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Marili Cruz Interview

Hello Marili! Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed. To start off, why don’t you start off by telling us a bit about yourself!

Marili: Hi guys, my online name is Marili Cruz, I'm 18 years old and from Texas. I like reading, drawing, and writing for past times and I'm honored to be interviewed. I currently have about 12+ books written based on fanfiction on the group called BTS. I'm Jin biased and am pleased to meet you guys. Hopefully you'll enjoy this and if you want to read some of my works please follow me or check out my works on Wattpad @Marili_Cruz. Thank you for this great honor!!

You’re welcome! Now, onto the questions!

Q1: What kind of fan fiction do you write/ have you written?

A1: Well, currently I write BTS fanfictions (a k-pop group for those who might not know) but some time in the future I would like to do more groups such as ACE, Day6 , Monsta X and more. I write a lot of Drama RomCom (romance comedy) and fluff but on occasion bengure further. (Smut)

Q2: What made you start writing fan fiction?

A2: Well, I've always had a very interesting imagination and I would tell my younger sisters stories to help them sleep. I guess once I found out about BTS my imagination took hold and it began to spread. A little nudge from a ex best friend also helped me gain the confidence to write my dreams and imagination into an actual book of sorts.

Q3: Were you scared to begin posting it online?

A3: Yes of course, who isn't. Whether my work would be well received, negative and positive criticism, and even threats are the day to day life of some authors and I've come to experience some of it. Everything and anything that how's online will be judged, and I myself am very emotional so I get easily offended. But this has helped me grow as a person, be able to handle situations better, and be able to take opinions and ideas in a good way then being childish and taking things negatively, no matter how much they might hurt.

Q4: Has writing fan fiction taught you anything? About writing? Reading? Something else?

A4: It’s taught me not to take things with a great assault, and to mature. It's helped me with my grammar and spelling and helped me improve with my essays that I write at school. I write college level essays and improve my writing day by day. It also helped me gain friendships and inspire other authors and readers.

Q5: Do you ever want to be published in a professional capacity one day?

A5: I don't think I have that ability just yet, but if I someday come to be able to create a good plot and characters that can dance on the page just as well as those of the author's that I enjoy, then probably I would like to attempt and make a book of my own on the professional level.

Q6: How you feel about the stigma surrounding fan fiction and fan fiction writers? Or, do you not feel any stigma at all?

A6: I've seen it. I've felt it. Judgment, being looked down upon. Disgust. I feel it, but if my intentions are not harmful, and if I put my purest of meaning behind them, then what's the problem? Only those who accept this and are able to have a blind eye to the judgment and criticism by those who don't understand what fanfiction is, we can continue on peacefully.

Q7: Do you think that stigma is warranted? (Whether or not you have personally experience it?)

A7: I mean I see why they have such stigma. Some fanfiction is simply disgusting and has some of the most ill mannered intentions behind it. Incest, glorified depression, rape, or bullying are just some of the examples that make me absolutely uncomfortable and offended. Though people have their own opinion on stuff, these are some topics that I believe give a bad rep to those of us writing fan fiction. So yes, they are somewhat justified but shouldn't be the only thing people see when talking or mentioning it.

Q8: What’s your favorite piece of fan fiction you’ve ever written? Why?

A8: Well, there's two I like. Broken Hearts (which was my first ever work), and Invisible Girl which is my second official work (not including the imagines books because those are mostly request and short.

These two books mean a lot to me. Broken Hearts is a slice of life drama that contains a lot of character development in the first volume, but that will have a lot of angst in the second. I want to give life to topics that in fanfiction are often glorified or misinterpreted and want to help readers gain an understanding behind people who suffer or have gone through these conditions minds. Depression for an extrovert, suicide,  self harm, divorce, infidelity, rape and adoption. I want to bring light and justice to these topics which are often use in fanfictions by authors who have no idea what it's like and either glorify it or stretch out the actual truths behind it. I want to speak what's actually behind this pain and clearing the name to those victim of these such hanes crimes and pains.

Q9: What’s something you’ve never been asked but want to be?

A9: Hmmmm….. That's hard.

