How A Fandom's Self Destructive Behavior Nearly Tore It At the Seams
Preface
As anyone familiar with my content can probably tell, I'm a huge fan of the Danganronpa games, and I've dedicated the quite a bit of my online presence to the creation of Danganronpa fanart, theories, animatics, and other short stories. I've praised the series for its creativity, complexity, and novelty with the use of pop art in an otherwise grim setting, and ultimately, this series is quite special t me. Of course, it's by no means perfect, but I'm for the most part able to look past its many imperfections and appreciate it for what it is. Nonetheless, there's a glaring flaw within this series that, in spite of my efforts, I simply can't seem to ignore. While I typically discuss poor writing or characterization in my analyses and make up for that with which I am unsatisfied via fanfiction, headcanons, and so forth (this blog is dedicated to several characters who were underrepresented ffs!), I simply can't seem to look past this issue, as many people are aware of it, but are unable to put a stop to it. Imagination is not a magical fix, and this issue is indicative of that: the worst part of Danganronpa, t least in my experience, is the community itself.
Now, please be warned. The following post contains spoilers for all of the visual novels and anime seasons as well as the light novels. If you have not seen the aforementioned installments and you plan to, please click away now.
This post is most certainly not a positive one, and I'm fully aware that it could bring about controversy. Nonetheless, if I am able to reach out to at least one person and perhaps change the way they go about these things, I will be satisfied.
Now, disclaimer. I have met absolutely wonderful people thanks to this community. You have my deepest gratitude for your support, and I know I wouldn't quite have the courage to share my work had it not been for your kindness. This post is not directed at you or any specific individual, but rather at behaviors I have seen all throughout this fandom. Furthermore, this is not an isolated incident, but rather a pattern.
Enjoy this artwork if you don't feel like reading
The First Issue: Performative Activism
Although Danganronpa is a fairly old game (it’s having its 11th birthday this year), it gained a “cult following” in mid 2020. The subreddit doubled in size over the course of that summer, and it gained even more popularity when big youtubers, such as the GameGrumps, Kubz Scouts, and Bijuu Mike did let’s plays. I myself followed the games through CinnamonToastKen’s let’s plays when I discovered them in January 2020 (and yes, I’m still subbed to Ken). Because of this radical and exponential growth, as well as the emergence of TikTok, the fandom became all the more diverse. People of all ages partook in it, and more people began to raise awareness in regards to properly representing underrepresented demographics, such as the LGBT community, individuals with disabilities, the neurodivergent community, and so forth.
Now, make no mistake. This is a wonderful thing. As a woman of color, I love seeing the fans come together and push for positive representation. It’s wonderful to feel included, especially when most communities are unwilling to accept you. I have no doubt that the fans certainly care about the groups for which they advocate; it’s very noble to educate yourself on an issue and use your platform to raise awareness. However, there’s a thin line between speaking *with* a marginalized group and talking *over* a marginalized group. It’s easy for activists to forget that it isn’t necessarily about them, but rather the group for which they are advocating. There are many instances of the fandom’s “activism” doing more harm than good, and I’ve dedicated the following section to the many instances of performative activism within the Danganronpa fandom.
Homophobia
A large portion of the fanbase identifies as LGBTQ+, and as such, have integrated it into various elements of the game. I myself am a part of the LGBT community, and I see absolutely no issue with this: Japan isn’t necessarily known for its progressive attitude towards LGBT folks, and it’s great to see that the fandom is inclusive! Representation in fiction can be a huge source of solace, especially when an individual feels as if they’re alone in their demographic. While this has, for the most part, stayed positive, I’ve noticed an increase in “homophobia” allegations being levied at other fans, most of which is entirely unwarranted.
I have seen numerous people claim that shipping Tenko Chabashira, Nagito Komaeda, and Kokichi Ouma with members of the opposite sex is somehow “gay erasure” and as such, a form of homophobia. Now, it is neither my right nor my place to harass other fans for simply thinking or saying this, but I’ve seen people harass other shippers for it. I’ve specially seen this with Komanami, Chabahara, and most recently, Oumeno. In fact, I’ve seen a select group claim that simply interpreting them as bisexual is a form of homophobia and warrants significant backlash.
