Mono-fandom or poly-fandom?

[castalie]

Hey, I was reading my flist the other day and I saw some people talking about mono-fandom vs poly-fandom, and I was wondering how many of you actually have only one fandom - or let's say only one major fandom? Mono-fandom is a concept that totally escapes me because I can't imagine being focused on only one show, one fandom or one pairing, for instance *g*

Also, I know that some people usually mention how surprised they are that they'd been in SG or TS or InsertYourOwnFandom for a long period of time because usually their interests fade away as new ones appear and this also is more or less alien to me, because as I always say, I add new obsessions to my already existing ones but I don't make the old ones disappear. And staying in a fandom for severals years is actually the norm for me... I don't easily lose my enthusiasm over something I like - as in, I usually don't lose it lol

So yeah, I was curious *g*

Comments

multi-fandom hoooor

[nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com]

I am scared to know that there are in fact people who spend like ten years writing the one pairing. People with attention spans SCARE me, yo.

Re: multi-fandom hoooor

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Some people are definitely dedicated, true enough. Dedication is humbling omg!!1!

[frayen.livejournal.com]

Poly-fandom, it's the only way to go. there are so many great (and bad) shows, with so many beautiful people who should be having beautiful sex and lots of it.

I have to admit that TS is my primary fandom, I.E it's the one I right the most in, the one I get the most fangirly about, the one where I HAVE to watch everything else the show stars have done.

But that is not say that its is my only fandom, oh there are many. And sometimes one may fade away slightly as I find something else new and shiny to obsess over, it may fade away, but it never goes away. And all it would take is a small reminder to make me go:

"Squeeeeeeee, how the hell could I forget that show OMG it was soooooo goooooooooood!"

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Poly-fandom is so my way of life, too, obviously *g* Like you I have some main ones, but even here I have several of them, namely TS, SG and XF. Then I have the ones that come right after the three ones with a big part in my fandom life, and then there're those I enjoy from time to time and can do without. But yeah, I do commit to lots of fandoms and pairings *g*

Mono-Fandom....

[maaaaa.livejournal.com]

...*raises hand* yup, that's me. I'd be the one living that totally alien lifestyle. *g*

Re: Mono-Fandom....

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Reading the other comments, I realise mono-fandom isn't really alien to fandom after all - there're definitely more people into it that I thought *g*

[ainm.livejournal.com]

I have to admit that I tend to be quite mono-fandom in that I tend to read in mainly one fandom at a time. I began my slash fandom "career" in LOTR RPS fandom, where I obsessed on mainly that for about 6 months then bam, found myself in BtVS fandom for about a year, then wham, found myself in Sentinel-land.

That's not to say I don't enjoy other shows or read fic in other fandoms -- but often I do so in a sort of binge fashion, forsaking my main fandom for a few days or a week and reading nothing but, say, X-Files fic, because I'm in that mood.

Within a fandom, I tend to have one pairing I read mainly -- the only fandom that wasn't the case was LOTR RPS.

And I've rambled enough. :-)

[castalie.livejournal.com]

More people are 'mono-fandom' than I thought.

Within a fandom I tend to follow one pairing too, though I'll read other combo from time to time. That being said, it's Jim/Blair or Jack/Daniel [or any other of my OTPs] all the way, it's just that sometimes I feel in a mood where I want to read, say Teal'c/Daniel - to give it a try so to speak, but my OTP stays the same no matter what *g*

[greensilver.livejournal.com]

I'm mono-fandom ... or nearly.

I was mono-fandom with Star Trek for, like, years. Seven years, even, I think - as long as Voyager ran. When Voyager went off-air, I drifted over to BtVS/Angel, which I'd always watched like a crazy fanatical watching thing but never really gotten into fandom-wise. I sort of peered in at Stargate now and then (which, again, I'd watched all along like a complete addict), but the Daniel craziness scared me away like whoa, so I was still more or less mono-fandom at that point. And then when Angel was cancelled, I turned to Stargate and clung on like a ... thing that clings. (I'm not good with similies.) And I don't really dooo much else at the moment, so I suppose I'm almost back to monofandom again.

