From: rathslag@inland.com Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom Subject: Fandom 101 v3.0 (long) Date: 2 Nov 94 16:25:06 CST Organization: Inland Steel Company; East Chicago, IN The following is my personal collection of the terms that have been explained to clueless neofen (among them, me) in rec.arts.sf.fandom. It is meant as a reference and aid to fellow newbie fans who would like to avoid asking painfully obvious questions. I plan to expand this list and repost it periodically, unless there are stenuous objections. If you have any corrections, comments, or additions to make to this glossary, please let me know. * Katie Rathslag rathslag@research.inland.com +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Fandom 101 - The (Un)Official Neofan's Glossary V3.0 - November 2, 1994 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ CHANGES SINCE LAST POST (9/16/94): New Definitions: "TANJ!", FURRY FANDOM, COLOPHON, APAE, (HH,OK), NEOPRO, OC, SPECULATIVE FICTION, CORFLU, DITTO. LETTERHACK, THE GLAROON, THE GREAT SPIDER, SPIDERISM, CALLAHAN'S, OBLITERINE Revised Definitions: "OOK OOK, SLOBBER DROOL!", TANSTAAFL, APA, FILK, MINAC, OE, SCI-FI, FAFIA, FAUNCH, MIMEO, TRUFAN +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ @! PARTY: A party usually attended only by netters. An attendee gains access by stating his/her net address. APA: (Amateur Press Association) A bulletin board system conducted through snail mail. Members contribute pre-printed personal newsletters (APAZINES) for each edition and include comments on the contributions published previously. The contributions go to an Official Collator (OC) or Official Editor (OE), who makes up distributions consisting of one copy of each zine and sends them out to the members. To remain a member one must meet minimum activity (MINAC) requirements, usually defined as a certain number of pages of original material. Some apas are designed for discussion on specific topics, (REHUPA, the Robert E. Howard apa; CAPRA, the movie apa, etc) while most are general-interest. APAE: plural of APA. APAHACK: Somebody who spends too much time writing for apae. APAZINE: Individual contribution specifically for an apa (as opposed to something distributed through an apa, among other things). BHEER: Beer. BNF: Big Name Fan; a really well known fan. CALLAHAN'S: 1. Callahan's Bar; the setting for a series of Spider Robinson stories collected in Callahan's Crosstime Saloon and several sequels. Some cons use the name as the name of their consuite or other pary room. 2. A Usenet group (alt.callahans). CLUBZINE: A zine put out by (and usually for) members of an SF club. COFFIEST: A product sold by the ad wizards in Frederik Pohl and C. M. Kornbluth's book "The Space Merchants", an addictive coffee substitute. COLOPHON: According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a colophon is: "An inscription placed usually at the end of a book, giving facts pertinent to it's publication." As is often the case, fans got it backward, and generally put the colophon in front. Wherever it's placed, it contains the publishers' names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, name of zine, copyright notice, and anything else the zine editor may want to put in it. CON: Convention. CONCOM: Convention committee. CONREP: CONREPORT: A first-hand report of a convention printed in a fanzine. CORFLU: 1. Mimeo correction fluid. 2. Name of an annual convention for fanzine fans. DANE: Mundane. DEADWOOD: Someone who remains a member of an apa by meeting only the minimum activity requirement. DEGAFIATE: To resume fanac after gafiating. DIRTY OLD PRO: Someone who has been paid a lot for a story. DITTO: 1. (n.) Brand name of a particular spirit duplicator. 2. (v.) To reproduce via spirit reproduction. 3. (n.) Name of an annual convention for fanzine fans. EGOBOO: A boost to the ego. Having a letter or article published, being on a panel, being talked about in a conreport, etc. The fannish medium of exchange. In some circles, there is no such thing as negative egoboo. That is, even insults are egoboo. EZINE: Electronic fanzine; a publication whose primary medium is electronic. (e.g., _Cyberspace Vanguard_) FAANNISH: see FANNISH FAFIA: FAFIATE: 1. Forced Away From It All (i.e. not by personal choice). 