For the wonderful folks at @ellipsus-writes, I wrote a guest blog post about fanfiction and generative AI!
"Where the Wild Stories Are"
If you outsource the act of being a fan to AI, what does that leave you? Fan creators are powerful because theyâre deeply participatory media consumersâthey donât passively absorb a work, but grab onto it and reshape it to their will. Large tech and entertainment corporations prefer the passive: they want us sitting there, clicking a button, as stories wash over us like the automatic scroll of a video app. Next, next, next.
On the AI forces swirling around fanfictionâbut especially people using AI to generate fic. (Why?! The writing is the fun part!!)
(Also if you're unfamiliar with @ellipsus-writes, definitely check them out, especially if you're looking to get off gdocs as Google bludgeons the product to death with useless AI features. This post was editorially independentânot sponsored contentâthough we were very happy to do a sponsored segment for them on @fansplaining a while back. Their values strongly align with much of transformative fandomâand they even have an export-to-AO3 button!)
The inherent tension between canon and fanfiction does not turn on equality. Fanfiction writers and fan artists labor largely in anonymity and obscurity. Many of them come to terms with aspects of themselves through this labor of love or find support and validation they havenât found elsewhere. On the other side of the equation, there are professionals, some of them wealthy and famous, who are getting a paycheck. They are the ones whose version of the story the wider worldâeven many fanfiction writersâwill come to see as valid and true.
Thatâs all baked in, and even the most heartfelt expressions of respect and gratitude for fan creativity on the part of the pros cannot budge that underlying reality. Rightsholders who celebrate the prerogative of fans to believe and create what they want while asserting not only ownership but their special relationship to canonicity inevitably come off as flexing. But in my view, the Good Omens finale lands differently.
In our latest, @annejamison writes about the Good Omens series finale: âGood Omensâ Final Love Letter to Fanfiction.â Click through to read or listen to an audio version!
Does it already have a ship name, Calvid? Davin? SpaceHorrors? I don't know.
I was thinking about Life (2017) and what the not just subtext but TEXT of the movie was saying.
THIS SHIP IS CANON (in the worst possible way.)
Here's why...
Long post, unhinged meta under the cut:
â ïžSPOILERS FOR THE VERY END OF THE MOVIE! â ïž
Tw: rape, abuse, kidnapping, body horror, trauma, discussions of Mpreg, suicide mention
The Hypothesis: David is still alive at the end of the movie because Calvin decided to mate with him instead of eating him.
The Canon Evidence:
Calvin treats David differently than anyone else. He doesn't eat him and keeps him alive, even cushioning him with webbing when the pod crashes. (Which also prevents David from getting away from him. Also should be noted that Calvin is really fucking strong and David has muscle atrophy and various health issues from his prolonged stay in space--he's not going anywhere.)
When Calvin attacks David in the pod it's not like the other times Calvin attacked the crew. While not graphic in depiction, the scene with Calvin's violent advances, David's screams and vacant expression highly resembles a rape, which it probably was.
As mentioned on Reddit, the symbolism at the end of the movie of the pod in the ocean with the rescue ships going towards it resembles an embryo being fertilized.
This might be a bit of a stretch but David seems to be kind of Mom-coded. Earlier in a tearjerker scene David is seen reading a children's book. Also as the medical offer functions in a nurturing role for the rest of the crew. He's the mom friend. Also for the others who rotated in this is a mission. But for David the ISS is his home. He's a stay at home mom.
Given all these context clues, whether David is capable of having his alien babies or not, that was probably what Calvin was trying to do.
Word of God states Calvin establishes communication with David while the pod is falling and Earth isn't necessarily doomed. What is the point of going to the effort to communicate with your food or feed him to your hypothetical offspring? Of course Calvin could just be a sadistic asshole and taunting him. But with the whole webbing Mycelium thing It seemed like he was putting in a lot more effort than with anyone else. He wants his life partner to talk to him.
("C'mon baby, don't be like that. I thought the screaming meant you liked it. Was I not enough to satisfy you? That's okay we'll work on this. I know I'm still small in this form. Don't worry I'll eat a lot more humans and grow much bigger for you. ;) )
Speculation, interpreting the Chase scene
David thinks he's using himself as bait because Calvin wants to eat him, a reasonable assumption as he's eaten everyone else so far. But that's not what Calvin is doing.
Calvin might think David is saying "hey sexy I like you, look I brought you gifts of oxygen but I'm gonna make you chase me because I'm playing hard to get, and look at this nice safe nesting place (the escape pod) I found for us."
Calvin accepts.
