Snowflake Challenge #3!

[hindsightseeing]

Write a love letter to fandom. It might be to fandom in general, to a particular fandom, favourite character, anything at all.

Not quite a letter -- I suck at all things epistolary -- but a great big shout-out and a whole wide world of love to tiny fandoms and the people in them... be they writers, readers, or lurking squee-ers.

I see a lot of people posting on other platforms about decreases in 'engagement' in their fandoms, and it's most often from big-fandom folks lamenting that their last fic got less than a hundred kudos. And while I can definitely understand their particular perspective -- big fandoms are big, and the nature of the Internet has become such that everything feels like a numbers game and/or a competition -- I also kind of feel like everyone should spend a year or so in a fandom with less than half a dozen people in it.

Spending time with a Thing -- and creating for that Thing -- solely for the love of it, knowing that you're likely to get low double-digit hits, much less comments or kudos, is such a freeing experience... and the small handful of kudos and comments you do get in an environment like that -- just the idea that somebody else loves the Thing as much as you do, and took the time to read your silly fic about it! -- means the whole darn world.

I'm not exaggerating when I say a single kudo on one of my fics will sustain me for a full week... or when I say it felt like Christmas to see someone post a single 100-word drabble -- for a ship I don't even enjoy! -- after seven straight months of only my own work in the fandom tag. That delirious joy at finding out there's one or two other people out there thinking about your silly little fandom... that's a feeling that I think can easily get lost in the competitive numbers-game of big fandoms with big social media presences.

So, yea. This is a love not-quite-letter to those thriving in tiny, barely-existent spaces with only a couple of others, finding ways to sustain their own love and creativity for the Thing. We may not make as much noise as the bigger spaces, but we have our own kind of fun, and it's worth every otherwise-silent second.

Comments

[merricatb]

I love this!

[hindsightseeing]

Thank you! I'm so glad it struck a chord! :D

[sarajayechan]

Tiny fandoms are such a joy, aren't they? My favorite part is searching the far corners of the internet just to find something, anything, and when I do I look on it with joy and fascination. :3

[hindsightseeing]

Yes, exactly! It always feels so -- precious, if that's the right word -- to dig up something so small but made with so much love. <3

[sisterdivinium]

"That delirious joy at finding out there's one or two other people out there thinking about your silly little fandom..." -- Hear, hear! There's nothing like it. I wish a tiny fandom on everyone at least once in their lives. It gives things a whole other perspective -- some might even find that they like it better in here...

[hindsightseeing]

That's definitely been my experience! The quiet is so comfortable for me, I can't even imagine any more how people in larger, super-active fandoms can keep up!

[annavere]

Hi! This is a really beautiful ode to tiny fandoms and their appeal, and it's so true. My core fandom is quite dormant, but I write for it every year and cherish my one reader and fellow fan. There's a quiet peace to the effort, and every good thing is amplified by it's rarity.

Also, since I started out in such a small pond, when I branched out to active fandoms, I found it really helped me keep perspective on the engagement question. I was excited for reaching double digits, and suddenly triple digits were a thing?

Anyway, I really enjoyed this and could relate. :)

[hindsightseeing]

I've never been in what could be described as a big fandom, but I really, really get this. There's a unique kind of appreciation that comes with everything being in the single digits, and it kind of keeps you humble -- and incredibly grateful to the one or two people who stick around -- in a way that I think people who only ever experience the larger numbers don't quite get.

Thank you so much for reading and commenting -- I'm so glad it was so relatable!

[ravensilversea]

Smaller and older fandoms my beloved <3 I've never written for a fandom quite that small, but there is something special about carving out a spot just for yourself and then finding someone else coming by to say hi

[hindsightseeing]

Amen to this! It's such a wonderful feeling, and one I really wish everyone could experience at least once in their fannish life.

[pattrose]

This was great. And so true.

[hindsightseeing]

Thank you! Challenges like this one are such a great opportunity to share the love! <3

[mekare]

100%

I‘ve spent the last years in tiny cdrama fandoms or shipping rare pairs in bigger cdrama fandoms - and it‘s been fun meeting the same few people who enjoy what I do.

[hindsightseeing]

Oh yeah, being into rarepairs for bigger fandoms is awesome too -- it's that particular feeling when you know someone could have just as easily chosen to spend time in one of the bigger or more popular corners of the plaground, but instead they chose to hang out in your tiny sandbox with you.

[teagan_starfarer]

I'm in fandoms of all sizes but there is indeed something about small fandoms that just hits the right spot. Especially when I'm tired of large groups of people.

[hindsightseeing]

So true! I think we all need some peace and quiet sometimes, especially with how Loud and how Much everything is these days... and it's such a comfort that there are those small and quiet spaces to accommodate that feeling.

[potentiality_26]

This is really lovely. I've been in some big fandoms, and I've been in some fandoms that were basically just me, and there's always a special place in my heart for the small ones.

[hindsightseeing]

Thank you! They really do sneak their way into your heart, don't they?

[tsuki_no_bara]

aw, i love this. the fen who keep tiny fandoms viable really are a special breed. my first fandom was comparatively small (especially since my second fandom was buffy) and i think because of that it was a great place to start.

[hindsightseeing]

I can imagine! I was into Buffy long before I stumbled into actual Fannish Spaces online, so I missed out on the being-a-part-of-a-major-fandom thing and just got to flail about it to my (very patient!) walls. It's probably for the best -- I'm not sure I'd be cut out for a fandom that size!

Thankfully, like you, my first actual fandom-Fandom experience was in a very small one -- you're right, it really is a great starting point for learning the ropes and figuring out how things work in fannish spaces, without feeling like there's a million eyes on you all the time.

[kitarella_imagines]

I agree about the tiny spaces, I've written a decent number of fics for small, old, unpopular fandoms. Often my fic is the first or only one for that fandom! That is what makes me proud. And sometimes I get a comment saying 'at last! A fic for XYZ fandom, thank you so much!' Or my rare pair starts off a rush of fics featuring the same rare pair.

Those are not the reasons I write but I LOVE going into uncharted territory and filling in bits that were missing.

Love your letter!

[hindsightseeing]

Thank you!

And thank you for your work too -- I've definitely been the person who ventures into XYZ fandom tag and gets deliriously happy to find That One Person who actually wrote for it. It's just as thrilling as a reader to find someone has written it, as it is for a writer to find someone who wants to read it!

[kitarella_imagines]

Isn't fandom great. People making others happy 😊

[hamsterwoman]

or when I say it felt like Christmas to see someone post a single 100-word drabble -- for a ship I don't even enjoy! -- after seven straight months of only my own work in the fandom tag. That delirious joy at finding out there's one or two other people out there thinking about your silly little fandom...

As someone whose most cherished fandoms are all ~Yuletide-sized, I relate to this so much! Beautifully put! <3

[hindsightseeing]

Thank you so much! It's been really wonderful to see how many people really resonate with that uniquely special tiny-fandom experience -- our fandoms may be small, but our feelings are big! <3

[mossy_bench]

I relate very much to this, as someone currently in a teeny fandom! At a certain point, I was feeling happy just from seeing the hits go up, because someone was clicking. :P

[hindsightseeing]

Haha, that's definitely been my experience too! Even just the littlest acknowledgement that your fandom -- and your fic! -- actually exists can feel like winning the lottery. :D

Thanks so much for the add, BTW! Adding back, of course! <3