Monthly Archives: March 2013

Fans Make the Best Critics

Morton Oliver, from his review of Constance Penley’s book in the Nov 20, 1997 issue of Nature:

“People who are not fans find it hard to understand the nature of the fan’s relationship to his or her field, be it Arsenal football club, the Grateful Dead, Star Trek or whatever. The fans are experts, they are enthusiasts, they are critics and they are creators, writing stories, publishing ’zines and remixing bootleg tapes. They know the details and they delight in spotting the mistakes, but at the same time they imbue with value and significance whatever it is they’re attached to. They are a community of consumption convinced it is central to the whole process of production.”

Link

David Levithan on his new novel cover art

David Levithan on his new novel cover art

Young adult fan-sourced cover art! David Levithan talking about the direct influence of his fans on the content and cover of his new novel. If this isn’t the future of cover art for young adult novels, it really should, especially for nerdfighter-related authors who are regularly promoting reader ownership of novels and artistic expression.

Link

Nerdfighters in the New Yorker

Nerdfighters in the New Yorker

An interesting introduction to the Nerdfighters for those who haven’t been paying attention for the last six years. The tone reminds me of those articles in which mainstream writers suddenly “discover” that young adult literature can be well written and enjoyed by adults. Still, it’s nice to see them getting this kind of attention.