They are everywhere and you don’t know it. They are sitting at your lunch table, playing on your sports teams. They are normal people, yet they lead a secret (or sometimes not so secret) life.  They write fanfiction, and create fanart. They maintain very up to date blogs that feature new information and fan conspiracies. They are the fangirls and fanboys of Langley, and they are a very passionate group of people.

The fandom culture was created and spawned online. The internet served as a catalyst for the movement of this subculture to the mainstream; however a lot of people still don’t recognize the dedication and sanity of these self-proclaimed superfans.

Sophomore Leah Damelin prides herself on her obsession with Harry Potter.  She is the classic example of a teenage fangirl, and one glimpse at her internet search history would prove that.

Here is a Q and A with Leah Damelin to give some information on the grueling lifestyle that is being a fangirl:

SS: What is a fandom? 

LD: A fandom is a group of people that celebrates a certain movie, TV Show, book, musical group, or really anything else.

SS: What fandom do you belong to and why? 

LD: I belong to the Harry Potter fandom because Harry Potter is a fantastic series of books that inspires creativity and the imagination of all readers. J. K. Rowling brings magic to life throughout her books, entrancing readers with her intriguing characters and their adventures.

SS: What is a ship? 

LD: A ship is a pairing between two or more characters. This can mean that they are friends or they are in a relationship. More often than not, however, they are in a relationship. These relationships don’t need to exist strictly in canon, in the books. An OTP, or one true pairing, is the relationship that a person supports the most. People write fanfiction, make fanart, and blog in order to artistically express their interest in these two characters being together.

SS: What do you ship? 

LD: What don’t I ship? I support a lot of relationships in the Harry Potter fandom; however my OTP is Dramione, the relationship between Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger. Dramione would totally be canon if Hermione ever left Ron, who is a total git. In fact, J. K. Rowling would have totally made it happen if it wasn’t for the Romione shippers.

SS: What is fanfiction, and do you write it? 

LD: Fanfiction.net is the place where productivity goes to die. There are all types of stories for every ship. There are Alternate Universe (AU) and Out of Character (OOC) stories, not to mention gender benders, and Next generation fics. Basically people can write the craziest stories that they can think of, but at the same time, a really good fanfiction can be as great as reading a book. I don’t personally write fanfiction, not because I am against it, but because I am not creative enough at writing for it.

SS: What would you say to prospective fangirls and fanboys? 

LD: I would say good luck. You may see a drop in grades and overall performance, but you will meet the coolest people that share your interests, and you will collect a lot of really cool memorabilia (I have wands, robes, spell books, and even a Slytherin  Quidditch jersey).