To Learn is to Live

With my weekend plans having changed with about a week's notice, I was reminded (by Jim Bob on the album playthrough on Bandcamp) that there were still a few tickets left for the second album launch on the Saturday. Second album? Yep. Jim was releasing two albums at the same time 'Stick' and 'Automatic'. This isn't a double album, but two completely separate albums. 'Stick' is the punkier number, while 'Automatic' is more of a full-band thing. 'Stick' was launched at the sweaty punkpit that is the Fighting Cocks in Kingston, while 'Automatic' was being launched at Rough Trade East off Brick Lane.

Up to London, some loitering outside chatting to other folks about shared histories of seeing 1990s bands, and then, by way of collecting my copy of the album on the way in, to the space that had been cleared of music racks in front of Rough Trade East's small stage - and then to continue the chatting for most of an hour until the clock ticked around and the band strolled onto the stage. Jim Bob was carrying an electric guitar, backed by a band of electric guitar, bass, drums, and two keyboard players.

And then they set off, playing through the album tracks in order. A couple of tracks featured a slight stumble, as this was the first time these tracks had all been run through live, but it was a good-humoured gig and audience. The songs on the album are the usual Jim Bob mix of whimsy, observation, and biting lyrics. Once the album play-through was completed, there was just enough time for an extra song, with the band managing to play through Carter's Lean On Me, I Won't Fall Over¹ and finish with seconds to spare before the curfew.

And then to join the queue to leave by way of Jim's signing table, with an extended comparing of notes regarding disappeared venues with the guy behind me in the queue, who turned out to have lived in Croydon in the late 80s and early 90s.



A full photo album is here.

¹ One of my favourite Carter songs.

Posted by Aditi Paul

https://www.transformativeworks.org/celebrating-the-otws-18th-anniversary/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267165

September 5 is the OTW’s birthday and this year, we are turning 18 years old! To celebrate this event, let’s look back at some of the milestones the OTW’s projects – AO3, TWC, Open Doors, Fanlore, and Legal Advocacy – have achieved over the years:

• As the first OTW Project, Legal Advocacy was launched in 2007, the same year as the organization itself.
• In February of 2008, TWC released its first call for papers! Shortly after, in June, Fanlore was launched.
• In late 2009, AO3 first went live. Roughly one year later, AO3 reached 10,000 users, with growth of the community accelerating ever since.
• In 2011, Open Doors was launched, and began importing archives in 2012.
• In 2015, the first ever International Fanworks Day was observed.

Since then, our projects have only continued to flourish and grow. AO3 has more than 9 million users and 15,730,000 works. Fanlore has nearly 80,000 pages and has seen over 1,657,000 edits. TWC is on its 45th issue. Open Doors has imported more than 100 archives, containing over 164,000 fanworks. Legal Advocacy fights hard for the rights of fans each and every day, responding to dozens of questions every year, filing Amicus Curiae briefs, joining coalitions, and more. All this and more is thanks to the support of fans worldwide; it wouldn’t be possible without you!

If you’re interested in how you can help, there are many ways for you to support us and our fannish community, and you can learn about some of them today by participating in our 18th Anniversary Bingo! On the card below you can see sixteen ways to contribute to the OTW or one of its projects. Some of these you might already have done, or are doing. You can cross those off!

Once you have a Bingo, we’d love for you to tell us what you did to get it! Tag us on social media using #18YearsOTW or comment below, and let us know. We’re excited to hear from you!

If you’re looking for other ways you can support the OTW, check out How You Can Help for more ideas!

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https://www.transformativeworks.org/celebrating-the-otws-18th-anniversary/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267165

Posted by Caitlynne

https://www.transformativeworks.org/august-2025-newsletter-volume-203/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267144

I. 2025 BOARD ELECTION

Elections successfully closed the 2025 OTW Board Director election. Congratulations to the OTW’s new Directors: Elizabeth Wiltshire and Harlan Lieberman-Berg! Elizabeth and Harlan will be replacing the seats of outgoing Board members Jennifer Haynes and Zixin Zhang.

