What is fanning, how does it affect the hubscore & why is it wrong?

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   shazwellynposted 14 years ago

   I wondered if anyone can inform me of this.
   
   Thanks... Im still learning!

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   GeneralHowitzerposted 14 years ago

   Fanning is joining in other hubber as a fan, it is not necessarily wrong, but you should deserve the fans you have with your writing talents. According to experienced hubbers fanning may affect your author score but the degree of penalties given is virtually unknown to me...

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   rebekahELLEposted 14 years ago

   there are numerous threads about fans, etc.
   fanning is when someone goes through on a fanning spree, fanning anyone regardless of having read any of their work, often leaving fanmail that reads the same for his 50 last fans. it's not authentic, and generally doesn't work as the fanner thinks that by fanning many, many will fan back.
   
   if you search 'fans' in the search box, you'll find more info.
   
   some come into the forums asking for fans too, best way is to write great hubs and be helpful in the community.

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      GeneralHowitzerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah you hit the target bulls eye... and it is...
      I was on a fanning spree when I was eager to reach the 200 fans plateau but Maddie cut me down to size... you should have fans naturally if you write well and amiable to your fellow hubbers, fans will be an easy picking as they will admire you and eventually join your bandwagon and ... I'm now on a reading spree opposite of fanning hehehe to express my gratitude to the people that made me happy in HP...

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         shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         yes, Ive been reading hubs.  You can really tell the good ones from the... errr.. not so good.  I guess much of it is a matter of taste in subject matter too!

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            GeneralHowitzerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            A matter of discernment you still need to be polite at all times... because everyone of course wanted to be treated well...
            
            I wish to read the hubs of my fans but my work spreads my time time thin now I have fewer loads I can afford to read/scan as many hubs as I could...

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               shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               Thats the trouble,really, the more fans - the more responsibility, I guess.  I can understand now, that it is better to have quality relationships with fellow writers, than any old... well, you know!  I have gone through all those who I am a fan of, now, and can say that I am happy with the selection of material they offer me. However, reading some of the material, I am desperate for a couple that I have fanned to be my fan simply because I value their comments.
               
               I am going to be very selective in who I am a fan of in future!

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   Janettaposted 14 years ago

   it affects hubscore negatively if you go on famming (spam fanning) sprees. Fanning 100 ppl in five mins will drop your score faster than...well something that drops really fast
   
   It's not wrong to fan someone and how many you choose to fan is up to you. Some fan many ppl in hopes those ppl will fan them, some fan a new fan of thiers automatically, some fan hardly no one and others fan only a few here and there.
   
   No one will be able to tell who u are a fan of(aside from the list of four that pops up when someone fans you) It's up to you and who you like to read.

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      shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you, this is really useful.  There isnt any hard and fast rules, is there?  It can be like stumbling in the dark x

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         relacheposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         If you wanted a hard and fast rule, it would be to be genuine about who you fan, and not act like it's some sort of contest.
         
         That's not really that hard.

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            GeneralHowitzerposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Geez you are so kind relache especially that you have 1000+ fans and yet it is still increasing I'm tipping my hat on you...

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            shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            hey..thats a bit harsh!  If one is new, sometimes you need to 'suck it and see' for right or wrong. To watch someone new's hubbing behaviour, tracking them, see how they progress and, maybe EVEN help them (for which I am not yet qualified to do) is positive NOT ungenuine!  So much for etiquette, eh?
            
            It has been 3 years for you since you were new, please find it in your heart to be polite.
            
            Wishing you well x

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               Marisa Wrightposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               I agree 100% with Relache.  Just because she states the facts clearly and doesn't feel the need to sugar-coat them, doesn't mean she's being harsh. 
               
               If you fan someone because you think they have potential -  that's being genuine, too, so Relache's statement doesn't exclude it.

