Pull to Publish

There is a huge controversy in the publishing and fanfiction community over P2P or Pull to Publish. This is when fanfiction authors pull their fics and publish them. There are a lot of people out there who hate P2P. These people don’t take the time to read the actual story before they start a campaign of hate against the book and the author. P2P is now a reality in the publishing world and it is gaining huge support from the big publishers. I can go down the book aisle in my local Target or WalMart and pick out at least 10 titles that were once a fanfiction.

The readers and reviewers of fanfiction actually encourage fanfic authors to publish their books. I cannot tell you how many times I have read a review that says, “If you ever publish this story I want a copy on my shelf,” or  “This is a great story and you could totally publish this and sell it.” I know I have made those same comments on books that I now see in my local stores. I personally love P2P, and will support all of my favorite fanfic authors that venture into these shark infested waters.

As a fanfic writer, I know how much work you put into each word you put out on your chosen fanfiction site. Yes, you may use your favorite author’s characters and settings as a starting point for your story, but in the end, the story is all yours. I know there are many fanfics out there that have nothing in common with the original work other than names and setting. Some plots may still resemble the original work, but many in no way resemble it and the characters are nothing like the characters in the original work. These poor writers have to deal with criticism on both ends of the spectrum. You get fanfic readers that hate the characters being OOC, out of character, and voice their opinions relentlessly. Then, when these author’s pull to publish they are berated by the anti-P2P community for publishing for profit.

I think, in the end, we all need to go back to the manners we were taught in elementary school, if you don’t’ have anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all. Stop harassing P2P authors about profiting from their hard work. Just be happy that you were able to read the story for free, before the rest of the world. Consider yourself part of an exclusive club of pre-readers. Let these authors make their way in the publishing world and see if their talent is enough to succeed.