It’s spotlight time!

I’m very excited about this one cause this gal is awesome! She has awesome stories, she runs a festive fic exchange, is prt of random-fandom (a site I’ve only begun to explore since I did this spotlight) and is just an overall badass chica! Well, in my opinion anyways.

I’ll let you judge for yourself, since ya know…that’s the whole point here. :)

Let’s start with an introduction. I’m Kelly, or as more people know me, Kelpie.
And you are?
I write under Jan of Arc but most people just refer to me as Jan.

So, tell me a little about yourself.
I’m in my mid-thirties, married with two gorgeous little girls. I work part-time as well as training to play roller derby, playing simcity social and, of course, writing fanfic.

What do you do with yourself when you’re not writing?
Facebook stalking, skating, working and, sometimes, I try to be a parent

What are some things you never leave home without?
Cash – I always have at least £1 in my pocket just in case, Lip balm, cigarettes and a lighter.

What are some of your favorite (non-SVM) books?
A Song of Ice & Fire – GRR Martin, The Necroscope and Vampire world series – Brian Lumley, Watchers & Lightning – Dean Koontz, The Stand – Stephen King.

Favorite (non-True Blood) TV shows and movies?
Big Bang Theory, Supernatural, 2 Broke Girls, Star Trek:TNG, Fringe and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

If you were stranded on a deserted island and had 3 famous people with you, who would you choose and why?
I’ve cheated a little
Mr. T
Dirk Benedict
Dwight Schultz and
George Peppard (deceased so does he count if he’s only there in spirit?)
Together they make the A Team, which means we wouldn’t be stranded for very long

What is 1 place you’d love to visit?
Ooh it’s a tossup between Athens and Las Vegas. But I’ll go for Vegas because there’s a bigger chance of seeing Elvis impersonators

Do you have any pet peeves?
Many. Too many. You’d be quicker asking me about stuff that doesn’t annoy me. A couple of the biggies are people who stand at the bus stop for ten minutes with you and wait until they’re in front of the driver before taking out their wallet to pay the fare and checkout assistants who spend far too long chatting with the customer in front of me.

Tell me one random thing about yourself.
I have a scar on my tongue from when I bit off the tip when I was 2. It was a bizarre chute incident.

Just for some insight into you pick one. Feel free to tell why or not.
Chocolate or vanilla? Vanilla – it’s lighter and less likely to cause migraines.
Silver or gold? Silver – I think gold looks dirty against my skin.
Apple or PC? PC – I prefer to have a choice with the programmes and systems I use.
White wine or red wine? White, at a push, not a wine drinker. It makes me sleepy.
Liquor or beer? Liquor – you can’t do shots with beer. Not properly anyway.
Coffee or tea? TEA! I’m a total tea jennie, I need at least 2 cups before leaving the house.
Sleep in or get up early? Sleep in. I’ve got kids, I get up early often enough as it is

Okay, now for the good stuff.
Why and when did you start writing fanfics?
I started writing fanfic in September 2009. I’d watched season one of TB the previous year and read all the books before season two started. I loved the SVM books so much that only a few episodes into s2 I was disappointed. I discovered fanfic by accident, trying to find forums and sites with people who felt the same as me. When I found fanfiction.net there was maybe only 8 pages of stories, I was pregnant and had some complications that left me housebound from 7 months gone. When I read everything that there was to offer, I had some ideas – so I wrote them *shrugs* I’m in the fortunate position of knowing what kind of plot lines have been used (and overused in some cases) in the fandom. I think that keeps my ideas fresh and interesting.

Besides SVM/True Blood, is there another book, TV show or movie that you would write for?
I’ve written for Big Bang Theory and have also written a Friends/Buffy crossover and a Chuck/Supernatural crossover to promote a writing challenge.

What kind of environment do you write in? Do you prefer using a pen and paper, a computer or some sort of mobile device to write?
I always jot down my initial idea in a notebook and work out the major happenings on paper before I go to my lappy and start typing. I used to occupy a corner of a large dining table but we did some moving around and now I have my own desk – but I’m facing a different wall and it’s been hard to write since that. Feng Shui writer’s block

Ever write in your PJs?
All the time. If I have to get dressed on my days off work I feel hard done by.

How bout naked? :o)
Does yelling for my husband to bring me a note book while I’m in the bath count? It was a really awesome idea.

