mourning old fics and the end of an AO3 era
I don’t know how many more “It was not _. Not _. But something else _ refused to name” I’ve got left in me
I’ve been a part of fandom culture for well over ten years now. I started reading fic at ff.net, back when lemons and limes and NSFW were still a thing, before making the switch to ao3 and never looking back.
Danmei fic writers and creators have simply always been on another level. The entry point is perfect- there are enough adaptations and fanworks to cast a wide net. At the same time, visual adaptations (manhua, donghua, and dramas) are often shelved or unfinished, leading people to seek out the original source material. If you have enough patience to read the novels and the incredibly rich and complex worlds they create, you will produce good fic.
Maybe we’ve just been eating too good for the last eight years. Where danmei fics of the past had beautiful prose, prominent authors with unreal characterization, brilliant headcannons and very distinct voices and writing styles, every third fic I now read blatantly uses AI.
It started off slow, a phrase here, a flowery description that didn’t make sense there. Soooooo many lists of three’s. And ALWAYS negative repetition. Not as _. Not _. But _. No _. No _. Just _. A release. A required reconsideration not asking for permission.
The worst is when there’s character dialogue and, for a brief moment, you go under. You can tell it was written by a real person because their voice comes back. Then “Nots” and “Nos” break the immersion and You can tell. You can always tell. It all sounds the same.
Sentence structure also gives it away.
By no means was there uniformity in writing, but fics didn’t consistently look like this.
A three-sentence long paragraph. Then a couple one-off sentences for punch. No paragraphs longer than six sentences.
No rules or rhyme or reason for the break (in the past, these one-offs would be dialogue or internal thoughts). Just the same cycle. Repeated over and over.
Until there was nothing left to reconcile. (Ha.)
Sometimes I think I’m going crazy with how blatant it all is. However well you think you can mask it or cover it, just know that it’s always obvious. AI also has a voice, and it’s causing all of these once-great once-inspired fics to sound the same. It’s boring, monotonous, repetitive Hell.
With that being said, I’ve never commented or harassed an author I’ve suspected of using AI. I’ve been around the block. I know fandom etiquette, and know witch hunts and false accusations are the number-one way to kill a fandom and permanently chase good creators away. It’s just not worth it.
I can even understand why some people would use it- sometimes you have an idea but aren’t skilled enough to execute it. It certainly saves time between updates and I’m sure helps with writer’s block. Writing is hard, it takes time and effort to learn.
But I’m just so tired of reading it. Fics are entirely optional, why clog up tags uploading a spit-out prompt that everyone already has access to? If you don’t care enough to write it, why should I care enough to read it?
I loathe the inevitability of AI and how it’s already been integrated into a world I’ve been apart of and love deeply. I know it’s too late and that there’s no stopping it as Ao3 has become borderline unusable. So, I’m pouring one out for all the creators that worked hard to make their own style, their own identity, their own mark upon the world. Thank you. We see you and can always tell the difference. You are the lifeblood of our communities. Thank you.
I’m sorry if this is soap-boxy. I’m just tired. At this point I would even welcome an open honest AI tag because at least then I could avoid that “writing style” like the plague.