Please understand: this mentality in and of itself is not only incredibly bi/panphobic, but also implies that the very existence of bi/pan/MSPEC people threatens that of homosexual individuals. Bi/pansexual people may have a bit more representation in media than exclusively homosexual or asexual people, the representation isn’t always positive. In “cheating” storylines with same sex relationships, the bisexual character is almost always the unfaithful one.
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Even Danganronpa itself doesn’t have the greatest track record when it comes to portraying the LGBT community in the positive light. A good number of the characters (who have been confirmed/heavily hinted to be LGBT) are portrayed as sexual deviants or other negative stereotypes:
*In the anime, it’s shown that Mukuro Ikusaba is deeply in love with her sister (anime only), and engages in mutual sexual acts with her
*Teruteru Hanamura, who by his own admission “swings both ways” makes multiple unwanted sexual advances on his classmates, even going as far as to drug a dish he made for Hajime Hinata.
*Miu Iruma groped both Kaede Akamatsu and Shuichi Saihara during their free time events, and even attempted to “baby trap” the latter during a love hotel event.
Even if bi/pansexuals are arguably more represented, the representation isn’t always positive.
If a person finds comfort in interpreting a character as bi, pan, or MSPEC, *let them.* Preventing them from doing so isn’t “punching up,” but instead depriving a community that still struggles to be accepted from finding solace; in addition, it further drives a wedge between members of the LGBT community as well as its allies.
Members of the LGBT community and allies alike ought to stand together. We’ve struggled enough as it is, and the last thing we need is infighting in our community. Not only are we isolating our allies, but we are making our *own* community feel targeted, attacked, and alone.
Racism
The fandom has a similar issue with claims of “racism.” I have seen people say it’s racist to make weed jokes about Yasuhiro Hagakure, one of the few black/biracial characters in the series. There are a lot of inside jokes in regards to Hiro being a stoner, and he has even been dubbed “weedman” in the fandom. Like Hiro, I am biracial (only black and white as opposed to black and Asian).
As of recent, a portion of the fandom has claimed that these types of jokes are racist, as they perpetuate negative stereotypes about black people, and that simply making these jokes can warrant being labeled a racist.
It’s okay to dislike or feel uncomfortable with the weed jokes, as Hiro certainly has a character outside of that. I have neither the right nor the authority to tell people what they should and should not be comfortable with. Likewise, we as fans have no right to tell other fans what they should and should not joke about. There are some people of color, including myself, who aren’t in any way offended by the weed jokes. Please don’t be offended on behalf of the group for which you are advocating, and please refrain from referring to other people as “racist” for making those kinds of jokes. If you truly believe that they were wrong in their actions, why not politely point it out via the ask box for comment section? If they respond in a hostile manner or refuse to come to an agreement, you can always block them and move on.
And for the record, Hiro isn’t the only character that the fandom labeled as a stoner. Rantaro Amami is also on the receiving end of those types of jokes, even if it’s not quite as often as Hiro. I don’t think it has anything to do with race, and moreso to do with their personalities.
Offensive Humor/Remarks
Now, if someone personally stops asking you to make a joke with/around them, then that’s a different story, and I believe that their wishes ought to be respected. For instance, if you were in a DM with someone and you made a dark joke and they asked you to stop, then it would be best to simply respect that and move on. Otherwise, you don’t have to interact with people who are making the jokes in general, and that goes for anything controversial (in my personal opinion). I believe that jokes and genuine beliefs, while not mutually exclusive, are very distinct in nature.
The fandom has levied various accusations against people who make dark or otherwise questionable jokes, which include but are not limited to abuse apologists, racists, pedophiles, abusers, and ableists. I’ve seen this quite a bit with “Alabama” jokes about Korekiyo Shinguji and his sister, to the point where fans sometimes go out of their way to hurt the person making the joke.
