[identity profile] goe-mod.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] go_exchange
A handful of you, whether by one-on-one explicit arrangement with a mod or owing to the fact you said you were flexible enough to pinch-hit, will be getting a prompt-set assigned to you that is not on your list of preferences. We thank you for your willingness and patience, as we had two or three prompts this year that appeared on nobody's preference lists (this does NOT mean you made a bad prompt; besides, one of those prompts was made by a mod, so it just goes to show even people who have been doing this for years sometimes end up in that position), which meant we had to re-calibrate and start looking for things similar to what people asked for. We're lucky in that, as the assignments list stands right now, there's a one-to-one correspondence: nobody will be stuck writing/drawing more than one gift right from the start; doubling up will only happen if we have drop-outs later in the process and have to start asking people for pinch-hits.

This new system of sign-ups is several years in practice now; I personally have only been a mod since last year, which means this is my second year experiencing this new system from the inside rather than from the outside. The old system was simpler; people left a screened comment giving broad-strokes ideas of things they like and things they don't like, and then assignments were given at random. It meant you had no specific prompts, just guidelines for what your recipient might like to get and what definitely not to give.

We're beginning to think that reverting back to the old system for next year might save everyone grief, and we want your thoughts on this. The mod team is now a completely different set of people than it was in the beginning (minus one, Vulgarweed, who's been a mod from the start; the other two of us who are currently mods have participated every year since the beginning, however, and can honestly say that neither of us particularly prefers the new system over the old one, at least from the standpoint of long-term-participants-turned-mods).

We really want to hear back from you, even at this early stage, as many of you will make up next year's body of participants as well. We want this to run smoothly, and we also want the spirit of the thing to be what matters!

ETA: ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE SENT OUT AROUND / SHORTLY AFTER 7 PM EST.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 03:54 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] lynndyre.livejournal.com
I actually really like the current system. I know I'm committing to make something I'll enjoy working on, and be able to do- and that way I feel I've got a much better chance of making someone happy with what I create.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 05:30 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] lynndyre.livejournal.com
You could ask people to list 5 choices instead of 3? That might make the matching easier without eliminating the element of choice. I really love the element of choice. Not just from one side, either - I like the idea that whoever is making something for me actually wants to be, that I won't be an annoyance to my writer/artist. <3

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 11:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] edna-blackadder.livejournal.com
I think at that rate we'd have to ask people for almost ten choices,

I don't know about other participants, but I definitely could've offered that many. I think I offered five possibilities instead of the usual three, due to not reading the directions properly and possibly misremembering a previous year, but I took those from a much longer list of prompts that all had at least one option I felt comfortable with. I definitely couldn't have done any/all the prompts, due to people wanting, for instance, something like this: 1) a crossover with a fandom I don't know; 2) hardcore porn (I am, to paraphrase one of the prompters, decidedly not one of the great porn masters); 3) an historical period I haven't studied enough to write well. This is a generalization, NOT taken from anybody's specific prompt, just to be clear. Anyway, when I eliminated all the prompts with no options I felt I could do, that still left about half the total list. So maybe instead of having people offer three prompts, you could ask us to offer at least three, up to as many as we'd like?

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-02 01:00 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aten-ra.livejournal.com
Maybe a combination of this + the suggestion below of having one or two more general prompts would be helpful?

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 06:04 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] pasiphile.livejournal.com
Same here, I like the specificity. I've done other challenges as well and it's always waiting with bated breath until the actual prompts arrive, but here it's more laid-back for me because I already know which prompts I'm going to get. So for me it's a teeny bit extra stress beforehand (to think up the actual prompts) and a lot less stress afterwards.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 07:30 pm (UTC)
ext_212832: (bugger alle this)
From: [identity profile] peach-megumi.livejournal.com
I am in agreement with everything said by the above; I definitely enjoy the current system. I feel like there tends to be a lot of stress involved the other way in hoping that what you will be assigned someone whose likes you can manage, and then even more in hoping you make something that will actually fit those likes. At the same time, I understand that the current system -- while very nice for the participants -- must present an insane amount of stress for the mods. So... I am open to either?

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 07:39 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aten-ra.livejournal.com
As someone who's done exchanges with both methods, I think they both have their good points. I did like the 'oooh, what am I gonna get?' wait of the old, and not having any idea what the other fics/arts would be about. And on the receiving end, having a less certain idea of what you'd end up with was a lot of fun. I'm a surprise junkie; I admit it. And frankly, it can be easier when someone else is saying 'okay, here's your prompt; now go forth, young exchanging.' Decisions, man. They're hard.

