Fansplaining

In this episode, Flourish calls England to talk to both Elizabeth and Emily Roach, an academic (from fandom!) who specializes in queer literature, particularly queer YA. They talk about queer representation—or the lack thereof—in objects of fandom, especially the gap between YA and other parts of the mainstream media landscape. They also touch on DestinationToast's stats about fanfiction production in the wake of the US presidential election, and ask for listener feedback on the direction of the podcast.

In Episode 36, "There's No Place Like Home," Elizabeth and Flourish reflect on the ways that reboots and never-ending sequels have changed the experience of being a fan alongside an extended (and hopefully successful!) metaphor about relationships with family over time. Topics covered include reconciling or moving on from problematic texts, the trajectories of some franchises versus others, and an extended segment about "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them." (If you haven't seen the movie yet and intend to, spoiler alert!) Plus—register your surprise—continued discussion of the US Presidential Election.

In Episode 34, Flourish and Elizabeth devote most of the hour to further discussion of the Fansplaining Fic Preferences Survey, where more than 7,500 readers weighed on 144 fanfic tropes and themes. They talk about the purpose of the survey, the choices they made while designing it, some conclusions about the results, and incorporate reader feedback, from long-form responses to a list of tropes the original survey overlooked. They also share a preview of a special episode for Patreon supporters, about the 1998 film "Primary Colors."

In Episode 33, Elizabeth and Flourish talk to Bob Proehl, the author of A Hundred Thousand Worlds, a novel about comics and cons that includes characters inspired by Gail Simone and Gillian Anderson. (!!!) They discuss "literary" vs genre fiction, gender dynamics in convention culture, and the fuzzy boundaries of RPF. In the second half, Elizabeth and Flourish discuss some initial results from the Fansplaining Fic Preferences Survey, in which more than 7,500 respondents weighed in on their favorite and least favorite fanfiction tropes.

In Episode 32, "Nerds for Her," Elizabeth and Flourish talk to Paul DeGeorge, half of Harry and the Potters and the creator of the #NerdsForHer, a campaign to get fandom excited about Hillary Clinton in the 2016 US presidential election. Topics discussed include the idea of "political fandom," Hillary's bad narrative, John Travolta and Emma Thompson in Primary Colors, and whether fanfiction can help foster enthusiasm for the only reasonable candidate. (Who is Hillary Clinton. Fansplaining endorses Hillary Clinton. Seriously.)

In episode 31, "Get Recced," Flourish and Elizabeth are joined by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, a fan culture journalist who co-curates "The Rec Center," a weekly fandom newsletter, with Elizabeth. They discuss recommendation versus criticism, what makes a good fic (to read and to rec), the antipathy to critique in many corners of the fanfic world, and some of their favorite—and least favorite—tropes. They also respond to listener mail: comments about fanfic's emotional payoff, "slashtivism" in the context of wider online discourse, and whether fandom fetishizes homosexuality. Cover art by Maia Kobabe.

In episode 30, "Games and Fandom," Elizabeth and Flourish interview Evan Narcisse, a journalist who covers both comics and video games. They compare gamers and media fans, think about the way that gatekeeping functions in different nerdy subcultures, and consider strategies for critiquing media texts. They also read more listener mail about fanart, and go deep on the Sims. Elizabeth does not promise to play any new video games, much to Flourish's chagrin.

In episode 29, "Shipping and Activism," Flourish and Elizabeth talk to fan studies scholars Rukmini Pande and Dr. Lori Morimoto about what happens when peoples' ships become emblems of political positions. The conversation covers the history of shipping-as-politics, the changing nature of the fan/creator divide, and the intersections of race and queerness. They also discuss a listener's response to episode 27, "Fanart Insights," and debate the monetization of fanworks.

In Episode 28, "Happy Anniversary #1," we welcome the past year's guests back on the podcast to talk about what's changed in fandom since Fansplaining began. Answers cover news items like what fandoms have emerged, which have cratered, and what's been going on in the law, but they also touch on the ways that fandom is increasingly breaking the fourth wall, the concept of "fan entitlement," and the changing ways that fandom thinks about race, nationality, and representation. Plus, we make like NPR and encourage people to donate to the Fansplaining Patreon, pledge-drive style!