clevermanka (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
clevermanka) wrote2012-01-20 08:52 am
clevermanka) wrote2012-01-20 08:52 am
Entry tags:
To fandom or not to fandom
A few weeks ago I had an email conversation with a friend about fanfic and fandom. It started with her response to Resonant's Transfigurations, evolved into a general discussion of fanfic, and ended with me explaining my motivations for considering more involvement in fandom. I edited a lot of stuff out of the conversation, and kept only the stuff relevant to this post. Things I added for clarity because of this are in italics.
Her: This has been in my To Do folder since you sent it to me in October. I was waiting for Teh Time, you know. This morning I was all, "Oh I have some hours! I can finally read this!" SEVEN HOURS LATER. OH GOOD LORD! I think I'll pretend JK stopped writing after book 4 and that this is canon.
Me: Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!! I felt the exact same way. I stayed up until 1:00am ON A WEEKNIGHT reading it. The research she put into this is pretty staggering. I can talk about this fic for hours. Just stop writing back when you get bored. I understand not being interested in fanfic or thinking it's creepy and obsessive (because, well, it KIND OF IS). Perhaps I'm more forgiving of stuff like this because I love it. I love the whole concept of fandom, even aside from the actual products. The devotion to the source and each other! The meta! It makes my pop culture heart sing.
Friend: I appreciate a person doing something well, and to the best of their ability, for nothing but the work itself. For the satisfaction of it, for the sharing. That's what draws me to fandom. The sharing.
Me: I'm trying to decide if I want to dabble a little more actively in fandom. I so don't need another hobby. But I'd like to be more involved with something that I like so much and (let's be honest) spend a LOT of my time doing. Just not sure how much effort I want to spend on it, since I know the vast majority of my interactions will be online and I don't have money or time to go to cons.
Friend: I like that you can participate or not in fandom at so many different levels. And honestly, cons? I don't want to MEET most people in fandom any more than I want to meet celebrities.
Me: I would. I'd like to meet a lot of these writers. And vidders. Oh my god, vidders. I want to talk with them in person and share how their brains work because JFC so amazing. Listening to the commentary track done by a particular vidder is what prompted me to think "maybe I DO want to meet some of these people." If you wanna check it out, here's the vid, and here's her commentary track. Uh-may-zing.
Friend: I can't get over this commentary vid. So. Much. Work. So much thought. I'm impressed, and wondering how many vidders DO this. Some of the thought she put into it would never even have occurred to me to wonder if it was purposeful.
Me: And NOW YOU KNOW why I'm all "maybe I DO want to get personally involved in fandom." Because holy shit THAT BRAIN ON HER. I want to talk to that and drink with that and fucking PARTY WITH THAT.
End of conversation
This helped cement for me the likelihood that I likely will start dabbling a bit in fandom, and also brings me to the realization that one of my main motivations of doing anything in life is the issue of Will It Give Me An Opportunity To Party More?
Her: This has been in my To Do folder since you sent it to me in October. I was waiting for Teh Time, you know. This morning I was all, "Oh I have some hours! I can finally read this!" SEVEN HOURS LATER. OH GOOD LORD! I think I'll pretend JK stopped writing after book 4 and that this is canon.
Me: Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!! I felt the exact same way. I stayed up until 1:00am ON A WEEKNIGHT reading it. The research she put into this is pretty staggering. I can talk about this fic for hours. Just stop writing back when you get bored. I understand not being interested in fanfic or thinking it's creepy and obsessive (because, well, it KIND OF IS). Perhaps I'm more forgiving of stuff like this because I love it. I love the whole concept of fandom, even aside from the actual products. The devotion to the source and each other! The meta! It makes my pop culture heart sing.
Friend: I appreciate a person doing something well, and to the best of their ability, for nothing but the work itself. For the satisfaction of it, for the sharing. That's what draws me to fandom. The sharing.
Me: I'm trying to decide if I want to dabble a little more actively in fandom. I so don't need another hobby. But I'd like to be more involved with something that I like so much and (let's be honest) spend a LOT of my time doing. Just not sure how much effort I want to spend on it, since I know the vast majority of my interactions will be online and I don't have money or time to go to cons.
Friend: I like that you can participate or not in fandom at so many different levels. And honestly, cons? I don't want to MEET most people in fandom any more than I want to meet celebrities.
Me: I would. I'd like to meet a lot of these writers. And vidders. Oh my god, vidders. I want to talk with them in person and share how their brains work because JFC so amazing. Listening to the commentary track done by a particular vidder is what prompted me to think "maybe I DO want to meet some of these people." If you wanna check it out, here's the vid, and here's her commentary track. Uh-may-zing.
Friend: I can't get over this commentary vid. So. Much. Work. So much thought. I'm impressed, and wondering how many vidders DO this. Some of the thought she put into it would never even have occurred to me to wonder if it was purposeful.
Me: And NOW YOU KNOW why I'm all "maybe I DO want to get personally involved in fandom." Because holy shit THAT BRAIN ON HER. I want to talk to that and drink with that and fucking PARTY WITH THAT.
End of conversation
This helped cement for me the likelihood that I likely will start dabbling a bit in fandom, and also brings me to the realization that one of my main motivations of doing anything in life is the issue of Will It Give Me An Opportunity To Party More?
no subject
Wow, fandom: Fascinating the amount of creativity and energy poured into such projects. Also very complimentary to the original creators, that she would love this show so much to invest such imagination into extending its borders. I have to wonder if the original show can match up to some of these aftermarket mashup revisions! I guess that's sort of what happened with you and Harry Potter, eh? That the originals end and the fanfic picks up where it _should_ have gone.
I hope you have fun with your new foray ;-)
no subject
Yes. Yes it can. And does.