That’s not to say that the fans have no right to be offended. Just as you can joke about whatever you want, you are allowed to feel uncomfortable or even offended by anything. Nonetheless, there’s no reason to dox, harass, or otherwise harm an individual/group of individuals simply because their jokes are upsetting or offensive to you.
Also, please don’t take offense on behalf of another individual or demographic. As person belonging to various minorities, I find it uncomfortable and even a bit irritating, even if I know there’s good intent behind it.
No one should have to be so fearful that they act offended on behalf of another demographic in order to avoid having the aforementioned accusations levied at them. I think we ought to break the cycle and start by handling disagreements and disparities in a more mature manner.
If some content truly causes you discomfort, you can do one of two things.
1. Block the user.
The block button does wonders; I wish we had one irl.
2. Download Tumblrsavior.
There’s an extension, tumblrsavior, that allows the users to “blacklist” certain tags so that they’re less likely to come across any uncomfortable or triggering content. While I don’t personally use it, I’ve known about it for quite some time, and I’m happy to see that it’s still on the chrome store. I’m not sure if it’s accessible on the mobile version, but the block button is always a great idea.
TumblrSavior for Chrome: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/tumblr-savior/oefddkjnflmjbclpnnoegglmmdfkidip?hl=en
TumblrSavior for Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/tumblr-savior/
Failure To Distinguish Fiction and Reality
Furthermore: This fandom fails to distinguish the line between fiction and reality. While it’s true that fiction and reality can mirror one another, it’s important to remember that they’re ultimately different mediums. What one finds acceptable in fiction rarely matches what they find acceptable in the real world, and I feel that the fandom tends to forget this. Even worse, they take the accusations mentioned in the previous section, apply it to people who they feel are worthy of it, and even go out of their way to “cancel” these people. The following paragraphs discuss the importance of recognizing the boundary between imagination and reality.
“Abuse Apologists”
Korekiyo Shinguji is a controversial character to say the least. In chapter 3, it was revealed that he had an incestuous relationship with his late sister, and has since dedicated his life to meeting 100 “worthy” women and murdering them one by one so that his sister could have 100 worthy friends in the afterlife; Angie Yonaga and Tenko Chabashira were his unlucky victims. While little is known about Korekiyo’s sister in canon (including her name), there are various hints that she may have been a controlling person, and that her relationship with Kiyo was unhealthy to say the least. As such, it is a widely accepted notion that the relationship was abusive, and that Korekiyo was the true victim of chapter 3.
If I’m being honest, I think that this is a viable theory, and had it not been hammered home so haphazardly, I might have explored/accepted it. What put the icing on the cake was that the fandom accepted this as canon and was quick to label anyone who disagreed or even joked about the relationship as an “abuse apologist.” I have seen various people on the receiving end of harsh criticism and even harassment for simply making a *joke* about the situation. Now, it’s one thing to dislike or feel uncomfortable with that type of humor, but we as an audience have no right to tell others what they can and cannot joke about, especially if it wasn’t directed at us personally. But at the same time, it’s incredibly presumptuous to assume one’s moral code or past based on a snarky comment they made on YouTube.
You don’t know these people or what they have been through. And they’re in no way obliged to disclose their experiences, especially not to a group that was willing to cast judgement on them for a single opinion on a fictional character. You can’t necessarily judge one’s character based upon their fictional preferences, but the way they treat other people certainly says a lot.
Vigilantism
In a similar vein, youtuber Bijuu Mike received harassment because he was *suspected* of shipping Byakuya Togami with Toko Fukawa. While I personally dislike the relationship for a variety of reasons (and think that *both* parties were in the wrong), that in no way justifies what Mike and many other people in this fandom had to endure for simply liking a ship.
What a person ships in a fictional series rarely, if ever, reflects what they believe to be ethical in reality. The majority of shippers understand that fiction and reality are two entirely different mediums, and as such, don’t necessarily condone in real life what they might explore in fiction. That’s not to say I support certain ships or characters’’ actions, but the people who do shouldn’t have to face harassment, doxing, or even death threats for it.
