#this is definitely one of the bigger active fandoms i’ve been in

[lunarrosette]

Survey Results Finally!!!

Ok! So before the whole breakdown I wanna address a couple biases and shit. So I posted this on tumblr and on a couple dndads discord servers I'm in, notably the patreon server, both of these almost definitely caused some bias in stats particularly in patreon subscription and most used social media to engage with. That said it could have been posted elsewhere (which I’m totally fine with and actively encourage the bigger and more diverse the sample is the better) but I only posted there because I wanted to minimize potential non-fans taking it and I don’t have a twitter. I also added the question of whether you have relistened and your race, ethnicity, and nationality later (as it was suggested and i thought it was a good addition) so the sample is not the full amount of people who took this survey and is smaller than other question therefore less conclusive of the dndads fanbase as a whole.

I got a total of 142 responses (and the survey is still open) so let break down all that

There were 65 questions in total, while I’m not going to break down every single one I will break down most of them

Majority listen on spotify with patreon coming in a close second, the small individual answers are a mix of a combination of two or more platforms or platforms i forgot to add/didn’t know existed

A little over half of the fandom is apart of the patreon but still remember that there is a bias in this question because of where i sent the survey

Majority of the patreon is subscribed to the EX-L level (like me!!) with EX in a pretty close second (other is apart of EX because i forgot what is was call when I first made it)

Ron comes in a very close 1st between him and henry for favorite season 1 dad

Grant takes 1st in another pretty close one between him and terry for season 1 son and surprisingly Nick Foster actually got votes! (/j)

Scam likely with quite the lead as a fan favorite NPC

Now favorite episode was one I had to track separately because I set it as a free response but her are the top 4 favorites:

In 4th with 13 votes Episode 42 Henry’s Father and the Chamber of Secrets In 3rd with 16 votes Episode 56 S.W.A.P. (SWitched Ass Papas) In 2nd with 17 votes Episode 44 Deck Picks In 1st with 23 votes Episode 61 Death of a Salesman

Normal with fan favorite season 2 PC with almost half of the fandom

Terry Jr (surprising to me I love him but ig it's the silent majority cause i never see much about him) is first place

Very unsurprisingly hermie the unworthy for 1st place, bitches love this gay theatre kid but it is a little surprising the amount of a lead he has

Another one I had to by hand but the top 4 favorite season 2 episodes are

In 4th place with 5 votes, a 4 way tie between: Episode 22 Army of Tree, Episode 4 Barf Bum Movie Men, Episode 12 Scary Movie 2, and Episode 9 Debate Me Cowards

In 3rd place with 6 votes, Episode 5 Dance Dance Revelations (surprising to me as it’s not the part of the dance with Lark and Sparrow and Normal’s crisis)

In 2nd place with 8 votes, Episode 11 That thing? You Dude

Unsurprisingly in 1st place, the episode that I’ve heard some people say is one of the best episodes of Dungeons and Daddies, with 50 votes, Episode 23 Alright

Ron takes overall favorite

Hermie surpasses (one of) his father for favorite NPC

Jodie wins as the guest PC, which kinda surprises me

Oakworthy wins as the most popular ship, most of the thin slices are variations of “I don’t ship” and some less talked about ships

The majority of fans don't have a preference between season 1 or 2

At the Mountains of Dadness is the most popular piece of bonus content

The majority of the fandom have relistened to the podcast

The subject of Jodie, almost everyone liked how Jimmy played him but the views on his character are a little different. Many poll takers said he grew on them and the majority of the fandom seems to feel neutral to positive to him. A lot of people said he was a good narrative foil to Glenn (I agree!!) and that he’s “funny as fuck” (i also agree) however some people also voiced dislike him do to messing up the timeline, being a cop, messing up Nick’s character, and just the plotline he was apart of. Lots of ACAB in the responses.

Lots of funny responses on this one:

Asexual bitches and queer bitches love dungeons and daddies (I'm an asexual bitch myself) there was a whole one (1) fully cis het allo survey taker.

The fanbase skews pretty heavily to the younger side with the majority of the fandom being 18-25 and a huge majority if you just look at it as 25 and under.

Non-binary bitches love dungeons and daddies (I’m a non-binary bitch as well)

Huge majority of fans are neurodivergent with most thin results being a variation of “I don’t know, somethings probably wrong up there”

Anxious bitches love dungeons and daddies (i am an anxious bitch)

Majority of people who responded are white, however this question was implemented later and only has 62 responses.

Most fans got into dungeons and daddies from word of mouth, typically from friends or mutuals online

Relationships with fathers are mixed. A decent amount say good, some say bad, but a lot can be put as complicated. A good amount of people used parallels from dungeons and daddies most often grant and darryl.

Your dads cool as fuck

Relationships with moms are also mixed, but a little more drastic(?). The positives are generally stronger but the negatives are also more negative.

Most sibling relationships are good! However there were a decent amount of responses stating the relationship was distant

Majority of fans are from america but there's a good variety from all over.

Majority of the fandom interacts through tumblr (this still is one with bias)

Majority of fans say their experience with the fandom has been very good

Majority of fans make some for of fan content

Oaks are very big on the fandoms kin lists, especially normal

Most common fandoms: NADPOD TAZ D20 TOH MCYT/Minecraft DHMIS OFMD PJO TMA

Most common past fandoms: Danganronpa Sanders Sides TMA MCYT/minecraft Homestuck TAZ Voltron FNAF Theatre Cartoons (ex. Gravity falls, infinity train, TOH, ect.) Undertale Harry potter PJO

Fave fan creators: ajaystillblue Kineticallyanywhere Braindos Nick-close Awnrii Critdeeznuts Nolassolace Cerealforkart Tortelliniboi Oddkid on Ao3 Midnigtartist SandrC Submergedmemory Koszmarnybudyn Harveydoesart Roolt Coolestclowns Blu3boi Nojaloarts Sapphicx Mrslikely Almondcroissantsandink

Popular headcanons: t4t henry and mercedes Trans nick Generally gender queer/gnc oaks Season 2 teens autistic Ron autistic Basically all the season 1 sons dated each other at one point (queer friend group moment) Taylor uses mobility aids (notably a cane) Bi ron

Specific headcanons I really like (if any of these are your feel free to reblog as to claim them) I think Samantha likes to dress very colorfully while Ron is on the plain side, except when she gifts him an accessory that is just as colorful as she is, and while it clashes w/ the rest of his wardrobe he treasures it because he loves her lots Walter owns chickens and he grows herbs around their pen as a natural pest repellent Glenn is a sex-favorable asexual The shortest one I can fit here is that Glenn has a lot of stick n poke tattoos that are all made by Morgan (which disappeared after the verdict) and lark has bpd Yeets skateboard is a prosthetic Terry is the only son to go to therapy AROACE SPARROW <333 Hermie rights in Cursive like an asswhole Jewish Terry Jr and Samantha

Cats are by far the favorite animal in the dndads fandom with 35 votes

And the top three favorite colors are Blue with 23 votes Purple with 30 votes Green with 39 votes

Most common recs The Magnus Archives TAZ NADPOD Just Roll With It Self care (hydrate, sleep, take care of yourself) Mob Psycho Bears in Trees Malevolent Dndads fanfics (on ao3) OFMD WWDITS Will wood Ride the cyclone The Crane Wives

Oddly specific recs

[twopoppies]

Hello Gina! I’ve been reading comments about H’s hiatus pretty much all day and I would like to bring my personal POV.

