Have you ever been in a fandom, and it's going along great - then suddenly it seems like it dies off?
Or, have you ever read a story, watched a vid, or enjoyed a lovely piece of fanart... and wondered why the creator didn't make more?
Artists - of word, paper, or digital media.... have you been sucked in by a fandom, you're loving it..... but then you lose the will to continue?
Okay, here's why:
No dialogue. No open communication.
Fandoms are a sort of relationship, and relationships are work. Work you love, whether you spend time reading it, watching it, or looking at it, or making it. What's the biggest killer of relationships? Lack of communication.....
Now I'm gonna use my old fandom as an example, it's a prime example.
The XMen movie came out in like what? 2000? And for that movie there was the 'shipper pairing for Wolverine and Rogue. Nine years later, and several movies later - it was not only glaringly obvious that Wolverine/Rogue would never end up together, but that the whole pairing was 'foolish' because after the first movie.... there was nothing to support the pairing.
Do you know what happened?
Nothing. NOTHING AT ALL!
Nine years later almost, and guess what? It's still going strong. Yes it's not as big or as active as it was. But it's still active, and it's still got a huge fanbase.
And now you may be asking yourself why this is: a handful of dedicated shippers, and open lines of communication. Communication breeds and maintains excitement.
Yes life does get busy, school, work, real life and all those other wonderful things, and they are very important. Very important. But fandom is a place where like minds can meet, new friends can be made, skills can be brushed up, and creativity explored. Fandom is important for some of us for personal growth, because our eyes get opened to knew ideas from other ppl who share a common interest.
Now, how does this all apply to Suspian? It applys to all fandoms of which we partake. Some will be more involved or have more time to be involved, and that's fine, that's good. But if you enjoy something, then you probably want more of what you enjoy, right? So open up those lines of communication. Try reading an author you haven't read before, or watching a vid that you haven't watched, or clicking on a piece of art.... And if you have an idea for anything, why not try and explore it yourself too?
It may come off on FF.net that I was trolling for reviews, but that's not it, not exactly. What it was is the fact that I'm irked, and saddened, and disappointed - because Suspian/Casue fandom is coming to a near standstill. On the
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susancaspian community there's almost no activity. On FF.net the activity is minimal. And it's not cuz there aren't any readers, not when there's tables that show that there's X amount of unique IP hits a day, to give us some idea of where we're getting readers from and how many, how popular something is. Now, granted, I'm not one to talk, I had some RL stuff I had to take care of, and my own enthusiasm had waned some. Not only that but I can't promise to maintain a fixed pace in Suspian/Casue, but that doesn't mean I won't stay involved.
Ask yourself - do you gain enough enjoyment from fandom and your interraction with others here to put for even a small amount of effort? If the answer is yes, then please do. Open up those lines of communication, try your hand at something yourself. Reap what you sow, and sow what you reap. Now I myself am notorious for not reviewing - but that's mainly because I'm devoting myself to writing an expansive storyline, and that doesn't excuse me, but then again - when I do read something, I still try and give some sort of input. My lack of input merely means I haven't gotten to viewing someone's work, not that I'm not interested, or haven't taken the time to give a bit of what I recieved back.
Yes, I'm preaching and I heartily am sorry for that. Remember you don't have to review everytime or everything, it doesn't have to be eloquent and thought out, but just give a touch back for what ya get out of it.
Okay, sorry, done yammering now.
On a different note:
I have made a YahooGroup for Suspian/Casue goodness, sometimes it's easier to shoot off an email than to sign in and hit a buncha buttons, and I contribute the WRBeta (wolverine/rogue) fandom's survival to the ease of communication. There are lovely sites for Suspian/Casue,
caspianandsusan.com/fanfiction/ and then of course there's the
susancaspian community. These are wonderful places, and this is a wonderful fandom, containing great authors, wonderful artists, and splendid vid makers - and the all important readers/viewers/watchers of all that's done here.
If you are interested in the YahooGroup, it can be found here:
groups.yahoo.com/group/suspian_casue/It's not real pretty yet, but I'm working on it, plus writing still at the moment, and attempting to answer all the reviews I've recieved. Whew, didn't expect that slew. Not that I'm complaining.
But the best way to show me that you're reading and caring, is to do a bit to support the fandom, and others works. Not just mine. Of course, dont' stop supporting me ^_^ because I like it and it invigorates me, but take a look around, there's so much out there! And again, try your hand at a bit of fanwork, you just may like it.
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Wheee!
I had me 2 redheaded sluts
*needing a special pillow*
Up Too Fuckin' Long
*shclepping*
Do you mind if I flomp here?
*sniffs happily*
Whee!
*needs foodies*
You Really Don't Wanna Be Me