Sapphic Fandom

Sapphic Fandom is a term for fandom communities composed of or focusing on sapphics, most notably lesbians and mspec women and nonbinary people. Fans within these spaces may use a variety of terms to describe their identities and experiences, including lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, wlw, sapphic, queer, and others. 
The term derives fom Sappho who was a poetress in ancient Greece.
Sapphic fandom is differentiated from femslash fandom in that the latter focuses on pairings between or involving queer women, while the former not only involves the characters themselves, but also includes the distinct ways that a person's sapphic identity, whatever that might be, informs, impacts, or influences how they engage with fandom. 
There is, however, a large overlap between the two, as sapphic fandom incorporates a lot of femslash. Many sapphics also ship slash, m/f, and ships between non-sapphic nonbinary characters, with some not shipping femslash at all.
==Fandom==
===Sapphic Fandom and Femslash===
See also: History of Femslash Fandom, Timeline of Femslash, and Timeline of Femslash Meta
====Writing From Experience or For Representation====
Sapphic fandom has a strong presence in femslash fandom, and it is often assumed that most femslash creators are sapphic in some way. 
Since the early 2000’s, meta on writing femslash as a sapphic creator has discussed a number of different approaches and attitudes. For some sapphics who read or write femslash, the primary draw is interest in depictions of women’s experiences, and specifically queer women’s experiences.See, for instance comments by Eska_rina, Snarkylightning, and [pit_chick666] in Why do femslash? (2006); various responses to Why DO you write(/read) fanfic with female characters? or: Why DO you write(/read) femmeslash?, 2014; The I Am Femslash essays (2017)
A number of sapphic fans through the years have discussed writing femslash as a way to represent their own experiences. Sometimes this includes a feeling that no one else will write femslash if they (the creator) doesn’t: 
 
Some specifically highlight the sense of hope it gives them, especially in light of mainstream portrayals of sapphic relationships considered inadequate or harmful (including those subject to Dead Lesbian Syndrome): 
 
Others focus on the opportunity femslash gives them to explore nuanced and complex relationships and sexuality: 
 
For additional meta or articles on the subject of representation and writing to one’s experience, see for instance: 
* , 2012 article (archived from the original) 
* The I Am Femslash essays (2017) 
* . Slate, written by Lena Wilson, June 28, 2018 (Accessed November 9 2021).
====Quality and Themes of Femslash Content====
Some sapphics through the decades have felt frustrated by what they feel is a lack of diversity, complexity, or variety in the topics and themes given focus in femslash.For example, Where’s all the good femslash? Does anybody know? (2003), archived from the original, or where are the femslash epics? (2010) 
Sometimes the frustration seems directed at the source material fans are responding to: 
===Sapphic Fandom and Slash===
Sapphics have written extensively through the decades about their interest and participation in slash fandom.
Some fans directly contrast their interest in slash to a hesitance in writing femslash; for instance, while discussing the assumption that if you’re writing femslash you must be a queer woman.See for example M/M vs. F/F (2005), comments by cyberorganize or mrsfrankenstien in Why is there so little geeky academic discussion of femslash? (2007), or Is it a law that you have to be lesbian to write Femslash? (2007) 
A number of fans describe wanting some distance from writing their own experiences: 
 
 
Other fans have shared that they feel writing slash allows them to escape sexism or negative experiences that women have. For instance, this fannish essay argues that slash allows women to avoid objectification and the heterosexual gaze: 
Another fan on Tumblr wrote in 2019, on the topic of tropes she enjoyed in slash but not het fic: 
 
The post, which has over 49,000 notes on Tumblr as of December 2021, contained a fair amount of commentary and critique from other fans, either on the topics raised by the OP or about how the concepts raised related to femslash content.