Otoh, I can spend forever just figuring (and re-figuring) how to make the old-style prompts into a cohesive work. With the current, more specific system, it makes figuring out what I'm doing a loooot easier and it's more certain that I'll get something I'm into and know I can make work. I wasn't entirely sure I'd jump in this year, but then I saw some of the prompts, and was like 'DO WANT,' so here I am once again.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 07:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] miscellanny.livejournal.com
As a long-term participant, I think the revised method of assigning prompts is much more effective, frankly. Is it worth asking for more general prompts?

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-01 08:43 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] http://users.livejournal.com/_silverfox/
I like the current system better both because I can give a lot more detail of what I like, and because I get a clearer idea of what my recipient wants.

I also see why it must be much harder for you.

What about requiring every participant to include one easy pretty general prompt that will give any writer room to play to his or her own strengths and not guaranteeing that people will get one of their favourite three prompts from the start?

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-02 10:57 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] greedslave.livejournal.com
I'm new to the GO Exchange and exchanges in general, so my knowledge of the whole process is clearly partial and my opinion biased. I really like the idea of knowing one will get a series of prompts he feels he is able and happy to fill and likewise knowing that someone is happily filling yours, but I kept wondering if someone would be left out as soon as I read the rules, and I for example had a really hard time choosing only three sets! I'd gladly choosen up to ten!

I'll be honest in saying that I'd be a little worried if the prompts were completely random, but that wouldn't stop me from singing up in the future anyway.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-02 02:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] irisbleufic.livejournal.com
Under the old system, they are not completely random as such: they are merely more random. Under the old system, you could say in broad strokes what characters and plot elements you like and don't like, and then we would use those as rough guidelines when doing the assignment match-ups. So: more random in a details sense, but we very definitely didn't give somebody who loves porn to somebody who hates to draw or write porn, you see what I mean? It just...in my view, it allowed for more control on the giver's part, and it also leveled the playing field. Everyone had a greater chance of getting something that might challenge them a little, and nobody was not-getting something they had cited as something they really wanted. That's what I'm trying to say. I'm one member of the mod-team who is starting to feel very strongly about the old system as a fairer system, and Argyle seems to favor it, too, where Vulgarweed favors the new system. This is why I think we need perspectives from the participants, too, and so I thank you for taking the time to respond :)

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-02 05:29 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] greedslave.livejournal.com
I absolutely understand what you mean, and either way, I think it wouldn't bother me so much to get a somewhat random prompt if it where vague enough to allow for a bit of interpretation, as, if I understood it right, were before. I think in that case the I like/dislike section of the prompt would be the most important for a fair and satisfying pairing up between prompts and writers/artists.
Because I, for example, am the Midas of fluff, and it seems everything I touch will turn teeh-rotting sweet if I am not precedently forewarned about the receivers dislike of that kind of things!;) I see that it could be thrilling to have more creative control, and I know that some people really like surprises. And if it would give us more time to create our gift, I certainly wouldn't be adverse to it.

(no subject)

Date: 2013-11-04 04:27 am (UTC)
ext_85481: (Default)
From: [identity profile] hsavinien.livejournal.com
I don't mind either way, really. I've had fun both ways. As edna_blackadder said, I think I listed 5 choices as well, to make it easier on you guys and I could've easily listed another 3-5. If you asked people to list their top 5+ choices from the prompts, I'd be perfectly willing and able.

I don't really mind the 2 vague, 1 detailed prompt idea. Might be worth a shot.

I haven't had any problem with spoilers, as I never remember the prompts by posting time anyway, and they're usually interpreted in really interesting ways. ^_^

(no subject)

Date: 2013-12-03 10:53 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] hoshi-ryo.livejournal.com
Decided to wait until this point to say how I felt about the system, so...

I'm new to this exchange, but I've participated in a few others. I've actually gotten a few prompts I wasn't sure what to do with, but I was pretty OK with it because I could get in touch with the person who wrote the prompts through the mods and it actually worked out well.

It might actually help if it was possible to either when picking prompts or offering to pinch-hit to go "any prompt for X/any prompts except for ones for X." (So, for example, somebody could say "Just give me an excuse to write Aziraphale/Crowley" or "Anything but porn.") I knew I could write something for the prompts I requested, but...

I didn't offer to pinch-hit in part because I knew some of the prompts I would end up eying like a suspicious lump of something found washed up on a beach that Pollution is vacationing on.
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