Many committees collaborated on Board Election work, with Communications helping distribute announcements, Development & Membership coordinating with OTW members, and Translation making Elections material available in multiple languages.

Elections would like to thank all the candidates who ran, the volunteers from across the OTW who assisted Elections in their work, and everyone who engaged with the election by asking questions or turning out to vote.

Statistics from this year’s election were made available on September 1: out of 15,138 eligible voters, 2,197 cast a ballot, representing 14.5% of potential voters.

II. ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN

In August, AO3 celebrated both one million Mandarin Chinese works and nine million users. Thank you to everyone who’s helped us reach these milestones!

Also in August, Accessibility, Design & Technology (AD&T) deployed a couple releases that included bug fixes and security improvements, and Systems continued their routine tasks, such as improving performance and auditing Archive traffic for malicious bots. User Response Translation began completing ticket translation requests, and Open Doors announced the import of Faerie, a Tolkien fanfiction archive.

In July, Policy & Abuse received 3,570 tickets, while Support received 3,999 tickets. Tag Wrangling wrangled just over 636,000 tags, or over 1,400 per wrangling volunteer!

Elsewhere, Tag Wrangling coordinated with AD&T and announced changes to fandom tag policies for fangames and fanmade web series in a series of three posts on the @ao3org Tumblr. The first post outlined the general policy, while the second post focused on Undertale and the third post focused on Fangans from Dangan Ronpa. Lastly, Tag Wrangling also coordinated with Communications to announce 20 new “No Fandom” canonical tags on AO3 News.

III. ELSEWHERE AT THE OTW

Legal is continuing to answer user queries and monitor legal developments. Although there are many concerning legal developments around freedom of speech and expression online, they are not directly affecting AO3. Legal also dealt with some unauthorized app who’ve used OTW and AO3 trademarks in confusing ways.

Transformative Works and Cultures has two active calls for papers, both due by January 1, 2026. The first is a special issue on Latin American Fandoms, and the next is a special issue on Music Fandom.

Communications‘ Con Outreach division wrapped up Worldcon 2025 in Seattle, Washington, USA – thank you to everyone who tabled and who said hi to us! You can check out con goers’ recommendations in the con’s AO3 collection.

Fanlore’s themed month for July, Fandom in Color, was a big success! Their next editing challenge, Stub September will run from September 14-28, and graphics will have an animals with swords theme. Check their Bluesky, Twitter/X and Tumblr for announcements.

IV. GOVERNANCE

In August, Board, Board Assistants Team (BAT), Organizational Culture Roadmap, and Volunteers & Recruiting began a cross-committee review of the OTW’s Code of Conduct. This review aims to ensure the Code of Conduct still serves both the OTW as an organization as well as its many volunteers.

Elsewhere, Board collaborated with other committees on Crisis Communication Guidelines, began their biennial review of the Board Confidentiality Policy, had their quarterly check-in with Legal, and approved the 2024 Annual Report. Minutes from July’s public Board meeting are now available on the OTW website. Board also started preparations for the upcoming Board turnover after receiving the 2025 OTW Board election results.

BAT continued work on several projects, including collaborations with the Organizational Culture Roadmap and a report on nonprofit training. Lastly, Strategic Planning continued work on their two-year progress report on the implementation of the current strategic plan.

V. OUR VOLUNTEERS

In addition to the aforementioned Code of Conduct Review, Volunteers & Recruiting also began a project focused on workgroups, aiming to increase the OTW’s ability to support projects that might not fit within the purview of a single committee.

This month, Volunteers & Recruiting conducted recruitment for two committees: BAT and Development & Membership.

From July 23 to August 20, Volunteers & Recruiting received 203 new requests, and completed 252, leaving them with 51 open requests. As of August 20, 2025, the OTW has 982 volunteers. \o/ Recent personnel movements are listed below.

