In which the Cat has stuff to say...

[mangacat201]

So, looks like I'm going to follow my fellow flister's advice and getting some meta on this journal in an effort to make it a little less of a dryspell around here. So this is just me, writing up random observations and my opinion about fandom goings on past, present and future, mainly about the mudslinging that's been happening with increasing frequency towards talent that opens themselves up to the fans directly. You're all very welcome to pitch into the discussion of course, just make sure that you keep this place nice and cordial for all sorts of folks, kay?

Anyway, looking at fandom culture and fandom etiquette as it's been forming those past few years, there's a lot of new dynamics going on between - gasp one needs to call it that - the different generations of fans and fandom. I think it's save to say that SPN fandom's pretty much a nexus of NewFandom development and no matter where the show goes from where it's at right now (let's not forget that Jensen was joking in earnest about beating Smallville) I also think it's save to say they'll be cult. With the good, the bad, the ugly and the downright weird that goes along with it. I just hope that people begin to realize that while interaction with your show's stars and creators in such a unique way is a big chance, there's also a lot of pitfalls involved. Like, ya know, treating people with respect concerning their personal and professional lives as well as their artistic decisions. It can backfire, which blows for the Sherlock fans right now, since their creator who stepped out of the circus for a bit after being treated poorly via his social media outlet, but obviously not enough of them stepped up to do speak against that kind of abuse that would drive a creator to cut them off, so... I mean, bad attitude needs to have consequences as well or those fans are not gonna learn how to behave towards the people who're trying to tell stories for them.

What I've been noticing - and I don't want to completely generalize here, but from my perspective it hinges a lot on the groups of fans that go from more 'old school' fandom media to the newer outlets - that the more mainstream, the more accessible and the more interactive fandom becomes, it seems to also develop some rather nasty little habits along the way that need to be addressed by fellow fans and pointed out definite DON'T's in fandom etiquette. Like that dangerous sense of entitlement that some fans seem to have developed, assuming that because creators, writers, directors and actors are letting us take part in their process and respect our contributions to their stories that we're suddenly invited to take over the reigns and make their work into our personal gratification programm. Because we're.Fricking.NOT.

I wonder sometimes, if any of those fans who blame a storyline not going their way or a character arc not catering to their pairing of choice on the show-runners and creators and actors being incompetent and wrecking their show have thought about what it means for people who rely on their constant flow of creative energy to support their livelyhood to be working under such conditions. Because I myself have a muse that splits in a second if it looks like there's not going to be pitch perfect conditions and I greatly admire anyone who is willing to weather the keeping of a very delicate balance between personal artistic endeavours, fannish expectations and lets not forget a whole moloch of an industry that has a host of needs that absolutely don't care a lick about the story you'd like to tell.

I wonder sometimes, if any of those fans that try and restrict others into their narrowminded definition of what the source material and the fandom should be allowed to be and do ever think of how fiercely fandom has been fighting to be taken seriously, to be a place of creative energy that fills the holes left from whatever's on the screen or on the page or on the CD with a chance for everyone to make their first steps, to learn and play and develop. To be a place of sanctuary, of tolerance, of acceptance that not everything is or needs to be according to other people's expectations.

I'm still just glad that I haven't yet been tempted to delve deeply into those abysses created by fandom... sometimes I get sidetracked into some anon-discussion-thread or other, or a friend of mine posts about a fandom bitchfest going on someplace which is like watching a train wreck and gives me the perpetual urge to scream and holler at my computer. But hey, once I come out on the other side, I mostly just feel glad that I'm not like that and neither are the people I surround myself with.
The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference and I think the people in fandom who value those characteristics like tolerance and constructive criticism and save havens need to speak not to those people who try and bring us down with them, but with louder voices. We need to take the newbie under our wing and show them the ropes. We need to comment on somebodies work even if it's not the best ever written and encourage them to do better. We need to form a wall of decenct and respectful attitude between our stars and some delusional people whose own selfish sense of overblown importance threatens our fannish experience.
Cause I just know, I'd be feeding the trolls like crazy if I let myself.

So, after I've laid out these thoughts gobbled together from a comment discussion and some fandom events over the past few weeks, now it's your turn, opinions, experiences, criticism?

Comments

[house-of-lantis.livejournal.com]

I don't always know what's going on in fandom and I have a hard time getting involved because of the things that you wrote about; how some people have given us fans a bad name and because of that, I keep my love for everything show/fandom related pretty private when I'm online.

