If ‘blog fiction’ is an obvious term for fiction on the internet, so is ‘web fiction’ — and that broader term is what I typed in the search bar yesterday for my first formal surfing safari. The top hit for that phrase turned out to be a site called Web Fiction Guide, which describes itself as a “community-run listing of online fiction”. (Sweet!)
As a first stop on an uncertain journey it seemed a welcoming place, and after taking a look around I think it would be worth your time to stop by as well. (Visiting the WFG Forums will give you a sense of the traffic on the site, as well as the vibe of the community.)
Weighing on any online artistic community is the question of filtering submissions and content without venturing into censorship or favoritism. While Web Fiction Guide makes a few basic content choices (no dedicated erotica or fan fiction), they’ve also got a ratings system set up to deal with the problem. One read of their rating rules makes it clear that they’re sincere about trying to deal with an inherently subjective and prickly process.
Because Web Fiction Guide rates anything that is “original and story-oriented…that is available to read for free online”, they have a wealth of categories to choose from. Interestingly, blog fiction (actually ‘blogfic’) is only one of the eight or so choices, although there may be some overlap between genres and types.
Clicking on the listing/rating for a given title takes you to a summary page about that work, at which point you can click through to the site where the work is hosted. In short, Web Fiction Guide does what its name promises: guides you to web fiction and helps you sort through the offerings.
— Mark Barrett
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