One of the shows I'm currently watching is "Supergirl" on the CW. It's more of a guilty pleasure show if nothing else. But I'm really only watching for the chemistry between two female characters on the show. To be clear, these characters (Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor) aren't explicitly queer. Yet, it's difficult to not see the queer undertones in their relationship.
Still, because of the gods of heteronormativity, it remains extremely unlikely that their relationship will go beyond subtext, especially because there is already another queer pairing on the show. I've found that this happens often when I watch mainstream heteronormative media. Oftentimes, there will be queer undertones in relationships but generally, it doesn't go beyond that.
It's no secret that queer people are dramatically underrepresented in media. When we are represented, our relationships are either tokenized or only exist in the background. And if the show is not a "gay show" there is absolutely no hope of getting more than one queer pairing (such seems to be the case with "Supergirl").
But that is where fanfiction comes in. Despite fanfiction's reputation, it has always been very interesting in terms of queer politics. The first major fanfic pairing was of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock from "Star Trek." In the present day, one of the main websites for fanfiction (archiveofourown) has more non-binary users than men.
Fanfiction allows queer people to take heteronormative media and actively "queer" it. It is in this context an actually very radical tool. For instance, the "Supergirl" writers will not pull the trigger on a queer romance, but plenty of queer creators can make that happen in their own worlds.
Fanfiction has proved to be an effective tool for queer youth in particular. The average age of a fanfiction.net user is 15 and the average user age of an archiveofourown user is 25. Young queer folks often report using fanfiction to figure out their own identities, especially if they exist in unsafe environments.
It is also a way for them to put themselves in their stories and use that to work through their own struggles. Finally, through writing fanfiction they create relationships with other young queer writers who are in similar positions as them.
In this sense, fanfiction has always been and continues to be a lifeline for queer folks trying to survive in a heteronormative society.
