Here's a roundup of stories on the attention paid to fandom that might be of interest to fans:

• The creators of Jersey Shore are turning their attention to fans, sending out a casting call for a new unscripted show. "According to a press release, the new reality show “is going to profile eight people obsessed with the sci-fi culture in some shape or form.”" In the meantime, another series has already launched focused on toy collectors. "Toy Hunters" recently premiered on the Travel Channel. Its host noted ""I have a real love affair with pop culture, nostalgia and vintage toys," he says, rattling off a series of prized toys he's had that includes everything from GI Joe figurines to Star Wars replica X-Wings. The stigma behind the fanboy identity is waning, Hembrough maintains."
• While not a show about fans, the TV series Portlandia filmed episodes having to do "with fans of silent expressionist horror classic The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and of Ronald Moore’s supermodels-in-space reboot of Battlestar Galactica." Producer Carrie Brownstein claimed writing about BSG turned her into a fan. "“For film and television, it’s interesting how fans feel that their particular ways of manifesting their affections are the correct ones,” Brownstein said. “It’s not just about being a fan, it’s about how you perform your fandom. That’s always been interesting to me.”"
• Many publishers, producers, and news sites host fan fiction contests these days as a way of promoting the canon product, usually with tight restrictions on form and content. Explanation site Ehow suggests other ways to get one's fan fiction read. While they begin with the sensible suggestion of "Choose a Popular Niche" they conclude with a less than helpful legal advisory: "Include a disclaimer at the end of your work that states that you do not intend to use the fan fiction for commercial purposes." . They do raise the issue of fair use though they misunderstand how fair use works. "Fair use is a statutory exception that protects fan fiction as long as the fiction is not used for commercial purposes and doesn’t negatively affect the commercial success of the original work. The fiction must transform the creative work and add new things to it." (In fact, commercial uses can also be fair uses; consider a case like the novel The Wind Done Gone, which rewrites Gone With The Wind.)

If you write fan fiction, are part of Battlestar Galactica fandom, or have something to say about fandom and profit why not contribute your fandom experience to Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

Here's a roundup of stories on fan behavior that might be of interest to fans:

• The upcoming release of Hunger Games has brought a new case of fan outrage over film casting. In a post at Blogher, one writer examines fan commentary "when the characters they had imagined in their minds did not look the same as the actors who will portray them in the film." After examining specific examples the blogger concludes, "the most telling issue about these comments is how people have envisioned these characters, not because of how they were described in the book but because of how they see the world."
• The world of sports has also had controversies regarding racial attitudes embedded in team names and fan practices. In this post about University of Kansas sports fandom, a Missouri Tigers fan focuses on the "slaver" taunt used by fans and examines its historical accuracy, concluding "Perhaps someday the classier and more enlightened segment of the KU fan base will evolve into a majority that relegates the “slaver” taunt to the trash can where it belongs."
• As this post by a sports journalist points out, however, some fans are more defined by their opposition to things than support. Discussing attendance at a football game while wearing a hockey jersey the writer found himself in an uncomfortable atmosphere. "When did we get so callous as a fan base? When did it become unacceptable to wear Denver sports gear to a Denver sports game? At the game, the crowd itself was divided. Fans in Terrell Davis jerseys yelling at fans in Tebow jerseys, fights breaking out in the stands only to be broken up by police officers."
• A different controversy broke out in Supernatural fandom over fictional fans. Various bloggers offered opinions on the portrayal of slash fandom through the character of Becky Rosen, a recurring character in the series. One blogger attempted to start a conversation among fans asking why Becky was so hated, venturing "While it’s difficult to see yourself in a TV character especially when it’s not the most flattering light, Becky (while a mockery) is just another playful jab at the fandom in its entirety. Why do I love Becky? She is devoted to her fandom. No one can say that Supernatural fans aren’t rabid and defensive of the show, their “ships”, or their characters...Becky personifies that, why not embrace her?"

If you are part of Supernatural fandom, are a football fan, or have stories about race and fandom, racebending, or anti-fandom why not post about them in Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

Here's a roundup of stories on fan relations with entertainment industries that might be of interest to fans:

• The Social Media Examiner did a video interview with Carri Bugbee about fan fiction and social media as a brand issue for creators. She was unfamiliar with fan fiction when she began tweeting as the Mad Men character Peggy Olson, so she seemed unaware there was a particular term for what she and the other characters do, RPG. She agreed that some people believed that the RPG was a campaign by AMC, Mad Men's network, especially as Twitter was not well known at the time. She explained though that she was more a fan of Twitter than Mad Men so that her participation was more of a social experiment. However, AMC's response was to suspend the Twitter accounts of the RPG participants only a week after they began tweeting together. She described angry fan reaction, and how the accounts were restored in 24 hours with the request that participants should contact AMC's digital marketing department. Her takeaway for companies is that if they don't manage their characters across the web, that others would and the results might not be what the brands would want. The way she approached her participation was to avoid doing anything she wouldn't do if she were getting paid for the job. The interviewer suggested that fan activities were a boon for brands as they were free advertising, but Bugbee warned that fans could not necessarily be co-opted and might be doing things brands didn't like, so they should be bribed with attention and goodies from the brand owners. She concluded that given the usual marketing costs, these expenses would "be nothing."
• In a guest post at AllThingsD titled Music for Nothing and the Fans for Free a venture capitalist concluded that "When the dust finally settles between the artists, labels, and distribution companies, everyone will finally realize fans are more valuable than recorded music. As traditional monetization models for recorded music sales slowly fade away, new monetization methods centered on the fan will emerge."

If you're part of Mad Men or a music fandom, why not contribute to Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

Here's a roundup of stories on fandom and creator interactions that might be of interest to fans:

• A video column on Interactive TV Today featured an interview discussing fan fiction and fan communities with Scott Walker, co-founder of Brain Candy LLC. They discussed slash fiction (with some misunderstandings), crossovers (confused with AUs), how the TV series Supernatural incorporated fan ideas in the series, fan fiction as a training ground for writers, BNFs, Fair Use, commercializing fan fiction versus crowd-sourced storytelling, and establishing a "path to canonicity" for fan writing.
• By contrast, a piece in The Observer suggested that there is already too much commercialization involved when it comes to our favorite fannish texts. "As with junk food, so with books, films and TV, the current trend is to give people what they think they want, rather than to leave them wanting more." Citing various texts such as Inspector Morse and Star Wars, the author notes how disappointing a concrete explanation for things can be. "It's like with a magic trick: you're desperate to know how it's done but, when you find out, the mundane truth usually disappoints and undermines your enjoyment of the illusion."
• A reverse example of going "behind the curtain" is the new documentary Comic-Con Episode Four: A Fan's Hope, which was reviewed as part of the coverage on Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas. This documentary, directed by Morgan Spurlock and produced by Harry Knowles. Stan Lee and Joss Whedon, follows five fans in their particular quests at Comic Con San Diego, such as becoming an illustrator or creating costumes for the con's Masquerade. The documentary has not yet been released for sale.

If you're a fan fiction writer or a con-goer why not contribute your perspectives to Fanlore? Contributions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.