Raise your hand if you're a freaky slasher too.

[emmagrant01]

I'm assuming everyone has seen this article in The Guardian by now?

Um, actress_krissie? You're mentioned. Along with lots of other folks, in not-so-flattering lights. I think I saw a mention of mijan, though I'm not sure. And we get called freaks. A lot.

Though this line did make me crack a smile, I must admit: There's a group of teenage boys from the website, Mugglenet, who appear to think that they're in a boy band.

But still, it's kind of interesting to see an outside perspective on fandom every now and then, you know?

Edit: You know, the more I think about this, the more annoyed I'm getting over it.

upstart_crow makes some great points about journalistic integrity.

furiosity points out that this is just the sort of thing that might make JKR, Scholastic, or WB come down on slashers.

And many other great points are being made in locked posts, which I can't link to, obviously. :-P

Comments

[gmth.livejournal.com]

The thing that bothered me most about that article was this:

Do you do ... 'slash'? I ask Olivia and Abbi.

'No!' they say. 'We're fans, but we're not freaky fans.'

I hate -- HATE -- this kind of attitude in fandom. We're ALL geeks to people on the outside. Attempting to separate yourself from the rest of fandom -- "We're okay, THOSE people are the freaks!" is utter bullshit, IMO.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

I thought about commenting over there about how inherently misogynistic the article was, but frankly I don't want to get into it. Some people enjoy being called freaks, and who am I to spoil their fun? ;-)

[eliminate.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the only highlight to that article was the Emerson line. He's such a twit.

Oh, I wish I had gone to Lumos. D:

Also, I didn't like the one part in the article (too lazy to look) that said something along the lines of 'it's like how men like lesbian stuff'. So... us female slashers that happen to write femslash? We must be special, that's all. ;)

[kabal42.livejournal.com]

*likes to be special* ;-)

[dartmouthtongue.livejournal.com]

::Raises Wand::

-shrugs-

I'm queer, getting called a freak is pretty much a way of life. Sorry you girls have to be called freaks too for liking the queer, but I guess it rubs off.

[capra-maritimus.livejournal.com]

Meh. We get called freaks for many reasons - liking fantasy, dressing up in costumes at times other than at Hallowe'en, etc. And some of us are queer, too. So, yeah, whatever. There will always be people who will make a big stink because OMG, someone in the world is having more fun than they are. ;)

[gunxshyed.livejournal.com]

(WARNING-I am SO going off on a tangent.)

This is really such a wonderful thing to read, like you said, to see an outside perspective on fandom. You were really the one who got me into Harry Potter, because before this month, I'd never read any of the books at all. Following your accounts of Lumos was so interesting, but this really addressed some questions I have. I'm currently struggling with a boyfriend who is suddenly extremely against slash and homosexuality in general. The whole idea is just...terrifying for him, and it's puzzling to me, since he really has no religious background that would constitute his behavior, etc. His first exposure to it was when I confessed I wrote Star Wars slash, and the reaction was SO negative (a complete backlash, really) I haven't the nerve to tell him that I write and draw Kingdom Hearts slash and am teetering on the edge of Harry/Ron art once I get to know the characters well enough.

I think it's an easy thing to say, as I've been saying it too, that it's just like men like lesbians, because I know he likes the lesbian porn, you know? But what puzzles him is that so do I! This man writing this article is, though more articulate lol, identical to my boyfriend in his lack of understanding of eroticism. Why is the idea of boys in homosexual relationships such a disgusting one for men to endure?

At my school, which is a very liberal art school, there was a show three semesters ago that depicted outline drawings of men using sex toys with each other. They were incredibly erotic. There were also photographs of a female couple underwater doing some hardcore humping against each other with dildos. (No, I don't go to porn school XD) Our president (male) removed the male pieces, deeming them inappropriate.

Whhhaaaaat?

I know this is roundabout, and I'm sure it's a question that lots of people have discussed, but I'd love to know what you think.

So glad you had fun at Lumos! I want to go next time and play water Quidditch! Then I'd know something about the whole thing XD

[gunxshyed.livejournal.com]

Oh, and by the way.

*RAISES HAND*

[dm-p.livejournal.com]

Funny...Sounds like the reporter was a little more than frightened...

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

LOL! It does, doesn't it?

