cimorene

phineasjones made me think about this.

few things make me praise things in REALLY strong language. overusing emphasis takes meaning from it. it's not emphatic anymore. and really, most of the fic that i like, if i step back and consider it objectively, i can't call that, even if i really, really like it. because, well, brilliant? or flawless, or perfect, or genius, or any kind of expletive whatsoever--something has to go beyond the ability to produce an emotional reaction for that. it has to stand up to scrutiny when i take a step back. it has to strike me as being truly innovative in some manner, or flawlessly executed, or, you know, extremely out of the ordinary way. this is why my praise may come off half-hearted, or my recommendations lukewarm, though they're not REALLY intended that way. i'm just one of those teachers who would never give a 100 unless something "jumped up and hit me over the head with its perfection," to paraphrase my 10th grade english teacher (when i asked what was wrong with my analysis, and why i got a 98).