Author Interview: Pwcorgigirl
Author Interview: Pwcorgigirl
pwcorgigirl has 9 fics on the House "What-If" Rec List. You can find her online at [LJ] [FF] [AO3] [DW] and [audiofic].
Please give her a warm welcome and interact in the comments section below.
The What-If Genre
As a writer and/or as a reader, what draws you to what-iffy fic?
What-iffy draws me to the endless possibilities not constrained by canon, and occasionally offers the chance to fix canon when it has badly erred.
As a Reader
What was the first House fic you remember reading, and why has it stuck with you?
It was Never Buy an Old DeSoto by Betz and was about how House injured his leg restoring a classic car. This was very early in the first season, before anyone knew how House came to be disabled. I'd had no exposure to fanfic and was fascinated by the whole idea, so that's why it stuck with me.
What types of fics draw you in / are you drawn to as a reader?
The types of fics that draw me in have to be well-written, demonstrate original thought and wit, and be well-researched if they're going to cover medical details. I'm also a complete sucker for the delightfully absurd and cracking good dialogue.
Some of your favorite House fics, and why? (Can be in what-iffy genre or any other type - categorize any way you like.)
It's more like I have favorite authors and will read anything they write: my friends nightdog_barks and blackmare are chief among those. But if you look at my friends' list, it's heavily populated with favorite writers.
What kind of fic would you like to see more of in the fandom?
I'd like to see more case fic, even though it's difficult to write, and realistic relationship fic. Don't really care what the pairing is, but it needs to be realistic.
Favorite author or piece that you feel more people should read?
My favorite author is nightdog_barks, closely followed by blackmare. Heck, I actually think they're symbiotic, so there is no first or second. When they write together, it's sheer heaven. When they invite me to write with them, it's the most fun anyone could have.
As a Writer
What genre/length/pairing/challenge/prompt do you most enjoy writing?
My absolute favorite way of constructing a story is to create it of linked drabbles, which is brain-bending but requires extraordinary care with language. It's a marvelous way to learn to write vividly with a mere handful of words.
For genre, I love writing about relationships and the emotions and choices that come from being in them. Casefic is also a favorite, although I no longer have the time to devote to the often huge amounts of research it takes to write casefic convincingly.
What do you struggle with as an author?
Transitions are hard for me when writing. I often envy playwrights, who can just have characters exit the stage when their parts are said.
Do you plan to continue writing House fic? (Please say yes.)
Yes, I do plan to continue writing Housefic, although real life keeps me from spending as much time at it.
What is your favorite/least favorite part of the writing process?
My favorite part is dreaming up ideas and scenarios and bouncing them off my writing friends. My least favorite part of writing is finding the time and space - the quiet needed to think - to capture those ideas on the page.
Self-recs - your favorite fics that you've written (and why)?
A Map of the Body, Into White, Roll the Bones, Trapeze Life, Long Way Down, Kansas By Now, and a House/Stargate Atlantis crossover titled Dangerous Ground.. And the little bits I have contributed to black_cigarette's Distress Call series.
How have you grown as a fanfic writer?
Hugely, steadily, bravely. It's the best writing school anyone could go to.
What genres/works outside fandom have influenced you as a writer?
The novels and short stories of the late Laurie Colwin, who wrote the finest observations about the human heart and relationships ever, have been a big influence on me. And I have had a long love affair with detective fiction, especially that by Martin Cruz Smith, Henning Mankell, Joseph Hansen, and Dashiell Hammett. More noir, more better!
What are you currently writing?
Just finished a sequel to A Good Shooting titled Safe Shot. I'm thinking about the fic that will come next, which will be the last of that trilogy.
Describe how you collaborate with other writers to produce fic (co-authoriing, betaing, etc.).
I mainly collaborate with other writers by writing collective fics with several fandom friends (Nightdog_barks, blackmare, and perspi, when Perspi has the time.) I do some light beta work, but am no longer a particularly good beta since I tend to read over misplaced words.
What's one of the most memorable comments/reviews (sentiments) you've ever received?
Oh, gosh, that's hard. Probably the time a for-real published author told me I was good enough to be a professional.
What was the most surprising turn your muse took in the middle of a piece (and do you know what inspired that to happen)?
