Twilosophy of the fandom – REAL Twilight fan?

REAL fan?!

Dear LTTers/Twilosophy Majors,

For quite some time now we’ve been reading emails, viewing other sites posts, receiving comments, and talking between us about what it is to be a “REAL fan.” We’ve been told by countless people that because of what we post we are not “Real fans”  and we’ve read on many other fansites and blogs and been on email chains toting the tenants of a “REAL fan” And apparently we (and many of you) are not “Real fans” because  being a ‘REAL fan” means something quite different to us than them. To certain folks, being a fan, means always agreeing with the powers that be, always saying something nice or non-divisive, loving everything about the saga or movies, opposing any sort of speculation or the posting of any possible rumors and god forbid: posting a picture taken by a paparazzo! The horror! But we beg to differ (of course!) because we definitely do all the above so-called no-no’s but we also love this saga like McAdams loved Gosling (RIP). And who’s to decide the level of someone else’s fandom? Can we really base our love for something on these outward displays of devotion?

• does kissing butt and blindly accepting everything make you a “real fan”

• does bringing up objections and differing opinions make you any less of a fan?

• Does it make us less of a fan of the actors or books by posting a paparazzi picture?

• When we write something in jest about an actor or character does that make us mean spirited?

I still read every little dumb post, read every article and buy every magazine (well the ones with the good pics!), own TWO full sets of the saga, own a Pocket Edward, co-write two blogs about Twilight and Rob, talk incessantly about the stories, have recommended the books to countless people and yet I’m not a “REAL fan?”

Because I’m a word nerd I looked up the word “fan” and here’s what we get…

Fan –noun
an enthusiastic devotee, follower, or admirer of a sport, pastime, celebrity, etc.
Origin:
1885–90, Americanism; short for fanatic

Synonyms:
supporter, enthusiast, ardent admirer, booster, addict

Not a fan!

Ok, so I’m pretty sure we could be called enthusiastic devotees and ardent admirers and most definitely ADDICTS! So what does it all mean? UC and I have sat around dwelling on this topic for months now and we hope that it comes across in the right way. Not as a pat on the back for ourselves but as validation to the other countless fans, YOU GUYS, who are just like us, think it’s alright to do all those things listed above and still be a fan! That’s why we started a blog- not just for the hell of starting a blog- but to be different. To say something interesting about the Saga we love. To BE those true fans who say “I love this so much I’m not afraid to admit that you suck in that moment” To say – no- you did it wrong. Because by doing that makes our happiness and excitement that much more genuine.

You know those friends or boyfriends when you ask “does this make me look fat?” or “What do you think of this dress?” automatically answer “YES?” While it’s nice to hear a compliment, in the end I’m going to trust the person who told me I looked like “a stuffed sausage in spanx” for advice over the “You look like Heidi Klum” person any day, because I know they’re being honest and want the best for me. And I only look like Heidi Klum on weekends after all.

Yes, frequently

On the same tip, when someone writes a review in the New York Times- they’re honest (and yes, I’m comparing us to the New York Times, go with it for the sake of the lecture!) They don’t say what they think the publishing house wants them to say. They don’t take the authors feelings into consideration. They are truly honest- and I think it’s important for people to have their own opinions. And equally as important: we need to leave room for other people’s opinions who differ from our own! it’s like “they” say: variety is the spice of life, differences make the world go round, never turn down a free filet-o-fish or whatever it is “they” say.  So that’s what we will do and continue to do. Write honest, while humorous, looks at saga and movies we love so much while being open for differing opinions, LOVING the good and calling out the bad.

a REAL fan,
Themoonisdown

So what say you? Do you feel like there are signs for true fandom? Have you been judged as a fan either way?

Don’t miss out on some Rob goodies at Letters to Rob
Real fans love the forum!

Stuff people tell us about Twilight. That we already know

For example, we've already seen this hot pic of Ashley and discussed how we want to be lesbians with her (not the fake kind, either)

Dear people who email us,

We love you. We really do. We love hearing from you. Promise. Even though sometimes it stresses me out that every time I check my email (like every 5-7 minutes) I have 5-7 new emails from you. But we love you despite that. Even though we don’t have time to write back promptly, which makes me sad because we hate not being prompt. We still love you more than you know.

We love you even though you tell us things we already know. (Yes, we heard Kristen was caught wearing Rob’s shirt, and no, we don’t think it magically shrunk from a male size M to a female size XS so it now fits Kristen snugly.  There is a small chance they have the same shirt) We love you even though you tell us things 3 weeks late. (Yes, we heard Kristen held Jackson’s hand leaving dinner in Vancouver and no, we don’t think they’re secretly dating.) We love you even when 5-7 of you send us an email that says the exact same thing, with the exact same picture/post with the exact same plea to “Break it down” or post it as “2nd-hand embarrassment.” (We’ve seen every one of the Twilight/Edward/Rob tattoos possible and promise we’re so 2nd-hand embarrassed we’re not even sure how to respond)

We love you all.

And we are huge fans, just like you

We are bloggers. We do this full time. (Don’t tell our bosses)

We also know about this thing called “Google alerts” and also use them. If you have a google alert set for the words “Rob Pattinson” (which all good RPattz fans should), you will get the same exact alerts that we get. It’s magic. Hug Larry Page next time you see him.

