The second story I ever wrote, took all of a day or two. I remember writing this at work. I was semi-inspired by a fanfic story I had read (and have since forgotten..if anyone knows what one I'm talking about, drop me a line) where X&G were at an Amazon Party and they had peach wine and Xena started ravishing Gab sort of right out there in the middle of things. I've always thought semi-private public sex was cool and so I thought I'd give it a whirl. I could only imagine that Gabrielle would initiate such a..dangerous *smirk* kind of thing. Little did I know that this type of plot-less love scene story would become typical of what I write. The little story Gabrielle tells in this (aka 'Poseidon and the Lovers') is just something I made up to fit with what was going on but to also let Gab do the bard thing. For the record, I think the title of this one is kind of..lame now *grin* Couldn't think of a good one at the time and thus, I am stuck with it.
RELINQUISH -- (Finished January 4, 1997/Posted Feb 15, 1997)
The very first story I ever wrote. I remember writing this while I was home over X-mas 1996. The only story (so far) that does not portray X&G as lovers already. Gabrielle's dream in that story was the main thing I wanted to write about and the rest I just built around that, the story, premise, etc. I'd really like to get back that kind of feeling with regard to Xena (warlordy, dark) but I fear I've over-mushed her character at this point and made it hard for me to get into that mindframe again. I'm not giving up though! I was listening to The Spinanes lots around that time..very cool Portland band (but now in Chicago). The song ' Luminous' sort of inspired this story because it's got this dreamy, surreal feeling to it. Started a sequel called, COBALT (see Works in Progress)
MAGNETIC NORTH -- (Finished/Posted Feb 27, 1997)
I wrote this on the plane coming home from a job interview in Pennsylvania. I actually started writing this on paper wth a pen! I think this is my weakest story in that it's rushed and pretty cliched...it's my "cave" story..*grin* I sort of like the story that Gabrielle tells in it...made up allegory. Also, I was just kind of digging Xena's chakram at the time so there you go. I quote nother band, 10,000 Maniacs, and the song 'Circle Dream'.
BOTH HANDS -- (Finished/Posted March 29, 1997)
Now, this story I felt like I was starting to hit my stride. It just really flowed and was easy to visualize and write. Initially, this story started out dramatically different, with X&G meeting up with a woman as they were wandering around Athens, but I decided not to violate the Lunacy Factor (and never will) by having X&G get together with anyone else. Instead, it was more of an exploration of trust and love between the two. I also think this is where I started really focusing my attention on Gabrielle. This trend follows most of everything else I wrote. This was the only story where I almost got caught by my boss at work writing (Oy!). [I was writing the part where Xena is feeding Gabrielle some sweet cakes and a little something extra..*smirk* Yeah, it was scary but I learned a valuable lesson with regard to multitasking, have your mouse handy at ALL TIMES! Shawn Colvin is so cool and her song 'Set the Prairie on Fire' is just such a..perfect song. Had to include it. The title 'Both Hands' though comes from an Ani Difranco song..one of my favorites of hers even though it tends to be depressing. PS. The Inn in Athens described here is revisted in QUEEN..*grin*
FAR AWAY/SO CLOSE -- (Finished/Posted April 15, 1997)
The beach, a little angst, and Ancient Greek phone sex! Yeah, so this story was my attempt to do some logistical work to try to separate our gals but still keep them together. That's the theme, exploring the differences between the two but why they work. I had a good time describing the scenery in this because in my mind's eye, I could really see this clearly. I also wanted a bit more dialogue in this (and what better way than this?). Another allegory story from Gab..I like for her to tell stories that relate back to them as a couple. Wanted to tap a little into Xena's fears, insecurities regarding the relationship. The song quoted, 'Good Answer' is from Wendy Bucklew, a singer songwriter from the Atlanta area but now in LA. She's great..
THE GALA -- (Finished/Posted May 8, 1997)
This was a necessary story for me to write at the time..I finished up a major life event and had to do some creative writing to keep from going crazy..*grin* So, needless to say, this was a rambling story with lots of little silly things in it just because I wanted to put them there. Gab as a pirate, oh yeah! Little tribute to David Spade's SNL character, my buddy Tim Wellman's part (which, btw, I wrote just his section before I ever started this story and built the rest of it around that), and a maddening search for the warrior princess. By the time Gab finally finds her, you can imagine how her bardly patience was tested. Worth the wait though I think. Loved writing the balcony scene..could really visualize this, could see Xena very clearly here. Just a fun piece to write. Again, an Ani Difranco song ('Overlap') quoted. She rules.
HINTS -- (Finished/Posted July 18, 1997)
My inaugural attempt at a first-person point of view writing style and a story without graphic sex in it! I had fun with this because for me it feels pretty easy to get into Gab's head and we've seen how she reacts when she's frustrated with the warrior. Loved writing the notes for this. Was a little afraid that I hadn't made clear at the very end exactly what Gabrielle had done to convince Xena it was time to go..now. That was kind of crucial so I wrote and rewrote the end a number of times. I make reference to this story in QUEEN. Just a fun writing exercise..
SWAN SONG -- (Finished/Posted July 19, 1997)
Second attempt, this time from Xena's POV. Not much here other than being mushy and 'slice of life' like. Short piece where Xena ponders her relationship with Gab, their differences etc. G tells another allegory story here and allusions to Uber-ness. REM song, 'Swan Swan H'
WELCOME HOME -- (Finished/Posted August 14, 1997)
Written during and after I made a major move in my life, left the Midwest, came East. I was feeling..unsettled. This started off as a nice happy story but then somewhere in the middle it started going darker. Exploring relationship issues..what could come between X&G, the past, the present, future. Writing it was an emotional drain and one of the very few that I felt like..well, that really hit something. In a similar way, Far Away/So Close explored questions in the relationship, this did too..only much more..intense. As I was writing it, I was hanging on their words too..wondering what X&G were going to say next. Oy. One of my favorites but truly draining. Aimee Mann's song "Coming Up Close" is perfection and the title to the 'til Tuesday cd inspired the title of this story.