I dabble in Jossverse, kinda. But not enough for it to be of any note. And while I like both QaF and HP, the fandoms scare the crap out of me.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Being mono-fandom is alien to me because I can't imagine 'abandoning' a character, a pairing, a show I loved for another. It's like, I was enthusiastic and in love with a show, how could I stop just because something new appears - I'll literally spread the love to embrace my new obsessions.

Which is why I have three main fandoms with some secondary fandoms which also have an important part in my fandom life. And I have less fandoms that I have favourite shows if it makes sense - for instance, I love QL and The Pretender but I'm not into those fandoms. I do read QL from time to time, but I can't say I'm involved in it, even from afar.

[x5-536.livejournal.com]

i'm mono fandom. sort of. that sounds so boring, anything with mono IRL = boooooooring. that doesn't mean that i don't watch [and adore] other tv shows or read fics in 26687456 different fandoms. i just really belong to one of them.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

You're one of many apparently - I was surprised, I thought less people were mono-fandom than that *g*

[rhyo.livejournal.com]

Some of it is how you define "fandom" - to me, it's taking enough interest in the show to read/write fan fic. That makes me a monofandom person.

And the TS thing surprises me. I have little love of television, lived happily without it for 10+ years, yet fell head over heels for the (often poorly written) tales of the cranky super-sensed cop and his talkative anthropologist room mate.

Loved the movie Stargate but(despite this LJ background staring at me) have absolute zip feeling for the TV characters. Watched Angel on DVD but have no interest in reading the fanfic or writing it. Tried to watch Buffy but couldn't get through more than 2 seasons on DVD. Tried to watch Farscape but couldn't get past the puppets. Loved Firefly, but, sigh, don't see the slash and find the Simon/River pairing squicky beyond belief. Lol, that's about it...

[castalie.livejournal.com]

I talk about fandom when you like a show enough to involve yourself in its 'community' on-line, ie write/read fics and/or belong to MLs and stuff like that *nod* And for instance, I have less fandoms than I have favourite shows. I love looooooooooots of shows but I'm not automatically interested in their fandoms.

In both cases though, when I love something, I do keep the love intact so to speak, which explains why I'm obsessing over QAF at the moment, but never forgot about TS or SG which I got involved on-line for like five years maybe...

And I realise that lots of people are mono-fandom after all - thanks for taking the time to answer *g*

Probably mono...

[starwatcher]

-
...depending on how you define fandom. If it's liking a show so much that I write fanfic (something I NEVER tried before); so much that I'll sit through an episode three times, because I messed up the editing-out-of-commercials the first times; so much that, when I want to watch a DVD I pass by the commercial offerings and grab my home-made efforts over and *over* and OVER; so much that I can usually (about 85%) identify an episode by hearing about 4 bars of the opening music without looking at the screen -- then I'm mono fandom.

I've been hooked on TS for about three years now, and it astounds me; I've had violent TV loves before - Dr. Who, ST:TOS, ST:TNG, Remington Steele, Blake's 7, Due South, Pretender, Quantum Leap, Highlander the series - and they all faded in due time. I still like to watch reruns (occasionally) of most of them, and will read the fanfic with interest (occasionally), but they don't make my heart go pitter-pat. TS, however, has completely taken over my life - I use Mary Sue TS-fantasies to fall asleep, twist most songs on the radio to fit Jim and Blair, belong to 4 mailing lists and LJ to get my TS-info "fix"...

Considering how much time I invest in TS, I can't imagine how anyone could be poly-fandom. Unfortunately, we can't sit at the computer 24/7, much as we'd like to.

BUT, if you count fandom as liking the show well enough to watch reruns, remember who the characters are, and read the occasional fic, then I'm poly-fandom. But there is no squeeing for anyone else. (Well, not much for TS, either - I'm not a squeeing kind of gal. But I wouldn't have bid $500 for anyone ELSE's hat, except GM's. *g*)

Yup; I'm well and truly hooked.

PS -- I'm wondering about lost mail. Did you get your beta'd story? I'll send again if you need it. (The new one, about bad dreams.)

Re: Probably mono...

[castalie.livejournal.com]

I should have precised the fandom thing, I admit - several people mentioned it. I talk about fandom when you involve yourself so much in a show that you read and/or write fics, when you join MLs, when you look for other fans and so on and so forth. I know that I have lots of fandoms but I have even more shows I love and watch obsessively and stuff like that.

