Albus Dumbledore is gay. The announcement came last Friday when Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling answered a fan question regarding the venerable wizard’s love life. Many fans of the seven-book series likely erupted in a collective gasp upon hearing the news, but there is one special group of Potter fans who have heard it all: fan fiction enthusiasts.

The Harry Potter series is arguably the most involved and intricate fan fiction community in existence today. The author herself has frequently acknowledged this peculiar brand of devotees. At Friday’s question and answer session in Carnegie Hall, Rowling laughed “Oh, my God, the fan fiction,” perhaps alluding to the droves of romantic Dumbledore-driven fiction that would be inspired by her revelation.

Fan fiction is created when fans of a certain work — whether it’s a book, movie, comic, or television show — take it upon themselves to pen their own versions of the story. Some begin writing because the actual story line did not take the literary turn they had hoped, others write prequels or sequels to existing tales, and more write simply for amusement.

It would be difficult to find a popular text about which no fan fiction has been written. A simple search provides access to “Labyrinth,” “Clarissa Explains it All,” and even reality show “Laguna Beach” fan fiction.

Although budding authors have been elaborating upon their favorite tales for years (“Star Trek” fan fiction was extremely popular in the 1960s), fan fiction has exploded with the mass availability of the Internet. However, fan fiction is still relatively underground, with its devout followers relying on the Internet to communicate with other fanfic writers. Websites and forums like Fanfiction.net and the Harry Potter fan site MuggleNet.com boast hundreds of active members and thousands of submissions — the former lists 325,606 stories adding to the Harry Potter series alone.

However, fanfic websites, though entertaining, can also be confusing for those unfamiliar with their nuances. Fanfic communities utilize their own complicated terminologies. Here is a list of a few of the terms that one will undoubtedly encounter in a fan fiction search.

Canon

“Canon” is a label assigned to any idea present in the original text. For example, in the Harry Potter books, Voldemort killed Harry’s mother and father. This plotline is thus labeled canon. By relaying additional, unwritten information about her wizarding world to fans, Rowling added to the accepted true information about the series. As of last Friday, Dumbledore’s homosexuality is considered canon.

Fanon

Something is considered “fanon” if it was written by a fan fiction author and was never canon, but is accepted by the fan fiction community as “true.” Fanon plotlines are then expanded upon by other fanfic authors. Until the seventh book, the idea that Snape loved Harry’s mother Lily was considered fanon. Some fanon, however, is extremely strange and strays far from canon, such as the theory that Snape is Harry’s father.

Mary Sue

A Mary Sue is a noncanon character inserted into a piece of fan fiction who represents the author in a “wish-fulfillment fantasy.” In these cases, the writer puts the character who represents him in situations he would love to actually experience. For instance, a fanfic writer who has a crush on Ron might introduce a new character into the mix who represents herself and promptly seduces the Quidditch-obsessed redhead.

Ships and shippers

Fans and advocates of a romantic relationship between certain characters are called “shippers.” These relationships can be canon or otherwise. Often, the individual “ships,” or the characters with whom “shippers” are obsessed, are abbreviated when referenced. For instance, those who write about or are interested in a relationship between Harry and Hermione are considered “H/Hr” shippers.

Slash

If a piece of fan fiction includes a homosexual noncanon relationship, it is called slash. Slash fiction regarding Dumbledore in the Harry Potter series has tended to focus on a Dumbledore/Voldemort or Dumbledore/Snape pairing, but some stories have essentially predicted Rowling’s outing of Dumbledore and the wizard Grindelwald’s relationship.

There are no limits to fan fiction. Someone wanting to see a Hagrid/Voldemort romance could find it. If a person would like to write a piece on “Final Fantasy 7,” they could — and would — find others to read and review it. Whether fan fiction is a foreign notion or a familiar hobby, Rowling’s announcement has thrown this form of creativity into the spotlight and undoubtedly jump-started many epic tales of Dumbledore’s wizardly love.

Katie Greenway is a sophomore majoring in journalism and communication arts. If you know of any hilariously overt examples of Mary Sues, e-mail her at [email protected].