Aquarius wrote:Granted, this is hardly hard, scientific evidence, but when I've seen the question similarly broached elsewhere, the answers were pretty much the same. I think it's universal regardless of what fandom it is.
You are so right. And it's part of the circle of fandom that the topic comes up every few years.
For reference (for those who are into meta discussion -- warning, you can get lost for hours in all this, and there is some wank):
Femslash Discussion Bookmarks from Metafandom on Delicious
Fic Commenting Discussion Bookmarks from Metafandom on Delicious
All Metafandom Discussion Tags on Delicious
Aquarius wrote:Honestly? -- And nobody throw anything at me here, I'm making a confession and explaining where I'm coming from and counting on folks to not get freaked out and judgmental
This is a discussion I would absolutely love to have, in a safe environment with like-minded people who respect each other, with the expectation of open minds and that it would not descend into some kind of wank. I too would like to explain where I'm coming from and count on folks to not get freaked out and judgmental, so I'm pretty sure most of us here are on the same page. We've obviously all seen or come from various communities which made these subjects... challenging, at best? I think we could have that discussion here at DE but that would be up to you guys, the mods. I do think it may detract from the focus of this thread, since it's not an easy topic. Consider this a request to have that conversation around here at some point? (Or here, if you wanted to continue.) You make some very good points, Aquarius, with completely understandable reactions, and I can totally relate. They make a terrific starting point, imho.
That said, I'm also including some of those meta debates I've referenced upthread. It's really interesting reading, and I've certainly learned a lot over the years from other people's perspectives, as I've grown as a writer, reader and a viewer.
Slash Discussion Bookmarks from Metafandom on Delicious
No Heterosexual Explanation (or, "finding your slash goggles for beginners," imho)
And the other side of that particular coin, for folks who can't find their slash goggles. Not that there's anything wrong with that. <====JOKING, just in case...
Aquarius wrote:I don't know...it just seems to me that as a whole, Enterprise slash is more...what's the word I want...accessible?...to a broader range of readers. And by accessibility I don't mean how easily you find it online or the volume of stories being written or whatnot. I mean it in the sense that we use in describing the content of a TV show in terms of will "most people" get it or will only a small segment of people relate to it.
As a small part of that discussion, Enterprise, as a Trek series, came along at just the right moment in time, too, compared to other series. IMHO, there was a tipping point somewhere after the turn of the century, where online and societal views and acceptance of what used to be a whispered, er, "kink" isn't the right word -- interest? choice? lifestyle? -- have made their way into mainstream. Slash is one, LGBTQ is another, even "porn" isn't given a second glance in many circles anymore. So today, talking about fanfiction in general is more understood, or simply tolerated. Since slash is a subgenre of fandom/fanfiction, that means it has a contextually broader appeal as well. There was slash with other series, but now late night talk show hosts and even the actors themselves joke about it. That didn't happen before.
Aquarius wrote:That said, in terms of Enterprise, maybe the femslash is suffering first and foremost from an accessibility issue? In the RU, there is very little subtext upon which to draw from in terms of T'Pol/Hoshi, so you're already in the realm of "yeah, I know, but I like it this way." Maybe the tacit confession that comes with leaving a comment on such a story isn't so much "OMG what if they think I'm a lesbian?" or "OMG, what if they think I'm a dude who reads chick lit?", but more of one like "yeah, it's a crack!ship, but I like it"?
Crack!ships are in the eye of the beholder, since slashers and non-canon shippers are a wide and varied lot. Some people ship anything that moves (a probable subset to Rule 34), just because. Some characters become the "little black dress" of a show's fanfiction (Malcolm seems to fit that role in Enterprise fandom, thanks to DK). Some people rely on subtext, and some don't. Some just like teh pretty. As to how leaving a comment to a fic may or may not be interpreted? I don't really feel that holds a lot of sway on whether or not someone comments, except maybe in those very restrictive communities you referenced above. All this is subjective, though, and YMMV.
TL;DR: If you're actively reading slash enough to want to comment, what other slash readers will think about your predilections are probably not a concern, imho. Could be wrong, though. I'm certainly not the final arbiter of Fandom.