I’ve always been more oriented into alternative british scene. When 1D was at their peak during 2011-2014 so were many of my really loved bands - their greatest album has been released during this period of time, they played the best shows and I even had a chance to meet some of my back-in-the-day crushes. So it probably won’t be any secret what happend next - after the their top came their downfall. Some bands didn’t get the recognision they deserved and so they called it quit. Some bands haven’t topped their most famous album and so they called it quit. There was one particular band I loved the most and I can’t describe how disappointed I was when I saw them live after 5 years (back in 2017) and just came to opinion they are no longer what they used to be when I saw them last time in 2012. And guess what - they called it quit too, had few “just for fun” shows last year after another 5 years of unspoken hiatus and nobody expect them to be active (make another album and do some bigger tour) anymore.

So yes, I have witnessed so many heartbreak hiatuses and band breakups. So I’m trying to stay calm about how long it will take H to come back. Yes, I am also sad and got emotional and bit anxious how the future will look like especially when I read that this is basically his first real hiatus and nobody knows what will come next. Yes, he had my 99% interest over the last year and I can’t imagine not seeing him on stage almost every other day wearing cute outfits and doing funny interactions with fans. But I’m trying not to be dramatic because I’m sure H will come back “when the time is right” and it will be great. I don’t know how Shawn Mendes is popular in this fandom but imagine being his fan - he announced huge world tour 2 years ago after covid, played like 4 shows and took a few weeks break because of his mental health problems…and then he cancelled whole tour and nobody knows how long this hiatus will last, there’s no upcoming album and definitely no tour. He’s active from time to time on IG but that’s all. Or Lewis Capaldi who realised new album in May and now he’s on break too because of his health and nobody knows how long it will take. So I think people may stop be overdramatic about H, be happy and grateful what we got for last year and that he hopefully got his mental health sorted and found his balance so he can rest and then work again. I am personally taking it as a time for myself, my own personal growth because to be honest, being 99% focused on H was a bit tiring for me and now I can focus on everything else.

He’ll be alright. And so we will be.

Hi, sugar. Thanks for your perspective. I haven't really come to any conclusions, but I don't think H is in a rush to release music just to release music. He's got to be able to see that topping where he's at right now is next to impossible, and he's not going to want to release something he doesn't love with his whole heart. I find it curious that Sony hasn't posted anything about re-signing him (although I'm sure he would sign with them if he signs anywhere). Yet Rob Stringer was at the last show, so I don't think there's any bad blood. So, that makes me think that possibly they're holding off until they can make a big splash with the announcement. I don't think he's going away forever. But I do think he's going to take his time and come back "when the time is right".

I think we've been incredibly lucky as fans that he was able to put on such an incredible tour over these last 2 years, especially when you look at people like Shawn and Lewis who've been struggling with their mental health and had to pull back. I honestly can't imagine the pressure they're all under. Harry just makes it look easy, but we all know it takes an insane amount of hard work, a massive amount of support, and a huge dose of luck to survive the music industry.

I was speaking with someone this morning, too, about taking time for myself. Outside of my friends, Harry is the main reason I'm here these days, and if he's stepping back for a bit, it may be a good time to do the same. We'll see.

I hope he takes a much needed rest. I hope he does things that inspire and refresh him. I hope he finds balance and has time to do things he hasn't before. And, selfishly, I hope we see him again soon.

[paladibun]

personal gay/bi mike ramblings & other late night thoughts //

Been thinking about how I relate way more to gay Mike as a bi dude rather than to bi Mike. (This isn’t whos interpretation is right or anything) I’ve seen the post that was like both gay byler would portray different experiences under one label and show that no label outright owns a specific experience. A bi Mike’s arc would be more about choices in relation to others with less introspection and a gay Mike’s arc would explain internal turmoil and self depreciation in relation to a queer identity and the need to hide it, which would require more of it . And ofc gay people don’t own this flavor of experience but in Mike’s case would explain his actions if under that lense for me personally. Also noticed the later headcanon is more prevalent for those with a bigger Mike bias than Will which is interesting.

Also thinking about what a mess or I guess how much ambiguity there is in both Will & Mike’s characterization when it comes to their relation to their sexualities which ultimately causes people to develop strong opinions and get angry when people get their arcs or dynamics wrong. The thing is that the Duffers like ambiguity - it gives them freedom and they also don’t like to state things outright when it comes to identities and very important sociopolitical issues while trying to be “realistic” /half-neg ( ex: Karen & Nancy talking about feminism without mentioning women, the way Robin’s coming out was handled without mentioning any gay words while the show is comfortable using homophobic words )

Anyway almost got heated on a completely separate topic.

It is sometimes confusing as to what is meant to be presented as a “Will Arc” and a “Mike Arc” On the one hand Will struggles from overt homophobia from others and from Lonnie growing up, on the other hand he has Joyce, Jonathan, Mike, and the party who adore him and while I doubt Will understands that they would accept him no matter what, there’s definitely an earlier self acceptance in his identity as a hyper-visible gay man(you can see it with the Turing Project & the bravery with the painting). I define internalized homophobia as “a set of complex contradicting behaviors based on society’s homophobia and heteronormative pressures” and some people define it as “being sad that people are being homophobic to someone” I think both Will and Mike have degrees of both and sometimes it’s hard to see how much of either both characters have. And for Mike, it solely depends on how you read his sexuality thus explaining his actions and feelings. Again, it is vague which I think is humanizing and realistic.

I won’t touch the dynamics topic until the tag evolves beyond late stage fandom spoon/fork binarization of gay relationships but just noting that aspect of byler isn’t void of complexity.

One last thought for the night:

Just looking at the fandom and noticing unfortunate patterns. Mainly the desire to be right above all else and largely at the expense of collective fun and creativity which is like the main point of fandom. I think it comes mostly from having to fight the GA and m*levens to prove we aren’t crazy (insert Joyce Byers gif here) a year ago and that mentality sticking for way too long. Like the desire to to defend your thoughts and feel your feelings strongly about a topic is amazing and is another big fandom driver but at some point people getting angry for fanon, headcanons, people having fun making things in a way that isn’t popular loud accounts approved is honestly concerning. I see it a lot from the side I agree with too and it’s like. We can do better right? Not everything needs to be activism tinged?

Anyway anyway thanks for reading this far I’m passing the whole fandom edibles as we collectively rewatch the source material and resetting our very “seeing red at posts we disagree with” adled brains. 💕

[ffviirarepairweek]

Hello! What is the definition of rarepair?

I feel this group is overtaken by the same old popular pairs we see everywhere all the time

Hi there, so there’s two parts to your question.

I’m going to address the second part first – that it’s just the same popular pairs being shown. Before your ask arrived in the inbox, I had reblogged the following pairings for this year's event (in no particular order):

Reno/Aerith

Sephiroth/Elfe

Reno/Veld

Ifalna/Lucrecia

Biggs/Wedge

Scarlet/Lucrecia

Reno/Tseng

Aerith/Kunsel

Reno/Rufus

Seph/Zack

Vincent/Veld

Cloud/Wedge

I’m also writing requests for Seph/Elfe, Seph/Lazard, Reeve/Vincent, and Biggs/Wedge which will be posted later in the week.