Doxing is in no way warranted, and it has the potential to ruin a person’s livelihood for years to come. If you see something that you believe is questionable/against a website’s terms of service, report it, perhaps block the user, and move on. If you see something illegal or believe that there are actual people/animals being harmed (and not just fictional ones), report it to the proper authorities. It’s easy to forget that carrying out justice over the internet does very little for the actual victims/potential victims. The justice system rarely, if ever, takes internet vigilantism seriously, and behaviors like the aforementioned can jeopardize a potential court case. When reporting a crime (as a third party), it isn’t about you, but rather the victim(s) and those close to them. You have to act with their best interest in mind; otherwise, you could have potentially stopped a victim from getting the justice they deserve.
In addition, reporting something like a drawing or fanfiction to the police only wastes their time. Several organizations have asked
Also- do you really think that this behavior is going to change someone’s mind? If anything, they’re more likely to oppose your idea, as they’ll associate it with the harassment they endured.
We don’t have the right to control what other people post, so long as they don’t violate the TOS, harm other people, or violate any laws. If someone ships Toko and Togami, you’re entitled to dislike it, but they’re entitled to discuss it without having to fear harassment or being called an “abuse apologist.” Once again, if it truly upsets you, you’re more than welcome to blacklist the tags via tumblrsavior and block the user.
Chihiro Fujisaki
While I’ve discussed Chihiro discourse in the past, I’d like to raise a few points here that I failed to mention in that post. Another great example of this is the Chihiro discourse. As some of you may know, two trans artists ended up being on the receiving end of some harsh, unwarranted, and quite frankly asinine harassment for headcanoning Chihiro as a transgender woman. Someone even used the “t” slur against one of the aforementioned artists. On the flipside, I myself have received flack for referring to Chihiro with male pronouns (though it isn’t nearly on the same level as what Plumb1tes and especially Tea0-0stache dealt with), and I’ve refrained from discussing Chihiro frequently for fear of getting caught up in unnecessary drama. I quite frankly think that most everyone in this debate is in the wrong simply because they refuse to listen to any opposing arguments, but that’s simply my viewpoint. So long as you go about it respectfully, I have no problem with interpretations of Chihiro’s character.
People can interpret Chihiro however they choose. I see Chihiro as a boy with Klinefelter Syndrome (discussed here), but that doesn’t necessarily invalidate other interpretations. A lot of trans men/AFAB people on this site identify with Chihiro because his dysphoria was, in their words, quite similar to theirs. Some trans women identify with Chihiro and his struggles. We as the public have no right to take that comfort away from them, especially when they’re already a marginalized group. I understand that it may not necessarily align with canon, but the beauty of it is that *your* interpretation of a character or arc does not have to be the same as someone else’s interpretation. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to share ideas, discuss, and perhaps come to an agreement while celebrating our difference.
Oh wait-
When you attempt to force your personal headcanons/interpretations on other people, that’s exactly what you’re preventing them from doing.
For instance: I identify a lot with Mondo Owada’s character (even if our upbringings, principles, and personalities are incredibly different) because his survivor’s guilt. It’s highly personal to me, and I don’t feel comfortable disclosing the details on this platform. Imagine if I found the courage to finally share this story only to be shot down because it doesn’t fit someone else’s interpretation. That would suck, right?
That’s exactly what some of you guys are doing to each other. It’s as if protecting a fictional character’s feelings are somehow more important than a real person’s wellbeing/emotional state. As I mentioned previously, we are in no position to dictate what content another user can and cannot post, and we ought to cease this behavior.
When integrating fiction and reality, it’s easy fo forget that fictional characters are merely the byproduct of imagination. You won’t hurt their feelings, but you can certainly hurt someone else’s feelings. I frankly find it asinine that numerous people have been bullied off of this platform for the sake of a character who, while endearing and sweet, isn’t real.
To Conclude
Some of the behavior i have witnessed in this fandom is nothing short of abhorrent, and this is simply scratching the surface of it all. I’ve merely addressed the points that I believe are understated.
