Open AccessSilence in the library: Archives and the preservation of fannish history
Author(s) -
Versaphile
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
transformative works and cultures
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1941-2258
DOI - 10.3983/twc.2011.0277
Subject(s) - fandom , impermanence , ephemeral key , media studies , nothing , silence , creativity , sociology , ephemera , art , visual arts , aesthetics , history , computer science , law , political science , philosophy , archaeology , epistemology , algorithm , buddhism
Media fandom is an ephemeral culture, and online fandom even more so. A printed zine from the 1970s may last longer than a story published online in the last six months. For some, fandom is a private endeavor, and that very impermanence a desirable feature. But for those who seek to read and be read, to build on and be inspired by the collective history of fannish creativity, there is nothing so vital to authorial fandom's survival as the archive. In the following, I intend to give a brief overview of the main online interfaces fans have used to share their works and how these have affected authorial control, reader accessibility, and general permanence