So today I stumbled upon an article on how “Fangirling your faves on Twitter is Cheap and Childish” [DoNotLink so it’s safe to click it, they won’t get more page views via this link] over at The Telegraph. It’s an incredibly dismissive and condescending piece, which read more like someone was left out of the love fest and is bitter. It opens with this lovely whinge:

I’m not sure when fangirling became a ‘thing’, but now that it’s here, it’s growing by the second. These days, it’s almost impossible to scroll down a Twitter feed without coming across hordes of women swooning all over each other’s ‘awesomeness’.

Whether it’s ‘OMG you’re amazing’, a series of #fangirl hashtags, or a clapping hands emoji, fangirling is everywhere.

And I hate it.

Call me cynical, but there’s something rather uncomfortable about this trend where grown women act like over-excited One Direction fans – over the smallest things. At best, it’s just a bit cringey, and at worst, it’s an insincere squeal that says far more about the woman writing it than the one it’s dedicated to.

I’m not sure what corners of the internet the author lurks in but fangirling has been a thing I’ve done for AGES, and if women want to congratulate each other on small things, THAT’S FUCKING DELIGHTFUL!

Do you really want to see women at each other’s throats over some petty shit more than you want to see someone like Taylor Swift happy for a friend or a fan?

It reads like you’re not congratulating and celebrating other people the way I APPROVE OF so you’re wrong, wrong, wrong and I am here to tell you how wrong you are! (insert angry little foot stomp here)

The author also seems to have conflated networking with fangirling. The two aren’t in the same zip code, city or state. Me fangirling at someone doesn’t mean I am trying to get a job with them, or be their best buddy. It also negates all the effusiveness that people have over their faves. It’s too girly for the OP’s taste and that’s seen as a bad thing; at least how I’m reading it.

Grown ass women having happy moments on line because they are happy for a celeb they admire, or someone they’ve followed for ages doesn’t deserve the derision this “article” gives it. #Fangirl isn’t a dirty word like the author of the piece wants it to be, no matter how cynical and cranky she is about something she just now suddenly discovered online.

So in response to this and because I am that kind of asshole today, I started #FangirlYourFaves over twitter.

So go forth, #Fangirl unrepentantly, don’t be a creep though. It’s also not for women to just #Fangirl other women, #FangirlYourFave is for everyone. <3

Yours,

#Fangirl4Life,

Cypher

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker.. She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr. She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021. Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press) Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.

2 thoughts on “On #Fangirling and #FangirlingYourFave…”

  2. i’m trying to understand this person’s point or purpose. are they mad that they didn’t get fanned?

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