Here's a roundup of misogyny in fandom stories that might be of interest to fans:

• Theater blog Parabasis had various posts discussing fandom politics and gender last month. The issue was raised by Salon critic Laura Miller in her interview when she noted that female interests such as those expressed in romance fandom tended to be the most reviled. She also contrasted some male fandom groups with female fandom groups such as Game of Thrones fans to Twilight readers. "The people who are Twilight fans...created a kind of female fandom that is profoundly different from the male forms of fandom, which are largely based on that mastery thing where you’re trying to assert control over this uncontrollable experience. The female fans just don’t have that issue. People who are really into Twilight will go onto forums and say, “Oh my God, I’m so into Twilight I haven’t done laundry in ages!” because they’re not battling to be the most, to outdo each other...Willingness to participate, be social, be friendly, interact, that’s what matters."
• The Parabasis posts were the subject of commentary on Metafilter, prompting editor Isaac Butler to single out the way female fandom keeps being "rediscovered" as a form of intentional blindness. However another comment on Metafilter focused on a different article in this issue. "I was not prepared for the article/interview to make an abrupt and alarming course-change into casual misogyny." Citing a conversational exchange between two fans, the commenter notes "There's the dismissal of the output of female fandom as "saccharine, emotional garbage"...there's the explanation that it's okay to disparage the work of "girls" because at least women aren't so silly, which then implies that young men of course never contribute to silliness or obsessed-with-sexiness fan culture...And what makes me SUPER EXTRA SAD about the whole thing is that Jaime Green is a woman, and Tanner Ringerud is her boyfriend! Which hooks this whole conversation into the much larger pattern of women denigrating the fannish spaces that other women have created for themselves, in order to win points with the more acceptable and mainstream male nerd culture."
• A fanfic guide on Crushable also took exception with criticism of female fanworks and their focus on sexual content. "I first joined fanfiction forums around the age of twelve, so I joke that everything I learned about sex I learned from fic. I’ll say it now—I was that weird kid who tried to understand this intimate act by reading other writers’ adult stories and reworking those details into my own, like someone who turns an object around in her hand until she’s investigated every angle. I learned a lot about the clinical and emotional details of sex through these fics."
• Game reviewer Katie Williams had a rather direct experience with denigration at a game expo. "I would often be asked by the PR rep whether I wanted someone to play my “hands-on” demo for me. During booth tours, I would more often than not be guided towards the Facebook games. Following demonstrations, I was often offered fact sheets just in case I didn’t “understand”. People would regularly take note of the publications listed on my badge and say, “But you don’t really play, right?” I was assumed to be eye candy, the pretty face of a publication whose content was provided by people with actual talent. Every time I protested, the offender would say — as if it were a proven fact — “Well, girls aren’t usually into this stuff, you know.”"

If you're a gamer, Twilight fan, a Game of Thrones fan or create fanworks, 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 about fandom under pressure that might be of interest to fans:

• In some of the latest takedown actions from the past month a fan offering free high-resolution downloads of his artwork for video game Fallout was contacted by a law firm representing the game owner Bethesda, issuing a cease and desist for his website. The artist replied in detail to the charges and has so far refused to turn his domain name over to the company, although he did remove links to the posters.
• Popular website TV Tropes removed fanfiction recommendations on their site after encountering problems with Google's Ad Sense which required them to remove "mature and adult content" from the site. Aside from the issue of advertiser control of content, however, others were upset about what it meant for their use of the site. As one poster commented "The problem, as I see it, is that the admins have destroyed countless hours of our work. I don't demand that pages be restored onto this particular server, but I do demand that the source material (pages as they existed pre-cut) be made available in some fashion, so that those who want can host it elsewhere."
• In many places, online access to content isn't affected by advertisers or corporate owners, but by governments. For example, Vietnamese authorities have recently mandated that Internet companies assist in online censorship. Among the provisions of a proposed decree, "Internet users 'are strictly prohibited' from providing fictitious personal data" which will prohibit all forms of anonymous blogging and discussion. Personal blogs will have to publicize the name and contact information of the individual responsible and will be held personally liable for all the published content on their blogs.
• On the other hand at least one sports blogger is alarmed at the possibility that team owners might put important decisions in fans' hands. "As counter-intuitive as it sounds, as much as the Sixers should care about making the fans happy, they shouldn't care about what those fans want on a Wednesday afternoon in the middle of a devastating losing streak. When they ask what the fans think about their roster, it isn't hip, catchy, or new-media savvy. It's insulting." Instead the blogger suggests, "continue to ask us what we think of a new lighting scheme, insist on our thoughts about a moose for a mascot, and call our home phones to ask how to make better use of '1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Sixers.' Those are the some of the best elements of a new fan-owner partnership."

