From time to time, the OTW will be hosting guest posts on our OTW News accounts. These guests will be providing an outside perspective on the OTW or aspects of fandom where our projects may have a presence. The posts express each author’s personal views and do not necessarily reflect the views of the OTW or constitute OTW policy. We welcome suggestions from fans for future guest posts, which can be left as a comment here or by contacting us directly.
Elicia Donze, also known as Euclase, is a professional artist and fan creator who has been active in fandom communities since the 90s. She is an outspoken advocate for the creation and protection of fandom safe spaces for female and queer communities and a longtime supporter of fandom culture and derivative works. Today, Elicia talks about her history in fandom, her preferred media, and what she loves about fandom
How did you first get into fandom and fanworks?
Way back in 1998, I made a geocities website about Eowyn from The Lord Of The Rings for a class assignment. A few years later, the movies came out, and a few lovely fan girls saw my site and invited me to join their forum, Parma Eruseen, which was quite a big forum in the day, where I eventually became a moderator and fan fiction and fan art contributor. From there I went to livejournal, then Tumblr, but I’ve been creating fan works since I was a child, and I’ve been sharing them online for about as long as the means to do so has been available.
Are you currently active in any fandoms?
I’m a little bit active in a lot of fandoms. I make art of a lot of different characters, and I watch and read a lot of different content. I’m a pretty consistently devoted Star Trek, Star Wars, and horror genre fan. But for the last decade my favorite has been Supernatural.
You do a lot of really amazing digital work; are there certain types of art where you prefer to use more traditional media?
I prefer digital online because it’s easier to share and very versatile and tidy. In real life, in more analog art settings where I’m doing a drawing for someone or putting art in a gallery, I sometimes like traditional. I also like traditional when I’m scribbling in a journal.
If you could go back and give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Don’t be ashamed to do whatever makes you happy. Your happiness is valuable.
How did you hear about the OTW and what do you see its role as?
Not to age myself, but I remember astolat’s post on livejournal where the whole thing got started, so I’ve known about the OTW and AO3 since it began. I’ve always believed in the value of fanworks, ungoverned by commercial media, and the need of the (predominantly) female fan community to reclaim its own mythology in a free, safe space. The OTW and AO3 are endlessly valuable as a resource and community foundation for those of us who might not otherwise have a validated community.
What fandom things have inspired you the most?
Everything. I don’t know if I could narrow it down. Watching fangirls take themselves as seriously as any scholar or master in a setting where they are respected, where there’s no shame for them to discuss and cultivate and share their passions–there’s nothing more inspiring than that. The best writers, the best artists, the best scholars are in fandom.
Catch up on earlier guest posts