“I Need a New Name”: Confessions of a Chinese Fangirl

By taking a fictional autoethnographic approach, Yilia Yijia Qu, Vesper Long, Jamie Wong, and Graham M. Jones create an imagined narrative from a fictional fangirl's diary to investigate how fangirls in China mobilize usernames to pursue agency in a patriarchal society, as well as anonymity in the face of ubiquitous surveillance. Simultaneously shielding themselves from prying eyes and creating internal distinctions by displaying signs of allegiance to celebrity idols, fans create usernames that both conceal and reveal identity. By adopting this creative form of fictionalized but ethnographically true-to-life approach, they consider the politics of naming as a form of verbal artistry within the online subculture of Chinese fandom, offering an intimate glimpse into the ways names are involved in navigating membership in digital publics. They follow their fictional narrative with an explanation of naming conventions in China and how fandom has been one of the few spaces for the critique of traditional gender norms.