And then Calvin performs a terrifying dance of power and dominance, shows off his huge tentacles tipped with knives, and tries to woo David with his colorful head flaps, like a male bird showing off it's color patches for a female while David stares impassively in passive acceptance--actually frozen in horror with nothing to do and nowhere to escape to but since David doesn't eat him or try to get away Calvin interprets that as a yes, that David wants him too.
David screams in pain. The audience does not see what exactly Calvin does to him but it's a fair bet he's aggressively taking him with those huge barbed knife tentacles, no lube.
Afterwards when Calvin establishes communication/reads David's mind, Calvin likely sees David like a Femme (Homme) Fatale who led him on, trying to tempt him to his doom but seeing as he was trying to kill himself as well Calvin might think David was just confused, broken, brainwashed and used by these vile humans. He forgives the (potential) mother of his children and decides to try and fix him. He also finds it hot David almost outsmarted him, that is a worthy partner, but he also must punish him for his insolence and deception.
He will break him of these rebellious tendencies by using him as bait, just as he used himself as bait for him. Other humans will try to rescue him leading them to their doom. Calvin knows it will eat David up inside to know all these people are dying and it's all his fault. It will also serve to isolate him further from other humans who will eventually catch on and try to kill them both, and David will have no "protector" but Calvin.
Why David?
Of all the lifeforms on the ISS, David is the only lifeform that didn't attack Calvin. Though he does try to kill him (and himself) he never attacks Calvin directly.
David deliberately made Calvin chase him, possibly triggered Calvin's mating behaviors.
I saw a headcanon that David is on the autism spectrum from the way he speaks. And I think that fits, he's a quiet nerdy guy, seen reading while the others socialize. He also tends to avoids eye contact which might be another reason why he survives Calvin. Calvin as an apex predator might be operating with cat rules--staring is seen as a threat and avoiding eye contact is seen as a safe person, a non-threat.
Calvin has concluded that David is docile, (submissive and breedable) and he can safely keep this one as a pet.
If the above hc is true and David is autistic and the others are not this would further fuel his alienation (no pun intended) from the others... (and society writ large.)
While generally a nice guy David holds a general disdain for the human race at large. He let's this slip a couple times. This is largely due to his past seeing the horrors of war while acting as a medic in Syria. If Calvin is telepathic (as has been implied) Calvin likely picked up on that leading to something along the lines of:
"I can overlook your flaw of humanness because you're not like the other humans. You hate humans too. Cool! Let's hate humans together! Our spawn shall overtake them. Let's bring about the end of humanity."
Also Calvin might be grateful to David for saving his life even knowing that wasn't what David was trying to do.
The movie is called Life with the tagline
"We were better off alone"
Words that reflect an abusive relationship. Which at the end of the film David is trapped in. David is likely stuck with Calvin for the rest of his life however long or brief that might be.
Further Speculations
If David's got a chestbuster or Calvin Jr larvae in him It would be unpleasant but mercifully brief death but that's probably not what happens to David given that 1. The horror is in David surviving 2. It would be too much like the Alien franchise and 3. what we know about Calvin.
Calvin though treated like a wild animal for most of the film is canonically a long-lived being with human level intelligence (or beyond!) who's likely the last of his kind, he's probably lonely.
It makes more sense he wants to keep a companion for life, to mold and groom him into a perfect life companion.
While webbed up hes possibly making body alterations to keep him longer, or transform him into another immortal Calvin-like thing, or bonded with him symbiote style. He clearly did something to David to keep him from bleeding out after what he did in the pod. So David is stuck with Calvin for a good long while
So... superficially this ship of man-eating alien x awkward depressed human man resembles Symbrock in a different font ("what a loser, I want that one,") but really it's more like Hannigram in levels of fucked up.
To recap--this bit of shipping/fridge horror makes the ending even worse.
David is trapped with his rapist and abuser who can read his thoughts and may or may not be made to spawn a bunch of mini-Calvins that will destroy the human race. Calvin's probably encouraging him to embrace his latent hatred for the human race, and Calvin will probably try to make him live forever so David's likely not having a good time here.
Mating may not work because they are different species and David is presumably cismale but Calvin is going to keep trying regardless. Even when it becomes evident David's not giving him spawn that is not a reason to kill him or give him up. Again, Calvin is probably lonely.
That might be okay too, not spawning. It's a biological drive but spawn would be the most threatening thing to Calvin in this environment so he might find the lack of spawn and gay sex preferable. He'll just keep using David for his needs and/or companionship. David (likely) has no say in this.
Though through the power of transformarive fandom we just might make this canon horror show a little lighter.... There's always aus. Putting them in the coffee shop au would likely be a recipe for disaster though.
Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created - a chance to see your fanworks on display in a museum
Mark Heresy, American, b. 1965. Will to Power (detail), 1992, Ink on paper, 28 x 22 in, 2000.11.5, Gift of Peter Norton, Collection of the Haggerty Museum of Art, Marquette University
Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created, an exhibition of fine art pieces and the fanworks inspired by them, will run from August 23rd through December 22nd, 2024, at Marquette Universityâs Haggerty Museum of Art, as well as online. This exhibition considers âcreationâ as the line between casual enjoyment and fandom. Fans are not passive; fans create. Fans from any and all fandoms are challenged to create fanworks inspired by both their fandom and one of 14 fine art pieces from the Haggertyâs permanent collection. Visitors to the museum and to the online version of the exhibition will be able to see submitted fanworks displayed digitally alongside the fine art pieces hung in the gallery, and will be asked to consider whether the fan creations are affirmational or transformationalâthat is, do they affirm the fan object as it is, or transform it into something new? Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created also happens to be the keystone of my dissertation project.Â
My research focuses on the kinds of things that fans create, the ways in which fans and academics consider those creations, and the various ways fans are compensated for the work they complete. âThe kinds of things that fans createâ includes not only tangible creationsâlike fanfiction, fan art, cosplay, and collectionsâbut also immaterial creationsâlike rules, rivalries, relationships, political movements, identities, histories, emotional responses, theories, community, meanings, alternative readings, and play. I am hoping fans will submit a plethora of different forms of tangible fanworks; I have already received art, fiction, original music, nail art, cross-stitch, cosplay, and more. Intangible fanworks are more difficult to gather and display; however, once Affirmation/Transformation opens in the fall, I will be conducting ethnographic research with fans regarding their experience with both tangible and intangible fan creations. Through my research, I hope to further break down what I see as an unnatural barrier between affirmational and transformational fandom, and expand on the ways in which all fanworks both affirm and transform their fan objects. Additionally, I will be investigating the various ways fans are compensated for their fannish labor.
In business, the idea of non-monetary compensation is commonly discussed. Things like benefits, time off, employee assistance programs, discounts, and other employer-provided perks are discussed as a part of an employeeâs âtotal compensation package.â Yet, in most fan studies texts, fan labor is referred to as totally unpaid. At best, fanworks are discussed within the context of a gift economy: fans make fanworks as gifts, and are gifted more fanworks in return. I donât disagree with this assessment of fan compensationâI personally consider each fanwork submitted to Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created to be a gift towards the completion of my dissertationâbut it does not seem to go far enough. The âcompensationâ fans receive extends far beyond the (albeit massive) âgiftâ of the vast archives of fanfiction and fan art housed on sites like AO3 and Tumblr. Compensation can be social, emotional, communal, psychological, developmental, and beyond. If access to an EAP is considered part of the compensation package offered by a corporation, then should not access to a network of individuals within a fandomâall in possession of their own knowledge and expertiseâbe considered as similar compensation? Fans provide mutual aid for those in their community in ways often above and beyond what a business might do for an employee facing a period of struggle. Perhaps I am just a âcultural dupe,â but I feel Iâve gotten just as much or more from my fandom as compared to what Iâve put in, and I struggle to be fully convinced that my labor is being exploited for the mass mediaâs hegemony.Â
Through my scholarship, I hope to contribute to ongoing fan studies research through the further analysis of these alternate forms of compensation, as well as through the cataloging and archiving of fanworks as valid, artistic texts worthy of academic consideration. Not only will the fanworks submitted Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created be displayed as a part of the exhibition, but they will also be archived with my dissertation in Marquette Universityâs institutional repository, preserving them for at least as long as the University exists and making them available for further academic study.Â
Fan submissions for Affirmation/Transformation: Fandom Created are being accepted now, and will continue to be accepted through the close of the exhibition (December 22, 2024). In order to be on display in the gallery on opening night (August 23, 2024), fanworks must be submitted by August 1st. All types of fanworks are welcome, as long as they are submitted digitally. Sound will be available to be played in the gallery (fanworks will be displayed on tablets with headphones attached). For more information, visit https://epublications.marquette.edu/fandom/Affirmationtransformation/, or email Kate Rose at [email protected]
I'm fairly sure that this is applicable to multiple fandoms, but from an Elder Fangirl, I would like to remind you of several key facts:
It is OKAY to dislike canon.
It is OKAY to have your own headcanon.
it's NOT OKAY to demand that your headcanon become canon.
Fandom is often transformative; and on Tumblr, that's the prevailing type of fandom vs. the more curated type. That's fine. Transformative fandom often iterates on the original work, sometimes heavily.
And while we may get attached to those iterations, remember that those iterations -- popular or not -- are still not canon. Unless you created the story, it belongs to someone else*. The creator gets ultimately gets the final say about what happens in that story.
Yes, whether you like it or not.
[*] Note that the "someone else" may be an individual creator, a team of creators, or a company / intellectual property owner.
