>> What does it mean to be "in the fandom" for something? <<
I think there's a range.
* Being a fan of something. You might not even interact with anything other than the canon, but you love the hell out of it.
* Playing with the material in private. You might write fanfic or dress up in a costume, but if you interact with other people they're your friends and family rather than "a fandom" of a canon.
----
* Hanging around with other people who like the same thing. You interact with the fandom of the thing. You enjoy talking about it together. You might consume fanworks by other people.
* Creating fanworks. You write stories, make fanmixes, draw fanwart, sew costumes, etc. -- and a big part of your enjoyment is sharing these things with your fellow fans to make them go squee.
* Fan host / denmother / big name fan / etc. You create and support spaces where your fandom gathers. You might build a website, make extensive lists of fanworks, draft manifestos to introduce new fans to your favorite canon, host events, etc. You either take time to encourage new fans or find other volunteers for that. If the author breaks an arm, you are right there with a fundraiser and a get-well card.
All of that is fan love of canon, but people are less inclined to think of the first two as being "in" the fandom, compared to the later ones. And a fandom that has people at all levels is more eclectic and welcoming than one which might seem too demanding to new folks.
>>My personal criteria that I've alighted on usually involves creating fanworks, because that's how I know that I'm definitely Fandoming, but at the same time, there are fandoms I would say I was in that I never published a single work for, but I was interacting with a lot of fanworks and thinking fannish thoughts and generally engaging with the fandom for a solid block of time. There are also fandoms I've published at least one work for that I wouldn't necessarily count as one of my fandoms.<<
There are only a handful of fandoms where I wrote substantial amounts, although I have oopsed a book more than once. There are lots of fandoms where I enjoy the canon, the fanfic, and talking about it but haven't felt inspired to write. It's not rare for me to write in a fandom I don't actually know, because people give me prompts -- even in the fishbowl, I can use fanwork as the session's freebie -- so then I just ask for a reference. And there are even a few fandoms where I love the fanfic but wasn't at all interested in the canon! If it's just me consuming, I'm more likely to say "a fan of" than "in the fandom."
>>But what about fandoms where there aren't a lot of works to interact with? <<
People could still talk about it or create new works. Some of the canons I like are pretty obscure. This is where it's super useful to have general-purpose fandom or event communities. You can boost a fest for anything on fandomcalendar. You can host a bingo for any theme in allbingo. So then you don't need a big fandom for your canon -- you can draw on the breadth of fandom and get a big audience, where a handful of people might be really excited about your activity. fandomcalendar will take pretty much anything fandom-related. I'm always interested in getting a new fandom featured in allbingo because many members have seen all our regular (like Valentines) bingos many times. I don't care if the fandom is some obscure thing, it'll give us fresh prompts.
>> I started reading and reblogging a bunch of Tumblr posts about the D&D movie <<
*laugh* I haven't even seen it yet, but they had me at "holy shit, that's a black dragon spitting acid instead of fire!"
>> But even without that, I just have this... feeling. The brain-happy feeling. I think about Them and I am 😊
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timeasmymeasure
Thoughts
Date: 2023-05-10 12:26 am (UTC)I think there's a range.
* Being a fan of something. You might not even interact with anything other than the canon, but you love the hell out of it.
* Playing with the material in private. You might write fanfic or dress up in a costume, but if you interact with other people they're your friends and family rather than "a fandom" of a canon.
----
* Hanging around with other people who like the same thing. You interact with the fandom of the thing. You enjoy talking about it together. You might consume fanworks by other people.
* Creating fanworks. You write stories, make fanmixes, draw fanwart, sew costumes, etc. -- and a big part of your enjoyment is sharing these things with your fellow fans to make them go squee.
* Fan host / denmother / big name fan / etc. You create and support spaces where your fandom gathers. You might build a website, make extensive lists of fanworks, draft manifestos to introduce new fans to your favorite canon, host events, etc. You either take time to encourage new fans or find other volunteers for that. If the author breaks an arm, you are right there with a fundraiser and a get-well card.
All of that is fan love of canon, but people are less inclined to think of the first two as being "in" the fandom, compared to the later ones. And a fandom that has people at all levels is more eclectic and welcoming than one which might seem too demanding to new folks.
>>My personal criteria that I've alighted on usually involves creating fanworks, because that's how I know that I'm definitely Fandoming, but at the same time, there are fandoms I would say I was in that I never published a single work for, but I was interacting with a lot of fanworks and thinking fannish thoughts and generally engaging with the fandom for a solid block of time. There are also fandoms I've published at least one work for that I wouldn't necessarily count as one of my fandoms.<<
There are only a handful of fandoms where I wrote substantial amounts, although I have oopsed a book more than once. There are lots of fandoms where I enjoy the canon, the fanfic, and talking about it but haven't felt inspired to write. It's not rare for me to write in a fandom I don't actually know, because people give me prompts -- even in the fishbowl, I can use fanwork as the session's freebie -- so then I just ask for a reference. And there are even a few fandoms where I love the fanfic but wasn't at all interested in the canon! If it's just me consuming, I'm more likely to say "a fan of" than "in the fandom."
>>But what about fandoms where there aren't a lot of works to interact with? <<
People could still talk about it or create new works. Some of the canons I like are pretty obscure. This is where it's super useful to have general-purpose fandom or event communities. You can boost a fest for anything on
>> I started reading and reblogging a bunch of Tumblr posts about the D&D movie <<
*laugh* I haven't even seen it yet, but they had me at "holy shit, that's a black dragon spitting acid instead of fire!"
>> But even without that, I just have this... feeling. The brain-happy feeling. I think about Them and I am 😊
Sense of wonder is what fandom is all about.