Creativity and ageing in fandom

Abstract

This article brings together insights from gerontology and fan studies to explore creative expression in late(r) life fandom. The migration of fandom to the Internet, combined with its increasing visibility and access to researchers, has led scholars to prioritise the tangible products of fan creativity: blogs, vlogs, cosplay, fanfic, fanfac, videos, and so on. In fact, fan studies seems on the brink of equating creativity with material output, as the separate field of creativity studies already has. At the same time, gerontologists have begun to move past the decline/success polarity that shaped much of late-twentieth-century research on ageing towards examination of creative potentials associated with maturation. Here, however, the focus is on the process (not product) of creative expression in terms of overall health and wellness. Drawing on three disparate literatures (fan studies, creativity studies, gerontology), this article explores the meanings and possibilities of creativity and ageing in fandom.

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