Fansplaining

In Episode 47, Flourish and Elizabeth interview Zan Romanoff, the author of the forthcoming novel Grace and the Fever, about a boyband fan who winds up in the band's inner circle. Topics covered include vintage Beatles fanfic, the Hanson brothers' tendency to marry fans, fans' search for the truth about celebrities' lives, and of course, a discussion about and critique the book. They also discuss a reader comment about Mary Sues and fandom ambivalence towards original characters.

In episode 46, "Defining Fanfiction: The Survey," Flourish and Elizabeth discuss Fansplaining's newest survey, which asks respondents to define what fanfiction is—and what it isn't. They discuss the genesis of the survey and the thinking behind its questions before launching into a wide-ranging discussion about intent, authorship, context, and more. They also tackle the survey's specific examples, from Lev Grossman's "The Magicians" to the Aeneid to "50 Shades of Grey" to the "Riker Googling" Twitter account, and Flourish coins the term "Schrödinger's fanfic."

Flourish and Elizabeth interview Teresa Nguyen, who went from novice seamstress to cosplay master in less than four years. Topics covered include screen-accuracy vs. interpretation, "professional cosplayers," and the experience of going to a con in costume. They also discuss the Fansplaining Definitions Survey and play a pair of voicemails from a listener who shares her experiences in North African fandom and some thoughts on the current state of Riverdale fandom discussion.

In Episode 44, "Mary Sue," Elizabeth and Flourish discuss Elizabeth's new article of the same name, about self-inserts and perspective characters in fanfiction and beyond. Topics covered include the history of the term "Mary Sue," its use in broader popular culture, imagines and second person fic, roleplaying, American Girl Dolls, and more. They also welcome fandom stats wizard DestinationToast back onto the podcast to break down her analysis of asexual and aromantic tags on the Archive of Our Own.

In Episode 43, "A Fangirl Goes to Hollywood," Elizabeth and Flourish talk with Britta Lundin, a longtime fangirl who's now a staff writer on the CW's new Archie Comics adaptation, Riverdale. Topics covered include her journey from fan to pro (including what it's like to be a fan *and* pro), working with your idols, the writer's room process, and fan/creator interaction, with special focus on two points of controversy on Riverdale: potential queerbaiting and asexual/aromantic erasure.

In Episode 42, "Fresh Out of Tokens," Elizabeth and Flourish talk to Tanya DePass, host of a podcast of the same name, founder of I Need Diverse Games, and author of a whole lot of Dragon Age fanfiction. They discuss gaming, fan/creator interaction, intersectionality, politics, and more. They also share a listener letter about game fandom and discuss the place of art in times of political crisis.

For their next episode, Flourish and Elizabeth wondered how to record a podcast while the world was on fire. So in episode 41, "Fandom Trumps Hate," they speak to Winter and Porcupine Girl, two of the organizers of the Fandom Trumps Hate fanworks auction, which raised more than $32,000 (!) for charities resisting the Trump agenda. They discuss the origins of the auction, how it worked, how it was received, and plans for the future. They also grapple with the role of fandom at large right now, and what individual fans can do.

In Episode 40, "Axanar [Lawsuit Intensifies]," Elizabeth and Flourish discuss Paramount v. Axanar with Rob Burnett, the director of the planned full-length Axanar fan film. The conversation, recorded days before the lawsuit was settled, covers what might happen with the lawsuit, the problems with crowdfunding a project, the pleasures of fan filmmaking, and whether there are or should be divisions between amateur and professional fan productions. Then they discuss some listener feedback from the last episode, on anime, Yuri!!! on Ice, and transcultural fandom.

In Episode 39, "Fansplaining!!! On Ice," Elizabeth and Flourish interview Lauren Orsini, a journalist and anime expert. Topics discussed include different generations of anime fandom in the United States, the way language barriers affect the transcultural conversation, depictions of gay men in anime, and—of course—Yuri!!! On Ice. They also take reader mail and discuss the term "beta reader" and the less-common "alpha reader" in fanfiction communities.