Ready, Aye, Ready

Link: http://gotmedieval.blogspot.com/2008/03/did-they-have-fan-fiction-in-middle.html

Fanfic (or "Fan Fiction" to use its unabbreviated name) is typically considered a contemporary phenomenon. For those unfamiliar with the term, it's where readers of a particular story decide to continue it themselves. It's particularly common in the SF&F world where it's possible to imagine what-if scenarios that the original author choose not to explore. The need to continue a story or insert oneself into it isn't that new as this article at Got Medieval points out. If I were still at university and working on a graduate thesis, this would make for an excellent starting point for a research paper.

(Via BoingBoing)