Archive of Our Own ^beta

Have you visited Fanlore lately? If you have, then you probably know it’s a living, evolving history of fandom, created and maintained by fans. Launched in 2008, Fanlore is a collaborative wiki in which fans are invited to record their experiences and memories of fandoms, fanworks, events, and everything fannish. It's open for fans just like you to join the community in shaping how everyone perceives and remembers fandom.

Fanlore celebrated a major milestone on February 15 when it reached 500,000 page edits! And it's still growing: more than 4,000 additional edits have been made since then. These numbers reflect the passion of Fanlore's many volunteers and contributors, who have helped build and preserve a wide-ranging, ever-changing record of fandom communities.

Some other highlights of Fanlore's history include:

• The GeoCities Rescue Project led by OTW's Open Doors committee, which included a push to create Fanlore articles documenting fannish websites hosted on GeoCities before GeoCities closed down in October 2009.
• Coming out of beta in December 2010.
• Participating with other OTW projects in the January 2012 protest against SOPA/PIPA — a piece of proposed US legislation that threatened fans’ freedoms and rights.

Fanlore welcomes contributions from anyone — check out the New Visitor Portal for tips on how to get started. Each edit helps us preserve more of fandom's history, and takes Fanlore one step closer to ensuring that the staggering creativity, positivity and discussions that grow in and around fandoms old and new are not forgotten. The Fanlore team has their sights set on 600,000 edits next, and, as always, on bringing in new voices to this story of fandom.

Please help Fanlore keep growing: head over to Fanlore, add your stories, and donate today!

As this year’s theme of Stepping Stones reminds us, our future is built on our past. No OTW project better exemplifies that than Open Doors, which is dedicated to preserving fanworks for future generations.

In the past, fanworks were not as easy to access as they are now. Before the age of modern websites, fandoms were only able to be celebrated in fanzines, newsletters, and clubs. Fan videos were created using VCRs. Conventions had fan-made T-shirts, buttons, and calendars whose pictures were not able to be instantly posted to Facebook and Tumblr. Open Doors has helped memorialize these contributions through the Fan Culture Preservation Project. This project is a partnership between the OTW and the Special Collections department at the University of Iowa Library where non-digital fanworks donated from private collections have been preserved for future generations.

In the present, we have seen entire archives disappear due to host server shutdowns, lack of funds, or outdated software; Open Doors works to help save these archives from disappearing entirely. They have worked on everything from helping archives import their works to AO3, to backing up archives in case hosting services shut down before they can be moved, to digitizing a classic fan novel series (with the permission of the author) in an attempt to save fanworks from disappearing entirely. The next major milestone will be the importing of the original Yuletide archive, scheduled for next month. Open Doors has also assisted in importing the Good Omens Library, GSSU- German Speaking Slashers United archive, the Dannell Lites archive, and the Leah Adezio archive.

For the road ahead, Open Doors is working to improve the automated import process and to prevent loss by working with archive mods on estate planning so that in the event of an untimely death an archive will not be lost. By being proactive, Open Doors hopes to prevent the inevitable issues that arise from such losses, and to protect these fanworks.

All of this is funded by the OTW through your donations. Take a moment to think about your favorite fic (the one you go back to and reread all the time), that fanart you reblogged twice because you wanted it to stay on your dashboard, that fanvid that was so enjoyable it got a song you had never heard before stuck in your head for three days. Think about whether you want those to be around for others to enjoy in the future. By taking a moment to donate to the OTW, you are helping to protect and preserve all of these. You are ensuring that your fandom will be around for you and others to enjoy, inspiring future generations.

The Organization for Transformative Works has celebrated major milestones in the past weeks. Fanlore passed 500,000 edits, the Archive of Our Own passed 1 million fanworks, and our Journal Committee editors produced The Fan Fiction Studies Reader. In March, we hosted a series of discussions on "The Future of Fanworks" with academic, fan, legal, and entertainment industry guests to celebrate these achievements.

Now it's time to focus on the path ahead! Every milestone we've reached has been a direct result of the cumulative generosity and effort of OTW members and volunteers. By making a donation, you can help create the path to the OTW's future, and help us reach all the milestones yet to come.

