STILL LOOKING FOR MODERATORS!

I can't keep this blog running by myself, so I’d love to have people to help me around!

What do you have to do as a moderator?

You have to search for new posts related to fandom and Fan Studies and read them to evaluate their content (we have a compilation of places to help to do this task);

You have to select posts and then tag them according to the topic the posts are about (we have a guide explaining how the tag system works);

Ideally you should know how to queue posts, but it’s not a requirement. If you’re willing to learn, that is more than enough.

You have the freedom to choose how your schedule as a moderator of @studiesof-fandom will work! We only need to have content posted a few days every week to keep this blog running and updated.

If you’re interested, please send an inbox to @studiesof-fandom!

I ask for my followers to reblog this post to spread the word!

pspsps tlt fans wanna take a survey for my class 👀

it's 11 questions (mostly multiple choice) inquiring broadly into how fans reacts to TLT's religion. it does touch on religious trauma, but only in-depth if you choose to provide in-depth responses, which you absolutely do not have to

you also do not have to be religious to answer! just to have read the series. responses and sharing would be greatly appreciated :)

Por que estudar fãs? O papel do campo de Estudos de Fãs na atualidade

Para iniciarmos as atividades do semestre 2024.1 no Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas de Fanfic, eu apresentarei uma palestra sobre a relevância de estudar fãs e fandom na modernidade e as diferentes ondas de Estudos de Fãs.

Como o NEPF está sempre trazendo projetos para introduzir os Estudos de Fãs à universidade, esse semestre não será diferente! Além da palestra, falaremos um pouco sobre os projetos ativos do núcleo e alguns planos para o semestre.

A palestra será online e ocorrerá no dia 05/04 às 19h (GMT -3). O link para a palestra está disponível aqui.

A palestra é aberta ao público! Quem desejar receber uma declaração de participação será disponibilizado um documento no dia do evento para preencher com seus dados para poder receber a declaração.

Eu e o NEPF contamos com sua presença para mais um evento do nosso núcleo!

I can't keep this blog running by myself, so I’d love to have people to help me around!

What do you have to do as a moderator?

You have to search for new posts related to fandom and Fan Studies and read them to evaluate their content (we have a compilation of places to help to do this task);

You have to select posts and then tag them according to the topic the posts are about (we have a guide explaining how the tag system works);

Ideally you should know how to queue posts, but it’s not a requirement. If you’re willing to learn, that is more than enough.

You have the freedom to choose how your schedule as a moderator of @studiesof-fandom will work! We only need to have content posted a few days every week to keep this blog running and updated.

If you’re interested, please send an inbox to @studiesof-fandom!

I ask for my followers to reblog this post to spread the word!

Research Study: Fandom & Generative AI still looking for participants!

I'm still recruiting research participants for my PhD dissertation study!!! If you've already participated, thanks so much! If you haven't participated yet, please consider responding to a quick survey, and sharing with your friends!

I'm interested in understanding fans' perspectives on and experiences with generative AI (text and image generation software). That means perceptions both positive and negative! However you feel about genAI, I'm interested in hearing from you. We're especially seeking diverse perspectives from underrepresented demographic groups of people.

If you're over 18, can speak/understand English, and are interested in participating you can learn more information and take the survey here. I've also made a FAQ post about the study that I've pinned to the top of the blog, and you can see more info on the shareable flyer below. You can also view posts on Twitter/X, Bluesky, and Reddit about the study and share info there! Spreading the word is greatly appreciated :)

The study is anonymous and voluntary, and you'll be asked about your fandom background, attitudes towards generative AI, and demographic information. The survey should take about 15-20 minutes, and you can skip over any questions you want. You can also elect to participate in a follow up interview, if you want to. The full details are on the consent form, which you'll be able to read before taking the survey! Feel free to reach out with any questions.

The future of this blog

Hi, guys!

How is everyone? I hope everyone is doing great! Today, I came here to give some updates about my life and what it does mean for this blog!