If you have news of legal actions against fans or content takedowns, why not write about it on 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 fan activity stories that might be of interest to fans:

• Erik Kain writing for Forbes discussed game mods being created for Game of Thrones and declared, "I think that this, and really the entire modding community, is living proof that games are much more a participatory medium than most other forms of entertainment. Sure, fans write fan-fiction all the time for popular franchises like Star Wars, but there’s something more impressive about a community of gamers banding together to create a gaming experience using tools that developers of popular games have made available." While not explaining what the key differences are, Kain concludes, "With the question of a new or alternative ending still very much on many of our minds in light of the Mass Effect 3 ending controversy, many critics of the critics have posited that a game is a work of art and can’t be changed due to fan pressure; that this sets a dangerous precedent and cheapens artistic integrity. Does a mod of a game like Mount & Blade or Skyrim or Half-Life 2 threaten its artistic integrity as well? The art is being changed – and not just due to fan pressure, but by fans themselves. The modding community is taking a work of art and changing it, distorting it, and making it in some ways a new work. Their own work."
• The Mass Effect 3 fans would not be the first to get a reworked ending. As author Elle Lothlorien tells it, her readers already got her to change her second novel's ending. "'The whole shift from paper publishing to e-publishing has allowed a whole new relationship between the readers and the author, so when fans began to contact me about the ending, it was odd at first. I realized that I can take this to the next level. I rewrote Sleeping Beauty and collaborated with CreateSpace to publish the alternate ending.' Lothlorien pointed out that a traditional publishing model would have made re-publishing the book with an alternate ending nearly impossible, especially given the time delays and marketability concerns of the industry as a whole. By utilizing print-on-demand, the author was able to conceptualize the alternate book and bring it to a physical print edition in a matter of weeks."
• Of course, regardless of how popular the canon ending is or isn't, fans don't necessarily stop creating. Despite the last Harry Potter film being released, Wizard Rock is continuing on. In an interview, members of wrock band Harry and the Potters discuss the origins of their fandom and the future of their work. "'We were casual fans. We had read the books once, but we weren’t involved in online message boards discussing Snape’s sex life or anything,' [guitarist and keyboardist Paul] DeGeorge said. 'We just thought it would be a cool way to re-contextualize these stories, turning them into rock songs.'" The band continues to have enough gigs lined up to keep them busy, and they aren't alone. A recent article on the upcoming off-Broadway opening of the UK production Potted Potter notes it has been going on, in one form or another, since 2005, and name drops another recontextualization of Potter, A Very Potter Musical, starring the (now well-known) Darren Criss, which continues to add to its over 8 million views.

If you are a Harry Potter, Game of Thrones fan, if you mod video games or are a creator of fanworks, why not write about it 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 fandom then-and-now stories that might be of interest to fans:

• The Houston Press hosted a story about the past, present, and future of music fan clubs, from The Beatles to Ke$ha. "People place pen-pal ads in the back of magazines. They join mailing lists. They discover the Internet and start fan pages. Someone opens up a chat room. Someone else builds a Web forum. The methods have evolved over time, but the reason remains the same: Fans want to connect with other fans." Focusing on the tangible offerings of official fan clubs, the writer observes that "Chamillionaire recently launched the Chamillitary Rewards/Loyalty Program though his Web site. More than just a fan club or social network, it allows fans to earn points (Chamillitary coins) for the things they'd be doing anyway: Visiting his site, watching videos, etc. They can turn around and use those points for everything from phone calls with Koopa to limited gear. It takes being a fan from a passive experience to a active experience. And so the one-way street of fan club delivering information to fans becomes a two-way street where the fan and the artist interact."
• Student newspaper The Elm focused on the changes to sports fandom. "Sports nerds are everywhere. How did we get here?" Citing fantasy sports as "a new avenue of fandom", the writer explains, "For those who don’t know what fantasy sports are, here is a definition from Elm Editor-in-Chief Natalie Butz: 'It's dungeons and dragons for jocks.'" Describing his own activities, the writer says, "I got to spend money on players, analyzing every bit of information, trying to outsmart my opponents in baseball knowledge. What could be better for a sports nerd? I was almost ashamed that I wasted so much time at my auction draft. I promised myself, 'Never again!' But, next year I’ll probably end up doing the same thing. So what if it's a little pathetic? I love sports. I loved sports stats. I love looking at baseball from different angles. The world of fandom is changing, every day getting more in depth, idiosyncratic, and well, nerdy. My advice, to all the other sports nerds out there: soon we will be the norm, just embrace it."
• Unfortunately, fandom shifts often prompt ugly backlashes, as Magic: The Gathering tournament competitor Jackie Lee can attest. "To outsiders, the Hasbro-owned fantasy game is a diversion. To these tournament participants, however, it’s a cut-throat mental battle for a $3,500 prize." Lee reached the semifinals, which was "livestreamed around the globe and commented on by a pair of sportscasters." It was also commented on by many anonymous misogynists. "[H]undreds of viewers began to berate Lee for what they considered her largest offense: playing cards while female." As she recounted, "From 'get back to the kitchen' to comments about how fat or bangable I am, to openly stating one's intention to masturbate, it was pretty much as bad as you could imagine. They grew more and more desperate for me to lose, and when I finally lost my semifinal match, they exploded in delight." The sole woman in the Top 100 ranked Magic players worldwide, Lee is highly visible, and she hopes for more company. "It's been shown that in very heavily male-dominated professions, such as certain fields of science, when the number of women begins to approach 50 percent, the chilly climate evaporates," she said. "I'm hoping that as more women enter the tournament scene, women who play will finally be regarded as the norm, and we can all stop fussing about it."

If you play fantasy sports, Magic: The Gathering, or are part of a music fan group, why not write about it 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.