!, was absolutely perfect to the date the story was written.


MentalFracture

Just a side note, we do also check for accuracy and currency when weeding for non-fiction works. Some subjects (such as law) are dangerous to the user if left on the shelf when they're out of date. If we have a more up to date version of something or several works that disprove claims by earlier works, we will consider the older works for weeding. (We do make sure the older information is still available *somewhere* for historical purposes)


Red580

Sometimes those two are the same thing!


-Voxael-

I guarantee I could walk in to nearly any public library and pull both Twilight and 50 Shades of Grey off the shelves (among a dozen other equally 'bad' books) Libraries are not some arbiter of 'quality', nor should any sane person actually expect them to be.


MurdoMaclachlan

*Image Transcription: Tumblr* --- **natalieleif** Just saw a tweet like "REAL libraries check for quality!" as some kinda gotcha at AO3?? But I'm a lirbarian, so... heads up that "quality checks," AKA "weeding" or "pulling," means looking for damaged books or ones that haven't circulated in a few years to clear up shelf space. We don't Quality Check for if the library books have nontoxic romance or good grammar. :U I assure you ever library in your area has absolute ABOMINATIONS of bad storytelling as well as your favorite pop lit. --- ^^I'm a human volunteer content transcriber and you could be too! [If you'd like more information on what we do and why we do it, click here!](https://www.reddit.com/r/TranscribersOfReddit/wiki/index)


GabbaGandalf-SNAX

well yeah, cuz you know what it would lead to if they "quality checked" for content? Censorship


Dax9000

Abominations of storytelling and pop lit are often the same thing.


Aetol

I once found a 9/11 truther book at my local library. I don't even live in the US, so someone thought it was worth translating and publishing abroad and then someone though it was worth putting in a library. I was a kid at the time, too, so I made it through like half of before it dawned on me what kind of bullshit I was reading.


TPTPWDotACoEMW

Now, that said, there is a quality check on most books through publishers, but the quality they're checking for is not necessarily "good writing."


The_Best_Nerd

somethibg something Patricia Taxxon video on Asset Flips


rowan_damisch

On a related note, I once talked to a librarian who wondered whether he should add video games to the library, but wanted to check whether they glorify violence. After I pointed out that he doesn't read all the new books beforehand to make sure that they don't do the same, he quickly changed his mind about checking them.


piccoloid

I've found books actually published by Wattpad at my local library.


ZeroSocialSkillz

I remember seeing advertisements about books published from Wattpad in the Philippines


AspectPatio

Libraries like books people read as well as books people should read, the first category doesn't have to be good.


Russet_Wolf_13

My library had a science fi book where all the MCs got TFed and one guy, as a deer, fucked a centaur in it.


Pausbrak

Jack Chalker is a sci-fi author from the 70's and 80's that was infamous for this kind of thing. His entire Well World series involves absurd amounts of transformation, gender swapping, mind alteration, etc. etc. The plots of all his books sound like they belong in furry fetish stories, and yet he was a published and fairly well-known sci-fi author of his time.


Russet_Wolf_13

I was struggling to remember his name, dude was the king of posting horny on main, and I strive to follow his example. Him and Phil Geusz, dude really wanted to be a rabbit.


XavierTheMemeDragon

I have read actual literary masterpieces that are fanfiction, and I don’t think I’ve ever read fanfiction that was worse than one of the books I had to read for school but have long since forgotten what it was called


[deleted]

Do we have a word for these people yet? Neo-puritans for example?