Letter of comment
From Fan History Wiki
A letter of comment, aka LOC or LoC, was a letter written by a reader or contributor which commented upon the contents of a publication.
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[edit] Historical Definitions
The term "letter of comment" and the abbreviation "LoC" can be traced back to the fanzines published by Science Fiction fans back in the 1930s. There is a longer and older tradition of the term in professions where comments were made on published material (legal, medical, military, etc.), but the basic definition of the term remains constant - a written comment by a reader of a publication's contents.
[edit] History
The "letter of comment" (hereafter referred to as "LoC") was the rare beast in fandom - much sought after and highly prized if complimentary and full of praise, but shunned and disregarded if it contained any negative criticism.
LoCs were rarely addressed directly to fan writers or artists, as the address available to the reader was usually the address of the publisher. It was the burden of the publisher to forward copies of comments received to all or only to the affected contributors of their fanzine. Some publishers ignored the responsibility, others passed along only the kindest of comments, while yet others provided their contributors with all feedback received, sometimes including not only LoCs, but reviews of the fanzine if available.
LoCs that were not sent to the publisher of a fanzine sometimes were sent to a fandom letterzine, where fans of a particular genre or subject would send letters discussing topics relevant to their interests, including fanzines they had read or were anticipating reading.
For those pre-internet fan writers and artists who did not attend conventions and did not have local groups of friends with which they could communicate, the only reaction they received for their work often originated from the publisher and/or the LoCs.
LoCs tended to be rare because human beings are, by nature, less likely to expend effort and energy (as well as a stamp) if they see no direct benefit from the expenditure. Many of the readers who wrote LoCs were also fan writers, publishers and artists themselves and made the effort to provide LoCs to their fellow fan writers and artists with the thought that turnabout would be fair play and they might goad their comrades to comment on their works out of guilt. Sometimes it worked.
However, an LoC could be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Critical comment could be positive, negative, or a combination of the two. What was meant to be honest critique could be interpreted as blunt attack. Conversely, faint praise could easily be read as unqualified glorification. The interpretation of the LoC was in the eye of the recipient. In general, however, LoCs were more appreciated than not, as they would tell both the publisher and the fan writer or artist how their work was being received and interpreted in the fannish community.
[edit] Examples
Lorraine Bartlett (who published Rerun) and Susan M. Garrett (who published Time Winds) both published LoCs in a booklet format, which was then distributed to all readers who had submitted LoCs, as well as to the contributors of the fanzine mentioned in the comment.
