The Rec Center #198
Hi folks! This week we have fall-themed seasonal fanfic recs, an article about how Tumblr legitimized queer fandom in mainstream pop culture, an important PSA about Yahoo Groups, some cute Star Trek fanart, and more! — Gav
new stuff
“How Tumblr Helped Queer Mainstream Pop” by Emma Madden at Pitchfork
“The look and language of pop this decade took notes from queer users on the microblogging site.” A great piece looking at Tumblr’s influence on pop musicians and their fandoms.
“Mouse whisperers: meet the Disney influencers making a living at the Magic Kingdom” by Amelia Tait at The Guardian
“Though usually not officially affiliated with the brand itself, people who photograph themselves in Disney parks have collectively earned a small fortune by posting about the mouse.”
“How to cosplay when you’re terrified of costumes” by Sacha Judd at The Spinoff
“This isn’t about one person performing for an audience. It’s about everyone celebrating what they love together.”
older stuff
“The Online Free Speech Debate is Raging in Fanfiction, Too” by Elizabeth at The Verge
In light of the resurgence of AO3...discussion during the recent fundraiser, it felt like a good time to revisit this piece on its founding, policies around speech, and the thorny differences between communities and archives.
tumblr & beyond
Star Trek fanart by neetols
“I think realizing that canon is fake is very freeing actually.”
The idea of Trekkies visiting a Ren Faire is eternally inspired, and this addition makes it even better.
Just in case there are any Succession fans who haven’t seen this hilariously accurate parody video: here ya go!
“I Am The Horrible Goose That Lives In The Town,” an important Untitled Goose Game literary work by Daniel Ortberg.
yahoo! groups psa
Yahoo Groups is shutting down! As of Oct. 28, users won’t be able to post new content. Then on Dec. 14, Yahoo will erase basically everything stored on the Yahoo Groups platform, although you’ll still be able to participate in email lists, all of which will now be private.
Since Yahoo Groups were an important fandom hub in the early/mid-2000s (and are still used by many people today), this is something of an archiving emergency. If you have fanfic or meta saved on Yahoo Groups, or if you’re a moderator of a Yahoo Group, you can download all your data now. We also recommend getting in touch with the OTW’s Open Doors project, which saves old fandom content from deletion. One of the key purposes of AO3 and the OTW is to rescue fanmade media from shuttering sites like this.
fanfiction
The second list from our recent call for recs, a very topical fall + Halloween collection of multifandom recs. Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a story. — Elizabeth
“I Ain’t Afraid of No Ghosts” by Spacecadet72. 400 words, rated Gen.
Fandom: The Good Place; Ship: Gen
Recced by: Penna Nomen
Backstory: The Good Place is a comedy about a set of people exploring the afterlife. Janet is an all-knowing repository of knowledge, and Tahani often shows off by naming famous people she knew when she was alive.
Rec: This is a humorous take on dead people learning what supernatural entities (such as ghosts) are real and which are fake.
Content warnings: N/A
“Falling in Autumn” by fangirlSevera. 13K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Marvel/Avengers; Ship: Clint Barton/Phil Coulson
Recced by: Ralkana
Backstory: Non-powered AU where Phil is a professor and Clint is a contractor, and they’re neighbors. They start dating and do a bunch of traditionally Autumn-related activities that Clint never did growing up.
Rec: It’s sweet romantic fluff that really establishes itself in the Autumn setting, and it’s always nice when Clint gets to enjoy experiences he didn’t have due to his nontraditional upbringing, without facing judgment.
Content warning: A mention of an emotionally abusive relationship in Phil’s past, but that’s not a real issue until the sequel.
“Xibolai” by all_my_fandoms (marina). 1.5K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: Firefly; Ship: Gen
Recced by: stars-inthe-sky
Backstory: Firefly takes place in a future where humanity is spread across dozens of terraformed planets and moons, with most cultural and religious traditions as we know them merged or evolved a fair amount. The ’verse is also somewhat bilingual, with English and Chinese as common tongues.
Rec: The beginning of fall means it’s the Jewish High Holiday season, and this story offers a subtly beautiful glimpse of what Judaism and Jews might have become in Firefly’s future. The story’s observations of Zoe as an individual—with her own personal history—are spot-on, and I am in awe of the author’s weaving together of the ’verse Chinese elements with the religious pieces.
Content warnings: N/A
“Bonfire Night” by sansasparky. 19K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: A Song of Fire and Ice/Game of Thrones; Ship: Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark
Recced by: Kith
Backstory: Sansa’s just gotten dumped. Thank goodness Sandor’s at the bar on Bonfire Night.
Rec: Classic fall story. Bonfires, excess drinking, a smoldering hot man in a dark coat, no blonde toffs and a really excellent group dynamic between Sansa, Arya, Asha, Margaery, Meera, Jeyne, and of course Brienne.
Content warnings: N/A
“In Plain Sight” by Sholio. 1.1K words, rated Gen.
Fandom: White Collar; Ship: Gen
Recced by: Penna Nomen
Backstory: In a world where FBI agents (Diana and Peter) befriend con artists (Mozzie and Neal), picking Halloween costumes can get complicated. This is a post-canon story.
Rec: It’s a light-hearted story about FBI agents dressing up their kids for Halloween, and the con artists who have a different perspective on what makes a good disguise. Short and funny, true to the characters without requiring a knowledge of canon to enjoy it.
Content warnings: N/A
FINAL THOUGHT
Maine folks! Next weekend I’m teaching a workshop at the Word Blue Hill Literary Arts Festival in Blue Hill (near Bar Harbor) about FANFICTION. Specifically about fanfiction as craft—how can we use fic to hone in on things like characterization, perspective, narrative distance, form, style, and more.
No one has to share any of their own fic, to be clear! (Though you can if you want to, of course.) The workshop is recommended for everyone from fic aficionados to people who have literally never heard of it and are looking to work on writing fiction of all sorts.
Here’s the specific link to the event—if you’re in the area or you know people who live in that bit of Maine, please share it with them! — Elizabeth
FINAL FINAL THOUGHT
We are just two issues away from #200! To celebrate, we’re doing a little AMA in our 200th newsletter. If you’d like to submit a question, please use this special AMA form!
Have a favorite one-off rec? Please send it our way! We’ll use it in a future list. Other fanworks—comics, vids, zines, etc—are strongly encouraged as well. And if you have any interest in doing an entire rec list, explainer, or ship manifesto, please get in touch! elizabethandgav at gmail dot com.
If you liked this, please share it with your friends! https://thereccenter.substack.com/. And find us on social media: Gav (twitter/tumblr) & Elizabeth (twitter/tumblr)