Before copies of the original fanzine were rediscovered, the story's authorship was in doubt. Because the novelette was at least once re-typed and photocopied for distribution, without provenance, many readers found it hard to believe the story was not a collaborative effort, a satire on bad writing, or both. The webmaster of a now defunct site called "Wulf's 'Eye of Argon' Shrine" argued that the story "was actually well paced and plotted." He went on to say that, although he didn't believe it himself, "at least one sf professional today claims that the story was a cunning piece of satire passed off as real fan fiction."