I wouldn’t call that list just all the same popular pairings. If you mean there’s a lot of repeats from previous years of this event, well, yeah. We have a number of repeat participants who, unsurprisingly, still like the same pairings they did last year.

In order for me to share a pairing, someone needs to make content for the event for them (and of course Tumblr has to cooperate in showing it to me, or they can mention to me that it exists – a quick reminder to please do let me know if I’ve been missing your posts, we’ve already found one person who the tag is ignoring > . <) so that I can share it. (Or, someone can request a pairing and I will write something for it to the best of my ability.)

The second part – what is a rare pair.

On the prompt post ( https://ffviirarepairweek.tumblr.com/post/740152122290618368/ffvii-rare-pair-week-2024 ) I have the opening as:

Urban Dictionary defines rarepair as “A ship or pairing that not many people ship or is very rare to find fanfiction and fanart of. Typically happens within small fandoms or with minor characters.”

Of course, people often ask for more specific clarifications because some events are very specific about this. I’ve answered this previously, and this year in this post: https://ffviirarepairweek.tumblr.com/post/740261946911260672/is-there-a-number-of-fics-on-ao3-that-you-are

I’ll copy that reply here as well however:

Obviously there are the big huge pairings that you can’t avoid, and no one is going to mistake them for being rare, and there are some pairings people feel are rare on AO3 but may have had a bigger home on other sites in the past. There’s always debate on what counts as rare. If a pairing has their own currently running active annual event week, then I’d encourage folx to seek those out for those pairings first, as someone is trying to create a space for that pairing already and I’m not trying to take that away (but not everyone knows those are happening either!). My general policy is I’m not going to police a rare pair. At the end of the day, I want folx to have fun and encourage people to create above all.

To further elaborate on that, my goal, as always, in running any event (week or otherwise) is to encourage people to have fun and create for the things they love. To help people find others that share their interests. Maybe introduce others to a pairing they may not have thought about yet, when it comes to rare pair week in particular. I would much rather people feel welcome to create, than sit here looking at every fan site calculating how many entries there is for each pairing and tell someone, sorry, your pairing has x number more things than another, so you’re not welcome in the playground. My table has enough room for us all to sit at for show and tell.

I'll try to be better with tagging the pairings so you can ignore the pairings you don't like for the rest of the week - I was working off mobile the last couple days to post things more frequently. That's on me. If there's something particular you need tagged, you can always send in an ask or message me directly.

[smilingformoney]

Today marks one year since I started publishing Soul of Ice.

I didn’t publish it on Ao3 until 24 Jan due to waiting for an account, but it was first posted here on Tumblr. That original post has an entire seven notes.

As of writing this (this post is queued - I’m writing this on 14 Dec. Hi future Tumblr!), on Ao3 I have 160 comments, 278 kudos, 46 bookmarks and 11k+ hits. Plus Merlin knows how many Tumblr comments, messages and asks I’ve had over the last year.

This is honestly overwhelming. I know there are a lot of Snape fics out there with better numbers - but OC stories are a lot less popular than reader or canon character fics, so I very much take this as a win. We all know we can’t kudos twice, so the fact that over two hundred and fifty people have gone “yeah this is alright” is beyond anything I comprehended a year ago.

So what did I comprehend a year ago? Honestly, barely anything. I certainly didn’t expect the story to turn into what it is today. I had this concept of Dad Snape rattling in my brain itching to get out, so I started out with the intention of a few one-shots, writing them down in whatever order they came to me in - similar to what the spin-off prequel, Morality Is An Illusion, is now.

Obviously, I failed at that. The story just kept growing and growing in my mind, and Sephy and Abbie just took over. Abbie has been rattling around in my head for 11 years now, and she’s taken various forms in various daydreams about various fandoms. But she began life as Snape’s daughter, and she will always be Snape’s daughter.

Sephy is fairly new. For a long time she had a different name and wasn’t relevant to the story. Even when I started writing, she wasn’t intended to be all that key to the story. And while Soul of Ice will always be a love story about Snape and Abbie, the development of Snape and Sephy grew into a much bigger part of the story, and I can no longer see the story as anything other than one of three players.

I have met some incredible people on here. I’ve been active in various fandoms in various formats (I’m old enough to remember when fandoms mostly congregated on message boards 👵🏻) for 16 years and I can say, without hesitation, that the Tumblr Snape fandom is the best fandom I have ever been in. Some of my mutuals read my fic, some don’t - and honestly, kudos to those that don’t but still let me on their dashes with my bullshit. (But also, you should read it 👀) This feels like a space I can talk about my hyperfixation without judgment or anyone telling me to shut up. We are all here with love for Professor Blorbo, whatever form that may be.

Y’all know I’m in love with @sevsnapes and want to steal her from her husband. Even in 16 years of fandom, most internet friends come and go, and I’ve rarely found someone who became an irl friend. But Becca has definitely become not just a snestie but a bestie 💚 and it’s all thanks to bonding over writing. Sometimes I think Soul of Ice lives in her head rent-free more than it does mine, which is saying something. The story would not be what it is today without her input and support.

I’ve said it on here before, but every story and every character is a little piece of the author’s soul. Abbie in particular is a massive chunk of my soul. So the fact that people adore her? When people say they came for the romance with Sephy and stayed for the love story with Abbie? When people (usually Becca) message me out of the blue saying “I was just thinking about Abbie”? Honestly fills me with so much love, and it makes me feel seen and accepted.

As I’ve said, Abbie has been a part of me for so long, and I’ve never shared her before. Sephy may be a newer creation, but she was the spark that got me to start really turning concepts into a story.

So what has happened over the last year has been more than just a bit of fun. I have exposed a previously hidden part of my soul to some complete strangers online and I’ve been met with overwhelming acceptance. For someone with trauma deeply rooted in rejection, this is a completely new and, honestly, very healing experience.

I’m not the same person I was a year ago. I’m not where I expected to be now a year ago. And that’s all thanks to Abbie, Sephy, Sev and, most importantly, you lot.

Every comment, kudos, like, view, ask, message - they all bring me so much warmth I could never describe. Thank you 💚

