Forum / Fictionaut nomenclature

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    strannikov
    Oct 04, 02:13pm

    When we post work here, our contributions are deemed "published" by the custodial software.

    But is that what each of us understands?

    I confess my own misgivings: I don't consider any "previously unpublished" work I've posted at Fictionaut to be "published work". I consider only that I have posted it here, that my work is "on display" here, as jewelry is a boutique display case. I do not consider it "published" because I know full well the only editorial eyes I have submitted it to are my own (though I realize I have an advantage over many another Fictionaut contributor insofar as I have some twelve years of professional editorial and publishing work behind me.)

    I introduce these thoughts by way of beginning to address "what Fictionaut is". I may be misconstruing wildly, but I take Fictionaut as an earnest and honest effort to provide a service something akin to "peer review" in the academic world. One trouble here, though, is that any peer review that occurs is wholly voluntary: no one I'm aware of is tasked with reading each and every contribution, and so reliance (over-reliance?) is placed on the software driven by its estimable algorithms, when reliance (over-?) is not placed on a contributor's networking capability.

    Id est: how confident are we writers, we Fictionauts/Fictionauters, how confident can we be, that our writing is speaking for itself, on its merits, or is being permitted to speak for itself? (I'm willing to concede that I'm expressing a congenial attitude towards formalism, but I like to think I'm doing so for a sound reason.)

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    Barry Basden
    Oct 04, 03:57pm

    My personal rule at CPR is that anything an author puts up anywhere on his own is not published. I do publish the occasional reprint that moves me greatly, like this one:

    http://www.camrocpressreview.com/2011/11/jimmy-chen.html

    When I do, I give credit to the original publication if possible.

    But that's just me. Many editors will not accept anything that has appeared anywhere online.

    To each his own. I just care about publishing work I love and rewarding the one(s) that moved me most during the year--usually a difficult choice.

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    Susan Gibb
    Oct 04, 04:48pm

    Barry, of course, is more of an expert on this dilemma, but he's one of the generous minority that consider anything published here or on one's own website, as available (not-published).

    The way we've agreed to consider Fictionaut pieces whenever the question arose was basically that, no, it's not considered "published" if you're using it as a publishing credit but yes, many editors will consider it as published because it's posted on the web and will not accept it as a submission.

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    Barry Basden
    Oct 04, 04:58pm

    I do, however, appreciate it when work CPR accepts is taken down by authors from elsewhere online. But I don't even insist on that. Life is just too short to get your knickers in a knot over every little thing...

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    stephen hastings-king
    Oct 04, 07:01pm

    I prefer to think of things I put up here as not published because I can just do it. But I get the counter-argument about exposure on the net amounting to the same thing. I just don't buy it.

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    James Lloyd Davis
    Oct 04, 07:40pm

    It's nice. The exposure can't hurt. Never hurt me, anyway, but it's not publishing, I think, more like blogging. If I put up something here that is published elsewhere, I usually so note in the author's comments. It's only kosher, even though I retain the rights.

    It's supposed to be a social web site for writers, but I don't think there's all that much socializing on the surface. On the surface, the amount of involvement tends to occur among a persistent but small percentage of the membership. Even that group changes from time to time.

    "What is Fictionaut?" It's Fictionaut. Too liquid to be defined. One week it's this, next week? It's that. Fluid always.

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    Susan Gibb
    Oct 04, 09:27pm

    James, it used to be (and I'm sure still is but with different folks) a very social site. For me, I've run into too much dissension and many of the same old questions coming up as new people come in and want to know how this site works. Must say that I've met some of the greatest writers here though, and most have remained as friends here and elsewhere.

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    Carol Reid
    Oct 05, 05:32pm

    My (current) take on Fictionaut may be off-putting to some because it's casual and more social than literary. I don't think of the process of posting my words here as Publishing.

    It's more like inviting people into my little space and offering something,as in "care for a cuppa, or some cake? or this little piece I wrote?"

    Of course, it's exciting when writers offer up a feast, too, and I love to partake of that.

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    Gary Hardaway
    Oct 06, 12:21am

    Fictionaut is like a salon only larger and virtual. Not publishing. Social and literary will all the virtues and vices of both.

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    Sam Rasnake
    Oct 06, 03:17am

    My own view of what FN is, its purpose, how works are presented, and what types of work is only a personal preference - and has nothing to do with how publications and editors may view it. Every venue has a set of guidelines, and every editor, a preference.

    There are several schools of thought as to what FN is:
    Some use FN to try out new material - sometimes the ink is still wet ... some use it as a workshop, which is quite limiting if you attempt that on the public wall - some join private groups to present work in a closer-to-true-workshop-sense, which is, no doubt, a more rewarding experience ... some post work to receive comments / some post work and never comment on others' works / some never post work - or rarely - yet comment a great deal on the works of others [This last group may be the greatest asset that FN has]

    In some ways FN functions as a workshop ... in some ways it functions as a showcase - which does function like publication ... in some ways it's a social platform - as in the forum. At times it functions like recess in school - all the kids on the playground - and no teacher in sight.

    I like Gary's term of salon.

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    Gary Hardaway
    Oct 06, 01:02pm

    Ahem... "Social and literary WITH all the virtues and vices of both."

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    Barry Friesen
    Oct 07, 07:41pm

    I'm not sure what browse.feedreader is, exactly...

    http://browse.feedreader.com/c/Fictionaut_New_Stories/77170242

    ...but I note that as far as "published" is concerned, it seems to scoop up everything on Fictionaut--including stories with a "Sorry, this story no longer exists" notice from Fictionaut for stories that have been removed. Once posted on Fn, stuff stays in the public domain with these browser things.

    New to me. Everyone else know this is done all the time?

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    Charlotte Hamrick
    Oct 08, 01:07am

    In my blogging experience, anything picked up by a feed reader stays in the public domain even when you delete the original post. It's happened to me and I've seen it happen numerous times with other people's posts in the feed readers I've used. (Google Reader, Bloglines, Feedly)

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    James Lloyd Davis
    Oct 08, 01:54am

    So be careful what you post.

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    Barry Friesen
    Oct 08, 05:53pm

    Ah. Okay, thank you both for that. Sounds like copyright is moot when feed readers sweep stuff into the public domain. Didn't mean to put a tangent on this thread. Guess we're all being "published" all the time with these things. Ha!

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