Fictional Fans

That's an interesting question! I'm not sure I can talk about a maximum right now because I'm still head-deep in my current fandom and rarepair. For now, AO3 tells me I've written 12 oneshots as well as my collection of ~50 drabbles (at present) entirely dedicated to the pairing. I did the math and apparently that amounts to almost 68.000 words already... With more on the way, as I have two oneshots waiting in queue to be written, a handful of new drabbles ready to go and the intention of eventually writing a multichapter fic (which is something I never do!) with no length estimate for the time being.

All of this while I'm currently pretty much the only author to write about them frequently and as a main attraction in a fic instead of a side ship the way others write them, if at all. A search with "otp: true" yields 33 results (as opposed to 87 with other ships included), of which 13 works are mine (in an environment of about ~4200 fics total for the whole fandom).

The attention I get is very, very limited but, on the other hand, it tends to be quite satisfying since these readers seem to care a lot more about the work I put into my stories. Last time I posted something more gen I was almost shocked by the superficial response some new readers had to it as opposed to the care my regulars have with my shippy narratives.

It's the first -- and likely the last -- time a ship has inspired me this much, even without the support from fandom at large (which hinges almost fully on the juggernaut ship that I care nothing for, oops) so there's still a lot of passion to sustain me even though I definitely don't get nearly as much feedback as I would if I wrote for The Main Canon Ship. It can be frustrating at times, sure, but I'm having my fun and I think that's what matters in the end.

After this question, however, I'll make sure to do a word recount when I'm done just out of curiosity for what my maximum unpopular ship efforts will have been! :)