ci5hq Resignation

[przed]

Those of you not in Pros fandom can safely ignore this.

To those of you in Pros, I am, reluctantly, resigning as co-mod of ci5hq. (I would have done this days ago, but for the fact that I've been sick as a dog since Thursday.)

In part, this is because as the mom of a rapidly growing little girl with increasing personal and professional demands on my energy, I've been realizing I have less time than ever to devote to fannish pursuits. I need only to work on things that bring me joy, and increasingly that is not ci5hq.

Primarily, however, this comes down my now former co-mod's decision to move to using prosficspoilers for warnings on the community. I have two main issues with this choice.

First is the fact that in spite of her much vaunted respect for other fans, byslantedlight did not show the same respect to me, and made this change without either consulting whether I agreed with this decision or even informing me of this change in policy on the comm. I am similarly making my decision without consulting her.

Second is the fact that I most emphatically do not agree with this change. Forcing users of the comm to post warnings and spoilers to a separate community is unworkable and onerous. Unworkable, because in spite of the mod's assertion to the contrary, providing only a link to the prosficspoilers comm in the original posting will mean that the specific warnings for that story will swiftly become lost in the spoilers community. Onerous, because to make it all workable the original poster will have to create their own post in the spoiler comm, then link back to it, a layer of effort that seems to me completely unnecessary when simply putting a warning at the end of the story or posting, under a cut would seem to meet the requirements of most members of the community. Creating this new layer seems to add no value except perhaps sparing the sensibilities of the very few (2 out of 35 respondents on a poll byslantedlight conducted herself) who are offended by the very existence of warnings. And I say that as someone who doesn't feel the need for warnings herself, but can respect that others do.

That it has come to me making this decision saddens me, because in large part I helped create ci5hq in response to the arbitrary, draconian, and inconsistently applied posting rules of the former mod of the_safehouse. To see similarly arbitrary rules on a community I helped create causes me great dismay, and I cannot any longer remain as a mod.

I will also not be posting on any other comm that has this policy, which means I will no longer be posting on the_safehouse.

Increasingly it has become clear to me that the only truly friendly LJ comm in Pros fandom is teaandswissroll. The mods there are welcoming to all Pros fans, and do not impose arbitrary, unworkable, or unnecessary rules. teaandswissroll is definitely becoming my de facto home base for Pros on LJ.

I have made a number of friends in Pros fandom. I hope I will continue to be friends with many of you. But if any of you feel you need to remove me from your flist in light of this decision, I completely understand.

Take care everyone.

Comments

[gritsinmisery.livejournal.com]

I have been considering posting a rant on my personal LJ about the whole spoilers shenanigans, but haven't yet done so. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one that thinks this whole "comm for spoilers"... *my vocab fails to provide me with a noun that is not derogatory* stuff... is an unnecessary PITA. You've summed up the situation rather concisely and politely, and I'm quite proud of you.

I'm not currently writing fic in any fandom at the moment, but believe me when I say that if I should take up writing for Pros again, I shan't be posting anyplace that makes me jump through hoops found nowhere else on teh Intarwebs, much less on any other LJ ficcing comm.

And you're quiet right that teaandswissroll is an island of welcoming fun in a fandom that has otherwise been taken over by a few terribly overstuffed shirts.

[shayheyred.livejournal.com]

Brava.

[green-key.livejournal.com]

Good for you. It's unfortunate that you feel forced to this, but you were certainly graceful in doing so.

Now 'scuse me, but I have a new Pros comm to join.

[sinjinh1.livejournal.com]

I don't blame you for resigning from your duties as co-mod. Besides the fact that the whole creation of a community for spoilers is silly, you should have been consulted before any changes were made.

I have a new community now, and have left a community.

[jgraeme2007.livejournal.com]

I'm certainly sorry to hear this. It's clear you've given it careful thought, but it's always a shame when we lose the moderate voices.

