Fans who haven’t spent money on their idols are wild fans, casual fans.
You say you love someone, but would you save up for concert tickets, buy their official albums with your pocket money, go to the cinema to boost their movie’s box office, or pay to stream their shows?
If your answer is yes, congratulations, you’ve upgraded from a wild fan to a domestic fan. You can proudly tell others, “I’m a fan of so-and-so,” join their fan club, participate in organized support activities, and experience a sense of belonging that wild fans can’t relate to.
The next level up is when fans follow their idol’s every move, buying albums, attending concerts, and contributing to box office and ratings no longer satisfy the overflowing affection in their hearts.
They’ll vote for their idol on charts, staying up all night to do so.
They’ll tear into rivals, not letting anyone bully their idol.
They’ll consciously or unconsciously buy products their idol endorses.
This is the shift from domestic fan to true love fan.
For most, this is the extent of it. But a rare few true love fans evolve into brain-dead fans, fiercely defending their idol even when they’ve done wrong, with extreme loyalty and aggression. These fans are the most devoted but are a double-edged sword, often bringing negative attention and ruining their idol’s reputation with casual observers.
Most casual observers never get close to celebrities, forming opinions based on the behavior of their fan groups.
Brain-dead fan isn’t a derogatory term.
Having a genuinely positive idol can be a guiding light in life.
When the idol’s quality is high, fans argue with reason, confidence, and endless conviction.
Both Li Mengjiao and Yun Chen, being new to the industry, had no scandals. Besides releasing one album and starring in The Princess’s New Clothes, Li Mengjiao’s only commercial tie-in was a dairy brand endorsement.
Buying a carton of yogurt was well within fans’ budgets.
A carton a day? No problem. But fans also wanted other ways to spend on Li Mengjiao.
They’d already bought her album, multiple copies even.
Rumor had it a soundtrack for the drama was coming?
Money was ready, when could they buy it? They were dying of anticipation!
The moment Li Mengjiao’s personal blog launched, fans flooded it with comments asking about the drama’s soundtrack.
Without Yuan Fenghui’s approval, Li Mengjiao didn’t dare announce anything.
She tentatively replied to one comment with “wait a bit,” and the fans went wild.
No surprise there, that’s our Jiao Jiao, so down-to-earth!
Fan forums and QQ groups provided platforms for fans to share updates. Li Mengjiao had many QQ fan groups, and since The Princess’s New Clothes aired, membership had skyrocketed.
With the drama’s boost, some casual wild fans were evolving into domestic fans, eager to spend on Li Mengjiao and find a community.
Yun Chen’s situation was similar. Once the drama aired, his female fans moved with astonishing speed, setting up fan forums and QQ groups.
Wen Ying’s readers, however, weren’t as fervent.
Compared to star-chasing fans, readers were a more rational group. Plus, Wen Ying had almost no public exposure, so even if readers wanted to go crazy, they lacked the fuel.
That changed when Li Mengjiao and Yun Chen’s variety show aired, promoting Teen Idol. Fans eager to spend on their idols but lacking an outlet found a target, the day after the show, Teen Idol sold out!
When the news reached Chengdu, Li Mengjiao, with a touch of pride, stood before Wen Ying. If she had a tail, it’d be wagging high.
Her “praise me quick” expression made Wen Ying both touched and amused. She couldn’t help but ruffle Li Mengjiao’s hair, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“Wanted to surprise you!”
Telling her earlier would’ve ruined the surprise. Besides, until the show aired, Li Mengjiao wasn’t sure if the promotional segment would be cut.
No need to explain all that to Wen Ying. Wen Ying had always helped Li Mengjiao, and now, finally, Li Mengjiao could return the favor. Recommending Wen Ying to write MV scripts and drama screenplays didn’t count as help in Li Mengjiao’s eyes, Wen Ying’s talent was obvious, she was the one helping Li Mengjiao.
This was her truly helping Wen Ying!
Li Mengjiao’s quiet pride mixed with a bit of shyness. Teenage friendships are pure, you’re good to me, I’m good to you, and giving feels better than taking.
Li Mengjiao was happy, and so was Wen Ying. Even Xie Qian didn’t dampen the mood for these two underachievers.
Wen Ying’s book was likely headed for a second reprint, cause for celebration!
Xie Qian was right. After the show aired, Zou, the new chief editor at Chengdu Literature Publishing, promptly held a meeting to arrange the second reprint of Teen Idol.
The first print was 100,000 copies, the first reprint 200,000. How much for the second?
Zou Weijun, parachuted into the publishing house, faced skeptical old employees. But before she could act, Teen Idol’s sell-out silenced her critics.
In any industry, results shut up naysayers!
Teen Idol was Zou Weijun’s achievement.
For the second reprint, she planned 400,000 copies.
This time, no one at the publishing house urged caution. Teen Idol was a guaranteed bestseller, and the 400,000 copies would sell out, book dealers and stores nationwide were demanding more orders. Half the print run would be snapped up the moment it left the press.
Whether Li Mengjiao’s fans, Yun Chen’s fans, or casual viewers of the show, anyone who bought Teen Idol could easily become Wen Ying’s reader.
Li Mengjiao and Yun Chen recorded the variety show to promote The Princess’s New Clothes, and its viewers overlapped with Teen Idol’s readership.
Both works came from the same person, sharing similar values.
Some love melodramatic romances, believing youth isn’t complete without a whirlwind love story, but when the market is flooded with similar works, audiences and readers grow tired.
The Princess’s New Clothes and Teen Idol were like a fresh breeze, offering a different experience.
As drama viewers and readers overlapped, some finally noticed the screenwriter credits.
Huh?
The Princess’s New Clothes listed Wen Ying as a screenwriter.
Teen Idol’s author, “Upstream Fish,” had an online encyclopedia entry revealing her real name as Wen Ying.
Were these two Wen Yings the same person?!
Following the trail to Wen Ying’s personal blog, her verified profile as “writer, screenwriter” confirmed it.
The writer I love is also the screenwriter of the drama I’m watching?!