During our membership drive from now through April 9, we invite you to become an OTW member by making a donation of US$10 or more. Your contribution will help to sustain the Archive of Our Own, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, Fanlore, Fanhackers, and our legal advocacy work. If you donate US$50 or more, you can opt to receive a thank-you gift to proudly show off your support.

Donations to OTW are tax deductible in the United States. If you have questions about donating, please visit our membership FAQ (located at the bottom of the donation page) or contact the Development & Membership committee.

Your donation is a stepping stone to the OTW's future. Help us forge the path to preserving and fostering more fanworks and fannish history, achieving more legal victories, and encouraging more high-quality fannish scholarship. Please donate today!

2013 is almost over, and all of us at the OTW are grateful for the tremendous support shown by our members and donors this year. If you've been thinking about donating to the OTW but haven't done so yet, you may want to take a look at your finances and see whether it would be to your benefit to do so before December 31. Donations to the OTW are tax deductible in the United States. And if you're employed, please find out if your employer offers matching donations! Every dollar you give could be worth two dollars to the OTW.

Another way to support the OTW this month is through our ongoing promotion with Smart Pop Books, publisher of Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World . Edited by Anne Jamison and featuring contributions from several current and former OTW staff members, this book would make a great holiday gift for a fellow fan! From now through December 31, if you order the book from Amazon through this referral link, Smart Pop will donate a percentage of the proceeds to the OTW. They have generously offered to double Amazon's usual affiliate rate, which ranges from 6-8% depending on sale volume, so the OTW will receive 12-16% per book. This promotion applies to both the paperback and Kindle editions.

We'd like to thank everyone who's already participated in the book promotion — your purchases since October 30 have raised more than US$180 for the OTW! And thank you to all of you who have donated to the OTW throughout the year — we are very grateful for your support.

Mirrored from an original post on the OTW blog. Find related news by viewing our tag cloud.

Looking for something new to read? Want to support the OTW? Here's a way to do both!

Smart Pop Books is the publisher of Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over the World , a new book edited by Anne Jamison and featuring contributions from several current and former OTW staff members, including an essay about the Archive of Our Own.

From now through December 31, if you order the book from Amazon through this referral link, Smart Pop will donate a percentage of the proceeds to OTW. They have generously offered to double Amazon's usual affiliate rate, which ranges from 6-8% depending on sale volume, so OTW will receive 12-16% per book.

From the book's summary:

Fic is a groundbreaking exploration of the history and culture of fan writing and what it means for the way we think about reading, writing, and authorship. It’s a story about literature, community, and technology — about what stories are being told, who’s telling them, how, and why.

With provocative discussions from both professional and fan writers, on subjects from Star Trek to The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Harry Potter, Twilight, and beyond, Fic sheds light on the widely misunderstood world(s) of fanfiction — not only how fanfiction is transforming the literary landscape, but how it already has.

Here's the referral link again. Thank you to Smart Pop Books and Anne Jamison for this opportunity, and as always, thank you for supporting the OTW. Happy reading!

Mirrored from an original post on the OTW blog. Find related news by viewing our tag cloud.

The OTW's October membership drive has officially ended, and we'd like to thank everyone who came out to support it! Thanks to your enthusiasm and generosity, we had a very successful week! Between October 1-7, we received 1,810 individual donations totaling US$44,594.05, making this one of our most successful drives ever. Donations are still coming in: as of this writing, we've raised more than US$48,000 since October 1, and the OTW's membership has increased to more than 4,200 people.

To the 966 donors who took the plunge and became members of the OTW for the very first time during this drive, we welcome you with open arms and thank you from the bottom of our hearts! And to our returning members, thank you for your ongoing support, which has made the OTW's work possible for six years and counting.

A huge thanks goes to the staffers and volunteers who ran the drive by writing and beta reading, posting and tweeting, responding to donor inquiries, designing graphics, sending e-mail blasts, monitoring donation receipts, and myriad other tasks. Thank you for making the drive possible.

And finally, we'd like to give a shoutout to the many fans who supported us by reblogging and talking about the drive and the OTW on social media. We're especially pleased by the warm reception of the drive on Tumblr, since our presence there is relatively new -- the OTW opened its official account in May 2012 and we have not only experienced rapid growth, but also love and support for the OTW and its projects. Thank you.

