#fanbinding
FOLLOW THE FANS: Community Adaptative Art and a Communication Circuit for Fanfiction, by Shira Buchsbaum
In mid-2020, @sbooksbowm ran across my Tumblr posts about the fannish gift economy and fanbinding as gifts, and exclaimed that fanbinding was exactly the sort of thing she was doing with her Master’s dissertation. One thing led to another, and the Renegade Bindery discord server was born. One of the first things we did in the server was to set up a Q&A channel for sbooks to poll the fanbinders on their methods and mindset. There were only a few of us then, most just starting out.
And now, a half a year later, I was able to bind that dissertation and send it off to her.
You can read all about it right here at the masterpost. It’s fascinating, and I’m not just saying that because I was interviewed!
Incidentally, if you’re interested in doing acafan / scholarly work on the fanbinding phenomenon, please reach out. Who knows, one day I could be binding your work.
Finely Drawn Linesby@the-sinking-ship
Congratulations on finishing this wonderful fic, Sly!
Ever since Sly started posting this fic in January, I’ve been eagerly reading along and imagining how I would bind it. And now that it’s finished, I could finally make that a reality and surprise her with a bound copy! I absolutely adore a friends with benefits/secretly pining for each other fic and Sly tackles this with her usual brilliance. This fic is full of incredibly hot sexual tension, some truly devastating pining, and delightfully tender moments (I’m looking at you, the “kiss me” “you missed” moment that took up residence in my brain for a solid few days after reading it) and it’s all balanced so well! Thanks for sharing your writing, Sly, and I hope you enjoy having a hardbound copy of this lovely fic!
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Heart Like Neonby@lqtraintracks
Includes amazing art by @bluebutter-art
I have been reading @lqtraintracks’s works for so long that it was only a matter of time until I bound one of them! They were one of the first authors I read when I started reading Drarry, and it was so cool to be able to make a book for them. This particular fic is sexy as hell, incredibly tender at moments, and I was fascinated with the concept of Reachingand how it’s used throughout the work!
The back cover is inspired by the cards that Draco finds throughout the story: “And then he feels for the card in his pocket and extracts it. Like before, it heats at his touch. Letters form and rearrange themselves. Draco stands in his living room, all deathly quiet except for the thud of his own pulse, and he reads the address and then the words at the bottom, moving, always moving, beckoning him: HP at your service…” The idea for the back cover has been a brainworm of mine since I bound my Gallaplacidia anthology, and I’m so thrilled with how it came together! The hand was surprisingly fun to paint, as were the cover swirlies, and I’m excited to play around more with what I paint on the covers from now on!
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The Claiming of Grimmauld Placeby@bixgirl1
With beautiful art by @m4g0rtz
For@babooshkart’s birthday! ❤️
Happy (belated by now) birthday Boo! You’re an incredible person and a wonderful friend, and I was thrilled to make this for you!
This fic was already on my to-bind list, so when I asked Boo what fic she’d like bound for her birthday I was so happy when she picked this! I absolutely adore this story–I love a good Grimmauld Place fic, and this one has a special place in my heart. Frank and Paul add so much heart and charm to this story, and I was so excited to be able to include @m4g0rtz‘s lovely artwork of Frank in this binding!
I tried some new things with typesetting this one–such as dropcaps at the start of the chapters! I also got to use some really beautiful silver/blue bookcloth and metallic chiyogami paper, and I’m in love with how they look together. I’ve been saving them for a special occasion, and Boo’s birthday definitely counts!
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Chasing Dragonsby@the-sinking-ship
With gorgeous art by @fictionaland@babooshkart
A brilliant take on fake dating, this fic is full of incredible sexual tension, heart-wrenching pining, and a magically powerful Draco and Harry that make me swoon! Sly balances sharp humor with beautifully emotional scenes so well. I’ve been saving this cover paper for this fic, as I think the gold and red suit the tension and energy in this fic (and it also happens to complement @fictional’s cover art very well)!
I had a minor emergency with my copy of this book when I sliced through the front endpaper while trying to cut off the waste sheet (pro tip: don’t change the blade of your utility knife right before cutting off the waste sheet). After a slight panic, I ended up gluing down a similar decorative paper to the remains of the first endpaper and casing in with that. So my copy is structurally sound, but does have mismatching endpapers. But overall, I really love how both of these turned out!
