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STRUGGLE SESSION: Cream Pies, Bondage Boys, Gift Cards and More!
Aug. 29th, 2025 07:54 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
savagelove_feedStruggle Session is a bonus column where I respond to comments — just a few — from Savage Love readers, Savage Lovecast listeners, and the occasional online rando. I also share a letter that won’t be included in the column and invite my readers to give advice.E Excellent advice from YamatoGun for the caller who … Read More »
The post STRUGGLE SESSION: Cream Pies, Bondage Boys, Gift Cards and More! appeared first on Dan Savage.
OTW Signal, August 2025
Aug. 28th, 2025 04:52 pmotw_news_feedEvery month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works.
In the News
An article from Roster Con analyzes how fans are reinventing community online, creating inclusive digital spaces that thrive, and fundamentally changing the way people with shared interests connect and interact with each other.
Instead of waiting in line at conventions or gathering in packed theaters, people are now forming tight-knit communities online—spaces where shared interests thrive without borders.
What’s striking isn’t just the tech that brings people together; it’s how fans are reshaping what it means to belong, connect, and celebrate something bigger than themselves.
Today’s pop culture fans are constructing elaborate digital networks that have no geographical boundaries and do not follow traditional media consumption patterns. For example, the article notes that the Stardew Valley network on Discord has grown from a small chat group into an expansive community where players share content and organize multiplayer events. This transformation from content-focused discussion to community-centered interaction is taking place across online fandom spaces. Platforms like Discord and Twitch support active fan communities and host virtual conventions, complete with panel discussions, cosplay, and live Q&As, allowing fans to experience the excitement of fandom gatherings while removing barriers like travel and cost.
What’s even more powerful is the reach. People who would never have made it to San Diego or Tokyo due to cost, distance, or accessibility now have a front-row seat. A fan in Nairobi, a student in Warsaw, and a parent in São Paulo can all be part of the same hype cycle, cheering and reacting together.
The article also addresses how creative platforms like Archive of Our Own (AO3), FanFiction.net, and DeviantArt are no longer simply repositories for fan-created content. Creators post works in progress to seek input and engage in collaborative projects that may span multiple authors and extended timelines. Similarly, social media has become a powerful tool for fan communities, with hashtag campaigns fueling organized fan movements and creative collaboration that spreads quickly and travels far. These activities provide a sense of community and support previously found in schools, clubs, and community groups, reshaping how fans engage with each other in the digital age.
For Gen Z fans in Australia, the sense of belonging that comes from participating in fandom is particularly valuable right now, according to an article by Lucinda O’Brien in Amplify. With the rising cost of living and a looming recession, one in four young Australians reports loneliness and isolation as daily stressors. Fandom offers a space for them to express themselves and to make friends with others who share their passions—an antidote to the ongoing loneliness.
Fandom expert Dr. Georgia Carroll explains that fandom provides a critical sense of community and belonging, especially in difficult times:
Joining a fandom often begins as a light-hearted endeavour for Gen Z to bond over shared interests, but these spaces can deepen into emotionally rich communities where personal stories and identities are shared. Fandoms become places where fans feel seen, validated and safe to express themselves.
For Australian fans of international fandoms, distance often makes it difficult to meet with other fans in person, leading them to seek connection through online communities. As digital natives, Gen Z are adept at connecting through online fandoms.
As conventional community spaces continue to decline and social isolation grows, these digital communities offer something more than just entertainment or distraction. For Australian Gen Z, online fandom offers new and invaluable opportunities for connection and belonging.
OTW Tips
The AO3 community is now nine million users strong! In 2024 alone, users shared over two million new fanworks, and the site received an incredible 34 billion page views. You can find these and other highlights in the OTW’s 2024 Annual Report.
Bonus tip: many of our statistics are also available as graphics that chart the OTW’s growth over the years.
To everyone who helps this space thrive—thank you for building community with us!
We want your suggestions for the next OTW Signal post! If you know of an essay, video, article, podcast, or news story you think we should know about, send us a link. We are looking for content in all languages! Submitting a link doesn’t guarantee that it will be included in an OTW post, and inclusion of a link doesn’t mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.
