February 2018 Posts

Mini Update!

I received responses from two prolific bughead fic writers - IndianSummer13 and LazyDaizy - and they've agreed to answer my questions.
I have not received responses from any of the Hockey RPF writers so I'm going to cast a wider net. I'm very interested in hearing from RPF writers as well as strictly fiction writers; I've contacted 71tenseventeen and HannahJane so far.
My project is starting to come to me: fanfic as a community, fanfic writers as community members. It's not much yet, but I think I have some direction.

Stay Tuned!

Mae C.

Tuesday, February 27th

What’s It Like…?

I was taking a look at the News Section over at Archive of Our Own, which is my personal favorite archive, and I found a pretty interesting Q & A from one of the volunteer coders. I appreciated the inside information, but I saw that there were more than a few references to the community element of the archive. Because I’ve always kept my habit hidden, I definitely think I’ve missed out on that side of things.

In all my time, I’ve only ever clicked the “Kudos” button and just once sent an email to an author. I wonder what I’m afraid of?

This inspired to reach out to some of my favorite authors to learn what it’s like to write and to really contribute to a community that you’re passionate about.

I have two main fandoms (now); the first is Hockey RPF where I primarily ship Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin and Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews, but I’ve also dabbled in other side pairings. My other is Riverdale and I am all about bughead (BettyCooper/Jughead Jones)! I was introduced to fanfic via Buffy the Vampire Slayer and was firmly in the Spuffy (Spike/Buffy) camp; however, I haven’t really participated in that fandom for years.

I’m contacting three Crosby/Malkin authors (Squidbittles, oflights, Deastar) and four bughead ones (IndianSummer13; singsongsung; sylwrites; LazyDaizy) and hoping that they will respond to me so that I can share what I learn.

Standby for more information (I hope)....

Mae C.

Saturday, February 23rd

Fanfic with a budget or “legitimate works?”

(This post is meant to piggyback on the brief one from Wednesday night.)

I’ve started to compile my list of what I’m calling “fanfic with a budget.” Essentially, I’m looking at remakes that aren’t. A director and screenwriter uses existing characters within a certain universe to tell a new story. And after all, isn’t that what a great deal of fanfiction writing is about? I’ve expounded on the Riverdale idea in more detail and I hope to add on to the other parts of my list.

Archie Comics vs. Riverdale

Original:

A comic book (cum cartoon) that focused on the wholesome, idyllic version of Riverdale. Seems to be placed somewhere between the 1950s and 1960s.

TV Series:

Sexy version focused around murder mystery and rival gangs, neither of which appeared in original comics. Most characters are retained with elements of their comic book physical appearances, though their personalities are “updated.”

The A-Team: TV Series -> Movie

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Movie -> TV Series

Teen Wolf: Movie -> TV Series

Mae C.

Friday, February 22nd

Who's really shipping here?!

Just some thoughts on fanfiction and its credibility....

Mae C.

Wednesday, February 21st

A Call to Action, a Call Out or Both?

As promised yesterday, here is the post I’ve been working on. I found a great article at The Geekiary by Undie Girl titled, “Why is it so hard to talk about fanfiction?”

Because it really, really is. Fanfic is a big part of my life, but ask me how many of my friends or family know this truth about me? Hell, I bought an Amazon Fire Kindle so I could comfortably (and clandestinely) indulge my guilty pleasure.

(For some reason, no one in my family has wondered why my Kindle Fire needs to be password protected, but that’s a separate story….)

Back to the article. It’s about three years old so the inspiration is a bit dated, but the points it makes are still valid. Which should tell you how far fanfic has come in the last three years. It was inspired by a planned event at WonderCon called “Fanfic Theater with Chris Gore” that was basically a planned public mockery of some of the more bizarre crackfic out there.

Undie Girl points out that this kind of teasing is not a one time deal, either. There have been multiple instances where individuals outside the fanfic community have responded to its existence with shame. Undie Girl makes the point it’s because these people don’t fully understand the community and its norms. And the reason they don’t is because shippers won’t ‘fess up to their hobby and teach people what fanfic is really about.

And Undie Girl reminds us that fanfic is about love.

Love for the thing that inspired it.

Love for the act of writing itself.

Love for the fanfiction community.

So why are we so embarrassed? If we don’t break our silence then the fanfic community will continue to be misunderstood and mocked. Undie Girl is calling shippers to action, but she’s also calling us out. Because, when we don’t speak up, then mockery happens.

As she puts it

...there is obviously a void that we’re not filling,

which leaves the door open for any ignorant asshole to jump in and take control of the conversation.

So we’ve got to face our fears and start publicly celebrating fanfic

because otherwise we’re never going to change the way we talk about fanfiction.

She’s right of course. But I have no idea how to pull my secret hobby out of the darkness and into the light.

Mae C.

Saturday, February 17th

Happy (Belated) International Fanworks Day!

Thursday, February 15th, 2018

I wanted to post this on Valentine's Day, but I was actually sick both the 14th and the 15th. I figured better late than never. I do have another post that I've been working on that will debut tomorrow so get excited!

Archive of Our Own (AO3) had some really cool plans for the day including fanwork challenges, feedback fests and games. AO3 is a global platform for every kind of fanfic available and so if you've never explored the site, please do so.

Here is the link to their Fanworks Plans. Enjoy!

Mae C.

Friday, February 16th

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