[meetmeatthecoda]

hey y'all. i'm just sitting down to type this out. it's something of a rant, i guess. i just have mixed feelings about writing for lizzington right now & i'm trying to organize them via blog post... here's the thing: i always want to write for lizzington & i've had tons of fic plans for a while... but then everything went down the crapper & i accidentally wrote myself into a pretty perfect ending with my last series. and while i absolutely could write more, i guess i just wonder if anyone is still around to read. bc while sharing is one of the best parts of fandom & fic, & i consider even one reader to be worth it, AND i know i should also be able to write for myself maybe even as practice for an original book someday LOL yea right, i can't help feeling sometimes that it's all a little redundant to continue. even tho the show will technically continue for season 10 (lmfao) i certainly will not be watching & the show is definitely over for me & has been since season 8 ended. i know a fandom community & activity can continue long after the source material has wrapped, so there's nothing inherently wrong with continuing to post, but i'm still so sad about how things ended, that our passionate little corner of fandom was so unceremoniously, cruelly ended & things have just fizzled out from there. it seems like almost all our amazing writers & lovely community members have moved on to bigger & better things (which i fully support!!) but i miss them all so much & i'm still so sad about it all. everything about the unexpected end was - & continues to be - so unfair. while i love the hobby of writing & i can't imagine writing for anything but lizzington & i do think i'll need the outlet in the coming months of my Real Life, it doesn't feel the same & i'm sad about it. so idk, i guess i'm just vomit-typing these feelings to see if anyone is still out there & feels the same way & will be around to read if i continue to post. and i probably will regardless, or at least i'll try to, (i don’t mean this to be some kind of dramatic fic-writing retirement post or something lol & i certainly don’t want to upset or alarm anyone) but i just miss my lizzington peeps... i wish i had the reach & coordination & confidence to organize some sort of reunion or fic fest or rewatch - if only out of spite lmfao - but i literally have no idea where to start with something like that. anyway, i love & miss you guys a lot. and just... let me know if you're still out there. cause i am. much love always ❤️

[spamtonology]

Anon from spamton's mischaracterisation ask here! Thank you for your time answering my ask, im very happy to see people opinions on my thoughts! I just wanted to say that in point 2 i mentioned, the "sad and obsessed with neo" part was kind of, not properly written from my part? And could probably lead to some misunderstanding which i apologise for, spamton wanting to get to neo is very important for his entire story, So it should be ver understandble that people Focus on that for bigger Scale!

also wanted to say that spamton is generally very diverse character, and toby fox did amazing job balancing comedy with tragedy, where something spamton says makes any Player laugh, but if you think more about it you realise meaning behind it, and go like "oh, OH" which makes spamton such great character (i want to talk about that one part later too) and taking it only to one part is taking the entire point of his character!

And last thing about the infantilising part, i do agree with most things said, spamton is infact homeless adult (if we want to involve spamton's fan assigned birthday in 1978 that would mean that in 201x spamton is like 30-40 year old) and heavily coded to be mentaly ill and disabled, and when i think (as an disabled person myself) properly including the disabilities in stories could make a big diffrence and making the whole "taking care of spamton" possibly better, but most of the time its always just, infantilising spamton (and i generally noticed that infantilisation of mentally ill or disabled characters is very common thing in media)

Thank you for getting into this discussion Again i really apprieciate it!!!

Hello again Anon! You’re very welcome, the ask was an absolute treat to answer and I’m glad you sent it!

I understand your wording may have been confusing on the NEO part, it’s perfectly fine, I know I have some awkward wording myself. But, making him “only sad” is a real issue that does happen in the fandom and does a disservice to the multifaceted character he is.

Spamton is very much a Fridge Horror type character, where the things he says at first seem innocuous or funny, but with replay or knowing later context, it suddenly becomes...sad. Scary. The “Letting your old pal Spamton kill you” line is a good example, he might be addressing Kris, but he’s really talking about himself. He’s likely implying he wanted to commit suicide in the past.

Feel free to talk more on that aspect, it’s one of the best things about his character in my opinion!

I like Spamton’s fan-assigned birthday of May 3, 1978 a lot and generally use it in my fanworks, though I also like to make Spamton a few years older at 50, mostly because I like round numbers and anything with 5 in it. He would have been very young as a Big Shot too, which might make his story even sadder to some.

I am also disabled, and include some experiences with my own disability into Spamton’s character, though of course his circumstances are wildly different. I do need help with a few things, and it seems logical that he would too; as a severely mentally ill adult he might need assistance with a few things including reminders and physical support if necessary. There is a definite difference between that and infantilizing him.

 I can’t name too many fanfiction besides my own and Steppin’ Out as portraying actual disabilities making his Activities of Daily Living impaired in a respectful manner, and wish there would be more content like this, because so many fans want to take care of him but forget that you can take care of a disabled adult and still treat them like an adult. I don’t know if it’s somehow easier to write him as childish, if it’s pure ignorance/ableism, or the author thinks it’s “cute”, but...At least make an effort, you know?

I’ve done a lot of research for my fanfiction, and google is only a few words and a click away. If, like me, you forget easily, you can collate these research points and links into a document (Google docs preferred, though you could use Word too). If you don’t know a word or phrase, look it up or ask a friend knowledgeable in that area.

But, yes, research, research is so important for storywriting. All those memes about shady-looking search results including things like “How much blood can a human lose and still be alive” are real and true, that’s the type of thing authors (both original and fanfiction) look up in order to research for their story! If you’re especially paranoid about your search history being seen by others (mostly advertisers) incognito mode/private browsing is your friend.

I went off a minor tangent here, but I hope it was helpful! Thank you again for your ask, and feel free to ask more!

[crinkle-eyed-boo]

I was tagged by @disgruntledkittenface and @laynefaire to share five fics of mine that I really like. Thank you!!! I was telling Maggie that I had been hesitant to do this meme since I really only have...five fics when you exclude time stamps folded into series, but then SHE was like “You always have things to say about them, so why SHOULDN’T you do it?” And you know what? She’s right. So here you go. My five fics.  

Own the Scars (144K)

Louis has never felt like he was good enough: for his stepdad, for his life-long best friend, for the life he's supposed to want. After an accident that nearly costs him his life, Louis' parents send him to rehab where he’s forced to face his demons. On the long and difficult road to recovery, Louis must confront the truths he’s been avoiding about his future, his relationships, and his sense of self-worth. Because before he can love anyone else, he’s got to learn how to love himself first.

Looking back, I can’t believe I had the guts to post THIS after being a lurker in the fandom for years, both because of the length and the subject matter. Rehab! Tomlinshaw! Slow burn Larry! It was GUTSY. I had only JUST started actively interacting with the fandom in the six months before I published. Absolutely no one knew me. I was incredibly lucky to meet people who had bigger followings when I went to Harry’s show at the Ryman and they boosted my fic posts and got the story out there. None of them are overly active in the fandom still, but they eternally have my gratitude. I posted this one in CHUNKS, if you can believe it. I did it to try and organically build an audience for the fic, and of course, for the drama. 

Finally, this fic wouldn’t exist if Maggie hadn’t said “Yes” when I asked her if she thought I could turn this screenplay I had written back in college into a Larry fic. Thank you for showing me how to write in the present tense, Marshmallow. I never want to write without you. 

There’s Such a Lot of World to See (125K) 

“Why do you keep looking at me like that?” Harry asks, thumbing at Louis’ hip. “Like what?” Louis asks breathlessly. “Like you’ve seen a ghost or summat,” Harry muses. “You did it all the time the other day and you did it just now.” Louis swallows hard, studying him intently. “You remind me of someone,” Louis says softly, tucking a curl behind Harry’s ear. “Someone I lost.”

Louis has seen a great many things throughout his travels in time and space, but only one he can’t explain: He keeps meeting the same boy, who says the same thing to him each time. The boy should be impossible.

Maybe he is.

A love story that defies the boundaries of space and time. Doctor Who AU.

