After the End: Harry Potter Fandom in 2010

[author_by_night]

This was originally an entirely different post, but I got off topic and onto another one: Harry Potter fandom three years after DH.

It's interesting to see who left, who stayed, who came back, and who joined - in terms of people and communities/websites alike - after the final book.

Around HBP and definitely by the time DH had been on shelves for a few months, websites and communities (Livejournal and otherwise) w ere much quieter, if not down completely.

But I don't think that means Harry Potter fandom has died. Quite the opposite. Under the cut, I have explored how Harry Potter fandom has changed over the years.


I don't know how accurate I am, I've done no research (this is just a Sunday morning musing), but I think there were certain things throughout the ten years that the books were released that you could call the "key spots" in fandom, the places that really defined it. At first, it was a few fansites - meghpfan's site, Mena Baines, The Unofficial Harry Potter Website, and The Daily Prophet - plus fanfiction.net.

Then it was the larger websites that were created mainly by fanfiction.net writers and included fanart, fanfiction, and discussion all in one; FictionAlley, Sugar Quill, Gryffindor Tower, The Werewolf Registry, and Sycophant Hex - amongst other sites. Around that time, news sites such as MuggleNet, HPANA, and "The HP Galleries" (now The Leaky Cauldron) were becoming more popular.

At some point OoTP's release, LiveJournal started allowing people to post without being invited. Suddenly Livejournal was just as much the center of the fandom as the big sites - possibly more, depending on who you talk to. ;) And it makes sense for a number of reasons.Slowly but surely, it seemed more fans were on LJ than on the websites, at least to me.

I don't think there's really many discussion communities anymore, on LJ or on the internet in general. But something I've noticed is that LJ ficfests seem to be picking up where everyone else left. There seem to be more now than ever - and some of them really seem to be part fic, part speculation. In one recent ficfest, there were two AU fics - but rather than AU fics that simply ignored canon, they seemed to really explore alternative possibilities. To me, that's speculation. Regardless of whether there's more or less speculation in the fests, they really do seem to be the glue that's holding a smaller fandom together.

It's just interesting to see how that's happening. I wonder if that's going to change? And I wonder why it's become LJ - perhaps it's because as far as fansites go, the social networking era has changed how that works. Come to think of it, many fan based pages and communities seem to be on blogging websites, Facebook, and YouTube. When I do find messageboards, they're usually quiet or inactive, and they're often boards that were started - and perhaps died - between 2000-2005.

What do you guys think? 

Comments

[dementedsiren.livejournal.com]

I like the idea of fandom-as-social-network. In fact, I think LJ Fandom was one of the first big social networking trends to come out of the internet. People suddenly saw all the ways to build relationships (not that that didn't happen via message boards, chat, IRC, etc.), and discussion, commenting, and following people (heck, the entire concept of friendsfriends and common interests as a way of meeting new people) became standard ways of interacting. Pre-dating MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, etc., you had fans interacting on the big and small scale.

I think that's also what made LJ last much longer than other fandom hangouts. Again, not that the websites/etc. didn't allow for interaction, but it's harder to "drop-out" of LJ because you tend to invest more in it, personally. The linking of individual interaction and friendship to fan participation makes it easier to encourage and be encouraged to contribute.

Yeah... got a bit rambly there. Basically, LJ's been awesomesauce on the fandom fries.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

People suddenly saw all the ways to build relationships (not that that didn't happen via message boards, chat, IRC, etc.),

I see what you're saying, and it makes a lot of sense. Messageboards are a great way to meet people, but Livejournal tends to be more personal.

Again, not that the websites/etc. didn't allow for interaction, but it's harder to "drop-out" of LJ because you tend to invest more in it, personally.

Another good point - I have a messageboard I go to a lot, but rarely post at. I've gone months without posting, and weeks without visiting.

[maureen.livejournal.com]

First of all, I love Sunday morning musings...

Secondly, I totally agree that it's harder to leave LJ because you get more invested. I found Harry Potter fandom on LJ. I actually came here 4 or so years ago because I was a mad Firefly fan and several people from another site I went to came here to start publishing their fanfic. I came here to read. I made friends with people who had similar interests and then their other interests (Harry Potter) caught my attention and I read OTHER stuff and made MORE friends and now I know these people... we send snail mail, Christmas cards, I've met some in real life... now even in all things fandom went away, I'd still be here for my friends. Which wasn't the point at all to begin with.

Who knew? I consider myself lucky, either way.

[sea_thoughts]

This is a really interesting post. I wish I could say something intelligent but I have to formulate my thoughts before I can put them down. :)

[dinpik.livejournal.com]

I think HP fandom will continue on for the forseeable future, even if it isn't as big as it used to be. Star Trek fandom continued on between the cancellation of the original series and the start-up of movies. Man from UNCLE fandom is still around, too.

I miss discussion communities about the books, not the fans or fanfic, too.