I do spread my main fandom love into three main directions - but I also have secondary fandoms that are an important part of my fandom life. I just love adding obsessions and I can commit to several of them with the same enthusiasm no matter how long I've been into them.

And yes, I can see how totally hooked on TS you are *g*

PS: Yes I did, I replied to it this morning, thanks again *g*

[nicci-mac.livejournal.com]

I'm basically bi-fannual. !!!

I can only get really obsessed about ONE thing at a time, but when I get obsessed, it's total immersion baby. Star Trek was somewhere in the region of 13 years. Now it's Stargate.

I fell into The Sentinel and couldnt help but be in love with it. However, I cant get obsessed cos... well see above. I love the pairing, I even write it occassionally but I dont see myself drowing in it.

I've dabbled in other fandoms too, but I simply do not have the time. I can barely keep up with the two I have. And I have to agree with the part about obsession fading reletively quickly - for me, a new obsession usually begins to peter of afer a few months but SG is still good and new to me. Perhaps cos there are still new eps out there to spark interest. I guess when the show finally closes, I might get bored and move on but somehow, I doubt that.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

There are different levels of 'obsession', true enough - as there are different levels of involment in a fandom for people. I usually associate you with SG for instance, so I see your point *g* I wonder to which fandom I'm associated with myself... hey, I should do a poll, I need distractions these days anyway lol

My being multi-fandom has everything to do with being unable to lose my enthusiasm about something I loved in the first place. If I did, I would definitely be mono-fandom myself - as it is, I just can't see an obsession fade away to let its place for another *g*

[ninjetti75.livejournal.com]

Whooo, I'm multi-fandom!!

But kinda only barely.

I guess it *DOES* depend on how you define "being in a fandom." If you have to write in it, then I'm actually only in the Popslash/*Nsync fandom at the moment, though you can sorta squeeze in Power Rangers if you count my AU WiP serial, lol. (Rangers is my biggest fandom ever, though I haven't followed the new eps for a couple seasons now, so *Nysnc may actually be in first place...)

But if it's just being obsessive and memorizing trivial minutia and just getting squeearifically excited about the subject whenever it pops up unexpectedly? Then I have several dozen fandoms, heh. And I'm quite committed to all of them, some more than others, but I still have all the details in my head, etc etc.

I've kind of fallen off MX, which is sad, but I DO still love it, even if I'm not writing it anymore. Ah well.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Next time I'll try to be more precise about my definition of fandom, promise *g* To me a fandom is when you're interested in a show so much you involve yourself in things that are related to it, here read/write fics, join MLs, join comm and pick people who have the same interests that you do. For instance I have more favourite shows than I have fandoms because even though I can adore a show, it doesn't mean I'll automatically follow its fandom. Best example I guess is The Pretender which I'm a huge fan of... but the fandom? I don't even follow it from afar. Sure, it could have something to do with its lack of slash, but still I don't feel the need to go and look for it, know what I mean? *g*

I really can't imagining giving up on a fandom to let another one in its place - when I like something, it's here for the duration... I'll embrace lots of other shows/fandoms/characters but I'll add them to the old ones as opposed to replace them.

[babycakesin.livejournal.com]

Call me stupid, but... what happened to make you run away to your sister? What is the crisis you were refering to? I re-read your previous post and didn't find anything obvious - I just hope you're okay! :D

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Oh putain, je t'en parlerais peut-être plus tard mais ça m'as tellement contrariée que je préfère éviter le sujet pour le moment, je t'assure. Moi qui ne connais pas vraiment ce sentiment, j'en ai eu l'estomac littéralement noué toute la soirée... enfin disons l'après-midi jusqu'à ce que je squatte chez ma frangine *g*

[babycakesin.livejournal.com]

Re: the fandom business, right now, I'm a Frigid Queen! I'm off fandoms, dammit! :P

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Eeep you are the alien, the oddity on my flist then lol

I still love you, of course *eg* So tell me, everything is right in your world again now that Li' Bro is here? *g*

[babycakesin.livejournal.com]

- don't over react
- I'm part Italian and part drag-queen, I'm entitled to over reacting!

