I got this comment on a story from my Other AO3 Account this morning.

(Info redacted because I prefer keeping these accounts separate but no one follows me on the side blog I have for that account.)

The story was posted almost a year ago and is relatively “popular” by my average statistics even though it has tropes and themes that are big turnoffs for a lot of people (hence separate accounts). This popularity is undoubtedly because it’s a Marvel Loki story and that fandom is massive.

So there is obviously an algorithm or a bot scrubbing ao3 statistics and leaving this comment on fics that meet a certain metric with the main character of the fic inserted into the comment.

I had a little time to kill this morning so I decided to investigate further. And y’all this is so predatory. Come on this journey with me. It made me mad. It may make you mad.

First, if you go to Webnovel’s website, you HAVE to choose between male lead or female lead stories before you can go any further. WTF?

And that’s weird, but this gets so much worse. This is basically a pay-to-read site that has different subscription models. Which… okay BUT! The authors don’t get paid! Look at that comment again. They’re promising a supportive and nurturing community, but zero monetary compensation. It’s basically, “post your stuff here so we can get paid and you can get… nice vibes?” I mean look at this Orwellian writing:

Using the phrase “pay-to-read model” in the same sentence as “qualitative changes in lifestyles for authors” deliberately makes you think that you can get paid and maybe even make a living on this website. But that’s not actually what it says and authors will not receive one red cent.

Oh but wait, the worst is still to come. In case this breaks containment (which I kind of hope it does) this is where I mention that I’m a lawyer in the US.

I don’t do intellectual property or copyright law but I do read and write contracts for a living. So I went to look at their terms of service. It was fun!

Highlights the first, in which Webnovel gets a license to do basically whatever they want with content you post on their site. This is how they get to be paid for people reading authors’ writing without paying them anything.

Highlights the second, in which Webnovel takes no responsibility for illegally profiting off of fan fic. This all says that the writer is 100% responsible for everything the writer posts (even though only Webnovel is making money from it).

Highlights the third which say that by posting, the author is representing that they have the legal right to use and to let Webnovel use the content according to these terms. So if a writer posts fan fiction and Webnovel makes money from people reading the fan fiction, and the House of the Mouse catches wise, these sections say that that’s ALL on the writer.

So that’s a little skeevy to start off with but the thing that is seriously shitty and made me make this post was that these assholes are coming to ao3. They are actively recruiting people in comments on their fan fiction. And they are saying they are big fans of the character you’re writing about and that they share your interests.

They are recruiting fan fiction writers and giving every impression that you can make money from posting fan fiction on their site and hiding the fact that you absolutely cannot but they can make money off of you while you try, deep in their terms of service which no one but a lawyer who writes fan fic and has some time to kill will read.

I see posts on here regularly from people who don’t understand how this stuff works, don’t understand that they (and others) can not legally make a financial profit from fan fiction. And there are tons of people who will not take the time to dig into the details.

Don’t deal with these bastards. Fuck Webnovel.

Dear sweet gods above and below and sideways. Where is my Nopetopus?!

Never ever EVER give anybody worldwide rights to anything of yours. EVER. Gaaaaaaahhhh.

(There are also about ten other things wrong with that contract that are BAD EVIL HORRIBLE NOISOME AND VILE. But if I get started enumerating them right now, before I do something about my blood sugar, it'll turn me into a pissed-off person for the rest of the day. Sweet THOTH on his e-bike but these people are fucking shameless.)

(starts rummaging around on the desk for the text of the Excommunication Curse against the Reivers to pronounce it against these schmucks)

..GAAAAAH. :/

I will defend the faith going down swinging

I will save the songs that we can't stop singing

you ever read a fic so good you want to sit around and discuss it with people english class style

do i have your attention yet? am i on your mind?

how about now?

a little curiosity never hurt anybody

They just sat back laughing at the wounded city, each breath sucking in ashes and fumes. Oh it bled all right; drier than Moore County. All expatriate flames hurrying to found new nations of blinding dust. But the two of them, they just squinted at that pipe-cleaner skyline, and it burned hotter in their oil slick pupils. One elbowed the other and said “I’ve seen better.” Knowing that they were paid to remember the past - he blew out a hot breath and said “burn it all”.

HAPPY TEN YEARS TO SAVE ROCK AND ROLL, from @twinkskeletons, @heartbreakfeelsogood, @vanweezer, @smashallguitars, @ybcpatrick, @patrickmstump, @clandestine-rabbit, and @omegalomania!

10 YEARS OF SAVE ROCK AND ROLL ✧ favorite lyrics

When you lay down the bare facts of what's happening in France, it's so plainly evil.

Macron, a millionaire banker, told French people he wants us to work until we die (most people affected by the increase in retirement age work in rough conditions that make their life expectancy much lower than the rest of the population) and French people took to the streets to say no, we want to live a little before we die, and Macron started sending thousands and thousands of cops armed with steel batons and tear gas grenades and LBD guns to gas us and beat us into submission. This millionaire banker is sending cops to brutalise old ladies and homeless men and arrest children at protests and many people have already been severely wounded, in the past week only French people have ended up with cracked skulls and amputations and broken hands for protesting Macron, and he's not backing down, and other Western governments are not in a hurry to do something because they're not terribly opposed to the idea of millionaires working poor people to death.

We'll keep protesting.

