How do you handle fanfic recs?

[the_resa_ii]

A while back, friends asked me to recommend some good fanfic stories to them. I ended up with four pages of recs and an additional 9 pages of commentary, detailing why I chose these particular writers and stories. Then, I deleted the entire commentary because I felt, the commentary would manipulate their perception. Now, the list looks so...random

Comments

[the_resa_ii]

That was....fast! Thank you!

*off to read*

[the_resa_ii]

LOL! Today sure has been feeling this way here too! ;)

[drc1]

Usually, I try not to give away too much. Character/pairing, rating, slash/het, the setting (after a certain episode, AU, future etc.), maybe PWP, a brief summary (mostly the one given by the authors themselves), that's pretty much about it.

Sometimes I add something like 'incredibly funny', 'no bashing of other characters' (which is very important to me), 'dark', and/or perhaps a short explanation why I recommend that particular fic. Some people (on boards or here in LJ land) know me and share my taste in fics, others will try the fic I recommend because of the pairing, for example. So far, I haven't had any complaints.:-))

Cheers,
drcoulter

[the_resa_ii]

I guess, you're right, that's the way to do it. What makes me so uneasy is, that these are people I am about to lure into fanfic-land. They will hardly know what to expect when stories are tagged PWP or slash, AU or "no character bashing".

Re.: slash. It is, by far, the most interesting subgenre in fanfic. Yet, for the uninitiated, there undeniably is a threshold to pass to get into it. Maybe I could tag them slash/het aso but group them in other categories... like funfic, darkfic, parody, fluff, yadda, yadda to take the emphasis off the sex.

Anyway, thank you for your suggestions :)

[onetwomany]

I'm having pretty much the same problem at the moment ie. working out how to rec. Add to that working out what to rec, and it's all far more complex and time concuming than I thought it would

[drc1]

Slash is another issue. I hate 'warning' about it or pointing it out, hate even more when archives hive off a special 'slash' section, away from other stories.

It also works the other way around because it makes it easier for readers to find what they are looking for. For a very long time, I have read only slash fics, so I don't mind slash sections in archives, for example. On the contrary. To me, it's the same like separate categories for certain characters or pairings, or plots/premises/settings.

[the_resa_ii]

I love reading about the emotional responses that are people had to reading it. The writing style, use of language, the grasp of character, mood, theme...

Umpf, you're putting the finger right on the sore spot here :)
I love detailed reviews, too. But the better they are, the more they influence my perception. *sigh* I don't mind that so much. Others might.

The other thing is: When I started reading fanfic, I initially avoided non-canon pairings. But "looky, looky, what I found" - some later became my favorites. So even naming the pairings might be the touch too much...

Maybe I should write a short preface pointing out the merits of unusual pairings, slash, AU aso. in general, and then merely list pairing, rating, and the writer's own summary (like drcoulter suggested) along with the title and url... Hmmmmm.