Fans-anonymous: My life as a "FanGirl"

Fan-anonymous member: Little Monster cosplaying in Fame Era Gaga wig (Eyes blacked-out to protect identity) 

I've been quite obsessed with a number of things in my life; although, I don't always like to admit it at times.  I tend to keep my fan ways under wraps and on tumblr.  Nevertheless, I think there is nothing wrong with being a fan of something as long as kept under control.  Now, what is considered "under control" is hard to define.  I've consider my fan behavior at times quite out of control like checking fansites constantly or participating in fan forums, but to some hard core fans that is pretty minimum.  I guess "under control" should be defined "as long as it's not hurting anyone" and most fans don't mean any harm.  Although I've met some extreme cases in my life, most fans I've known have been really cool and realistic about what they "stan" for.   We are not crazy all (okay maybe just a bit).

Anyway, I've belonged to many fanbases in my life.  Most of my fan activity is in music related fanbases because I don't really get attached to television or films.  For the most part, belonging to fanbase has been a positive experience.  It's good to be able to come together and just talk about something you really like. I'm always taken by how creative some of these fans are with their fanfiction and fanart.  

Even though, I'm a writer, I've never wrote a line of fanfiction. I have found fanfiction at times somewhat creepy especially when 13-16 year old girls write themselves into relationships with 30-40 something year old men.  However, most fanfiction I have to admit is quite clever and can take a tv series or movie into another dimension and keep it alive even after the movie ends or series is cancelled.  Regardless of own my hesitance, I will alway defend fanfiction because it has encourages young people to read and write.