Indigo, of the comic-book fanfic community:

It is likely that if your child is uncomfortable with the social structures of school. Let's face it, the pecking order can be merciless -- cool kids pick on the nerdy kids -- and although the 'nerdy kids' are intelligent, they're usually sensitive and not prone to fighting back. Cutting back a child from an environment where they feel like they fit in may well make the kid more withdrawn. [Our] Frito recalls that she was a 'nerdy kid' in highschool and credits her learning to deal with making friends in the real world after developing the courage to make friends online.

If your child is introverted, never brings friends home, and has no "real" social life, and spends all his/her time online, chances are the latter is the effect of the former, not the other way around. If your child fits the description of a "nerd," "freak," or simply isn't very "cool," s/he may be picked on a lot at school and in other public areas where there are many young people of higher social status but few adults. As a person who endured that kind of treatment throughout most of her time in elementary school and seventh grade, I can attest to "real life's" ability to turn a person away from in-person social interactions. The Internet, especially the medium of fan fiction, is a very safe alternative for people who aren't accepted or don't feel comfortable around their peers. In a place where one isn't burdened by appearance, handicap, voice, or social status, one's options open up considerably. No longer does your child have to account for whom "the real world" thinks s/he is. If anything, this new opening of options raises your child's self-esteem, thus encouraging him to be more assertive in RL.

Also, some people are just born naturally quiet and reserved, and thus inclined to find online life a much less threatening medium than in-person interaction. This is no cause for alarm, as there have been people like this since well before electricity was discovered, who constantly grow up to be productive citizens. By curtailing your child's Internet privileges, you teach him that you *don't* want him to make friends or have a place where he feels comfortable to be himself. You wouldn't want that, would you? The people on the other side of the modem are just as real as you, and love your child more than many people who know him in person, and don't deserve to be treated like a bad influence.

I think some parents might find it useful to know that I live at school three hours away from my family and most of my communication with them takes place over email. My mother knows my webpage better than the layout of my school, and has even read a story or two of mine. My parents wouldn't *dream* of having my Internet access limited. It saves a lot on their long-distance phone bill, and they never get a busy signal!

Red would also like parents to know that "I am an English major who made it into college and earned a scholarship by *writing* -- emphasis on writing -- essays, well after I got involved in fan fiction, a well-reputed babysitter, an older sister, and the best friend/self-appointed protector of a very shy but sweet young lady in real life.)"