Fanfics evolution.

[nixofcyzerra]

So recently I've been looking through my bookmarks, and reading some old Ranma and Dragonball fanfic from the 90's, and I've been getting the impression that the majority of the older stuff is less... polished, for lack of a better word.

If we take into account Sturgeon's Law, and therefore focus on the top 10%, has the average quality of fanfic improved as time has gone on? If one were to pick out a selection of the best fan works of the 90's, 00's and 10's, how do you think they would stack up against one another? Are authors improving, or is it just that more people are writing?

 

[PCHeintz72]

I think it a matter of not just more people writing, but those writers gained a lot of experience as time went on.

Also, one has to consider, there is a big portion that is likely the reader themselves being more discriminatory.

 

[Snark-Queen]

I doubt that the overall average quality will have changed at all, but there will be more good fanfics because more people are writing. So there isn't any change in the PERCENTAGE of good fanfic, only in the number of them.