The first one is that I've officially finished college! I graduated with a double major in English and Portuguese! I got A+ on my undergrad thesis! I don't know if you guys remember it, but I wrote an authoethnography about the process of writing fanfiction, exploring it using my own fanfiction. I'm translating it at the moment, so people can check my work if they're interested!

I graduated, but I didn't leave my university! Aside the fact I plan to apply again for the Master's program at the end of the year, now I'm part of the fanfiction research center we have there! At the end of last year, I was invited by the coordinators of the research center to become a coordinator myself! I started working with them last month and it has been incredible!

Just so you know a bit about the research center: It's called Fanfic Studies and Research Center, in Portuguese is called Núcleo de Estudos e Pesquisas de Fanfic (NEPF). This research center is part of Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), one of the top universities of my country, so you know the work we do is pretty serious and legit. We have a page here @ Tumblr: @nepf-ufrj. We usually post everything in Portuguese and English, so check out the stuff we posted there! Anyways!!!

Some stuff I'll do this semester @ NEPF: a lecture about the reason we should study fans, based on Gray, Sandvoss and Harrington's introductory text of their book Fandom; an introductory class about Fan Studies for newbie researchers; a fanfic terms and expressions dictionary alongside another coordinator from the research center, Julia, and some collaborators.

As you can see, I'll get to dedicate my time for Fan Studies, so I'll try to keep this blog running too! I love the work I've being doing here, even if I'm terrible to update the blog, but this time I've my focus on being an acafan in a way I couldn't do before thanks to university!

I hope you guys will like this new era of this blog and I can actually do a better work now! I'll probably try to get moderators that are involved in fandom research, so they can help me out to run this! But that's all, my people!

I'll post more stuff soon!

I'm doing some research on fandom that includes a survey that I'd like to distribute to as diverse a group of fans as possible rather than focusing on my own little part of tumblr, discord, and Ao3. The more variation in fandoms, age, gender, orientation, nationality, neurology, ability/disability, etc., the better. Do you have any suggestions for places to put a link and description of a survey like that to help it reach people outside of my immediate circle? I'm a graduate student working with advisors who are new to researching fandom, so this is pretty unfamiliar territory for all of us.

Sorry for the late answer! I think the best way to do it is to write a tumblr post and ask for people to reblog! You can tag this blog and I'll reblog! I plan to update, from now on, once a week, so I'll be able to see those kind of stuff! Once I did a survey to a project I was going to submit for a Master program and the response was INSANE to me!

i'm doing my masters thesis on fandom vis-a-vis how it transforms into a transactional economic relationship (ex. buying official or fanmade merch, attending paid events, etc) from a non-transactional one and i just wanted to give a HUGE THANK YOU for The Library! you're making writing an RRL less of a headache!!

You're welcome! I'm happy my library is helping so many people! I need to update it, but I didn't have time yet! Good luck in your research!

hello!!! I am a literature and arts scholar writing my undergraduate thesis on Tumblr's Goncharov Phenomenon.

I have a question about how to cite sources like Tumblr blogposts in the discipline of fan studies. I am planning to cite fanarts fanworks and tumblr text posts for my research paper on Goncharov Phenomenon. But in fan studies, the ethical concern is often that public open access works like fanworks are not public property that are open to academic scrutiny. So, taking permission from the Tumblr blog owners is the most ethical path that I intend to take in my scholarship. I am thinking drafting a consent form could be a good idea for this case.

But I just want to know acafan experiences on this ethical concern since I am quite new to this field and as an undergrad student this is literally my first foray into a research project that's entirely my own.

My first preference is to take consent from the blog owners to cite their works or quote their textposts. In case, they don't approve to use their actual blog names, should I change my methodology and keep the blog sites anonymous? But I feel that can be counterintuitive as typing in Tumblr textposts on google or using image search for a fanart can make that posts easily traceable. Any insights that you can offer regarding this?

I have read Paul Booth's Media Fandom and Fan Studies primer on ethical concerns and research methodologies in fan studies. But this research project primarily undertakes literary analysis and critical discourse analysis so I am not doing any kind of ethnographic work in this project.