I've never really thought about it to be completely honest, but if someone were to ask me something…. I'd want them to ask mostly questions about my book Broken Hearts. Whether it be about the plot, or the characters individually, I'd love to hear people a thoughts and questions on the book and you know, hear their theories on it.

Q10: Do you write outside of fan fiction?

A10: I do a lot of school essays, but I usually draw a lot when I'm not writing. And if I do write it's either fanfiction or for school essays. Since I'm a senior in high school taking college courses, it becomes hectic when all the college classes assign an essay on the same day or want it turned in at the same time.

Q11: What site you (mainly) use to write fan fiction?

A11: Wattpad. I have two accounts: @JinKoalaOppa where I barely upload much and @Marili_Cruz which seems to be my main account. I tried Fanfiction.net but it didn't have the appeal that Wattpad had with the images and videos that can be included.

Q12: Why do you write fan fiction?

A12: I write to express myself, to see others smile and succeed. I use fan fiction to get me through my day when I sad and I write when I want to distress. Sometimes I write to inspire change, to comfort those who need to be comforted, or to bring people to tears so that they can get rid of pent up anger.

I write to cheer people on, to bring people to life and make them closer to one another. That's why I write.

Thank you Marili for taking the time to be interviewed today! I’m glad to call you a friend within the fan fiction community and I wish you all the luck with your writing! To find Marili’s work follow the link above or here: https://www.wattpad.com/user/Marili_Cruz. 

If you are interested in being interviewed, please don’t hesitate to reach out. :)

MissAmazaynMissStylik Interview

Before we get started with the questions, would you mind introducing yourself  and telling us just a little about yourself?

Thank you again for having me. It’s a pleasure to have you interview me.

My name is Sammi and I’m 21 years old. I’ve been writing since I was about 15 and it’s something I truly love. I’m a massive fan of BTS and Namjoon is my bias. I love to make new friends but I’m a little shy in real life. I am also into a lot of idol games (Love Live School Idol Festival, Bang Dream!, Utapri Shining Live).

Q1: What kind of fan fiction do you write/ have you written?

A1: I started out writing One Direction fanfics and ended up branching out into a specific anime fandom (Yu-Gi-Oh). I mostly write a lot of romance and fluff. I’m currently trying my hand at a BTS AU.

Q2: What made you start writing fan fiction?

A2: I started writing fan fiction because I wanted to have a personal hobby. At the time, I felt like I wanted to challenge myself and try something new.

Q3: Were you scared to begin posting it online?

A3: Absolutely! I was terrified when I posted my first fanfic (which I have since deleted). I was only 15 when I started writing and it made me feel insecure at first.

Q4: Has writing fan fiction taught you anything? About writing? Reading? Something else?

A4: Writing fanfiction has taught me a lot. I’ve been writing for about six years now. It taught me to be more comfortable in my own skin and be myself. It showed me a path to my own style of writing. It helped me deal with my panic attacks and it made me find my own sense of happiness.

Q5: Do you ever want to be published in a professional capacity one day?

A5: Absolutely but I don’t think my writing will ever hit that level.

Q6: How you feel about the stigma surrounding fan fiction and fan fiction writers? Or, do you not feel any stigma at all?

A6: I feel like fan fiction writers get a bad rep. I’ve read so many amazing books by fan fic writers and it makes me wonder why people have that feeling inside of them.

Q7: Do you think that stigma is warranted? (Whether or not you have personally experience it?)

A7: Depends I guess. I mean I’m not speaking for everyone but people view these things differently. To each their own I guess.

Q8:  What’s your favorite piece of fan fiction you’ve ever written? Why?

A8: Probably my Namjoon AU. I’m not going to lie but I haven’t written a BTS fic before. The feeling of pouring my love for Namjoon and the other members makes my heart happy.

Q9:  What’s something you’ve never been asked but want to be?

A9: Who inspired you to write? It’s one question I’ve never been asked as a writer.

Q10: Do you write outside of fan fiction?

A10: I’ve tried but I wasn’t successful at it.

Q11: What site you (mainly) use to write fan fiction?

A11: Wattpad!

