"Mom, I'm a fanfic writer."

[author_by_night]

[Poll #1290386]
Apologies if this took up anyone's flists, but I don't have time to edit.

If anyone who knows how wants to hack my LJ and fix the cuts for me, feel free. (Some of you know the password, right?) In fact, I'd love you.

Comments

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

I count my costuming as fanart.

My realtives are interesting enough that they are cool with me going to various conventions and writing fanfic. They haven't read any yet, but that's more because I haven't let them yet. My MIL has asked after the Buffy fic I've been working on, so I'll let her read it once I'm done editing.

Oh, and this is one of my quirks. I don't use the MPAA rating system for fanfic. First, it's copyright violation. Secondly, it's meant for movies, not the written word. You don't find ratings on books, so I don't put it on my fanfic.

What I will do, is put warnings for graphic sex, violent sex, graphic violence, and really rough language. I'd put it for various squicks as well, if I'd written any.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

I count my costuming as fanart.

Hey, very good point. It certainly is fanart.

They haven't read any yet, but that's more because I haven't let them yet.

Heh, same here. Well, I did have a cousin read one fic, but that was it.

[honeyelle.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree with that. I have been putting MPAA on my fics, but that's just so I don't have to go around saying, "ADULT! ADULT! Do not read unless you're an ADULT! Did I mention this is ADULT?"

Saves a bit of time.

I think warnings work better. :D

[partly-bouncy.livejournal.com]

I had other because I've been involved with running archives and fansites for years. I've also been open about fandom activities because they've been intrinsic to my professional life career wise and academic wise. Thus, it behooves a certain amount of openness.

[zoepaleologa.livejournal.com]

My reasons for not wanting people outside of fandom to know I was involved, are mostly because the involvement is in the past. I might come back if HP fandom takes and passes a sanity test.

I'm not holding my breath...

[ani-bester.livejournal.com]

Cool poll.

I'm actually pretty open except if I know it will offend or make a situation awkward (which pretty much means my father does not know about the slash. My mother does. And that's less of a fandom thing than a "I stopped discussing my views on homosexuality with my father YEARS ago" thing). My younger sister and borther actually know less but it's because my father did fandom (like big time, like help organize cons/pick up Harlan Ellison at airport with friends/ try to raise money to have big Wizard con in Dallas but there was wank/ draw fanart" into fandom) so dad gets it. Mom appreciates it is my hobby, but my sister and bother have little interest in the things I'm in fandom for, so it doesn't come up much with them anymore than my sister brings up hobbies I'm not overtly interested in.

But I tend to let people know. I draw the G and PG fanart at work and don't mind telling people it's Harry Potter/Avengers/A-Team .. I even had some up at work back when it was allowed. Also a Starbuck doll. . .

I think the "it's part of who I am" answer was the best reason. Fandom is my hobby as much as art is my hobby and I'm not bothered by it. Other ladies can discuss shoes/clothes/their dogs, I talk fandom with those who are interested, and there are those who are interested.
I don't jam it down anyone's throat though.

I hope.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

That's really neat that your dad too was a fandomer. Though I feel embarassed for asking - who's Harlan Ellison? I know I've heard the name.

[miss-sophia.livejournal.com]

My mom's a sort of BNF in the LOST (the TV show) fandom, so she fully understands fannish activity and the extent of both smut and crazeh that happen in fandom. She even plays in RPGs, and she's going to come to Azkatraz with me and cosplay as well! She's also on my flist, so she's seen the things I've written...which in a way is weird, but then again, I've seen some things she's written, so I suppose it evens out! Anyway, we're really close and have nothing to hide. But I am glad my slash and smut days are behind me, because it would still be a bit strange to be posting that stuff in my journal now!

I'm pretty open about my involvement in fandom. I figure it's better to own my nerdiness, especially since I love that I'm an HP fan. If people don't get it, it's their loss. I seriously think being an HP fan has enriched my life: It's introduced me to new friends, showed me that I can write, and given me exposure to other works of literature, film, music, etc., that are absolute gems. The way I see it, everyone has a "nerdy" side. This one girl I went to high school with who I see on Facebook all the time does roller derby and is very vocal about it. She was one of the cliche-type popular girls, and she does ROLLER DERBY. Which seems nerdy and weird and retro to me, but hey, good for her for owning her strange, random hobby. Our quirks are what make us interesting.