===Sapphic Fandom and M/F===
===Male Characters and the Sapphics Who Love Them===
====Non-Sapphic Characters====
Some characters popular within sapphic fandom are not sapphic themselves:
*Thor - For some time, Thor was dubbed the "God of Lesbians." Fanworks of him setting up and being the wingman for Valkyrie, who is canonically bi and a het man's wet dream, emerged.
===Specific Fandoms===
Some fandoms are known for having a larger sapphic following than others, whether intentionally or not. Many of these are known to be key examples of lesbian media or an important part of sapphic fandom culture:
Genre 	Fandom 	Intentional Sapphic Following? 	Medium 	Character 	Ship 	Actor 	Other 	
Action/Adventure 	Xena: Warrior Princess 	 	TV 	XenaGabrielle 	Xena/Gabrielle 	Lucy Lawless 	 	
Action/Adventure 	Person of Interest 	 	TV 	RootSameen Shaw 	Shoot 	 	 	
Action/Adventure 	Terminator: Dark Fate 	 	Film 	 	Dani Ramos/Grace Harper 	Mackenzie Davis 	 	
Anime 	Carole & Tuesday 	 	Anime 	Carole Stanley
Tuesday Simmons 	Carole Stanley/Tuesday Simmons 	 	 	
Anime 	Diebuster 	 	Anime 	Lal’cNono 	Lal’c/Nono 	 	 	
Anime 	Revolutionary Girl Utena 	Intentional 	Anime 	UtenaAnthy 	Utena/Anthy 	 	 	
Anime/Manga 	Puella Magi Madoka Magica 	Intentional 	Anime/Manga 	Kaname MadokaAkemi HomuraMiki SayakaSakura KyokoTomoe Mami 	Numerous pairings, including Madoka/Homura, Kyouko/Sayaka, and Mami/Homura, as well as pairings from the spin-offs 	 	 	
Anime 	Kill la Kill 	 	Anime 	Matoi RyukoMankanshoku MakoKiryuin Satsuki 	Ryuko/Mako 	 	 	
Cartoon 	She-ra and the Princesses of Power	Intentional. The show is often described as having a sapphic vibe throughout and is ine of few source texts in which Everyone is Queer is the generally accepted fanon (if not semi-canonical).	TV 	She-RaCatraGlimmer 	Catra/AdoraCatra/Adora/Glimmer 	 	 	
Comedy 	Glee 	Somewhat intentional. After fans launched a campaign to make Brittana canon following a throwaway line about them hooking up in the mid-season finale of season 1. 	TV 	Santana LopezBrittany S. Pierce 	Brittana 	 	 	
Drama 	The L Word 	Very intentional. The first American television series to have a cast consisting mostly of lesbian characters. 	TV 	Bette PorterTina Kennard 	Tibette 	 	 	
Drama 	Orange Is the New Black 	Intentional. 	TV 	Piper ChapmanAlex VausePoussey Washington 	Piper/AlexTaystee Jefferson/Poussey WashingtonBrooke Soso/Poussey Washington 	Samira Wiley 	 	
Drama 	Dead to Me 	 	TV 	Judy HaleJen Harding 	Jen Harding/Judy HaleJudy Hale/Michelle Gutierrez 	 	 	
Drama 	Killing Eve 	Intentional. 	TV 	Eve PolastriVillanelle 	Eve Polastri/Villanelle 	Sandra OhJodie Comer 	 	
Drama 	Grace and Frankie 	 	TV 	Grace HansonFrankie Bergstein 	Grace/Frankie 	Lily Tomlin 	 	
Historical Fiction 	Gentleman Jack 	Very intentional. It is based on the extensive collection of diaries Anne Lister kept which were partly written in a secret code, documenting a lifetime of lesbian relationships. 	TV 	Anne ListerAnn Walker 	Anne Lister/Ann Walker 	 	 	
Historical Fiction 	Dickinson 	 	TV 	Emily DickinsonSusan Gilbert Dickinson 	Emily Dickinson/Susan Gilbert Dickinson 	 	 	
Historical Fiction 	The Handmaiden 	Intentional 	Film 	Nam Sook-heeIzumi Hideko 	Izumi Hideko/Nam Sook-hee 	 	 	
Historical Fiction 	Portrait of a Lady on Fire 	Intentional. 	Film 	MarianneHeloise 	Heloise/Marianne 	 	 	