New Communications Volunteers: GrayIsNotEmo, KW Ukuku, Magda19, and 1 other TikTok Moderator
New Fanlore Volunteers: Becca Bun, Jules Moon, Tiff, Zoe Bird, and 2 other Social Media & Outreach Volunteers
New Policy & Abuse Volunteers: Ain, embobem, Gail, Rissi, and 2 other Policy & Abuse Volunteers
New Support Volunteers: ChangYan, Clarice Strand, Jennifer Elliott, llianne, John Pork, Louie, Maycix, melon8, Mily, nayogn, Stevie, TinaOe, viewofsilence, Wtchmn23, Ziting, and 8 other Support Volunteers
New Tag Wrangling Volunteers: amphob, Bec, Berix, Bettelort, bingus, Bismuth, bluejello, Clarissa, Daisya, dila, Draconic, Drakoshig, firstestly, genitus6, grexigone, Hazelwyrm, heliolatry, Jas, KD, Lace, Lau, Leo M, Leuconoen, Maris, Mary, Nerva, nekojoo, null_ice, Nyxia, Pandasaurio, pickledragon, radiance, Ravenna, rikka, RJ, Sabrina_Tangerina, sarkastic, Sayornis, SCEnt Hope, shrikes, Soyash, Talixa, Tea Huimyni, Thunder, twistingsands, Zee, and 1 other Tag Wrangling Volunteer
New Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteers: Ana Niccals, Bekyro, PerpetuallyPurple, and 2 other Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteers

Departing Committee Chairs/Leads: 1 Communications Chair
Departing BAT Volunteers: 2 Board Assistant Team Volunteers
Departing Communications Volunteers: 1 Event Coordinator, 1 Media Outreach Volunteer, 1 Report Writer, and 2 TikTok Moderators
Departing Fanlore Volunteers: 1 Social Media & Outreach Volunteer
Departing Tag Wrangling Volunteers: Esin and 9 other Tag Wrangling Volunteers
Departing Translation Volunteers: Janka (Translator)

For more information about our committees and their regular activities, you can refer to the committee pages on our website.

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The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/august-2025-newsletter-volume-203/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267144

Posted by an

https://www.transformativeworks.org/five-things-ladydragona-said/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267139

Every month or so the OTW will be doing a Q&A with one of its volunteers about their experiences in the organization. The posts express each volunteer’s personal views and do not necessarily reflect the views of the OTW or constitute OTW policy. Today’s post is with ladydragona, who volunteers as a Tag Wrangler.

How does what you do as a volunteer fit into what the OTW does?

As a Tag Wrangler my job is to make sure the tags users use on their works are connected (‘synned’ or made a synonym) to the Canonical (Official) tag they most closely relate to, which allows users browsing the Archive to filter for and search for these tags! I also create new Canonical tags when specific concepts have been tagged repeatedly enough and move tags that can’t be synned anywhere, either because too many concepts are in one tag or there just isn’t one to syn it to, to their appropriate fandom.

What is a typical week like for you as a volunteer?

I work a lot of hours at my irl job so most of my volunteer work has to happen around that. I try to wrangle tags for at least an hour every day after work while Wrangling parties are hosted some weekends so I’ll usually try to attend those which means I’ll spend more time wrangling then.

What made you decide to volunteer?

I’ve always loved fanfiction and, having experienced a handful of archive purges, I wanted to be involved and help maintain this site that I love so much. When I saw a Wrangler Q&A on Tumblr I realized it was possible for normal fans like myself to volunteer and help and that Q&A really made wrangling seem to be a fun thing to do.

What has been your biggest challenge doing work for the OTW?

My biggest challenge would probably be time-management. I’m prone to getting very focused on what I’m doing and not realizing just how much time has passed, as well as wanting to do more than I realistically have the time for. I often have to set timers to remind myself to go eat or go do something else.

What fannish things do you like to do?

My main fannish activity is writing fic! In fact, I’ve posted over two million words on the archive in the last 6 years and don’t see myself stopping any time soon! When not writing fic or volunteering I also share fanart and metas on social media as well as help my fellow fans brainstorm their own fics in various discord servers. I like being involved in my fandom’s community and have made some of my bestest friends that way.

