scatterbrained and fancy-free

perlaret replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: … tbh i agree with...

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:33:45 -0400

perlaret replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: …

tbh i agree with most of you on this, but i’m a bit so-so on the THEY SHOULD BE TOLD THAT since that often devolves into arguments about tone — which is most of what i’ve seen about it in the tags

yeaaaaaaah. it’s a really fine line to walk because — on the one hand I don’t want to say NO DON’T TELL THEM THEY DID ANYTHING THAT YOU DISAGREE WITH because that’s silencing in and of itself, but the minute i say “yes you can tell them if you think they fucked up” that’ll be used as derailing fodder

idk man

You honestly have the most sense out of anyone in that whole tag right now uuggh. People really should take the time to consider that the plagiarism post makes some very valid points instead of blowing up and trying to move away and distract from what is being said. Though I do agree that they shouldn't have slammed the style and skill because that's a shitty thing to do unless the artist specifically asks for a critique.

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:19:35 -0400

Cheers, anon <33 I don’t exactly agree that it’s necessary to ask a person before doing concrit, because no one can stop a person from viewing a thing critically and that’s not a bad thing? I don’t even think it’s a bad thing to talk about fan stuff critically in a public space. I am, admittedly, an anon meme veteran and I think that kind of thing is a necessity of fandom, and something tumblr lacks, because it wasn’t made to serve as a forum. I don’t think that blog is the right way to go about this, but I don’t think its purpose is OMG THE WORST EVER, either.

Photo

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:14:34 -0400

thesixpennybook replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: … lol that...

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:42:13 -0400

thesixpennybook replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: …

lol that is one hell of a stupid attempt at sounding cool and intelligent anon

right? it’s almost beautiful, in its own way :’)

avatarsnowy replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: … rme at that...

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:58:40 -0400

avatarsnowy replied to your post: So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: …

rme at that anon, be more ridiculous

i laughed PRETTY HARD when i saw it, tbh

and then i got angry

So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning: Anabiel, ~angel who cures stupidity~. I suppose...

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:54:00 -0400

So here’s a thing I woke up to this morning:

Anabiel, ~angel who cures stupidity~. I suppose fandom could really use some of that. Starting with the person who sent this.

Yesterday I posted two images in the Royai tag. These two images had already been posted together along with a whole host of others, that I had seen and gone “eh, maybe there are a few similarities, but it’s not decisive. the artist in question will comment, it’ll blow over, no big whoop.” The two images I posted, however, were the two that were, to my mind, the most blatantly similar, and that — regardless of whether the others received a response — certainly were worth a comment from the artist, a credit put into place on the post, and possibly an apology. That’s the first reason I posted them.

The second reason I posted them is that fandom’s first, worst bad habit in the case of accusations against popular fans is derailing. This is when you focus on any other aspect of the situation and turn it into a big fucking deal instead of considering any valid points raised by the accuser. You can read more about derailing here, but I’m pretty sure everyone in this fandom knows what it is. It’s what you guys did last night, choosing to focus on potshots the author of that post took at taylertots’ work instead of even considering whether your friend might have made a mistake.

If derailing is fandom’s first, worst bad habit, then silencing is the second. That’s literally what’s happening above. I pointed out the similarities between two pieces of art, one of which happened to be the work of a popular fandom artist — a tumblr pseudo-bnf, if you will. And there were similarities! But it’s easier to try to silence me, on anon, to try to scare me into submission, than to allow me to point out that something is fishy and someone probably should be talking about this! The Royai tag is currently half filled with people calling to spam the tag to drown out any hint of the accusations/drama, regardless of whether the drama has merit to the fandom. That’s silencing. And when I made the post linked to above, one of the only replies I got was, and I quote:

JUST STOP OKAY

COULD YOU IMAGINE WORKING YOUR ASS OFF ON YOUR DRAWING SKILLS FOR MULTIPLE YEARS AND COME BACK ON AFTER A FEW HOURS TO SEE PEOPLE THINKING YOU’VE STOLEN ART

I’D HONESTLY BE SOBBING

TAYLOR DOESN’T STEAL ART SO STOP TRYING TO SAY SHE DOES

I DON’T GET ANGRY EASILY AND USUALLY LET THINGS GO BUT THIS IS PISSING ME OFF AND I’M GOING TO BURST A VEIN

just stop, okay

because god forbid I cast any aspersions on taylertots. god forbid I say a damn thing. I should just be silent.

This kind of tactic has been used on any sign of malcontent towards a bnf-esque figure since the dawn of fandom. Tumblr fandom claims to be “nicer” than the previous incarnations (livejournal, dreamwidth, etc.) What’s nice about shouting down any kind of dissent? What’s nice about sending anonymous messages to people who raise uncomfortable questions, telling them to “stop saying taylertots is a plagiarizer when she clearly isn’t.” and that “even if you try to argue, you are absolutely, positively wrong.” Actually, no, anonymous ~angel~ — those two pieces of art are too close for comfort. the pose, the concept, the theme, they’re the same. But even beyond whether this is a case of plagiarism or not, IT IS DECIDEDLY NOT COOL TO SHUT DOWN DISCUSSION. Fandom is built on discussion. You know what else fandom is built on? Honesty.

