>> That's true enough - there are certainly enough people wanting the same or similar things to actually make a visible difference in attaining the thing they want! <<
Exactly -- if they bother.
>> I hope some people stick around this year as well. :)
Usually a few do.
>> I do appreciate that DW offers good moderation tools, which can certainly help a lot. But community norms and culture are probably the best way to shut down obnoxious behavior before it ever takes hold.<<
You need both. If everyone is obnoxious, the tools aren't much help. If most people are decent, but you have no way to shut out those who aren't, then it's hard to maintain a group with no boundaries.
>> That is definitely a tremendous draw! A chance for people to see themselves reflected in stories and worlds is a wonderful thing, <<
It's important to a lot of people, and more important to those who have few if any alternatives.
>> and I love that crowdfunded projects like yours provide that so much more readily than mainstream publishing. <<
I've done mainstream too. The only advantage it has, in theory, is a wider audience. Crowdfunding is faster, more accurate, better throughput, and for me more lucrative. I have individual fans with a poetry budget that outstrips most poetry publishers. I don't have to guess what people want to buy; they tell me. We're filling gaps that people want, but the mainstream doesn't care about. And we're making the world a better place, because people tell me that they're learning things from what I write.
Re: Try this ...
Exactly -- if they bother.
>> I hope some people stick around this year as well. :)
Usually a few do.
>> I do appreciate that DW offers good moderation tools, which can certainly help a lot. But community norms and culture are probably the best way to shut down obnoxious behavior before it ever takes hold.<<
You need both. If everyone is obnoxious, the tools aren't much help. If most people are decent, but you have no way to shut out those who aren't, then it's hard to maintain a group with no boundaries.
>> That is definitely a tremendous draw! A chance for people to see themselves reflected in stories and worlds is a wonderful thing, <<
It's important to a lot of people, and more important to those who have few if any alternatives.
>> and I love that crowdfunded projects like yours provide that so much more readily than mainstream publishing. <<
I've done mainstream too. The only advantage it has, in theory, is a wider audience. Crowdfunding is faster, more accurate, better throughput, and for me more lucrative. I have individual fans with a poetry budget that outstrips most poetry publishers. I don't have to guess what people want to buy; they tell me. We're filling gaps that people want, but the mainstream doesn't care about. And we're making the world a better place, because people tell me that they're learning things from what I write.