Thinking about spoilers, and my personal policy.: seanan

Thinking about spoilers, and my personal policy.

So a few days ago, I posted a relative rarity—a song about a Toby book—and stated that I don't write or post many of these, on account of the inevitability of spoilers. A lot of people commented on how much they enjoyed the lyrics, which was lovely. Several of them then told me either a) that the song wasn't what they would consider a spoiler, b) that the statute of limitations was up, or c) that they liked spoilers. These are all absolutely valid perspectives, and I was glad to hear them.

And yet, as is always the danger, they got me thinking.

My position on spoilers for my own work is that, as the author, I have to be scrupulously careful, both because it's not fair of me to take the experience of reading something for the first time away from someone, and because sometimes, I can spoil things which haven't happened yet, which means that sometimes, my spoilers can change. Merav was one of my first Machete Squad members. She and I have talked through at least three different iterations of the timeline, including characters who wound up never existing, and excluding characters who wound up being very important. So there are times when she'll say "but you can't do _____, it contradicts _____," and _____ is something that not only hasn't happened yet, it's never going to happen. I didn't mean to confuse her, it just happened.

There's also the question of authorial deceit. A few years ago, people in the fandom of a TV show I watched—and I honestly don't remember which show it was, that's sort of beside the point—were furious because, at the end of the season, what happened didn't match the spoilers they'd received from the showrunner at the start of the season. He had lied to them. He had intentionally deceived them. And oh, were they pissed. But as a writer, I can see where maybe he didn't lie. Stories twist and change. Characters I thought would be totally essential disappear, and new characters wander onto the scene. When I told Jennifer how Sparrow Hill Road was going to play out, I wasn't lying, even though things didn't end that way. The story changed in my hands. I don't ever want my readers to feel like I lied to them because of spoilers. I try to play fair, and that's important to me.

Some people find that spoilers enhance their enjoyment of the work. I know that sometimes, when I'm really excited about something, or really anxious about it, I'll seek out spoilers just to brace myself better. I'm currently looking for anything that can confirm certain upcoming X-Men storylines. There's a key phrase there: "seek out spoilers."

When I get accidentally spoiled for something, I am pissed, and depending on the magnitude of the spoiler, I may cross the work off my list of things to do. I've never seen The Sixth Sense because of a careless spoiler. I decided not to see Serenity when every major event and plot twist of the movie was spoiled by enthusiastic fans. I think you should absolutely have the freedom to choose to be spoiled, but I don't think I should be spoiling people without warning them, or without their consent.

Sometimes knowing a thing is coming really does enhance the story, or at least change it. Writing stories about Jonathan and Frances Healy is oddly bittersweet for me, because I know how they both die—and that isn't a spoiler, since they're Verity's great-grandparents, and cryptozoology isn't a career that comes with a guarantee of a long life. It's not a spoiler to say that Alice and Thomas will eventually get married, that Rose dies alone by the side of the road, or that science accidentally makes zombies. These are background statements, and even if I later go back and write stories set before those things happened, they don't turn into spoilers.

I wish I loved John and Fran a little less. It would make what's coming a lot less hard.

I guess what it comes down to is that I don't want to spoil the experience of the person who doesn't like spoilers, and that means maintaining a strict policy of self-censorship outside of venues where I've posted thorough spoiler warnings. It also means that occasionally, if something is very new or the spoiler is very large, I may screen or remove comments containing spoilers from posts that aren't marked "spoilers here." That way, everyone gets a little closer to what they want, and life is good.

Make sense?

vincentursus

November 10 2011, 02:04:58 UTC 5 years ago

New comment

Not a priority for me, but I'm willing to accommodate other people's preference.

seanan_mcguire

November 18 2011, 15:33:46 UTC 5 years ago

Excellent.

paksenarrion2

November 10 2011, 02:16:44 UTC 5 years ago

I appreciate your spoiler policy, thank you.

I waffle back in forth whether I personally want to be spoiled on things. But I make sure if I am talking about things I have knowledge about that I put things behind lj cuts or post in spoiler areas on other forums. I find that sometimes it helps my enjoyment of the TV show-so I can enjoy the nuances of what is happening on the screen. Sometimes it doesn't.

My first major on-line fandom was Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the main area I posted at was The Bronze. The community had a pretty good self policing policy with spoilers. And the writers would stop by and never drop any spoilers-although they loved to tease us and pretend. Joss was especially good at that. The biggest issue was that Atlantic Canada would get the episode the day before the rest of the US so occasionally people would post what happened for the entire ep.

It amazes me how some people are devoted to ferreting out spoilers for things like TV shows. One of my favorite reality shows is The Amazing Race. There is a whole cadre of people that are on the look-out around the US and around the world looking for racers and the crew whenever a new race is slated to start.

