yakaji

Okay, I just had to do this... I've really enjoyed this thread, and especially seeing some of the really REALLY bad vocab out there that, thankfully, I haven't had the bad fortune to encounter in reading. So by way of tribute, I wrote a little something. (If you don't know the fandom, ignore, or read knowing that (1) Kanda is Japanese and stupid, (2) "Moyashi" is his nickname for Allen, (3) Similarly, "Rabbit" = Lavi) In: Anime > . to F > D. Gray Man > "Anachronicity" http://anime.adult-fanfiction.org/story.php?no=600045413 Apologies for ficcage in forums, but.... I had to do it. Some of these terms are just so BAD. Also... If you don't mind me asking, what did you think it meant in yaoi before you knew what it was?

I totally agree. Most of what I write is het, and it's REALLY HARD. Pussy sounds too weak and juvenile. Cunt sounds too rough and harsh. Flower and womanhood sound inspecific and avoidant, much like member and manhood. And after those, you start getting into words that are just plain stupid or ugly: twat, slit, gash, fanny, chasm, cavern, hole, box, beaver, etc. They're just awful. I think I usually try to write AROUND the issue, by using prepositions and descriptions. "[adjective] folds" has also come in handy a couple times, I think.

No, actually I do understand the magnitude of the task. It should be pretty obvious to anyone who thinks about it (and moreso to someone like me, who is used to working with very large data sets). My point was that you've chosen a far-from-optimal solution to the problem. Any time you have to go through and individually police 100,000+ pieces of data to make sure they conform to rules, you're probably working too hard for minimal benefit. Seriously, you work an average of 6 hours on this every day? And that doesn't seem like too much work for the results? I know how much time my friend spent today pulling up disclaimer records, and she hardly scratched the surface. You have an amazingly difficult job to do. That's why I think you're doing the wrong job. Your disclaimer policy - while, yes, pretty standard for fanfiction - still doesn't address the paramount concern of copyright law: whether something will impede the original creator from obtaining profit for their ideas. So there's some possibility you might have to REDO all the work you've done, if this point becomes a legal issue for the site (though I'll admit this is unlikely, for the same reason that disclaimers are generally overrated - fanfiction DOES NOT violate copyright). Your work could also probably be AUTOMATED by a relatively simple search structure. If you require that all disclaimers reference the fandom, the characters, and non-profit, you can do a pretty easy program to search all disclaimer fields on the site for certain combinations of keywords. Say, ensure that a fic's disclaimer has: 1) the name of the fandom it's under, or the name of the original creator, 2) the word "characters" or any name matching a list of main characters in the fandom, 3) the words "money" or "profit", 4) negation phrases such as "do not own" or permutations thereof, and 5) a minimum base word count to ensure that actual DISCLAIMERS are made, and people aren't just putting in keywords to cue the search string. Sure, it'd require some human oversight as well, but if you coded the solution well, it should significantly reduce the time it takes to do the work. Given 35 hours spent working on it, I'm ENTIRELY SURE I could code the basic framework for such a solution, and then it'd just be a matter of developing data arrays to hold the relevant info for each aff.net subdomain. I have no interest in seeing your database. I have very little interest in your entire system for implementing this policy because it seems so obviously inefficient. I respect the work you've done for this site, and all the time and effort you've put in, I just think you could be doing it a whole lot more effectively than you are. Anyway, I've had my say, and it seems pretty clear that you want to write me off as demeaning your hard work, which is fine if untrue. I'm not the one wasting six hours a day implementing a bad solution, and it's no skin off my back if you lose your own personal time for doing it, or if you find that you have to redo all this work to make your own policy more in line with actual copyright regulations. I'm done here. Thank you, genuinely, for at least being willing to have this conversation with me.

Okay, just one last question, 'cause I'm a little confused by the way you've been responding Ezriee. Given that my original disclaimer DID state both that I didn't own rights to the source material AND that I didn't make any money from the material I'd written (neither of which, incidentally, addresses the more pressing copyright concern of whether fanfiction hurts the original creator's ability to get profit from their own work)... since I DID state both those things, was my ORIGINAL disclaimer inadequate? That's one of the things I've found most offensive here, and if you go back and look, it was the first point I made. Now, the way you've been talking, Ezriee, it sounds like you're perfectly happy with a disclaimer that denies the two things I originally denied. I thought that was a perfectly acceptable disclaimer myself, too. But I was told to change it and make it stronger, which is what I did. So was the original flagging of my disclaimer ITSELF inappropriate? Because from the way you've been talking about what elements are necessary, it sure as heck sounds that way.