Yay, Explaining
Aug. 26th, 2025 09:17 pmquestionable_content_feed
the exposition will continue until Roko's morale improves
Long Time!
Aug. 26th, 2025 11:00 amsavagelove_feedLong time reader! I’m a mostly straight boy in my early 20s with a new girlfriend. I say “mostly straight” because I’m into bondage and finding men who wanted to tie me up was always easier than finding women who wanted to tie me up. But I met a girl at a party early this … Read More »
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All Hail E. Jean Carroll!
Aug. 26th, 2025 11:00 amsavagelove_feedA woman’s old friend and sometime lover asked her for a beaver shot to ease his stress on an upcoming couples trip. She obliged. Did he thank her? No he did not. She’s miffed, and wonders if she’s being too sensitive. We love questions like this: What do gay men actually do with vibrators? Our … Read More »
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Faerie: Tolkien Fanfiction is Moving to the AO3
Aug. 26th, 2025 10:09 amotw_news_feedFaerie, a Tolkien fanfiction archive, is being imported to the Archive of Our Own (AO3).
In this post:
- A bit of background explanation
- What this means for creators who had work(s) on Faerie
- And what to do if you still have questions
Background explanation
Faerie: Tolkien fanfiction was an archive founded by Esteliel in 2011 and run with the help of mods Narya and Spiced_Wine. The site welcomed all sorts of stories, poetry and non-fiction writing, regardless of genre, rating or pairing. Due to unforeseen circumstances the site owner could no longer maintain it and the site was taken offline sometime in 2021. As a result and in order to keep the stories available to the fandom, the mods Narya and Spiced_Wine decided to move the archive to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project.
The purpose of the Open Doors Committee’s Online Archive Rescue Project is to assist moderators of archives to incorporate the fanworks from those archives into the Archive of Our Own. Open Doors works with moderators to import their archives when the moderators lack the funds, time, or other resources to continue to maintain their archives independently. It is extremely important to Open Doors that we work in collaboration with moderators who want to import their archives and that we fully credit creators, giving them as much control as possible over their fanworks. Open Doors will be working with Narya and Spiced_Wine to import Faerie into a separate, searchable collection on the Archive of Our Own. As part of preserving the archive in its entirety, all fanfictions currently in Faerie will be hosted on the OTW’s servers, and embedded in their own AO3 work pages.
We will begin importing works from Faerie to the AO3 after September 2025. However, the import may not take place for several months or even years, depending on the size and complexity of the archive. Creators are always welcome to import their own works and add them to the collection in the meantime.
What does this mean for creators who had work(s) on Faerie?
We will send an import notification to the email address we have for each creator. We’ll do our best to check for an existing copy of any works before importing. If we find a copy already on the AO3, we will add it to the collection instead of importing it. All works archived on behalf of a creator will include their name in the byline or the summary of the work.
All imported works will be set to be viewable only by logged-in AO3 users. Once you claim your works, you can make them publicly-viewable if you choose. After 30 days, all unclaimed imported works will be made visible to all visitors. We will then permanently close down the site.
Please contact Open Doors with your Faerie pseud(s) and email address(es), if:
- You’d like us to import your works, but you need the notification sent to a different email address than you used on the original archive.
- You already have an AO3 account and have imported your works already yourself.
- You’d like to import your works yourself (including if you don’t have an AO3 account yet).
- You would NOT like your works moved to the AO3, or would NOT like your works added to the archive collection.
- You are happy for us to preserve your works on the AO3, but would like us to remove your name.
- You have any other questions we can help you with.
Please include the name of the archive in the subject heading of your email. If you no longer have access to the email account associated with your Faerie account, please contact Open Doors and we’ll help you out. (If you’ve posted the works elsewhere, or have an easy way to verify that they’re yours, that’s great; if not, we will work with the Faerie mods to confirm your claims.)
Please see the Open Doors Website for instructions on:
- importing your works to the AO3
- adding your works to the new collection Faerie: Tolkien fanfiction
If you still have questions…
If you have further questions, visit the Open Doors FAQ, or contact the Open Doors committee.