November 18 2011, 15:34:34 UTC 5 years ago

Some people just want to be THE FIRST TO KNOW. Sadly, that's a special snowflake state that only lasts a very short time, so they feel like they have to be total assholes and spoil things for other people, so as to demonstrate their specialness.

mectech

November 10 2011, 02:53:52 UTC 5 years ago

this reader very much appreciates such a thoughtful policy.

November 18 2011, 15:34:43 UTC 5 years ago

You're very welcome.

melchar

November 10 2011, 02:59:54 UTC 5 years ago

I have friends who cover their ears and will scream if a spoiler is mentioned. I'm not that way.

Spoilers don't bother me and if I learn something about the ending [or -figure out- the ending early on]. Since I sometimes do the figuring out on incomplete evidence and wild hair intuitions, I'd spoil things for myself, if it did bother me.

And much the same way I recommended that Kyrielle see 'Mononoke', I also recommend that you see 'Serenity'. Knowing something will happen does not spoil watching it for me. In face watching 'Serenity' got me past the block I had about seeing the whole TV series. It had been so god-awfully presented on TV by the local Fox affiliate that I couldn't sit thru any of the episodes. Commercials - and the station showing things out of order - just made my brain hurt.
...So it wasn't till I was dragged off to see 'serenity' that the characters clicked. Then I went back and saw the series on DVD and loved it. ... and have seen 'Serenity' rather a lot, since. I can even watch it on the Skiffy channel.

November 18 2011, 15:35:30 UTC 5 years ago

Nope. I don't appreciate having spoilers shoved down my throat, as they were with Serenity, and I have so many other things that need to be watched that it's not even in the top five hundred.

Also, as long as I don't watch it, Wash isn't dead.

groblek

November 10 2011, 03:46:26 UTC 5 years ago

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this with us. I think yours is an excellent policy, even though I personally am indifferent to spoilers. I think it speaks well of you that you're that considerate about your readers, because as you mention, for some people, a careless spoiler can ruin their enjoyment of the whole work.

November 18 2011, 15:35:41 UTC 5 years ago

Very welcome. :)

mysterysquid

November 10 2011, 10:30:29 UTC 5 years ago

Totally.

What are the XMen spoilers you're seeking? I've just read both of the new #1s and quite enjoyed them.

November 18 2011, 15:36:01 UTC 5 years ago

Is Jean Grey coming back, or just the Phoenix Force? I'm cool with the latter, not the former.

November 19 2011, 00:01:09 UTC 5 years ago

Yeah, I'd be with you on that.

joecoustic

November 10 2011, 10:46:59 UTC 5 years ago

Thank you for your spoiler policy!!!

November 18 2011, 15:36:08 UTC 5 years ago

Very welcome!

besanderson

November 10 2011, 13:29:10 UTC 5 years ago

Makes perfect sense. I probably should've said this a long time ago, but thank you for your 'spoiler here' warnings. I hate spoilers, so I know exactly which posts to stay away from ahead of time. =o)

November 18 2011, 15:36:23 UTC 5 years ago

You're very welcome. :)

Spoilers

the_liz666

November 11 2011, 23:08:25 UTC 5 years ago

I feel the same way. I think things should always have a WARNING: SPOILERS HERE! notice. I become QUITE grumpy when I hear too many things.
Maybe this is why I don't always share books with my Family. When My Mom found out I just STARTED watching Doctor Who, she started asking me if I'd seen ____ Episode with River Song where she did blahblah.
I'm still not caught up on Bones. The series starts up again Tuesday, and my friend keeps trying to TELL me what's going to happen.
It's so hard when your dealing with people in person. At least online you can click away, and refuse to keep reading, but in person... You can only so swiftly jam your fingers in your ears and say LALALALALALA!
For the record, I have a similar problem with your books. My best friend is halfway through A Local Habitation, and it's so hard to bite my tongue and not say "Oh I MISS that character!" Yeah... So I hug my friend and say, "Because I love you, we CAN'T talk about this in detail."

Re: Spoilers

November 18 2011, 15:36:40 UTC 5 years ago

You are a good friend.

thedragonweaver

November 12 2011, 06:02:42 UTC 5 years ago

I dislike giving spoilers, but I do occasionally indulge in "non-spoiler spoilers." For example, I have a friend who also likes Doctor Who but who usually doesn't see the episodes as soon as I do. I will give her a non-plot line that is funny or a note on costuming that can't possibly spoil anything, just because it's funny when somebody else knows. (This recent Torchwood series? In the first episode, they have a character holding a baby as she shoots a gun, and the baby is laughing her head off, which is of course totally unscripted and hilarious.)

On that note:

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I love the breadsticks.