A decade is a really, really long time. Wow. (I went and poked around, and I've been on LJ for seven years, and I was definitely reading fic well before OotP, so I think that makes me around eight years in fandom. Everything I've written is still online and likely to remain so, even the terrible stuff, because I don't care enough; although occasionally I see an icon I made in like, 2004, and people are still using it and I'm like, gdi, I wish I could fix that one.)
A couple of other fans our age & I were talking to China & a few older fans recently-ish and there's *such* a distinctive generation gap. I'm so *glad* I grew up with fandom and learned to spell and the political ramifications of Britpicking (and also, truly, I feel like people who *grew up* in Harry Potter fandom have the healthiest attitude to Fandom Drama). And met Writers with a capital W, and people who just want to have fun and play around, and really kind older fans (there were a few people at the YW forum I used to hang out on who I honestly believe are responsible for turning me & not a few other people into vaguely healthy & smart adults w/a sense of perspective) and queers coming out my ears which was such a boon to me, and and and. Well, you know, we share these experiences. I'm reminded of it seeing that meme go around which occasionally does, you know, the "copy this paragraph if there are people in your life you'd never have met without the internet" - anyway, I'm just blithering now. <3 You seem to have had a pretty gorgeous fandom life and I'm glad that I've been around for the more recent bits!
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A couple of other fans our age & I were talking to China & a few older fans recently-ish and there's *such* a distinctive generation gap. I'm so *glad* I grew up with fandom and learned to spell and the political ramifications of Britpicking (and also, truly, I feel like people who *grew up* in Harry Potter fandom have the healthiest attitude to Fandom Drama). And met Writers with a capital W, and people who just want to have fun and play around, and really kind older fans (there were a few people at the YW forum I used to hang out on who I honestly believe are responsible for turning me & not a few other people into vaguely healthy & smart adults w/a sense of perspective) and queers coming out my ears which was such a boon to me, and and and. Well, you know, we share these experiences. I'm reminded of it seeing that meme go around which occasionally does, you know, the "copy this paragraph if there are people in your life you'd never have met without the internet" - anyway, I'm just blithering now. <3 You seem to have had a pretty gorgeous fandom life and I'm glad that I've been around for the more recent bits!