I’ve seen a decent amount of complaints from people about new phannies (which, fair ) and something I’ve seen you and a lot of other people say is that they should spend some time just browsing before actually interacting.
I lurked in the dnp tag for months before I made a tumblr account, but a lot of times I still feel so clueless. I don’t want to contribute to the annoyance, so I was wondering if you have any other tips or anything you’d like to see from new fans?
This ask is really sweet, and I really appreciate how you've approached this! I will note, I have had like 3 specific blogs on my shitlist over the past couple weeks who all specifically admitted to not having any interest in Dan and Phil until they came out as a couple, and I've had so many wonderful conversations and interactions with fans who also became fans around the same time, so it definitely does depend on how you approach it!
For me, one of the biggest things, exactly like you said, is feeling the vibe of a community. Up until a couple weeks ago (where, granted, I spent a few months off of tumblr), I was under the impression that the Dan and Phil fan space was a place where people could come together to discuss the sort of content and conversations Dan and Phil have and have a safe space to hear other people's opinions on the subject! Lately, sadly, I've been finding that every post is strictly about how romantic Dan and Phil are and how in love they are and speculation about their kinks, which to me crosses such a line that I don't even know where to begin.
Dan and Phil have been very clear what they consider "boundaries" in regards to the fan, and maybe it's because they don't spend much time on their public accounts on social media so they don't see the weird shit, and frankly they know tumblr has weird shit so like I GET it but I personally thought there was an understanding that the weird shit stays specifically on personal blogs and in fanfics rather than in the main community hubs that are public for everyone to see.
I think the fact that you're even considering how other people feel means you're not contributing to the nuisance in the slightest, but the biggest Tumblr rules of thumb in my opinion are a) remember that this is a community where other people are free to have opinions and conversations about their opinions, and if that's not something you want to participate in that's totally fine, but it's also each individual user's responsibility to manage their post accessibility and not get upset at people if they disagree or have a critique worth considering, which leads into my next point, b) if someone tells you that you're making them uncomfortable, it's your responsibility to reflect on your actions as to why that happened. It might not always be your "fault" and your best judgement is always beneficial in the case, but there are some people who have amassed a massive handful of people who are incredibly uncomfortable by the sort of the content they post to every main fandom tag and force people to interact with if we want to block them. Leading into my last point, c) please tag trigger warnings and fandom content appropriately!! For me, my blog is a bit more personal so I do sometimes forget to tag trigger warnings, but I also make a point of not tagging any popular tags in the posts that may require a trigger warning. For things like detailed and graphic sex speculations, self harm, even drug use, giving people the opportunity to filter triggering content will always be the most considerate approach.
I hope this essay wasn't too long for you! Thank you so much for your ask, I do try and give people grace regarding the things they post but it also simultaneously makes me sad when people come into an established space and make it weird 😅
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