Legally, I don't think (as far as I know) it's illegal in anyway to use public information for research - it's a risk any internet user has if they post publicly on Tumblr or any place.

Doing fandom research, however, is tricky, almost a minefield, so you should tread with caution. Many fans feel uncomfortable around researchers due to many reasons - I mean, it hasn't been that long since fans were seen by some academics as people with some kind of pathology. I don't know what you research, but depending of the topic and how you analyze it, some fans can feel judged or misrepresented. Fanwork, at the end of the day, is something people do to relax and/or to pour out their feelings - it's very personal, so it's much easier to upset people.

My advice is to always ask for permission and respect it if they say no. Don't become the researcher that doesn't respect fans - don't shoot yourself in the foot. If regular fans see you as someone untrustworthy, they won't help you when you need people for your research and you'll need them. Don't give them legit reasons to be wary of academic researchers.

The only time I think it's fine to use something without permission it's when the blog is complete inactive and you have no way to contact the author - you can even acknowledge this on your paper. But if the person is active on fandom, talk to them. Also, print your conversation and if they allowed you or not to use it. It's always good to be safe about this kind of thing - have everything recorded.

The consent form is a good idea and you should also explain your research and why you want that fanwork, reassure them you're trying to do everything in the most ethical possible way. Most of people will allow you to use it, believe me.

If you need any help, please send me a message!

@dawnfelagund: thanks for answering me! and yes, it'd be after 2010 cause I already included CentrumLumina's census! I knew De Kosnik had done something related to statistic, but I thought it was related to archiving fics, but now I'm intrigued and I'll take a look at her work!

@thespacebetweenworlds: thanks for sending me those! I already knew most of them, the one I hadn't seen yet was the fansplaining one! And I TOTALLY forgot destinationtoast research! And I even participated *facepalm*! Thank you so much ♥

Help!

Hi, my people! I came here quickly to ask for recs! Is there any recent (aka from 2010 until now) paper that talks about how nowadays writers of fanfic are mostly queer women? i know the census done by @centrumlumina suggests that, but i need an actual paper that deals with it! Yes, this is for my thesis! I'm finishing it in the next couple of days and I need any help pls!

Help!

Hi, my people! I came here quickly to ask for recs! Is there any recent (aka from 2010 until now) paper that talks about how nowadays writers of fanfic are mostly queer women? i know the census done by @centrumlumina suggests that, but i need an actual paper that deals with it! Yes, this is for my thesis! I'm finishing it in the next couple of days and I need any help pls!

hey! this is a method question more than anything, but i wondered whether you would have any advice re tackling how a researcher should approach ‘selecting’ sources (specifically fanfiction) in an instance where there are too many texts for a researcher to realistically read. i appreciate it depends on what you are looking for, but if you have any theories or research that discusses how to manage volume and gauge significance - and even just advice on how best to track and log notes on whats been read - I’d really appreciate it!! thanks so much

This is a very difficult question, because I didn’t quite understand if you’re asking me about how to select fic (as in the story) for you to analyze and study or to find theoretical texts about fanfiction that fits your research. I’ll answer both because I have enough knowledge to do that.

If it’s about selecting fics - you need to choose the ones that fit your research. Personal advice: stick to the ones you really like because you’re going to deal with them for a long period of time. For example, let’s say I have to write a research paper about omegaverse (pls keep in mind I study literature) and I want to explore the diversity that omegaverse can be presented by ficwriters. I’ll pick 5 different fics that I really like - it can be different from fandoms and feature different couples because you’re working with the theme omegaverse and not a ship itself, for example. Then, I’ll show how in which one of them the omegaverse works - the differences, the similarities, etc. The biggest mistake you can make, in my opinion, is to choose the fic first and then choose what you want to research. Sometimes our connection with a story is very deep, but it doesn’t mean that the fic has enough material for you to analyze depending on your topic of research. Seriously, choosing a fic is all about what you read and enjoy and if you can pick the things you can get to do your research. As I have no idea what you’re researching, I can’t help much, sorry! 

