Poll Day - Should Stories Be a Forum For Personal Crusades?

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

I missed the last Thursday of the month, but with Easter goings on and Easter Eggs on mfuwss we'll just take today as a make-up day.
So here's the question, for both writer and reader as usual.
[Poll #1905733][Poll #1905733]

Comments

[kleenexwoman.livejournal.com]

I honestly fall somewhere between 1 and 2 on the spectrum. I try to be aware of what my stories are saying, and I try to make them work within a worldview I find to be good or truthful when possible--this can mean anything from avoiding stereotypes to fully exploring the consequences of a character's own worldview. I think that's just part of the fabric of a story. However, I've definitely used issues I know or care about to drive the plot or flavor of a story, like when I made hipster!Illya soapbox about the evils of Nestle corporate strategy to show some of what his character was like. Yeah, I hoped people would look up Nestle boycotts on their own, but the important thing about that was to make sure the reader could peg Illya as a specific type of hipster.

I'm pretty on the fence about soapbox stories. I like reading stories that address a thorny issue in a realistic way or that prompt me to explore something further on my own, but there are a lot of stories in newer fandoms where authors seem to be using the story as a 101 class to whatever pet issue they feel like talking about, and it's all very OOC and there's no real story there. That, I don't like.

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

I think a POV that is thoughtfully presented without demanding agreement has its place in a well written story. I think we could all agree with more than one question in this poll, but there has to be a line drawn somewhere. Ultimately these polls are to spur us into thinking a little longer on the subject matter. I"m glad you voiced your response.