Posts in Fannish Communities
OTW Guest Post: Atticus Yus
On occasion, the OTW shares posts from a guest, providing an outside perspective on the OTW or specific aspects of fandom. These posts express each individual’s personal views and do not necessarily reflect the views of the OTW or constitute OTW policy. Atticus Yus (she/her) is a postgraduate student at Cambridge Digital Humanities, affiliated with Newnham College. A fanfiction writer herself, she is currently most active in the Identity V and Hannibal fandoms and enjoys baking banana bread in her free time. Today, Atticus talks about her research regarding fan communities with a particular focus on tagging systems and social networks. How did you first… Read more
OTW Signal, November 2025
Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works. In the News A recent POP! feature highlights the growth of the “fan-art economy,” where fans are increasingly turning creative passion into sustainable work. The article delves into the music scene in the Philippines and the various ways in which fans are turning their love for music into art-fueled creative businesses that can sustain them. Fan communities are thus building their own systems of support—where illustrators,… Read more
OTW Signal, September 2025
Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works. In the News On September 23, SenLinYu’s Alchemised joined Rose in Chains by Julie Soto and The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley as the third “Dramione” fan fiction-inspired novel to be traditionally published in 2025. In their article “‘The Year of Dramione’: Fan fiction’s leap to bookstore shelves”, United Press International (UPI) spoke with OTW’s Rebecca Tushnet about the growing appeal… Read more
OTW Signal, August 2025
Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works. In the News An article from Roster Con analyzes how fans are reinventing community online, creating inclusive digital spaces that thrive, and fundamentally changing the way people with shared interests connect and interact with each other. Instead of waiting in line at conventions or gathering in packed theaters, people are now forming tight-knit communities online—spaces where shared interests thrive without borders. What’s striking isn’t just the… Read more
OTW Signal, June 2025
Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works. In the News The Conversation’s article “The lore of ‘lore’” explores how fandom fueled the reinvention of a 1,000-year-old word: Now essential online slang, [“lore”] can be traced back to Old English, where it referred primarily to learning, as in the act of teaching or being taught. Over time, lore came to be associated with more informal knowledge, passed on through word of mouth … [but… Read more