SCOTIE WILCHER
The Manga, Anime, Gaming and Entertainment Guild was recently formed by senior Sabrina Otero and her board, including sophomore Jordan Wallen. Otero described MAGE Guild as “a community of students that have interest in gaming, manga or basically anything in the entertainment fandom world.”
As a club, MAGE Guild traces its roots back to Fayetteville College. Otero heard about the club through a friend that attends the college and was interested in their various activities such as hosting their own conventions. Otero thought to herself, “why don’t we have that here?” Shortly after she heard about the club, she created a page on Facebook to gauge interest in MAGE Guild. After receiving an enthusiastic response from her peers, Otero proceeded with the creation of the club.
The process of starting MAGE Guild was similar to any club formation; Otero petitioned for interest and gained well over the 50 signatures required, held board interviews, created a club constitution and gained approval from the Legislative Board, Dr. Alan Mueller and Dean Krispin Barr.
Both Otero and Wallen stressed that the guild is meant to be a community and a safe space. Wallen pointed out that the interests of potential members varied from pop culture to Dungeons and Dragons to general film. They shared activity ideas ranging from dramatic fanfiction readings to marathons of the popular anime “Naruto” and monthly gaming nights. All of these ideas are meant to build community with everyone involved and allow them to form friendships with those that share similar interests.
Otero also expressed a need for an educational component to the club. As a woman, she had been turned away from several “nerd” spaces that were wrought with misogyny. The club is meant to function both as an educational resource for nerd culture and as a community for people to discuss anything related to fandom.
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