Fandom in public libraries: mapping of initiatives and their applicability

Abstract

The fandom is constituted by individuals who appreciate a cultural object constituting the so-called community of fans. Within these communities they create and share products inspired by the original cultural contents called the canon. On the other hand, we have the public library (BP) that has in its guidelines the promotion of skills such as reading, creativity and contact with various artistic expressions. However, the Brazilian BPs suffer from the abandonment of the community, the neglect and ignorance of their functions by the public power. Thus, fandom is seen as a means by which BPs can redeem their relevance and better fulfill their role in serving their community with activities that arouse multiple interests. The article aims to conceptualize the activities of fans, mapping similar initiatives that have been successful in BPs, as well as discussing the possibilities of application in the Brazilian reality, listing what benefits the development of such activities would bring the community. The methodological course was the exploratory one, since the academic production that relates the fandom with the public libraries is relatively scarce in the country, in this way, were consulted sites of associations of public libraries, periodicals with the subject of public library, blogs about fans, fandom and reading. Supported by the concepts of "living library" and "biblioremix", the fan community presents itself as a means to put into practice a new library perspective. By being individuals engaged in different artistic activities, fans have the potential to mobilize interest groups around BP.