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               Ghost32posted 14 years agoin reply to this

               Shazwellyn, I could be wrong (been there before!), but as I read the post from Relache, I really don't think she was trying to say that you've been less than genuine in any way...just that if you genuinely like a writer's work and become his/her fan for that reason, you're on the right track.

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                  shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                  No. I am not offended, anymore.  Just felt a bit attacked but it was just something direct. Thanks babes x

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               relacheposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               I wasn't being rude.  I'm sorry you chose to interpret things that way.  I've chosen to interpret your reply as a request that I stop offering my experience and advice to you.  I wish you well.

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         Janettaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         lol it can be sometimes

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   sabrebIadeposted 14 years ago

   shazwellyn:
   I cant speak for everyone, but after you have been here awhile you will see that some people "fan" like a competition.
   Personally I don't, that's why I have been here three years and only have a little over 200 fans.
   Frankly, I don't see how people with thousands of fans do it.
   I try to go to my Hubber Fan Clubs several times a week and visit their new Hubs.
   If I don't comment, I at least give them a thumbs up (if I think it's a good Hub that is).
   I'd be freaking out with thousands of fans...LOL
   
   Just take it naturally and let your writing bring you your fans.
   Or if you are scanning around the pages, fan people that interest you or you like their work etc.
   
   I try to treat my fans just like that...as fans.

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      shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you.  This is firmly in my psyche now.  It is better to have quality than quantity.  x

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   lyricsingrayposted 14 years ago

   Fans are the people that give me an indication on how well I am doing - they are my hub-0-meter if you will.  I wouldn't want to be fanning hubbers with no interest as that spills into commenting those same hubbers with no interest.
   
   Respect in a writers work and honest comments are what makes HubPages special for me.
   
   I say forget fanning and start planning - to read some Hubs and make some genuine professional decisions on who you want to associate with.
   
   My long winded point is; for me Fans are critical in my personal success in building what I hope to be a varied and desirable portfolio.
   
   Thanks all

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      Marisa Wrightposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I wish I felt that were true.  If it is, I must be one of the most fantastic Hubbers ever!  However, I'm perfectly well aware that a large chunk of my fan base is people who have no opinion about my writing at all - they just joined my fan club in hope I'd join theirs.  Which, in most cases, I haven't.  I'm with Darkside on that one.

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         rebekahELLEposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         I haven't been here that long, but long enough to see that some use this site somewhat like a myspace type account. it's about how many fans they can make. I deeply appreciate my genuine 'fans' but fans are not why I am here. what is it about human nature that makes people think we need validation from others?
         while it is nice, when it is genuine, the only validation we need is our own, knowing that we worked hard to make our writing the best for our readers.  the reward here may be a few new friends who like what we write.

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   darksideposted 14 years ago

   If you find yourself getting fan mail which seems a bit... odd, dig a little further and see if they haven't fanned 100+ other people and left the same message. If that's the case it would be obvious that they're not a genuine fan.
   
   The bottom line is though, you can't control who fans you. And with so many people doing it, and not just here but other places that have fan, follower or friends systems, it becomes a popularity contest.
   
   Last time I checked, I'm the fan of less than 20 people.

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      shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Out of anyone, it is you that I would most wish to be a fan of mine!  Those that you are a fan of must be very talented.  You never know, I might get to a standard one day that you just might me my fan - I shall just have to work hard and proove my worth, dear darkside x

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   RedElfposted 14 years ago

   When I first joined, I was extremely flattered when someone joined my fan club, and I thought I was supposed to join them back. Luckily, my mentor quickly set me right on that.
   
   Only become a fan of Hubbers whose work you enjoy. Really, why join if you don't like their work? You'll just end up reading a lot of emails about hubs in which you have no interest, LOL

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      shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      This is true.  I am very picky on myspace for the bands I like.  I am going to do the same here.  I have learned that now.

