Way back in September I asked...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

...what people would like to do for Reading Room in December, and whether they'd like a change, and whether they'd like the CI5hq Pros Fic Christmas Calendar recs to run again, and suggested another idea too, and a few people responded (thanks!), and this is what they said (I've added one vote that I would have made but didn't, cos I try to wait until everyone else's voted before I do, since I run the poll, but I forgot to actually do it this time! Anyway, so that's why the numbers you'll see are up by one from the poll results in the link above.):

Would you like to see another Christmas/Winter/Etc.-themed December, as per previous years?
Yes please - a change from Thursday Reading Room - (5)
Yes please, but let's have Reading Room as well! - (3)
No, let's just carry on with ordinary Reading Room - (2)

Would you like to try a December-themed Daily ProsFic Treasure Hunt for a change?
Yes - sounds fun - let's all choose dates and chip in - (3)
No thanks - I'd rather just have what my answer to the other poll says! - (3)
- which broke down as: 1-ChristmasChangeFromReadingRoom; 2-CarryOnWithOrdinaryReadingRoom

There seems to be a quorum (8/10) who'd like to have the Prosfic Christmas calendar again, and although there wasn't much interest in the treasure hunt idea, there was equally as much interest in having it as in not having it! But not many people voted at all, which might mean they don't care at all, might mean they wish I'd go away, or might just mean that they didn't know/didn't mind/were out at the cinema and didn't see the poll when they came home... but being my indecisive self, I'm still trying to decide what to do...

So another poll, for a fresh decision! I'll even make this more of a secret ballot by locking results - so feel free to say No! without worrying people will think you're a curmudgeon... *g* Please answer all three questions - they're all independent of each other, but it'd all be helpful to know!

ETA - Of course I should have thought to explain a little more about what it is, for people who weren't here last year/have memories as bad as mine often is... *g*
Way way back when I first found Pros, The Hatstander used to post a Pros fic advent calendar every Christmas. She'd recommend a Pros Christmas fic (with added picture and then music too!) every day as an advent countdown, and it was fab. Sadly she stopped doing this after a few years (c2007/8ish, I think), and I for one really missed it. When it didn't look like it was going to re-start, I thought I'd see if we could do something similar at ci5hq - and so we did, in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014

It's definitely different from discoveredinalj's Christmas/winter/solstice/let-there-be-light celebration challenge - although you might be interested to know that I've just updated the user info page, and been looking at code and tags and images and artists over there today, too... *g*

And of course all comments/other ideas and thoughts are very welcome too!

[Poll #2027626]

Comments

[snailbones.livejournal.com]

Ayeee! I'm utterly useless this year at the moment, so I can't even recall if I voiced an opinion the first time round... I probably meant to anyway, because I really do enjoy it all, and I deeply appreciate that you're keeping things going. But that's no excuse, so sorry if I've ignored your previous posts - I'll smack myself in a minute *g*

For the first question I've said 'Yes, but can't volunteer', but that's my default answer to everything at the moment, as I've a terrible fear of committing to something and having to back out and letting people down. If I possibly can, I'd love to take part somehow, so I'm more 'yes I will!' than 'no, I won't'. Just subject to infernal RL!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I can't remember if you voted either, but if not I presume it was just bad timing! Thanks for the vote of yeay-Pros-Christmas-fic, though, in general. *g*

You know, if you want to snag a date and send me your rec to post if it turns out to be a hectic day for you, I'm happy to do that - I've done it for people in the past easily enough. *g* And of course you can then track the comments to see who says what, so you don't even miss out on seeing who else likes it... So - I'll cross my fingers that might be a helpful somehow! *g*

[snailbones.livejournal.com]

Bless you! I hate putting any more on your shoulders too... pop me down as a 'yes! I'll play!' then, and I'll try not to vanish into the fog (or the hospital ward with the pigeons on the beds, I kid you not) at the wrong moment *g*

[dollidaydream.livejournal.com]

Sorry to be obtuse. Is this advent calendar different to the splendid "Discovered" advent calendar of last year? Because I loved that, and am not sure if this is the same or different (which will affect my voting).

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Not obtuse, just... uninformed. *g* The CI5hq Prosfic Advent Calendar is very different to the discoveredinalj Christmas/Solstice/Winter/Let-there-be-light challenge, although there's an element of similarity in the set-up, I guess.

Way way back when I first found Pros, The Hatstander () used to post a Pros fic advent calendar every Christmas. She'd recommend a Pros Christmas fic (with added picture and then music too!) every day as an advent countdown, and it was fab. Sadly she stopped doing this after a few years (c2007/8ish, I think), and I for one really missed it. When it didn't look like it was going to re-start, I thought I'd see if we could do something similar at ci5hq - and so we did, in 2010 (http://ci5hq.livejournal.com/151612.html), 2011 (http://ci5hq.livejournal.com/186526.html), 2012 (http://ci5hq.livejournal.com/226569.html), 2013 (http://ci5hq.livejournal.com/250698.html), and 2014 (http://ci5hq.livejournal.com/263338.html).

