In Focus: Ontological security, authorship and resurrection: Exploring Twin Peaks’ social media afterlife

In his work on Twin Peaks, Henry Jenkins (1995) notes how the series was one of the first to attract a dedicated and loyal fan audience, many of whom discussed the show’s mysteries online. Since the programme aired in 1990-1991, the online presence surrounding the show has not abated and, with the advent of social media networks, has actually proliferated. Use of social media to continue and engender fandom in the ‘post-series’ era or in a period of ‘post-object fandom’ (Williams 2011) is explored here to consider how fans of the series maintained their sense of connection to the series, their associated self-identity as a fan and a sense of ‘ontological security’ (Giddens 1991) or trust in this fandom. This paper explores the presence of Twin Peaks-related accounts on Twitter to consider how these continue the world of the series as well as maintaining fan discussions. Clark suggests that, “By keeping up with its virtual presence and continuing to revel in its existence, fans can hold on to the dream that maybe on some other Lynchian plane, the ‘Twin Peaks’ universe remains very much alive” (2013, 14). This paper considers in more depth the strategies used online to maintain the fandom of the series, analysing several Twitter accounts which discuss and promote the series; @TwinPeaksArchve (established in 2007 and with 11,000 followers this is one of the most prominent Twitter accounts for the series), the @TwinPeaksPodcast which features podcast discussion about the show from two viewers watching it for the first time), @EnterTheLodge (encouraging fanfiction about a third season of the programme), and @TwinPeaksUKFest (dedicated to discussion of the annual UK Twin Peaks festival). Focusing on Twitter fan accounts from the very large to the more specific, and examining a spectrum of fan practices (e.g. fanfiction, attending live events, and watching the series for the first time), the paper explores how social media sites allow cancelled shows such as Twin Peaks to maintain an afterlife due to the shared promotional and conversational opportunities that social media sites can provide. The paper thus explores the extent to which social media helps promote television programmes in the period of ‘post-object fandom’ and how this both reassures existing fans and provides an ongoing connection to and sense of ‘trust’ in the series, and attracts new viewers to engage with a programme and its online fandom.