#thema

THEMA;, as some may know, was born as an act of pure love after I finished reading ORV at the end of 2021. For many years and through many different fandoms I had been threatening to run my own fanzine, but never found the right amount of drive necessary to bring a large public project like that to completion. As a lot people may be able to relate to, ORV completely broke me (LOL). I've done so many things I either haven't done in years or have never done before because of ORV; from fic writing, to designing and manufacturing merchandise, to publishing a frankly absurd amount of solo minizines, and more. I'm incredibly grateful that THEMA; got to be one of the first things on my continually growing list of experiences all thanks to a webnovel I read randomly one day. This too is ORV.

I'm not sure if one can truly claim to be the #1 fan of something, but I believe I can claim the title of #1 enthusiast for THEMA; at the very least. To this day I find myself full of overwhelming affection for our humble little PDF. Of course, you can never truly read something for the first time more than once; but every re-read I've done of THEMA; in whole or in part draws up the same well of emotions as it did over a year ago, when the first round of check-ins were submitted by our contributors. I feel only love when thinking of this project (and am comfortable enough to admit that it has made me tear up on multiple occasions, including today).

I thanked everyone last year, and I'll thank them all again a year later, and the next year, and the year after that:

Thank you to my fellow THEMA; mods, for taking a chance on an overly anxious newcomer to the ORV fandom, and for helping bring the zine to life. To Sona, Maya, Sajani, and Jay, I owe each of you so much. Thank you.

Thank you to our wonderful contributors, for your enthusiasm, dedication, and passion for the project. Every art piece and every word written is incredibly precious to me. The zine would not have been the same without you. Thank you.

And thank you to you, for still reading this. Your reactions to the zine still fill me with joy a year later. There was so much love felt on that day, and there will always continue to be. I hope to share many more stories with everyone—moderator, contributor, and reader alike—in the future.