Parasite

(Did you mean the fanzine Parasite?)

In fanspeak, a parasite is someone who attends cons for reasons other than to attend the program and socialize with fans.

Leah Zeldes Smith first used the term in the 1980s to apply to mundane jewelry hucksters who added cons to their craft-show circuits, and later to formerly fannish hucksters who began to use fandom as a means to a full-time living.

After a LoneStarCon 2 panel, “Parasites or Part of Us?” in 1997, the term broadened to include various con goers, from a.s.b types to gamers, who have no interest in SF or fandom but attend cons because they make convenient playgrounds or profit centers.

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Fanspeak

This is a fanspeak page. Please extend it by adding information about when and by whom it was coined, whether it’s still in use, etc.