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The overflow valve of an insomniac writer caught up in the worlds created by "The X-Files" and "The West Wing", among others. Dedicated to those who first taught me, and those who remind me, to observe, to listen, to think, and to write it all down, as well as I possibly can.

Online Fanfic Libraries:

General Fanfic: Fanfiction.net

The West Wing: The National Library

The X-Files: The Gossamer Project|Ephemeral

CSI: GeekFiction

Firefly: Firefly's Glow Archive|FireflyFans.net

Babylon 5: Jump Now

The Fanfic Manifesto

At its most basic level, fanfic has at its root at least some degree of self-substitution that draws us to any character narrative - the longing for that perfect love and partnership that survives all challenge, to be recognized and understood, to be tested for our caliber and not be found wanting, and to play a vital role. But beyond that sympathetic recognition of self, the deep pull comes also from the infinitely creative ways in which we relate to a common focus, with all the shifting rules of an exciting impromptu game, and the energetic force of thousands of non-mainstream, geeky, world-changing, visionary, frustrated, literate and inspired minds of the world's first Internet generation. And it's fun, it's a semi-guilty pleasure and honest hard work, and it makes the Universe very, very BIG.

The pioneer zeal of settling new land is beginning to mellow into cultivation now (not to imply any more cultishness than necessary). From a survival-of-the-fittest frontier, where the most successful fanfic was that which grabbed the heart and mind and didn't let go, we are emerging into a period where fanfic is being read again after perhaps five or six years of mellowing, and the lasting quality of well-written fanfic better appreciated as a result. The fact that year old fanfic can seem quaint and dated speaks volumes about the rapid pace of change: it's never been more important to accurately and perceptively describe our relationship with the times we live in and the way they are reflected in the worlds we create.

With just over a decade of solid fanficking in the history of the world, I challenge us all to get beyond Clever and Witty and Damn Hot, and into the development of Fanfic as a legitimate genre with history and longevity, its own idiom, pertinent questions and contemporary social, political and cultural reflection.

Why? Because it's a way of keeping the storytelling tradition alive, and of doing homage to good writing, and of using fictional worlds to discuss very real issues. Also to connect with likeminded friends all over the planet as they go through the various stages of infatuation and denouement with various characters and worlds.

Does fanfic pay the bills? Not usually, not unless the writer manages to land a contract for a spinoff novel, à la Jean Rhys' "The Wide Sargasso Sea", John Wheatcroft's "Catherine, Her Book", or Lin Hare-Sergeant's "H", all set within the "Wuthering Heights" and "Jane Eyre" universes created by Charlotte and Emily Brontë. Some TV series also branch out their marketing efforts into spinoff novels, a la Star Trek, X-Files, et alia. But these are rarer events.

Is there a limit to how bad fanfic can get? No. Dear God, no. But there is also no upper limit, and there are writers out there who are, simply put, more talented and perceptive than most network scriptwriters and editors. And yes, writing aside, there are plangent moments of Internet drama in many fanfic communities. There are sensitive egos and deep emotional needs at stake, and the Internet accepts all submissions without prejudice. That vast range between a well-written spinoff and badly-written angst is part of fanfic's edginess. It's gold-rush country for the reader. You either hit paydirt or just dirt. For the writer, be they a professional writer getting their fantastic kicks out or a junior scribbler putting a nebulous idea online, it's little different from the modern publishing world. The readership may respond with love, vitriol or indifference depending on the day.

Does fanfic create a channel for the creative juices, and provide both the inspiration and the outlet for human wisdom, analysis of character motivation, experiments with prose style, and above all, deep personal satisfaction? You betcha.

The legitimization of fanfic as a literary form is some ways off, despite the precedent of bankrollable and truly creative spinoffs and imitations in most forms of the arts. The "Law & Order" TV franchise may go down in media history as the longest running fanfic of them all, with "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" in close second. I would love to see "Introduction to Homage and Imitation of the Screenplay" studied in University, or to see Slashfic appear on the roster of Gender Studies. (I did see one interesting TV segment on Slashfic and Slash-art, after midnight on Bravo! Channel.) The reasons why acceptance has not yet happened are obvious and legion, and so this became my challenge to myself: to create fanfic with longevity, to be as topical now as a hundred years from now, as a written commentary on our contemporary self-context and values.

Give fanfic it's due; after all, the great-great granddaddy of fanfic was none other than Master Will Shakespeare, and we're still studying him. His sources were the histories of the Kings of England, the great canon of Greek tragos and komedos, and the mythological folk-heroes of Europe, all filtered through the exploding international worldview and the clash of science and Church that marked the Elizabethan Age. Sound familiar?

If after being placed in this cyber-terrariuim to duke it out in true Darwinian style, fanfic still appears to have merit, well, then, I will look forward to reading this when I am an old lady, and wondering at how such a quaint technology as a television show should have had such a lasting effect.

...and just maybe, prepping my lecture notes for a bunch of Neo-UberGeeks for whom the experience of anticipating a weekly TV show is all ancient history.

Fixomnia Scribble
2006, Vancouver, BC

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