Shows
Mind the TagsThe Hippogriff in the Room: The Harry Potter ProblemJoin Emily and Vee as they tackle how Harry Potter fic writers have responded to J.K. Rowling's public shift to transphobia in recent years. Vee shares their own experiences as a Harry Potter fic writer, and Emily adds some unasked-for attacks on long-dead composer Richard Wagner.
Topics include: Orphaning fics, the relationship between creators and fic, and fond memories of wizarding childhoods
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Content warning: this episode discusses transphobia
Sources from today's ep:
Emily's Gritty/Phanatic slash fic
Guide to...2025-05-3050 minMind the TagsInterview with Naomi Jacobs: Design ResearcherOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Dr. Naomi Jacobs, Lecturer in Design Policy and Futures Thinking at Lancaster University. In this interview, we discuss the printing and binding fanfiction ("fanbinding") and the ways in which creating physical copies of fanfiction is another type of transformative fanwork. We also chat with Naomi about her fandom journey, including her entree into fanfic through Doctor Who novels.
Sources from this episode:
The Design of Printed Fanfiction: A Case Study of Down to Agincourt Fanbinding by Naomi Jacobs and JSA Lowe
The Renegade Bookbinding Guild
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2025-05-0952 minMind the TagsFic is (like totally) Lit: Fanfic vs. Original FictionJoin Emily and Vee as they discuss the similarities and differences between fanfiction and original fiction, including worldbuilding, copyright, filing off the serial numbers and fanfic that becomes published, and the ever-evolving journey of the Mary Sue.
Topics include: Publishing, legality of fanfiction, creative writing, Philip Roth shade
If you heard on us the most recent episode of The Culture Study podcast, welcome! Check out our catalog of episodes here.
Sources from today's ep:
The Big Difference Between Original Fiction and Fanfiction by Margery Bayne
Mary Sue on Fanlore
E44: More Than The...2025-04-1855 minMind the TagsInterview with Alexis Lothian: Fandom ScholarOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Dr. Alexis Lothian, Associate Professor at The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Maryland. We chat with Dr. Lothian about her foray into fanfiction in the early 2000s, as well as her scholarly work around speculative fiction, feminism and racism in fanfiction, and the power of fandom to shape political awareness and movements.
Sources from this episode:
Vidding: A History by Francesca Coppa
AI Hype Enters Its Geopolitics Era w/ Timnit Gebru from the Tech Won't Save Us P...2025-03-2846 minMind the TagsThe (fan)Artist's Way: The Friends to Lovers Relationship between Fanart and FanfictionJoin Emily and Vee as they chat about the long and intricate relationship between fanart and fanfiction, the different legal and financial considerations between them, fanart commissions, and Vee's new venture as a lego artiste. Philadelphia vernacular warning to listeners: Emily uses the word "jawn" at least twice in this episode.
Topics include: Fanart, commissions, digital media
Sources from today's ep:
The OFMD Craft Fair Auction
Big Bang on Fanlore
Fanart on Fanlore
Zine on Fanlore
The OFMD Fine Frames Project
Vee's lego art
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song...2025-03-0645 minMind the TagsInterview with Elizabeth Minkel: Fandom JournalistOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Elizabeth Minkel, fandom journalist, co-host/editor of Fansplaining, and co-curator of The Rec Center. We talk about Elizabeth's travels through Buffy GeoCities of yore, what she loves and has learned about fanfiction over the years, and the trends she's observed in AI in fandom spaces. Check out some of Elizabeth's articles that we discuss here:
Why Generative AI Won’t Disrupt Books
Lots of People Make Money on Fanfic. Just Not the Authors
The Endless Appetite for Fanfiction
You can find out about Elizabeth's projects here....2025-01-311h 07Mind the TagsFic de Resistance: How Fanfiction Can Create Community and Fight OppressionJoin Emily and Vee as they discuss how participating in fanfiction can support writers and readers during times of uncertainty, and how the fanfic community can respond to political developments that threaten our communities.
