Web's fan fiction boom

Every now and then someone in the media notices how huge "fanfic" is on the Web. Newsday is the latest to take a thorough look at the "millions of stories written for cyberspace by ordinary consumers of TV shows, movies, books, even video games." It actually has been going on for eons; the Web has simply made the writing and sharing that fans of Harry Potter, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, etc. love to do infinitely more efficient. And it has turned all this writing, critiquing, and interacting into places where passionate fans can find each other and hang out. Some of these fans - particularly Harry Potter ones - are very young. Which is why parents might want to know about this sort of hang-out. It has what some would consider a darkside - sexually explicit stories - lightly covered fairly far down in the Newsday piece. For the perspective of a mom and fanfic writer in Texas, see "'Chanslash': The other Net porn kids access."