Many of us have read fanfiction and questioned the fancasts. But what if the person who has been cast finds the fanfiction? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nora Jo never expected to find herself in fanfiction but now she knows what it’s like. Having read the One Direction fanfics back in the day she couldn’t imagine a future as Y\/N.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She\u2019s telling fanfic.mag what happens when your real life becomes someone else’s story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was expecting it to be just a silly fanfiction. I mean, how serious could it be? You\u2019re using my name and picture\u2026 but it turned out to be a full-blown book.\u201d Nora Jo says, her normally animated face now in a stare of disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a split second the Google Meet screen from Canada looks like a paused frame as she takes in the reality of it all. Then the stillness breaks. Nora smiles and shakes her head at the sheer absurdity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was written so well that dare I say…\u201d She pauses to choose her words carefully\u201d Me and my friend were crying by the end of it!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nora is a force within the F1 digital space, carrying a combined following of nearly 56,000 across socials. She\u2019s one of the first Muslim women to create content in motorsports. More than just a fan with a camera; she’s a regular in the paddocks, interviewing drivers and creating content for many racing teams. We\u2019re speaking just after the chaos of the F1 season\u2019s final triple-header, an intense stretch spent collaborating with various brands. Even fresh off the plane and likely exhausted, she\u2019s still glowing through the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nora can navigate the motorsport media world with ease, but fanfiction is a different territory entirely. And it all started with one Instagram photo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI didn’t realize that people yearn for an \u2018aesthetic hijabi\u2019 photo.\u201d Nora says, miming air quotes. \u201cI\u2019m not gonna toot my own horn but that year was just kind of insane.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The insane year she\u2019s referring to was 2023. At the time Nora had just 500 Instagram followers, but that changed when a photo of her in front of Charles Leclerc\u2019s car at the Monaco Museum of Cars captured the internet’s imagination. Suddenly her notifications were flooded with more than just likes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPeople would constantly come to me and ask, \u2018Oh, can I post this on Pinterest? Can I save this on my vision boards?\u2019\u201d She recalls. Because the photo was a side profile it offered a certain anonymity that allowed others to see themselves in her. \u201cIt\u2019s very easy to let your imagination run.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She was no longer just a creator. She had unintentionally become a muse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first fanfiction was titled \u2018Double Sided Tracks\u2019<\/em> published on Wattpad by user TeamRac. It cast Nora as the daughter of the Saudi Minister of Sports (an interesting take of her actual Indonesian heritage) and placed her at the center of a high-stakes love triangle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo many people write fanfictions that turn out to be great movies and books, so that shouldn’t be a surprise.\u201d She says. \u201cBut I was surprised because it was me on the cover. I wasn’t expecting it to be serious. It has layers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The series became so popular that it eventually spanned two books with two distinct endings. The fanbase was divided. Torn between the two world champions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople were enraged,\u201d Nora explains. \u201cSome people wanted me to be with Max, and some were like, well, no, it started as a Lewis Hamilton thing. So they ended up posting two different endings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the beginning, the process was collaborative. The author was active in Nora\u2019s DMs, checking in and asking for consent on specific chapters. But as the years passed and Nora\u2019s own career took off, that line of communication went silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s 2025 now.\u201d She notes, realising the story has grown far beyond her initial involvement. \u201cMaybe they think I won’t answer my DMs anymore. When I found out it was actually two whole books, I thought it had just stopped there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Double Sided Tracks<\/em> remained respectful of her boundaries, the deeper she looked into this parallel world, the more the tone began to shift. It wasn’t long before Nora realised that not every author was interested in asking for permission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe James Vowles one is the most uncomfortable.\u201d Nora admits, her tone shifting. \u201cI know people who work with Williams, so it feels a little too close to home.\u201d She trails off, clearly struggling to find the right words to describe the situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She wants to be respectful of the fanfiction community, but there is an undeniable awkwardness to the content. When I interject to point out the obvious fact that he is married, we both fall into a silent, knowing moment of awkwardness. Eventually, we break into a laugh, the kind of shared realisation that the situation is as funny as it is uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, he\u2019s a whole father and there is an age factor that plays into it.\u201d She says. \u201cBut the thing is, obviously people don’t really think about that because they see him as a celebrity and they see my picture as just a picture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a creator who has built a reputation as a vocal defender of Vowles\u2019 leadership, the association is difficult to navigate. The situation reached a peak when even the official Williams TikTok page began seeing recommended searches and comments linking Nora\u2019s name to the Team Principal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One AO3 story in particular stays in her head for all the wrong reasons. In this version, Nora was a Williams employee secretly married to Vowles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey made me pregnant in that story and I just don\u2019t like that,\u201d She states, the humor completely gone from her voice. \u201cThere are a lot of weird implications there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was the wake-up call regarding the lack of control she has over her own likeness, the invasive nature of these stories forced her to make a change. She decided that maybe she doesn\u2019t really need to know what everyone is using her name and picture for. As she puts it \u201cI would rather just live.