BigBang, author's notes, what have you

[ratherastory]

Okay, flist, I have a question.

Do you read the Author's Notes when they post them separately from their BigBang? Are you even remotely interested in them? I've seen it done a few times, and I myself am an avid reader of A/Ns, because I am a compulsive geek.

That being said, I can witter on for days about ideas and process and inspiration and all that. So I'm being all angsty and conflicted about whether or not to make a separate post with notes and the like, or if I should just keep it short and sweet in the master post.

Thoughts? Rotten tomatoes? Bueller?



In completely random news, my summergen is threatening to eat my brain. Whose bright idea was it to pick the crossover prompt? Oh, yeah. Mine.

Comments

[geminigrl11.livejournal.com]

Put them in. I generally read them (fic as big as these BBs are, it's nice to what went into things, and who was involved in helping. I'm like a kid at a convention or something). When is your post date? *grabby hands*

[harrigan.livejournal.com]

I love to read author notes! Put them in a separate post!

Can't wait!

(... back to my own spn_summergen...)

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

It's this coming Friday, July 9th. I just got the final draft back from my beta, and am in the process of html coding, putting in warnings, all sorts of technical details. So, naturally, the question of author's notes came up in my head.

[ficwriter1966.livejournal.com]

I'd read the author's notes, if it was a story I liked. That said - I don't know if I'd want to read great reams of material detailing how the author selected every single scene or concept, but some general notes are always fun.

[bellatemple]

I've done a separate post for my author's notes two years running, now. I personally love it, and tend to read them when I see them. 'Cause I, too, am a giant geek. ;D

I vote go for a separate post. It's fun times!

My summergen keeps giving me little tidbits of ideas and then not actually writing. Tomorrow is going to be entirely devoted to procrastinating on working on my big bang and summergen.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

*takes notes*

*goes back to summergen*

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Duly noted. I was thinking general notes anyway, but I do sometimes tend to get carried away. *cough*

It's also a good place to post general thanks to all the people who helped along the way. :)

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

I think I will, in that case. I love reading other people's, so I shall make one of my own.

I'm really looking forward to yours! *bounces*

I can't believe I'm actually finished. Now all I have to do is a metric assload of html coding.

And my summergen is being a pain. It turned into a casefic, an outsider POV, and I can't quite work the plot around to involving the boys just yet. Except it's supposed to be a SPN fic. *headdesk*

[embroiderama]

I would put the most necessary notes in the main post (basic thanks to betas, etc.) but then put the extended version in a separate post. I think that's the best way to get all of your thoughts out there without potentially scaring off readers with extensive notes. :)

[carocali.livejournal.com]

Yup, definitely a fan of author notes. Besides, it's your chance to thank all the wonderful people that have helped.

Still trying to figure out this Big Bang thing (until recently, I thought it was the TV show) so I'll be curious to see what you've been doing. Although I'm painfully behind on fic reading. ugh.

[bellatemple]

Hahahahaha. I kind of had that trouble with mine. I started world building, and the world I was building didn't seem to actually have the brothers in it at all yet. . . .

Mine tend to be a somewhat incoherent mess (at least, I think so), but they're fun to write, and hopefully at least vaguely entertaining to read as well.

[cordelia-gray.livejournal.com]

My two cents, as a Big Bang reader: I kind of like a separate notes post. If I like a story, I always want to know a little more about what went into it, the process, the research, etc. And I don't want to read that before I read the story, even if it's not spoilery. I don't like to prejudice my reading of the text with ideas about the author or the mood before I get into it: I like to start as close to tabula rasa as I can get. But if I liked it I will definitely want to spend a little longer in the world and get to know more about the creation of it.

tl:dr - yes! post author's notes in their own entry!

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

I hope you're right! I'm banking on mine being entertaining, anyway.

I'm sure yours will be awesome, as usual. :)

[tahirire.livejournal.com]

I'd say put them in, but give them their own page if they are going to be very long, very long being more than a paragraph. Otherwise they get in the way of the fic summary and stuff. :)

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Thanks to betas and the like is definitely going in the main post, but I'm glad you're on the same wavelength there.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Aren't we all? This fandom is so damned prolific, it's a full-time job keeping up!

You'll get to see what I've been angsting about on Friday. :)

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

All righty!

And yes, I agree entirely. I like reading author's notes, but afterward.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Oh, they're long. If I do end up posting them, they'll have a post all their own. The question is whether to post them at all, or just do a quick round of thank-you's in the main post.

So far it looks like having a separate post is winning. :)

[sagaluthien.livejournal.com]

I want to think me to read the authors note, but they should not be to long.
At times there can be some information about the author, or the story that can be good to know when you read the story.

For me I try to put one in, especial if I know where I'll posted it.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind. :)

[liliaeth]

I like to read them, and often before I start reading the fic, because they occasional give me info that can tell me if the fic is worth my time or not.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Interesting, that. It's sort of the opposite of what everyone else has been saying, since most people seem to read the notes after they've read the fic.

[liliaeth]

well... I'm also the kind of person who likes to read the last page of a book, before she starts reading as well.. so take that as you may*g*

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Good to know!

I almost never do that. I did it once, realized that the only character I liked died, and never bothered to read the rest. ;)

[primrose-1.livejournal.com]

I like author's notes. I might love a story, but I also love getting insight as to who the author is as a person.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Me too! It seems like I'm not the only one, either. :)

[le-maistre-e.livejournal.com]

Thank God. I thought I was the only one who had no clue. I, too, had Sheldon et al running around my head, almost à la "Ghostfacers" :-)

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

LOL

I didn't know what it was until January either. You can find all the fics being posted (at the rate of five a day!!!) at spn_j2_bigbang if you're interested. :)

[carocali.livejournal.com]

I'm glad I wasn't the only one. Any time one of the participating authors was talking about this, I just skipped over it. I wondered how a Supernatural author would like Big Bang (although I'm a fan of the geeks on CBS) so it didn't make any sense to me. I guess I missed a lot of information, but I"m sure I'll pick it up when the stories start getting posted.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

I *love* the Big Bang Theory, and there are a few people on my flist in the same boat. :)

The stories for BigBang have been posting for a month, btw.

[elsewhere-kels.livejournal.com]

Both? Short and sweet and a link to a longer one? :)

[carocali.livejournal.com]

Also, just checked the link above... is this Big Bang mostly Wincest/J2 or is it whatever anyone wants? What I just scanned there isn't really my cup of tea.

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

The short and sweet one is happening no matter what, so I can properly thank people. My question was more whether I should bother doing a longer version. :)

[elsewhere-kels.livejournal.com]

I can't imagine you not WANTING to do a longer one, and I know that there will be lots of people who are interested! I vary on whether or not I read the longer ones, skim through them, or skip them - but I like reading my friend's ones because it's always interesting to follow their journeys all the way through!

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Oh, I want to. Like I said, I can witter on about this stuff forever. I was just concerned that people would be bored/put off by it.

[elsewhere-kels.livejournal.com]

Naaaah. =D

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

\o/

You just made my day!

[ratherastory.livejournal.com]

Uh, a LOT of it ends up being Wincest/J2, because that's what a lot of fandom writes, especially the part of fandom that participates in that challenge.

That being said!

There are other fic genres as well. There are about thirty gen fics (mine included), and I'd say about as many het fics, Dean/Castiel, other slash and even a couple of femmeslash fics in the mix as well. You just have to find the ones you're interested in. :)