Fanfic Meme
1. How about a brief introduction?
I'm Sam!
2. What got you into fan fiction (and/or adopting muses)?
Fanfic: Probably the old Chakram Mailing list for the Xena fandom. I just remember going to obsession14.com all the time. Lots of awesome Xenafic.
Muses: I've been RPing since I was 12ish. I didn't start playing fandom characters until LJ, though. Unless you count King Arthur. And then I think I followed krispies to canonwars.
3. What kind of fan fiction do you write?
All sorts. Usually with femslashy subtext. Usually shorter stories, because I don't have the attention span to write long stories. If I've written something over 1000 words, it's a huge deal. I prefer character pieces and stories heavy in dialogue.
4. Do you write for the same pairings/characters?
Sort of. When it's for character specific journals I do. Though I like to spice things up. I've recently been expanding myself out of Doctor Who, which has lead to new and fun things.
5. What is your most popular fic and why do you think people like it so?
I have no idea. How do you measure popularity? I guess maybe the Mighty Ducks fic I wrote for Yuletide, because it got a lot of comments. (Link.)
6. Forget other people, what is the fanfic you've written that you're most proud of and why?
Hm. That's a tough one. I really don't know. Right now I think there are two I like the most.
The fic where Ace picks out Seven's outfit for him, explaining why he's dressed differently in the TV movie. It's a great bit of Ace/Seven interaction, and I'm really happy with how the voices for each of them came out. I reread and think to myself: "hmm, I could see them doing this." ( Link.)
Also the one I just wrote for Athena, about her first lover. Athena was a virgin goddess, but virgin meant something different back then; it was more about giving yourself up than having intercourse for the first time. But either way you define it, the fact that her first lover was a woman skirts the edges of the rules. I just also like the mood and the tone of the story. Athena is a playful lover, and she's chosen an intelligent and equally playful woman to be with. The first part reflects that playfulness, and the joy of just being with someone. The second part has the melancholy of being [mostly] immortal and facing the loss of the people you love, and the acceptance of just realizing that that's how your life is. And this description is almost as long as the story itself. Heh. ( Link.)
7. Do you find writing easy? Hard? What aspects do you struggle with?
I have a hard time getting started, and will often scrap stories that are a couple of hundred words in because the idea no longer works for me. But once I get into the zone, I can finish a story in fifteen minutes.
8. Write a few sentences of your favorite pairing or character.
I'm mercurial, and currently obsessed with Sarah Conner/Cameron. So.
It's a Sunday when Sarah sees Cameron at the swing set. She's doing pull ups. It's enough to draw Sarah up short and make her forget what she's doing. She walks out into the yard, knowing Cameron will sense her presence immediately.
"What are you doing?"
Cameron drops to the ground, small clouds of dust rising from her boots. "Pull ups." Her lips quirk in that way she has. Amused but daring Sarah to go further. Sarah hasn't taken the dare.
Yet.
9. Are there any fan fiction trends/cliches you hate?
Characters that have something absolutely awful happen to them (usually rape) and manage to grow up/become either well adjusted or so ridiculously not adjusted that you know it could never ever happen. Also characters that don't have to face the consequences of their actions. And I don't like RPF.
10. Are you guilty of any of the trends you hate?
I don't think so.
11. What was the first fandom you wrote for? Do you still write for it?
Technically, like I said, Arthurian legend. But I don't think that's a fandom. Probably Buffy, unless there's some Xena fic I wrote and don't remember.
12. Name your OTPs and explain what it is about them you love to write.
Currently?
Nine/Rose - I just think they're good for each other. The Doctor needs Rose's light, and Rose needs someone to bring meaning to her life.
Nine/Donna - What's not to love? Could you imagine a multi-Doctor story where Nine and Donna end up spending time together? I would melt from joy.
Sarah Connor/Cameron - My latest OTP. I'm sure it'll never happen, but a girl can dream. I think Cameron is Sarah's way of getting back in touch with her own humanity by having to relearn everything through a robot. Sarah "gets" Cameron more than she's willing to admit, and vice versa. And Cameron's presence allows Sarah to let her guard down, something she can't do when she's John's only protection, and something she can't do with John, because she's still his mother. Plus Lena Headey and Summer Glau = hot.
Seven of Nine/Captain Janeway - They've got the mentor/student thing going, but Seven is in this great position (from a writer's POV) where she's a full grown adult that needs to explore her sexuality. Janeway is Seven's only equal on the ship(with the exception of maybe the Doctor or B'Elanna, both of whom I also ship Seven with), and why would Seven settle for anything less than perfection?
Buffy/Faith - Um. What do I need to say about them? Dark and light (and sometimes you're not sure which is which).
Xena/Gabrielle - My first OTP. My first real fandom immersion experience. They're soulmates. 'Nuff said.
Alex Cabot/Olivia Benson - Rrrowr. And I mean pre-Emmy Olivia, before she got al femmey and cry-y and Mariska's gay panic ruined the character's image (I wish I were kidding). They were the queens of subtle looks and small touches, and their scenes together sometimes crackled with electricity.
I can't really say what I love about each of them. Sometimes I just get the sense that there are characters really want to be with each other, and really ought to be with each other, and that's usually what draws me to a pairing.
13. What would you call your writing style?
Character-centric shortfic.
14. Do you read other people's fan fiction? If so, what do you find yourself reading the most?
Mostly stuff on f-lists or that I happen to see in prompt communities and get interested in.
15. Name one thing you'd love to write but have been too afraid or too shy to do.
A really long, epic story. A novel. Something like that.
16. Do you feel uncomfortable taking criticism? Or worse, do you have the dreaded bloated ego?
No. As long as it's informed criticism. I was once told I write a bad Scott Summers because he got all angsty and separated himself from his team. Apparently I was the only one who read X-Men comics. Sheesh.
17. When you write, is there anything that helps?
No. If I don't have the idea, I don't have the idea.
18. What inspires you?
I don't know. If I knew that, I'd have more of it. Sometimes it'll be just an idea I get from watching an episode of a show and seeing characters interact. Sometimes it's an article on wikipedia. Sometimes it's a song. Sometimes it's just a discussion with other people. I have no idea.
19. Lastly, how would you sum up your fan fiction experiences and you as a writer?
Fine? I have said for many years, and will continue to say, that fan fiction saved my life when I was younger. But not just any fan fic; stuff that would explore things that couldn't be explored in canon (in that case, a same sex relationship). It let me know I wasn't alone.
Now I enjoy writing. I don't seem to be able to write original fiction anymore, but fan fic I can do. I like taking characters I love and putting them into my own situations. I like exploring them through role play. I look being the one to explore things that can't be explored in canon.
I think I'm a pretty good writer. I know I have my strengths; I'm good at writing dialogue, I'm good at writing sarcastic characters, and I'm good at writing men or strong women.
20. Tag some friends, because they'll hate you for it.
Meh. People who want to do it will do it.