Okay, y'know, I genuinely thought I was done with this. I was annoyed, but I really don't like being confrontational. I just don't like it when people do their jobs badly. One of my friends, who also writes for aff.net, contacted me this morning - out of the blue - asking me what had happened to my story. So I explained the situation to her, and she felt about the same as I did. I told her I still hadn't decided whether to change my disclaimer or not. I planned to leave it there. Then, while I was out playing tennis, she used her free time at work to go through the fandom we both write for (anime/D. Gray-man) and check how many of the fics actually follow TOS for disclaimers. Now, unfortunately, I have no record of my original disclaimer. I know what I usually write, though, and I know the complaint I got was about not referencing my non-ownership of the characters. I BELIEVE my original disclaimer read: "I don't own D. Gray-Man. I'm not making any money off this stuff." As referenced before, I changed my disclaimer. As it stands, the current disclaimer reads: "Pursuant to US Copyright Act, Sect. 107, the author asserts that this is a lawful derivative work given 1) noncommerical nature of the work, 2) no copying, in part or whole, any of the source material, & 3) no negative impact on source's commercial value." I provide these as a baseline for what I thought was reasonable. Below, I'm including the list of stories with improper disclaimers that my friend collected this morning. This is all from the anime/DGM fandom, which has 82 total stories. 58 of those stories failed to have the series non-ownership, chraracter non-ownership and non-profit trifecta. That's over 70%. "Untitled" by Sister Wicked – Disclaimer: "Not mine. Canon is far too non-porn to be mine." "Untitled 2" by Sister Wicked – Disclaimer: "Not mine. Too short to be canon." "Fall Away" by Sister Wicked – Disclaimer: "Not mine. If it were, there'd be many more frames to the Lavi-washself scene" "Fear" by KISproductions – Disclaimer: "D.Gray-man does not belong to me. It belongs to the genius known as Hoshino-sensei" "Pleasure and Innocence" by crimson_phoenix – Disclaimer: "I do not own D.Gray-man or any of its characters, they all belong to Hoshino Katsura. I only like playing with them." "DGM Drabbles" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "These aren't mine, no matter HOW bad I wish they were!" "Lucky Shorts" by SisterWicked – Disclaimer: "Not mine, I know how to draw navels." "Rose Colored Violet" by Michi-san – Disclaimer: "I own nothing in the D.Gray-Man universe." "Tears I Refuse to Shed" by madam-malia – Disclaimer: "DGM belongs to Hoshino. "Running Blood" belongs to may_unleashed" "And Dare Not Speak Love's Name" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "This isn't mine. If it were, you wouldn't see it on TV before 10pm " "The Fine Line" by Niamh Arawn – Disclaimer: "D.Gray-man and it's characters are the property of Katsura Hoshino, not me." "Playtime" by madam-malia – Disclaimer: "Don't own it. Be glad that I don't." "Invention Is The Mother Of Necessity" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "No, I don't own these characters, I only own my shabby imagination!" "Rite of Passage" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DON'T OWN D.GRAY-MAN! IF I DID THERE BE MORE YAOI!" "Usagi no Tenchi" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DON'T OWN D.GRAY-MAN! IF I DID THERE BE MORE YAOI!" "Lece's Birthday Present" by Ravie – Disclaimer: "If I owned it…well… the boys would be together and Lenalee would be dead." "Lavi's Babysitting Adventure" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DON'T OWN D.GRAY-MAN! IF I DID THERE BE MORE YAOI!" "Children of Innocence" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DON'T OWN D.GRAY-MAN! IF I DID THERE BE MORE YAOI!" "Roleplay Time" by Chiaki-hime – Disclaimer: "I Do Not Own D.Gray-Man In Away Way or Form" "Just A Little Research" by Chiaki-hime – Disclaimer: "I Do Not Own D.Gray-Man In Away Way or Form" "Trembling Heart" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DO NOT OWN D. Gray-man! If I did there be more Yaoi in it!" "Rhode's Yaoi Surprise" by Lecelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DON'T OWN D.GRAY-MAN! IF I DID THERE BE MORE YAOI!" "Warm Memories" by Deveron – Disclaimer: "I do not own the world of D.Gray-Man, nor the characters in it. "Detour" by Chiaki-hime – Disclaimer: "I Do Not Own D. Gray-Man or Any Of The Characters" "Pride" by Chiaki-hime – Disclaimer: "I Do Not Own D.Gray-Man Or Any of The Characters." "Enough is Enough" by Diane Rainwater – Disclaimer: "D.Gray-Man belongs to several people who are not me." "Parental Issues" by elict – Disclaimer: "I do not own D.Gray-man. I have my very o Yuu-chan, though " "Sweet Revenge" by Lacelamona Lecelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DO NOT OWN D.Gray-man! If I did there be more Yaoi in it!" "Sleep Walker" by Lacelamona Lacelanet Marzakey – Disclaimer: "I DO NOT OWN D.Gray-man! If I did there be more Yaoi in it!" "God Will Make It Up to You" by DismalAbstraction – Disclaimer: "D.Gray-Man and all its glorious characters belong to Katsura Hoshino. I do not own any of them, their story line or anything pertaining therein. I do own all original characters, weapons, attack names and quotes unless otherwise stated." "Mirror" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "Mine? Oh, yea, of course. I'm poor because I like it." "Flower" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "Not mine. Their's." "Eyes" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "No own. No sue." "Shield" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "not mine. don't sue" "Feel" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "C'mon, you know this isn't mine." "Suggestive" by Anais – Disclaimer: "DGM isn't mine, thanks." "Lust" by Anais – Disclaimer: "These characters do not belong to me." "By My Side" by Lady Kay – Disclaimer: "I do not condone teachers taking advantage of their students or adults having sex with children. But enjoy this work of fiction." "Smile" by Fuzzy Eared – Disclaimer: "I do not own anything that has to do with D.Grayman excluding the chibi Kanda artwork on my dorm room wall. I DON'T OWN ANYTHING FROM D.GRAYMAN SO NO ONE SUE ME." "Inside" by Anais – Disclaimer: "Nothing is mine, thanks." "just fun?" by pum – Disclaimer: "katsura hoshino" "Blurred monochrome" by pum – Disclaimer: "katsura hoshino" "The moon drabble:the crescent night" by pum – Disclaimer: "katsura hoshino" "Black into white" by pum – Disclaimer: "of course katsura hoshino!" "Gravity of Souls" by antilogicgirl – Disclaimer: "I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its characters. "Moon drabble:the night when the moon fall down" by pum – Disclaimer: "Katsura hoshino" "Blue luna" by pum – Disclaimer: "katsura hoshino" "round, around" by pum – Disclaimer: "katsura" "Slick" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "I no own, you no sue" "Touch" by sailorlight22 – Disclaimer: "C'mon, you know I don't own this." "Unspoken Emotions" by Haverstock – Disclaimer: "Not Mine" "Innocent Attraction" by Haverstock – Disclaimer: "Not Mine. Duh." "This Is Where It Gets Awkward" by couture – Disclaimer: "Characters do not belong to nor are claimed by me." "Mortifer Diligo" by Aera – Disclaimer: "I do not own any of D.Gray-Man's characters or akuma. Just my own." "For Want Of Love" by Haverstock – Disclaimer: "This story is written purely for my own enjoyment. Characters owned by Hoshino Katsura, borrowed by me." "Experiement" by Zalia Chimera – Disclaimer: "Don't own D. Gray Man" "SACANAGEM" by karibe – Disclaimer: "D.Gray-man is not mine, neither are Tyki or Cross" "Leather Kink" by Krytheadal – Disclaimer: "I do not own D.Gray Man" My friend included both her own stories on that list, as well, since neither of them meets the standards given. Anyway, the point of all this is simple. However hard you all work at policing the disclaimers, you're doing a miserable job anyway. Not only are you requiring us to use a specific disclaimer format (which the vast majority of stories - at least in this fandom - do not use), you're also being exceedingly capricious about how you implement this policy. If you were following your own rules, I'd estimate that more than half the fanfiction on this site would be subject to removal. The stories that you flag for hiding/deletion appear to be nothing so much as UNLUCKY. No, I'm not in a position of authority, and I have no right to make demands. I'm not making any. Like I said, I'm still trying to decide whether it's worth caving to what is CLEARLY an unjust and impractical regulation system, or whether I should just let my story be deleted and stop using this site entirely. Frankly, I am offended at this. You have no place to be defending your policies. If your disclaimer rules actually exist to stave off an imminent danger of legal action, then you're failing and you could be sued any minute - thus negating all the hard work you put into TRYING to police this site. The lot of you would almost certainly be better off creating cogent legal arguments for why fanfiction is permissable under US copyright law (and potentially under Japanese copyright law, if anyone is familiar with it - but given the huge doujinshi market in Japan, the Japanese really have no ground to stand on complaining about fanfiction). What you're doing right now, since you're so clearly failing to implement your own policies, is just a waste of time for both authors and for yourselves.

