About The Pasture

The Pasture is a blog dedicated to engaging thoughtfully with fanworks—such as fanfiction, fanart, and fan music—as valuable creative and cultural practices. I reject the assumption that these works are inherently less meaningful than other forms and instead treat them with the same dignity, respect, and critical eye as I would any other.

I personally entered fandom as a child and remained there into adulthood. For myself and many others it became a primary source of community and belonging among my peers, both online and off. Simultaneously, though, I was ashamed of my interest in something most people saw as cringe. Indeed, the instinct for most, including myself and other fans, is to dismiss fanworks as lesser art, or stepping stones toward learning skills for original (marketable) work.

Over time, I've come to recognize that this dismissal never came from an objective measure of quality. It's a tool traditional spaces use to keep marginalized voices out. Cringe itself is a reactionary feeling, sparked when something or someone defies social expectations. Fandoms are largely made up of those whose works push back against traditional media's norms. Having created the 'rules' for what counts as 'good art,' traditional spaces maintain the power to label these works inferior or cringe—and keep their creators excluded.

Over the years this exclusion has led fans to build their own creative communities, values, and platforms outside of traditional structures. As these spaces grow, we are less and less reliant on traditional industries to drive culture, build community, tell stories and entertain us. I want to carry on this trajectory in my own way through The Pasture and create a space to discuss and value the un-marketable, the transformative, and the cringe.

Much love,

Darge <3