There comes a time when fandom becomes less of an escape from anxiety to being the source of anxiety. Sometimes I need to remind myself what’s important to focus on, and I made this chart to help me with that.
(Posting this at the request of a few people. The design/concept was inspired by an instagram post about covid-19 located here).
A LOT of people in this fandom need to take note of this.
Other things I can’t control:
What causes or groups authors align themselves with
The political or religious beliefs of anyone other than myself
Who others follow
Whether or not other people tag things
How people tag things
Whether or not I get a reply to a DM
What topics other people choose to write about and in what way(s)
What turns me on, turns me off, grosses me out, and/or triggers me
What turns other people on, turns them off, grosses them out, and/or triggers them
How other people respond to me and my fanworks/headcanons/etc.
Which demographics make up my fandoms
Anyone’s motivation for writing about X, Y, or Z.
Other people’s pasts or backgrounds
My past or background
How they choose to portray characters and situations
Anyone’s writing style or grammar, other than my own
Whether or not anyone chooses to use trigger warnings and archive warnings
How (or if) they summarize their story
Whether or not other people like the villains or sympathize with them
Whether or not anyone chooses to share their backstory and how much of it they share if they do
How “woke” anyone else might/might not be
The fact that certain fandoms exist at all
What other people do/don’t masturbate to
Whether adults like a fandom aimed at kids, or whether kids like a fandom meant for adults, and why.
What’s trendy right now (or not)
When, whether, and why any fandom becomes popular or mainstream
I can, however, control…
Which causes, groups, etc. I align myself with
How and whether I tag
How and whether I warn
How and whether I summarize
How (or if) I choose to interact with other fans
How I respond to my feelings and triggers
Which topics I write about and how I write about them
Whether or not I participate in a given fandom
My political, religious, etc. beliefs and opinions
How much (if any) of my backstory I choose to reveal to others
My behavior towards other fans
Who I friend, follow, unfriend, and unfollow
Whether or not I click on anything



