We usually find out those 5-7 things you sent us before anyone else (Except for Gozde at Robsessed.. that girl knows everything- We swear she’s actually Rob)

If we did not post something you emailed us 5-7 times, it was intentional. Cuz we can’t break it all down. We’re not superwomen (Fine yes, we are.. .but we limit our super powers to a limited number of things)

So, if in the next 5-7 minutes you were planning on drafting the following topics in an email to us, maybe think twice.

• We’ve seen the Jizz in my Pants Twilight spoof & laughed hard. Like 6 months ago.
• Taylor got buff. We know. We stared.hard would never care about that because he is a child
• We will not feel bad if you send us hate mail because you bought the Edward Action figure thinking he’s be so awesome and so much fun, but it turns out he sucks. We told you that back in January. Just because we were the first to photograph him at random spots around the globe doesn’t mean it’s fun, in fact, it’s really 1st-hand embarassing.
• Yep, we’ve seen the Wolfpack.  Yep, they’re smokin’.  Yep, we wish they would have been in the trailer too. Yep, we think they’ll be in the next one. Nope, we can’t admit Taylor is hot, he’s a child.
• Yes. Seen the trailer. Finally admitting Taylor’s muscles are freakin’ hot. Arrest me, Chris Hansen. 17 is legal some places.

Love you 5-7 times more than you thought we did,
UC & Moon

This is not a post telling anyone to stop emailing us (unless you were about to press send on an email telling us Rob is in NYC- we KNOW), it is merely an excuse to use that hot picture of Ashley. Oh, and to also tell the girl who emailed us earlier (thinking we’re Rob) who is planning on telling her friends she found Rob Pattinson’s e-mail address that Rob is really looking forward to hearing from her.

-I have this weird thing where I have to mention Larry Page at least once a day.
-I think Moon is actually posting about seeing Sam Bradley this weekend on LTR. Go check now & e-mail her hate mail if she hasn’t shared with us her magical experience yet. I’ll give you her direct line at work to hate call her too.
-Guilty of e-mailing us news 6 months late? Follow us on Twitter and you’ll know whatever we know, whenever we know it
-Need more LTR or LTT and are sad we only post once per day? Go to the Forum & you’ll never be alone. (Seriously, we got 3 new viagara spammers yesterday who personally private messaged me asking for the e-mail addresses for lonely girls. Apparently they have a ‘fix’ for your lonliness)

Lovin’ 100Monkeys means you’ll be loved in return

Dear God, please let this girl's name be Bella

Dear girls who thought by seeing the 100Monkeys last night at The Khyber in Philly Rob will now declare his eternal love for you,

Did he? Did Rob call you this morning anxious to begin your love affair? I figured. Cuz there’s nothing that turns on an actor more than girls showing up to a co-star’s band’s show wearing Twilight T-shirts, showing off their Twilight tats, swinging their home-made Jasper handbags over their shoulders, wearing a monkey hat, carrying around a huge stuffed monkey and asking when “Jasper” is going on stage.

By bringing a Monkey to the 100Monkey's show, Rob will be so happy & make me his wife

How ever will Rob chose between you all?

Last night was amazing. Big hugs to all the LTT/LTRs I met. Real recap to come this week. It’s 2:16 am and I need my beauty rest if I am going to be at my best for Rob’s call in the am, declaring his love for me since I saw a show tonight where the lead singer happened to be in two movies with him and they may or may not be friends outside of work.

Love,
UnintendedChoice

The well-rounded Twilight Fan

Dear Twilight fandom,

This is the story of how to be a well-rounded Twilight fan.  It IS possible that your husbands, significant others, moms, dad, kids, etc. can be “proud” of you, despite your obsessing over “just a book about Vampires” (who has had someone in their life refer to it as that before? I have, I have!) Moon & I, through reading your letters and amazing emails, have discovered the key to maintaining a healthy, balanced life, while never really leaving the Twilight world.

By using the suggestions described by the following stories, we feel you will emerge a better, fuller, more whole, smarter, sexier, well-rounded person. (Or at least well-rounded in the 5 areas we consider to be most important in life: Music, Parties, Film, Fun and Art.)

Enjoy a snippet of each of these important life areas, brought to you by something Twilight related, below:

Music

Raise your hand if you’ve heard music related to the Twilight saga that sucks. ME. So you can imagine my surprise when one of our readers, Brodie-Ann, sent us “Twilight Wishes and Vampires Kisses” in the form of a song from her band Felinedown that not only DOESN’T suck but is ACTUALLY quite good! Here is her explanation of the song:

This song, Push, is based on New Moon from Bella’s perspective. I created it really as a gift for Stephanie – to thank her for Twilight and all our characters she has really inspired me both personally and as a song writer.

Go ahead, listen! And let Brodie-Ann know what you think in the comments!

Click the image to listen to the music!

Parties

Remember RhoJo and her amazing friends who created the amazing Twilight Drinking Game for a DVD release party that included instructions like: take a drink every time Bella stumbles, falls or stutters? Well, she sent us pictures of the amazing party she threw for her and her friends.

They all wore uniforms of course

Pocket Edward really enjoys the vampire shots

Notice their attention to detail with even the drink that Cardboard Edward prefers

Read about how to be well-rounded in Film, Fun and Art after the jump!