---

Now that our volunteer’s said five things about what they do, it’s your turn to ask one more thing! Feel free to ask about their work in the comments. Or if you’d like, you can check out previous Five Things posts.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/five-things-ladydragona-said/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267139

Posted by therealmorticia

https://www.transformativeworks.org/2025-otw-election-statistics/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267054

Now that the 2025 election is over, we’re happy to share with you our voter turnout statistics!

For the 2025 Election, we had 15,138 total eligible voters. Of those, 2,197 voters cast a ballot, which represents 14.5% of the potential voters.

Our voter turnout is lower than that of last year, which had a turnout of 22.8%.

We also saw a decrease in the number of ballots cast, from 3,415 to 2,197, which represents a 35.6% decrease.

Elections is committed to continuing to reach out to our eligible members to encourage them to vote in elections. Whoever is elected to the Board of Directors can have an important influence on the long-term health of the OTW’s projects, and we want our members to have a say in that.

For those who might be interested in the number of votes each candidate received, please note that our election process is designed to elect an equal cohort of Board members in order to allow them to work well together, so we do not release that information. As a general rule, we also won’t disclose which of our unsuccessful candidates received the fewest votes, since we don’t want to discourage them from running again in the future when circumstances and member interest might be different. However, as there were only 3 candidates this year, revealing that information is unavoidable.

Once again, a big thank you to everyone who participated at every stage of the election! We hope to see you at the virtual polls again next year.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/2025-otw-election-statistics/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267054

Per the dw_news post regarding the MS/TN blocks, we are doing a small code push shortly in order to get the code live. As per usual, please let us know if you see anything wonky.

There is some code cleanup we've been doing that is going out with this push but I don't think there is any new/reworked functionality, so it should be pretty invisible if all goes well.

A reminder to everyone that starting tomorrow, we are being forced to block access to any IP address that geolocates to the state of Mississippi for legal reasons while we and Netchoice continue fighting the law in court. People whose IP addresses geolocate to Mississippi will only be able to access a page that explains the issue and lets them know that we'll be back to offer them service as soon as the legal risk to us is less existential.

The block page will include the apology but I'll repeat it here: we don't do geolocation ourselves, so we're limited to the geolocation ability of our network provider. Our anti-spam geolocation blocks have shown us that their geolocation database has a number of mistakes in it. If one of your friends who doesn't live in Mississippi gets the block message, there is nothing we can do on our end to adjust the block, because we don't control it. The only way to fix a mistaken block is to change your IP address to one that doesn't register as being in Mississippi, either by disconnecting your internet connection and reconnecting it (if you don't have a static IP address) or using a VPN.

In related news, the judge in our challenge to Tennessee's social media age verification, parental consent, and parental surveillance law (which we are also part of the fight against!) ruled last month that we had not met the threshold for a temporary injunction preventing the state from enforcing the law while the court case proceeds.

The Tennesee law is less onerous than the Mississippi law and the fines for violating it are slightly less ruinous (slightly), but it's still a risk to us. While the fight goes on, we've decided to prevent any new account signups from anyone under 18 in Tennessee to protect ourselves against risk. We do not need to block access from the whole state: this only applies to new account creation.

Because we don't do any geolocation on our users and our network provider's geolocation services only apply to blocking access to the site entirely, the way we're implementing this is a new mandatory question on the account creation form asking if you live in Tennessee. If you do, you'll be unable to register an account if you're under 18, not just the under 13 restriction mandated by COPPA. Like the restrictions on the state of Mississippi, we absolutely hate having to do this, we're sorry, and we hope we'll be able to undo it as soon as possible.

Finally, I'd like to thank every one of you who's commented with a message of support for this fight or who's bought paid time to help keep us running. The fact we're entirely user-supported and you all genuinely understand why this fight is so important for everyone is a huge part of why we can continue to do this work. I've also sent a lot of your comments to the lawyers who are fighting the actual battles in court, and they find your wholehearted support just as encouraging and motivating as I do. Thank you all once again for being the best users any social media site could ever hope for. You make me proud and even more determined to yell at state attorneys general on your behalf.

 

"Giant" is their description, not mine, but they tout 1,500 books on sale.

