Looking to Fanfic's Future

Fan fiction has existed and evolved for hundreds of years. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for this genre.

Access: In the past, fan fiction had relatively low circulation and was distribution was either by word of mouth, hand to hand, or through the postal system. The Internet has certainly changed this and has resulted in fanfic being available to anyone with an Internet connection. This includes children, housewives, senior citizens, and grad students who would rather peruse anything on the web in an attempt to avoid finishing their projects :). In other words, access to fanfic is not limited to just fans anymore.

Quality: While the Internet has increased access to fanfic, only time will tell if the Internet will have a positive or negative influence on the quality of fanfic. While some fanfic is high quality, there is also a lot of really bad fanfic out there. Trust me--I've read some. My favorites were two fanfic stories from the same author based on Brokeback Mountain, one entitled "I'm Drunk" and the follow-up, "I'm Sober". Many of the websites that exist allow anyone to post anything without any editing or administrative review. Some experts believe that the mainstreaming of fan fiction may raise standards, bring more educated people into the arena, and encourage some voluntary gatekeeping with input from professional writers or editors.

Acceptance: The influx of fan fiction on the Internet has helped mainstream it, and acceptance of fan fiction is already on the rise. Improved quality will also help these acceptance levels. While certain authors (Anne Rice) deride it, approval by J.K. Rowling and Anne McCafferty--as well as Meg Cabot's admission that she formerly wrote fanfic--may do more to help acceptance not only by the general public but also by original authors.

Legal Issues: To date, there have been very few instances of lawsuits regarding fan fiction. Lots of cease and desist letters, but not really many court cases. This seems to be because by definition, fan fiction is a not for profit activity. In my graduate studies, I've heard a lot about self-publishing. Perhaps it's just new to me, but it seems to be gaining in popularity lately. If fanfic writers find it simpler to be published, it would seem that the "not for profit" defense will fly out the window, original creators will feel more threatened, and ultimately, this genre will see an increase in legal action.