I was writing a fic called Walking Ghost and suddenly realized that one of the fic's gentlest, most damaged characters had to die. Without his death, the story would have been pulling the punch. I don't know why that happened, but I'm glad it did.
Could you describe a memorable moment of fic inspiration?
I overheard a conversation in a parking lot in which a family happily revealed that they'd named their infant son Colt Forty-Five. (I live in the deep South. These things happen.) It was a genesis for Roll the Bones, which was a huge amount of fun to write.
What is the strangest/most interesting thing you ever researched for a fic?
Various forms of death, including starvation, dehydration, and death by cyanide poisoning. It made me worry about what my Google history looked like.
Favorite House episodes? When did you start watching?
“Babies and Bathwater” remains my rock-solid favorite, along with “Detox.” I started watching in November of Season One, after reading a very short review in The New Yorker magazine about a new series featuring a crippled, cynical, brilliant doctor who popped pain pills like TicTacs. I was intrigued, started watching, and never stopped.
Personal headcanon(s)?
Wilson is the middle brother. Thirteen's brother did not have Huntington's Disease. Cameron's never-mentioned family was actually loving and stable. Cuddy and House definitely were involved a long time ago, but House is not strictly heterosexual. House and Wilson have lived many lives together in many different time periods. And Wilson would never give up his Volvo for a Ford, because Wilson is a Volvo kind of guy, no matter what universe he's in.
Which House characters speak to you (while you're trying to do other things…), or resonate with you?
They all do, but mostly House, Wilson, Cuddy, and Chase.
Did you write fanfic before you got into the House fandom? What/when were your first fandom(s)?
No. I had no exposure to fandoms before House came along.
What are your favorite House comms on LJ, or other fan sites?
Housefic, house_wilson, sick_wilson, and I love some of the pop-up challenges that come along in various places.
Do you make fan vids or other non-fic fandom endeavors? Where do you post them?
I am not the least bit artistically inclined outside of writing.
Anything else you'd like to share about yourself?
My careers have included newspaper reporting, being a church administrator, and working at a public radio station. It all lends itself to writing, although I'm pretty sure my church employers would have been horrified to find out what I was writing on my lunch breaks. :-D
pwcorgigirl has 9 fics on the House "What-If" Rec List. You can find her online at [LJ] [FF] [AO3] [DW] and [audiofic].
Please give her a warm welcome and interact in the comments section below.
The What-If Genre
As a writer and/or as a reader, what draws you to what-iffy fic?
What-iffy draws me to the endless possibilities not constrained by canon, and occasionally offers the chance to fix canon when it has badly erred.
As a Reader
What was the first House fic you remember reading, and why has it stuck with you?
It was Never Buy an Old DeSoto by Betz and was about how House injured his leg restoring a classic car. This was very early in the first season, before anyone knew how House came to be disabled. I'd had no exposure to fanfic and was fascinated by the whole idea, so that's why it stuck with me.
What types of fics draw you in / are you drawn to as a reader?
The types of fics that draw me in have to be well-written, demonstrate original thought and wit, and be well-researched if they're going to cover medical details. I'm also a complete sucker for the delightfully absurd and cracking good dialogue.
Some of your favorite House fics, and why? (Can be in what-iffy genre or any other type - categorize any way you like.)
It's more like I have favorite authors and will read anything they write: my friends nightdog_barks and blackmare are chief among those. But if you look at my friends' list, it's heavily populated with favorite writers.
What kind of fic would you like to see more of in the fandom?
I'd like to see more case fic, even though it's difficult to write, and realistic relationship fic. Don't really care what the pairing is, but it needs to be realistic.
Favorite author or piece that you feel more people should read?
My favorite author is nightdog_barks, closely followed by blackmare. Heck, I actually think they're symbiotic, so there is no first or second. When they write together, it's sheer heaven. When they invite me to write with them, it's the most fun anyone could have.
As a Writer
What genre/length/pairing/challenge/prompt do you most enjoy writing?
My absolute favorite way of constructing a story is to create it of linked drabbles, which is brain-bending but requires extraordinary care with language. It's a marvelous way to learn to write vividly with a mere handful of words.
For genre, I love writing about relationships and the emotions and choices that come from being in them. Casefic is also a favorite, although I no longer have the time to devote to the often huge amounts of research it takes to write casefic convincingly.