Ok, I just realized you didn’t specify if you were researching specific fics or like a whole genre/theme of fics. If it’s the first, then what I say applies, but if it’s the second, disregard that. I don’t have any experience researching a large amount of data aka quantitative research. I can suggest two books for you to read about it that I believe it’s trustworthy: Quantitative Methodologies using Multi-Methods and Analyzing Media Messages.

It seems to me, from what you’re asking, is that you’re lost dealing with doing research itself. My advice is to read about academic research. Those are books from trustworthy publishing houses that might help you:

Doing Academic Research (Routledge)

A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (This one is really popular)

Evaluating Research in Academic Journals

Doing Academic Research (Cambridge)

I found this Research and Publications Planner: The Graduate Student's Guide to Publishing Academic Research - reading the reviews it seems to be a notebook that helps you organize your research and keep track of things. 

About the organization of your research: it’s very personal. The way I keep track of mine is like this. I have a folder for my research  in my Google Drive and I created a few separated folders within it. I’ll give you an example: how I deal with the references I use in my research and the theoretical foundation. First, I separated by topic, in my case is autoethnography (the methodology of my research), fanfiction (the academics texts I use to talk about fic that aligns with my perception) and creative writing (it’s a topic I might touch in my research but I’m not sure yet). Then, I pick the articles and books - for you to do this you’ll need to start with the forefathers and foremothers of the field. Any research on google will tell you who are the leading researchers in whatever field you’re working on. Usually when I’m reading the academic texts, I create a doc and copy and paste the bits I find relevant for me, taking notes of the page and chapter so I can put it in my references later. 

As it seems you’re studying fanfiction here are the authors you have to know for doing an incredible work for fanfiction: Henry Jenkins, Sara Gwenllian Jones, Kristina Busse, Karen Hellekson, Abigail Derecho, Francesca Coppa, Louisa Ellen Stein, Judith Fathallah, Anne Jamison and Ika Willis.

Recs about theoretical texts related to fic as a genre:

A Fan Studies Primer

In Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet you can find those two texts: Archontic Literature and Writing Bodies in Space

Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World 

Introduction of The Fanfiction Reader

Framing Fan Fiction 

The Fan Fiction Studies Reader

If you want to talk to me, send me an email to [email protected]. I hope I helped a bit!

hey, hope ur doing well. i'm writing a paper on participatory culture and doing a case study of the goncharov event that happened late last year, and i just wanted to say: first and foremost thank you. the google drive with the pdfs is a godsend, and it makes me so happy to see people caring about accessibility. and second, do u happen to have anything on the history of fandom on tumblr specifically? like, how/why tumblr became a space for fandom to operate on, and such. 1/2

sorry, continuing here. everything relevant i found online was behind a paywall, and im not from the US so its very hard for me to pay in dollars, as much as id like to. so, if you know of anything, an article, paper, a tumblr post, it would help me a lot! well, thanks again. this blog is extremely awesome, and i bookmarked the google drive to possibly read some stuff in the future just for the fun of it. thank you so much (for a third time. i am very grateful) bye, have a nice day! - @17alternative

I'm happy to help! As a teacher I think knowledge should be free and that's the goal here ♥ About your research: I remember that the Chapter 22 of A Companion to Media Fandom and Fan Studies talks about Tumblr and fandom, but I don't know if it'll help you.

I found a few stuff @ Tumblr's page on Fanlore (tip: to start a research about anything fandom related, ALWAYS start with Fanlore):

Slashcast 42: Tumblr and the New Direction of Fandom

Why Did Fans Flee LiveJournal, and Where Will They Go After Tumblr?

TWC Vol. 27 (2018): Tumblr and Fandom

Our blog Tumblr tag

I never tried it, but this place says the extension works for eliminating paywall, so it might help you.

I hope I helped you! And if anyone here knows other articles, please post the link in the post!