The only thing I've been more private about is that I've written slash and smut in the past. My mom knows (I think she's even read some of it), and I may have mentioned it before to my BFF, but outside of that, I'm not particularly vocal about it. I just don't think people would want to know about it, and because I'm completely over it now, I don't really want them to know either...which is why I haven't given my LJ out to people I know in RL. And that's kind of problematic now that I'm posting about more RL stuff, especially my daughter; I think my RL friends would want to read it. So I'm planning on revamping my LJ and hiding some of the old naughty stuff so no one can see it anymore so that I can allow the RL folk in without scaring them and shaming myself. I'm considering doing a fandom filter to keep fandom stuff away from the RL people who might not want to see it, but I probably won't, now that I think about it, because I'm not ashamed of my hobby, and I don't really want to post anything that I'm not proud of and wouldn't mind people seeing anyway. And if they can't deal with the fandom stuff or are going to make fun of me for it (aside from lighthearted ribbing), they're not really my friends, are they?

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

And if they can't deal with the fandom stuff or are going to make fun of me for it (aside from lighthearted ribbing), they're not really my friends, are they?

I agree. :)

This one girl I went to high school with who I see on Facebook all the time does roller derby and is very vocal about it. She was one of the cliche-type popular girls, and she does ROLLER DERBY. Which seems nerdy and weird and retro to me, but hey, good for her for owning her strange, random hobby. Our quirks are what make us interesting.


Exactly. Of course, a lot of the times at my school it was a bit like that. I remember when this girl in my English class in said she was a Trekkie... she was also the cliche popular girl. I never thought she'd even know what Star Trek was. I think it sounds like an awesome show (way too much for me to catch up on, or I'd watch it), but... I'm a nerd. She wasn't. You know? She seemed more like an American Idol person.

[miss-sophia.livejournal.com]

Yep, you definitely can't judge a book by its cover when it comes to fandom. I daresay I'd probably be considered one of the "popular" types now, and I'm like one of the biggest nerds ever when it comes to fannish stuff.

[scarlett71177.livejournal.com]

Thankfully, in this case, my rl 'friends' are non-existent, so I just need to worry about family.

[melfinatheblue.livejournal.com]

Well, um, I'm wearing a silver dark mark necklace right now. I'm not sure how much more open I could get. I'm also a gamer and it's just not part of my personality to hide things I'm excited about. I want to tell other people!

I answered other for contemporary close relatives, because, well, I have no siblings (unless you count a half-sister I've met twice) and of my two cousins, one I haven't talked to in 10 years, and the other is vaguely aware of it (she knows I go to DragonCon, and that I write stories). She was in college when I was born, though, so I'm not sure if she counts as a contemporary.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

She still technically is. I think. To be honest, it's really what you consider it to be that matters statistically.

Well, um, I'm wearing a silver dark mark necklace right now. I'm not sure how much more open I could get.

Hee.

[scionofgrace.livejournal.com]

My family and friends all know I'm a geek and a fan (it would be a bit hard to hide), but they're not fully aware of my fandom activities. Well, my roommates are, but I don't think my parents or brothers realize I write fanfic.

If I told my dad, I'm sure he'd understand: he's the one who got me into LotR and Star Trek after all, and was deeply jealous when I went to Trilogy Tuesday. They all know I've gone to a Stargate convention. I just don't think fandom's important enough to me to try explaining the fanfic, etc, to them.

[yubsie]

I don't bother hiding fandom. I figure it's pointless when I have the fact that I helped start an anime convention on my resume. :p

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Hee! :D Yeah, that would be a bit of a giveaway.

[trialia]

I'm so open about fandom, I'm actually changing my legal name to my fandom handle. *G*

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Really? Or was that sarcasm? If not, that's pretty cool.

[trialia]

I seriously am. My first name, anyway. Thanks!