No, it's not that hard. And it's what I originally did, but I was told that I wasn't specific enough because I didn't reference the fact that the characters, also, were not under my ownership. So I figured, okay, let's find out what the law actually requires, and give a disclaimer that's LEGALLY APPROPRIATE. I assumed that going above and beyond the call of duty would be welcome. I'm genuinely very surprised to learn that the rules are being treated literally, instead of in the spirit for which they were created. Legalism makes no sense to me.

I'm sure you have to do lots of work, and I thank you for all the work you do. I maintain, however, that if you want us to disclaim our work, we should be allowed to provide any disclaimer we like, as long as it gives you all appropriate legal cover. My disclaimer referenced the appropriate passage of federal law and outlined my case for its nature as a lawful derivative work not requiring the approval of the original creator based on three points: 1) The derivative work is noncommerical 2) No copy was made, in part or whole, of any of the source material 3) The derivative work provides no negative impact on the commercial value of the source material These are the necessary provisions under federal copyright law. Anyway, like I said, I'm annoyed and to some degree venting. Don't worry about spending your time talking me down. You have better things to do. I just want to make sure somebody mentions this, because I do think the system as structured is faulty. I'll decide at some point in the next week or so whether I want to change my disclaimer to comply with your rules, or whether I'll just forgo publishing here in the future.

Okay, so I got an improper disclaimer alert on a story in the anime section... oh, I don't know, probably about three weeks ago, I'm guessing, since now my story appears to be deleted. I was told that my disclaimer wasn't specific enough. I had stated that I wasn't getting a profit, and that I didn't own the source material. I did NOT state that I didn't own the characters, specifically, which was why I received the disclaimer alert. POINT THE FIRST - This is stupid. The characters are a part of the source material. If you don't own the source material, it's implicit that you don't own the characters. No one on this planet is going to be able to sue you through that loophole. It wouldn't last five minutes in court. Anyway, I had been alerted that I needed to change my disclaimer, so change it I did. I went online, and I researched copyright law. It's not that hard to do. I read the entire section of relevant material from the US Copyright Act, and I crafted a new disclaimer that specifically addressed ALL REAL LEGAL CONCERNS that could be raised under said law against works of fanfiction. (Incidentally, there are almost no concerns that CAN be raised, assuming that fanfiction doesn't damage the profitability of the original work, and it would be almost impossible to prove that fanfiction DOES damage that profitability) So, shiny new disclaimer, specifically referencing the passages in US federal law by which I am allowed to produce fanfiction at my own discretion. Now, I'll freely admit that my new disclaimer wasn't your simple old "I don't own the series or characters, and I'm not making money", so in this way, if TOS is a fascist system, then I was breaking TOS. I believe I was, however, giving BETTER legal cover to the site than TOS requests, by making actual legal arguments for the permissability of my work. POINT THE SECOND - As long as legal cover is provided, I don't understand why all disclaimers must necessarily follow some sort of draconian formatting standards. Assuming an author is actually conversant in the legal question of fanfiction permissability, why would said author be required to abandon GOOD legal arguments in favor of WEAKER ones? If you have a lawyer who wants to debate me on copyright law as it applies to fanfiction, excellent. I'd be happy to have that debate, and I'd enjoy it inasmuch as I might learn a couple new things. But the US Copyright Act (which applies almost exclusively to visual and auditory media anyway, and only provides the barest shell of legislation regarding print media) is pretty clear on what constitutes fair use, and fanfiction just plain DOES constitute fair use, assuming some minimal conditions are met (and believe me, the distinction between not owning source material and not owning BOTH source material AND characters is NOT among those conditions). So, basically, my question is this. Why do we have 1) a form-field where authors enter their own disclaimers for their stories and 2) an authoritarian system that basically necessitates that no individuality exist among those disclaimers? If you want to regulate the type of disclaimer we use, make it part of the sign-up protocol for authors that they specifically disclaim ownership and profit on everything they publish on this site, and then plug in the disclaimers yourself, with granted prior approval of the authors. Otherwise LET US DISCLAIM OUR OWN D*MN STORIES. We should have the responsibility for what we write, anyway, so if you aren't willing to pass that legal responsibility onto us (which I would be fine with - I'll happily let you send my real contact info to anyone placing a copyright challenge against any of my stories, and I'll indemnify you against any wrongdoing)... if you aren't willing to pass us responsibility, then TAKE IT ON YOUR OWN HEADS TO DISCLAIM OUR STORIES. Sorry if I sound a little wound up about this, but I just had a perfectly well-disclaimed story deleted, and I think you were all more than a little prickish for doing so.

It's not a turn-off as such, but there are a few phrases I see that just throw me out of a story for being so cliche. What has me thinking about it is a fanfic I'm reading right now that keeps referring to 'ministrations' to describe any generic erotic act. This phrase is just so overused that I die a little inside whenever I read it. I'm not asking for graphic details about what's happening, but can't we find a way to at least write around this word? Every time I see it these days, I can't tell if two people are screwing, fondling, or attending a Church service.