Hoping that XYZ will happen in the canon work is part of the fun of being a fan; demanding that XYZ happen in canon and/or being disappointed that it doesn't happen is entitled and selfish.
It's okay to explore possibilities that canon cannot, for whatever reason. It is NOT okay to demand/expect of the creator/IP holder that your particular transformations become canon.
As a follow-up to my let people use fanfiction as narrative therapy post I would also like to state for the record:
Ainât nothing wrong with self insert fanfiction. Or Mary Sue OCs that are basically self inserts. Also nothing wrong with people writing âbadâ fanfiction that has nothing to do with the canon really. I donât give a shit. People are making art and thatâs awesome. I may not read stuff that isnât to my personal tastes, but I am Glad people are making their art regardless. Especially young people. Especially people who are otherwise new to writing. Hell yeah, Make Art.
One thing I have noticed about fandom on tumblr is that in very large fandoms with mass appeal, there are often a lot of kids and youths and young folk watching or reading and thus wanting to create transformative art about it. This also means that a high concentration of fic may tend more towards having less to do with the actual canon of the thing and being more focused on whatever those kids really wanted to write or read about it. To discuss one specific example, the largest subsection of fandom that currently exists around the DC batman franchises on this site is the batfam fandom, a fandom comprised mostly of younger fans who are fans more of the platonic ideal of batman and his adopted kids and close associates that only really exists in their own works and also the webtoon**** For most of those people the appeal is the found family aspect, and thatâs what they want to read and write about. Hell yeah. Good for them. At least theyâre writing. At least theyâre making art.
****I know there are a lot of people in the batman comics fandom that have serious issues with the webtoon and the way that dc comics publishing agendas have begun to reflect more what people on the internet are talking about and less coherent storytelling that makes sense based on past canon. And this is a very fair criticism.
But this is not a problem limited to dc. This is a problem of all major production companies who produce art for mass release. TV shows being written in response to what people say on reddit has been ruining creative endeavors in an obvious way at least since Game of Thrones was airing. Books being published based on what will be popular on tiktok derived from the popularity of some frankly terrible novels (yes I do mean acotar) leads to some absolute drivel on the best seller list. Of course the comics industry is also fucking things up the same way.
Your enemy there are not the young fans new to fandom who are just discovering writing fanfiction and doing so by writing about whatever interests them most. Please stop blaming kids and other people who arenât writing fanfiction close enough to your concept of canon for this problem, it is far bigger than that.
Let people make their maybe bad art in peace. Everyone has to make bad art on the road to learning how to make better art. I am glad they are making their art regardless.
Also no shade meant to those fans this is just an observation and I wish you all well, but I do find it a little funny that the people who Are experts on the dc comics canon who I have seen criticize the existence of the batfam fandom on here are also usually like âthis is my favorite character, I hate every single run this character has ever been in except this one from 30 years ago and five panels of this one run that got cancelled early.â Like, you donât really like most of the canon you wish other people would familiarize themselves with right? Give new fans a chance to want to learn more about it. Most of the fans in that circle are pretty young, theyâre gonna have kinda bad taste sometimes and thatâs fine and good actually. Theyâll grow out of it and maybe some of them will come to know the comics canon more closely.
This is also why even though I am vocal about personally disliking the works of SJM (acotar my beloathed) and its impact on the publishing industry, I am honestly happy for anyone that read those books and enjoyed them. Same for every other book I donât like. If you read it and get something out of it hell yeah good for you. I was unironically into twilight for many years as a teen I am not here to pass judgement on teens or anyone for that matter for what they enjoy.
Most big fandoms I have dipped my toes into have this same problem. If there are a lot of young people in that fandom, thereâs gonna be a lot of fanfic that is written by people just learning to write, and thatâs great, I love that actually, good for them. But those are always the fandoms where I see people being perhaps more vitriolic than necessary towards other fans for not being up to snuff. Let people make art that you donât think is good, please. Itâs fine actually. If you donât like it you donât have to read it. Just be glad someone is making art that makes them happy and move on.
To divine what will happen to Twitter, just look to other social networks that changed under new owners.
Nice popular press article about fandom migrations (with a focus on LiveJournal and Tumblr) from someone who was clearly there! In case it hasnât been obvious already, I was also there, though I confess, Iâve never been brave enough to mention Pornish Pixies by name in an academic article LOL.
For more on this from me:Â
âMoving Across Lands: Online Platform Migration in Fandom Communitiesâ (the published academic article version)
âThe Life and Death of Fandom Platformsâ (YouTube video essay)
âMass migration from Twitter is likely to be an uphill battle â just ask ex-Tumblr usersâ (the recent âhow does this apply to Twitterâ piece)