It's been kind of nice to have a Prosfic pop up in my flist every day - and of course fun finding one to rec too... There's lots of repeats, cos the favourites seem to be the favourites, but if we decide to play I'm going to at least set myself the goal of finding a Christmas fic that's not been recced yet - luckily Christmas fic for Pros seems to be traditional, so there's a fair old number of them out there. *g*

And of course one source is the discoveredinalj Christmas/etc. challenge, cos that's 36-ish days of new fic and art and vids and all. Oddly, I've been working on that ready for this year too, today... (e.g. you got your own Dialj tag, today - hurrah!) *g*

Hope that makes sense - and that you might fancy joining in both! *g*

[dollidaydream.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your comprehensive reply. I am now very informed! *g*. Y'see I did not spot that you were posting from this comm. Had I noticed that I would have been less obtuse! Thank you for all your hard work (I hope Santa brings you something nice!)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Lol (as they say... *g*) And there I try to use different icons for different comms and everything... *points to books-at-Christmas-type-icon*... *g* But that said, it occurred to me that I probably should have been a bit more specific about what it actually was in the post, for people who haven't been around the comm for yonks and yonks! *g*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

I don't know about posting a seasonal rec, but I do have 1200 words of something (warning: contains unpleasant elements) which is in almost every sense totally, utterly and completely un-seasonal ...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh excellent news! Very excellent news... *g* If it helps, I've been working on discoveredinalj today, and there's always space there for give-me-a-break-from-the-red-jangly-bells-with-attached-fairy-lights fic... *g*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

You wouldn't say that if you'd seen it!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

's there a reason why I haven't...? *vbg*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

Fancy giving it a lightning beta, then? It's not nice, I'm afraid!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

But you know I'm always on the end of an email for fic... *g*

*waits patiently*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

Will have a rummage and dig it out, then (probably after supper). Don't say I didn't warn you, though, it's horrid, tawdry, mean and nasty and badly-written. All the qualities ...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

and badly-written
From heliophile_oxon? Unless you've done it on purpose or have been victim of a body/brain-snatcher, such a thing is not possible... and the rest I can absolutely deal with... *g*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

Sent. You have been warned. (let's call it the germ of an idea, that way I can pretend it's not quite as messy as it really is)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

*g*

[krisserci5.livejournal.com]

Is this separate from the Christmas stocking advent? DIALJ xmas advent? I love that and look forward to it.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It certainly is (see comment above to dollidaydream)! You know, I'd swear you've done both before... *g*

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm totally confused (am I?)
Anyway, I think that my totally un-seasonal thing I just sent you is for the dialj advent stocking - if it's for anything, that is!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Lol - you are so confused. But that's okay, I've got fic out of you, and I'm not letting it go... *vbg* It shall be posted on a day over at discoveredinalj!

[krisserci5.livejournal.com]

Yup, I have but just checking anyway. . .thanks. . . .Dec is fun this way!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

December is fun in Pros! *g*

[firlefanzine.livejournal.com]

It breaks my heart, but I voted 'No thanks' for the Prosfic Advent Calendar.
Last years I've seen that it is always a busy time and I never found the time to take part. This year won't be different I fear.
And to avoid a permanent bad conscience I'd rather just have the discoveredinalj's Christmas challenge - which I love!

Bad Firle!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Lol - no worries, though if it goes ahead and you're on lj you're very welcome to read the posts anyway... *vbg*

December is a busy time for lots of people, so it's totally understandable that not everyone will feel able to spare time to post etc.

Glad to hear you're looking forward to Discoveredinalj though - it's definitely happening again this year, I'm just waiting on a few crucial things... *g*

[golden-bastet.livejournal.com]

Urrgh - I don't remember seeing this in September...

Okay, off I go to vote, then!

ETA: not screened, though (which is okay for me).

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

It was attached to a Reading Room schedule post, so perhaps you whizzed by it... *g*

When you say not screened - you mean you can see who's voted for which answer? Cos if so, dammit - I'm sure I ticked the box that said only I could see the poll votes... Or do you mean that these comments aren't screened? Cos the comments weren't supposed to be, so that'd be okay.... *g*

[golden-bastet.livejournal.com]

OKay - I thought you meant the comments. But the poll is, so all is good. :-)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Phew and yeay! *g*

[murphybabe]

I was confused as well :( Looking back at the comments, though, I take heart because I am not the only one: there are several of us who were a bit muddled between the fic rec calendar and the DIALJ advent calendar. I've got it straight in my mind now (aided by coffee *g*) and I will regretfully decline the fic rec calendar and happily play on the DIALJ advent calendar. I'll go and fill in the poll accordingly, just to aid with the numbers.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I've got to admit to being completely confused by the confusion of anyone who's been around Pros on lj for more than a year - the Discoveredinalj challenge over at discoveredinalj and the Pros fic rec calendar here at ci5hq have been going as two separate things for years and years...!

[heliophile-oxon.livejournal.com]

Swiss cheese brain, me - I am quite capable of being confused by even the most straightforward things sometimes! Sorry 'bout dat, and ta for the unconfusing :-)