On
The L Word, one can’t very well argue that sexuality
between lesbian characters is not portrayed, but like
any other show on television, The L Word provides
numerous entry points for fan fiction writers seeking
to flesh out their favorite characters’ lives. The fact
that most of the characters on the show are openly lesbian
or bisexual simply removes the initial shift away from
heterosexuality that slash fiction historically has
required.
Fan
writers can immediately dive into stories about how
Bette and Tina first met, knowing that later on in their
fictional lives, these characters will actually be gay.
It’s
All Coming Together
The
L Word’s recent announcement of its contest to construct
a fan-created episode is actually just the latest in
a growing trend. Although producers in the past have
resisted fan-created fiction and films, citing copyright
violation problems, the boundaries between fan production
and “official” production have increasingly become more
porous. For example, Xena fan writer Melissa
Good, a fan favorite, went on to write two episodes
of the series, “Legacy” and “Coming Home,” which both
aired in 2000.
In
addition, after X-Files fan fiction writer Leyla
Harrison died of cancer in 2001, X-Files producers
named character named after her in two episodes that
aired later that year, as a tribute to both Harrison
and to X-Files fans.
In
2001, scholar Henry Jenkins acknowledged to Intensities
that “I think to some degree what’s happening is a media
industry being forced by an interactive age to become
more accountable and more responsive to its audience
than previously.” Reflecting this change, FanLib.com
cofounder David Williams told Media Week shortly
after the Showtime contest was announced, “Clearly
when you take something that might have generally been
regarded as a free-for-all, and you build certain controls
around it, that's obviously more appealing as it makes
it safe for the marketers.”
This
raises the question of whether fan-created texts will
be limited or freed by these collaborations with the
media producers themselves. Obviously, fans of a program
like The L Word are likely to be excited by the
prospect of working with writers of the show. However,
by enacting the “controls” that Williams mentions, fans’
abilities to take the series’ characters wherever they
want are certain to be restricted.
It
seems, then, that this coming-out for fan fiction is
a double-edged sword. Producers are clearly giving fans
a level of respect that they have long wanted, but that
respect comes with some limitations. In this particular
contest, for example, producers will make decisions
about which story arcs merit inclusion in the hypothetical
episode—a weeding-out process that will undoubtedly
eliminate fan storylines that producers would never
consider (e.g., moving Jenny to Antarctica permanently).
Which
means those viewers who want to watch a Jenny-less L
Word will still have to comb through the stacks
of fanfic websites—or learn how to write those stories
themselves.
