And, bear with me, you aren't really your best fan either. Maybe in terms of who gets sleepless with excitement as your work unfolds, who actually puts pen to paper (figuratively since most of us type these days)-- sure, you can be the ultimate first adopter. However, I'm exploring a new way to look at it, a sort of level-up for the long haul.
First off, my number one is an honor I want to let my readers believe they enjoy. They aren't necessarily, but very well could be, the actual first to buy and devour my work, eager for more, but it's my hope they both believe they're worthy of the spot and are just as eager to share that spot. I'm not writing solely to drive my ego so, while I'm driving the vehicle, fan input and even personal ranking is not something I feel is imminent domain.
Leading to my second point, I am the driver of my destiny, so I wear enough hats. How many hats is enough and why not wear them all? It's not a certain number, just a feeling. I wear similar hats to that of the fan, but when I can't be the most enthusiastic fan, I have to be able to choose the right hat for the job. Fans, no matter the lengths they'll go to paint their naked bodies in arctic weather, are still meant to be passive observers. Fans, you are candles in the night, both ritual and beacon in so many ways, but when I suit up to be a writer, the role of fan is too passive (as it should be) to affect the actual act of working? You can wear the same stinky socks for a week in the name of luck and less laundry, but it is still my job to move the words. So too will I look to you for inspiration at times when I struggle to find my stories.
Third, it's just not a good idea to share hats. Actual concerns about head lice not being the factor here, there's too much of an elitist thread in posing myself at the top of a hierarchy I made in the first place. I don't need first chair, first place, first comment, to secure my presence. It would be really fucking weird if I didn't have enthusiasm for my work anyway. Needing to lead my own fan pack is not a vote of confidence so much as a desperate plea. Certainly, I would be honored to be asked to give my blessing to make a fan club for my work official, but that opportunity is lost if I take the reins on that aspect of it as well. So in some ways, being stingy and selective with my hat collection as a budding writer is important to building some opportunities of higher value overall. Again, giving room for fans to build from their own experiences affords them an angle wasted on me.
Semantically, of course a writer still has to be their number one fan. Yet there are days I just don't like myself much where I still need to grab a hat and get to work. Some parts of writing aren't about passion. While fans assign themselves different responsibilities as well, from passion to precision, I still remind myself that I can't take on a passive role.
To embrace a cliche, these books won't write themselves. In that case, my writerly hats take precedence over that sentiment. Hey, number two ain't so bad, right? It's still the shiiiiiit...
Why not, because we're one or the other and likely both in some way, right? (I won't assume that the casual can withstand my rants so by process of elimination...)
Nerds, geeks, dorks, queers, freaks, and so on... They're all kind of used synonymously and not exactly with actual ignorance or negativity. A lot of words in slang use are 'misused' or 'abused' and... well, I'm not exactly a word purist myself so it doesn't really irritate me much at all. Overuse is really the only crime and that's down to my gripe with repetition of any kind. I'm of the mind that you can use any word you damn well please as long as it's working to create understanding. It might be limited in understanding (inside jokes and experimental use are not a crime) but unless it's complete gibberish (and reeking of malignant elitism), go for it.
So! That being said, I still find definitions to be worth knowing. Know it to bend it, a personal policy of mine. Understanding a word's etymology, its anatomy and parts, is crucial to maintaining or enhancing the understanding.
Let's Google these bitches to start...
geek
ɡēk/
noun
informal
noun: geek; plural noun: geeks
1.
an unfashionable or socially inept person.
a knowledgeable and obsessive enthusiast.
"a computer geek"
2.
US
a carnival performer who performs wild or disgusting acts.
verb
verb: geek; 3rd person present: geeks; past tense: geeked; past participle: geeked; gerund or present participle: geeking
1.
engage in or discuss computer-related tasks obsessively or with great attention to technical detail.
"the nerds running the world's technology are certainly getting the last laugh"
a single-minded expert in a particular technical field.
"a computer nerd"
Ouch, dictionary... you're not pulling any punches with the first definitions, are you? These definitions are certainly why dedicated fans are hesitant to embrace these words, but also why I keep pushing the positives hidden within.
