For many people, fandom communities have become like family. Geek culture has entered the mainstream, with TV shows dedicated to cosplaying and “cons.” One thing that hasn’t changed about these communities, however, is the amount of queer people who participate.
I’ve been on Tumblr longer than most—over five of the roughly six years the site has been in existence—and an active role-player and fanfiction writer for about seven years.
Throughout this time, I’ve seen the online queer community change vastly. As a trans man who identifies with a fluid sexuality, the attitude I have received has evolved dramatically.
The fanfiction community has always been a place overflowing with queer writings. In fact, fanfiction was how I first learned sexuality was a real, concrete concept. While my fandom beginnings were with the popular cartoon series Teen Titans, I became exposed to a more adult community when I indulged myself in anime?.
At the time, I was mainly into Neon Genesis Evangelion and Fullmetal Alchemist. At 11 years old, I was amazed not only to discover that two boys like Shinji Ikari and Kaworu Nagisa of Neon Genesis could be lovers, but that in internet fan fiction, even a seemingly romance-free show like Fullmetal Alchemist was submerged in queer content.
People always seem rather amazed when I tell them how early I came out. I began doubting my sexuality while I was in fifth grade. I started transitioning my personal life in eighth grade, so I could come out as a boy when I was a freshman in high school. My identity hasn’t wavered since.
I owe a huge chunk of this early queer epiphany to the homosexual content in the fandom community and the anonymity of the internet in general.
A queer community that was so nonchalant about sexuality and bending gender norms surrounded me at such a young age that it became a mindset for me.
By the time I was in sixth grade, all of my online friends were gay or bisexual. The sheer amount of queer representation in fanfiction really makes one wonder why main- stream media doesn’t cater to these statistics. Since over half of fan-written literature about these shows makes the most popular and beloved characters gay, you’d think major television series would consider this demographic more.
Tumblr culture has cultivated a space that many queer youths find incredibly safe. Considering so many fanfiction writers are now Tumblr users, it has upped the availability of fanfiction and the ability to interact with other writers. This has shed light on many problematic aspects of fandom.
For example, it is noted that the majority of coveted homosexual pairings feature cisgender, white men. Some examples of these famous pairings are John Watson and Sherlock Holmes from BBC’S Sherlock, Dean Winchester and Castiel from Supernatural, Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series, and Steve Rogers and Tony Stark from the popular Marvel movie, The Avengers.
This brings up the important idea that while modern fandoms do show a craving for queer representation, the majority of it revolves around white gay guys. Many on Tumblr try to combat this on a regular basis. It’s generally recognized that more queer women need to be written and celebrated.
Trans identities are still disputed and are most often seen as forcing representation. This is seen commonly in arguments about Chihiro Fujisaki from the series Dangan Ronpa: Academy of Hope and High School Students of Despair.
Usually with trans headcanons, there is a thick divide between people who are grasping for representation and those who will deny them that, even in a fanbase. Regardless of its problematic issues, the fandom communities on Tumblr do offer a safe place for queer and questioning youths who have nowhere else to go — it’s perhaps the largest public trans-community on the internet. Although it is highly transmasculine dominated, there have been more blogs rising to swap and donate materials to transfeminine people.
The focus on white, cisgender gay men in the queer community is nothing new. However, when dealt with properly, fandom culture can provide a safe stepping stone for young people to open themselves up to their own queerdom. While I often find myself frustrated with the mentalities of growing fandoms, I still use Tumblr as a place to find closure as a queer and trans individual.
I still seek representation through pairing fictional characters and identifying with fictional characters, and find confidence through this.I even met my year-long partner through role-playing and cosplaying Jake English from Homestuck and pairing him with Dirk Strider.
Jack Hauck
Contributor