Q12: Why do you write fan fiction?

A12: I write fan fiction as a way to make a connection. As an author, I want to connect with the people around me. I love seeing the interactions between people who read my books. It makes me really happy.

Thank you again for interviewing me!

Read Sammi’s fan fiction on her Wattpad page here!

icypantherwrites Interview

Before we start do you mind introducing yourself (you can use whatever name you are comfortable using/ your readers know you by) and telling us a little about yourself?

Hello ♥ My name is IcyPanther, Icy for short. Icy in a nutshell: short, blind without her glasses, clinging to my last couple months before I hit thirty, sings (belts) in the shower and while driving, cuddles and loves on her dog (a Rotti Bernie Spaniel mix named Inara ♥) far too much, hasn’t burned her house down cooking yet, can’t work on projects when things are messy, will beat you to death with kindness, very vulgar sailor mouth that has gotten worse working for the police, and dream job would be writing all day followed by napping. Ta da!

Onto the interview!

Q1: What kind of fan fiction do you write? And, what made you gravitate towards this/these particular fandom(s)?

A1: I tend to specialize in whump and hurt/comfort with plenty of angst to go alongside it ♥ My only current fandom right now is Voltron: Legendary Defender but I got into writing fanfiction with a number of animes and was pretty into the Harry Potter (Dramione ♥) sphere for a long while and prior to my revival in 2017 with VLD that was what I was best known for.

I write only in fandoms that I enjoy but am most motivated when I have a deep connection to a character(s).

Q2: Why did you begin writing fan fiction?

A2: Because the show I was watching at the time (Rurouni Kenshin) did not have enough whump and angst for my favorite character and that needed fixing ;p I’m a pretty cheerful personality but I love darker things and a lot of shows won’t go that far or if they do it tends to toe the line most of the time (not all, and God, Rurouni Kenshin has plenty of delicious dark moments and backstories, don’t get me wrong) but it needed more. And thus enter my first super shitty, super awful piece that I keep alive online to remind myself of where I’ve come from.

Q3: Were you scared to begin posting it online?

A3: Nope! Now, being found out in high school to be writing it? Heck yeah xD Like I said, I have a very cheerful, innocent personality on the outside and I’d have been mortified for anyone (outside of my sister who was all for this xD) to find out what kind of dark shit I was writing but posting online under a penname? No big deal.

Q4: Do you ever want to published in a professional capacity one day?

A4: I technically am published with a crazy ton of news and feature stories from my days as a journalist and editor. Some of those pieces I’m very proud of and one in particular cast a spotlight on an amazing man who performed tattoo coverups for sex trafficking victims and old gang members and my story got picked up by some of the big news stations and he got so much good attention and press and, most importantly, donations and funding ♥ I loved being able to make a difference like that.

But I’m thinking this is leaning more towards fiction and the answer to that is yes, most definitely. I have dreams (as all authors do) of writing a bestseller and have finally found the courage and drive to start pursuing my own novel ♥

Q5: Has writing fan fiction taught you anything? About writing? Reading? Yourself?

A5: Most definitely. One thing I’m going to highlight here is I’m old by fanfiction standards. I’m not a high school kid anymore or even a college student. I’m a full grown adult and I’ve seen and been through a lot and seen my writing change and grow over the about fifteen years I’ve actively been writing. So its hard to say “yes, fanfiction has taught me ____” because there’s so much more to it then that.

I will say though that fanfiction is what gave me the drive to write more and more as posting for an engaged audience and hearing positive feedback told me that hey, I can write and people want to read it. It definitely solidified my career path in college although, cough, I am wishing a bit I’d gone the more marketing/communications route. She says as she works an overnight desk job xD

Q6: Do you write anything outside of the realm of fan fiction?

A6: See above for old jouranlism job and currently working on my novel, a young adult fantasy ♥

Q7: Do you notice any stigma surrounding fan fiction or fan fiction writers?