Historical Fiction 	Carol 	Very intentional. Based off the novel “The Price of Salt” from 1952, which portrayed a lesbian relationship. 	Film 	Carol AirdTherese BelivetAbby Gerhard 	Carol Aird/Therese BelivetCarol Aird/Abby Gerhard 	Cate BlanchettRooney Mara 	 	
Horror 	The Haunting of Bly Manor 	Intentional 	TV 	Dani ClaytonJamie Taylor 	Dani Clayton/Jamie Taylor 	 	 	
Romantic Comedy 	But I’m a Cheerleader 	Intentional 	Film 	 	 	 	Sometimes uses as a fusion fic	
Romantic Comedy 	Imagine Me and You 	Intentional 	Film 	LuceRachel 	 	 	 	
Romantic Comedy 	Happiest Season 	Intentional. 	Film 	Harper CaldwellAbby HollandRiley Johnson 	Harper/AbbyAbby/RileySloane/Riley 	Mackenzie DavisKristen StewartAubrey Plaza 	 	
Science Fiction 	Supergirl 	Mostly unintentional 	TV 	Kara DanversLena Luthor Alex DanversCat Grant Diana (Wonder Woman)	Many, including Kara/LenaKara/CatKara/AlexKara/Diana 	 	 	
Science Fiction 	Orphan Black 	Intentional 	TV 	Cosima NiehausDelphine Cormier 	Cophine 	 	 	
Science Fiction 	Sense8 	Intentional 	TV 	Nomi MarksAmanita “Neets” Caplan 	Amanita/Nomi 	 	 	
Science Fiction 	San Junipero 	Intentional 	TV 	Kelly, Yorkie 	Kelly/Yorkie 	Mackenzie DavisGugu Mbatha-Raw 	 	
Science FictionFantasyHorror	The Locked Tomb 	Intentional 	Novel 	Gideon NavHarrowhark “Harrow” NonagesimusIanthe Tridentarius 	Gideon Nav/Harrowhark NonagesimusHarrowhark Nonagesimus/Ianthe Tridentarius 	N/A 	 	
Science Fiction 	This Is How You Lose the Time War 	Intentional 	Novel 	Red and Blue 	Red/Blue 	N/A 	 	
Supernatural (genre) 	Wynonna Earp 	Somewhat Intentional 	TV 	Waverly EarpNicole Haught 	Wayhaught 	 	 	
Video Game 	Life is Strange 	Intentional 	Video Game 	Max CaulfieldChloe PriceRachel AmberKate MarshVictoria Chase 	Max Caulfield/Chloe PriceMax Caulfield/Victoria ChaseMax Caulfield/Kate MarshRachel Amber/Chloe PriceRachel Amber/Chloe Price/Max Caulfield	Ashly Burch 	 	
Video GameHorror 	The Last of Us 	Intentional 	TV 	Ellie, Dina, Abby 	Ellie/Dina 	Elliot PageAshley Johnson 	 	
Webseries 	Carmilla 	Intentional. Specifically targetted towards sapphics. 	Web series 	Carmilla KarnsteinLaura Hollis 	Hollstein 	Natasha NegovanlisElise Bauman 	 	
Webseries 	Critical Role 	Intentional. Especially in Campaign 2, there are a number of canon queer or sapphic characters. 	Web series, podcast	Beauregard LionettYasha NydoorinJester Lavorre 	Beauregard/YashaBeauregard/JesterBeauregard/Jester/YashaBeau/KegBeau/Reani 	Ashley JohnsonAshly BurchAshley JohnsonLaura Bailey	 	
Podcast 	Alice Isn’t Dead 	Intentional. Also notable in that the title and creators specified before the show aired that the show would not bury their gays 	Podcast 	Keisha, Alice 	Keisha/Alice 	Jasika NicoleErica LivingstonRoberta Colindrez 	 	
===Subfandoms===
====Western Animated Sapphics====
Western animated TV series have a somewhat surprising reputation among fandom for producing canon femslash ships. Sapphic fandom often congegates around several of these ships, with fans frequently shipping multiple after learning about them through fandom osmosis. The following ships consistently feature: Korrasami, Rupphire, Catradora, Lumity, CaitVi, Bubbline, Bumbleby, and Harlivy. These ships are not the only sapphic representation in Western animated media, but they're the ones seemingly most often grouped together, nor will every fan of animated sapphic media ship every one of these ships.