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While she acknowledges that some stories cross the line, Nora still recognises the immense talent within the fanfiction community. At one point she even considered reviewing F1 fanfiction, but eventually decided to leave the space alone, believing they need their own space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve read a few and they were amazing. These are full-blown authors who write storylines that perhaps not even Shakespeare could recreate.\u201d She jokes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To her, the stories can offer an escape when public criticism mounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFanfiction gives me an ego boost when I’m hitting rock bottom.\u201d She explains.\u201cI have to remind myself. You know what, at some point in your life you were that<\/em> girl! Enough to end up on the cover of books. That\u2019s a pretty good achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the interview wraps up, I ask Nora if there is anything about being the subject of fanfiction that rarely gets discussed online. She admits that it can complicate her professional life, even leading her to delete content when the “shipping” comments become too much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was so scared that there\u2019s going to be fanfiction about us.\u201d She says, recalling a time she pulled an interview with a driver after viewers misread a friendly exchange. \u201cIt\u2019s hard because I know the people on the internet are not going to see what we\u2019re doing as two professionals being friendly. They\u2019re going to spin it into something else.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite the speculation in the comment section Nora tries to understand why it happens rather than just be angry about it. \u201cI don\u2019t blame them because there is a lack of hijabi representation. So whatever little thing that I\u2019m giving out, it\u2019s almost like watering a dead plant. But they’re going to absorb it so fast.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having experienced fan-shipping firsthand, she now views celebrity interviews through a different lens. \u201cI am going through it\u2026so I understand. Obviously not to that scale as this is minuscule compared to what those celebrities are going through but I get it.\u201d She acknowledges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople are very comfortable commenting, \u2018Is this a soft launch?\u2019<\/em> I\u2019m like, babe this is work. You see me wearing their team kit? It\u2019s work.\u201d Nora rants in a joking manner, but underneath the humour, there is a sense of frustration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, the verdict on being written into fanfiction? It’s fun if you take it with a pinch of salt. Realistically, you can’t stop people from being creative and Nora doesn’t want to. She recognises that for many her presence represents a rare moment of visibility they are desperate to see. Nora has mastered the art of appreciating the fantasy without letting it disrupt her reality. As the Google Meet call draws to a close, she gives a friendly wave and a final smile before her screen goes dark, leaving the impression of someone who knows exactly how to navigate the line between being an F1 muse and a media professional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s normal in the fanfic world to choose the face of your main character. But we don\u2019t question the impact on the person who has been cast. Nora Jo sits down with us to tell her side of the story that has been rewritten.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":212,"featured_media":944,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"\n Many of us have read fanfiction and questioned the fancasts. But what if the person who has been cast finds the fanfiction? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Nora Jo never expected to find herself in fanfiction but now she knows what it's like. Having read the One Direction fanfics back in the day she couldn't imagine a future as Y\/N.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She\u2019s telling fanfic.mag what happens when your real life becomes someone else's story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was expecting it to be just a silly fanfiction. I mean, how serious could it be? You\u2019re using my name and picture\u2026 but it turned out to be a full-blown book.\u201d Nora Jo says, her normally animated face now in a stare of disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a split second the Google Meet screen from Canada looks like a paused frame as she takes in the reality of it all. Then the stillness breaks. Nora smiles and shakes her head at the sheer absurdity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was written so well that dare I say...\u201d She pauses to choose her words carefully\u201d Me and my friend were crying by the end of it!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nora is a force within the F1 digital space, carrying a combined following of nearly 56,000 across socials. She\u2019s one of the first Muslim women to create content in motorsports. More than just a fan with a camera; she's a regular in the paddocks, interviewing drivers and creating content for many racing teams. We\u2019re speaking just after the chaos of the F1 season\u2019s final triple-header, an intense stretch spent collaborating with various brands. Even fresh off the plane and likely exhausted, she\u2019s still glowing through the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nora can navigate the motorsport media world with ease, but fanfiction is a different territory entirely. And it all started with one Instagram photo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI didn't realize that people yearn for an \u2018aesthetic hijabi\u2019 photo.\u201d Nora says, miming air quotes. \u201cI\u2019m not gonna toot my own horn but that year was just kind of insane.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The insane year she\u2019s referring to was 2023. At the time Nora had just 500 Instagram followers, but that changed when a photo of her in front of Charles Leclerc\u2019s car at the Monaco Museum of Cars captured the internet's imagination. Suddenly her notifications were flooded with more than just likes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople would constantly come to me and ask, \u2018Oh, can I post this on Pinterest? Can I save this on my vision boards?\u2019\u201d She recalls. Because the photo was a side profile it offered a certain anonymity that allowed others to see themselves in her. \u201cIt\u2019s very easy to let your imagination run.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She was no longer just a creator. She had unintentionally become a muse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first fanfiction was titled \u2018Double Sided Tracks\u2019<\/em> published on Wattpad by user TeamRac. It cast Nora as the daughter of the Saudi Minister of Sports (an interesting take of her actual Indonesian heritage) and placed her at the center of a high-stakes love triangle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo many people write fanfictions that turn out to be great movies and books, so that shouldn't be a surprise.