A7: When I first started doing this fifteen years ago? Yes. Most definitely. It was considered a lower art form (which makes me laugh as fanart was never put into the same category) and “weak” writing and to this day I remember when I was talking to my creative writing teacher in high school about it and she laughed and said that fanfiction is not original and is just plagiarizing another work. I never forgot that but I also never believed it. Fanfiction, I feel, is honestly one of the most difficult mediums to write. You have to work within a set world, using established characters, plots and backstory and then make it your own all while adhering to those parameters. It’s hard. It’s very hard.

Today though I think a lot of people respect that and I no longer see the discourse I used to on the subject (I still won’t tell anyone outside of my anime con friends though that I write it ;p). And I’m glad. It’s a much safer, inclusive environment for young writers venturing out to get into. I will also preface though that I don’t engage much with the drama (and God does my fandom right now have a lot of it) and just post and go about my day and I credit a lot of that to my age. But from someone who started back in 2003… it’s changed, most definitely.

Q8: If so, how do you feel about this stigma?

A8: See above ;)

Q9: What’s something you’ve never been asked but want to be?

A9: Um… Nothing is coming to mind in any category of this nature. Sorry.

Q10: Is Tumblr the site you prefer to post fan fic on? If so, why?

A10: Oh heck no. No no no no no. Tumblr is… is awful for posting text on. AWFUL. I use it as an engagement tool to interact with readers and to promote my works. I started off on fanfiction.net and when I rebooted in 2017 I crossposted between it and Archive of Our Own. Just about a month ago I made the decision to post solely on AO3 as the editing features are very, very nice and the traffic there is better ♥

Q11: What’s your favorite piece of fan fiction you’ve ever written? Why?

A11: So many fics to choose from, you want me to pick one? ;p I love all of my pieces, from the horrid ones in 2003 to 2010 years to my more recent VLD ones starting in 2017. All hold a special place in my heart.

But the fic I am most proud of would be my long boi As Color Fades Away, or Color for short. It’s a 430k+ fic that was my first foray into the VLD fandom and my first real fic after nearly seven years of not writing anything. I saw myself grow so much as a writer in that fic (although that history is erased now as given its popularity and my love of it I have recently re-written the first 35 chapters completely with edits in others as well) and it has everything I crave in a story: whump and angst and hurt/comfort and family and friendship and so much heart and love. It was a fic that touched a lot of people (myself included) and it’s my magnum opus now and forever of fanfiction.

Find icy’s fics here and her Tumblr page here.

cityoffandoms-yjn20

Interviewer note: Before we start off with the interview, you will notice something different in this interview. The last two questions are listed as “reader questions” this is because this lovely writer was recommended to me by someone, so I allowed that reader to ask a couple personalized questions. I will keep this rule for any suggestions I get that lead to an interview! All right, now onto the intervew! Thank you!

--Alyce

Before we get to the formal questions, do you mind introducing yourself (any name you are comfortable using or want to use) and telling us a little about yourself?

Hey guys, I’m Hania. Nia for short. I’m a 23-year-old graduate still trying to find a place in this world. When I’m not busy being an adult or writing, I’m usually traveling, hiking, reading or just lazing around at home watching movies and daydreaming. I have been an ARMY since 2013 but I only started writing for BTS in June ’18. I aspire to work in the neuroscience research laboratory one day and I hope to save up and travel around the world.

Thank you for interviewing me, it’s such an honor and motivator for me.   

Q1: You mainly write for BTS and GOT7. Have you ever written for any fandoms and/or outside of Kpop?

A1: Now that I think about it, no. All of my fanfics are either related or inspired by BTS and GOT7 or Korean dramas. I do have several stories written with original characters and such but I never posted them.

Q2: You also seem to have an abundance of short works like imagines, reactions, etc., but you do have a few fics and longer pieces. Do you prefer writing in shorter forms or do you have a preference?

A2: It really depends on my schedule to be honest. At the moment I love doing reactions and imagines cause of having a packed schedule and also I get to dabble in different topics and such. For fanfics, I get obsessed with a storyline when I start writing it but when I post it, I actually break them into several chapters cause sometimes I might add something that I did not originally think of. I would love to write longer stories but at the moment I definitely prefer to write and post shorter pieces.

Q3: You also make moodboards! Which is something I actually don’t know a ton about. Do you mind walking us through how a moodboard works? How you pick images? Etc.