Note that you can select different retailers in the top drop-down menu, and specific genres in the list to the left.

Sale ends at "midnight." They never say which midnight, but I suspect it's one of the U.S timezones, which are UTC-5 to UTC-8.

Pass this on wherever you like.

 

Posted by Lute

https://www.transformativeworks.org/otw-signal-august-2025/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267025

Every month in OTW Signal, we take a look at stories that connect to the OTW’s mission and projects, including issues related to legal matters, technology, academia, fannish history and preservation issues of fandom, fan culture, and transformative works.

In the News

An article from Roster Con analyzes how fans are reinventing community online, creating inclusive digital spaces that thrive, and fundamentally changing the way people with shared interests connect and interact with each other.

Instead of waiting in line at conventions or gathering in packed theaters, people are now forming tight-knit communities online—spaces where shared interests thrive without borders.
What’s striking isn’t just the tech that brings people together; it’s how fans are reshaping what it means to belong, connect, and celebrate something bigger than themselves.

Today’s pop culture fans are constructing elaborate digital networks that have no geographical boundaries and do not follow traditional media consumption patterns. For example, the article notes that the Stardew Valley network on Discord has grown from a small chat group into an expansive community where players share content and organize multiplayer events. This transformation from content-focused discussion to community-centered interaction is taking place across online fandom spaces. Platforms like Discord and Twitch support active fan communities and host virtual conventions, complete with panel discussions, cosplay, and live Q&As, allowing fans to experience the excitement of fandom gatherings while removing barriers like travel and cost.

What’s even more powerful is the reach. People who would never have made it to San Diego or Tokyo due to cost, distance, or accessibility now have a front-row seat. A fan in Nairobi, a student in Warsaw, and a parent in São Paulo can all be part of the same hype cycle, cheering and reacting together.

The article also addresses how creative platforms like Archive of Our Own (AO3), FanFiction.net, and DeviantArt are no longer simply repositories for fan-created content. Creators post works in progress to seek input and engage in collaborative projects that may span multiple authors and extended timelines. Similarly, social media has become a powerful tool for fan communities, with hashtag campaigns fueling organized fan movements and creative collaboration that spreads quickly and travels far. These activities provide a sense of community and support previously found in schools, clubs, and community groups, reshaping how fans engage with each other in the digital age.

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For Gen Z fans in Australia, the sense of belonging that comes from participating in fandom is particularly valuable right now, according to an article by Lucinda O’Brien in Amplify. With the rising cost of living and a looming recession, one in four young Australians reports loneliness and isolation as daily stressors. Fandom offers a space for them to express themselves and to make friends with others who share their passions—an antidote to the ongoing loneliness.
Fandom expert Dr. Georgia Carroll explains that fandom provides a critical sense of community and belonging, especially in difficult times:

Joining a fandom often begins as a light-hearted endeavour for Gen Z to bond over shared interests, but these spaces can deepen into emotionally rich communities where personal stories and identities are shared. Fandoms become places where fans feel seen, validated and safe to express themselves.

For Australian fans of international fandoms, distance often makes it difficult to meet with other fans in person, leading them to seek connection through online communities. As digital natives, Gen Z are adept at connecting through online fandoms.
As conventional community spaces continue to decline and social isolation grows, these digital communities offer something more than just entertainment or distraction. For Australian Gen Z, online fandom offers new and invaluable opportunities for connection and belonging.

OTW Tips

The AO3 community is now nine million users strong! In 2024 alone, users shared over two million new fanworks, and the site received an incredible 34 billion page views. You can find these and other highlights in the OTW’s 2024 Annual Report.

Bonus tip: many of our statistics are also available as graphics that chart the OTW’s growth over the years.

To everyone who helps this space thrive—thank you for building community with us!

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We want your suggestions for the next OTW Signal post! If you know of an essay, video, article, podcast, or news story you think we should know about, send us a link. We are looking for content in all languages! Submitting a link doesn’t guarantee that it will be included in an OTW post, and inclusion of a link doesn’t mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/otw-signal-august-2025/

https://www.transformativeworks.org/?p=267025