\u201d She says. \u201cBut I was surprised because it was me on the cover. I wasn't expecting it to be serious. It has layers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The series became so popular that it eventually spanned two books with two distinct endings. The fanbase was divided. Torn between the two world champions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople were enraged,\u201d Nora explains. \u201cSome people wanted me to be with Max, and some were like, well, no, it started as a Lewis Hamilton thing. So they ended up posting two different endings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the beginning, the process was collaborative. The author was active in Nora\u2019s DMs, checking in and asking for consent on specific chapters. But as the years passed and Nora\u2019s own career took off, that line of communication went silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s 2025 now.\u201d She notes, realising the story has grown far beyond her initial involvement. \u201cMaybe they think I won't answer my DMs anymore. When I found out it was actually two whole books, I thought it had just stopped there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Double Sided Tracks<\/em> remained respectful of her boundaries, the deeper she looked into this parallel world, the more the tone began to shift. It wasn't long before Nora realised that not every author was interested in asking for permission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe James Vowles one is the most uncomfortable.\u201d Nora admits, her tone shifting. \u201cI know people who work with Williams, so it feels a little too close to home.\u201d She trails off, clearly struggling to find the right words to describe the situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She wants to be respectful of the fanfiction community, but there is an undeniable awkwardness to the content. When I interject to point out the obvious fact that he is married, we both fall into a silent, knowing moment of awkwardness. Eventually, we break into a laugh, the kind of shared realisation that the situation is as funny as it is uncomfortable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, he\u2019s a whole father and there is an age factor that plays into it.\u201d She says. \u201cBut the thing is, obviously people don't really think about that because they see him as a celebrity and they see my picture as just a picture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a creator who has built a reputation as a vocal defender of Vowles\u2019 leadership, the association is difficult to navigate. The situation reached a peak when even the official Williams TikTok page began seeing recommended searches and comments linking Nora\u2019s name to the Team Principal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One AO3 story in particular stays in her head for all the wrong reasons. In this version, Nora was a Williams employee secretly married to Vowles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey made me pregnant in that story and I just don\u2019t like that,\u201d She states, the humor completely gone from her voice. \u201cThere are a lot of weird implications there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was the wake-up call regarding the lack of control she has over her own likeness, the invasive nature of these stories forced her to make a change. She decided that maybe she doesn\u2019t really need to know what everyone is using her name and picture for. As she puts it \u201cI would rather just live.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n While she acknowledges that some stories cross the line, Nora still recognises the immense talent within the fanfiction community. At one point she even considered reviewing F1 fanfiction, but eventually decided to leave the space alone, believing they need their own space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve read a few and they were amazing. These are full-blown authors who write storylines that perhaps not even Shakespeare could recreate.\u201d She jokes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To her, the stories can offer an escape when public criticism mounts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFanfiction gives me an ego boost when I'm hitting rock bottom.\u201d She explains.\u201cI have to remind myself. You know what, at some point in your life you were that<\/em> girl! Enough to end up on the cover of books. That\u2019s a pretty good achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the interview wraps up, I ask Nora if there is anything about being the subject of fanfiction that rarely gets discussed online. She admits that it can complicate her professional life, even leading her to delete content when the \"shipping\" comments become too much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was so scared that there\u2019s going to be fanfiction about us.\u201d She says, recalling a time she pulled an interview with a driver after viewers misread a friendly exchange. \u201cIt\u2019s hard because I know the people on the internet are not going to see what we\u2019re doing as two professionals being friendly. They\u2019re going to spin it into something else.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite the speculation in the comment section Nora tries to understand why it happens rather than just be angry about it. \u201cI don\u2019t blame them because there is a lack of hijabi representation. So whatever little thing that I\u2019m giving out, it\u2019s almost like watering a dead plant. But they're going to absorb it so fast.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having experienced fan-shipping firsthand, she now views celebrity interviews through a different lens. \u201cI am going through it\u2026so I understand. Obviously not to that scale as this is minuscule compared to what those celebrities are going through but I get it.\u201d She acknowledges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople are very comfortable commenting, \u2018Is this a soft launch?\u2019<\/em> I\u2019m like, babe this is work. You see me wearing their team kit? It\u2019s work.\u201d Nora rants in a joking manner, but underneath the humour, there is a sense of frustration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, the verdict on being written into fanfiction? It's fun if you take it with a pinch of salt. Realistically, you can't stop people from being creative and Nora doesn't want to. She recognises that for many her presence represents a rare moment of visibility they are desperate to see. Nora has mastered the art of appreciating the fantasy without letting it disrupt her reality. As the Google Meet call draws to a close, she gives a friendly wave and a final smile before her screen goes dark, leaving the impression of someone who knows exactly how to navigate the line between being an F1 muse and a media professional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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