Topics include: Pleasure activism, anti-capitalism, gift culture, LGBTQIA+ representation, fan activism
Sources from today's ep:
Kudos on Fanlore
Alexis Lothian lecture from the University of Maryland Arts & Humanities YouTube channel
Pleasure Activism by adrienne maree brown
The Best Organizing Strategy You’ve Never Heard Of: Why Fan Activism Has the Power to Radically Change Our World by Fandom Forward
Fellowship of th...2025-01-131h 01Mind the TagsInterview with Lindie and Boy: OFMD PodficcersOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Lindie and boy, two incredible podficcers from the Our Flag Means Death fandom. Lindie and boy share what got them into podficcing, tricks of the trade, and some of their favorite things about recording fanworks. We've included some of the fics discussed in this episode below.
You can find Lindie's podfics here:
Ao3
Soundcloud
You can find boy's podfics here:
Ao3
Soundcloud
Podfics mentioned and/or referenced in this episode:
No one would riot for less written...2024-12-1159 minMind the TagsIt's a Femmeslashinomenon: Shipping Female Characters in FanfictionJoin Emily and Vee as they discuss "femmeslash" and some of the ships that paved the way for fanfiction centered around romantic relationships between female characters.
Topics include: Women in media, gender, the trend of burying your (sapphic) gays, and the lasting influence of Xena: Warrior Princess
Sources from today's ep:
Blorbo From My Shows on Fanlore
All 240 Dead Lesbian and Bisexual Characters On TV, And How They Died from autostraddle
TV Characters' Rising Death Toll Reveals Troubling Pattern from NPR
The 10 greatest episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess by Sara Century
Ao3 Ships Stats 2024 by...2024-11-1349 minMind the TagsInterview with Lani and Jo: Hosts of The Fanfic Writers' CraftOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Lani and Jo, co-hosts of The Fanfic Writers' Craft, a podcast that discusses all things fanfiction with a focus on the art and science of writing for the enjoyment of fan communities. We talk about Jo's fandom beginnings in American procedurals, Lani's journey through the RENT fandom community, and the topics that have surprised Jo and Lani as hosts of The Fanfic Writers' Craft. You can find their podcast on Spotify and Tumblr!
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our...2024-10-3147 minMind the TagsSlashing Through the Binary: Gender and M/M FanfictionJoin Emily and Vee as they discuss why some fanfic writers create stories centered around M/M (or "slash") romance.
Topics include: Gender expression, queer representation in media and fanfiction, and late breaking news about the patriarchy
Sources from today's ep:
Queerbaiting on Wikipedia
How Do We Solve A Problem Like “Queerbaiting”?: On TV’s Not-So-Subtle Gay Subtext by Rose
Please Do Not Bait the Queers by Emmett Scout
Ao3 Demographics survey by centreoftheselights
The Bechdel Test on Wikipedia
Performance, Property, and the Slashing of Gender in Fan Fiction by Sonia K. Katyal
Tumblr post by...2024-10-0958 minMind the TagsInterview with Diana: Fanfic Writer and ResearcherOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Diana, a writer and editor interested in queer theory, feminist theory, and media studies. We talk about some of Diana's favorite fandoms (including Inuyasha and Star Wars) and discuss the importance of fandom community when writing fanfiction. Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design. Thank you to Ollie for editing our sound!
2024-09-3038 minMind the TagsInterview with DianaOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Vee and Emily interview Diana, a writer and editor interested in queer theory, feminist theory, and media studies. We talk about some of Diana's favorite fandoms (including Inuyasha and Star Wars) and discuss the importance of fandom community when writing fanfiction.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design. Thank you to Ollie for editing our sound!2024-09-1838 minMind the TagsThe Multiverse of Fanfic: The History of Alternate UniverseJoin Emily and new co-host Vee as they discuss alternate universes (AUs), including their own experiences reading and writing AUs.
Topics include: Canon and cannons, Gulliver's most...interesting travels, and the limitless possibilities of expanding universes to infinity and beyond.
Sources from today's ep:
Alternate Universe on Fanlore
In Favor with Their Stars by mxmollusca
Fanfiction episode of the "Let's Learn About..." podcast
William Hogarth's piece in the British Museum
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design. Thank you Ollie for editing our sound!
2024-08-2849 minMind the TagsYou, Me, and Ao3 with Guest Host Jay CastelloJoin Emily and Jay Castello as they discuss Jay’s 2022 article on The Verge: Archive of Our Own’s 15-year journey from blog post to fanfiction powerhouse. Emily and Jay dive into their own fanfiction experiences and share their perspectives on Ao3's important history and future.
