The Acid Desk

The Acid Desk was an online X-Files newsletter created by CiCi Lean. 
There were ten issues, plus one special issue, an essay called "Death of an Archive." The special issue, which had a focus on Gossamer, was posted to Geocities, and is now long gone."Since one of my last "Special Editions" was on Gossamer, I won't rehash old hat as far as Gossamer's problems are concerned, most of which seem to have boiled down to an severe overload of 5K fics and not enough time in the world to stick all of them somewhere.
I will, however, admit complete and total shock to the reaction to my essay, "The Death Of An Archive," mainly because I had prepared myself for the roasting of a lifetime, and received almost *nothing* but kudos and complete agreement, at a ratio of 200-3. (Two letters that *did* disagree mostly berated me personally for "meanness" and "mud-slinging" which, while always fun to read, wasn't exactly debating the problem at hand.)
I -did- receive an excellent rebuttal from Gem, the Gossamer Database Upkeeper, which was sensible, informative and constructive, the basic gist being that the problems between Gossamer and its users is one of communication. With her permission, I'm going to post that to the Acid Desk Web Page, and I'll let you guys know when it's up. (Hopefully one of us still has a copy after my blow-up.) It's well worth the read." -- from The Acid Desk #7 The "blow-up" Lean refers to is when many of her webpages were TOSed from Geocities.
==Some Descriptions from the Newsletter Itself==
Another description: 
===Location===
At least one issue of The Acid Desk was posted in full to alt.tv.x-files.creative; the other issues were included on that newsgroup as simply links. All issues were posted in full to CiCi Lean's website, The Circle of CiCi, as well as to XFCTalk.
==Controversies==
===Site's Existence and Content===
Not all comments were negative. Lean included positive remarks in some of the newsletter's issues: 
* "AND also, I enjoyed your Acid Desk newsletters, I hadn't seen those before (I don't hang out on the newsgroup much) and they were great fun." 
* "I also would like to applaud you on having the...well, okay, *balls* to write "The Acid Desk." You're a woman after my own heart." 
* "Loved the Acid Desk 04. Damn, I needed that. Really, really badly. I've been waiting, and I mean that. You do a great service--knocking ALL of us equally off our high horses (though some are a lot higher than others )."
===TOSed===
Sometime after the fourth issue in August 1998, the site was TOSed; it was believed that this was due to one or more fans reporting the site to Geocities for CiCi Lean's use of the phrase "Holy Shit!". It was more likely disgruntled fans with an ax to grind. See "The Unbearable Wrongness of TOSing" by bliss in that issue.
 
In the fifth issue of the newsletter, Lean wrote: 
In October 1998, Lean wrote: 
===Plagiarized===
In March 1999, someone posted a plagiarized and altered version of this newsletter to alt.tv.x-files.creative. See THE FLACID DESK - Full Edition.
===The Anonymous Gossip Section===
Each of the ten issues had a section on gossip. While some of it was fairly benign (baby announcements), most of it was very, very personal and snarky. Some fans reading it were probably mostly horrified they'd be mentioned in it; a few were likely disappointed when they weren't. Some items were in very poor taste. 
Some examples:
====From issue #2====
* Blind Item #1: "Which Vicious Circle of Fanfic Authors have been sitting on their naughty duffs writing cruel "parodies" of other authors' works, giggling in secret, only to find to their absolute horror that snippets of the pieces have been making the E-mail rounds, and that it's just a matter of time before their "victims" get a hold of them?"
* Blind Item #2: "Which self-admitted plagiarist is STILL posting not only to Gossamer, but to ATXC as well, not even having the odd decency to change the name & ISP they plagiarized under?"
* Blind Item #3: "Which old time author has been posting works under a pseudonym, while masquerading as a clueless newbie? And, if they come up for a "Best New Author" award (which is very likely), whatever will they say? (And NO, it's NOT me. Sheesh...)"
====From issue #3====
* Blind Item #1: "Which minor list owner has been acting in such an erratic fashion over the past few months, with furious rages one day, and endless cyber-crying jags the next, that frustrated list members have taken to referring to said owner as "TLQ", with the "L" standing for "Lithium"?"
* Blind Item #2: "Which longtime fanfic denizen has gotten into the habit of pontificating righteously and then uses alternate identities and addys to zealously support their own posts, not realizing that a quick peek at Deja News unmasks them PDQ?"