To this day, I can’t believe I wrote this in six months, right after publishing OTS. For me, this one is the very definition of writing the fic YOU want to read. I adore this fic. I re-read it recently and CRIED even though I fucking wrote it. Doctor!Louis is probably my favorite Louis I’ve ever written. I am forever proud of all the action scenes and how alive they feel. Louis literally coming regeneration energy in the smut scene is something I consider part of my writing legacy. I know this one requires a big buy-in right away, but I’ve been so proud of how many non-Doctor Who fans have taken a chance on this one. Here I am, once again, begging you to give this one a shot if you haven’t. 

Let Our Hearts Collide (76K)

When Harry, a lonely transit worker, saves the life of the handsome commuter he's been secretly pining for, an innocent mistake results in Liam Payne's family believing that Harry is engaged to their son. In the Paynes, Harry finds the big family he's always longed for...and a love he never saw coming.

A While You Were Sleeping AU

I think my favorite thing about adaptation is that you get to dig deeper on themes that already exist in the movie/TV show but the script doesn’t allow time to fully explore them. While You Were Sleeping is not just a love story, it’s a story about finding your family and Let Our Hearts Collide became a story about pulling yourself up out of the darkest of times. I’ll always be grateful for the amount of emotional labor Maggie put into this one as we explored Harry’s sense of grief and loneliness. This one taught ME a lot, and this Harry is 100% my favorite Harry I’ve ever written. 

No Bunny But You (13K) 

“So you saw the bunnies then?” Harry clarifies, a smirk tugging at his lips. “Yeah, those were a bit of a surprise,” Liam huffs. “I mean, they definitely weren’t part of what we commissioned from him, but they’re kind of cute, right?” Harry sputters a laugh. “What?” Liam asks, the furrow in his brow deepening. “They are cute little bunnies!” “Cute little bunnies that are fucking,” Harry snickers. “What?” Liam gasps. “Liam,” Harry says, trying to school his face into a serious expression. “Those bunnies are fucking.”

A slow Monday night behind the bar turns into something else entirely thanks to a new mural and a new customer.

I was SO BLOCKED after finishing Let Our Hearts Collide until I saw this mural on the bar around the corner from my office at the time and the fic practically wrote itself. It’s fun, it’s sexy, and I still can’t believe Harry liked it so much he designed all of his tour merch around it. ;-) 

Mine Would Be You (114K) 

Louis returns to New York City five years after he left it – and the love of his life – behind. He didn't intend to see Harry again, but fate has a funny way of pulling them together, whether they like it or not. After making a begrudging truce, they both start to wonder: Would it be so bad if history repeated itself?

There’s not much to say about this one that I haven’t said before. Mine Would Be You was a true labor of love, and it taught me that if you have a story to tell, it will make its way out of you eventually. I came up with the concept in my mid 20s but think I wasn’t ready to write this one until I had lived a little bit more, had my heart broken a little (a lot) more, and come to terms with my own artistic journey, as someone who always dreamed of making it as an actor, and as someone who gave up that dream because that’s how life goes sometimes. It’s a story I couldn’t have written without making peace with my 25 year old self. It’s a story that I could not have written without the lessons I had learned from all the stories I had written before it. It’s a story that, in my heart of hearts, I believe ended up manifesting my current job. Sometimes, I still feel like I’m recovering from writing this one, 2 years later. I gave everything I have to this fic, and I’m just so fucking grateful that it comes through on the page. 

Who hasn’t done this already? @uhoh-but-yeah-alright @greenfeelings @absoloutenonsense​ @twopoppies​ @indiaalphawhiskey​ sorry if you have and I just haven’t seen it! 

[the-bafflement-of-scotland-yard]

Genuine question:

What makes a ship a rarepair?

I’ve been thinking about this and I’ve come up with a couple possible definitions of a rarepair:

A ship that has little to no content in canon.

A ship that has little to no fan content.

A ship that currently has little to no active fans.

A ship that has never had more than a few active fans.

A ship that has little to no passive fans, and therefore little spread within the fandom.

I’ll be taking my personal OTP Dinahboose as an example to see how it works with these different definitions because I’ve seen people struggle with whether or not to classify it as a rarepair in my asks. So here we go.

I’d say there is quite some content about them in canon. Not as much as canon or heavily implied ships like Prusty, GreaseDinah and Elektranoose ofc, but still. C.B. and Dinah are canonically friendly, and they have an entire scene and song together, just the two of them, with the song itself being ambiguous; it can easily be read as either platonic or romantic. So for this definition: not a rarepair.

There is fan content of this ship, but most of it comes from one person (me). Before I started shipping it a year ago content of them was practically non-existent. So for this definition it’s dubious: yes, there is content of them, but there’s very little spread to it.

I think it’s safe to say that I’m the most active fan of this ship. There are others who occasionally produce content for them, but like half of that is prompted by me through asks or commissions or shameless begging. So for this definition it would classify as a rarepair.

Now I can’t say much about this because I’ve only been part of the fandom for less than 1,5 year, but looking through archives I do get the feeling that they used to be shipped more. When I entered the fandom there was nobody producing content of them, but it seems like there have been before, maybe even enough to make it one of the ‘bigger’ ships. Conclusion for this definition: not a rarepair.

Looking at the amount of reactions I get to the content I create for this ship, it seems like it does have some passive fans throughout the fandom. Not a rarepair.

Rustball

There are plenty of pictures and videos in canon of them interacting. The interaction isn’t particularly friendly, but we all know people here love a good enemies-to-lovers, so we’ll take it. Not a rarepair.

There is fan content of this ship, but it’s just a few fics and hcs by a few persons; the spread isn’t wide. Dubious.

I think there are like two, maybe three active shippers of this ship currently? Now in a fandom as small as StEx it’s easy for a ship to have little followers; even a ship like Greased Lightning has only a handful of active fans. In this case I’d say two to three fans is not much, so: rarepair.

I have no evidence or reason to believe that this ship was ever bigger than it is now, which means the conclusion is the same as it is for definition 3: rarepair.

I don’t often see people interacting with Rustball content who aren’t said two or three active fans, so the content stays in its own corner and doesn’t spread throughout he fandom. Rarepair.

Belle/Momma

They’re from different productions and there’s literally 25 years between Belle’s last appearance and Momma’s first, so there is no canon content of them whatsoever. Rarepair.

Apart from maybe a few loose headcanons, I’ve seen no fan content of them. Rarepair.

I cannot think of anyone who actively ships them at the moment. Rarepair.

I have no evidence to suggest that there used to be a more active fanbase for them; any content I’ve found seems more like challenges or suggestions than in-depth shipping. Rarepair.

The only mentions of this ship I’ve found seem to be by passive fans, or even less than that, and these mentions are few and far between. Rarepair.

These two ships show that even two ships that are generally considered rarepairs can differ enormously in how they classify under these definitions of rarepairs.

Conclusion

What is or isn’t a rarepair is hard to pinpoint exactly, and may require a combination of these different definitions. We probably all agree on the ships at the far ends of the spectrum — I don’t think anyone would call the canon ships (Prusty and GreaseDinah) or ships like Rustboose or Electraboose rarepairs, while we likely all see ships like Rockies, Flat-Top/Pearl or Coco/Bobo/Espresso as such. The difficulty comes in the grey area in between these.

Based on combining the above definitions, I wouldn’t call Dinahboose a rarepair — it’s just not very popular at the moment —, but I would give Rustball that label because it’s less widespread and never has been, and Belle/Momma without a doubt.