We’d also love it if fans could help us preserve the story of Faerie on Fanlore. If you’re new to wiki editing, no worries! Check out the new visitor portal, or ask the Fanlore Gardeners for tips.
We’re excited to be able to help preserve Faerie!
– The Open Doors team, Narya and Spiced_Wine
Commenting on this post will be disabled in 14 days. If you have any questions, concerns, or comments regarding this import after that date, please contact Open Doors.
The OTW’s 2024 Annual Report is Now Available
Aug. 23rd, 2025 06:31 pmotw_news_feed
We are pleased to publish the OTW’s 2024 Annual Report, available in PDF and HTML formats. The report provides a letter from our Board of Directors, a summary of our activities during the past year, and our financial statements for 2024. Some highlights from 2024 include finishing the update to AO3’s Terms of Service, creating a new committee (and 2 new subcommittees!), as well as starting work on the OTW Organizational Culture Roadmap.
You can access the 2024 report, and all earlier years, on the Reports and Governing Documents page of the OTW website. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.
savagelove_feedGoing to be a quick session today — we’re doing a Savage Love Live today at noon (Note: We did Savage Love Live yesterday at noon. Thanks to all who attended!) — but I wanted to share this email from Philip before getting into hair and makeup for the live show… Just when I thought … Read More »
The post STRUGGLE SESSION: Nipples Casting Shadows, Hosts Omitting Time Stamps, Boyfriends Attending Kink Parties and More! appeared first on Dan Savage.
AO3 Celebrates 9 Million Registered Users
Aug. 21st, 2025 11:26 amotw_news_feedWhat is better than having eight million passionate, dedicated users? Having nine million, of course! That’s right, the Archive of Our Own (AO3) has recently reached nine million registered users! Thanks a million (or rather, nine million!) to every member of our community for making this success possible.
Some of you have likely noticed that AO3 is occasionally—and temporarily—unavailable due to site maintenance. However, if you prepare yourself in advance, you don’t need to be deprived of content!
The best way to prepare yourself for maintenance (both scheduled and unscheduled) is to download works in advance to tide you over until the site is accessible again. You can find instructions on how to download content from AO3 in our FAQs! Works are downloadable in several formats — AZW3, EPUB, MOBI, PDF, and HTML — letting you enjoy reading across devices: desktop, mobile devices, or even eReaders. Whether the site is temporarily down or you’re offline, having works downloaded means that you can always enjoy your favorite works!
Once again, thank you for your continued support of AO3 and for helping us grow each and every day. We look forward to celebrating many more achievements with you in the future!
Yet Another New Character
Aug. 20th, 2025 09:34 pmquestionable_content_feed
Roko is still bad at knitting
Do I HAVE to Shave My Pubes?
Aug. 19th, 2025 11:00 amsavagelove_feedA cute li’l gal worries she just isn’t a very convincing dom. How can she use psychology to establish her sexy top role? A newly out pan man is ready to dive into gay culture. But he isn’t quite ready to shave his pubes! Does he have to? On the Magnum, Dan chats with novelist … Read More »
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Four Options
Aug. 19th, 2025 11:00 amsavagelove_feedI’m a 31-year-old heterosexual woman who has been married for nine years. The math: my husband and I got married right after university. Like you, I grew up Catholic, and as a girl/woman, all of the purity culture bullshit was foisted on me. Over the years, I’ve come to reject everything I was brought up … Read More »
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2025 OTW Election Results
Aug. 19th, 2025 01:46 amotw_news_feedThe Elections Committee would like to thank all of our candidates for their hard work in this year’s election. We would also like to thank our departing Board Directors, Jennifer Haynes and Zixin Zhang, for all their work during their Board terms. With that, we are pleased to present the results of the 2025 Election.
The following candidates (in alphabetical order) have been officially elected to the Board of Directors:
- Elizabeth Wiltshire
- Harlan Lieberman-Berg
The new members of the Board will formally begin their term overlap on October 1. We wish them well with their terms.
With that, the election season comes to a close. Thank you to everyone who got involved by spreading the word, asking the candidates questions, and, of course, voting! We look forward to seeing all of you again next year.