Topics include: The mysterious business of tag wrangling, what makes AO3 different from all the fanfic sites that came before, and why Emily still hasn’t written Spirk fic.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design.
2024-08-0655 minMind the TagsInterview with Elf Herself: OTW ContributorOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily interview Elf Herself, a fandom archivist who supports the Organization of Transformative Works (OTW), where she works on the Fanlore and Open Doors projects. We talk about Elf's own fandom journey, her involvement with the OTW at its launch, and her ongoing work for the organization.
Follow Elf on Tumblr here and on Dreamwidth here.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design. Thank you to Ollie for editing our sound!
2024-07-1626 minMind the TagsWelcome to the Internet: The Early Days of Online FicJoin Kristin and Emily as they talk about a quirky invention called the World Wide Web, and how the internet changed the landscape of fanfiction. We talk about Usenet groups, Fanfiction.net, and The Great Purge of 2002.
Sources from today's ep:
A Brief History of Modern Fanfiction: the Migration of Online Communities by Katherine
alt.tv.x-files (ATFX) on Fanlore
ATFX Newbie Kiosk
The Internet is for Fic by Jill Bearup
Fanfiction.net on Fanlore
Moving Across Lands: Online Platform Migration in Fandom Communities by Casey Fiesler and Brianna Dym
Thank you to Erik Potteiger...2024-07-0251 minMind the TagsInterview with Jay Castello: Fandom JournalistOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily interview Jay Castello, a freelance writer who covers fandom among other topics. We talk about Jay's own fandom journey, some of her journalistic work, the importance of fanfic preservation, and the future of fanfic.
Follow Jay on Bluesky here and on X here.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design.
2024-06-1128 minMind the TagsFrom A to Zine: A History of FanzinesOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily discuss the history of fanzines, their rise in popularity, and the changing landscape of zines during the age of the internet. Today's word of the day is "tropes!"
Sources from today's ep:
Trope definition on Fanlore
History of Media Fanzines on Fanlore
Zines and the Internet on Fanlore
Star Trek Usenet Group
Alien Romances Blog
Meta: Profiting from Fandom
Portions of Textual Poachers by Henry Jenkins accessed via UW Libraries
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our...2024-05-2136 minMind the TagsInterview with Killabeez: Creator of the K/S ArchiveOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily interview Killabeez, creator of the K/S Fanfiction Archive. We talk about Killa's fanfiction journey and her love of Star Trek.
Follow Killabeez on Bluesky here and on Dreamwidth here.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design.
2024-04-3023 minMind the TagsWhere No Fan Has Gone Before: Kirk/Spock and the Genesis of SlashFandom. The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship fanfiction. Its continuing mission: to explore the love fans have for their favorite characters in media; to connect with other people who are also feral for their ships of choice; to boldly go where no fan has gone before! Join Kristin and Emily as they talk about the legacy of Star Trek in fanfiction, particularly the Kirk/Spock relationship and its influence on "slash" writing. Today's word of the day is "fanfiction!"
Sources from today's ep:
StarTrek.com article
History of K/S on Fanlore
...2024-04-1653 minMind the TagsInterview with Alexandra Edwards: Author of Before FanfictionOn this episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily interview Alexandra Edwards, author of Before Fanfiction: Recovering the Literary History of American Media Fandom. We talk about Alexanda's fanfiction research and her own experience as a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan on The Bronze.
Check out Alexandra's book here!
Follow Alexandra on X here.
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design.
2024-04-0240 minMind the TagsFanfiction by Any Other Name: Diving into the Early Days of FanfictionOn the first full-length episode of Mind the Tags, Kristin and Emily dive into the origins and early history of fanfiction and showcase their first word of the day: "fandom!"
Sources from today's ep:
Fanlore.org pages:
Fandom
Fanfiction
The Three Generations of Fanfic
Before Fanfiction by Alexandra Edwards
"Fan Fiction Was Just as Sexual in the 1700s as It Is Today" by Shannon Chamberlain
Thank you to Erik Potteiger for producing our song and Haflacky for our logo design.
2024-03-1936 min