* Blind Item #3: "Which mundo famous and fabulous gen writer has recently unmasked herself as a slasher par excellence at a recent chat much to the SHOCK of the attendees, who are STILL gaping?"
====From issue #4====
* Blind Item #1: "Which seethingly jealous fanfic author, in a sad attempt to become a Big Bad Fanfic Queen, is trying to write in ANY popular genre, even slash, in hopes that it might be her ticket to everlasting fame? (And, no, it's NOT me. Bastards.)"
* Blind Item #2: "Which angst-writer is terrifying her beta readers, not only with her hair-trigger temper, her accusations of plagiarism, her strange, "true-life" tales of dog collars and whips, but also with constant demands for editing of an endless torturefic that has taken over two YEARS to write?"
* Blind Item #3: "Which creaky guardian angel of atxc publicly implores people to remain calm and polite on the newsgroup, while sending private emails -so- foul to people who have incurred her wrath, that she's been reported to her ISP nearly a dozen times?"
====From issue #5====
* Blind Item #1: "Which poor slash author is so notoriously bad, that their pen name has become a euphemism in certain circles for -any- particularly lousy fic?"
* Blind Item #2: "Which inseparable pair of merry fanfic pranksters are having -way- too much fun with pseudonyms, even up to the point of making bestest E-pals with their worst enemies, writing purposefully putrid MSR's and "flaming" each other's identities mercilessly, both of them laughing all the way to the nuthouse?"
* Blind Item #3: "Which lean and mean fanfic author has absolutely NO qualms about anonymously recc'ing her own work, which she does shamelessly in any forum that will listen?"
====From issue #6====
* Blind Item #1: "Which starry-eyed band of fic writers have taken a pilgrimage out to L.A. to learn at the feet of Actual 1013 Writers, for their annual script writing class, a few of them probably hoping somewhere within their ever-optimistic hearts that Vince G. himself might ACTUALLY be blinded by their hereto with untapped brilliance and take them under His Wings of Secret Shippyness? I wish these writers luck, but hope that they brought enough chocolate with them to see them through the inevitable disappointment."
* Blind Item #2: "Which list owner has done such a good job at making a whole batch of bitter, life-long enemies, that these folks have actually banded together to start their own secret society, its only goal being to devise ways of making their former tormentor miserable?"
* Blind Item #3: "Congratulations to two very well-known, respected fic denizens who have just recently gotten engaged! Good luck, and if you need names for the kids, I have a WHOLE list of pseudonyms that I haven't used yet. [grin]"
====From issue #7====
* Blind Item #1: "Which cranky denizen of atxc and atxf became infuriated when another member of the cyber-community failed to recognize her by name at this year's eXpo, even though she is, as she so succinctly put it, "-very- famous"? Move OVER Madonna, X-Egodonna is HERE!"
* Blind Item #2: "Which author has astonished myself and everyone else with the shocking information that they are NOT a twelve-year old with a grammar problem, but actually a big ol' twenty-five year old, with a showtune fetish AND their very own HATE page, erected in their dubious honor by an entire group of detractors? (Yes, I've been there, and it ain't pretty...brrr.)"
* Blind Item #3: "Which slash author is their very own best friend, not only casually reccing themselves in the slash chats (under a pseudonym of course,) but also making sure that the topic of conversation always seems to stray back to that very special, oh-so-talented, FABULOUS author -- themselves?"
====From issue #8====
* Blind Item #1: "Which optimistic fanficcer is still coyly insinuating to pals that it's just a matter of time before their script is on Carter's "to-do" list, even though the 1013 director the script was handed to made it *very* clear that they were not accepting ANY unsolicited scripts of ANY kind from ANY writer who didn't have an agent and a good resume in the biz, and handed it back?"
* Blind Item #2: "Which lively author recently confided in me that they've slept with three other fanfic writers during *one* recent sojourn?*"
* Blind Item #2a: "Which batch of Acid Desk readers will be incredibly disappointed to learn that when I said "sleep" for Blind Item #2, I meant SLEEP. (Ha! Gotcha, you dirty-minded little nudges. [g])"
* Blind Item #3: "Which fabulous fanfic author just became the mom of bouncing baby TWINS? You go, Mom! Twice the fun and double the lack of sleep! What say we all snooze an extra hour in her honor this weekend? I'm sure she'll appreciate it. :-)"
====From issue #9====
* Blind Item #1: "Which poor deluded sap was left twisting naked in the wind by her good *pals* who had convinced her that USENET flaming under a pseudonym was not only FUN, but that it was perfectly SAFE provided she use a certain encrypted gateway that they themselves eschew, only to be proven wrong, wrong, WRONG? All together now, boys and girls... WHOOPS!"