A3: Oh oh so moodboards are really fun for me to do, I either get an idea from looking at a picture, writing a reaction or just my own imagination. So I kinda have a general theme for a moodboard, like I’m working on a Mafia and Traveling in Paris themed moodboard at the moment. So the mafia theme is due to my fanfic Best Of Me, that’s where I get my idea from. As for the Paris theme, it’s due to the pictures BTS posted recently. So I would try to find at least 2 similar or coordinated selfies/pictures of each member and I would search for places in Paris and cross match the pictures to see if they fit the aesthetic.  

Q4: Do write anything outside of fan fiction?

A4: Not really other than laboratory and scientific research reports, I don’t.

Q5: When you first started writing fan fiction were you scared to post it online?

A5: I was absolutely TERRIFIED. Even back in High School I would write a lot of essays cause I wanted to improve. So, at times the teacher would read it out to the class and it would just make me so embarrassed and afraid cause of the reaction I got from my classmates. Also I kinda stopped writing for 4 years cause of uni and all so when I did get back to writing, to me it felt just rusty, awkward and unreadable.

Q6: Why did you begin writing fan fiction? If it was for a fandom, why did that particular thing make you begin writing? And, for your current fandoms?

A6: It was for Moon Lovers Scarlet Heart: Ryeo actually, a Korean drama. I hated the ending with a burning passion and I’m not even kidding, I literally cried for a week over the drama cause I invested so much time and feelings into it. Sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night kinda feeling empty and sad, but like one day, out of nowhere, I had a dream of an alternate ending and also a different aspect of the storyline so I wrote it down and came up with a new plot.

As for my current writings, I’ve been an ARMY since 2013 and Ahgase since 2015, I’ve read countless fanfics, reactions, imagines etc. But at times I would have ideas or scenarios of a certain reaction or genre and I would just daydream about it and never write it down. But I was talking about mafias and I just had this idea for BTS and I just had to write it and post it. That’s how this fanfic blog started and I slowly branched out to reactions and such.

Q7: Do you ever want to be published in a professional capacity one day?

A7: I would absolutely love to! I want to work in the scientific research field, so I would love for my scientific research, data, and findings to be published. And being a little more ambitious I would love for my writings to be published as well.

Q8: Has writing fan fiction taught you anything? About writing? Reading? The fandom? Etc.

A8: A lot of things actually, I never realized I had such different sides of me. I’m someone who has anxiety and depression so writing helps me cope in so many ways. Whenever I’m worried or angry or happy I write and it kinda eases the pain and lets me shift my focus on writing. I get to pour my feelings and whatever I’m going through, into my writings so that has been of tremendous help. With every piece I write, I’m actually utilizing my own experience and feelings, without realizing I’m showing or opening up a new side of me and it shows in my writing, which surprised me really cause I learn something new about myself.

For the fandom, just the immense love and support you get, I have interacted with countless friendly ARMYs and Ahgases before writing, but to have people reach out to you, take some time and let you know about your content and be so positive, it feels so surreal to me like wow you read my stuff and you like it? Thank you.

As for reading, there is just so much content out there to be read. I used to stick to just specific genres but as I started writing again, I started reading different types of genres and there are just so much great content and stories out there which I never gave a chance to cause I was too focused on a handful of genres. As for writing, I learned that you improve every single day as long as you continue writing, even if you write a sentence every day you are improving.

Q9: Do you notice any stigma surrounding fan fiction or fan fiction writers?

A9: That we are a bunch of obsessive, delusional and pervertic fangirls/boys writing to feed our delusions and obsessions. Also that we are not creative enough to come up with our own characters so we ‘utilize’ real people or existing characters. Or that the imagines/fanfics/reactions are NOT REAL (like yes, that’s why it’s categorized as fanfiction, that’s the very definition of fanfic)  I’ve actually read and heard these kinda comments before.

Q10: If so, how do you feel about this stigma?