Where do you find inspiration for your stories? Do you pull your real life experiences into your writing?
I have no idea where my inspiration comes from. My train of thought can be incredibly random, one minute I’ll be thinking about what to make for dinner – the next I’ll be thinking about how cool it would be if Eric was a superhero. Quite a lot of my real life experiences and personality traits go into my writing – that’s unavoidable with fanfic because we didn’t create Sookie, so we have to go on our own thoughts and reactions when we’re writing her.

Do you write on a schedule? If you do, how do you keep to that schedule?
No, I tried to write on a schedule and failed miserably. I suck at updating on a regular basis, I can churn out a chapter a week for a couple of months and then nothing for a couple of months. I’m always apologising for that

Do you plan out your stories or just write whatever comes to you?
I always have a beginning, middle and an end. I might take a few detours once my fingers tap at the keyboard, but I try to keep it on track.

How do you deal with potential writers block?
I wallow and moan and complain and feel sorry for myself. Then I start writing something new and before I know it I’ve got 4 projects on the go at once. Then I’ll attempt NaNoWriMo again and end up with writer’s block from December until February/March. It’s a yearly occurrence that there’s no way to avoid

Do you have any writing rituals or superstitions?
No, it’s bad luck to be superstitious.

Is one genre easier for you to write than another? Is there anything that you just aren’t that great at writing?
I tend to find writing rom/com to be easier than serious stories, probably because I tend to try and always see the funny side of everything. I’m not a serious person, but I can turn my hand to a story lacking ‘Teh Funneh’ if the ideas are flowing.

What is the hardest part for you about writing fanfics?
Finishing them. I start new stories all the time, then lose interest or hit a block and they languish for months on end.

Is there a method for coming up with titles for your stories and/or chapters?
Mostly they come from song or movie titles or a play on those titles.

Which character do you identify with the most?
Canonically – none of them. But I’ve written human versions of Sookie that I identify with heavily.

Which of your stories is your favorite to write and why? Which of your stories is your favorite concept wise?
I loved writing Electric Limbo because I could really let my geek flag fly and throw in all the references to geek pop culture that are woefully absent in other fics. Concept-wise, I like Jumping the Void because there’s so much scope for variation from chapter to chapter.

Do you talk to your family about your writing? How do they feel about it?
Yep. Hubs is cool with it, my Mum doesn’t understand the concept of fanfic or the desire to write creatively but she supports it in her own way.

Which is your favorite SVM book? Favorite True Blood episode?
Favourite SVM book would be Altogether Dead, book 7. Favourite TB ep would be the S3 Finale, but then S4 started and they forgot that they had that episode.

What is the best compliment you’ve ever received on your stories?
They’re all great, I’m lucky that I’ve got a small group of regular readers and reviewers that I can have a real back and forth dialogue with – the fact that they want to discuss what’s going on in my stories is all the compliments I need.

How do you deal with the inevitable criticism?
I don’t receive a lot of criticism, I’ve never been flamed or anything like some fanfic writers have. Really the only criticism I get is that Sookie and Eric aren’t jumping each other’s bones quick enough.

Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
The more you write, the better you get. Don’t compare yourself to others, keep writing and in time you can look back and see how much you’ve improved.

Have any recommendations? What are you reading at the moment?
Be There by Ooshka is the only SVM fanfic I’m following right now. I’ve recommended a couple of BBT fics on the Random-Fandom review blog. I’ve not been reading fanfic as actively the last 4 or 5 months.

And lastly, where can all your rabid readers stalk you?
Live Journal, ffnet, Random-Fandom and I’m still in the process of building a wordpress blog. I’m Jan of Arc pretty much everywhere

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer some questions!

Heh. See, I told ya. Awesome. So go check her out nd leave her some love!

Time for another spotlight! This is actually coming to you a few weeks earlier than planned because the lovely MistressCinder made a special request. So yay!

This gals story Wiles is so freakin good! I wait very impatiently for new updates…the last one had me in tears. It was just THAT good. So…yeah let’s hear from her, then shall we?

Let’s start with an introduction. I’m Kelly, or as more people know me, Kelpie.
And you are?
Mortissues

So, tell me a little about yourself.
What do you do with yourself when you’re not writing?
I work, chase after the kids or the dog, and think about writing!

What are some things you never leave home without?
My phone. My iPod. And if I’m lucky, my keys.

What are some of your favorite (non-SVM) books?
Anything by Stephen Donaldson.

If you were stranded on a deserted island and had 3 famous people with you, who would you choose and why?
Usain Bolt, Bear Grylls and Morgan Freeman. Entertainment, survival skills, a rich deep voice to listen to.

What is 1 place you’d love to visit?
Moscow.