* Blind Item #2: "Which plucky megalomaniac has caused quite a snarling stir during their delightfully shameless bid for readers and top dog honors during a recent award giveaway, especially after it WORKED LIKE A CHARM! Good for her -- doing what we all only dare to dream. Thank God there's always next year, non?"
* Blind Item #3: "If someone throws a retirement, and no one notices, how long will it take for them to sneak back? The Acid Desk Bookie Office is now OPEN! Odds are, whoops, 1 to 1 for less than a week later! Hmmm, sorry, but all bets are now off ladies and gents. (Hey, I give you plenty of my damn time, so my money is totally off-limits, punky bears.)"
==Issue #1==
unknown month, 1998 THE ACID DESK - Vol. 1, No. 1
It contains:
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention 
* gossip and drama
* reports of discussion on other sites
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was Lean's approval for less "sappy" MSR: 
==Issue #2==
unknown month, 1998 THE ACID DESK - Vol. 1, No. 2
It contains:
* recs
* gossip brief Gossamer comments
* reports on discussion on other sites
* amazing typo alert: "'He started screaming loudly, as seamen shot out all over his chest.' Ahoy, mateys! THAR SHE BLOWS!"
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week" 
The Rant-O-Rama discusses fans who "hate" slash without having ever reading any:
==Issue #3==
July 1998 
It contains:
* recs for fic 
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* snarky, personal gossip
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was fanfic, its quality, and fantasy fulfillemnt by bliss (guest commentator). Excerpt below, see Fanfic? Art or Fantasy Fulfillment for full essay. 
==Issue #4==
August 1998 
It contains:
* recs for fic "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* "Handy-Dandy Guide To ATXC Flame War Tactics & Survival" 
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was Mary Sues. 
==Issue #5==
October 1998 
It contains:
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* writing fic in "Chris Carter's vision"
* humorous typo mention
* an interview: Interview with a Ballot Stuffer
"Rant-O-Rama's" topic was ballot stuffing for the Spooky Awards, an interview with a ballot stuffer named Elysavets. An excerpt: 
==Issue #6==
October 1998 
It contains: 
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* snarky, personal gossip
* reports of discussion on other sites
* the rise of the Debbilmice 
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was TOSing for revenge and personal gripes, "The Acid Desk" is one victim; the guest commentator was bliss: Excerpt: 
==Issue #7==
December 1998 
It contains:
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* updates on what fans on other lists are discussing
* personal and snarky gossip
* a slash rant: 
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was Ephemeral, the fickleness of feedback. 
==Issue #8==
December 1998 THE ACID DESK - Vol. 1, No. 8
It contains 
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week" 
* humorous typo mention
* some possible Debbilmice blowback on alt.tv.x-files.creative: 
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was commentary on Debbilmice, opinions about, one fan's outing, and ethics.
==Issue #9==
March 1999 THE ACID DESK - Vol. 1, No. 9
It contains:
* an essay about Gossamer: THE BIG ARCHIVE THAT COULDN'T (and How No One Was Very Surprised...)
* recs for fic 
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* very, very snarky and personal gossip
* comments about the founding of alt.tv.x-files.creative.mature, comments about the Naughty Nanny Plagiarist site: 
"Rant-O-Rama's topic was awards in general, Whammy Awards specifically, and conflict. Excerpt from a MUCH longer essay: 
==Issue #10==
unknown month, 1999 THE ACID DESK - Vol. 2, No. 1
It contains:
* recs for fic
* "Gratuitous Pendy Mention of the Week"
* humorous typo mention
* personal gossip
* info about what was being discussed on other websites and forums
* info about The Basement, Gossamer, Ephemeral
* a list of MSR lists on egroups
* the Rant-O-Rama is fairly tame, and isn't much of a rant; it's about crossovers
* free speech, personal attacks, separating the story from opinions about the writer, and the internet, short post by Solomon Grundy: 
==Notes & References==
===Notes===
===References===
 
Category:Non-fiction Writing
Category:X-Files
Category:1998
Category:1999