as for how i pick what to rec anyway, i sort of imagine that i'm picking out stories for someone who gets all their reading in the fandom from recs.

Oooo. Very interesting, the concept of having a specific audience in mind. I like it a lot, and I'm going to have to think about this more. I've always written this LJ for my own entertainment, and I have no idea who my imaginary audience is. (I know who my real audience is. More or less. But who you write to is different than who you write for.) This is clearly one way to answer this question - do what you've done, and figure out who my Platonic audience is, then figure out what that person would want.

Thank you. Gripping.