If you are partaking in these behaviors, just stop. Instead of writing that caustic comment or publishing that “callout” post, why not just try to have a discussion with that user? If nothing else, please think before you post.
This debacle has been plaguing the fandom for years, and I think it’s high time we put aside our differences and do what we know is right.
hey! as an artist do you ever feel discouraged by the like/reblog ratio here? ive been postin art here for some time and ive found for every 20 likes i get maybe 1 reblog and while i dont wanna come over as greedy it like kinda discourages me :( i would rlly like to stay on tumblr bc it feels much more anonymous than insta/twitter but i also crave Validation ykno. ty in advance!
Okay, but I fear you won’t like my answer...
My reply is - no, I don’t, because tumblr actually makes it super easy to ignore the reblog/like ratio. The two are lumped together into a category called ‘notes’ so unless you are looking for it, you won’t know what your reblog/like ratio is, and it’s super easy to view it as a lump sum of people who saw your art and smiled.
Here’s the thing; liking vs reblogging is not personal. And it isn’t something to try to change the tide over. I’ve seen my fair share of posts on here AND twitter, with most of them CONDEMNING liking - going so far as to call it useless. But I disagree. Strongly.
My opinion on the matter is this - if people wanted to reblog the post, they would reblog it. If they don’t, the cards weren’t right. The stars didn’t align. It isn’t a matter of quality - it’s a matter of the right content being there at the right time for the right audience. Because let’s face is - PLENTY of stuff gets reblogged.... when the circumstances are right.
But the circumstances HAVE to be right. EXACTLY right. There has to be a CHAIN of the exact right circumstances. That’s how sharing ANYTHING works.
Let me put it this way - say we have a hypothetical follower called J.
J is scrolling his dashboard and comes across a post he likes, say, of a frog picture. He likes the post and has to make a decision - to reblog or not reblog the frog?
Say he likes the frog enough to reblog. It’s a natural thing - he wants to show it to his followers. He may not think of it consciously, but he’s following an instinct to share information with people.
But what happens after? Well, it’s not RANDOM. The thing is, J’s followers are NOT the followers of the blog he reblogged it from. They’re a degree of separation from the OP, and are therefore that much less likely to share interests that align with the OP’s content.
SO what happens is this:
Some people on J’s follower list see the frog and like it.
Of the ones that like it, a percentage are just liking out of habit and politeness.
A few are liking it to find it later and show it to their irl friends.
A few are liking it because they DON’T want to reblog it, because it doesn’t align with what they want to show to THEIR followers (who are, let’s be honest, even MORE removed from the OP’s frog-centric content).
And who’s to blame?
ABSOLUTELY NO ONE. Because you cannot force people to reblog stuff any more than you can force people to show their friend their phone when they see a funny meme.
Can you imagine something like this happening?
This is ridiculous, right? We cannot presume that people are not reblogging because they’re out to be malicious on purpose. Most likely they just aren’t motivated enough to share it in their own social circles for their own reasons - and that’s FINE.
Look, I get it. People not sharing your stuff gets you less notes. I get how that is disappointing. But if you put ALL of your motivation into internet clout, then you have to put effort into making your art VISIBLE. That’s the only way to get more reblogs.
For example, if you’re prioritizing visibility:
Get more social media accounts. Make sure the usernames are the same, or at least recognizable, across all social media.
Organize your art tumblr and twitter. Make a pinned post that shows off your best work. TAG! Learn common tags used for artwork similar to yours.
Interact with other artists! Comment on posts! Reblog others’ artwork!
NETWORK!!! That is the only way to guarantee that the flowchart of reblogs gets more than once branch.
Twitter circumvents this issue by shoving likes in your face as often as Retweets and that’s certainly one way to give your reblog-tree a boost, but it’s not foolproof. Tumblr has tags you can follow - and that DOES give you more of a possibility of getting reblogs of the content because if people are in a tag, they are LOOKING for stuff. On purpose. They already like what they see.
