Beyond the Filter: Fanfic arrests in China

Beyond the Filter: Fanfic arrests in China

From Beyond the Filter by Beyond the Filter

July 1, 2025 · 44 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the arrests of over 500 fanfiction writers in China and the implications of censorship on female creators.

In this episode, hosts Jeremy and Brandy speak with F15-H (Fish), an artist from Hong Kong now living in mainland China, about a shocking wave of arrests targeting fanfiction writers on the Chinese platform MyHD Books. Over 500 authors—predominantly young women and college students—were arrested in May on charges of public indecency, facing penalties of up to 10 years in prison simply for writing erotic fanfiction. Fish reveals how these arrests were triggered when the Taiwan-based platform introduced monetization features, giving authorities a pretext to crack down on content that had existed for years. The conversation explores China’s gendered approach to censorship, where female-created content faces harsher penalties than male-oriented material, and draws troubling parallels to rising puritanical movements worldwide. From doll nipples getting creators shadow-banned from payment systems to fans reporting writers to the government over shipping preferences, Fish paints a picture of a surveillance state where fiction is treated more seriously than real crimes—and warns that similar trends are emerging globally. The post Beyond the Filter: Fanfic arrests in China appeared…

People in this episode

Hosts: Jeremy, Brandy

Guest: F15-H Fish

Topics covered

  • fanfiction
  • arrests
  • censorship
  • China
  • gendered approach to content

Keywords

  • MyHD Books
  • public indecency
  • erotic fanfiction
  • surveillance state

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Beyond the Filter

Places: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan

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