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In this episode, we dive into why fan-fiction remains a central part of pop culture. To help unpack the intricacies of this space, we turned to some experts. We first spoke to Alessandra Ferreri, Head of Content at Wattpad — and then we asked you, our listeners, to share your own experiences and opinions. From these conversations, we explored two questions: Is fan-fiction positive or negative for fandom culture? And how does Gen Z perceive fan fiction?

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

3:47 Fan-fiction definition and its origins

6:16 The modern era of fan-fiction: the rise of fanzines & pastiches

7:51 Fanfiction goes mainstream: Digital fan-fiction platforms

9:10 The rise of Fanfiction.net (FFN)

11:12 The popularity of AO3 and Wattpad

13:45 Interview with Alessandra Ferreri, Wattpad's Head of Content

37:04 How fan-fiction impacts young people and how they perceive it

38:58 The positives of fan-fiction

43:36 The negatives of fan-fiction

46:49 Conclusions

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