Braeby - You're Very Own Her Universe Fangirl!!!

Do you remember awhile back, I posted about Year of the Fangirl over at Her Universe?

Well guess what? I was yesterday's Fangirl!!!! How awesome is that?

Name of the Fangirl: Brae

What is her fangirl interest?

I love Star Wars, Sailor Moon, Batman, BSG, Final Fantasy, The Muppets, Final Fantasy, Stargate, Barbie, cosplaying… the list goes on and on…

Why did you decide to shine the spotlight on this fangirl?

For a long time I didn’t know any other geeky girls. I knew that there had to be more out there, but was having a hard time finding them, even on the Internet. So I decided to start my own blog about what it was like to be a geek girl and to showcase things that I loved that were actually aimed being at that demographic. It seemed a little bleak at first, but the more I blogged, the more of a community I found. There were other girls like me! I think it’s so important for women like us to know that there are a lot more of us out there than we think and that we are accepted as we are. That makes me so happy and so proud to be a geek girl.

How does this fangirl express her fandom?

I love to write, both on my blogs and novels. I’m currently working on my forth novel, which is a romantic comedy about a geek girl, not only finding love, but finding herself as well.
I love to bake geeky and non-geeky treats. I love the look on people’s faces when they take a bite out of something sweet.
Sewing is a newer passion of mine. I’ve started to make my own geek clothes and bags.

What is her favorite quote or personal motto?

Talk Star Wars to me!

What is her favorite fangirl item that she cannot live without?

My Batman earrings and geeky socks. My feet are small enough that I can wear kid socks. I love that I can get away with having a bit of geekdom on me in my business causal dress office.

Where can we follow her online?

Talk Star Wars to Me

Bake Star Wars for Me

Facebook

Tumblr

And 2 days before my Birthday! Talk about awesome Birthday present!!

Year Of The Fangirl

Think it's the Year of the Snake?

Think again.

This year marks the Year of the Fangirl. Well, at least over at Her Universe.

 

I think that this is amazing! I've always been a firm supporter of Her Universe and their never ending quest to make geek girls feel awesome about themselves (and their awesome clothes), and this is just another step in the right direction. 

We geek girls need more love and support in our lives. 

 

It's certainly not easy to be a geek and a girl. I should know. Most people don't get you or understand why you love what you love. In the last year alone I've been told that I should grow up, get a real hobby or that I should be more lady like in my pursuits. I've even been made fun of for running this blog (which is stupid, because my blog rocks!)

Of course I don't let any of this get me down, because I love myself and my geekyness and I don't care what anyone else thinks. I have wonderful friends, who are super supportive and those are the people I share my time with.

But that's me. Not all girls, geeky or otherwise have a strong network of friends or solid self-esteem. These are the girls that we need to reach.

Know a geeky girl? Nominate her for the Year of the Fangirl here. Show her that's she's important to you and that there is a community out there that welcomes her with open arms.
Share the geeky love.

Thanks to Ashley Eckstein for giving us all a place to belong

Ryu Vs. Darth Vader: How Fandom Works In Our House

Fandom is a term used to refer to a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of sympathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the object(s) of their fandom and spend a significant portion of their time and energy involved with their interest, often as a part of a social network with particular practices (a fandom); this is what differentiates "fannish" (fandom-affiliated) fans from those with only a casual interest.

A fandom can grow up centered around any area of human interest or activity. The subject of fan interest can be narrowly defined, focused on something like an individual celebrity, or more widely defined, encompassing entire hobbies, genres or fashions. While it is now used to apply to groups of people fascinated with any subject, the term has its roots in those with an enthusiastic appreciation for sports. Merriam-Webster's dictionary traces the usage of the term back as far as 1903. - Wikipedia

Ron and I are both geeks. Yes, geeky love is wonderful, and you probably think that mutual fandom is what brought us together; this is not the case. Yes, we do have a few similar geek choices, but mostly we geek about very different things.

I, on one hand, love all things Star Wars; as I'm sure you already know. My Star Wars collectables take up most of a geek shelf that we share in our new house. You may not know this, but I'm also a doll collector, as in Barbie, Monster High, Sailor Moon, and of course, Star Wars dolls. These take up an entire shelving unit in my craft room and I am very proud of this collection. I also have a lot of geeky art that I have either gotten at comic conventions or that my Dad has drawn for me. This consist of Sailor Moon, Maleficent, Kermit the Frog, Cloud from FFVII, Edea from FVIII, Wheel of Time maps, and my all time personal favorite, my Lord Of The Rings picture from my Dad.

Now Ron on the other hand, is into totally different things. He is a huge computer/gadget geek. Over the years we've been together, he has shown me he loves me through gadgets. He once built me computer! I wish I understood everything that went into it, so I could truly appreciate it, but the fact that he built me a computer because he loves me, is pretty f*ing amazing. Ron's computer room in our new house is filled with gadgety goodness. Every gaming system pretty much ever made resides in this room, as well a his own memorabilia. But unlike my haphazard collection, pretty much everything he's collected is still pristine in the box. He goes more for Street Fighter and anime characters, most of whom I only have a vague idea who they are. He has boxes of pristine comics and anime art scrolls.

It's not that our fandoms don't mix, it's just that they're very different. He thinks that when I take my collectables out of the box, I'm ruining their value and I believe that by leaving them in the box I'm not appreciating them as much as if I can hold them and pose them and get a real sense of them. He looks at the the lessening value of mine and scoffs and my fingers are itchy to tear those toys out of their packages. So far, everything is still intact and we laugh about it a lot.

But when we pin our fandoms up against each other, this is what we get.

RYU VS. DARTH VADER

Ok, so it's more like Princess Leai vs. Chun Li, but I still think this is a great analogy.

In the end, love always wins over fandom and our differences are part of the reason we love each other.

Thanks to Distracted by Star Wars and the Student Pocket Guide for the video and YamaO for the great Street Fighter art. And of course to Ron, for loving me despite my love of Star Wars :P