Don’t get me wrong there are tons of people who use fiction and escapism as a way to work through trauma, but I really don’t like how coping is the number one way pro ship people respond to fanpol criticism.

People often like dark fiction without any kind of scarring or tragic past to explain why it is they like it. Sometimes people are just interested in dark topics or are kinky for the sake of it. I’m not interested in dubcon or age gaps or the odd incest pairing because I have trauma I need to work through, I just like spicier fanwork sometimes. And coping being the #1 response we give our detractors can be both alienating to people like me and make it seem as though the only reason to be into certain things is because you’re struggling with something even though that’s not the narrative that surrounds other more ”acceptable” types of dark fiction.

People are allowed to like hyperviolent games, horror movies, etc “just because”. You’re allowed to like weird fictional kinky shit “just because”. There are elements narratively about things antis hate that are appealing to others outside of coping, and we should talk about them more. Because I’m tired of the assumption that I’m just coping poorly for reading certain things in my spare time.

the general state of media recommendation on tumblr makes a lot more sense once you conceptualize it as people going “which series has the best characters I can use as semi-blank slates to project fanon content onto.” like I suddenly understand why certain mediocre movies and shows will blow up for no apparent reason but really solid and like thematically aerodynamic stuff gets maybe five minutes in the limelight before fading into oblivion 

Hi, I saw your post about ao3 so I figured that you may know more about this than I do. I'm a bit conflicted about continuing to use and support it, cause I keep seeing people say that the creators of it are pedos? And that we shouldn't support them, but I haven't been able to find any evidence for this. So I just wanted to know if you have any ideas about this because I don't. Thank you.

Alright buckle in as I yeet myself into the inferno

The people calling the creators of AO3 pedos are basically toddlers stomping their feet because the siterunners aren’t engaging in censorship at their demand. AO3 hosts content that depicts pedophilic relationships, and the only time they step in is if a work hasn’t been tagged with warnings properly.

The toddlers are cranky about this because they don’t think they should be responsible for their own internet experience, and they think they ought to be allowed to dictate what people can and cannot read/write. So they make attacks against the PEOPLE who run AO3 because they know it’s much harder to disprove those sorts of accusations than it is to do any real work on their own internet experience.

Here’s the thing: these people who don’t like that AO3 doesn’t censor content? They could run their own archive! AO3’s parent organization, the Organization for Transformative Works (OTW), has made the code that AO3 is based on completely available to the public!! That’s the tagging system, the site skins, everything. But the angry anti toddlers don’t want to have to spend money and work to build their own sandbox, they want to be the tyrant in OTW’s, stomping around destroying people’s sand castles.

So essentially these are purity police who think that anyone who creates or consumes content that is problematic are instantly monsters. This is a failure of critical thinking. Real adults are able to tell the difference between fiction and reality, and can enjoy something fictional without enacting it in reality.

Now if you’re thinking “well idk why AO3 wouldn’t want to ban pedophilic works” let me put this little thought exercise down for you: Say AO3 does make said content a bannable offense. What’s to prevent antis from abusing the reporting system to go on personally motivated crusades against specific authors, or specific tropes? What’s to prevent homophobic fans (and I guarantee they exist) from using that reporting system to brigade against all slash fic?

The Archive and the OTW would either have to create a bot that would probably not work very well to evaluate these reports, or they would have to find scads of volunteers who would be willing and able to slog through every report sent to the system.

I’m not very good at coming to conclusions but essentially this boils down to “don’t like, don’t read” (aka MIND YOUR BUSINESS) and “the back button exists for a reason, as well as every warning the archive allows authors to use.” If you have another question and you don’t mind the way I answered this one, please feel free to ask!

Once again, here I am asking for help!

My dears, tell me one thing! Do you guys remember which researcher defends the idea that being in fandom and doing fandom stuff is a way to consume media and not a response to a particular work of fiction? The idea here it's dealing with long term fans that just change fandoms, we never stop being part of a fandom.