I’m sitting here, working my part time job, think of the past
I was 12 years old when a friend introduced me to WATTPAD in 2013.
In the ye olde days I was into 1D RPF.
I learned and grew. I was taught the ways of fandom, and learned how to interact with others
At one point, I had a Tumblr acct (rip LOSTINABOOK2001 you are missed)
I made friends who would sit with me in the music room under the church, and during class we would collaboratively write PJO and HOO fanfic.
I moved, and relied on fanfic to get me through
I switched to FF.N, and got more involved in fandom, even as I stayed isolated from those around me.
I had one or two friends throughout that time, and I must have had an AO3 acct, although I don’t remember what it was now.
I used to write my fanfic on my kindle fire, while constantly resetting the parental controls.
These days, I write on my laptop, using the accounts I’ve had since 2019, when I was still a freshman in college.
Time changes people. Time changes our perspectives and how we approach life. Looking back, today I probably wouldn’t read the same LiamxNiall fics i read back in the day.
Instead, I am DEEP in the world of Batman. I still adore PJO. I write more than i ever thought I could.
These days, I’m not nearly as open IRL about my fanfic and my love of the fandom community. As it has become more popular, more common to speak about, I have drawn in. In a sense, I guess I am protecting the parts of fandom I cherish. I am protecting the identity I have created for myself in an online world that does not care what I look like, how I dress, or where I am from. I have mutuals who engage with me, and I hoard memes to send to my lil brother.
Fandom is constantly changing. I guess today in a lil nostalgic for days long passed. I love the community that I exist in today. I am grateful for my mutuals, and the people who guided me to the fandom world.
I’ve been running into discourse about fandom on other platforms. I don’t know if I have the brain capacity to fully formulate my thoughts on all that while in the depths of grad school and my internship. But I do know that I love the world that fandom creates. I have a little corner of the internet full of people I know and trust. And I’m so grateful and happy to be here. And that yall are here.