It's not because I'm indifferent to the bad behaviors by some people in fandom -- but wow, some of those people, they really scare the crap out of me. Some of those people seem to devote their entire life being so negative and vicious, I really don't want to be the focus of their insanity, you know? :(

[mangacat201.livejournal.com]

I completely understand, it's not easy to put yourself on the spot if you also make yourself a target.. which is what I meant when I said we shouldn't engage them directly but work to make fandom a better place in our own right, so that despite the fact that there's people who do shit like that, fandom is also known for having the most decent and loving communities out there. I guess we'll know how the tide turns in fifteen, twenty years or so, that's the downside of history when you're in it.

[matchboximpala.livejournal.com]

I must not be a member of the communities where these discussions occur, because I never see any of this for myself. Sometimes I hear secondhand from someone in my flist about a feud between fanfic writers or some SPN wife-bashing or some kerfuffle about the show, but I've never witnessed it. The behavior I have heard about though certainly does make me think we could all be more civil.

(Does my own Sera-bashing and rants about some really terrible writing during seasons 6 & 7 count?)

I have been horrified at some fan behavior at Cons, but don't think any guidance from me would be welcome. I get enough crap for telling the people sitting behind me to stop talking during the panels.

[mangacat201.livejournal.com]

Well, it really depends on whether you bashed her as a person or criticized flaws in the writing that were undeniably there and justified to be addressed by fandom. This is not a call to molly coddle the writers for bad product after all, but to go about it with a bit more conscious thought of how to convey that criticism. In the end, everyone has to judge themselves there, because obviously when a group of people thinks they have the authority to do that, we end up with stuff like Critics United.

Well, I'm not talking so much about lecturing fellow fans on attitudes or anything, but stepping up if the opportunity presents itself, helping someone out who's lost, the like... it's very difficult to do sometimes and not present yourself as a target in return, I understand that completely and I don't have the be all and end all of solutions. Just want to create a little awareness that sometimes small things and actions can go a long way.

Thanks for taking your time to put in your two cents!

[m-keas.livejournal.com]

Ich finde du hast das sehr gut in Worte gefaßt. Ich wundere mich auch teilweise, was in Fandoms so abgeht, zum Glück bekomme ich nur selten was mit (merke halt auch, daß ich nicht wirklich groß Zeit habe und die Leute, mit denen ich Kontakt halte, die sind eigentlich alle 'normal' und verhalten sich auch so).
Aber was um Himmels Willen ist bei Sherlock losgewesen? Ok, ich bekomm wirklich gar nichts mehr mit.. :-S

[mangacat201.livejournal.com]

Sherlock Debakel ist mir auch erst aus zweiter Hand zugetragen worden... anscheinend hat Steven Moffat seinen Twitteraccount gelöscht, weil ihn die Fans so schikaniert haben.

[m-keas.livejournal.com]

Das ist zwar echt miserabel, aber irgendwie muss man auch ein bissl damit rechnen auch unschöne Sachen zugetextet zu bekommen...
wobei ich jetzt was gelesen hab, wonach er wegen zuviel Arbeit seinen Twitter zugemacht hätte... *grübel* Gibt verschiedene Sachen... ach, ich freu mich einfach, wenn er weiter so Zeug produziert, wie bisher, weil ers regelmäßig schafft, daß ich total mitfiebernd vorm TV hocke.. :-)

[mangacat201.livejournal.com]

Na ja, man kann ja auch nicht öffentlich zu den Fans sagen 'Ihr stinkt mir, ich bin dann mal weg' so wie ich's verstanden hab war das schon ein bisschen mehr hard-core als einfach Kritik. Wenn ich mir dann jetzt wieder anschaue, was gegen Danneel grade abgeht, da will man nur den Kopf schütteln.

[m-keas.livejournal.com]

*Kopf mitschüttel* Da frag ich mich manchmal wirklich, ob die Leute nix besseres zu tun haben... hab ja auch nen Twitteraccount, aber ich komm einfach so gar nicht dazu. Wie schaffen's dann manche noch Leute regelrecht zu 'mobben' auf so Sachen, wie Twitter etc.? Mir wirklich ein absolutes Rätsel.

Danneel hat da auch Probleme? Ok, ich bekomm wirklich nix mehr mit... und bin glaub froh drum, daß ich da so keine Zeit für habe. Mir reichen schon die Convention-Newbie-Panikattacken, die ich regelmäßig Anfang Oktober mitbekomme... Wie gesagt: Wo nehmen die Leute die Zeit her? Und warum überhaupt?