2. Fell Away From It All; turning one's interests elsewhere. FAN: Short for fanatic. Can be applied to any devoted afficionado, but in context (such as in rec.arts.sf.fandom) means Science Fiction Fan. FANAC: Fan activity. FANED: Fanzine editor. FANFEUD: An ongoing conflict between individual fans, fan societies (regional or generic - eg., "Trekkers" v. "Trekkies", sciffy nuts v. everyone, etc.), fan societies and individuals, etc. FANMAG: fanzine (obsolete) FANNE: A female fan (obsolete) FANNISH: (adj.) Having to do with the interpersonal/social aspect of sf fandom. e.g. fanzines, conventions, clubs, fueds, etc. Often considered to be the opposite of sercon. FANZINE: A magazine put out by one or more fans. (Abbr: ZINE or FMZ.) FAPA: Fantasy Amateur Press Association; the oldest apa in the world, founded circa 1939. FAUNCH: 1. (v.) to desire, to want; often with sexual overtones. 2. (v.) to hunt for, to acquire; "He's gone on the faunch for some bheer." 3. (n.) a yearning; "She's got a serious faunch for chocolate." FEMFAN: A female fan (obsolete) FEMME-FAN: A female fan (obsolete) FEN: plural of fan. FEUD: see FANFEUD FIAWOL: Fandom Is A Way Of Life. FIJAGH: Fandom Is Just A Ghoddamned Hobby. FILK: 1. (n.) Folk music on SF-ish themes. The term may have originally been a 1953 typo by Karen Anderson for "folk singing". It is also believed to be an abbreviation for "filthy folk singing". 2. (v.) to perform filk music. FILTHY PRO: Someone who has been paid a lot for a story. FMZ: Abbreviation for fanzine(s); orig. "fan magazines". FOO: A fannish Ghod, from the 50's (?). Inspired by an interjection used in the comic strips "Smokey Stover" and "They'll do It Every Time." FOOBAR: A corruption of the military slang "fubar" which is an acronym for "f***ed up beyond all recognition." (See also: FOO) FUGGHEAD: (n.) A more polite way of calling someone an absolute idiot FUGGHEADED: (adj.) really stupid FURRY FANDOM: Fandom revolving around anthropomorphized animals. "Furry" art, fiction, and games may or may not have sexual overtones. GAFIA: GAFIATE: Getting Away From It All. Note: Gafiate means to get away from FANDOM. Originally, it meant the opposite. GENZINE: General-topic fanzine. GHU: Fannish Ghod invented by Donald Wollheim in the 30's. Holy color is purple. THE GLAROON: A fannish god. He is a six thousand foot tall jelly bean. The Glaroon was first mentioned in Heinlein's short story "They" and reappeared (so to speak) in his book _Job ...._. GOH: Guest-of-Honor. THE GREAT SPIDER: A fannish god. Deity of the fannish religion "Spiderism". The Great Spider eats peoples' souls when they die, unless they have paid an appropriate bribe to a priest of the Great Spider. He has also been known to eat cars in order to provide parking spaces to particularly devout followers. (see SPIDERISM) HECTO: Hectograph; a primitive means of text reproduction, involving making a bed of gelatin, transferring ink to the gelatin and then laying on and picking up pieces of paper. (HH,OK): "Ha Ha, Only Kidding." A parenthetical comment following an insulting remark intended to remove the sting. Seems to have originated in Minneapolis fandom. HOAX: It is a special tradition in fandom to fake things, like persons (Carl J. Brandon, Jr.) or deaths (Bob Tucker has died several times). Should be done with care. JO(E) PHAN: The archetype for a fan (also Joe Fann). Also main character in Walt Willis' and Bob Shaw's famous fan-fiction story The Enchanted Duplicator. LETTERHACK: 1. (n.) A frequent contributor to letter columns. An important term in early fandom when much of the interaction was in prozine letter columns. 2. (v.) To contribute to letter columns. LINO: Interlineation. A quote, comment, or other bit placed in between lines. Usually offset from the text by lines or other graphics. Often used to break up sections or ideas in a fanzine. i.e. ----------------------------------------------------------------- "Given enough imagination, this could be considered funny." ----------------------------------------------------------------- LoC: Letter of Comment, a letter with comments to a fanzine. MIMEO: A mimeograph machine, used for duplicating. MUNDANE : 1. (n.) Someone who is not a fan. 2. (adj.) Pertaining to the world outside fandom. MINAC: 1. (n.) The minimum activity requirement for an apa. 2 (v.) To not meet a minimum activity requirement for an apa. (ex. "I minacked out of FAPA because I just couldn't do eight pages a year.") NEOFAN: A new, inexperienced, or unknowlegable fan. NEOPRO: Anyone who has sold very few stories and hasn't been at it long. NETZINE: see EZINE NEWSZINE: A fanzine with news of interest to the fannish community. OBLITERINE: A British brand of mimeo correction fluid. OC: Official Collator, the person responsible for collating an apa. OE: Official Editor, the person responsible for collating and possibly mailing an apa. OO: Official Organ, the