[trialia]

Also, my sister is on LJ - gaia_kiari. She LARPs, and on occasion I've managed to get her to beta-read some of my tamer fic in fandoms we share. (She doesn't want to see my porn, and I don't want to hear about her fetish club trips!)

here via hogwarts_today

[secretsolitaire.livejournal.com]

I don't write fic, but I beta!

What are LARP and filking??

Re: here via hogwarts_today

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Live Action Role Play... when people will act out RP scenes.

Filks are when people take songs and apply them to something else. i.e. "O Lord, Won't You Buy Me a Mercedes Benz" becoming "O Lord, Won't You Buy Me A Firebolt." Sometimes filks are awesome; sometimes they're awful. (The example I just listed could be either...)

[jetamors.livejournal.com]

One of the reasons why I'm private about being in fandom is because I'm a private person in general; I'm the same way about a lot of things.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Makes sense. :)

[victorialupin.livejournal.com]

I'm really open about fandom with my parents, my grandmother, and my friends. My distant relatives, less so, but it's not because of what I think their reactions will be. I'm just not close enough to them nor do I see them often enough for me to bring that up.

The only thing my immediate family doesn't know about is that I've not only spoken to people in fandom but actively made friends (eg. on LJ). They tend to be overprotective and they'd worry if they knew how much contact I had with some people (even though I've never met anybody in RL or have plans to do so).

I'm open about everything with my friends. I don't explain the details to all of them because sometimes they don't get it, but a lot of my friends are in other fandoms and understand what I'm talking about.

I think the only thing I've been more somewhat secretive about is the ... naughtier aspects of fandom. I'm no longer secretive about it but when I was uncomfortable talking about these things I wouldn't mention them. Now my family and I are perfectly comfortable joking about NC-17 HP fic.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

They tend to be overprotective and they'd worry if they knew how much contact I had with some people (even though I've never met anybody in RL or have plans to do so).

There definitely is a stigma of sorts about that. Which is a shame, really.

[victorialupin.livejournal.com]

IA. Obviously people need to be a little bit more careful with online friendships, but there's this idea that online friends are still 'strangers' even after years. Which is ridiculous since I've never known my parents to worry about me talking to RL people that I've know for only a few weeks.

[chrissyann.livejournal.com]

I am not quiet, just careful. Lives in the middle of the bible belt and a small town so I cannot be as open about a lot of things lol.

[(Anonymous)]

In my case, I read and beta.

I can't afford to be very open at all; I live in one of the most conservative towns in one of the most conservative states. (There was much ranting and raving on the newspaper site about Garrison Keillor and A Prairie Home Companion being oh so liberal after they came here. *That* conservative.) It could literally wreck my career if some of the things I've read and been associated with became public knowledge here.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Ah. That's rough. :/

[lorac64.livejournal.com]

I'm open about my Harry Potter fanaticism. It is the slash fanfic I have to be careful with, especially around my workplace. It is my delicious little secret life!

[sagedarkwoods.livejournal.com]

I'm a cosplayer, and I also make accessories and costumes to sell at conventions. My friends know (since I drag them to sit behind my table with me when I get bored), and my colleagues know I do costuming; some know that I'm into "that sci-fi, japanimation stuff".

Also, I play Exalted, have drawn some of the characters in our game, and have a D10 on my keychain (which I also make).

[sagedarkwoods.livejournal.com]

Forgot to add: kinda hard to hide that I'm involved in fandom when twice I've had my picture in the local paper wearing my Prof. McGonagall costume: once for the book release of Half-Blood Prince, and once for the Goblet of Fire movie premiere.

[bragg247.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm behind on all LJ stuff. This was on like, page 12 of the Flist. And I'm still going. Lol! Anyway, I thought I'd actually talk about some of the answers I've put on here. I chose 'other' for the highest-rated fanfic, because although I've started some stuff that's probably NC-17, the only things I've actually finished/posted chapters for have been PG-13 or lower.

And, as for how open I am with being in fandom, I guess it's a combination of being a naturally private person, having friends who just wouldn't be interested, and not being too active in fandom these days anyway - there's only a couple of sites I still visit. (And my internet connection seems to dislike them *both* at present, which explains why I'm wading so deep into the Flist... Lol!)

~bragg247