OUTLAW -- (Finished/Posted (on this page only) Dec 17, 1997)
After many months of starting lots of stories and not finishing them, I had fallen into a major writer's block. After Welcome Home, I just didn't have the energy to write anything and finish it. This story was my attempt to get excited about writing again. It's a..well, it's a story that is really nothing more than me dressing Xena up in Western wear a la Sharon Stone in The Quick and The Dead [excellent Raimi/Tapert movie]. Gotta love that. It's an Uber story set in the Old West (I was missing Kansas when I wrote this). I thought about changing the names of the characters, but I just couldn't seem to think of any good ones or imagine any names other than Xena and Gabrielle when I wrote the love scenes. So I left them..*shrugging* The story has it's problems, but the point wasn't really to write something for mass consumption (which is why it's only posted here and not out on the web to be archived with the rest of my stuff). On the bright side, I finally got a chance to use the word 'fuck' in dialogue between our gals and it felt like it worked..*smirky grin* Patti Smith's song 'Dancing Barefoot' with Johnette Napolitano covering it on the Spirit of 76 cd..excellent.
QUEEN -- (Finished/Posted Feb 10, 1998)
The latest...so fun writing this, it almost felt decadent. The first story, besides 'Outlaw', that I wrote in bits while posting it to a group of friends. I usually only post a story after it's all completed, but this approach really worked in terms of gauging how each part of the story read as a mini-story itself. It was almost kind of odd to read the whole thing at once. Other result of this is that the story is my longest to date and quite possibly has the least amount of dialogue..*grin* I wanted most of the action of this story to take place without words, so lots of eye contact and nonverbal descriptions of reactions in this. Also, this was kind of a reward for Gab (and fans) after her Hell Season..she deserved the attention I thought *grin* This story just gives me a warm glow because it felt good to write again after my slump and to tap back into X&G as I see them. This story also marks the first time I ever had an outside person doing editing with me. She was great at pointing out little flaws and stylistic things that didn't work. Now, where the heck was she a year ago!? *grin* QUEEN felt right from the very beginning and nothing felt forced. I really, really liked it...
CHICAGO 5am -- (Finished Sept 4, 1998; Posted March 17, 1998)
This is my UberXena novel. I first started writing this in June/July of 1997 and had the first three chapters written. And then it sat for almost a year before I got excited about writing it again. I wanted to try something with a plot (heh) and try developing my own brand of UberXena and UberGab. I had a lot of fun writing this, throwing in all sorts of indulgent things like Midwestern references, my own musical tastes (I used to own a certain John Cougar t-shirt I'll have you know), and having fun with creating Uberversions of some of the XWP characters. To be honest, writing UberCallisto was just the most fun...she's so naughty! This was also my first First Time story..wow, was that scary. Oh, the pressure! Anyway, I was quite pleased with how this story turned out and I got kind of attached to Tina and Mariel so I don't discount the possibility of a potential sequel...maybe have them travel someplace and call it Topeka 8pm or something..heh..*grin*
There's a non-sexually explicit version of this story available. You can find it here.
Bedtime for Warriors and Bards -- (Posted Feb 8, 1998)
This was the result of someone talking about writing childrens' stories and saying I couldn't do it..*grin* My first and possibly only glossy General fanfic story..
The Incredibly True Adventures of Two Dolls in Love -- (Posted Aug 11, 1998)
Co-written with my buddy, Danae, this is just a series of silly posts and stories chronicling the adventures of Rigid Xena and her galpal Poseable Gabrielle, two dolls on a mission. Sometimes life is bittersweet when you're made of molded plastic..*sigh*
Midnight Letter -- (Posted Nov 12, 1998)
A bard's view. Had the image of Gabrielle from Season 4's eps 'A Family Affair' and 'A Good Day' in mind when I wrote this.
So, a tiny bit about me...I'm a Midwestern girl at heart, was born in the late 60's so most of my influences didn't come until the 80's [like, just last night, I was mentioning to a friend that I was a big Berlin fan...remember them? Sure, I had a pair of parachute pants..I loved Pee Wee Herman..I had a 76 Buick Regal and my friend Julie and I would crank open the sunroof and turn up Berlin and just sing as we flew down those country roads with corn on either side. What a time!] So, now I'm a semi-responsible adult with a real job after 10 years of college and graduate school. Funny thing is, the same thing I did in school is what I'm doing now..luckily I like it. I've never taken a creative writing class, never wrote anything remotely fiction-related {of course, some may debate whether my dissertation was fact or fiction but hey, let's not nit-pick..*grin*). I don't know where the stuff comes from...well, that's not true..some of the material is from method barding but...*smirk* Seriously, I'm sometimes surprised at what comes off my keyboard..the mushy romantic stuff...I can only guess that the characters that we love just inspire that kind of stuff and I'm just a conduit..heh. Most of my RL friends have no idea I write XWP fanfic..though if they ever stop at this page, they'll know now *grin* I'm a Libra and I mention that because some people have actually asked me what my sign was, I have a great dog, I appreciate a good micro-beer (favorite is Pony Express Nut Brown Ale), big music fan as you may already know, love politics, am immensely attracted to dry wit, and I love a good debate. I'm also prone to tangents though which is why this supposed tiny bio section is so long. Thanks for reading this far and hope it helped answer those burning questions...I know you were wondering about the parachute pants..don't lie. *smirk*