memberzine of an apa. OOK OOK, SLOBBER DROOL!: An apa term used to indicate admiration of a particular piece, usually in the "pun" sense (ex. "Ghod, that was bad; I wish I had said that.") Originally the verbal/printed equivalent of a "leer," originated by Ed Buchman. PANEL: A collection of people called together to conduct a discussion on a specific topic at a con. PERSONALZINE: PERSZINE: A zine put out by one person, usually about the activities and thoughts of the editor. PORNJ: Fannish pornography. PRO: Anybody who has ever been paid for a story. PROZINE: Professional magazine. RAE,BNC: apa term, "Read And Enjoyed, But No Comment", or "Rare And Enobling, But No Cigar" ROSCOE: Fannish Ghod invented by Art Rapp in 1949. Roscoe is a beaver. S,AS: 1. "Smiling, Always Smiling", roughly equivalent to ;-). 2. "Snide, Always Snide". SCI-FI: 1. Science-fiction-like junk produced for mass audiences. 2. Non-fannish term for science fiction. 3 . Seriously intended hyper-fannish name for science fiction, based on the popularity of "hi-fi" equipment, invented (c. 50's?) by Forrest J. Ackerman. SCIENTIFICTION: Term coined by Hugo Gernsback to describe what is now called "science fiction"; used fairly commonly in the Sixties, now used nostalgically. (also STF, adj. STFNAL) SEMIPROZINE: Semiprofessional magazine. See WSFS constitution for details. SENSITIVE FANNISH FACE: 1. Term used to describe fans, referring to the confluence of large amounts of body fat, glasses, and facial hair (the latter chiefly in male fans) marking fans. 2. Code for gay fans, according to Rusty Hevelin. (obsolete) SERCON: Serious and Constructive. Sf fandom was founded by sercon fans (back in the late 20s) who wrote letters to prozines to comment on and criticize the stories. Because Hugo Gernsback published the addresses with the letters, those people started writing to each other. This correspondence led to the development of the fanzine and fandom as a social unit. SFWA (or SFFWA): The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association SLASH: Fiction with a homosexual theme; originally started with Kirk/Spock (Kirk-slash-Spock) stories. SMOF: Secret Master of Fandom. 1. Tongue-in-cheek term for the guys in the smoky back rooms that *really* decide the course and future of Fandom. 2. Person Behind The Scenes; usually applied to that rarified "upper stratum" of fandom that goes 'way beyond the call of duty to ensure that Fandom gets to do what Fandom *wants* to do. e.g. Worldcon chairs of note, gonzo hotel negotiators, super-golly-gee-whiz con programming types, etc. SMOOTH: (v.) To drink bourbon with Bob Tucker and appropriate ceremony. SPECULATIVE FICTION: SPEC-FIC: Any fiction of a speculative nature, especially science fiction, fantasy and horror. SPIDERISM: A fannish religion. Originated by John Kusske, Al Kuhfeld, and Blue Petal. (see THE GREAT SPIDER) STF: STFNAL: see SCIENTIFICTION TANJ! "There Ain't No Justice!"; expletive originated by Larry Niven. (also "Tanjit!") TANSTAAFL: "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"; from _The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress_, by Robert Heinlein. TARFU: "Things Are Really F***ed Up" TASFUIRA (tass-foo-eye-rah): "Things Are So F***ed Up Its Really Amazing". Used when FUBAR just won't do. (limited distribution-heard primairly in SE) (from WWII-extenstion of FUBAR) TECHIE: Fan with a major interest in technology, especially do-it-yourself technology. The word is sometimes heard outside SF fandom, in computer culture and maybe other places ("...I'm a peeping-tom techie with x-ray eyes," Timbuk3). ToC: Table of Contents. TRACK: A sequence of related programming events held sequentially, usually in the same room. The term is used when such "tracks" occur in parallel with one or more other such sequences, which are then known as alternate tracks. TRIP REPORT: Description of a trip undertaken by a fan (often in the company of other fans) printed in a zine. TRUFAAN: TRUFAN: 1. Tongue-in-cheek term for a "real" fan. 2 Also used by some older-generation fans to refer to the members of their particular enclave of fandom. 