Annie wrote, and several others have put similar views:

Maybe I also don't want to have my motives for liking certain types of fan fiction examined and I certainly don't particularly care to be *told* why I like something and what that something "is" (in complete disagreement to my own stated preferences and what *I* believe that something "is").

My immediate thoughts on this thread were along the lines of analytical types (such as myself) simply can't help analysing things, it is our natural way of working. Speaking as such a type, I would consider the main difficulty comes when it comes over as if one is analysing a trait one considers inferior in some fashion (whether or not this is actually in the minds of those doing the analysing).

However, although I'm a great analyser and categoriser of most things, I personally find such systems don't work well for complex items, such as fanfic (or people). In particular, and I know I'm in a minority here, I dislike the categorisation of fanfic into subgenres such as h/c. It seems to me that if one can accurately pigeonhole a piece of fiction into something relatively tightly defined, such as h/c, then the story must be unoriginal. Or, to put it another way, if I like a story, then I tend to like it for what is different from other stories that I've read, not what is similar (or identical).

I also agree that being a lab rat isn't very comfortable.

Tavia