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A collection of almost 30 trans Drarry works by @softlystarstruck
Including lovely artwork by @clytemenestrasand@ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm
These wonderful works are ones that I’ve been spending a lot of time with recently. Bee has written so many incredible trans stories, and there’s a little of everything here. From clever AUs set in space, to brilliantly written kinky microfics, to the most tender and emotional snapshots of Draco and Harry’s love for each other, the thing that ties all of these stories together is the love that shines through in Bee’s writing. It was a joy to be able to bind these all together into one book!
This book spent 3 weeks in the mail, and really went on a journey to make it to Bee–I’m so glad it eventually found its way there safe and sound! The bookcloth and endpapers for this one are again inspired by the trans flag, and the lettering and cover are painted by hand. I was very intimidated by the swirly frame around the title, but it was actually easier to paint than the lettering and I really love how it turned out!
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Artist’s copy of Sweeten to Tastebybigblackdog
with gorgeous art by @babooshkart!
The shortest book I’ve made to date, this one was really fun! I had a blast finding the font I used for the page breaks and typesetting this! And I gasped when I saw the vegetable paper for the endpapers–it was perfect for this lovely fic which is filled with amazing descriptions of food! This fic is also heartfelt and has a really interesting perspective on forgiveness. I love the Draco and Harry here, there was such wonderful depth to their characters and they played off each other in really fun ways.
Made for the incredible boo, who did all of the absolutely stunning art in this! My humble at-home printer did its best to capture the art’s beauty, and the pieces complement the story so well!
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Author’s copy of Little Deaths and How to Avoid Them (or Draco Malfoy’s Guide to Stop Dying and Start Living Instead) by@greaseonmymouth
This was one of my favorite fics that I read last year, and also the first book I made for an author! And it finally arrived so I can post pictures now! I had planned to make both of our copies identical, but I messed up making the case for the first copy and had to use some different bookcloth after that. I really like how it turned out though. I had some of the same paper for the endpapers, just in a different color, and they complement each other nicely! I also think this bookcloth goes fabulously with the beautiful illustrations by dustmouth that are the headers for each chapter!
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I was so happy to get to make another copy for an author! This fic drew me in immediately with its unique setting and the dynamic characters. Hurt/comfort but really heavy on the comfort, this fic felt like a big hug and I loved watching Harry and Draco’s relationship evolve throughout this beautiful story. Plus it’s got lots of my favorite things–down-and-out-Draco, cool magical theory, bonding, roommate shenanigans, etc.!
I had a lot of fun typesetting this one–I’m trying to be a little more creative with that as I grow more comfortable typesetting in Word and this is something I want to keep experimenting with. This fic felt very green to me with its setting and the amazing description of Harry’s magical core: “His core is green–a deep emerald that takes Draco by surprise–it fills up most of Potter’s torso and a massive, intricate, spiderweb of sparkling, pulsing veins extends from it…” so I tried to choose some bookcloth and paper that evoked that. I’m really excited about how these turned out and also really happy to be able to share a physical copy with the author!
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WIP shots of the latest book! I got the first copy of this fic done earlier this week, and now this one is in the press overnight…last step is lettering and then whichever one turns out better is off to the author and the other one goes on my shelf!
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Little Deaths and How to Avoid Them (or Draco Malfoy’s Guide to Stop Dying and Start Living Instead) by @greaseonmymouth
Includes art by dustmouth
Massive thanks to the author who helped a lot with getting artist permission to use the art! This is my copy of this fic, I made one for the author that’s currently on its way to them so I will post pictures of that later! This story meant a lot to me–I loved the characterizations of Draco and Harry and the way they grew both as people and as a couple throughout the fic. The illustrations for this fic are gorgeous and I tried to pick bookcloth and paper that would pick up on some of the colors in them. I’m very pleased with how this turned out, it was my first flatback book and my first time making an author a copy which I’d love to do more of in the future!
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the call of sweet things by @softlystarstruck
includes lovely art by @babooshkart and @ihopeyoubothstaysafefromharm
I read this fic over the holidays and fell in love with it! Bee wrote a fic that overflows with tender caring and characters that are so vibrant that I could picture exactly how I wanted this book to look while I was reading it. I chose the bookcloth and paper to match Harry’s pink hair and I was also inspired by the trans flag colors because Bee writes so many amazing trans stories–this one included! This was one of the first times I made a copy to send to an author and it was such a lovely experience!
