A lot of fic requests have been showing up on the list lately. Here's
some excerpts from the latest version of the FFML FAQ dealing with the
subject.
WHEN IS IT PERMISSIBLE TO POST A REQUEST FOR A FANFIC?
Fic requests are a technically forbidden, but, in practice allowed
aspect of the FFML. This is mainly because a ban on all fic requests
would be needlessly authoritarian--sometimes, posting to the FFML in
search of a fic really is the last resort.
However, a great deal of fanfic requests are unnecessary, and create
needless trash on the mailing list. This section clarifies what future
policy towards fic requests will be, in an attempt to lower the volume
of unnecessary requests and the SPAM threads created by them.
Fic requests tend to fall into four general categories:
1) Genuine Last Resorts
The author has no web site. They don't respond to e-mails. If they do,
their hard drive has crashed, and they don't have a copy of the fic.
The FFML Archive shows no trace of it.
In this instance, posting a fic request to the FFML is acceptable.
Please make a genuine attempt -- checking web sites and e-mailing the
author at the very least -- to find the fic without resorting to a FFML
post. Specify, as you always should with fic requests, that people
should reply to you privately.
2) General Requests
Classically, this is the request for "any fanfics where Ryoga and Ukyo
are a couple" or any other similar such thing. There are generally two
reasons for making requests like this -- either you're interested in
reading a fanfic of this type, or you want to see if the idea you've got
has already been written.
Requests like these are discouraged, as there are other methods to find
them--the prime one being to read a lot of fanfics. You can also ask on
a newsgroup such as rec.arts.anime.fandom, or, if you have on-line
friends who are also into fanfic, ask them.
If you do post requests like this, don't do it frequently. And, of
course, ask for private replies.
3) "I Can't Remember the Name"
It's a fanfic you read half of on a forgotten web page several months
ago. Ranma was in it. And Predator. And Bun-Bun, from "Sluggy
Freelance". But the page is gone, and you can't remember what the
fanfic was called, or who the author was.
Like general requests, these are discouraged, and the same methods
outlined under general requests can be used to attempt to find them. If
those don't work, be as detailed as possible in posting your requests to
the FFML, don't do it frequently, and ask for private replies.
4) Simple Laziness
You were off the FFML for a week, and would like everyone who wrote a
Sailor Moon fanfic that wasn't WAFFy to send it to you. Sure, you could
use the author database or the archives to look for them, but you don't
want to take the time. Or you deleted a fic and then saw C&C that made
you interested in it, but can't be bothered to write to either the
author or the person making the commentary to ask for a copy.
Requests like these should never appear on the FFML. Asking for private
replies won't cut it here--people posting fic requests spawned from an
unwillingness to make a little extra effort will be warned, or possibly
even tempbanned.
No matter what the type of request, ALWAYS make replies to fic requests
privately, even if the author does not request it. Do not post them to
the FFML. If the author of a fic request finds himself or herself
deluged with e-mail, he/she can post a short notification to the FFML
that the request has been filled.
If you are also interested in the fic requested, write to the person
making the request and ask him/her to pass on any information received
to you. Do not post such a request to the FFML.
====================
* HOW CAN I FIND A FANFIC THAT I'M LOOKING FOR?
There are plenty of ways to obtain a fic *without* posting to the list.
The first thing you should try is to E-mail the author of the story,
or check the author's web site. Web sites for many authors are listed
in the FFML Resource Guide. Didn't get the Guide? Email one of the
FFML FAQ Co-Maintainers and ask for a copy, or see the web addresses
above.
If you don't know who the author of a fic is, try emailing someone
else on the list who seems to have read the story; or check the FFML
archives (see below), or the weekly synopses lists at
http://konatsu.dhs.org/synlist
There are also author databases on the web, listing fics that have
been posted to FFML with their authors. These are located at
http://illusion.snu.ac.kr/~wacko/ffml/author-db/
and
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/8222/ffmllist.html
Gary Kleppe
http://www.execpc.com/~kleppe/comics.html