What they are singing:

We are here We are here Even if Macron doesn't want it, we are here For the dignity of workers And for a better world Even if Macron doesn't want it We are here

You mean like slavery?

Image Description.

Facebook post from Matt Norris.

Post reads like a conversation between 2 people:

Prison labor is a problem we need to address soon.

Convicts in prison should have to work like the rest of us.

No, we’re giving them 3 meals and a bed, at our expense, while they just sit around and watch TV. They should have to work!

Right. Like slavery.

It’s not like slavery!

Can they leave?

No.

Can they refuse work?

No.

So how exactly isn’t this slavery?

We DO pay them!

Do we pay in accordance with labor laws?

No. We pay them between 33 cents and $1.41/hour with a maximum daily wage below $5, then take up to half of that as room&board fees and victim compensation.

Right. So like slavery.

BUT.

No.

Image then links to this url.

Below URL image reads “fun bonus fact: enough of our labor market currently relies on labor at these depressed rates, that it has a substantial downward pressure on both wages and job availability in low-skilled sectors. Immigrants aren’t taking your jobs. Slavery is.

End description.

I’d also like to add it’s not just private prisons. It’s also private detention centers where ICE keeps the immigrants.

-fae

The constitution even acknowledges that it’s still slavery

a hefty chunk of items with that ‘made in america’ sticker are in fact made by prison labor at the very least anything that is a product of prison labor should be required to have a similar sticker to inform consumers they are taking part of this system, which is difficult to track because prison made manufactured goods include almost the entire uniform of a US soldier, road construction in most southern states, and agricultural goods sold in most stores

this…. looks familliar

Prison is just covert slavery and that’s why they wanna keep so many black people in there for the smallest offences.

This is insane

(Just to clarify, I’m not saying you’re wrong. I’m just giving you more information because you’re right, and I like your blog, and I want you to have sources in case you need them.)

It’s not even covert. It’s blatant and overt. It’s even called slavery in the constitution.

“Slavery is illegal except as punishment for a crime.”

People just don’t care because they think it’s all murderers and rapists, despite the fact that the number of violent criminals in jail is so small it might as well be negligible.

It’s literally slavery, just dumbass racists and capitalists don’t care enough to figure out why we’re calling it that.

-fae

Actually, no, I got something to add and it’s this video by Knowing Better on Youtube:

Slavery is baked into the US American system so much more firmly than anyone ever really acknowledges.

There’s a very good and very hard-hitting documentary about it on Netflix

DIY Bat Shoe Wings made with duct tape, scissors, white pen, and pen knife.

Make a big sheet of duct tape by laying it out and making sure the creases face different ways so its less flimsy.

Then use white pen to draw out your bat wings template. Use your shoes to mark out the holes. Then cut out the holes with a pen knife and check if they fit. Wipe off pen with a lil acetone and qtip. Lace onto your shoes and ur good to go!

I am embarrassed to even ask for help and you all know that in almost 7 years of having this blog, I've never asked for anything, but my university is changing my major from next year on and this is the last chance I have to graduate and take my last semester.

Before the change announcement, due to my current financial situation I planned to take my last semester next year, but if I don't take it now, I will not be able to take it ever again. My only option would be to start all over from the first year on, and the five semesters that I already successfully took and paid off would be worth nothing and I would not be able to finish the course.

I'm a some 1.5k euros away from being able to pay it all off, and I don't have that money right now, even with my paycheck. Both of my dogs have had health issues in the past month and the vet visits wiped us out.

If you can help, please do. I appreciate every contribution. I totally understand if you can't, so please don't feel bad about it. Every reblog and share is appreciated and is very helpful as well.

I'd like to thank everybody who already contributed. You all are amazing and incredibly kind and have helped me beyond words. I'm really speechless at everybody's grace and kindness towards a virtual stranger on the internet like me.

You've all already changed my life for the better these past 6 and a half years. Sometimes I felt so lonely and sad and all of you were my only support systems and I could never thank you enough for that. I love you all, thank you.

Just like to say once more how much I love you all so much and how much you all changed my life for the better, thank you all so much, much love to you all ❤❤❤

Because of all of you, I am a little over 200 euros away from paying off the last of my schooling altogether, including my final term paper and I just can't thank you enough, I love all of you so much, thank you!

GET OUR FAVORITE DREAM DISTRIBUTOR TO THE END OF HER EDUCATION!

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE HELP, YOU MEAN THE WORLD TO ME!

oh my god two words in that just UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE

All hope is lost so quickly I can’t stop laughing.

danish tv is the best thing ever

“Okay :(”

He went straight to Acceptance. He didn’t even go through the five stages of grief. He just started at Acceptance.

I can translate for anyone wondering what he’s saying. The dialogue roughly goes something like

“Hopefully the owner of the car behind me will next time consider if-oh shit. Okay.”

thanks for the context omg

People I met for a few moments that live in my head forever.

hello my hand is gonna fall off

tap for better quality!

A new mode of production arises out of the newly networked masses.

Fanartists:

Thingiverse users:

Royalty free sounds

Flash games

Productivity has always been there

Because shockingly when people enjoy what they do (you make it enjoyable instead of just hammering on them) people WANT to do things!

Fanfiction authors!!

Where is the button to shout this from the rooftop?

a few reminders because i’m tired and angry

feel free to add more