Just an English teacher living in Zoom Hell

administrators:

The original tweet summarizes it pretty well. Fanfic tends to be popular among certain types of neurodivergent people (aka people most likely to read excessively as a child, and have burnout as an adult) for the same reasons that we tend to hyperfixate–neurochemical signaling (I hope I’m using that phrase correctly). What I mean is, for people who are really dependent on changes in dopamine/serotonin/neurotransmitter levels, who have low levels or wonky neural reward systems (perhaps the most common types of neurodivergence)…people like us rely on dependable external sources of those neurochemicals. In order to function, we spend a lot of our free time trying to level out our brain chemistry using things that can reliably bring us a steady stream of joyful moments (rewards) without costing too much of the mental effort that is already in short supply. 

significantly: the investment of reading has to be balanced with a steady “return on investment”–and this return has to start fairly quickly. because again, we don’t have a lot of attention/energy to invest on tiring things. we have perpetual “low batteries” in that regard.

that doesn’t mean these stories are “simple,” or that they lack complexity or value–only that the reward has to come in short regular intervals, and it has to have a low “upfront cost.” these stories are only “easy” to read in the sense that the effort we put into them is rewarded in a timely manner. which is why fanfic stories are so perfectly formulated for neurodivergent readers–they are often beautifully written, but skip a lot of the upfront costs (of introducing new characters, of world-building, of getting the audience emotionally connected to the story elements).

the nature of fanfiction is that the reader has a pre-existing relationship with this world and these characters. that–combined with the shorter average length of fics–means that fan fics very quickly start rewarding the reader in a way that traditional fiction struggles to. that’s not a bad thing! and maybe it’s something more traditionally published writers should be paying attention to.

everyone under 35:

I mean you had two in a week you insatiable gremlins but FINE yes okay have some pictures of Wally going boat shopping

I call this one "Draw me like one of your French buoys"

This is the one where he fell asleep and they towed him away and hooked him up to an anchor, but taken before he fell asleep. Seems to be enjoying the sun.

Here he is trying to use a ladder (spoilers this was not successful)

He actually decided this one was too small.

But so far, you're thinking, these are all just charming images of a rascal! Elanor, you cry, you describe this beast as a criminal! A ruffian! A ne'er-do-well nereid! How can he be any of those things?

Well, let me show you, Anon. Let me show you.

Here he is commandeering a fishing vessel, thus STEALING the LIVELIHOODS of those HARD WORKING FISHERS

But British fishers mostly voted Brexit, so maybe you aren't sympathetic. Well, fair enough. But what would you say if I told you that he's back to his old tricks again vis-a-vis BLOCKING EMERGENCY SERVICES

THIS IS AN AMBULANCE BOAT, WALLY

GET DOWN THIS INSTANT

And finally, if his theft of a working ambulance weren't enough, here he is capsizing another boat. JUST LIKE he did in Tenby.