Although this drive is over, it's never too late to become an OTW member. We gratefully accept donations throughout the year. And there are plenty of other ways to show your support, from telling Legal about your experiences with takedowns to contributing a piece of fandom history to Fanlore to volunteering for an open position that fits your qualifications and interests. Fans' participation is what keeps the OTW and all its projects going. Thank you for being a part of it!

Mirrored from an original post on the OTW blog. Find related news by viewing our tag cloud.

The following post was written by Lesann, a staffer in our Development & Membership Committee

Twice a year, during drive time, OTW does its best to remind supporters and (hopefully) future supporters of what the organization is working on, how it is cutting edge and important. In order to do this, staffers in OTW interview the heads of different OTW projects. This time, I had the privilege of speaking with the editors of Transformative Works and Cultures (TWC), the OTW's academic journal.

In one of our emails back and forth, content editor Kristina Busse said, "we really just do our work to bring out 3 full journals with 5-10 full peer reviewed essays, 5-10 symposium pieces, and a couple of book reviews on average each." It struck me, upon reading this tongue-in-cheek comment just how much volunteer work that means for herself and the entire journal team.

Three full journal issues a year, with five to ten peer reviewed essays each, would be no small feat even in an academically supported environment, where a university press is supporting the process and there is a built-in community of available peer-reviewers. What the team for TWC manages, is to overcome the lack of established academic infrastructure and consistently provide a respected journal of superlative quality. That is huge.

Like the OTW's other projects, TWC is free to everyone. There is no requirement of subscription, payment, or any type of contribution to consume the journal pieces, and perhaps even transform aspects of them. Like all OTW volunteers, everyone who works for the journal contributes their time and skills for free: from the editorial staff and production staff to the academic peer reviewers, who assure the journal’s reputation within the field.

An academic journal that is free to any and all readers is a rare thing. To give some idea of how valuable a resource TWC is, a similar academic journal on fan studies charges individual subscribers $105 USD a year, a typical price for a 12-month subscription to a peer-reviewed journal in the field. Libraries also benefit by having TWC as a part of their holdings (but not an additional cost in their journal budget).

Even with all the hours of donated time, there are some financial costs associated with producing TWC. In an earlier post we mentioned the Web hosting costs for the server that houses the journal. Because TWC is online only, it also requires a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) for each of its articles. Editor Karen Hellekson describes DOIs as "insurance against switching infrastructures." A DOI, as explained by the MIT library site, "identifies an individual article (like a serial number) such that a permanent URL can be created." In other words, should TWC ever need to move to a new online platform, having a DOI subscription will save hours upon hours of volunteer time, as well as prevent interested readers from being unable to find the content they seek. The OTW pays an annual subscription fee of $275 for this service, plus a $1 fee for the DOI of each individual journal article.

Transformative Works and Cultures strives to provide fresh and thought-provoking material for fans and non-fans alike. The next two issues, scheduled for March and June 2014, will focus on fan labor and fan materiality, respectively — both topics to which many fans can relate.

To help support the production of original, open-access fan scholarship, please consider making a donation today. Thank you!

Mirrored from an original post on the OTW blog. Find related news by viewing our tag cloud.

Fanlore, the wiki project maintained by the Organization for Transformative Works, is a living record of all things fannish. The wiki has recently passed the milestone of 25,000 articles and has received over 19 million views!

Documenting our history, communities, events, practices, and works in a wiki is invaluable in welcoming new members into fandom, and in preserving our events and traditions for future generations of fans. Just a few of the contributions Fanlore welcomes include:

* Memories
* Definitions and trivia
* Discussions
* Memes
* Links to fandom resources
* Overviews of fandom history
* Examples of fanworks, fansites, fan gatherings, and groups.

We're always looking for content from every fandom, everywhere: there is no limit to the creativity of fans throughout the world, and we would all be thrilled to read about the fan history you've experienced.

For those wanting to discover the site, you can look over the sitemap, choose a random page, or sign up to its "new page" feed. At Fanlore, the possibilities are endless and community is key!

If you want to help edit Fanlore, create an account today. If you're already familiar with Fanlore and want to take your passion and commitment to fan history to the next level, you could consider becoming a Fanlore Gardener.

Like all of the OTW's projects, Fanlore relies on financial support from fans. If you enjoy using Fanlore, please consider making a donation.

Mirrored from an original post on the OTW blog. Find related news by viewing our tag cloud.