3. Term of admiration for a particularly active fan. WOFAN: A female fan (obsolete). WSFS: The World Science Fiction Society. The unincorporated literary society whose members choose the Hugo Awards every year, and select the site for the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon). WYLASOC(M)WTC?: apa term, "Would You Like A Saucer Of Cream (Milk) With That Comment?", usually in repsonse to a "catty" comment. YMMV: Your Mileage May Vary. ZINE: Fanzine. ----------------------------------------------------------------- II. FOR MORE INFORMATION... "The Fillostrated Fan Dictionary"; Elliot Weinstein "Neofan's Guide"; Bob Tucker "Fancyclopedia I"; Dick Eney (ed.) "Fancyclopedia II"; ? "Neofan's Guide to Science Fiction Fandom."; ? "All Our Yesterdays", Harry Warner,Jr. (About American fandom in the 30's/ 40's) "A Wealth of Fable", Harry Warner, Jr. (ditto 50's) "The Immortal Storm", Sam Moskowitz (about American fandom in the 30's and to some extent about the internal feuds) Then, Rob Hansen (about the history of British fandom; available electronically - in four parts (?)- from the same site as Ansible /whatever that was/) ============================================================== CONTRIBUTERS... (Thank You!) Carlos.Benitz@f219.n914.z8.rbbs-net.ORG (Carlos Benitz) lmac@tatertot.com (Loren Macgregor) rbcleary@rbcleary.b17a.ingr.com (Randy B. Cleary) Alan Winston corwyn@netcom.com (Don Glover) ddeckert@ufsmain.win.net (Dan Deckert) ahasuer@clark.net (The Wandering Jew) ahrvid@linnea-grind.stacken.kth.se (Ahrvid Engholm) b.hardcastle@imperial.ac.uk (b.hardcastle) HIGGINS@FNALNM.FNAL.GOV (Bill Higgins-- Beam Jockey) YBMCU@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU (Ben Yalow) crackers@io.com (Casey Hamilton and E. A. (Ed) Graham, Jr.) Colette@reaphear.demon.co.uk (Colette Reap) 71443.1447@compuserve.com (David E Romm) ansible@cix.compulink.co.uk (David Langford) ecwhitley@aol.com (ECWhitley) eriko@BIX.com (Erik Olson) gslade@yvr.cyberstore.ca (Greg Slade) hazel@--- (Hazel Boston-Baden) Jim_Mann@transarc.com (Jim Mann) polowin@chem.queensu.ca (Joel Polowin) jvte@cs.few.eur.nl (Jan van 't Ent) kecooper@maroon.tc.umn.edu (Karen Cooper) karenb@well.sf.ca.us (Karen E. Babich) rathslag@research.inland.com (Katie Rathslag) mab@kandor.tti.com (Michael A. Bloom) gt5139c@prism.gatech.edu (Pete 'Happy' Thomas) pnh@tor.com (P. Nielsen Hayden) Brian_Lucas@UManitoba.ca (Brian Lucas) jaj@vax.oxford.ac.uk Mike@moose.demon.co.uk (Mike Scott) hlavaty@panix.com (Arthur Hlavaty) sethb@panix.com (Seth Breidbart) schafer@raistlan.network.com (Martin Schafer) tgdigby@netcom.com (Tom Digby) dlow@ppg01.sc.hp.com (Danny Low) Marty Helgesen +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ----------------------------------------------------------------- Katie Rathslag * rathslag@inland.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- "OUCH!," I said, as a hapless victim of superhighway slugbug. ----------------------------------------------------------------- From netcom.com!ix.netcom.com!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!news.sprintlink.net!in2.uu.net!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!dispatch.news.demon.net!demon!mail2news.demon.co.uk!ceiliog.demon.co.uk!alunh Fri Aug 25 03:51:40 1995 Xref: netcom.com rec.arts.sf.fandom:20879 Path: netcom.com!ix.netcom.com!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!news.sprintlink.net!in2.uu.net!tank.news.pipex.net!pipex!dispatch.news.demon.net!demon!mail2news.demon.co.uk!ceiliog.demon.co.uk!alunh From: Alun Harries Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom Subject: Re: Fan Terms: A - M Date: Thu, 24 Aug 95 12:50:23 GMT Organization: Chicken Brothers Online Lines: 25 Message-ID: <809268623snz@ceiliog.demon.co.uk> References: <410h1h$m13@newsbf02.news.aol.com> Reply-To: aharries@cix.compulink.co.uk X-NNTP-Posting-Host: ceiliog.demon.co.uk X-Newsreader: Demon Internet Simple News v1.27 Status: RO In article <410h1h$m13@newsbf02.news.aol.com> drgafia@aol.com "Dr Gafia" writes: > > Fancy III this isn't, but it's a pretty good list of fan terms, coming > in at 17 single spaced pages, up from 13 the time before. Quite a few > terms seem to come out of apadom, which makes me doubt that they have > universal acceptance, but what the heck. I've also cut out a lot of > (a) stuff that comes from sf stories rather than the community of > fandom and (b) "net" language except where it is relevant to "fan" > language. > > This actually started out as someone else's list of fan terms; I picked > them up, commented on some and critiqued others, then sat back waiting > to see if another version might appear. One didn't and now pipple are > sending suggestions and comments on to me; they're welcome. Perhaps it would be nice to credit the originator of this list :- Katie Rathslag/rathslag@research.inland.com Alun Harries | CHICKEN | aharries@cix.compulink.co.uk | BROTHERS | 100120.2015@compuserve.com | ONLINE | alunh@ceiliog.demon.co.uk http://alife1.cs.man.ac.uk/welsh/people/web/aharries@cix.compulink.co.uk.html