Fan Fiction

While reading the various submissions of fan fiction on the “Lost” message board, my initial thoughts were ones of “Thank God I haven’t become that obsessed with anything”. But that’s a complete lie. I’m entirely guilty of checking the gossip sites and various websites dedicated to potential spoilers of my favorite shows next episode. As a culture, we become especially fascinated with the lives we never had but always wanted. When we watch these shows, whether they be trashy melodramas or surreal sci-fi’s, we can’t help but think “Well, if I were there, this is what I would have done”. The development of fan fiction allows the fangirls and fanboys in all of us to release all of our obsessive fascinations. The increasing popularity of fan fiction feeds into our desire to be a part of these alternate “realities”. As Saper mentions in “A Fan’s Paranoid Logic”, these shows we fantasize over have become symbiotically related to the fan fiction dedicated to them. What better way to please fans than give them exactly what they request. Fan fiction becomes less of an obsessive outlet and more of a set of possibilities.