This does raise a few interesting follow-up questions. Can a ship become a rarepair when all active shippers become dormant (as seems to be happening with Electraboose currently)? Can a ship lose its rarepair status if the few fans it has produce enough content for it? Are ships that aren’t even slightly implied in canon automatically rarepairs, no matter the amount of fans they have?

Anyway, shipping is one of the main parts of being in a fandom, and people should create and enjoy the content of their ships whether they’re popular, rarepairs, or somewhere in between 🖤

And some questions to wrap it up:

What is your definition of a rarepair? Do you think these ships should or shouldn’t be classified as such? What are your personal rarepairs?

Let me know your thoughts on this, I’m very curious!

[lo-fi-charming]

Ah, I think we have problems with similar root causes. I was thinking today about how I’ve started to feel TMA fandom has little left to offer to a lesbian... I just think once fandoms get this old and get focused in on one or two ships pretty much everyone in the periphery falls away and it’s just you and 2 other blogs caring about your favorite character. Perhaps whatever the new venture is will revitalize things

mmyeah, i do get what you mean. it's a little easier to get support and attention with smaller ships or rarepairs when the fandom is bigger, because that's just a larger pool of folks, so a higher chance that more people will enjoy the same thing. as fandoms die down, i do think there's usually a handful of characters or ships that get the most sustained attention, but that means a little less variety? or people into the more niche elements find smaller, quiet pockets to hang out in

i think the TMP stuff is definitely going to revitalize the TMA fandom a bit, especially because plenty of us haven't left! a lot of people have been content to linger and lurk in the aftermath of the show, even while enjoying other things that are more active.

honestly i am hoping one of the new protagonists for protocol is a woman, or maybe nonbinary? or both! something like that would definitely be a lot of fun

[raayllum]

(in reference to this post) i've been having some unpopular opinions as well, i'd love to hear more of your thoughts too, all of your metas are so rich and detailed! (but only if you want and feel comfortable to share them, obviously)

The main ones are basically

S4′s pacing worked for me lol

I don’t mind that we didn’t get details on what, exactly, made Rayla realize she had to come back - at least, not yet

TDP’s bathroom humour had never really worked for me so I didn’t hate the fart jokes and Soren’s stand up honestly dragged for me more my first time through. On that note: I loved the Guardians of the Gate, they gave me the best Trollhunters vibes

Less so now that it’s been a month, but still that I loved S4 as much as I do? Even more than S1, and anyone who knows me knows I freaking love S1 an ungodly amount

But as jokingly alluded to in the post: in basically every other fandom I’ve been in other than TDP, I have always had opinions that went against the grain or fandom consensus during the periods I was most active in those fandoms. Which was almost always (aka like 5/7 main fandoms) that I liked canon just the way it was, so I am a consistent easily pleased bitch if nothing else

I have a lot of small metas floating around about S4 and only a few bigger ones, but more in depth stuff is definitely planned & on the way! I am very excited to dive in <3

[angryonabus]

2022 Writing Review:

Total number of completed stories:  Six stories across five fandoms, only one of which I had written in prior to this year.

Total word count: Per AO3, I posted 18278 words, although solidly two thirds of that were written pre-pandemic.  Per my writing counter, I wrote just over 45k words overall, which feels…accurate.

Fandom Breakdown:  Our Flag Means Death x 2, Schitt’s Creek, Dragon Age: Absolution, Locked Tomb, & Heart of Gold

Overall Thoughts: Looking back through my writing tracker was an interesting exercise in, “oh, huh, yeah, I actually made a pretty solid start on that, didn’t I?”  There are multiple stories that already have at least 10k written; maybe my goal for 2023 should be to finish one of those? 

…update: well, my last (?) story for 2022 was one that I started in January of 2020; COVID made it tough to write about large groups of people hanging out together, so it’s been languishing for the better part of three years.  I sat down yesterday to work on it, only to discover that it was roughly 300 words away from being finished.   Sitting down and actually fucking writing: WILDLY effective!  Who knew?!

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d predicted?  Less than last year, but probably still more than I would have predicted?  2022 was a very weird year for me, writing-wise…I ended the year with a completely different set of active fandoms than I had in January, and I also basically stopped writing when I started a new job in August, so that was a four month hiatus I wasn’t planning on.  And yet I did actually write words!  Go me.

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted in January? …all of them, TBH.  Yuletide is always a weird outlier, but neither Our Flag Means Death nor Dragon Age: Absolution were even remotely on my radar in January.  

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?  I think the biggest risk I took was just giving myself permission to NOT WRITE for several months…this fall was exhausting for RL reasons, and I didn’t have the energy or the brain.  I was lowkey  afraid that if I let myself stop, I’d never start again, but clearly that didn’t happen; December actually wound up being the month with the highest wordcount.

Do you have any fanfic or profic goals for the New Year? In 2022 my goal was 200 words a day, which I absolutely did not meet.  For 2023, I think I’m going to excuse myself from numerical goals, but I really would like to finish at least one of the bigger stories that has been languishing in my Google Drive.

From my past year of writing, what was…

My best story of this year:  this is probably a tie between tippet-de-witchet and there’s one in every family, child (two in mine)—they both started with a very specific vision, and I think they both did what I intended for them to do.

My most popular story of this year:  definitely tippet-de-witchet!  Fandom likes dumb jokes and cunnilingus; news at 11.

Story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: I feel pretty appreciated, tbh!  Mostly I wrote weird niche shit and that’s fine by me.

Story with the single sexiest moment:  tippet-de-witchet, again.

Most “Holy crap, that’s wrong, even for you” story:  As last year, I don’t think anything I’ve written is particularly wrong OR particularly surprising. 

...maybe the spark before the dark, actually; that one did have a working title of 'bonefucking'.

Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters: little & broken (but still good) was an interesting exercise in figuring out character voices!

Hardest story to write: This one is a tie!  One the one hand, history lesson [THREAD] fought me hard.  First I had to figure out the story I wanted to tell, which wasn’t easy—the canon has aged, uh, not particularly well, and it took me a while to find my angle for the story.  And then I had to figure out how to use work skins in order to make everything look right!  NIGHTMARE FUEL.

…on the other hand, I started writing there’s one in every family, child (two in mine) in two thousand and twenty, so.  

Most Unintentionally Telling Story: that there’s one in every family, child (two in mine) is less “telling” and more “ripped from the headlines of my life”, but, enh, potato, potato.

