What Fandom Racism Looks Like: “Then Make Your Own and Stop Complaining”

Stitch's Media Mix

A friend sent me a Reddit post in the r/FanFiction subreddit made by a Black fan venting (it’s literally tagged as such) about how it feels for her to read fan fiction while Black and essentially looking for support. Fandom being fandom – aka “racist as hell” – the most highly upvoted comments in the sub on her comment are from people insulting her, insisting that she’s an entitled “Black American” for venting, and complaining about “wokeness” in fandom (and some that even wind up getting in digs at people like myself apparently leading the charge).

A common thread across many of the comments? They’re not just telling the OP to “make your own” – especially in the case of Reader Inserts, but they’re also assuming she doesn’t contribute anything to fandom at all in the first place. If she’s “just” complaining without contributing – even though she…

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Matt Wallace: Grapes, Malt, & Hops: Blended Fantasy [Guest Post and Giveaway]

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I’m returning to my Book Blogger roots for one of my favorite writers in the history of my reading life!

Matt Wallace’s latest book, the epic (in all forms) Savage Legion, is out July 21st and my little site is one of the stops on the book tour. Take a second to pop on over to Amazon or Bookshop to preorder your copy and then dive right into his guest post about two of our shared most-favorite things in the world: worldbuilding and booze!


Warriors drink ale. Nobles drink wine. That’s the way it always was and for twenty-plus years I never questioned it.

I read my first stabby magic novel (or epic fantasy, or swords and sorcery, or whatever the hell you want to call it) when I was eleven, and I never looked back. Throughout my formative years, I read whatever was on the fantasy shelf of…

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Why Write About Fandom Racism At A Time Like This?

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The short answer?

We live in a racist world and that world doesn’t stop existing when someone crosses over some kind of threshold to fandom.

The long answer?

In fact, because fandom communities are insular and twist themselves in circles to avoid engaging meaningfully with things that disturb the peace that they’ve surrounded themselves in –

The racism that folks have as baggage lugged around offline? Gets stuffed full of more racism and carted around to other fandoms.


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Tabletop RPG Community Boycotts Zak Smith

Pop Culture Uncovered

In the past, I’ve written about the OSR as well as those discussing “edgelords” in tabletop role-playing games. In my articles, I glossed over controversial individuals and the problems surrounding them; I neither want to give them the attention they seek nor did I feel like attracting their “followers.”

Things changed this week when one of these individuals went from merely considered aggressive online to being accused of abuse and sexual assault.

The individual in question is Zak Smith, aka Zak Sabbath or Zak S, a game designer, author, artist, and pornographic actor.

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Zak Smith runs the “Playing D&D with Pornstars” blog and worked on Lamentations of the Flame Princess (alongside controversial designer James Raggi). He’s won multiple ENnies for his writing and art and been a contributor on everything from Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition to the Vampire: the Masquerade mobile game.

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What Fandom Racism Looks Like: PickMe POC

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When I used to be on Tumblr, I’d get a lot of messages and reblogs from people who made it a point to let other people know that I didn’t speak for all POC.

I was never arguing that I did, of course, but it was imperative to these other people of color to let me and white people in fandom know that they were here, they weren’t white, and that they thought I was full of shit about fandom racism.

Which is their right as people on the internet, let’s be real here.

But it’s interesting:

I, a queer Black person with most of a lifetime in fandom and an entire academic career focusing on media criticism and representation, couldn’t possibly speak for every single person in fandom when I talked about racism I witnessed in fandom… but they could speak over me in order to let other people…

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Superbat Big Bang 2019

So I entered my first fanfic Big Bang (as a writer) and wow! Had I known the amount of sheer guts and coffee I would have to run through to see this thing done, I might have reconsidered.

Looking back now, I feel creeping dread and the lingering certainty that this is a madness I will probably be attempting again next year. Because the thing is, the Bang isn’t just about writing, it’s also surprisingly about community. It’s about long night up sweating through sprints with fellow caffiene addicts and night-owls. It’s about venting, bitching, haranguing characters and having yourself a good ol feels-oriented tantrum from time to time. It’s about trying new narrative styles and pushing yourself that much further to the finish line.

It’s about friends. It’s about us, and fandom and fandom family.

Anyway, before I get any more longwinded about this incredible process (that I am still processing, by the way), on to the fic!

I and my co-writer Spacewolfcub worked with artist Ms.3 to bring you

Title: Supplicant

Fandom(s): DCEU, MCU, Gotham, Smallville

Author(s): Holdt & Spacewolfcub

Artist: Ms.3

Length: 51k

Summary:

Only he can pull Bruce out of the darkness…

The training and scars of Nanda Parbat run deep— Bruce has always fought the demons that make him want to stalk the night and rend pain unto the deserving. After a decade of trying to stay afloat, using BDSM as both punishment and moral compass, he turns to The Agency. Through them, he finds Mistress Ivy, whose Services help him keep ahead of the encroaching darkness… until he finds his lifeline gone without warning when Ivy’s extreme methods and poison play are revealed and she is exiled.

The Agency has a reputation to uphold, secretive as they are. For years, they’ve offered him a chance at salvation—for a price. It is no different now and Bruce grasps desperately at their offer. Can the Service Provider known as Mr. S, the so-called “SuperDom,” help him rein in the Bat?

Only he can bring Clark into the light…

When you’ve been on the run for as long as Clark, you know the look of a drowning man. The Agency asked him to consider this new client, one whose need tempts Clark beyond the well-established boundaries he’s set for himself. Can the Bat inspire him to explore his own needs and desires outside of the perfect image of Mr. S he’s spent years hiding behind?

[Read Supplicant on AO3]

Also, theres a fanmix .  😉

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In Fandom, All Villains Aren’t Treated Equally

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In Fandom, All Villains Aren't Treated Equally

From Hannibal Lecter eating the rude across the northeastern United States to Loki’s attempts to subjugate the human race and Kylo Ren’s patricide and misogyny, fandom just loves to look at villains who have committed atrocities and decide that they’re in fact complex characters who just need a redemption arc to set them on the right track (because they have a good reason for what they did/the heroes of the series are in fact the real villain) …

But only if they’re white dudes.

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TV Brew: Black Lightning – Season One Review

Pop Culture Uncovered

Black Lightning has now finished the first season and has earned a name for itself. I dare to say this is one of the best superhero shows on television, even competing with the Netflix Marvel series.

There is far too much to talk about as we impatiently wait for the second season, but we’re going to try and discuss some of those opinions here. Instead of listening to this colonizer, though, I thought I’d bring in some better perspectives.

First, a big welcome to vidder, writer, and cybernetic ASA assassin, Holdt.

Holdt: Good to be back, man. The past few episodes leading up to the finale have been #SoLit I don’t even know where to start. I get way too excited talking about this show to be talking to myself.

Our special guest is author, poet, and metahuman experiment, Danielle Grace.

Danielle: Wassup, Lono! It’s…

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