I’m pretty fucking pissed, y’all. The person who made the original post — their methods were wrong. As someone who loves to argue, I can tell you that they shouldn’t have said a thing about the quality of the work because that basically hands derailers everything they want on a silver platter. They were also pretty rude, and they deserve to be told that. But they had a right to post it in public. And the people who have spoken up since then, even to ask if anyone wanted to open a dialogue with them about this situation, have been told “no. be quiet. let it blow over.”

That’s some fucked up shit and I don’t like seeing it in my fandom.

Photo

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:35:20 -0400

arishako: sceptick: y’all there’s gonna be a supermoon on june 23, apparently you know what that...

Thu, 23 May 2013 03:24:45 -0400

arishako:

sceptick:

y’all

there’s gonna be a supermoon on june 23, apparently

you know what that means :)))

observeroftheuniverse replied to your post: y’all there’s gonna be a supermoon on june...

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:47:53 -0400

observeroftheuniverse replied to your post: y’all there’s gonna be a supermoon on june 23,…

…werewolves?

it’s definitely a possibility, i guess?

y’all there’s gonna be a supermoon on june 23, apparently you know what that means :)))

Thu, 23 May 2013 02:44:07 -0400

y’all

there’s gonna be a supermoon on june 23, apparently

you know what that means :)))

christ okay you know what? maybe that post could have been worded better, but it had some extremely...

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:45:00 -0400

christ okay

you know what? maybe that post could have been worded better, but it had some extremely valid points about the similarites between the works and all I see when I look at blogs of people who I respect and admire in this fandom is derailing about how the author took potshots at taylor’s art.

normally i’d let this slide — even though I expected better of those people — because it’s really none of my business. but literally my FAVOURITE roy/riza fanart ever was one of the most blatant copies, done ENTIRELY without credit, and I’m actually kind of furious. this kind of copying is not okay, and instead of owning up to that we’re arguing about whether or not the post was “mean.” what the high holy fuck.

this work is apparently by someone called justalenore, and it’s literally saved onto my computer as “shut the fuck up” because it is just — it’s everything i love about them.

and then there’s this:

posted originally here with no credit. I’m not going to comment on the skill of either artist, because as y’all know I have zero visual ability/skill/whatever. I’m just going to say that the resemblance is literally undeniable and it makes me super uncomfortable.

taylertot’s piece was posted publicly into the royai tag and other general fma tags. whether intentional or not, this is plagiarism. It’s not okay. the simple thing for Taylor to do now would be to just up and apologize for, however unconsciously, drawing on other people’s art as inspiration. THAT’S LITERALLY IT. instead we get this fucking shitstorm and I’m so tired of it.

last but not least — plagiarism isn’t, in fact, between the artists/authors involved! plagiarism affects the whole damn fandom because it splits people apart when it’s finally (inevitably) revealed, and because it’s fucking duping people, okay. that’s not okay. it’s not okay in real life and it’s not okay in fandom.

/mic drop

aflawedfashion: What exactly are you implying?

Thu, 23 May 2013 01:36:56 -0400

aflawedfashion:

What exactly are you implying?

i am just so unimpressed by everybody god forbid plagiarism be a thing that actually happen god...

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:52:51 -0400

i am just

so unimpressed by everybody

god forbid plagiarism be a thing that actually happen

god forbid a friend might do something bad

i’m gonna go write some fucking royai (yes, i still hate that name) because the tag is full of bullshit thnx

-Why? What will you do? -I will make him stop.

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:40:53 -0400

-Why? What will you do?
-I will make him stop.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:27:37 -0400

sscagnetti:

Oh I see what happened. Some cunt up in here unable to realize what plagiarism really is. Taking something no one noticed or considered and brought it to light just for the sake of crucifying someone. I’d go on my rant about what plagiarism actually is and how misused that term is in the first place, but I’d rather not.

But this person is purely dedicated to starting inter-fandom shitfights, as their About page basically states right out. Getting involved in things they have nothing to do with. I mean literally their About page is ridiculous. They think themselves to be a Knight of the Fandom.

And I don’t think anyone agrees with them. Sad existence. Shitting on people and being dedicated to rooting out “bad fandom”, a purely objective concept that again no one seems to agree with from their POV.

Sometimes…

Jesus, could we not use misogynistic slurs for this little pissing contest, please? Or at least keep them out of the fucking tag?

Fandom, i swear to god.

They are two sides of the same coin, interlocking yin and...

Thu, 23 May 2013 00:06:02 -0400

They are two sides of the same coin, interlocking 
yin and yang, one unthinkable without the other.
[x]

I called for a knight, but you’re a bear

Wed, 22 May 2013 23:32:07 -0400

I called for a knight, but you’re a bear

If you ever see her again.

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:53:03 -0400

If you ever see her again.

Photo

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:15:10 -0400

coeurensabot replied to your post: so the fma fandom continues to be the scariest… No fucking...

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:01:01 -0400

coeurensabot replied to your post: so the fma fandom continues to be the scariest…

No fucking kidding. I’m too old for this shit.

Lol I mean like — I saw the post and I can’t say that the similarity’s not super skeevy? And tellmeohtellme can attest to the fact that I noticed the one with roy/riza and a baby a few months back and was like … that looks really familiar. But this whole thing just screams WANKSPLOSION and, while that’s fun and all, I’m not super excited for the way it’s gonna district from other, better things, like cracktastic inception aus~~~