As the school year ends, Cath finishes her novel, and struggles to write an original short story for her class.

A reviewer for Tor.com calls it "true-to-geek-life" and notes that "Rowell understands something vital in her novel, and that is that fandom is so much more than escapism—it is, whether conscious or unconsciously—a way for folks to interact with their surroundings.

"[1] Entertainment Weekly gives Rowell credit for capturing both the universe of fan fiction and the inside of a young person's head.

[4] In October 2015, Rowell published the novel Carry On as a standalone fantasy story of the same name of Cath's fan fiction in Fangirl.

From 2020 to 2024, Sam Maggs adapted Fangirl into an authorized four-volume original English-language manga illustrated by Gabi Nam and published by Viz Media.