Overlooked (Least-Hit) Stories - New Meme - Life! (not immortality)

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22 April 2012 @ 06:03 am

Overlooked (Least-Hit) Stories - New Meme

A meme is going around in which authors list their ten most popular — that is, most hit — stories on the AO3. (Click My Home > Works > Hits to sort by hit count.) That's a fine game, and while we might learn only what everyone already knows (that big fandoms and popular characters get more hits than small and rarely-beloved ones), we might also learn startling, befuddling things (for example, my Sailor Moon "Prologue to Revolution" topped 100 hits without earning a single comment).

However, I'm more curious about neglected stories! Popularity does not equal quality. I propose a new meme! Tell me your three least-hit AO3 stories of which you are nevertheless proud. That is, if a story sits among your least-hit and you feel that it deserves to, skip it. It doesn't count. We're seeking good works that have been overlooked, whether because the fandom is small, the character unpopular, or the subject matter trying. (Caveat: I do not promise to personally read all such stories, especially if they are out of my fandoms or beyond my content boundaries.)

In my case, my least-read story on the AO3 is "Not the Mothering Type" (FK; '01, ~4K, PG-13; Janette, Sofia, Nick, Lacroix). Readers generously nominated it for the FK Fanfic Awards in '01, but on the AO3, it has earned just three (3) hits, putting it even below my poems (speaking of unpopular genres ~grin~). Then there are "Responses" (FK; '09, ~3K, PG-13; Fleur, Erica, Lacroix, Nick) and "What It's Like" (FK; '03, ~2K, PG; Natalie, Nick).

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Tags: fanfic:who:byyou, meme

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7 comments —

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ithildyn on April 22nd, 2012 05:42 pm (UTC)

I was talking in a friend's comments yesterday, wondering what the comparison would be between hits and kudos. This sits nicely alongside - might have to do both!

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brightknightie on April 24th, 2012 03:24 am (UTC)

I'll look forward to seeing your slate!

Yes, hits don't provide a single clue to thoughts...

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pj1228 on April 23rd, 2012 08:49 pm (UTC)

That's an interesting meme! I read "What it's like" instantly last night and found it utterly delightful. I think I've already read "Not the mothering type", but will do so again, just to make sure. I don't think I've read "Responses" yet and look forward to doing so on my next available time slot.

In my case, I was a bit surprised to find A Daughter to begin with" (2005,~4K,Janette,Lacroix) at the end of the queue with only 11 hits. It tells the story how Lacroix after a chance encounter set 20 years before the flashback of A Fate worse than Death sets out to find Janette in the Parisian brothel. The mature content is limited to the last third of the story. Reading as far as Janette's being brought across is perfectly safe in terms of content. :)

The next is Sealing Relations, which I don't count in as it has been posted only a month ago and didn't have enough time to gather hits.

This is followed by Turning Points (2011, ~14K, Natalie, Lacroix). Set in London, UK in 1985, it tells how Natalie made the decision to switch from physician of the living to physician of the dead.

So, in summary, I notice that those stories lacking Nick get the least hits, which may be a logical consequence from the title Forever Knight.

Edited at 2012-04-23 08:52 pm (UTC)

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brightknightie on April 24th, 2012 03:22 am (UTC)

Thank you for reading "What It's Like"! I appreciate it. And thank you also for your generous reaction to it. I'm fond of that little story.

I believe that I've read two of the three stories you identify as ranking undeservedly low on your hit count. Of course I got to beta "Turning Points"! Natpackers might well consider giving that one a try, regardless of how they feel about Lacroix and Valentinism. I believe that I've read "A Daughter to Begin With" as well, but I need to look at it to jog my memory... as soon as I catch up a little on my fannish obligations!

(I am so frantically behind just now. I didn't realize how severe it was. I overcommitted in my hobbies with the two overlapping ficathons, Oldschoolfic and Rarewomen, I'm afraid.)

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pj1228 on April 24th, 2012 05:45 pm (UTC)

I admire your devotion to commit to two ficathons plus the organization of

fkficfest. I can only handle one ficathon at a time. I've finished my contribution to

oldschoolfic last week and am now ready for the next assignment. :)

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brightknightie on April 25th, 2012 04:44 am (UTC)
I shouldn't have committed to both April 30 ficathons.

Congratulations on finishing your Oldschoolfic story so early! That's outstanding!

I'm afraid that it was my sore mistake to sign up for both games. I had already signed up for Rarewomen when Oldschoolfic was announced, but then Oldschoolfic seemed to have too few players. Unfortunately, neither prompt match happened to click with me, and it's been the proverbial "pulling teeth" to find stories that I hope may suit the requesters a little, even if they are not quite what the requesters had in mind. Only one is drafted, and with both due Monday ... and I just started a new job (which is good!) with an exceedingly long commute (not good). Weekdays, I step out my front door at 6:45 AM and step back through it again at 6:45 PM. And my cell phone broke...

Oh, "First-World Problems!", as the saying goes. ;-)

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pj1228 on April 28th, 2012 05:43 am (UTC)
Re: I shouldn't have committed to both April 30 ficathons.

Congratulations on your new job! Commuting can be very time-consuming, but it also offers a great opportunity to think. I often use the time to plot story scenes in my head. Since I'm driving, I cannot write the ideas down immediately. That will have to wait until I get back home. And by then I may have forgotten some details, but it is a nice way to spend that commuting time reasonably.

Good luck with your deadlines.

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