(not 100% sure of the quote, but hey, it still made me laugh lol)

[castalie.livejournal.com]

Yeah I love that quote, anyway lol So Mikey, too *g*

[ginalin.livejournal.com]

I've written in about let's see...10 Fandoms. If you count ficlets and such.

I have the attention span of a gerbil.

The Sentinel
Starsky and Hutch
Gundam Wing
Inuyasha
FAKE
Rurouni Kenshin
Trigun
Buffy, The Vampire Slayer
Weiss Kreuz
Star Trek

And I want to do more. I love my addictions. *hugs them*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

That is what I call poly-fandom, thank you very much! lol

The list is quite impressive all right. Mine --fandoms I read and not just writer, because otherwise there would only be two-- is :

The Sentinel
Stargate SG-1
X-Files
Queer as Folk - as painful as it can be most of the time.
Lord of the Rings - both RPS and FPS
Highlander
Oz
Star Trek: Voyager

And then there're also :

Quantum Leap
Tour of Duty
Buffy - only Andrew slash though
Harry Potter - Snapeslash here

So yeah, hail to never ending lists of obsessions lol

[alinewrites.livejournal.com]

I guess I'm mono-fandom. Mono-pairing. (even if I'm interested in other fandoms, I'm not really *in* them)
But I guess you knew that already, uh?

[castalie.livejournal.com]

I sorta knew that already, yes lol

[turps33.livejournal.com]

I don't get people who only have one fandom. It's a totally alien concept. I find new fandoms, embrace them but still keep my old ones. Not to the same extent sure, anyone can see where my focus is at one time, but I'd never walk away from my old fandoms. How could I? They're an important part of my fannish life. I still love Brennan and Blair to bits and always will.

As for RL. *hugs you tight*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

It's definitely an alien concept to us, isn't it? Actually, and after reading all the comments, I realise there are definitely lot of people into mono-fandom - so much more than I thought. I think being in contact with you so much and considering my own poly-obsession tendency, my perception was altered somehow lol

Thanks, it's highly appreciated *hugs back*

[greedy_dancer]

hmmm ... i'm not really sure, actually. i don't feel multi-fandom, even though i guess i actually am. my main fandom is still Lotrips, but with several pairings in there. then you have FPS in which i also read several pairings ... and then the odd fic in other fandoms ... but basically you can follow the path that led me to haing these fandoms, so it still feels like one single track to me.

lemme explain: first i read only Legolas/Aragorn. then i went into RPS and read Viggo/Orlando, then Elijah/Orlando, then Orlando/anyone. then i followed Orlando into other fandoms: Black Hawk Down both FPS and RPS, mainly Eric/Orlando. then Troy came out and i followed Eric/Orlando there, and started reading Brother!cest. which led me to read more incest!fics in Lotr FPS (Boromir/Faramir) and now in Kingdom Of Heaven (Orlando/Liam). so you see, it's all a single track, in fact. oh, first there was QAF of course but it's been a looong time since i've read anything in that fandom.

[castalie.livejournal.com]

That's interesting indeed because when it comes down to it, it does almost sound like everything you read has more or less the same foundation... I guess you're mainly mono-Orlando then lol

The combo is impressive, to say the least, and funny too since it made you read so many things... Orlando definitely knows how to spread his legs the love lol

[crystalskull.livejournal.com]

You, are the most amazing person in the entire world! Thank you!

*Dies from the love*

*Snogs*

LOVE!

[castalie.livejournal.com]

I've been meaning to do that for quite some time now and this time decided enough was enough so I did it. I'm glad you're appreciating it but I knew you would lol

You're welcome.

[french-hobbit.livejournal.com]

Hehe, interesting question. I consider myself mono-fandom, because i began with Lotr (especially mens of Gondor and elves), turned to Lotr-RPS, and from there i tried Lotr-derived fandoms, you know, BHD, POTC, Troy, Alatriste (oh, sorry, that's not a fandom yet)... But Lotr reminds my home base. Oh, and i'm interested in Sean Bean/everyone and every type *g*

[castalie.livejournal.com]

You're a bit like greedy_dancer then, I see her as being mono-Orlando since pretty much all her combinations include him, and usually she tries new stuff because he's part of the equation *g*