Cheryl wrote in response to me:
I would also like to point out that my objections were never based on the written material so much, only with it being interspersed with general fiction.
Surely this depends on the overall age statement on the zine. The mixing of gen with adult does not appear inherently wrong, merely the purveying of such to children.
I also believe (and will remain in this belief) that to use the likeness of any individual in any area, without their actual consent is a gross distortion of civil liberties and these are my main points of contention.
In terms of pictures, I don't personally see an awful lot of difference between, say, (1) someone putting a framegrab of Avon on their desktop; (2) someone using the framegrab to draw a likeness of Avon which they put on their wall; (3) someone passing said likeness of Avon round their circle of friends; and (4) someone selling 50 copies (I should be so lucky!!) of a non-profit-making fanzine containing said likeness of Avon.
In all cases the picture is of Avon, not of the actor. In no case is Mr Darrow harmed by the picture. In no case is any money made out of the situation. In legal terms, I would guess all are technically illegal. In fact, I believe that fanzines in general contravene (UK) copyright law merely by using the character names/situation.
I'm actually on your side in the severely violent storyline issue, however; I must reiterate that my concerns re: porn/slash lean heavily towards the fact that it can be found amongst general stories in (I imagine) all of fandoms stories
I've only read significant amounts of B7 fanfiction so I can't comment on other fandoms.
and therefore a sufficient diet of this sort of material could warp the general behavioural patterns of some youngsters (extreme cases only) I would like to add, that this also applies with a steady diet of violence goes without saying...therefore; I believe that these should be placed in AO categories as well. (it all comes down to the levels involved - a line has to be drawn as to what is considered possibly influential material and what is not and then separate the two.)
I can hardly disagree with a statement this broad! Yes, certainly a *steady diet* of slash, or violence, or television, or penguins, or pretty much anything really, is unlikely to exert a positive influence on child development. Whether there's any actual harm probably depends more on the child and his/her background than on the material.
I personally would guess that material of an explicit sexual nature would be less likely to have a negative effect than explicitly violent material. Partly I suppose on grounds of applicability; there are bullies among every almost every age-group, but sexual activities require a certain degree of physical maturity. Partly also on grounds that violence is obvious and eye-catching, while erotic material -- if you don't know what it's depicting -- isn't really. I would also assert that overprotectiveness of children is non-ideal. They are, after all, going to have to live in this world, with all its imperfections...
Okay, I have read a number of stories but I would say nowhere near as much as maybe yourself and others on this list
Actually I'm a relative newbie here...
- so I will take it as read that some
stories have a feel about them that sex should exist but it doesn't - and I agree, this could make for some frustrating reading...but wouldn't this be the fault of the author? they have instigated a moment which promises something but does not deliver...I would say with these stories, the author should whack the sex in and make it adult reading, however; if the author does not wish to do this, then no amount of mixing the stories in a single zine is going to change this.
It's not so much promises that don't deliver, as whole stories that read as if the characters and the plotline were concocted by Disney.
All I can say on quality is, in my personal experience of zine publishing (viz: one to date), I was lucky enough to be submitted a heck of a lot of stories of very high quality rather quickly for the premise of a 'mixed, but no erotica' zine despite being hitherto unknown as a zine publisher or even a B7 fan. I made the deduction that writers at least rather liked the idea. Whether there's any readership to speak of is another matter .... ask me in a few more months!
I have read a number of slash stories now, well no, in truth I have actually only read a few but I have attempted to read a lot more, a fair % of these stories are simply about the sex, (for me)not exactly what I would call riveting reading...
You could try the stories Betty recently recommended to Fiona, or for that matter those I recommended for the same purpose.
I don't think Avon was sent to Cygnus Alpha for any crime other than an attempt to defraud the Federation's banking system...that he would and does kill in the time that follows is a difficult way to categorise him as they all kill in the act of fighting the rebellion - season four is another point altogether :-)