A10: I used to be so adamant about proving to people who said these things that we are anything but whatever they say about us but after a while, I realized why should I work so hard to prove them wrong when I can work hard to create better content and to maybe make at least 1 person smile or forget their worries for a few minutes. That change in my mindset was one of the best things cause I opened up myself to trying to create better content with a meaningful purpose and it’s been great. I still do get mean messages but I don’t dwell on the messages I simply delete and move on. As world wide handsome Kim Seok Jin once said, I don’t have think.  

Q11: Is there anything you’ve ever wanted to talk about or be asked that no one has asked you about or given you the opportunity to talk about?

A11: Hmmm well it’s actually such a broad question but I think about my transition from being a teenager to being an adult. I attended university a year earlier so I could not really talk to my friends about what I was going through at times and my classmates were older than me. So I was at this awkward phase, trying to deal with things coming at me all at once. Yeah I have never really talked about it.

Q12: Reader Question: How has K-pop in general affected your life?

A12:  I was introduced to k-pop by my best friend (more like forced) but yeah it has been 8 years and I’m still thankful she introduced me to k-pop. High School was all sorts of messed up so k-pop was like an escape for me. I entered uni the same year BTS debuted so for some reason I felt a special connection with them and I felt like I was growing with them, learning with them. BTS has been my savior, my motivators and my escape. And in general, k-pop has really affected me in a positive way, I depend on k-pop when I’m going through difficult times and I turn to k-pop when I achieve something or when I’m happy too.  

Q13: Reader Question: What memory instantly makes you smile?

A13:   There are A LOT of memories that make me smile instantly but as of recent, karaoke session with my best friend at 4am. We were just all over the place doing weird things and singing our heart out. Just thinking about it makes me smile and roll my eyes wahahaha.

Thank you so much for interviewing me! I had such a great time to ponder over the questions and kinda revisit and talk about why and how I started writing fanfics. And you have been so sweet and kind throughout so thank you Alyce. Also, I really hope my writings are able to make someone out there forget their woes and worries for a minute and smile. Thank you for reading and have a great week!  

Find Hania’s Tumblr page here  and her Masterlist.

glitteringconstellations interview

Before we get started with the interview, do you mind introducing yourself (whatever name you are comfortable with) and telling us a little about yourself?

Hi everyone! I’m glitteringconstellations, Glitter or GC for short. I’ve been writing fanfiction for well over 15 years now, though I only started sharing it around 2005. I minored in Creative Writing in college and I love writing in pretty much any capacity! When I’m not headcanoning one new story or another, though, I’m either adulting (ugh, adulting) or playing video games. These days it’s mostly Skyrim. I’m fluent in Korean and passable in Japanese and Spanish. I drink way too much pop to be healthy and I hate most fruit (though, give me any kind of melon and I’ll be a happy girl). Oh, and I’m a fledgling figure skater! I’m just a hodgepodge of random hobbies haha!

Q1: What kind of fan fiction do you normally write? Have you ever written fan fiction for other fandoms other than your current one?

A1: I tend to gravitate toward angsty fics. It’s long been my outlet of frustration, to put the character I love in harm’s way. The more pain, the better, haha! Though I do love the hurt/comfort aspect of it. Recently (as in, the last year lmao) I’ve been writing for the Voltron fandom almost exclusively (and sometimes YURI!!! On Ice), but before that I was in the k-pop ficdom (Super Junior, for the most part) for a looooong time, nearly 10 years. I won’t be opening that particular can of worms, though--I have Feelings and Opinions lmao. Before that I jumped around from anime to anime.

Q2: I see in addition to fan fiction that you do commissioned fan art! I’m not an artist myself, so I find it really interesting and cool. Do you want to talk a bit about that? And, feel free to plug yourself!

A2: This is actually a common misconception--I can’t draw to save my life!! I took commissions for fan fiction back in late June as a last resort to pay my rent. Typically though I’m horrible on a deadline so I don’t like to do it too often because I feel terrible making my commissioners wait. The art you’re referring to is the comic spread for The Parting Glass, if I’m not mistaken? I actually commissioned another artist by the name of Cota (@ccooooostuff on tumblr, go check her out she’s amazing at what she does and super sweet!) for that comic with the money I got for my birthday this year.