*Korrasami and Rupphire are regarded as two of the pioneers of animated sapphic representation, though the latter is sometimes criticised for its association with Steven Universe.
*Some of the ships originate from queer-centred shows, created by queer creators, such as Rupphire, Catradora, and Lumity. Fans of She-ra and the Princesses of Power and The Owl House in particular share a lot of overlap, and the showrunner of the former is married to a writer for the latter.
*Most of these ships are from family-friendly animated media, with Harlivy being the consistent outlier.
Non-western animated sapphic ships will also sometimes be included, such as legendary anime couples Haruka/Michiru and Anthy/Utena. Both of these canon ships predate the proliferation of sapphic ships in western animation by two decades. The latter's show, Revolutionary Girl Utena, was an inspiration for both Steven Universe and S:PoP.
*give me six gal pals to make fanart of! (Nov 2022) by lettuccine
===Popular & Influential Ships===
* Xena/Gabrielle from Xena: Warrior Princess
**Very well known and influencial ship that straddled the line between canonicity.
* Tibette from The L Word
**Ship from a very well known and influencial piece of sapphic media.
* Willow/Tara from Buffy
**Very well known canon ship, if a notorious example, and one of the earliest for fandom, of the Bury Your Gays trope for women.
*Swan Queen from OUAT
**For a time, the juggernaut pairing of SQ was the most popular femslash ship on Ao3.
*Supercorp from Supergirl
**According to Ao3 Ship Stats, the non-canonical ship Supercorp has the highest number of fanworks for a femslash ship on Ao3. Its popularity has at least been partially influenced by one half being played by frequent sapphic crush Katie McGrath. There seems to be an overlap with Swan Queen, with many SQers seeming to move to SC after feeling disappointed by OUAT. The canon ship Sanvers was also popular, though Dansen less so.
*Clexa from The 100
**Arguably the most infamous example of the Bury Your Gays trope, so much so that it significantly contributed to the formation of the LGBT Fans Deserve Better movement.
*Brittana and Faberry from Glee
*Hollstein from Carmilla
**Often an overlap with Wayhaught and Wynonna Earp after one half of the pairing, Dom P-C, appeared in The Carmilla Movie.
*Wayhaught from Wynonna Earp
**First appeared in the notorious year of 2016, and was known at the time for actively subverting the Bury Your Gays trope, allowing it to stand out in said year.
*Catradora - She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
*Korrasami - The Legend of Korra
*Bubbline - Adventure Time
*Root/Shaw from Person of Interest
*Kanaya/Rose from Homestuck
*Uranus/Neptune from Sailor Moon
*Utena/Anthy from Revolutionary Girl Utena
*Numerous pairings from Puella Magi Madoka Magica, including Madoka/Homura, Kyouko/Sayaka, and Mami/Homura, as well as pairings from the spin-offs
*Ryuko/Mako from Kill la Kill
*Villaneve
*Lumity - The Owl House
*Choni from Riverdale
*Thasmin from Doctor Who
**Though the Doctor Who fandom had had sapphic ships prior, Thasmin was by far its most well known in sapphic spaces. For instance, the ship Vastra/Jenny previously had had a much lower level of popularity around the time of the show's popularity in the early to mid 2010's.