Do you have any pet peeves?
Bullies. I cannot abide bullies.

Tell me one random thing about yourself.
I’m extremely random.

Just for some insight into you pick one. Feel free to tell why or not.
White wine or red wine? White wine, its cold.

Okay, now for the good stuff.
Why and when did you start writing fanfics?
Unemployment. I was bored of reading and finally decided to have a go myself.

Besides SVM/True Blood, is there another book, TV show or movie that you would write for?
Twilight, it’s what got me started.

What kind of environment do you write in? Do you prefer using a pen and paper, a computer or some sort of mobile device to write?
Laptop mainly. Sometimes on paper if I need to get something down. I once wrote a steamy sex scene on a pad when I was supposed to be watching one the kids play soccer!

Ever write in your PJs?
Yes often.

How bout naked? :o)
Never. I usually write at the kitchen table.

Where do you find inspiration for your stories? Do you pull your real life experiences into your writing?
So far I’ve only written about vampires so hopefully not! I’m also old and in my experience life isn’t about black and white, its all about the grey and that’s what I try to bring out in my stories.

Do you write on a schedule? If you do, how do you keep to that schedule?
Haha! No. I just write. I have a husband, two young kids, a full time career, a big dog and an elderly infirm parent. I just write when I can.

Do you plan out your stories or just write whatever comes to you?
I do plan. I know how I want a story to go, the general plot line and character development I want to explore. Then I just wing it . . . .

How do you deal with potential writers block?
Humph. Not sure. The first time I got it some of the people reading my story helped me get over it, but it wasn’t easy and if you know the story I think you can tell where it all went wrong. One of the suggestions was to take a break and write what was in my head, which is how Wiles got started.

Do you have any writing rituals or superstitions?
I pray for peace and quiet to concentrate. Not that I ever get it. So no, not really. Music helps and Mr Mortissues is very good at finding me something to suit the mood I’m trying for in my head. He is also my worst distraction, for a taciturn man he can sure talk when I’m trying to concentrate . . . .

Is one genre easier for you to write than another? Is there anything that you just aren’t that great at writing?
I try not to write about serious weighty issues as I’m afraid I won’t be able to do them justice.

What is the hardest part for you about writing fanfics?
Reader expectation.

Is there a method for coming up with titles for your stories and/or chapters?
I try to think of something that summarises the intent of the chapter. Sometimes I spend a while on it and sometimes its obvious. The titles are often lyrics from songs . . . .

Which character do you identify with the most?
I don’t. Getting into their heads and understanding the way they are is part of the attraction to writing the story. Sometimes I identify with them and sometimes I end up wanting to beat them insensible with a hard object.

Which of your stories is your favorite to write and why? Which of your stories is your favorite concept wise?
Repudiation is my favourite.

Do you talk to your family about your writing? How do they feel about it?
My husband thinks I’m nuts but he’s supportive in his own way, which is mainly as long as I don’t talk to him about it.

Which is your favorite SVM book? Favorite True Blood episode?
Living Dead in Dallas was my favourite book and I think the Dallas episodes of True Blood were my favourites too.

What is the best compliment you’ve ever received on your stories?
I love the ones where the reader has identified with the story or the character. Whether their comment is good or bad it shows that they are involved with what I’ve written and that’s always amazing.

How do you deal with the inevitable criticism?
It’s not easy and your first instinct is to find a reason to reject it, look for a reason why the reviewer is wrong. Far better to step back and think about what they’ve said and why they’ve taken the time to say it. Fanfiction is very open and sometimes there’s no rhyme or reason to what they’ve said other than their own desire for the way a story should go, and sometimes they have a valid point that needs to be taken on board. I’d be lying if I said any of it didn’t affect me though. In truth its not always for sensitive souls, luckily I’m old and somewhat leather skinned . . . .

Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
It relates to the question about criticism. If you’ve got a story to tell, write it, and write it your way. The problem with fanfiction is that people do read it with preconceptions, they read it because they like the show, the book or the characters, they’re not neccissarily looking for something different, just because your idea is doesn’t automatically make what you write bad. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I can’t write something I don’t believe in and maybe you shouldn’t either . . . .

Have any recommendations? What are you reading at the moment?
*Shifts in embarrassment*

And lastly, where can all your rabid readers stalk you?
Twitter. It scares me but with enough encouragement I may be able to venture into the water. If not FF, it’s where I lurk most . . . .

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer some questions!

So there ya go, another awesome interview with an awesome writer! Go leave her some love!