I feel your pain, I really do, because it took me literal YEARS to find an audience that consistently likes and reblogged my stuff. And your audience deserves to find you - but your followers aren’t your agent. It’s not their job to advertise on your behalf.
They’ll reblog when they want to - and that’s a good thing. It’s more genuine that way.
Pro-writing tip: if your story doesn't need a number, don't put a fucking number in it.
Nothing, I mean nothing, activates reader pedantry like a number.
I have seen it a thousand times in writing workshops. People just can't resist nitpicking a number. For example, "This scifi story takes place 200 years in the future and they have faster than light travel because it's plot convenient," will immediately drag every armchair scientist out of the woodwork to say why there's no way that technology would exist in only 200 years.
Dates, ages, math, spans of time, I don't know what it is but the second a specific number shows up, your reader is thinking, and they're thinking critically but it's about whether that information is correct. They are now doing the math and have gone off drawing conclusions and getting distracted from your story or worse, putting it down entirely because umm, that sword could not have existed in that Medieval year, or this character couldn't be this old because it means they were an infant when this other story event happened that they're supposed to know about, or these two events now overlap in the timeline, or... etc etc etc.
Unless you are 1000% certain that a specific number is adding to your narrative, and you know rock-solid, backwards and forwards that the information attached to that number is correct and consistent throughout the entire story, do yourself a favor, and don't bring that evil down upon your head.
"Two centuries later" just triggers a mental note to check if timing is consistent throughout the book, because it may mean more time jumps are ahead. "200 years later", or heaven forbid, "201 years later" will have me draw up a time line. The more specific the number, the more critical people become.
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I’ve never seen such a customizable picrew before! For the first time I was able to accurately create Tsubako, my Gintama fankid OC, so thank you for that!
I am not a lawyer, but I can decently interpret legalese and, being as I also suffer from tl;dr syndrome and assume others may as well, I took one for the team and went through the updated TOS for the post+ accounts and highlighted (what I understand to be) the most pertinent information, which ultimately comes down to this:
You cannot monetize copyrighted works (aka charge and earn money from fanfic, fanworks, etc) and if you do decide to put your fanworks behind a paywall via Tumblr, when you are inevitably sued, Tumblr will not protect you and will not defend you and you alone, personally, will be responsible for whatever monetary damages said lawsuit results in.
If anyone is a lawyer and knows I've gotten any of this wrong, please do not hesitate to correct me/this post.
Screenshots taken from Tumblr's TOS (updated 7-21-21), Stripe's Account Agreement, and the post+ FAQs.
1. Your paid account will not be hosted by tumblr; it is routed through a 3rd party.
2. By signing up for a paid account, you're entering into an agreement with Stripe, so in addition to Tumblr's TOS, you are also bound to Stripe's TOS.
3. Stripe, like Tumblr, will not defend you or protect you against any lawsuits.
4. Furthermore, you may end up owing Stripe money (indemnify = compensate)
5. Tumblr's TOS specifically states that you can't put any content on your post+ account that violates any laws, including laws that protect intellectual property rights of others. This is super important, because Tumblr's post+ FAQ also states that you can post anything that you would regularly post on tumblr, which I'm sure many will take to mean that gifsets, fanworks, etc are fair game, since all of that stuff can be posted on tumblr now. However, the difference is, you're not making money from the fanworks you're posting or reblogging now. Once money enters the equation, the game changes.
Tumblr is making it seem like any and all content goes for post+ accounts, knowing 90% of this site is fanworks. This is not true and you'll be opening yourself up for lawsuits if you charge for fanworks.
6. Tumblr further disclaims any and all liability in any legal issues.
tl;dr: Please do not make a post+ account, bc you will be opening yourself to lawsuits and if that happens, Tumblr's response will be not our problem, you agreed to all the terms which said you couldn't do that, sorry not sorry. Please protect yourself.