Q3: Do you write anything outside of fan fiction?

A3: I do! I journal a lot, or I try to anyway. This year I’m hoping to tackle an original novel for Nanowrimo, but more than likely, that particular project will start as fanfiction and we’ll see if I turn it into original fiction or not. I spend more time thinking about the things I want to write than… actually… writing them lolsob. My notes will be this gigantic document but when it comes to putting things together in a cohesive manner? Haaaaaa….haha…. The blinking cursor mocks me, I swear.

Q4: I see on your profile that you are 26. I think when most people think of fan fiction writers they think of someone younger, usually a teenager. Do you encounter younger writers a lot? What do you think of this assumption?

A4: I do encounter younger writers a lot! Surprisingly, though, most writers I know are either in their late 20s or late late teens (say, 15~19). Most people tend to think I’m young anyway just because I look a lot younger than 26, but as far as fandom goes, it doesn’t really bother me if people think I’m younger than I am. Usually I’m pretty forward with how old I am on my profile anyway! But yeah, I’ve been around the fanfiction scene a while. The k-pop fandom in particular had a way of reminding me just how long on a pretty frequent basis lol.

Q5: Why did you begin writing fan fiction? If it was for a fandom, why did that particular thing make you begin writing? And, for your current fandoms?

A5: I used to tell myself stories to get to sleep or on long car trips as far back as I can remember, and most of the time they involved characters from my favorite shows of the day. Pokemon and Digimon were two big ones for me before I hit those fun preteen years. As far as what got me started actually putting those stories to paper, it was born of frustration with shows not going the way I wanted them to, so I’d write the ending I wanted to see. For Voltron in particular, it’s just SUCH a fun sandbox to play in, be it by utilizing the incredible world-building or the plethora of interesting characters to play around with. So many possibilities! *3*

Q6: Do you ever want to be published in a professional capacity one day?

A6: Yes and no. I flip flop on this ALL the time. I’d LOVE to see my stories on shelves, but I’m actually very insecure and sometimes the thought of people reading my stories makes me want to die of embarrassment and sink to the center of the earth. That said, if I win Nano this year, I may run it by some publishers, even if only to get feedback. (Although if you want to get TECHNICAL I am officially a published journalist; I was an assistant editor for one of The Big 3 kpop news sites for a while. The one that starts with S. Also another can of worms.)

Q7: Has writing fan fiction taught you anything? About writing? Reading? The fandom? Etc.

A7: Oh absolutely. I definitely would not be the writer I am today without fan fiction. I wouldn’t say I’m super skilled, but the critique I’ve received over the years has helped me more than I have words for, honestly. Not even just in the capacity of writing fiction; my academic and professional writing has improved too. Also, just like reading anything in high volume, reading fanfic has helped me learn to read like a writer, how to pick out things that authors do that I admire and try to emulate that, and conversely what doesn’t work for me so I can avoid those things.

As far as fandom goes, fanfiction can be quite polarizing, as I’m sure you’re well aware. Just in my experience by and large it can be kind of toxic, to be quite honest. The particular issue Voltron faces that I experienced to some extent in other fandoms but not quite to this degree, is fandom policing. I find that certain members of the fandom (which, in my experience, tends to actually be mostly among those younger demographics, though not exclusively so) see certain topics as morally wrong and therefore anyone who writes those topics are 1) romanticizing said topic and 2) automatically a disgusting, horrible person and they have no problems telling you about all about it. The number one thing I try to put out there in my interactions is live and let live, ship and let ship. If it makes you uncomfortable, that’s okay! But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s wrong, and it’s definitely not okay to go around purporting hate in the name of “morality.” Sorry, didn’t mean to go off on a tangent there haha...

Q8: What is a piece you’ve written that you’re most proud of?