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An anthology of nine of GallaPlacidia’s works. This started with me wanting to bind Scaredy Cat and then quickly became a massive three volume project but I am so so happy with how these turned out!
Volume One includes “Dad Says,”Lessons in Grace and Decorum, and The Bucket List
Volume Two includes Can I Tell You Something?,Code Name L, and Adventures of a Suicidal Gentleman
Volume Three includes The Bolthole,Teenage Wasteland, and Scaredy Cat
This project taught me a lot. I had some mishaps with trimming the fore edge of the textblocks and ended up having to reprint and re-sew the first volume. But I did get more comfortable with the process by the end of this (key takeaway: go slow and don’t use too much pressure if you are trimming with a utility knife). All of the lettering and the drawings on the spine were done with gold fabric paint and a lot of patience. The spines ended up being my favorite part–so excited to have these on my shelf!
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Grounds for Divorce by Tepre!
Grounds for Divorce was the fic that made me want to start binding fics and this was one of my first casebound books. It turned out pretty well, though I learned a lot through trial and (lots of) error while making it. This was also the first time I attempted any lettering on the covers which takes forever without a cricut but I really like the look! I think I might make another copy of this in the future…I’ve learned a lot about typesetting and bookbinding since making this and would love to give this another go (and also I can never have too many copies of this beautiful fic)!
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The Trail Bride by SecretReyloTrash
“It might be indelicate to breach the subject of marriage at this trying time…”
An adequate statement. The man had only been dead for three hours.
But one must always be practical.
“I am not so softened by sentiment in the matter as you would typically find a widow, Mr. Hux.”
Rey Niima finds herself in a perilous situation when her husband dies at the start of their journey West. From the few bachelors on the trail in her party; she attaches herself to the best of her options.
That option is the mysterious Banker Ben Solo.
- 160,823 words
- 513 pages
- standard size
- rounded and backed
- wagon scene dividers
This book was requested as part of March’s Patrons+. The commissioner chose to stay anonymous and to gift the book to the author.
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so that he may sleep without his fists clenched by irridesca
“Please don’t cry, Rey,” he pleads, voice laced with sorrow. “I won’t be able to walk away from you right now if you keep this up, and you know Dameron will kill me if I miss that plane.”
She lets out a watery chuckle against his collarbone, squeezing him even tighter as she glances up at him.
“He’d have to go through me first. And he would lose. Miserably.”
Ben and Rey have been married for just over two years when Ben gets deployed overseas.
- 63,445 words
- 203 pages
- standard, flatback
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In my excitement, I forgot to take my usual photos of finished books. These two are copies of go i know not whither and fetch i know not what by voicedimplosives
Notes of Melancholy by DarkoftheMoon
The war is over and Hermione Granger is haunted by loss. She spends her days going through the motions, following routines to keep it together. The sounds of her neighbor’s nightly piano playing slowly stitches her broken heart back together. When she musters up the last of her Gryffindor courage to thank them, a familiar face opens the door.
- 15,817 words / 143 pages
- standard, flatback
- rose gold HTV on the front quarterbind
- black HTV inside the back cover’s square
- piano keys for scene dividers
This book was a surprise gifted commission to the author from her friend, which as you all know, is something I love to do. Luna took gorgeous pics of the book and packaging as soon as she received it.
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our gentle sin by flybluejay
Is this really what he wanted to do: catch feelings for a woman who could certainly have her pick of the hundreds of men shuffling in and out of the club every week? A woman at least ten years younger than him, who is so much more beautiful than he is handsome?
He feels like he is rushing down a river at a speed he never imagined he’d go. Not in a million years did Clyde ever picture himself falling for Miss Kira, the stripper.
Clyde Logan’s luck changes in all sorts of ways when he meets Miss Kira, a stripper at the club one town over.
- 44,688 words / 143 pages
- standard, flatback
The author had a lot of input in the creation of this book, from the font choices to every element on the cover.
This is also the first Clyde Logan (Logan Lucky)/Rey (Star Wars) fic I read and bound.
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