As the person who originally started this thread (I believe) in January, I 
have to say that its getting a lot more commentary the second time.  The first 
time it was mostly commentary on personal expression and some on mechanics.  
So I'll just write down my thoughts on the subject, though I think Jeanne 
Hedge went over most of this in her post.

Personal Expression/Style:
As the author, I must be satisfied with my own work.  This does not mean that 
I close myself off from criticism or comments.  I have my take on the 
characters and situations, and the style of writing is the one I'm most 
comfortable with.  But it is also possible that my understanding of a 
character is wrong or doesn't fit with established continuity, which 
would be an issue that had to be addressed.
Example:  I consider the tendency to use casual japanese unrealistic, but it 
doesn't mean that I don't enjoy fanfics that do include them, it just means 
that they won't appear in the ones I write.

Continuity and Characterization:
Both are important for good fanfic writing, but both can be "bent" for the 
purposes of the story.  The most important thing is continuity within the 
fanfic of both, as long as the difference between what has already been 
established is explained.  Unless it is defined at the start, most people will 
assume that whatever has already been published is valid, and will assume that 
any fanfic is automatically written to fit in the established continuity.  The 
importance of continuity is for the understanding of the reader, since that 
person enjoying it is the purpose of posting it.  If the author doesn't 
explain why things are different, then the purpose of using established 
characters/situations becomes moot and the author might as well have used 
non-specific names.
As an aside, this is probably the reason most lemon fanfics fail.  Most 
anime/manga published for a general audience do not have the characters 
engaging in sex, which becomes a difference that must be explained.  Most 
lemon fanfics are one-shots that just have the characters going at it, and the 
sex is the primary motivator of the story, rather than it being a story where 
the characters engage in sex as a part of their relationships.
Example:  Magical Interludes is firmly rooted in a certain section of Ranma 
continuity, therefore, if the characters were to have sex it would have to be 
explained within the context of what has gone before.  In the case of Dr. 
Tofu/Kasumi, I had to have Kasumi find out about his attraction to her, 
realize at she felt the same way, and cure Dr. Tofu of his tendency to go 
crazy in her presence.  In Marital Arts, I started with the assumption that 
they would be having sex from the start, but I also had to be sure that I 
otherwise stuck to established continuity for everything else so that the 
readers would not be totally confused by the number of changes I was making.  
I have Ranko making love to Shampoo and Ryoga, but at their introduction 
almost everything else about their characters are the same as the original 
Takahashi.  In the areas where I am introducing characters, I try to stay as 
close as possible to the original in terms of characterization, though the 
situations might change to fit the story better.

The Role of the "Contributing Editor":
I think the primary role of the contributing editor is more than just saying 
"I liked it" or "I didn't like it", as the simple numbers will ensure someone 
will like or not like the work.  It is giving an honest opinion on the story 
and backing it up with reasons, which includes continuity and 
characterization.  This ensures that the characters act within believable (for 
them) bounds.  The difference is that editors can only advise, and must accept 
the final decision of the writer.  But if there are a number of readers that 
write about something, the writer should pay attention to their message 
because it gives them an outside view on their stories that they can't see 
cause they're too close to it.
Example:  In the first draft of DnR14 (? - its the one with the wrestlers), 
Ranma is beaten up by the wrestlers and only used (I think) "Mouko 
Takabisha", which up to that point had also been the only special move that he 
used in the series.  So, as editor, I wrote to ask whether or not Ranma had 
access to his other special moves (such as "Hiryuu Shotenha" and the 
"Cat-Fist"), and if so, why he never used them in fights.  The final version 
had him using the other special moves.

In regards to the comments of the editor being taken as commands, they aren't. 
 The author is free to ignore the comments, but will undoubtably lose readers 
if their comments continue to go unheeded.  Of course, the logic of 
contributing editors become more important for continuing series than for a 
non-continuing one.

JK