Fandom Trumps Hate 2026

[rynling]

I was planning on volunteering as a writer for this year's fandomtrumpshate event, which opens to sign-ups for creators on January 26. This seems like as good of a year as any.

But the truth is that I'm hesitant. I don't have an audience, and this is more than likely because I'm not writing the sort of thing that people want to read. Which is okay! There's nothing wrong with that; I'm just not a good fit for an event in which actual monetary donations are involved.

What I'm 100% comfortable with is bidding on the offerings of other writers.* And that is what I intend to do!!

* And sharing their promo posts on Tumblr! That's important too.

Comments

[vriddy]

From my vast, vaaast experience of participating in two (2) fandom auctions, way smaller than that one though, the people who bid on me and won were either a friend, or someone who saw my offered fandoms and wanted that one even though they didn't know me from Adam (I multiship so that left things open on that side, too). You create for well-known fandoms that interested bidders would recognise, so if you'd like to try your hand on the creator side I think it's worth considering!!

The fear that nobody will bid is real, though, not denying that at all.

[rynling]

This is lovely to read, thank you. I'm still considering what I might be able to do, if I decide to do this. I think perhaps it might be worth going all-out on a description of myself as "I love gothic romance and horror." That way, if someone does bid, then at least I'll have a good time.

The bidding spreadsheets for the 2024 and 2025 events are still available, and the ones I've seen are a little sad. Like, someone would list a minimum bid of $5, and they'll have gotten exactly one bid of, like, $6. I know numbers aren't the point, because any donation helps! But still. I imagine something like that would be deeply demoralizing to me.

That's partially my bad for missing this event during the past two years, though. Due to my work schedule, March is always a difficult time for me, but I still wish I'd been more proactive about keeping up with writers in my fandoms and sending them high bids to show them that their work is actually extremely valuable.

[vriddy]

Oooh yeah if you need to see a big number I can see how that would mess you up. For me "not zero" was enough, and I struggled more with brain weasels around the stranger who made a bigger donation because it felt like there was more of a pressure to follow the bigger ideas and Do Something Actually Good And Probably Long, things like that. (The weasels were wrangled though!! 😤 mostly)

And in case another perspective is also helpful, I've seen people with tighter budgets and/or different currencies also happy to get the opportunity to have a story written to their prompts thanks to the smaller bidding increments, when they wouldn't be able to write it themselves or ever afford to pay for a commission. (Obviously, with the understanding that an auction fic isn't a commission.)

Best of luck making the event fun for yourself this year :D

[rynling]

It’s always awkward to introduce numbers (and money) into a gift economy, it’s true!

I’m not saying I’m going to throw money around like it’s an MV from the 2000s; but, if I see someone I’m familiar with from one of my fandoms, I want to send a small gesture of support with a +$5 to their minimum donation. And if this creates problems, like an opportunity being taken from another bidder or the writer feeling undue pressure...

...then no it doesn’t!!!!! I’m simply not going to let it give me anxiety.

Idk man. I don't think anyone is expecting to see big numbers; but, for me, having a concrete demonstration that no one sees my writing as being worth even a $10 donation to charity would indeed be rough. It's important to be gracious, of course! Still, writers are sensitive creatures.

I know you’re just saying that it’s not the end of the world for a writer to get a single small bid, and that’s totally fair – and a very welcome perspective! (Seriously, thank you.) But also, when I saw some of the particular writers in my fandoms who only got one at-minimum bid last year, I regret not being present to bid more. Which is also fair, I think.

[vriddy]

Oh damn yeah I didn't mean to add a new fear!! (My bidder showed up at the last minute with a much bigger bid and well over 10 times the (small) min bid 😂😱) In the end, you do get a feel for how chill the person is once the email exchange starts so it's all good.

And re:your second comment, no problem! I think having weird and complicated feelings about all sorts of numbers is unfortunately natural (I still hide all AO3 stats...) Yay for self-knowledge :D And for doing our best in the end too, I suppose!!

Edit: Also, my apologies if it sounded like I implied your way of thinking wasn't fair or justified! It wasn't my intention. I found additional perspectives helpful when I was struggling with similar issues so I projected all over you, ymmv and all :)

[rynling]

Sorry, I wanted to add –

Thank you so much for talking to me about this. Like I said, it’s awkward to discuss the number-related anxieties surrounding fandom (especially in the case of a charity auction), and I really appreciate that you’re so chill and grounded.

You’ve taken a gigantic load off my mind tbh.

And thank you for sending luck my way! Always appreciated. 🥂

[runicmagitek]

First off, if you do sign up as a contributor, please know I am ready to do the equivalent of jousting for a noble's token of affection with my wallet.

Second off, as someone who is definitely signing up this year, thank you in advance for any boosts to promo posts I plan on doing! Here's hoping we can raise a decent amount of money for charity AND enjoy our blorbos while we do it 💖

[rynling]

Yessss!!!!!!! I’m so happy to hear you’re participating this year!!

And offering flowers to the knights at a tournament is such a lovely way to think about it.

I tend to have terrible luck, so I’ve never participated in a real-life auction before (not even on eBay). Literally the only experience I have is from Final Fantasy VI and The Wind Waker.

But whether I end up volunteering or just donating, it’s not about winning, right? I want to bring a “nobody gets picked last for the sports team” energy to this event that will hopefully spread some love in a small way. Or at least this positive energy can serve as a karmic counterbalance to the FUCK TRUMP energy I’m also bringing.

It’s good to have the encouragement to maybe participate though! I really appreciate that, and I’m very much looking forward to sharing your promo posts. I’ve always been really shy about sharing posts asking for donations, but I recently started sharing a few artist commission posts this year, and it actually feels really nice. Idk, it just feels like this is a good moment to support human creators.