I agree that the new policy seems to guarantee the demise of any kind of warnings. I'd imagined that the poll indicated the community was more closely divided than it is.

I've been very remiss in not checking out teaandswissroll sooner. Maybe one good thing to come out of this will be a boost in membership to a new and thriving Pros community.

[towerbridge2006.livejournal.com]

*massive hugs* I really hate to see you distressed. *more hugs*

[ancastar.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry you feel as if you need to do this, hon. I realize I'm probably not the best person to chime in with an opinion, as I haven't written anything in Pros recently, but the whole spoiler protocol conversation hasn't made a lick of sense to me. If I ever were to write again in the fandom, I don't imagine I would go through all the double posting/linking mishegas. I'd simply keep the story on my LJ and on Tea and Swiss Roll.

Oh well! At least we have BB to look forward to, right?

Chin up!

[gwyn-r.livejournal.com]

You know, there aren't many people in fandom who are more opposed to spoiler warnings and the utter stupidity of most of the rules out there in communities, but this kind of gobsmacking. I... a separate community for posting warnings and spoilers of fic in the original community? Crazy talk.

I always loved how Beth handled the warnings in her zines -- printed upside down on the last page. Too bad we don't have that on the net.

[zillah975]

So...the fics posted to ci5hq won't contain warnings, but instead a link to a separate comm -- just the comm, not a post on the comm -- where further info on the story may be found? And then, if the author or some enterprising other soul wants to, they can make a post to the spoilers comm with warnings for that story and readers can go to that comm and find the story title and click to see the warnings/spoilers?

That's...that's just really, really strange.

Regardless, I'm awfully sorry you're having to do this. :(

[callistosh65.livejournal.com]

No bones about it, this post choked me up a little. I am so sorry that it has come to this for you, but I get it. I really do. I too don't like the way this whole warnings/spoilers/new comm issue has suddenly popped up as 'must do' rules for two of the main Pros sites. And as co-mod for the first time ever, I cannot imagine making such an important change to the policy of a comm without consulting my fellow mod first.

Presumably this change will also pop up as a rule for discoveredinalj in the near future - though why I don't know. Dialj already has an excellent and simple policy regarding story details, etc, as in going behind a cut, with any details or spoilers placed at the end of the story for those who would like to see them before they read. I had foolishly assumed that this all might end up as something optional for writers when they post a story, but apparently not.

So yeah, I think my LJ, and teaandswissroll will be the way to go in future for my stories - oh, and a certain ci5_boxoftricks of course!

[firlefanzine.livejournal.com]

Well I could have needed some help days ago!
I was fighting for any kind of timely warnings and at the end I was tired of it and Prosficspoilers was at least... Well... of course such a Spoiler comm is nonsense! But if you take a look at it you see, that it could be an 'information' comm.

You knew what was going on.
A 'moderate voice', as Josh said, would have been helpful.

At the moment it looks like Pros is splitting up.
Maybe we should try to find a solution - together!

[constant-muse.livejournal.com]

We have not had much contact as I am quite new to Pros fandom. However I wish to say in defence of byslantedlight that there was very strong pressure from some members of CI5hq to offer warnings or spoilers in some form for fics recced there, and equally strong feelings from those who did not wish to be spoiled. The decision to create a 'spoiler comm' seemed the best compromise after much hard thought and discussion.

Forcing users of the comm to post warnings and spoilers to a separate community is unworkable and onerous No one is 'forced' to do this, it is a matter of choice for the author, the mod of the new comm, or anyone who feels inclined to post 'story information' there.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm sorry to hear this - and surprised to hear so many sudden opinions on the topic, as the question was raised several times to elicit member's opinions before deciding to make the change. The discussions etc are:
18th May 2010 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/132122.html) (post that raised the issue yet again)
18th May 2010 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/132602.html) (comments closed as I was away, but you could certainly have emailed me about it all)
27th May 2010 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/133524.html)
31st May 2010 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/133814.html)

There were additional discussions:
22nd August 2007 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/36087.html) (the poll that you mention)
24th August 2007 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/36787.html)
26th February 2009 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/81137.html)
27th June 2009 (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/102772.html)

You didn't participate in any of these discussions, nor did you offer an opinion by simply clicking on the poll you quote back in 2007, nor have you ever contacted me privately about these things. I'm afraid I was under the impression that it wasn't an issue that interested you.