In conclusion:  Writing: it’s fun, apparently?  And I do in fact still have things to say even if I give myself a few months off.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Repost: Ask on BTS Paving the Way

Anonymous: Hey bpp. You talked a little bit about the 'BTS paved the way' discourse on your pinned post but I'm curious to see - read? lol - more on your thoughts about it. If youve talked about it before, can you pls link? Since you might not want to discuss/rehash this at all lol. I got curious because this discourse seems neverending and i just watched a yt video essay abt it. Imo, both sides of the spectrum - army and kpop stans -seems to be missing each other's points. Like, i think a lot of kpop stans havent paid attention to what bts have contributed to kpop and theyve dismissed armys arguments entirely and i think a lot of armys havent been into kpop and kpop history to definitively say the stuff I've seen them saying. A lot of the arguments and statements are very inflammatory too and while I agree with what armys are saying, the language they use isnt going to make kpop stans listen - i mean, the ones who arent blinded by their hate for bts/army anyway lol like a lot of kpop stans think when army say bts paved the way/bts popularized kpop, they always think army mean popularized it in the west. When we have receipts of them doing spectacularly globally, especially in places like india where they seem to have exploded since dynamite. Theyve also broken a lot of records in japan, where kpop is already popular but still seem to have a lot of trouble penetrating mainstream bec theyre very insular. They also think that we mean 'first to xxx', which isnt really what we mean at all. And a lot of army seem to dismiss what older kpop groups have achieved too and just like to prop up bts while putting down other groups and dismissing what theyve achieved for the genre. I just think since a lot of armys are in kpop only for bts -same tbh - we tend to be ignorant of the genre as a whole, which isnt good bec we're always arguing x member is the best in the industry or even bts is carrying the industry on their backs, which dismisses a lot of great artists that are doing great work like solo artists like taemin. Like, I'm an army and I'm not a "stan" of any other kpop artists but the whole argument just makes me v v uncomfortable. I guess i still haven't adjusted to stan culture since i've never been a fan of any artists like i am of bts - to the point of joining the fandom and really immersing myself in it - so the intensity of it is still jarring to me. I know it happens with big western fandoms like taylor swifts too but i think i'm still old school when it comes to being a fan of a musician, you listen to the music, rave about it to friends and buy/stream the music and go about your day.

**

Hi Anon,

Anon, I sympathize completely and not to harp on you here, but my first instinct reading this was “who cares?” - this is generally how I feel about this topic whenever I see it, so not knocking you specifically here. And I’d just like to remind everyone there’s an active, senseless, and deadly war raging right now in Ukraine. Please donate and/or pray for Ukraine if you’re able to.

(And then there’s the leader of Stray Kids who is probably a bigger ARMY than me at this point)

This is not me dismissing the gripes of stans of 1st and 2nd generation groups (the usual suspects), this is me saying that what I’ve seen of this discourse is huge swarths of people engaging in an elaborate exercise in collectively missing the point. And yes I’m also referring to those splitting hairs over the semantics of what it means to pave a road. (Heaven help us). And you already allude to this in your ask, anon.

The phrase: 방법을 만들다 which is what a lot of Koreans have used to describe 'paving the way’, is colloquially used to mean 'chart a course’ or someone showing how something can be done.

If this were a normal conversation with normal people and not k-pop stans, it would be enough to point out that yes, BTS was not the first k-pop group to step foot outside Korea or in the US, but BTS is the one group that has gone farther than any k-pop group has before i.e. created the new path. It’s really that simple. BTS has become a household name globally without doing a single show at Coachella nor having any of the mediaplay seen for other groups that attempted to fully break into the US market. The fact that Korea’s military enlistment laws (which before BTS were enshrined as basically unchangeable) have been modified at least partly on their behalf (and for the benefit of any idol who meets the criteria) and that BTS is the first k-pop group to receive a Grammy nomination, has created a new tier, the highest one yet, of what is possible for k-pop artists.

BTS is the biggest group in the world. They rival Coldplay according to Coldplay. Before BTS, the reality is that this ambition was not even within the realm of possibility for much of k-pop. Even with BTS breaking the records and gaining the influence they have, k-pop is still considered to be niche in some circles, though there is undeniably more visibility and investment brought to the genre since BTS started snagging headlines. Some people still hope BTS will go the way of Psy and BoA who were a fad on the Western landscape for a minute then essentially faded into obscurity. But so far, that’s not what has happened, and everyone is paying attention to see what BTS is doing right, that perhaps other groups can emulate.

BTS won’t be the biggest group in the world forever, but the chances that the next biggest group is a k-pop group, is significantly higher now because of BTS.

La fin.

It’s true some ARMYs can be downright disgusting with how they throw around BTS’s accomplishments and sometimes ignore, dismiss, downplay, or just straight up shit on older groups who made the first moves into Western spheres, whenever this topic comes up.

But a part of me understands them. When BTS won the TSA award in 2017, it felt like hell to be on Twitter and I wasn’t even an ARMY at that point. I did a search through my old screenshots and found more than 15 k-pop fandoms spent weeks shitting non-stop on BTS and ARMYs about how useless it was to win at the BBMAs. It was a non-stop barrage of racism, xenophobia, misogyny, all the -isms you can think of related to POC musicians. Though of course BTS was not the first group to go to the US, all of a sudden, k-pop stans were convinced BTS had 'sold out’, abandoned their heritage and were pandering to 'white colonizers’ (sound familiar?). I started calling myself an ARMY the next year (2018) and as I’ve said already, I was reporting things almost constantly. It was hell.

*

You’re right this discourse seems never-ending because it is never-ending. Remember you’re dealing with k-pop stans who will argue with you that water isn’t wet if it means something positive for their group and some ARMYs are just as bad. Whenever I see people arguing about what paved the way I just mute that whole conversation. I sympathize with you feeling uncomfortable about this topic. I’d like to suggest doing what I currently do which is to not waste a single moment of a single day worrying about something that’s already obvious and settled. This particular discourse is the perfect example of a time sink imo, because really, who cares?

Originally posted: March 18th, 2022 1:35pm

[xplrvibes]

thank you for your genuine answer! i’ve been finding hard to communicate with the fandom because people are either hating the situation or eating it up so it’s always both opposite extremes. a lot of people say stas is hated but from what i’ve seen, especially on twitter and instagram, she’s actually more loved than kat? she gets drowned in compliments, people worship her, they kiss her ass and hype her up for the most mediocre or mundane things (and i don’t mean that as hate) ever, some even call her “bestie” and have constant interactions with her. you did bring up shea being in group chats (i only recently found out about that while getting in the tea loop but didn’t pay a lot of attention to that particular fact) and it now is making me wonder, giving the similarities and another fact i just found out (stas willingly sharing personal information abt the group, such as their location), if stas isn’t on group chats as well, but ones that are more lowkey and with people that kiss her ass? it could make sense, but i digress.

i’m just finding this weird overall, like it started out of nowhere and now both of them are making this bigger and bigger and bigger by only posting each other and so on? like doesn’t that feel… weird to you, in a way? their posts have always been more “group” focused, group pictures, etc and now all of a sudden we’re being slammed left and right with those two only?

Of course!

There are a lot of extreme reactions to this whole situation, and let's be honest- it's all down to Colby. Stas is involved with Colby in a way that is supposedly "open to interpretation." That's a hair trigger for a good chunk of the fandom, lol.

Stas does get some pretty polarizing things said about her a result- I've seen some brutal hate, thanks to her association with Colby, and I've seen some idolization that they could build churches around. Some of that love stems from the fans that just really, really, really want to see Colby in a wedding tux lol, but some of it does stem from how she treats the fans themselves. She engages with them quite a bit, encourages them...and I said it the other day, but that's a BIG thing with the social media stans. They are looking for someone to see them, and for someone who they can connect to. They're almost looking for a supportive older sibling type, and they're finding it in the most random of social media types- Stas included.

I know she is indirectly the reason that some of their whereabouts have been leaked, which is not cool and is something that snc should definitely deal with at some point. I don't know if she is active in any gc's, but I wouldn't be surprised. I'm hoping she isn't pulling a Shea and giving out private information that isn't hers to give out- and honestly, I don't think she is, because that information would've been leaked by now (if there is one thing I've learned about fandoms over the years, its that nobody can keep a secret lmao)....but who knows, at this point.