[lazy-daze.livejournal.com]

The attitude does piss me off, but at the same time I try and be rational and really think what it looks lke to a complete outsider. *shrugs* and also, she's more likely to get a good response by pointing and laughing at the 'freaks' than talking about us positively lest she get tarred by the same brush. Plus the newspaper probably prefers a point-and-laugh type exposé rather than any kind of balanced discussion of Us Freaky Slashers. Le sigh.

[chocklit-frog.livejournal.com]

Was anyone else annoyed by the writer's "Oh, it must be a female thing" dismissive attitude?

yes...

[glockgal.livejournal.com]

Which is why I originally assumed the author was a male, and then realized that it's a female.

It made me a little sad; I totally understand most women not getting the fandom thing, but to dismiss it as 'just one of those crazy, silly, foolish chick things!' after attending the convention? I feel like I'm listening to a Malibu Stacy doll saying 'Don't ask me; I'm just a girl! Hee hee hee!"

[furiosity.livejournal.com]

I kinda hope JKR doesn't read that article. Because yikes.

[annephoenix.livejournal.com]

I'd say there is Zero possibility that she won't have seen this article. Her and her entire entourage. I just hope her children don't see it!

[coffeejunkii.livejournal.com]

you know, the article isn't half-bad for someone who has no clue whatsoever. i don't think it's mean-spirited, but rather tongue-in-cheek. the person clearly had no idea what awaited her at lumos, hehehe. this totally cracked me up:

But we sub-divide ourselves into who you ship.'

Ship?

'Who you put together. I do Remus-Sirius, but Hally here she does Harry-Draco .'

Draco, his arch enemy? I say. The little blond one?

Lisa nods her head.

I had no idea that Harry was a porn star, I say.

lol!

[sorion.livejournal.com]

This is Harry Potter for adults. A concept that I'd always thought of as one of those minority tastes like quantum physics for children. Or Star Trek for girls.

I beg your pardon??? *harrumph* ^_~


Well, the article is like most articles by men who discover slash... And it's less stupid than the last one I saw...

[snottygrrl.livejournal.com]

except the article was written by a woman. i met her. she seemed rather nice. she has a good mask, i never would have suspected her to write something quite so nasty. [*shrugs*]

[http://users.livejournal.com/reciprocity_/]

This kind of thing is one of my biggest pet peeves in life. I'd bet someone 20 bucks that the reporter(s) have some sort of thing that they do and love that isn't approved by everyone ever in society. I've experienced this very rarely, since my participation in fandom is my best kept RL secret. I find that people are so quick to judge fandom slashers and then 10 minutes later you find out they spent 7 years playing D&D or White Wolf and calling themselves a Mage or something. I don't have a problem with D&D players or whomever, but I really don't like it when people turn around and call you crazy when they're doing something that can be considered equally unusual.

I didn't find the article hugely disparaging, but it wasn't very nice either. I'm not surprised, everything's 'freaky' if you don't understand it, and to understand the fandom you have to love it. IMO - Interesting article though, thanks for linkage :-)

Basically I don't think I'm a freak, so Yay.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_hannelore/]

I'm not so much disturbed whether the reporter is a man or a woman; the snide undertone of "tee-hee, look at the silly sex-deprived housewives" is annoying either way.

I had a feeling that there was some anti-slash sentiment among some Potter fen, but to go so far as use a "freak" tag is fairly catty. I wonder how these anti-slashers feel about fen that write both het and slash?

[shezan.livejournal.com]

As posted elsewhere, it's more than likely that she was assigned the job specifically to write a hatchet-job, because editors think such pieces are fun. (And I've worked on Fleet Street.)

[fiona-fawkes.livejournal.com]

Oh shit. FULL NAMES?!?!?!?!?! This is s uncool.

[doro-chan.livejournal.com]

Well. There were some funny parts, especially when it came to the academic analysis, but in general, I really disliked the way the author looked down on the grown-up Harry Potter fans. As if we were all frustrated and unsuccessful housewives who have to compensate for it by retreating to our little fantasy world.

Because, personally, I think being a freak is a very normal and healthy thing. It's a source of happiness and I really don't understand why people don't get it or simply accept it.

But I suppose it could have been a lot worse. For someone who does not understand the phenomenon and evidently dislikes slash fanfiction, it's quite neutral.

