drgeoduck

[drgeoduck]

Ao3 searching is stupid and bad

So, the way that fandoms work on ArchiveOfOurOwn is that if there are multiple different continuities of a particular fandom, each of those continuities is given a separate fandom tag. Which is useful for fandoms where there are significant differences between continuities. This is particularly useful in American comics, where the various incarnations of Batman can be wildly different from each other. For instance, someone looking for a fanfic about the gritty dystopian 1980s Frank Miller Batman might not be too keen about a fic based on the 1960s Adam West TV Batman. They are tonally very different creatures.

In the fandom I've posted in most, Fruits Basket, there are three tags: Fruits Basket (manga), Fruits Basket (2019 anime), and Fruits Basket (2001 anime). Now the thing about Fruits Basket is that, relatively speaking, the two anime adaptations don't really diverge much at all from the original manga. And in my 20+ years in the fandom, I've never heard anyone complain ever about a fanfic being based on the anime--whereas they were looking for one based on the manga.

But there are the three fandom tags. And because there are three fandom tags, it is literally impossible to do a search of all Fruits Basket stories on Ao3 without doing multiple search. "Or" searches are not a thing, it's "And" only. At time of writing, there are 4035 Fruits Basket stories: I figured that out by searching all "Fruits Basket (manga)", then searching all "Fruits Basket (2019 Anime)" but excluding "Fruits Basket (Manga)", then finally searching "Fruits Basket (2001 Anime)" but excluding both of the other tags. Using the main manga tag would bring back over 90% of the stories, but it would exclude 263 stories that lacked it.

Additionally, it makes the "exclude crossovers" practically useless: if I exclude crossovers on Fruits Basket manga, it excludes all of the Anime-tagged stories, even if they weren't crossed over with any non-FB fandoms.

So, if I try to improve the odds of people looking for FB stories to find mine by using all three tags, anyone who excludes crossovers (as I frequently do myself) will never find it.

By having three fandom tags, Ao3 has fixed a non-existent problem, but caused many others in its stead. I'd almost be tempted to run for the OTW board on a platform of tag reform--though in comparison to other things that the OTW does, tags being crappy is extremely small potatoes.

But tags are and remain crappy. And until there is some sort of reform, Ao3 searches will remain stupid and bad.

#ao3 #archiveofourown #ao3 tags #fanfiction meta #fruits basket #fruits basket fanfiction

[drgeoduck]

Ernest Borgnine's evil twin brother, Frivolous Klingonten.

#Pun #Kind of #Fun with names

[drgeoduck]

#that one who's obsessed with opera and sour candies

[drgeoduck]

#on a plane before age 2 #read a book in original and translation

[drgeoduck]

#walking distance from a lake #seen an underground lake

[drgeoduck]

Team "I transform into a girl for the discounts and definitely no other reasons."

#saiki kusuo #the disastrous life of saiki k #ranma saotome #ranma 1/2 #neil bowman #all saints street

[drgeoduck]

The same thing applies to writing about side characters in particular, even for a longer series.

The wild thing about writing fanfiction for a canon source that's comparatively short is that some day you might have written more of the characters and setting than the original author ever did.

#fanfiction

[drgeoduck]

Ideas I'm releasing to the world

I'm never going to create any of them... Mostly because they're half-baked at best. But: anyone is welcome to use/adapt any of these ideas (a credit and telling me where it's posted would be nice).

Concept: an isekai story where, after getting hit by the inevitable truck, the protagonist gets turned into a truck. He gets to return to his old life as soon as he isekais 7 other people. But he was sent to a world with excellent traffic safety, so it won't be easy.

Concept: an asexual incubus who makes people lust for garlic bread.

Concept: a fanfiction podcast titled "The Shipping Forecast."

Concept: a retelling of Don Quixote, but where the title character is a chuunibyou high school student.

Concept: take clickbait headlines and use them as light novel series titles. This was inspired by seeing a video titled "I Spent My Life Savings on an Abandoned Ghost Town," which I think would be a great name for a series. The full light novel series would probably be: "I Spent My Life Savings on a Ghost Town, But the Ghosts Tried to Kick Me Out?"

#releasing ideas #fanfiction ideas

[drgeoduck]

do you ever say something and then think "wow this isnt even a bit. im just like this"

#the day i realized that i say howdy to people completely unironically #the day i realized i was obsessed with calendars #not the physical item i mean the intangible concept of a calendar

[drgeoduck]

I'm 55 this year. Still writing. Still on tumblr.

Fanfic writers!

My theory is that most fanfiction writers are 30+. Let's test this theory.

#fanfiction

[drgeoduck]

I am saddened to see that the great Ewa Podleś has passed away. She was one of the great contraltos of all time, combining richness of tone with those stong low notes, along with the dexterity to handle the Italian bel canto repertory with seeming ease. She was born to play the great trousers roles of Rossini.

I was privileged to see and hear her perform live in Seattle on a number of occasions (I would not be shocked if she'd performed in Seattle more often than any other American city). She was always magnificent.

One of the all-time great performers of opera. RIP

#rip #ewa podleś #opera #ewa podles

[drgeoduck]

"It is what it is."

But what if it was what it isn't?

#shower thoughts

[drgeoduck]

Peter Schickele, one of the greatest musical comedians of our time has passed away, age 88.

Through his alter ego of "Professor Peter Schickele", he rediscovered the music of J.S. Bach's last and least child, otherwise erased by history, PDQ Bach (1807-1742?)

He's given me a lot of laughs over the years. RIP.

#peter schickele #pdq bach #Youtube

[drgeoduck]

Any time their country is criticized, the reflex reaction for English people: "America/Australia is worse."

[drgeoduck]

#mister ajikko #I'm a chef i guess

[drgeoduck]

Driving is always dangerous. Driving is always dangerous. Driving is always dangerous.

If you must drive, be as careful and as mindful as you can. And try to reduce the amount of driving you do.

Why do so many people make tiktoks while they're clearly driving. What the fuck. Stop that shit, you're gonna kill someone.

#was very nearly run over this week by some asshole deciding to cut through a corner store's parking lot to save ten seconds on his trip #to the driver: i hope you never experience sexual satisfaction ever again

[drgeoduck]

Tumblr

A place where nuance doesn't exist.