Cheryl Dyson

Some have you have noticed some "fandom wank" going around (and some of you are so brand new to LJ that you don't even know what that means) so here is my stand on the whole thing.

First, the glossary:

BNF - stand for Big Name Fan.  The definition is actually different for everyone in fandom.  We each have our own opinion on who is the most popular, the best writer, the best artist, etc. because we all have different tastes.  Thankfully, our fandoms are made up of so many diverse writers, artists and readers that there is enough to keep everyone happy.  I hate angst, but I'm damn glad that my angst-loving friends have tons of fics and fests to keep them happy, because I would miss them if they were gone.

Wank - this typically means a topic that will get everyone stirred up and cause drama and end with hurt feelings and people hating on one another and possibly some people leaving fandom altogether.  Wank is bad unless it involves nakedness and hot boys.

SO, apparently all of this wank began because it was insinuated that new authors and artists were being shut out of fests or generally unappreciated in the HD fandom.  Frankly, I have never heard anyone complain and I have loads of newbies on my f-list.  (I love you guys!)  Additionally, hd_smoochfest  has been largely made up of first-time fest participants or newcomers, which has been very exciting.  The nice thing about anon fests is that the writing can be evaluated on its own merit.  Two of my very fav fics of the fest are by people whose work I have never read before.  I will definitely be stalking them in the future.  If, however, you are a newcomer and feel you've been treated unfairly, feel free to comment and let me know.  Perhaps I'm wrong and there have been complaints.  So here's a question for everyone on my flist.  Do you feel maligned and/or downtrodden?  Do you like the fandom?  Do you have issues with it?  Do you care about this wank business, or do you plan to ignore it and get back to reading porn?

With all that said, from here on out I plan to ignore every hint of this discussion on other journals.  I am here to write and read and encourage people into doing more writing and reading and making fabulous artwork for us to drool over.  I am not here to get into personality conficts and discuss whose opinion is right or wrong.  I've made a massive amount of friends here and they have kept me going through some wretched times.  I look forward to making new friends in the future.

Enough blathering.  I am screening all comments because I feel like it.  Back to the regularly scheduled writing...