Hello again. So sorry I haven't posted in over a month... comes from being distracted by other things. However, I had this little thing niggling at me at 1 AM, so I wrote it down and here it is:
So, I've had a few people scoff at me for liking certain things -- one of which was My Little Pony. Instead of just walking away from what was sure to turn into an online confrontation, I asked them if they'd ever seen an episode of the afforementioned My Little Pony. A couple of them answered in the negative. I've only ever had one person say they'd seen it and didn't get it.
My next question was "Why not?" Okay, actually, I sent them something that essentially said "don't knock it till you've tried it." But I did eventually get around to discussing why they either hadn't seen it or why they're come to decide not to even try it.
The answer, to my surprise, had to do with the fandom. Us Bronies are apparently too crazy or something. The reason this surprised me was my own experience with fandom. The Brony community is generally not made up of crazed individuals. In fact, a prevailing mantra we have is to love and tolerate.
I'm not saying there aren't those of us who aren't a bit crazed, but those are the minority.
This then led to other discussions with other people about other things. One person I talked to had never read any of the Harry Potter books nor seen any of the movies. When I asked why this was, they cited fandom as the reason. Nothing specific about their personal tastes, just that fandom puts them off the entire thing. Not reading the books because they don't want to be associated with the fandom.
As a memeber of multiple fandoms (including but not specifically limited to, My Little Pony, Harry Potter, Twilight, and Doctor Who) this citing of fandom as a reason not to get into things has me confused. I find pretty much all of the fandoms I'm in have such nice people as members. We're not like some exclusive club or anything. We're just people who like something and want to share and discuss it. There's a place for everyone. And yes, that includes the crazy contingent.
But really, is that small minority what puts people off? Is the fanbase a valid reason not to give something a try? I don't get it. It's not like liking something means you have to actively participate in fandom. I generally don't.
Okay, yes, I have written fanfiction in the past. I do draw ponies for people and post them to DeviantArt. But for the most part, my fan-participation badges only include listening to podcasts, listening to music, looking at art, and reading fanfiction. I'm a fairly passive fan. I don't even do all of those things for every fandom. Heck, some of my fandoms don't even have any of those.
Personally, I don't feel like fandoms are represented in a good light by outsiders. Take the Bronies, for example. Boys, grown men, and grown women liking pastel colored ponies aimed at little girls. They're weird. There's something wrong with them. Right? Wrong. Bronies are just people who like this brilliantly animated, brilliantly written cartoon. We make wonderful art. We write some of the best music I've ever had the pleasure to listen to. Hell, we even contribute to charity. What is so wrong with that?
The real answer is this: NOTHING.
Society has these things they call "norms." "Norms" basically take people and shove them into ill-fitting boxes. If you don't fit in your box, you're automatically an outcast. But people don't fit into "norm" boxes and never have. If you think you do, you're wrong. We're all different and we all want to be accepted for who we are and what we like. That's where fandoms come in. We take a group of people who like something and we turn that group into a community. Everyone has a place. We share, we make friends, we have fun! That's what fandom is all about.
So maybe you're afraid to get into something because of fandom. I encourage you not to be. There's a place for you, even if you choose not to participate. Try it anyway. Who knows, you might find something you like.
