weirdDay 12
What makes you fannish? And by that we mean, what is it about a tv show/movie/book/band/podcast/etc that takes you from, "Yeah, I like that," to "I need MOAR!!!" Is it a character? A plotline? The pretty? Subtext that’s just screaming to be acknowledged?
In your own space, tell us what it is that gets you to cross that line into fandom. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.
This is something I think about a lot, because I love getting this feeling and also because I want to learn how to give it to others. It seems easiest for children - you know, incessantly singing cartoon themes, grabby hands with media tie-in toys. After I
Sometimes I creep myself out with how much brain power I'll devote to my latest thing, but overall, it makes life much happier. You always have something to look forward to, and you always have somewhere for your mind to wander when you're bored. And then there's the anticipation of new content, the excitement of meeting like-minded fans, and the inspiration to create that it can bring.
I haven't answered the question, just restated it, but I've always felt like there's some kind of magic at work here or a code to crack and I just can't figure it out. I'm fairly confident that my taste in media aligns somewhat with the relative quality of the work, but I don't think quality is the secret. I mean, it's obviously not the secret to popularity, and as far as I can tell, the hordes of fans for certain bad fiction are feeling the exact same way that I feel about my alleged good fiction favorites.
Another thing that intrigues me is that the glow always fades, or it always does for me, and it intrigues me even more that for some people it apparently doesn't. I don't have one right now. I have fandoms, plenty of them, and I think as highly of the canon for each one as I ever did, but I don't enjoy them as much as I did when I first discovered them.
So I go looking for new ones. What's going to give me the glow? I can usually tell what to rule out, and I have a good idea of what kind of book or show will entertain me, but I don't know what sets the special ones apart. I mean, what do Cowboy Bebop, Redwall, Magic: the Gathering, Final Fantasy VIII, Buffy, Saga, Guardians of the Galaxy, and A Song of Ice and Fire have in common? Genre? Sure, but that doesn't exactly narrow it down.
Here are some adjectives: Epic. Romantic. Character-driven. Classic. Unexpected. Subtle. Virtuous. Ferocious. Beautiful.
How do you find the glow?
