Do you remember your first introduction to fan fiction?
I wrote my first fanfic when I was sixteen – over 25 years ago - for Blakes 7 and Doctor Who. Though I didn't know it was fan-fiction at the time, it was just stories I wanted to tell about the characters. Oh, and the few examples that survive are very very bad.
The first fan fiction I remember reading was about twelve years ago – it was Star Trek: TOS. A lot of it was Kirk/Spock. Which didn't really do it for me though it was nice to realize that I wasn't alone in writing utter crap.
I discovered Stargate fanfic in about 2000/01 and femslash shortly after. And I knew I'd come home.
What main character that you've written femslash for, would you most like to hit upside the head?
It has to be Catherine Willows. Who is a selfish bitch on occasion. And Kathryn Janeway who is just too inconsistent in canon. Very few characters can play good cop/bad cop by themselves in the same conversation. And there are characters I could never write femslash for because they annoy me too much – any of the main female leads on L&O:SVU for example.
Is your fan fiction writing limited to femslash or do you also write gen, het or male slash? If so, is there a difference in style or content (besides the obvious) between them?
I started off writing gen, but for the last six years it's been almost exclusively femslash. I've hinted at maleslash in a couple of stories but never fully written it. I'm not conscious of there being any difference in style.
Have you ever been tempted to write a Mary Sue?
Not consciously. But I'm sure I've written aspects of myself in there a few times.
Are there certain genres you find easier to write for?
Stargate is an old friend. I enjoy writing CSI (as long as its not Catherine/Sara) X Files and Firefly/Farscape though I seem to have mislaid my Firefly muse at the moment and my Farscape one had been derailed by Vala, I think. I find Voyager fic quite hard to write because of my antipathy towards Janeway.
Do you research subjects before you write them and, if so, in how much detail?
Quite often, yes, and as a researcher by profession, usually in far too much detail. The trick I haven't quite pulled off is then deleting all the research from the story except where necessary. I am guilty of writing the most godawful info dumps from characters just because…
What's your preferred length of story to write and read?
I would say between 5,000 – 10,000 words. Though a quick scan through most things I've written, they tend to come in between 3,000 – 5,000 words.
Can you touch the tip of your nose with your tongue?
No. I am very short tongued.
Are you, yourself, a fan of other fan fic writers and, if so, who are they and what is it about them that appeals to you?
I am a huge fan of Rocketchick, Elizabeth Carter (who I think was the recipient of my first 'fan-email'), Neuropsych, and dietcokechick, who writes gen Stargate, and an author called Michelle who is writing this huge sprawling Sam/Jack/Daniel epic involving the Assyrian gods and the next step in human evolution.
Ever wanted to head butt another fan for dissing your pairing?
I dropped a couple of Stargate slash (mainly maleslash) lists because they were so negative about Sam Carter. And I got a wonderfully critical review for one of my BSG fics because I had dared to write a femslash story about Cally. And there a couple of authors out there who I'd dearly love to headbutt for being lazy/repetitive/or so far 'up' themselves its unreal, but to be honest it's rarely worth the bother.
Do you have a favourite cliché, one that you'll read with joy even though it's been done to death?
Aliens made us do it. The 'stranded on a desert island/deserted planet' story.
Would you lend me twenty pence if we were stuck at Charing Cross station and I was dying for the loo?
Yes.
If you've written real person slash how does it differ from writing about fictional characters?
Never written it, probably never will.
Do you find you're more inspired by subtext, maintext or barely there text shows?
Hmmm… can't honestly say one way or another. If I like a character and see enough potential in it, I'll try and write a story regardless.
Where do you get your inspiration for specific stories; missing or extended scenes from the show, ideas from other shows or real life situations?
Odd phrases in shows, wanting to extend scenes after they cut off, dreams, real life, lines/phrases from books and other stories, conversations.
Do you like cheese?
Yes. Particularly goats cheese and (current favourite) smoked Wensleydale.
Every read over one of your stories months or years later and thought 'What the hell was I thinking!'
Oh god, yes. Resisting the urge to rewrite them is often hard. Then there are the ones you read over again and think… actually, that's not half bad.
Why do you write fan fiction?
Why do I breathe? I've told myself stories for as long as I can remember… I enjoy taking familiar characters and doing something a little different with them, imposing, if you like, my middle class white female lesbian worldview on a culture and media that barely acknowledges that I and those like me exist.