===Popular & Influential Characters===
====Canon====
Lesbian
* Alex Danvers on Supergirl
*Elena Alvarez from One Day at a Time
* Anissa Pierce on Black Lightning
* Willow Rosenberg on Buffy the Vampire Slayer
* Alex Vause, Nicky Nichols, Poussey Washington, Suzanne Warren, Sophia Burset and Carrie Black on Orange Is the New Black
* Irene Adler on Sherlock (TV series)
* Santana Lopez on Glee
* Cheryl Blossom on Riverdale
* Amity Blight on The Owl House
* Villanelle on Killing Eve
* Adora and Catra on She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
* Charlie Bradbury on Supernatural
* America Chavez in Marvel Comics
*Bill Potts in Doctor who
Bi
*Rosa Diaz on Brooklyn Nine-Nine
*Avatar Korra and Asami Sato on The Legend of Korra
*Callie Torres on Grey's Anatomy
*Luz Noceda on The Owl House
*Piper Chapman on Orange is the New Black
*Brittany S. Pierce on Glee
*Clarke Griffin on The 100
*Annalise Keating on How To Get Away With Murder
*Tina Kennard on The L Word
*Kyoshi on Avatar: The Last Airbender
*Harley Quinn from DC Comics
Other
*Velma Dinkley from Scooby Doo
**Canon lesbian in Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo!, Word of God lesbian in both Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated, ambiguous in other media.
====Headcanons====
Some characters seem to be more commonly headcanoned as sapphic in some way than others:
*Kara Danvers & Lena Luthor
**Due to both Kara and Lena having canon male love interests, both are often headcanoned as being bi, though lesbian is also theorised. Lena's status as a sapphic icon is amplified by being played by Katie McGrath.
*Carol Danvers from Captain Marvel
*Jo March from Little Women
*Quinn Fabray from Glee
*Alice Cullen from Twilight
*Kelsi Nielsen and Sharpay Evans from High School Musical
====Lesbian or AroAce?====
*Elsa from Frozen
**So common that it spawned #GiveElsaAGirlfriend
*Merida from Brave
*
*Barbie from Barbie (2023)
===Specific Actresses===
For various reasons, certain actresses appear to have a much larger following of sapphic fans than others:
*Lucy Lawless
*Katie McGrath
**Katie's large sapphic following may go some ways to explain the popularity of Supercorp. Many of the earlier fans she gained through Merlin as Morgana Pendragon followed her to Supergirl and her character Lena Luthor, and many who watch the latter first go back to the former.
*Brie Larson
*Kristen Stewart
*Cate Blanchett
*Ruth Wilson
**Particularly through her character Marisa Coulter in His Dark Materials.
*Dianna Agron - Primarily fans of Glee who ship Faberry or headcanon Quinn Fabray as a lesbian.
*Naya Rivera - Primarily fans of Glee who like the character Santana Lopez and ship Brittana. 
*Sandra Oh 
*Sarah Paulson
*Aubrey Plaza
===Other Real People===
*Rose & Rosie - Youtubers
*Jojo Siwa - Youtubers
*Hayley Kiyoko - Singer (Lesbian Jesus)
*Taylor Swift - Singer
* Janelle Monáe - Singer
*girl in red - Singer
*Phoebe Bridges - Singer
*Kehlani - Singer
===Common Themes & Tropes===
* Lesbian & Himbo Dynamic
* Useless Lesbians: The phrase useless lesbians, spread as a meme on tumblr, refers to lesbians or bi women who miss obvious flirting from other women. The term is sometimes used in fanfiction and other fanworks and has over 3000 works in its canonized tag on Archive of Our Own.Works tagged Useless Lesbians on AO3. (Accessed March 24, 2021)
* Sword Lesbians: Lesbians who favour the sword as a weapon, such as Adora or Tanthamore. 
