HDS Beltane 2011 Statistics

[swissmarg]

Fest community: hds_beltane 
Master List: Here
Fest type: Anonymous exchange
Premise: Beltane-themed, focus on Harry, Draco, and/or Severus in any combination
Ratings restrictions: None
Length restrictions: Minimum 2,000 words, no maximum
Creation period: 3 and a half months

There were 35 gifts created for this exchange by 31 participants. kath_ballantyne ,lomonaaeren, ships_harry and tinarebekka created 2 gifts each.

Art - 11
Fic - 24

Ratio of art to fic: 46%

By rating:

ART
G - ii
PG - iii
PG-13 - iii
R - ii
NC-17 - i

FIC
G - i
PG - i
PG-13 – iiiii ii
R - iii
NC-17 – iiiii iiiii ii

By word count:

2-3K - iii
3-4K - ii
4-5K - iii
5-6K - iii
6-7K - 0
7-8K - ii
8-9K - 0
9-10K - i
10-15K - iiii
15-20K - ii
20-25K - ii
25-30K - 0
30-40K - i
40K+ - i
 

Total: 262,465 words
Mean (average fic length): 10,936 words
Median (half the fics shorter, half the fics longer): 7,000 words
Mode (most frequest fic length): 2-3K, 4-5K, 5-6K

By pairing:
(Note that some gifts had more than one pairing.)

Harry/Draco - 20
Harry/Draco/Severus - 7
Harry/Severus - 5
Gen - 3
Draco/Severus - 1
Harry/Severus/Remus - 1

Some thoughts: For the fact that this exchange allowed two of the most popular pairings in fandom (Harry/Draco and Harry/Severus), I actually might have expected more participation. Just for comparison and to show how popular those two pairings are in fandom currently, the 2011 Snarry-A-Thon hosted on snape_potter had 98 submissions, and the hd_smoochfest which is currently underway already has 40 gifts posted after 2 weeks. However, this is a bit of a specialized fest with the Beltane theme. Still, the turnout was healthily respectable, on a par with springtime_gen's and hp_nextgen_fest's 2011 editions.

The amount of art was happily quite high, with some really stunning pieces.

Interestingly, all ratings were represented by both fic and art this time, although the clear tendency was for lower-rated art, with 62% of the fics rated R or higher, while only 27% of the art was rated as high.

The word counts were also not typical, being fairly evenly spread out through the entire range of lengths. This is also shown by the fact that there was no clear 'mode' (most frequent fic length). One-fourth of the authors wrote fics longer than 15,000 words, which would have qualified them for nearly any Big Bang.
 

Not surprisingly, Harry/Draco ended up being the most popular pairing. Harry/Severus, the second most popular pairing, was only a distant third, with the threesome of Harry/Draco/Severus edging into second place. I was interested to see that there were three gen pieces, and surprised that there was one submission that included Remus in the group. I wonder if other combinations would have been allowed as well (Harry/Draco/Hermione? Would het be allowed at all? What about Draco/Severus/Lucius?) Or was this just the mods letting one entry slide? If the rules for which characters are allowed were loosened up, more people might join in, especially those who are more comfortable writing and drawing het. But that might end up diluting the original intent of the fest.

Comments

[hds-beltane.livejournal.com]

I'm really chuffed at the relatively high ratio of art to fic. I always think a good fest should have a good mix of the two, and the artwork I get at the fest is often amazing.

I also really like that we get a good range of ratings. I like the idea that there's something for everyone.

One thing I found really interesting this year was the increase in the amount of gen fic. I think it was largely a result of someone asking in the signup post whether it was OK and me saying yes that led a number of people to list it as a possibility in their own signups. The thing with a multi-pairing exchange is that you often don't know until the submissions come in what pairings people are going to go with.

"For the fact that this exchange allowed two of the most popular pairings in fandom (Harry/Draco and Harry/Severus), I actually might have expected more participation."

The fest has always been relatively small. To be honest, I had hoped to have more participants this year than I did, but that's the way the cookie crumbles. I suspect the fact that it is a multi-pairing fest actually puts off some of your die-hard shippers. Likewise, I have a feeling that the fact that signups are at the same time as the Christmas fests start posting means that some of the people who are participating in those fests are feeling burnt out and reluctant to sign up for another fest just then.

"I was... surprised that there was one submission that included Remus in the group."

The Harry/Severus/Remus was a direct result of the recipient's specific request. I wasn't sure initially whether to allow it, but looking at previous years (this was only my second year as mod) showed precedent, so I figured what the hell. The rules state that submissions must focus on at least two of our three characters (Harry, Draco and Severus). Previously this has included a Harry/Draco/Lucius threesome, and secondary pairings of Harry/Lucius, Severus/Remus, and a handful of (H/D/S)/OMCs.

"Would het be allowed at all?"

It would, but it would need to be something like an M/M/F threesome. A story about Harry's complicated but fundamentally gen relationship with Severus that included a Harry/Ginny sex scene would be within the letter of the rules, but be rather against the spirit of the fest, if you see what I mean. Whereas Severus/Draco/Luna would fit within the criteria. The trick is matching a request for it with someone who is prepared to do it, which is something I would do my best to achieve, but it's ultimately in the hands of the person creating the art or fic.

[swissmarg]

Thank you for the interesting insights. I think you're right about the timing contributing to the participant numbers. Also, thank you for the explanation about additional characters. Congratulations on a successful fest!

Fest meta

[pingback-bot.livejournal.com]

User hds_beltane referenced to your post from Fest meta (http://hds-beltane.livejournal.com/104584.html) saying: [...] posted a really interesting statistical analysis [...]

[kitty_fic]

I love these statistical posts you make on fests!

And OMG I'd love to write/request Harry/Hermione/Draco- I didn't know that was allowed :D

[swissmarg]

Good to know, maybe it will work out next year! ;)

[missscarletjoy.livejournal.com]

This was a really neat breakdown of the fest! I didn't write for the fest this year but I've read all the submissions and next year I will definitely be a participant! And I so agree with kitty_fic .. Harry/Hermione/Draco is one hell of a threesome!

[lokifan]

OMG, nerdgasm :) How interesting!