"fiction doesn't affect reality" so why do you care about gay rep in children's cartoons, or trans rep in videogames. why do we teach kids morals through storytelling. why do novels find themselves in the center of social movements. why do inventions start as plot devices before becoming real. why do people's lives change through the fiction they read and watch. why is a fictional novel credited for kick-starting a war. why did a videogame completely revitalize a dying sport in real life. why is a TV show called propaganda. why does the US military fund blockbuster movies. why are books being banned in schools and prisons. how do these works of fiction not affect reality