ABSTRACT
"Slash" is a term deriving from the convention, since the 1970s, of using the / symbol to designate a relationship between two characters, as in the iconic Kirk/Spock. The femslash sensibility also has effects with wider implications: fans can and do mobilize collectively around issues of queer female representation, celebrating favorite examples and publicly condemning missteps. Femslash fans often frame their experience in this way, as was the case at the "Where's the F/F?" panel at WisCon. The femslash sensibility also has effects with wider implications: fans can and do mobilize collectively around issues of queer female representation, celebrating favorite examples and publicly condemning missteps. Femslash communities, while a minority segment of creative media fandom, have been leaders in positioning themselves as a critical counterpublic within an investment in shifting the dominant terms of representation.
