Falling into Fandoms
fandoms. ever heard of them?
Some terms that will be used frequently throughout this presentation!
Fandom: Fans of a particular media, either books, movies, TV shows, celebrities.
Canon: Content confirmed in the media or by the creators and thought of as "real" in its respective universe.
Headcanon: A divergence from canon made up from ideas created by fans.
Fanfiction: Fictional writing written by fans that includes fictional characters or takes place in a fictional universe
AU: Stands for "Alternate Universe" and refers to when fictional characters are inserted into settings outside of their respective universes.
Got it?
Examples:
These are some bas
Fandoms: Potterheads (Harry Potter), Whovians (Dr. Who), Swifties (Taylor Swift)
Canon: Harry Potter is British. Mr. Ratburn from Arthur is gay.
Headcanon: Spider-man is bisexual.
AU: Imagining Harry potter in an American school setting.
Ok, got it this time?
The whos, whats, and whys of headcanons
More about headcanons
Headcanons and fan created content became widely spread around 2008 as websites such as Tumblr, Archives of Our Own, and Wattpad were established.
Headcanons are unique to each fan as everyone interprets and consumes media differently.
They are ways for fans to explore more about their favorite universes and get creative, using their favorite characters as creative outlets
creative outlet examples
A piece of fanart featuring Leo Valdez from the Percy Jackson series and Jack Frost from the Rise of the Guardians movie. Made by Viria (clicking on the picture will reroute you to their Tumblr blog) who is a fanartist that also drew the official art for the Percy Jackson series.
A screenshot from AO3, a website where fans can publish their own writing. As of May 2020, it is home to 6 million pieces spanning over 36, 700 different fandoms
who headcanons?
Headcanons are for anyone who wants to delve more into a piece of media
They can range from small ideas like a character's favorite food to bigger themes like exploring more about a character's relationship with another.
Many headcanons explore a character's pronouns, sexuality, or even ethnicity.
This ties back into a lack of canon representation, as fans feel the need to fill the void left by the media and end up self-projecting.
Examples of Headcanons!
A popular headcanon for the character Spiderman is that he's bisexual. There are rumors that Marvel plans to make Spiderman bisexual, so it may go from being a headcanon to canon.
A detailed Harry Potter headcanon that explores Harry Potter's future after the book ends. Headcanons can vary in length & depth, it really depends on the creator.
Now that we've explored the basics of headcanons and fandoms, try to make your own!