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   maggs224posted 14 years ago

   I have fanned about seventy people and I find it increasing difficult to read all their new hubs. I thought at first that it was the done thing to fan people back but fortunately most of those that fanned me in the beginning were people whose writing I liked. Now much of the fan activity I get doesn't even have any comment to it and when I check out their hubtivity  I see they have fanned many more in the space of a couple of minutes which means that they haven't even read any of my hubs just hit the fan button. 
   
   I now get so many emails letting me know when a new hub has been published that I spend more time reading than writing. Tonight I had seventy six notifications from Hubpages and I have just finished reading my last one and its now time for bed.
   
   I don't always comment but I do try to at least visit the new hub and read it but it all takes so much time.

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      Marisa Wrightposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      This is my problem too.  Although I've been quite discriminating in who I "fan", I still have far too long a list of new Hubs to read, with the result that I've started ignoring the email more often than not - which kind of defeats the purpose.
      
      I've thought once or twice of doing a radical "defan" but it seems rude somehow...

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         rebekahELLEposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         it does seem rude, but I've 'defanned' a couple people whom I thought were very rude in the forums, I no longer had interest in their writings.  when I get that daily email of new hubs, I pick out a few that look interesting, and try to choose different people each day, and then go read their article.  but I also like to read hubs that just look interesting who aren't on my fan list. there are so many interesting, really great writers her.

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         Sally's Troveposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         I agree.  I would not do a defan for the same reason.
         
         I have disabled HP notification of fans who publish.  I can't keep up with the email.  Now, mostly, I "follow" those Hubbers whom I particularly admire, through their Hubtivity, and I look frequently at my fans as they are shown on my profile page.  In this way, I find not only old friends but also new ones.  This seems to work for me.

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            maggs224posted 14 years agoin reply to this

            I think I might try following your advice Sally and switch off the HP notification, that is I would if I knew how to do it. Lol

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      shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I read hubs that only interest me from those I am a fan of.

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    Denno66posted 14 years ago

    Somebody's been busy fanning this past day, I see.....

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       shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

       whos that hon?

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          Denno66posted 14 years agoin reply to this

          Kazeemjames01. Quite the fanner actually. I stopped counting at thirty.

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             shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

             wow!  How did you manage to find that out?

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                Denno66posted 14 years agoin reply to this

                I checked out the hubtivity when I came on today. I suspected he was a mass-fanner when he wrote on mine : I find your hubs to be well-written and informative. Um, I write fiction and Sci-Fi....

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                   shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

                   I thought hubitivity was to do with just the individual's actions and not others.  I shall have to look for finer detail.

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                      Denno66posted 14 years agoin reply to this

                      I imagine he figured the more fans the higher the score, or he could genuinely like reaching out to people. Either way, I'm not judging, I'm just observing.

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    kirstenblogposted 14 years ago

    My first ever fan was on a spree, I thought she was the welcome wagon! As a half hour old newbie I was touched! Such a friendly welcome
    
    I don't mind someone fanning me but it didn't take long to realize some of them don't actually seem all that interested in me, somehow I got that vibe with the repeat fan messages! Now I try to fan folks who are likely to write something where I might not want to miss out on! There are some great folks to learn from and I fan people cause they gave me what it was I was looking for.

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       Denno66posted 14 years agoin reply to this

       That is entirely reasonable.

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          shazwellynposted 14 years agoin reply to this

          How can sheep be reasonable? x lol

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             Denno66posted 14 years agoin reply to this

             Ah, there you have me.......

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    DesignerHandbagsposted 14 years ago

    Very Helpful and Informative posts, thanks so much for clearing this up!
    
    Jennifer

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    Randy Godwinposted 14 years ago

    The fanning sprees are one of the few things I dislike about some hubbers here.  I agree with the experienced writers here, fan those whose work you admire, not just to add to your fan list.  Otherwise it seems, well, sort of cheesy.

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    maggs224posted 14 years ago

    I found how to switch the HP notification off, now I might actually get around to writing hubs again Lol

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