Let the circle be unbroken
Anne Rice, fanworks, and capitalism
A while back I wrote about Realms of Ruin, the short-lived and ill-fated attempt to something something shared world something something NFT. That post focused more on the fundamental incompatibility of a community-owned model of fandom and the world of cryptocurrency (and monetization in general). This will be a kind of continuation of that, because I want to talk about this:
A healthy number of you are probably somewhat fandom-familiar with the Lore of the world of fanfic circa 2001. In 2001, authors were still putting disclaimers on their fic—things like “I do not own Mulder and Scully, this is a work of fiction off which I am not profiting, etc.” This is because Anne Rice threatened to sue fanfic writers who she thought were profiting off her stories. August T has a great deep dive on the entire situation over on their blog, if you’d like the whole story. Essentially Anne Rice thought that fanfiction would cannibalize sales of her new book, being published in the then-nascent ebook format. For a long time, Fanfiction.net (RIP) had fully removed the Interview with the Vampire category—writers couldn’t even post those stories there if they wanted to.
So for AMC and whatever app they’ve partnered with to actively solicit fanworks for Interview with the Vampire is, quite frankly, laughable.
Those in the know—those who would be most likely to make fanworks for the new Interview with the Vampire show in the first place—know the lore. They were either there for SpecWriter Massacre or have hard about it from the rest of us fandom olds. (I wasn’t there—but I heard about it.) I highly doubt that this app will take off. This is for two reasons:
First, most of the internet is still free. You can post self-insert IWTV fic on tumblr, twitter, or the Archive of our Own for zero money in any currency you like. Why pay-to-play when you can play for free?
Second, and most interesting to me: AMC has already created a show that makes people want to write fanfic. I have not yet watched the new version of IWTV, but from what I hear it’s extremely lush and expensive-looking, has a diverse cast chock-full of beautiful people, and is extremely gay, three things which are absolute catnip to fan writers.
What we’re seeing here is an attempt to monetize fandom that ignores the reasons why people actually create fanworks. Fans will pay for things like meet and greets with the stars of their favorite shows or merch from the creators, but fanworks are about love. Fanworks are about devotion. To solicit fanworks for your show is a cash grab that won’t work because fans are already willing to spend money—just not on that.
To make this relevant to the non-fan folk who read this newsletter (hi, thank you for sticking around,) it reminds me of an exercise I undertook a few weeks ago just for shits and giggles. I googled “how to write a book” to see what the internet had for me, an aspiring author.
Notice that I didn’t google “how to become a bestseller,” or “how to make my book a reality.” (Also, peep that ad for an AI copywriting tool!) I just wanted to learn how to write a book. In the same way that fan authors don’t need to shell out money to participate in fan works, you, the writer, don’t need to pay money to be a writer or to learn how to write.
Are there things that money would help accomplish? Sure. But they’re not necessary. I’ve said this before, but even hiring a freelance editor like myself isn’t necessary or required for your book to be the best it can be or find an audience.
What we’re seeing is the ouroboros cycle of capitalism; what was once verboten is now available in the app store, where users are encouraged to monetize their hobbies, and writers are told when seeking information that the only way to be a writer is to shell out money for pricey courses.
So if you want to write porny Interview with the Vampire fanfic, go do it. If you want to write. If you want to pay money to take a class or hire an editor, go for it. Just don’t hold yourself back by thinking that you have to. (Also, if you write fanfic, don’t link your ko-fi to your fic! You WILL get sued!)
NANOWRIMO IS NIGH
I know, I know. It happens every year. Last year, my pal Rebecca Heyman and I did a fun monthlong program of downloads and discussions of the various stages of writing a book: Plot, Character, The Dreaded Middle, and Life After NaNo. (Those links should go to the relevant pages.)
This year I’m going to do something a little different. Since I’ve now outed myself as a person who has written a novel, I’m going to start a series talking about how I did it, and various approaches you can take to brainstorming, world building, drafting, and revision. It’ll be a little looser and a lot more personal, and if there’s anything specific you’d like me to discuss, please leave a comment or reply to the newsletter!
I’m starting early—next week to be precise, so it’ll be a six week series taking you through the end of November. I’ll also be participating in NaNoWriMo this year! I’ll be sharing updates each week on word count, drafting progress, etc. I hope you’ll join me on this journey—and feel free to forward the newsletter to anyone you think might be interested!
HOUSEKEEPING
Thank you to everyone who participated in the Back-to-School special! As a reminder I’m running an editing special through the end of October: if we book a project together, in addition to the regular services I’ll add on either a thirty-minute coaching/Q&A session or a query letter review.
If there is a topic you’d like me to address in this newsletter or a question you’d like answered, please leave it in the comments or reply to the email! I want to make sure I’m covering things y’all are interested in.
THIS WEEK IN HOCKEY
Things aren’t looking great for the Capitals as they begin the 2022-2023 regular season: they lost their second games to the Leafs, of all people, and their power play seems fundamentally incapable of scoring. In happier news, however: happy birthday, Gritty!
LINKS
How a Tiny British Publisher Became the Home of Nobel Laureates by Alex Marshall (New York Times) When Jacques Testard started his own publishing company in 2014, he wanted a name that suggested a crazy endeavor. Testard called the imprint Fitzcarraldo Editions, a reference to the 1982 Werner Herzog movie in which a rubber baron tries to haul a 320-ton steamboat over a hill in the middle of the Amazon rainforest. “It was not a very subtle metaphor on the stupidity of setting up a publishing house,” Testard, 37, recalled recently. Publishing often “feels like you’re just digging a hole in the ground and chucking money into it,” he added.
READING: For The Wolf by Hannah Whitten
WATCHING: Miss S (HBO Max)
LISTENING: The Rose (더로즈) – Sour
This has been A Faster No, a dispatch on publishing, writing, books, and beyond. Is there something you’d like me to talk about? Leave it in the comments or reply to the email! You can support the newsletter here. If you purchase a book from any of the links to Bookshop.org I get a small commission at no cost to you. I am available for developmental editing and editorial assessment services via Reedsy.
On a kind-of-related topic...
What are your thoughts on "fan fic with the serial numbers filed off"? (As in, stories that were originally fan fic, until the writer decided to monetise, so they took the fic down, rewrote to change numbers and any references to the 'verse the fan fic was part of, then republished.) I'm personally not a fan, but at least one publisher must still be if they're still contracting and publishing it...
P.S. I only just now remembered the term is P2P ("pulled to publish").