THIS IS GOING TO BE A RANT. you have been warned o n o

recently, there's been this suggestion box thing on AFF Helper, asking aff users for recommendations and suggestions on how the improve the site.

i've noticed a ton of people suggest that we don't put shops in the 'feature' section. and i understand that they might want to look for cool fics. but if they want to find cool new fics, there are so many other ways to do that. for one, we have the 'recommended section'. there are also a multitude of well-respected recommendation shops. furthermore, aff users can always just ask friends or other fellow users for recommendations. really, the possibilities for finding great fics is endless. however, they have to realize aff is a community that includes stories, graphic shops, layout shops, roleplays, etc. who all have the equal chance of gaining popularity, and getting the opportunity to be featured. the 'featured' section isn't for good fanfiction, it's there to recognize well-established and well-received threads, whether those threads be roleplays, fanfictions, shops, galleries, or contests, in the hopes of garnering more attention for that thread, and giving it the recognition it deserves. even if you make a seperate 'featured corner' for shops and roleplays, who's going to look for it or really know HOW to look for it? and let's be completely blunt here. no one would give two craps about these little corners; they would ignore it and go straight for the cheesy drama romcom on the front of the homepage. these features are rare moments when a non-fanction can be appreciated by the whole of the aff community. to put it in even simpler terms, it's quite apparant that aff is best known for its fanfics. the majority of aff users use this site to subscribe to and comment on their favorite fanfictions. therefore, it only seems logically correct if it is fanfictions who are the dominating force in the aff community. with that in mind, one should realize that this means other threads, ones that are NOT fanfictions, have a difficult time reaching to the public, because a lot of aff users don't bother to look at layout galleries or graphic shops, even though a multitude of authors use both in their stories. so when those non-fanfic threads are featured, it means a lot. when uncontrollable was featured, the layout community celebrated. when roleplays are featured, it is a huge deal for those roleplayers, as well as the admins, and creators, who have put their blood, sweat, and tears into making their roleplay a fun community for all of their roleplayers. coders, roleplayers, designers, reviewers, etc, they've all worked equally as hard, and spent just as much time to provide the aff community with the highest-quality material they possibly can. that's why those kind of threads are featured. not because they're hardworking authors giving their all at a wonderful fanfiction. it's because these people have given their all, have improved, and have gone through ups and downs to reach this sort of recognition. if aff does decide to ban non-fanfictions from being featured, i honestly think threads that aren't fics are going to be severely less-appreciated than they already are (which is saying something). a lot of aff users don't realize how difficult and time-consuming it is to learn and use codes to make something even remotely decent to look at. at the same time, a lot of aff users don't understand how much patience and skill it takes to create a simple graphic, or to be able to pander to so many different people's wants and desires. with that in mind, why should a website, that offers a variety of threads, discriminate against other threads and hold one above the others? and they can argue that shops and roleplays will get just as much attention from their 'little corner', but that's emperically just not true. just look at the 'm rated' fics. they aren't nearly as popular as they were before, because they're now hidden; they have a 'little corner' for their featured fics, but it's not nearly as clear as being front-page on aff. and regardless of emperics, since there aren't any legal restrictions on graphic shops, layout shops, or rps, why should we hide them away?

this isn't about my own layout gallery, or anyone elses' thread. rather, it's about realizing what a community is, and to protect the opportunities each and every aff user has, regardless of what they do. this issue goes beyond just the idea of including graphic shops and roleplays in the featured section, its about making others realize the importance of potential, and realize as well as recognize talent, even if posters or roleplays might not appeal to them, rather than discriminate against something foreign or 'useless' to their own livelihoods.

that's why i honestly think the featured section should stay the same way as is. if an author, coder, or designer has earned the support and upvotes to be featured, then so be it. they've all worked equally as hard to earn that chance. who are you to rid them of that?

HAHA i have so much more to say, because i'm just really infuriated atm. but that's just my logical, unbiased argument on why it would be unjustified, discriminatory, as well as morally wrong to put fanfictions on a pedastal, while preventing other great threads from getting that kind of recognition. it's frustrating, really.