And in this case, at the sad bottom of the list. Let's top it up, shall we?
Where geek is concerned, the obsession/passion is actually the distinction I can agree with, but I've seen language often deviate geek away from the 'computer' limitation. In fact, stripped down to its best, a geek is simply passionate about their hobbies, not one in particular. You can 'geek out' about a particular area, but it's not a restriction or even necessarily deep. I'd say that geeks are simply engaged in where they direct their attention and while they CAN be thorough, it's the simple act of being absorbed in it that counts. Geeks writing fanfic would be more inclined to experiment with possibilities than insist on facts.
As for nerd, again, bottom definition of a single minded expert in a technical field. Again, scratch technical since a fandom doesn't require technical base. Nerd is largely a designation given to the hyper-detail-oriented, the ones that DO develop single-minded obsessions. When you talk with the typical 'nerd' they are the ones most likely to get irritated or unable to resist correcting you when you contradict a fact. They might be a nerd in several or all areas they are interested in. Nerds writing fanfic would, of course, tend to be opposite of geeks; they would support facts more strongly than endeavor to bend or take liberties with the material.
The 'socially inept' part is always misleading in these. They aren't always general population level social but since passion and precision are areas that take a lot of devotion with time, they are often unaware of what hyper-social types would consider general knowledge. They are out of YOUR loop, but get them around their fandoms and good luck seeing any signs of awkwardness (or even getting them to shut up). Unless they're engaging in consuming those fandoms together, in which case, it can get pretty serious and silent. Yeah, they might not give a shit about fashion and be less than meticulous in hygiene, but this doesn't mean they're all uncoordinated slobs.
So yes, when I use nerd or geek, my top meanings are usually this:
Geeks- passionate fans that enjoy participating in the possibilities and the enthusiasm.
Nerds- critical fans who file details, stricter to canon but still engaging in theoretical development of that area.
As far as what fandoms or interests or expertise qualify, I'm not sure you can exclude anything. You can have doll geeks/nerds, veggie geeks/nerds. Expertise and/or passion for a subject often gives people similar qualities that keep within the context.
In my experience, geeks are more likely to be accepting of new fans, simply because of the flexibility of their devotion. Nerds have the tendency to display more elitism and largely because they catalog and prioritize their devotion. A generalization nonetheless since I've known prickly geeks and chill nerds, so it really comes down to the individual in how sensitive they are to other fans.
I don't mind explaining myself when people seem to be offended or not on the same page. I'm really not insisting that my definitions even become the norm if someone thinks otherwise. I steer clear of labeling anyone directly until they know how I feel about certain labels and understand with more than my tone what is meant by it.
It's important that we create context even when a word is rather set in its definition, one that hasn't budged since it began. When we take liberties, it still means we should angle to drive the context. Poetry is quite different, just like music, where rhythm, rhyme, and structure is sometimes the higher or only priority rather than strict communication. If you read Eminem lyrics, they can come off as really silly, cheesy or stupid at times, but when you hear the way he chains and presents them, you suddenly understand why it's so important to prioritize what he does with them.
Words are everything to a writer. It can be intimidating to accept the responsibility of a risk to the rules, but worth it to establish what they mean to you, to guide the reader to that meaning as simply and interestingly as possible. I get when you're out to be a word-nerd (the rhyme is irresistible by itself) but it's worth it to infuse it with a little geek. Get passionate and experimental with the precision, even if it means keeping a journal to track what you play with on the side.
Nerd, geek, whatever you are, you can make it mean whatever you want. Every day, we redefine what it is to be man and woman, simply by being what we are regardless of the standards.
And fuck the socially inept part. Tell my grandma that I'm socially inept and you'll piss her off by making her laugh when she spits soda through her nose. She'll admit I'm weird or quirky or thoughtful, but my social choices are not due to ineptitude. They're just not limited to acceptability.
So, what's your favorite fan assignation? Do you like geek/nerd or are you sick of the stigma and go for a word like fan, aficionado, connoisseur, master-chief (if this is where you stop, you're a Halo geek/nerd in DEE-NAI-YAL!)? Drop your prestigious titles below!