As far as her and Colby posting a lot of content of the two of them...eh. They do spend 90% of their days hanging out with Kat and Sam, who are an actual couple who have been together for like 300 years now. They're bound to be spending a lot more time paired off together as a result of that. 🤷‍♀️

I do think they know people enjoy Stas and Colby content, that it gets people talking, and so they aren't shy about posting content of the two of them together anymore, for that reason. That would be totally fine, except when they step over the line, throw gasoline on a fire on purpose, get everyone all in a tizzy, and then skidaddle. That's where they lose me in this whole thing.

Amber and Colby, imo, have perfected the whole "posting content that playfully encourages the shipping while simultaneously making sure everyone knows its all in good fun and not to be taken seriously or used to start fandom wars or get everyone all riled up" thing. That's the kind of pot stirring I can appreciate.

[sanstropfremir]

The ask mentioning variety shows and fans screaming about the “mistreatment” of idols has me wondering what you think of the larger trend of that. Obviously the group under discussion probably gets that the most since their fans can be……rabid…….at times, and have zero sense of nuance in the slightest. But they’re definitely not the only fandom like that. In recent weeks I’ve seen fans complaining about how Itzy is being “mistreated” for the venue sizes on their us tour (and txt got the same); bts plus p1harmony apparently were both “mistreated” for a 3 minute comedy bit on the daily show with Trevor Noah; bts has been “mistreated” by the western media for calling it a hiatus (which their official subtitles apparently did!). It’s getting kind of insane. Western artist fans do this sometimes too, but a decent number of very vocal kpop fans seem to infantilize their groups to a much stronger level and take issue with just about everything.

Obviously none of these are mistreatment in any classic definition, and if someone was legitimately being mistreated that’s a bigger deal (and probably a legal one too). But it feels like these claims:

1. Mask any real criticism or concerns that should be voiced, much like the boy who cried wolf fable. It’s hard to take any of it seriously at this point.

2. Make it really difficult to do anything creative because of the blowback. Like yes, there are reasonable lines in the sand (like please stop making minors do things that really should only be for adults….or maybe stop debuting minors…), but the pushback has gone so far past the reasonable line that it’s no longer in sight.

We’ve already seen western tv and movies cave to the demands of fans, usually at the expense of the creative vision of the original creators. What kind of effect do you think this pushback is having in kpop and will have in kpop moving forward? Should we be concerned?

i agree with you on the whole, it absolutely does mask real criticism, but to be honest i'm not actually sure it's going to creatively affect kpop that much. fan interactivity has been built into kpop from the very beginning and it's part of the reason why it functions the way that it does. kpop has, for better or worse, sort of a system that shields everyone except the idols from a public presenting front. obviously you can go looking for the names of the people involved in things like choreo and styling etc etc and you'll find them, but they don't get full billing and they aren't gonna be noticed by people who aren't looking. AND you can't look for staff via their faces, because everyone gets blurred in extra content. there's an understanding that these people are not there to be in front of the camera, their work is what is meant to be in front of the camera. fans can't really actively harass the true creative staff, all they can usually do is harass the company, and (for better and for worse) it's debatable if that actually even does anything. the reason we've been seeing shit go down with western media in the last couple of years is because western media is overwhelmingly not made for fan interaction. there's no company protecting them in the same way, so you can easily find and access staff and creatives directly. fan culture was the quiet part of western media consumption for DECADES, and up until recently (read: social media) fan circles stayed in fan circles and artists stayed in artist circles. but now that the internet enveloped everyone in this free for all and so much of the new media that's being produced is recycled old media, there's nothing stopping fans from actively engaging with the people who directly make the work. and when you're a creative that's a lot of overwhelming engagement that you aren't prepared for. and when you have a lot of people that like a thing that you made, there is a part of you that wants to please them. and when, in western media's case, the fan conglomerate gets so big and loud that it's affecting business decisions and as well as smaller creative ones, that's becomes a much more pressing problem for media creation.

tldr: kpop isn't engaged with the same as western film and tv is, so it's not likely to change that much.

[laurennnnnnnnnnnnn]

Fan Autoethnography

Over the years, I have had involvement in dozens of fandoms, for better or for worse. Once I got my first phone at 11 and saw the communities on social media that existed for different fans, I found it very easy to follow along and mesh with those who had the same interests as me. And, while I’ve never created my own fan works, I like looking at or consuming fan works from other people in my fandoms. 

I own so much merchandise for the people or groups I’m a fan of and I’ll hesitantly admit that I own more than 20 Funko Pops of characters from the Star Wars franchise. I have so many shirts to express the fandoms I belong to, including the coveted blue Eras Tour Taylor Swift crewneck, I own about six shirts for The 1975, I have boygenius merch, and I own a lot of stuff relating to the women’s soccer teams that I follow. So, to put it simply, I own a lot of merchandise and love wearing it as I see it as an easy way to connect with others in public. And (while I have grown out of some fandoms) I find that once I’m interested I’ll continue to be interested for a long time. I saw my first Star Wars movie in 2015 with my brother and have been a fan ever since. I started watching soccer in 2016 and I was still waking up at 3 A.M. last month to watch the U.S. play in the World Cup. Overall, I have always loved the experience of being a fan and I love to share my interests with others, even if they don’t care. 

When thinking more deeply about it, I definitely see the distinction Jensen makes between the “obsessive loner” and the “hysterical crowd” and I agree that it does set up a thin line in how much one enjoys their fandom. I think this distinction is relevant in any fandom and so I see it, of course, in the fandoms that I belong to. I’m more of a music fandom person and I think some of the people in those fandoms can fit somewhere across that line and it depends who they're sharing their love for the fandom with. Online communities can be a safe space, but people will admit when a fan is taking things too far. The most obvious example I can think of are the swifties. While I think there should be a bigger line than the one Jensen describes, there are fans who I would call hysterical and who are way too invasive. A few weeks ago, Taylor Swift was spotted at a friend's wedding and hundreds of fans showed up to this private event just to try and see her, and that is a group of people I would consider the “hysterical crowd”. While I’m definitely a huge Taylor Swift fan, I would consider myself more casual than some of the superfans out there. I listen to her music, buy her merch, and attended the Eras Tour (humble brag) but nothing beyond that. I would say that most fans fall on some line between the “obsessive loner” and the “hysterical crowd” and more distinctions should be made to include more casual fans, like myself. 

For me, anonymity is a huge deal in my online spaces and it makes it more fun for me. I’m really only active on Twitter, but the only personal information attached to my account is my first name; I don’t have any pictures up nor do I let anyone I know personally follow me. I have no problem telling friends and family the things/people that I’m a fan of, but I’m very private about the fan part of my life online. I would say this is common in online spaces, very few people I follow show their faces on their account and I think anonymity makes online fandoms more interesting and fun. It takes the pressure off and you can get to know people in your fandom in a way that is just based on a common interest. While I have no problem sharing my interests with people I know personally, I feel like online spaces are a place where I can freely talk about my interests, with people who share the same ones, and without judgment, so I much prefer anonymity.