What do you struggle with as an author?
Transitions are hard for me when writing. I often envy playwrights, who can just have characters exit the stage when their parts are said.
Do you plan to continue writing House fic? (Please say yes.)
Yes, I do plan to continue writing Housefic, although real life keeps me from spending as much time at it.
What is your favorite/least favorite part of the writing process?
My favorite part is dreaming up ideas and scenarios and bouncing them off my writing friends. My least favorite part of writing is finding the time and space - the quiet needed to think - to capture those ideas on the page.
Self-recs - your favorite fics that you've written (and why)?
A Map of the Body, Into White, Roll the Bones, Trapeze Life, Long Way Down, Kansas By Now, and a House/Stargate Atlantis crossover titled Dangerous Ground.. And the little bits I have contributed to black_cigarette's Distress Call series.
How have you grown as a fanfic writer?
Hugely, steadily, bravely. It's the best writing school anyone could go to.
What genres/works outside fandom have influenced you as a writer?
The novels and short stories of the late Laurie Colwin, who wrote the finest observations about the human heart and relationships ever, have been a big influence on me. And I have had a long love affair with detective fiction, especially that by Martin Cruz Smith, Henning Mankell, Joseph Hansen, and Dashiell Hammett. More noir, more better!
What are you currently writing?
Just finished a sequel to A Good Shooting titled Safe Shot. I'm thinking about the fic that will come next, which will be the last of that trilogy.
Describe how you collaborate with other writers to produce fic (co-authoriing, betaing, etc.).
I mainly collaborate with other writers by writing collective fics with several fandom friends (Nightdog_barks, blackmare, and perspi, when Perspi has the time.) I do some light beta work, but am no longer a particularly good beta since I tend to read over misplaced words.
What's one of the most memorable comments/reviews (sentiments) you've ever received?
Oh, gosh, that's hard. Probably the time a for-real published author told me I was good enough to be a professional.
What was the most surprising turn your muse took in the middle of a piece (and do you know what inspired that to happen)?
I was writing a fic called Walking Ghost and suddenly realized that one of the fic's gentlest, most damaged characters had to die. Without his death, the story would have been pulling the punch. I don't know why that happened, but I'm glad it did.
Could you describe a memorable moment of fic inspiration?
I overheard a conversation in a parking lot in which a family happily revealed that they'd named their infant son Colt Forty-Five. (I live in the deep South. These things happen.) It was a genesis for Roll the Bones, which was a huge amount of fun to write.
What is the strangest/most interesting thing you ever researched for a fic?
Various forms of death, including starvation, dehydration, and death by cyanide poisoning. It made me worry about what my Google history looked like.
Favorite House episodes? When did you start watching?
“Babies and Bathwater” remains my rock-solid favorite, along with “Detox.” I started watching in November of Season One, after reading a very short review in The New Yorker magazine about a new series featuring a crippled, cynical, brilliant doctor who popped pain pills like TicTacs. I was intrigued, started watching, and never stopped.
Personal headcanon(s)?
Wilson is the middle brother. Thirteen's brother did not have Huntington's Disease. Cameron's never-mentioned family was actually loving and stable. Cuddy and House definitely were involved a long time ago, but House is not strictly heterosexual. House and Wilson have lived many lives together in many different time periods. And Wilson would never give up his Volvo for a Ford, because Wilson is a Volvo kind of guy, no matter what universe he's in.
Which House characters speak to you (while you're trying to do other things…), or resonate with you?
They all do, but mostly House, Wilson, Cuddy, and Chase.
Did you write fanfic before you got into the House fandom? What/when were your first fandom(s)?
No. I had no exposure to fandoms before House came along.
What are your favorite House comms on LJ, or other fan sites?
Housefic, house_wilson, sick_wilson, and I love some of the pop-up challenges that come along in various places.
Do you make fan vids or other non-fic fandom endeavors? Where do you post them?
I am not the least bit artistically inclined outside of writing.
Anything else you'd like to share about yourself?
My careers have included newspaper reporting, being a church administrator, and working at a public radio station. It all lends itself to writing, although I'm pretty sure my church employers would have been horrified to find out what I was writing on my lunch breaks. :-D