May 22, 2025
First up, Susrita Das with Food, fan art, and preserving a moment in time: a case study of the fandom-themed cafe ecosystem as alternative memory institution. #FanLIS2025
Das is investigating cafes as a method of cross-cultural fandom for Indian fans of Korean entertainment. #FanLIS2025
Das’s RQ: “Do fandom-centered cafe systems exhibit characteristics of alternate, informal memory institutions?” as opposed to formal, traditional memory institutions like libraries and archives #FanLIS2025
Das is comparing cafes in Delhi, Kolkata, and Siliguri. #FanLIS2025
Some cafes deliberately center the fan experiences as part of their marketing while others don’t.
Fans’ notes and art posted in cafes tend to be dated and signed, creating an informal archive, #FanLIS2025
Cafes decorated with standees and posters provide a historical record of the life cycle of a media text. #FanLIS2025
These K cafe spaces tend to demonstrate uncompensated feminized fan labor while cafe proprietors tend to be men who may not be fans themselves. #FanLIS2025
What happens when these cafes shut down and their archival records disappear and functions cease? #FanLIS2025
Next! Saskia Dreßler with How subversive is shipping really? An analysis of heteronormative elements in same-sex relationships focused on German-language anime and manga fan fiction
Dreßler looked at fanfiction on fanfiction.de, analyzed 40 stories from the Sailor Moon and Naruto fandoms, focusing on gay main characters (as represented in the fic, not necessarily the original text), the most popular stories, and stories that are downloadable and citable. #FanLIS2025
Stories Dreßler analyzed tend to apply heteronormative tropes to queer relationships. #FanLIS2025
Dreßler is sharing so much in the findings portion that I can’t keep up! #FanLIS2025
German-speaking fans do identify gaps but tend to fill gaps with heteronormative content even in queer stories. #FanLIS2025
Dreßler “Not everything is queer just because it appears to be.” #FanLIS2025
Tom Ue and Kristofer Starzomski-Wilson up next with Make It Pink: Superman, Pink Kryptonite, and Fandom #FanLIS2025
In canon, pink kryptonite affects sex/gender. Fans writing stories featuring pink kryptonite tend to do a lot of research and apply it consistently with canon.
So far Ue and Starzomski-Wilson have identified 4 canonical uses of pink kryptonite. #FanLIS2025
In a couple of comics, pink kryptonite causes Superman to be attracted to Jimmy Olsen. In a short Justice League cartoon, pink kryptonite turns Superman into a woman. In an episode of Harley Quinn, pink kryptonite is reported to “swap gender.” #FanLIS2025
Ue and Starzomski-Wilson are discussing 3 fanfiction texts, undated but apparently from the 90s, and it’s hard to tell from a particular fanfiction which canonical representation of pink kryptonite it’s responding to. #FanLIS2025
Fanfic featuring pink kryptonite tends to also incorporate other obscure elements from Superman/DC. #FanLIS2025
In some of these fanfic, other characters use pink kryptonite or their own abilities to impact Superman. #FanLIS2025
There are increasing mentions and interest in pink kryptonite in both canon and fanfiction. The use of pink kryptonite raises significant questions of consent for Superman. #FanLIS2025
Next up Melissa D. Nelson with Almost, beyond, or alongside fandom? An alternative frame for QAnon #FanLIS2025
Nelson is discussing the relationship between dis/misinformation and parafandom. #FanLIS2025