I first want to say thank you for your post acknowledging the concerns of your community. The topic of boundaries is one that’s been discussed at length in mcyt spaces for years, and most fans have incredibly strong and reactionary opinions about it. I can only imagine how much harder it is when you are the topic of discussion. I watched your recent stream live, and it is with this understanding that I’d like to make some suggestions on places you can start researching into fandom culture within and outside of mcyt. You are of course free to ignore this, and I can’t guarantee that you will agree with everything I’ve suggested. But I hope this might help add some nuance to your understanding and give a few jumping-off points for further research, rather than making a checklist on what I personally think you should do.
The MCYT Metazine is a collection of academic essays by fans analyzing the mcyt fandom space. I personally think it’s the most important collection of mcyt fandom analysis published to date, and each comes with a bibliography. If you only have time for a few essays, I reccomend “rinse, lore, repeat” and “crossing a boundary.” If you are looking for reading on how fandom has historically operated outside of mcyt spaces, I suggest starting with the fanlore pages for “fanon,” “RPF,” and “the three laws of fandom.” Your emphasis on proper tagging and filtering during the stream was greatly appreciated, and I encourage checking out Tumblr’s guide on “Tag and Post Content Filtering” for how to apply that advice for yourself. For an example of what not to do, search for “Anne Rice fanfiction drama.”
Watching your stream the other day was very insightful into how content creators view certain aspects of fandom. Even if you were misguided in some areas, you spoke from a genuine place of wanting the best for your fellow creators and audience, and I want you to know how much I appreciate that as a fan. However, what you are setting is not boundaries, they’re rules that cannot reasonably be enforced outside the bounds of your own discord server. Looking at historical fandom and mcyt boundary drama I’ve lived through, I do not believe that setting rules and encouraging “asking” is the answer to the problems you are facing. The current state of the mcyt fandom is equally at fault for making you feel uncomfortable as you are for misunderstanding aspects fandom culture. I’ve lost too many friends who did nothing wrong to harassment campaigns using “cc boundaries” to excuse their actions, and I’ve seen too many creators retreat from interacting with fans due to rampant disrespect and parasociality as a direct result of enacting those kinds of policies. It’s a complicated topic that isn’t as black and white as some of the discourse would have you believe.
As a fandom with a relatively young fanbase, a lot of aspects of mcyt fandom don’t line up with how fandom has historically existed, and the fandom is still relearning lessons that were already solved twenty years ago. You’re correct that it’s ridiculous to assume you won’t see things online with your name attached, and it’s perfectly reasonable to be upset that things you don’t like exist about yourself and your creations. That’s why tagging and filtering exists - they are boundaries that can be enforced by you and others, because no amount of saying “don’t do it” can stop it from happening. Blocking is its own form of respect. I truly believe that with mutual understanding, creators can participate in fandom.
I love this fandom with my whole heart and want to see it thrive. I’ve seen some of the most incredible fanworks, community bonding, shared joy, and deep respect for other’s personhood that goes far beyond a set of rules or expectations set by content creators. Mcyt has such a unique and rich culture, and I wish more people could enjoy it, including creators. I’m so sorry that you’ve found yourself in the middle of this heated discussion and received hate for something you didn’t completely understand, and while it might not mean much, I have a lot of respect for how you’ve chosen to address it. As a person who values open communication, your willingness to research and thoughtfully engage has given me a lot of hope for the future of this fandom.
Thank you for hearing me out. I’m always happy to discuss further if you ever want to reach out on your own terms, fan-to-fan or creator-to-fan, just as you are welcome to ignore or block me if this was an overstep. You are responsible for your own experience on the internet, and you can always experience the back button.