This staff’s post explaining their POV on this just showed up on my wall, so here, have the relevant part:
We do, however, want to address the main concerns we are hearing:
Fanfiction & Copyright Infringement
Basically, the process works the same as it always has. And yes, the following information is coming to you straight from a lawyer:
We fully support Creators sharing their fanfiction and fanart on Tumblr. We encourage sharing creative work of all kinds on the platform.
Fanfiction and fanart are frequently considered fair use and we support our Creators’ fair use rights. Monetizing fan work does not necessarily mean that it isn’t fair use.
Any content posted on Tumblr, both free and monetized, should follow our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines, which prohibits infringing the intellectual property rights of others. Whether a piece of fanfiction meets the requirements for fair use varies depending on the work. Intellectual property rights holders are in the best position to decide if they think a fanfiction or fan art violates their rights. If they do, they can use the normal Tumblr DMCA process to identify content for removal. Creators can also take advantage of the normal counter-notification process if they believe the content was misidentified as infringing.
So, basically, with a bit of fancy wording around it how it’s gonna be Totally Cool, No Worries on tumblr’s side, OP’s point still stands fully, imo.
Once again, I am not a lawyer, but here's my interpretation (again, anyone who is a lawyer please correct me if I'm wrong) of the above post (because I think it's deliberately misleading):
Basically, the process works the same as it always has. And yes, the following information is coming to you straight from a lawyer: We fully support Creators sharing their fanfiction and fanart on Tumblr. We encourage sharing creative work of all kinds on the platform.
Emphasis mine. This is worded very specifically; Tumblr is not supporting or encouraging you to sell your fanworks. They are not encouraging you to charge for your fanworks. Share =/= sell.
We encourage you to share your fanworks
means
we encourage and support posts and reblogs containing copyrighted works, but we're not telling you to SELL ANYTHING, so if you do, then the consequences are your problem.
Fanfiction and fanart are frequently considered fair use and we support our Creators’ fair use rights. Monetizing fan work does not necessarily mean that it isn’t fair use.
I think this is irresponsible wording bc it makes it seem like you have the right to charge for copyrighted works if you claim that your work falls under fair use - but how many of us actually know what fair use means? And if you don't know what it means, how can you use it as a defense by claiming your work falls under it? I'll be honest, I don't really know what all "fair use" entails but when I looked it up I found a pretty straightforward and thorough explanation that cleared things up for me.
From this article on fair use, published by Stanford Libraries:
In its most general sense, a fair use is any copying of copyrighted material done for a limited and “transformative” purpose, such as to comment upon, criticize, or parody a copyrighted work. Such uses can be done without permission from the copyright owner. In other words, fair use is a defense against a claim of copyright infringement. If your use qualifies as a fair use, then it would not be considered an infringement.
So what is a “transformative” use? If this definition seems ambiguous or vague, be aware that millions of dollars in legal fees have been spent attempting to define what qualifies as a fair use. There are no hard-and-fast rules, only general guidelines and varied court decisions, because the judges and lawmakers who created the fair use exception did not want to limit its definition. Like free speech, they wanted it to have an expansive meaning that could be open to interpretation.
Most fair use analysis falls into two categories: (1) commentary and criticism, or (2) parody.
Emphasis mine.
Translation: You can share your fanworks (we're not telling you to sell them) and if you get in trouble, you can claim "fair use," and if that defense doesn't work because fair use isn't applicable, we will not protect you from whatever legal ramifications you face.
Whether a piece of fanfiction meets the requirements for fair use varies depending on the work. Intellectual property rights holders are in the best position to decide if they think a fanfiction or fan art violates their rights.
I'm just going to say Anne Rice and leave it at that.
Okay, I'll say more than that. Many authors, creators, etc won't hesitate to, at the very least send you a cease and desist and, at the worst, file a lawsuit against you. This is why it's so important that AO3 is non-profit and you can't link to or mention your ko-fi, patreon, etc - because many ip rights holders do not consider fanworks to be fair use and will go after authors (or artists, etc), so AO3's legal defense rests on "nobody is making money or profiting from this."
What Tumblr is doing is removing itself from any responsibility here by saying, okay, even if what you post isn't considered fair use, it's fine unless the person who owns that intellectual property decides to come after you, in which case, again, we are not going to protect you.
