With AO3 down, fanfic readers are in survival mode

When the internet’s biggest fanfiction repository vanishes from reach, there’s one thing you can still count on: a network of fellow fans.

Just ask the massive community of Archive of Our Own readers, who in the past few days have gone from panic to ingenuity after their beloved fanfic haven went dark.

AO3 is home to more than 18 million works, including many sexually explicit stories (affectionately referred to as “smut”), and writing inspired by popular IP, such as “Harry Potter,” “Twilight” and “Heated Rivalry.”

But last week, the Organization for Transformative Works, the nonprofit behind AO3, announced the site would be down for two to four weeks, citing a “security incident.”

The prospect of weeks without AO3 sent shock waves through a community devoted to the platform’s uncensored storytelling and meticulous tagging system. Some went as far as likening the outage to life in prehistoric times or descending into madness.

But their desperation also gave way to solidarity, with readers sharing tips with each other on how they can still get their fan fiction fix.

In the r/AO3 community on Reddit, moderators have set up megathreads for the purpose of helping members find and share copies of their favorite…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/health