Is it just me (and eponymous_rose), or is Trek fandom unusually scattered--especially given its age and fame? Anybody have guesses as to why
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I'm getting really, really, stupidly tempted to set up an LJ newsletter for this fandom (there doesn't appear to be one), in order to group together some of these things getting posted hither and yon - I think people just tend to post on their own journals because there's not exactly anywhere to crosspost. A watchlist would be useful. Also, once the movie comes out, it'll definitely come in handy. *ponders*
But yeah. I mean, Man from UNCLE fandom, for instance, has a way, way more organized LJ fanbase. It's interesting.
Edit: There are some nifty fanzines with a bit more of a gen slant, such as Ampersand (you've read infiniteviking's fics, right?) and... wait, what's this? That looks promising.
I think the influx of new fans after the movie (man, will my face be red if it's a complete flop) might give fandom a much-needed boost. Modelling a bit on who_daily et al, having individual users on the watchlist as well as communities might come in handy as well.
Thanks so much! I guess I'm doing this. *rolls up sleeves*
I would volunteer to help with compilation, except that I know myself: Even when I'm not on hiatus, I'm waaaay too damned unreliable. I am, however, going to start building a list of every TOS Trek link I can find, to be updated as needed. Yes, every single one. It'll be a list with ideas above its station, and no denying; but hey, worth a try. I think I might include links to any active TOS fan journals (well, any who agree to it, anyway).
I got spoiled in Harry Potter, which was my first really into-it fandom: All roads led through FictionAlley. Although I prefer the slightly more scattered shape of Who, in the end.
TOS fandom seems to be very much of its time (those people who were fans of it at the time of the series/movies), as distinct from TNG, DS9, VOY and ENT fans. Who knows, maybe the movie will be the shot in the arm TOS fandom needs, like New Series Who fans rediscovering the Classic Series.
It could just be chance that nobody's thought to integrate the ST presence in any serious way on LJ (as opposed to all the other myriads of messageboards and so forth out there). Agreed with eponymous_rose that there's room for the ST equivalent of who_daily as a knowledge-base and hitching-post for fics - arguably pan-franchise, so that fans of one particular ST version can get to know another.
Yeah, that's doubtless part of it, although I can'thelp suspecting there's a RADW equivalent hiding under my nose some place. Back when I was on TOS Y!Groups--only a couple years ago--print zines were still one of the primary fic sources, and most of the rest was either direct publish to the group or hosted on personal pages.
arguably pan-franchise, so that fans of one particular ST version can get to know another.
Pan-franchise might be necessary to keep the thing properly fueled, plus the cross-pollination you mention would be good. Demarcation by era could be helpful, though. One of the hardest things about navigating TOS fandom, I've found, is hunting up the 3% of TOS in the sea of 97% TNG/VOY.
arguably pan-franchise, so that fans of one particular ST version can get to know another.
Definitely! Limiting it to one franchise just seems silly at this point - especially since I'm not entirely sure a single-franchise newsletter would have any appreciable amount of content just now. Ahem.
As far as I'm aware (and it's very much from the perspective of a passive consumer) Usenet Trek is very splintered indeed, but the two main fic groups (alt.startrek.creative and alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated) are still slightly active. AIUI, some sort of alchemy transfers fic from there to trekiverse, eventually.
I'm going to have to get a Trek icon before this movie comes out, aren't I?
It's really SO strange. I think a large part is just the age of the fandom and the fact that it got very settled in its ways. I mean I've been reading treksmut for as long as I've been on the internet, and there are so many stories (award winners even) that have just disappeared because author's pages went dead or archives disappeared or whatever.
I think with the new movie there will be a massive increase on LJ, but it's going to be even worse than old skool Who vs. NuWho. I really doubt the trekkies who've been at this for 20 years or whatever are going to welcome the endless stream of very young new fans. Maybe I'm just jaded and crotchety, though.
I'm sure age has a lot to do with it. I'm on the young side of the demographic of the original Trekkies. Even people in my age group who are very technologically knowledgeable don't tend to socialize online much. I'm not surprised people are reluctant to make the transition.
My experience in online fandom when TNG first started was that TOS fans were pretty tolerant. But that was, like, ten thousand years ago? Before the internet, anyway. Now...yeah, based on Who fandom, it's likely to suck, isn't it?
When I first got involved in the Trek fandom a few years ago--2002, maybe--the first place I stumbled across was the Trek BBS message board. When I left there, they were still going strong.
I've never looked for anything from Trek on LJ before, though, since my interest in it these days is pretty much dead, and I'm firmly in the Who fandom.
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But yeah. I mean, Man from UNCLE fandom, for instance, has a way, way more organized LJ fanbase. It's interesting.
Edit: There are some nifty fanzines with a bit more of a gen slant, such as Ampersand (you've read infiniteviking's fics, right?) and... wait, what's this? That looks promising.
Reply
(The comment has been removed)
I think the influx of new fans after the movie (man, will my face be red if it's a complete flop) might give fandom a much-needed boost. Modelling a bit on who_daily et al, having individual users on the watchlist as well as communities might come in handy as well.
Thanks so much! I guess I'm doing this. *rolls up sleeves*
Reply
I got spoiled in Harry Potter, which was my first really into-it fandom: All roads led through FictionAlley. Although I prefer the slightly more scattered shape of Who, in the end.
Reply
It could just be chance that nobody's thought to integrate the ST presence in any serious way on LJ (as opposed to all the other myriads of messageboards and so forth out there). Agreed with eponymous_rose that there's room for the ST equivalent of who_daily as a knowledge-base and hitching-post for fics - arguably pan-franchise, so that fans of one particular ST version can get to know another.
Reply
Yeah, that's doubtless part of it, although I can'thelp suspecting there's a RADW equivalent hiding under my nose some place. Back when I was on TOS Y!Groups--only a couple years ago--print zines were still one of the primary fic sources, and most of the rest was either direct publish to the group or hosted on personal pages.
arguably pan-franchise, so that fans of one particular ST version can get to know another.
Pan-franchise might be necessary to keep the thing properly fueled, plus the cross-pollination you mention would be good. Demarcation by era could be helpful, though. One of the hardest things about navigating TOS fandom, I've found, is hunting up the 3% of TOS in the sea of 97% TNG/VOY.
Reply
Definitely! Limiting it to one franchise just seems silly at this point - especially since I'm not entirely sure a single-franchise newsletter would have any appreciable amount of content just now. Ahem.
Reply
(The comment has been removed)
I'm going to have to get a Trek icon before this movie comes out, aren't I?
Reply
I think with the new movie there will be a massive increase on LJ, but it's going to be even worse than old skool Who vs. NuWho. I really doubt the trekkies who've been at this for 20 years or whatever are going to welcome the endless stream of very young new fans. Maybe I'm just jaded and crotchety, though.
Reply
My experience in online fandom when TNG first started was that TOS fans were pretty tolerant. But that was, like, ten thousand years ago? Before the internet, anyway. Now...yeah, based on Who fandom, it's likely to suck, isn't it?
Reply
I've never looked for anything from Trek on LJ before, though, since my interest in it these days is pretty much dead, and I'm firmly in the Who fandom.
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