Tumblr went out of its way to say their statement on copyrights came directly from a lawyer. All this means to me is that Tumblr got their lawyer(s) to word their side in a way that protects them from any legal liability while still encouraging you to profit off of copyrighted works, and they're trying to make it seem like a lawyer has said this is fine, but that is very much not the case.
tl;dr: Copyright law and "fair use" are much more complicated than you might think, and the latter is probably not going to hold up as a defense if someone comes after you, and Tumblr still will not protect you. So again, by creating a post+ account and putting fanworks behind a paywall, you will be making yourself very vulnerable to legal action being taken against you and Tumblr will not do a thing to help you.
!!!!!!! If possible please reblog this version, re: tumblr's stance on fair use. I've already seen a few people saying tumblr said it's legal to monetize fanworks, so their post is definitely sending the wrong message to users.
Plenty of people here, myself included, don't want Post+. It's a paid subscription and will cause a lot (more) problems on this site.
What does it do?
- Allows blogs to create paid subscriptions that followers have to pay to see blog content. This can cause a lot of problems, as plenty of people come to Tumblr since it has never been a monetizable website.
- You can't block people who "support" your blog, meaning people can bypass the blocking system to harass blogs, just at a price.
- Creators have other outlets for these services, like Patreon.
- Again, nobody wants to pay for Tumblr posts.
Now, how can you help stop this?
By filling out Tumblr's Post+ survey! This allows you to give feedback about the Post+ system and what you would/wouldn't do. You can use this to directly inform Tumblr that you DO NOT want the "Post+" feature. If anyone has anything to add to this (info, updates, etc) I encourage you to! Keep resources current!
tagging a few people, PLEASE signal boost this (im too scared to tag big blogs, but feel free too)
@that-is-not-milk @that-goose @imapursoon @milkhater3000 @official-lucifers-child @a-real-fast-goose @awkward-sunshine-and-rainbows @radicalreliablerandomness @elmo-is-a-forgotten-god
make oc playlists. spend hours on moodboards that have no purpose. write self-indulgent fluff that’s never going to be published. scribble three lines of poetry in the back of your history notebook. draw fanart of your own characters. write stupid dialogue that your publishers might hate. start new wips that you might never finish but write those three chapters that make you happy because if you don’t write them, who else will?
writing shouldn’t always be about “will publishers like this” or “i have to reach this word count” or “how do i get the most likes”.
i like rantaro amami! he’s my favourite danganronpa boy and i am never not thinking about him. for the past two years, i’ve done a personal/semi advertised writing week in the week leading up to his birthday and i thought that this year i would host one officially!!
if you decide to participate in this week, please tag this blog so that i can see all of your contributions and boost them! also please tag all entries with [ # rantaro amami week 2021 ] and [ # amami week 2021 ], i will be following these tags in order to catch any entries that i miss.
amami week runs from september 27th through october 3rd, so mark your calendars!! i will be continuing to reblog this post and post updates as the days get closer.
i will be putting rules and guidelines underneath the cut, but first, here are the prompts for this year’s challenge!
day one (september 27th): sister/companionship
day two (september 28th): weather/map
day three (september 29th): contentment/haste
day four (s 30teptemberh): time/escape
day five (october 1st): regret/resolve
day six (october 2nd): fake smile/tears
day seven (october 3rd): birthday/free space
i am also on twitter as @/amamiweek, so please go follow me and boost the eventual prompts post that i release, i’m uh. i don’t know what i’m doing on twitter. so <3.
big thank you to @vianadraws @detectivesplotslies and my secret assistant (;)) for helping me put together the prompts for this year. you guys are awesome.
if you have any questions, thoughts, or concerns, please feel free to message this blog or shoot an ask! you can also message me on @toxicisnotapineapple which is my main and i’ll gladly help you out. as promised, i’m putting rules and restrictions under the cut.
stormborns
andulkaphoto
izzy806
2087
dededos
jbbartram-illu