[awaywithpixie.livejournal.com]

The real name business is so uncool. I thought journalists had to get permission from the person to print full names in an article (or is that just in my country), so if it is without permission, they should be going down. Is it any wonder that some of us try to keep the fact we write slash hidden from our nearest and dearest? Especially if this is the sort of reaction you get from complete strangers.

Another reason I am so glad I never went to Lumos.

[akemi42.livejournal.com]

I really hated how she tried to paint this picture of everyone idolizing Jo. I think the term "quasi-religious" was used.

The part that really bothered me was this...

I think that if I hear the word 'discourse' again, I'll scream, although it's when I go to 'Out of Bounds: Transgressive Fiction' that I get really annoyed. It's a seminar analysing Hermione Granger-Professor Snape fan fiction. That is to say, a relationship between a teenage girl and a fortysomething man, which often, it transpires, takes the form of a rape narrative. There are 200 women in the room. And a whole lot of talk about female empowerment and gender reversals, but, frankly, if it was 200 men talking about rape narratives involving underage schoolchildren, it would be a matter for the police, and I don't think this is empowering anybody.

What is she implying?

[ashe-frost.livejournal.com]

I don't think that non-con or chan is very empowering, either.. But that's one of those things that even in fandom people kind of go back and forth about, only around here, especially in the world of slash, as far as fic goes, I think we tend to do a fairly good job of keeping off one anothers toes about things like that as long as proper warnings are placed.

But I could be very, very wrong about that.

[phaballa.livejournal.com]

I don't have a problem with people thinking we're freaks. I do have a problem with people who've never read the books and get half the facts wrong being published, however.

[letmypidgeonsgo.livejournal.com]

A-freakin-MEN!

that really disturbed me

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Hey, Emma. I was one of your students at the night classes and loved your arithmancy class. I'm really math incompetent, but I've joined your group.

Thought you might be interested in my thoughts about this fiasco, especially as I'm also a journalist. The post is here: http://upstart-crow.livejournal.com/182762.html?mode=reply

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link to your post! I've edited it into mine above, actually. You make some really great points there.

[loony-moony.livejournal.com]

*raises hand* :)

[therealw.livejournal.com]

I'm not quite sure what it says about me that if that article had been written by a man (as I thought it had) I'd probably find it sort-of-amusing in a 'oh, men!' kind of way, but a woman... the way she describes HP as escapist entertainment for bitter middle-class housewives is downright insulting.

Actually, now that I think about it, a man wouldn't have been so desperate to set himself apart from such a freaky, uncool bunch.

However... this line?
It's been billed as 'a chance to sample British food' and there's a rumour that it's 'something called shepherd's pie'. I'm hoping this isn't true.
*g*

[letmypidgeonsgo.livejournal.com]

i'm really struggling to control my inner CAPSLOCK rage...

while there are, of course, a million things in this article to fume about, more than anything else, i'm absolutely appalled that this obvious literary snob couldn't find the time to actually READ THE DAMN BOOKS - i mean, arent responsible journalists supposed to get background on their subjects before writing about them? obviously, the inherent flaw in her whole way of thinking stems from the fact that she's decided these are childrens books & nothing more - a hardly surprising assumption since she ONLY READ THE FIRST ONE

sorry about that, i need to go do some deep breathing exercises

[alisanne.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link.
I totally thought that this was a man until the very end. I think it was the dismissive attitude that prevailed throughout the while thing that made me think that.
And yeah, I suppose that in her eyes we are freaks, but there was really no attempt to understand the phenom. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at how we were portrayed. Perhaps she should have sent her neice to the conference instead.

[fluffenbax.livejournal.com]

oh, if only these "non freaks" were exposed to the icons and art of such fanfiction, they would shit themselves and it would be bloody hilarious....i mean, if they even read some of the comments to fics with dubious consent, rape, mpreg.....and if they went onto pornish pixies and became aware of the years of archived work, responses and the propmts alone? I mean, for such a minimal comprhension of all that we do, i don't think that the article was as bad as it could have been if that woman had been exposed to LIFE of slashers, not just a couple of stories.

[(Anonymous)]

People are entitled to their opinion even if it is hard to swallow.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Of course. Just as we are entitled to mock in response. ;-)