11 Fan-types, Bob the Builder Style
A list no one wanted or asked for. Which one(s) are you?
1. The Excavator: The ravenous, the feral, the fandom crunchers. They consume any type of content that holds their special little guys, gals and thems, and they'll let everyone know about it sans tagging system. Fics, art, edits, zines, it doesn't matter; they'll reblog it all right then and there, queues and dashboards be damned.
2. The Front Loader: These fans keep tags and conversations (the lifeblood of any fandom) alive. They love filing, archiving, rec lists and compilations, and they keep your characters rotating on the rotisserie through meticulous reposting, recommendations, tag tracking and scheduling. For them, love is stored in the posterity.
3. The Front and Backhoe Loader: The Double threat joy. These fans make and consume fanworks in turn, creating an ecosystem of fan-to-creator-to-fan perpetual sustainability. The characters are written in their will, their queue is set to run out in the year 2029, and their WIP folder will leak periodically, making them the catch-all-fan.
4. The Flat Bed Truck: The enigma. These fans are whatever they feel like on that day; they'll drop Luvre-worthy fanart once a decade. They'll write a 300K fic on a whim and never write a word again. They'll disappear for 5 years before resurfacing and jiving like no time has passed. They're Schrodinger's fans.
5. The Dump Truck: These fans carry large volumes of content - but mostly their own. They pull up and unload their bed of materials before promptly driving off to the next site. Unlike The Front Loader, these fans tend to simultaneously vague-post about lacking a sense of 'community', 'engagement' or 'interaction', creating an internet 3.0 ouroboros.
6. The Fork Lift: The quiet fans, the ones who have always been here but didn't want or care for you to know it. They've got their lanes to stay in, and they flit around the multi-fandom racks, but they'll turn up to support their faves from yonder year no matter what.
7. The Bulldozer: The fandom Colin Robinsons. They force-feed the things they create, apply their squiks/triggers to the things you create, and delight in Discourse™ - but usually from the shadows. Typically in the form of a BNF, a True Bulldozer is often confused with their Fandom Darling counterpart, and outwardly thrives regardless of intent or perception.
8. The Concrete Mixer: The hotbed of inspiration, the avatar that's solidified in your mind. These fans spark joy for their mutuals, live for reblog chains, and always have hc's and hot takes to keep the fandom buzzing. They'll revive old posts, they'll find new blood, they’ll surf tags in your stead and they'll do the most to make sure you're never without a shower thought concerning your favourite fictional fellas.
9. The Cherry Picker: They know what they like, they know what they want, and there isn't a damn thing anyone can/will or should do to change it. They create for self-indulgence, they love 1 of your 20 fics with all their heart, but the others just aren't for them. They pick and choose and tailor their experience to the max, and their blocked tag list is longer than your arm.
10. The Crane: Fans that have seen it all. They were there when it was written, and they watch from above and lift those up from the trenches with their creations/citations/motivations. Not to be confused with their sister, the "Fandom Godmother", The Crane never seeks and can only be sought.
11. The Road Roller: The unicorn, the Fandom Darling who is actually a darling. They create, consume, and delight in their interests, they've perfected their craft, and they'll bowl you over with their magic, but they're humble about it because all they're looking for is a smooth ride. Everyone knows and - rightfully - adores the Road Roller.
Working together, they get the job done.