===Memes===
*Harold, They're Lesbians
*It's okay... I am a "lesbo"
===Fanvid Songs===
*I Think My Girl is Bi
==Intersectionality==
===Intersectional Representation===
===Issues of Racism===
*I’m quitting Femslash Fandom - Tumblr post by hijadepavlov about the racism within femslash/sapphic fandom
===Issues of Transphobia and TERFs===
==LGBT Fans Deserve Better==
LGBT Fans Deserve Better is a fan-led movement that came about in 2016 in response to the death of Lexa on the television series The 100, as well as the disproportionately large number of queer female characters killed off on television around the same time. The movement garnered widespread media and industry support, and propelled the "Bury Your Gays" trope into a national talking point.
Writing about the movement in a 2017 editorial for the Transformative Works and Cultures, Dr. Eve Ng and Dr. Julie Levin Russo noted the unique position sapphic fandoms have with regards to fan activism:Envisioning queer female fandom by Eve Ng and Julie Levin Russo. Published in Transformative Works and Cultures (2017).
==Fanworks==
===Fests & Exchanges===
:See: :Category:Femslash Challenges for a listing of Femslash exchanges documented on Fanlore
* sapphic hp Femmeslash Fanathon (2004-5)
===Fanart===
File:Moon Rupphire.png|Ruby and Sapphire from Steven Universe with nonbinary pride wristbands and lesbian pride headbands. Sapphire is kissing Ruby's cheek and they are both blushing. (Moon, 2017)
File:Make love not war harley quinn and poison ivy by samarasketch.jpg|Make Love, Not War - Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy by samarasketch (2019)
File:Pridetoons 2 4 lesbian by wreckham.jpg|PrideToons 2/4 - Lesbian (June 2022) by wreckham, featuring the pairings of Vitani/Tiifu from The Lion King, April Spink/Miriam Forcible from Coraline, and Lyra Heartstring/Sweetie Drops from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
File:Soldierpoetprince Tinarose.jpg|happy pride month!! friendly reminder that ctinarose in gay love <3 by soldierpoetprince, featuring the pairing of TinaRose from Dream SMP
File:Lumity (Pride Month) by Yakiti.jpg|Luz and Amity from The Owl House with bi and lesbian pride colors. (Art by Yakiti, 2022)
==Zines==
:See :Category:Yuri Doujinshi and :Category:Femslash Zines for a list of F/F zines and Doujinshi documented on Fanlore.
* touched (multifandom zine) (1984-7)
:This zine was an early example of a more political fanzine, created by a lesbian and gay sci-fi fanclub and operated as a collective. 
* Politically Incorrect (zine) (1986-7) 
: Not primarily F/F focused, but the editor's named lesbians in the Star Trek universe as one of their priorities. 
* Sapphic Overwatch Zine, edited by Hattersarts (2016)
* That But Lesbians, contains genderswapped het ships. Edited by hattersarts (2019)
* Kiss With a Fist!
* GL Zine
==Meta==
==Communities & Websites==
===Discussion Boards===
* The L Chat - a lesbian message board where many sapphic fandoms congregate
===Archives===
* SapphicVoices Fan Fiction, a Xena specific archive
* Passion and Perfection, one of the biggest archives devoted to F/F
* Sapphic HP
* Girls' Dormitory, a defunct Harry Potter femslash archive 
* SapphicSlayer, a BtVS archive 
===Conventions===
* ClexaCon - a multifandom procon geared towards queer female fans and creators
==Resources & External Links==
* Queer Female Fandom, Vol 24 (2017) of the Transformative Works and Cultures. 
** See also Ng, Eve, and Julie Levin Russo. 2017. "Envisioning Queer Female Fandom" [editorial]. In "Queer Female Fandom," edited by Julie Levin Russo and Eve Ng, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 24. http://dx.doi.org/10.3983/twc.2017.1168.
==References==
===Notes===
Category:Queer
Category:Femslash Fandom
Category:Discussion