Fan Fiction Goes Mainstream

   When does a cultural sub-current become mainstream?   In the U.S., I would say it becomes mainstream when it appears of the cover of Time Magazine,  or when the Wall Street Journal does a two page spread on it, complete with interviews and beautifully drawn illustrations.  On Friday, June 15, 2012, WSJ did exactly that.   An article by Alexandra Alter, entitled "The Weird World of Fan Fiction"  attempts to introduce outsiders to a vast and growing phenomenon that until now has flown under the radar for most of the mainstream press.  But WSJ is a business journal, and it only takes note of that which has become important to the economy.    Fan Fic writers take note:  You are now a targeted demographic entity.
       I neither write fan fiction nor read it.  In fact, I don't even read much fiction of any kind.  I read quite slowly, so for all of my life, I am still trying to get caught up on reading the facts. But in case anyone reading this post has never heard of fan fiction,  it is the writings of amateur  authors who write stories within the framework of some established genre of fiction, using most of the same characters and settings  as the original work, but with their own twist.  They write original stories, using someone else's characters, and then post them free on the web, to be read and critiqued by the rest of the fan-fic community. These writings are usually in some sci-fi or fantasy genre, but not always.  The beauty of the idea is that anything can be changed to suit the whims of the fans: The gender of the characters can be changed; (WSJ gives the example of a Sherlock Holmes story where Dr. Watson is a woman.) The sexual orientation of the characters can change; (In Star Trek,  Kirk and Spock can be lovers.)  This is a sub-genre called "slash" as in Kirk/Spock.  The time period can be changed.  You could have Beowulf accidently time-transported into the 25th century.  In fact, anything can be changed--that's the idea.   As to why people write perfectly good fiction in someone else's genre is a good question, and I'm sure there are as many answers as there are  fan-fic writers.  My own take on this is that it saves time.  Instead of taking the time to create your own brave new world and people it with such wondrous creatures, you just cut to the chase and use characters which are already on the stage and give them different lines.
      The legal status of this practice is a bit murky, but if the stories are different from the original and nothing is sold for profit, most legal scholars feel that it is fair game, though not all authors agree.  But over the years that this has been going on, most authors have come to the view that this fan fiction is the best free advertising they could ever get, and those who write it and read it are their best customers--and it would be foolish to antagonize them.   The link I have provided may or may not hit a pay wall. But even if you have already read this online,  if you are really a fan of this stuff, you might wish to buy a hard copy of that issue of WSJ while you can get one.  The print article includes over a dozen beautifully drawn  comic book style illustrations, and the online article cuts out all but one. If you are a true fan, you might want to archive this.