You additionally did email me a few years ago, when I was was contacting you and the other co-mod re: every suggested change I was making at CI5hq, and said that I didn't need to do so in the future unless it was some major change - you trusted my judgement. You could certainly argue that changing the policy on spoilers is a major change - but as I've said, your apparent disinterest in the subject made me feel more as if you wouldn't see it that way.

You've rather misinterpreted the poll, by the way - 2/35 (5.7%) people said they wanted no information at all, but actually 13/35 (37%) people said they didn't need to know about "distressing content" (ie, "warnings") - a not inconsiderable proportion, and I think it's reasonable to cater to those people as well as those who do want warnings.

teaandswissroll I believe insists on all warnings being up front in the header where everyone is forced to see them, so you may well be happier there if that's what you require. But again I am surprised to see that you feel so strongly about it, since you've never expressed these opinions in posts where we've asked for them, or to me as a co-mod.

[kiwisue.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry you felt you had to do this, I really am. I was in Pros when ci5hq got off the ground and I know how problematic the rules application at the_safehouse was at the time (not any more). I realise that the idea for the spoiler comm was floated just before MediaWest, which meant that your already limited time was even more limited, so you probably didn't pick up on it until much later. And although I never thought that the linking to prosficspoilers was compulsory for ci5hq I can see how people might have interpreted it that way, especially since the_safehouse has asked people to use it rather than posting warnings to the comm.

However it does strike me that (what I referred to in one of my comments as a shakedown cruise (http://community.livejournal.com/ci5hq/133524.html?thread=2313364#t2313364)) is still a time for discussion and fine-tuning of a concept. Heck, anything can be changed if it turns out to be unworkable.

On the co-modding issue I'm only going to say that you've both spoken about it and I can see points both ways.

[nakeisha.livejournal.com]

I removed myself from various Pros communities a while ago for a very solid reason, so wasn't aware of this. However, I can quite see why you have taken this decision.

The idea what you cannot post information about the story on the said story, but have to link to another community is simply not, IMO, workable, nor something I would do.

I'm sorry that Pros here on LJ appears to conform to what I was told about Pros fandom before I got into it. Thank you for the heads up about the_safehouse, I wasn't aware of the change there :-( And thank you for the link to teaandswissroll.

I may not be actively involved with Pros that much these days, but I'm so very sad to see this has happened.

[the-cornettist.livejournal.com]

I am really sorry to hear this, but I fully understand your reasoning. And I have to say, speaking from my own experience, the kid thing doesn't improve as they get older - they seem to require more of your "free" time than ever as they grow more independent, what with staying up later, after school/out-of-school activities, homework to be done, friends to sleep over with... *g* (Sorry if I shatter any fantasies you are currently harbouring, btw.)

I can honestly say that most of the people on my flist are the ones I want to have there, and I will always consider you to be one of my friends, so I won't be removing you.

*hugs*

[partners4life.livejournal.com]

I totally agree with your decision. I left the the_safehouse only a few days ago because they changed the warnings policy. As a reader having to search down potential triggering warnings in another community, is not for me. I liked the previous policy of warnings under a LJ cut. Sorry this happened to you and you had to make this decision.

However, I just joined the community you suggested. Thanks.

Sorry we didn't get to chat more at Media! I hope you had a great time at the con. Big hugs to you and the family.

[cyanne]

I'm glad you're making the right decision for you, I'm totally coming from outside of course but it really seems like the right answer. I hope it leads to less stress and more joy for you, you have done so much for Pros fandom and are a big part of the joy I find in it. *hugs*