A8: Just in the Voltron fandom, I’d say the fic I’m most proud of is The Parting Glass, by far. Funny story about that one; I’d never heard the titular song before I came across a cover of it on Facebook one day around St. Patrick’s Day, and let me tell you something. The reaction I had was almost a spiritual experience, it was so visceral. I was in tears when I heard it, and the story came so hard and so fast that I wrote it in 2 days. It stayed with me until I got it down in writing. It was an interesting challenge for me, exploring the grief part of a character death fic while almost entirely omitting the actual dying part. It’s been a very long time since I’ve had such a vivid vision of exactly how a fic is going to go from start to finish and I’m quite happy with the way it turned out. Which is why, when I had the money to do so, I commissioned Cota to illustrate what had to be the hardest and yet my favorite part to write. She brought the scene to life so beautifully too, I’m really happy with how it turned out. Months later I still go back and stare at it!

Q9: Do you notice any stigma surrounding fan fiction or fan fiction writers?

A9: Without a doubt. People hear “fanfiction” and they think one of two things: the pudgy neckbeard who lives in his parents’ basement, or the rabid tween/teenage fangirl. It’s a rather unfortunate stereotype, because some works of fanfiction are truly works of art, more masterfully crafted than some novels I’ve seen published. Yet they get dismissed simply on the basis of being fanworks and not “original” (which, let’s be real, nothing is truly original anymore). One such example that comes to mind of a beautiful fic is those glittering instruments in the EXO fandom, which was based on the real-life destruction of the Library of Alexandria. If you can find a copy of it floating around the interwebs I HIGHLY recommend giving it a chance no matter what fandom you’re in!

Q10: If so, how do you feel about this stigma?

A10: Like I said, it’s really a shame. The thing, too, is that as young girls we’re often shamed for the things we’re passionate about, like boy bands and, well, fan fiction, while boys don’t get that kind of shame to such an intense degree (at least, not about the usual suspects, like sports and girls and such). Not to say that it doesn’t happen, but there’s something terribly sad about seeing more young people afraid to talk about a hobby that makes them happy because they’re afraid of being perceived as weird or gross or something like that. Hell, even to this day I have very few friends from outside the fandom sphere that know I write fanfiction, because they still talk bad and make mean jokes about fic writers. It’s such a silly thing, because a lot of famous works are derivative fiction and people don’t even realize it! So I hope the day comes soon that we can get over this silly stigma and just enjoy what people share (for free!! Seriously!! FULL NOVEL LENGTH WORKS. For FREE.)

Q11: Is there anything you’ve ever wanted to talk about or be asked that no one has asked you about or given you the opportunity to talk about? (And if so, feel free to answer/talk about it).

A11: I really had to think about this one! I couldn’t really pick one topic that I’ve really wanted to talk about that I haven’t already discussed, but no one has ever asked me if I was okay with having fanart of my work. Which I would answer with a resounding YES. I am more than okay with it QuQ

Oh, I guess I do have something!! It’s unrelated to writing (well, I guess it could be related, depending on how you look at it) but since I have your attention, if you’re an American citizen GO OUT AND VOTE. The midterm elections are one week from today in the USA and it’s important you go vote!! I won’t tell you who to vote for (a third can of worms I’m not opening up. WHY DO I HAVE SO MANY WORMS) but I assure you, your vote matters, now more than ever. I believe in you!! Go vote!!!

Q12: What is your prefered site for writing/posting fan fiction?

A12: These days I prefer to use AO3. It’s a work in progress, but it’s far and away the superior fic platform of the time. Back in ye olden days (circa 2010~2012) Livejournal was my platform of choice, and FF.net before that. A surprising number of people prefer to post their fic on tumblr, to which I say, are you out of your flipping MIND?!?! Tumblr is soooo temperamental, I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had to restart a post or go into the HTML editor because the rich text editor decided to be stupid. Noooooo thank you. I’ll stick to AO3 thanks ahaha!

Check out Glitter’s Tumblr and AO3.

Interviewer Note: Glitter used her free question to encourage everyone to vote and I would just like to stress the importance of this, especially if live in the US. Young people are the demographic that votes the least, despite being the demographic that will have to live the longest with the outcome of the vote. If you are currently not registered, please register as it is important for all of our futures. And, remember the deadline for the upcoming US election is Nov. 6th, so make sure to get to those polls and/or turn/send in your ballot. If you need information on how to do any of these things, do not hesitate to reach out to my page and I will point you to trustworthy resources.