hope | (no subject)

(no subject)

okay, so i'm putting together the zine and have come up against a stumbling block. authors have rated their own stories, but it's not exactly consistent.

usually my process is:
no sex = G or PG, depending on themes
cussing, kissing, some romantic involvement = PG-13
blowjob, hand job, vague description of penetrative sex = R
explicitly described penetrative sex = NC-17

though there are cases in the zine where there's like, explicitly described blow jobs that would rate at NC-17. then there are other blow jobs that aren't as explicit, and i would rate as R. but should I make that definition in language, or in plot?

to appease my curiosity:

[Poll #336016]

edit:

lorie945 suggested that if i have an overall warning and disclaimer (which i do), i shouldn't be putting ratings on individual stories. what do you reckon?

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

I'm actually surprised you're putting ratings on the individual stories. I'm not terribly familiar with a lot of zines, and haven't edited any myself, but those I have purchased usually don't have ratings. If they're slash zines, the reader knows the story will include m/m relationships, and may include sex (even explicit, NC-17 sex).

OK, just went and checked -- the editors of the Highlander "Futures Without End" zines put an all-purpose warning about adult language, violence, and sex between adults, and state that it isn't appropriate for minors.

Just FYI.

hmm, okay, thanks for your advice!

i think the ratings are less 'warnings' as such (because there is an overall warning) and more about what the story actually entails. do you think i should avoid that?

Huh. That's interesting. Having an overall rating would certainly be easier.

well i think that generally people don't use ratings to warn them off stories, more to know how explicit they will be before they read it - and how appealing it will be to them, you know? but then you assume that if they're *buying* this thing that they'll read it.

then that raises the question - should I include the pairings as well? maybe i should just leave all that header info to the site.

That is true. Hmmm.

I definitely like the idea of the pairings on the hard copy. It sort of completes the fandomy sense of it.

I think those buying the zine will read everything, regardless of rating. But you could easily argue for either option.

i think its either both (pairing + rating) on the hard copy or neither. i'll probably end up putting them in, because people do like to know.

Hmm, yes. I agree. Pairing and rating are the most essential pieces of information when posting, say, to a community on LJ, so it probably is best to have that attached in the hard copy.

i was going to say i'm against not assigning every story a rating, but then i think ratings are only good to warn off underaged folks or people who don't want to read about smut, but there aren't many of the latter in lotrips, so an overall rating of nc-17 would work, i think.

i think i'll list the rating & pairing on the contents page, but not on the story itself. does that sound reasonable?

i have no objection :) i like either idea.

I sort of like the idea of leaving the ratings off the individual stories, and perhaps the pairings, too. I mean, they're sort of spoilers, in a way, yeah? And it might be cool, since you're making your own rules here and not having to follow any real fandom protocol, other than overall warnings. So my vote would be to not rate the stories at all, and perhaps leave the actual pairings off, as well.

Here via uh,

four_lobsters, I think (am easily confused).

That's why I usually use ratings; not to keep people out, but so I can get an idea of how much sex there is and whether I want to read (lots of sex) or not (no sex). Am only in it for the porn! :p

Now, I was about to say that if the zine has an overall rating then it doesn't need them for individual stories, but then I thought, what if it has just one NC-17 fic and the rest have little to no sex? I'd want to know that before I purchased. Unlike with a doujinshi, you can't just flip through and easily gauge the sex to plot ratio. I think ratings in the table of contents would be helpful for making a decision on whether I wanted to buy the zine or not. That way I could just glance at it, see R, R, R, NC-17, NC-17, PG, R, NC-17, for example, and say, yeah, that looks like a good amount of sex. :D

well the website, which people will be able to purchase the zine through, will definitely have the rating/pairing on it, as well as other information that people can thoroughly check out before they decide to buy or not. my main issue is deciding if/where to put it on the hard copy!

Actually there are a lot of people (me, for example) who use ratings to determine which fics to read. I won't read anything under NC-17 unless it's by an author I love or has been recced to me. I'm all about the porn.

I tend to look for three things in a header and they determine whether I read a story or not. First and most important is pairing. Second is non-con warnings--I rarely read anything with non-con so I appreciate knowing that something of that nature is present. And third is rating, which I appreciate knowing since it sets a sort of expectation around the story though it's not as important to me as knowing what the pairing is and whether any non-con activity will be present.

Ah, I wasn't sure how you would be selling it. If it's website only, then probably having the info on the site is enough. People can review it, make up their minds, and purchase the book or no. But if you're planning on selling it at a con, too, then might want to include the info in the book itself.

Have gone ahead and read everyone's comments and am now thoroughly confused and very glad you're editing this and not me. :) It sounds like people would appreciate the individual story ratings, once you decide on a way to standardize them for yourself.

that's defo the best, imo. the best best best, really. not having it at all on the HC and only on the site might be anoying in certain circumstances, but i would like to not have it in headings on top of the story inside, because to me it feels less like, bookish, or sommat.

table of contents is the absosutely appropriate palce to have it (and that applies to both rating and pairing, oh yes. perso i'd love to only have title and author on top of a story, with notes after it, be it neta credits or any kind of footnote and stuff-- though i dunno what you've decided on, of course, for that.)

(pairing and rating and warnings, yes, forgot those)

*licks your face a bit*

<3 i think that's how i'll have it - author and title and dedication/notes on story, rating/pairing/warning on contents page & site. whee!

I would go with an overall disclaimer, because I very much doubt that anyone who is going to want the zine is going to be horrified at explicit sex OR the lack thereof in individual stories.

Frankly it all becomes v individual, cos I noticed you rated mine R where I would have done nc-17, but then I don't go in for ratings in a very intellectual way...

OT: my dedication:

'For Shaenie on her birthday.'

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only