(no subject)

[guanin]

I wonder if it will ever stop striking me how different my perspective is from most people's. I've just been reading through an ASIP reaction post and seeing how many people were shipping Johnlock immediately made me remember how surprised I was to see an intense platonic connection between them. I specifically did not ship them. It was so obvious to me that Sherlock isn't into that sort of thing. I went into AO3 looking for friendship fics and was disappointed not to find many. I started reading shippy fics out of desperation. Then I started thinking that I might have been wrong because no one seemed to agree with me.

Maybe it's a good thing I didn't join the fandom back then. I was already getting enough "everyone wants romance/sex" messages from the fandoms I was in. Seriously, where were the ace fics hiding that I didn't see them? Then again, maybe if I had joined the fandom, I would have found them. I don't know. I'm still shocked by how old online asexual communities are, because I'd never heard of them until a couple of years ago. It all feels so recent and new.

Anyway, currently, I feel in this weird place in the Johnlock fandom. I don't know if I'm even allowed to use that term in the platonic sense considering what a staple it is in shipping fandoms to complain "how can anyone see these two as platonic?". Right now, I do see bi John as being in love with Sherlock. Sherlock, though... Yeah, my boy is aroace. Sex-repulsed, too. Which I finally had the courage to say in the Johnlock discord I'm in, and no one kicked me out, so yay. I don't know. I'm brand new to this fandom, so I still have little clue about what the dynamics are and the history. It has been a very welcoming place so far, and no one has complained about my aroace headcanon, which is refreshing. Fandom in general is not a safe space for aces (especially sex-repulsed ones), so it's nice to find a corner that is.

Comments

[write_out]

I'm on my lunch break at work, so I'm typing on my phone which is a pain, but also means I won't ramble. :) Your reading is just as valid as anyone else's! I'm glad you've found a safe space in fandom and have felt more comfortable sharing your perspective. I know shippers can be LOUD (and maybe a wee obnoxious), but I like to think most aren't jerks about it. I guess it depends on the corner in which you land.

I know the discussion posts I've hosted have had a lot of Johnlocky comments but I also know not everyone in that group ships the same way. So far we've all managed to get along just fine!

[myghostlights]

I’m glad you’ve managed to find a place for yourself in the fandom! Not being asexual myself, I’ve discovered the community through fandom, and I’ve enjoyed some fics that depict Sherlock and John’s relationship as committed, although not in a sexual manner. There’s space for everything. One can choose to read of believe whatever they want. 🤷‍♀️

[tei]

I mean, I love everything from ace Sherlock to slut Sherlock, and the only thing I absolutely cannot stand is statements like “if you see these characters as abc and not xyz you are WRONG.” So I’d say that anyone who can’t stand you writing ace Sherlock is simply not worth your time :)

[lovetincture]

I'm brand new to this fandom, so I still have little clue about what the dynamics are and the history.

Same here, and I think there's something freeing about that. From what I've heard/read there was quite a bit of drama in the years that we missed, and it's kind of nice to skip that and just jump in without baggage.

I tend to write and read mostly Johnlock smut, but I think it's great that you have aroace Sherlock headcanon. There's room in fandom for all sorts of interpretations and preferences, I think. I hope you feel welcome in this fandom and that you write the kinds of stories you want to see!

[signoftea]

I'm glad you've found so many accepting people in fandom! I'm on the ace spectrum myself and also like to see Sherlock as aro ace.

[vulgarweed]

I think Sherlock fandom has passed its most hostile and aggressive point, thankfully. Your chances of being accused of all sorts of horrible things for having an aroace Sherlock headcanon, or just not shipping them romantically/sexually for any reason are much lower than they were just a couple years ago. There are still some "my way or the highway" attitudes floating around though. Sigh. A healthy fandom is one with vast diversity of interpretations.

And Sherlock is a pretty popular character for ace interpretations. It's not my hc because I'm a smutty writer by nature and that's how I like it, but I can certainly see that there's plenty of support for ace-ness in the show and it's totally valid to me. You absolutely belong here.

[guanin]

Thank you! That's really comforting to hear. I used to be a massive shipper, so I know how that goes. I still ship in some of my other fandoms, but it's much more lowkey than it used to be. I'm just a little cautious about joining new fandoms now because some of them can be really hostile to ace headcanons. Some of us got backlash in the Gotham fandom. But I was very comforted going into this one by the fact that there's so much ace fic and listening to the Three Patch Podcast, which brings it up a few times.

[guanin]

Thanks! I discovered asexuality through fandom, too, so I've plenty of positive experiences, but I've still been a bit nervous since you never know what to expect in a new fandom. This one seems really nice and inclusive.

[guanin]

Thanks for the encouragement! My fandom experiences in the last couple of years has had a lot of that "everyone who disagrees with me is wrong" mentality, so I've grown a little wary. I've only run into one instance in the Sherlock fandom so far, and that person got shut down immediately, thankfully.

[myghostlights]

Yeah, nowadays it definitely is. I found some headcanons and fics that depict Sherlock and/or John as trans or nonbinary as well. Fandom should be a place where any and all voices can be heard.

[guanin]

Thanks! I've had good experiences so far. I've met a lot of lovely people.

It is freeing. I don't feel any obligation to stick to a particular fanon in my writing, since I don't know what they are. Missing the fighting is also nice. I've had enough of that in my other fandoms. Maybe it was good that we only joined recently, then. We didn't have to deal with that.

Yes, that's one of my favorite things about fandom. So many interpretations. It only becomes a problem when some people decide that their opinion is The One True Opinion and hates on anyone who disagrees.

[guanin]

Thanks! Yay, another one! I usually headcanon characters as ace just for fun, but Sherlock is one of the few where there's real canon support, which makes it special. Him being one of my favorite characters makes it even more so.

[guanin]

That's good to hear. Usually, it's impossible to avoid the fights in the fandoms I'm in, so this has been a nice change of pace. Although I did run into a fight the other day, so I'm not surprised to hear that. It seems sadly inevitable to have drama in fandom, but I'm glad that it has died down significantly.

Thank you! It's so nice to be in a fandom where people support ace headcanons, even when they don't share them. That's not the case in many fandoms, in my experience.

[guanin]

It's awesome that those exist. THsi fandom has so much variety. It's really nice.