<Host1> Well, everybody, looks like it's time to start.

<Rosalita> I'm ready. I think.

<Host1> Well, we want to thank Rosalita for coming here, and agreeing to chat with us about her work.

<Rosalita> Thank you for inviting me.

<Host1> I want to say, you're my first favorite slash writer! "Fox in the Sky" was the first M/Sk I ever read.

<Host1> So I'm very happy to have you agree to this.

<Rosalita> Thanks!

<Rosalita> I guess I qualify for old geezerhood. I've been online for almost three years now.

<Host1> Yes, XF slash was pretty quiet back then, I understand!

<Rosalita> I started out writing gen a little over 2 years ago and I found my way into slash shortly after that.

<Rosalita> Yeah it was. It was Brenda Antrim and Laura Cooksey, and that's about it. The Chances series came out some time in 96.

<Host1> So, my first question to you: What got you into writing fanfic?

<Rosalita> And then, everything changed!

<Host3> What drew you from gen to slash?

<Rosalita> When I first started reading fanfic, it was right around the time of hte Spookys so I started out reading the very best there was. How intimidating!

<Rosalita> After that, I began reading some of the not-so-great stuff. Then I figured, "Hey, I can do this!" So I did.

<Host1> But, what was the attraction of slash compared to gen?

<Rosalita> I started out with gen, and wrote three pretty well received stories and a humor series with a friend. I liked slash a lot and decided to try it, and I haven't looked back since.

<Rosalita> I'd always read gay erotica. I had a lot of gay friends and they would give me books to read. I enjoyed it. It was very arousing. '

<Rosalita> Then I discovered slash. I'd heard of it years before with Kirk/Spock but had never read any.

<Host1> Ah, so you have some background even before getting into XF slash!

<Rosalita> Well, background in gay erotica, but not fanfic.

<Rosalita> Anyway, I think the first story I read was the one by Laura Cooksey. I can't remember the name!! It was M/Sk and I loved it.

<Host1> I've always envied the writers who got started early on in XF fanfic. I always hear about how supportive the feedback was, how everyone could read *everything* that came out.

<Rosalita> Yeah, there was so little of it when I started, that you could read everything that came out. It was usually weeks in between stories.

<Guest2> who soon after you found the fanfic did you join the slash lists?

<Rosalita> There were no lists back then. Whenever Marita started XSlash, that's when I joined.

<Rosalita> Actually, that's not true, I was on the original XSlash that Dyevka started.

<Rosalita> I think I was one of the first members. :-)

<Guest2> xslash was there before the m/k list?

<Rosalita> I don't know.

<Host1> Rosalita, how would you compare the "old days" of slash to today?

<Rosalita> I'm not sure now which one was first. I joined M/K as soon as it started, so maybe that was the first one I was on.

<Rosalita> There are a hell of a lot more stories now. It's also much more accepted now. I'm constantly amazed at how many people like slash.

<Rosalita> I think that slash fans are a real force in the fandom these days, whereas in the beginning, we were such a minority.

* Host1 nods...that is nice!

<Guest2> did you feel like you knew all the writers, because it was such a small community?

<Rosalita> Actually, I didn't. I've always known more gen writers for some reason. I also tend to keep to myself. I don't *know* a lot of the writers now.

<Host1> It seems like a lot of slash writers have a strong background in gen. Did you write gen erotica, or just non-erotica humor?

<Rosalita> I wrote angst and non-erotica humor.

<Rosalita> Actually, my writing partner wrote the humor, I just added bits here and there. I'm not a humor writer. I tend to pour on the angst. I'd like to get back to gen someday.

<Guest2> did you write under a different name?

<Rosalita> I've written under several names including my real one. How dumb is that?

<Rosalita> I started out writing slash under the name Spookette but changed it when too many people found out who Spookette really was.

<Host1> Heh heh. I did that with my first gen, but got it changed by the archivists. I hope! So you came over to slash and stayed here basically because...?

<Rosalita> I have an easier time coming up with ideas for slash than I do for gen. I guess I'm just a slut. ;-)

<Guest9> LOL, that's why I thought I haden't read any of your stuff... it was when you still were the Spookette;-)

<Rosalita> A lot of people have asked me why slash, and I just never can come up with a good answer.

<Guest2> when you wrote gen, was it msr, case files, or what?

<Rosalita> ahhhh!

<Rosalita> Confession: I wrote an almost MSR once. The other two were just angsty character studies.

<Guest8> Near MSR? Naughty!

<Rosalita> I know, I know. But hey, it got nominated for a Spooky!

* Guest7 MSR? oh Noooo

<Host3> Is there one character that draws you the most, or is it the XF universe in general?

<Guest2> everyone's got to start somewhere.. hehehe

<Rosalita> Mulder. Definitely Mulder.

<Rosalita> He's fascinating to me. One of the most unique and interesting characters on television today.

<Guest2> what was the single scene in the series that inspired you to write... was there something that just screamed to have an ending?

<Host3> Ahh, Rosa, you are a woman after my own heart :)

<Guest9> I can only agree, Rosalita... a devourable man!

<Rosalita> He's sex on a stick!

* Host2 nods...

<Rosalita> The revelation that Mulder's father was involved in the consortium and had chosen Samantha.

<Guest8> Have to agree with Rosalita there :-)

<Rosalita> I always felt that Mulder's reaction to that was inadequate. So I wrote a story about what I thought his reaction should be.

<Guest2> and was there a single scene that made you want to write slash?

<Rosalita> No single scene. It was just an overall feeling that the UST was there.

<Rosalita> Although, I really felt it between Mulder and Skinner in "Avatar" The electricity flew between them in the police station scene.

<Host2> and in some other episode, too... <sighs>

<Host1> That's the ep that got me started on writing slash.

<Guest2> they were practically in each other's laps... and poor csm couldn't join them

<Rosalita> If I hadn't already been writing by then, I would have been afterwards.

<Guest8> Ah, UST...

<Host2> New Question Alert:

<Host2> Q: "I enjoyed "Another Life" very much, are you considering doing the prequel/sequel?"

<Rosalita> Thanks. The answer to that question is: I don't know. I have a sequel in mind but as I already have about 15 unfinished stories on my hard drive, it's a big question whether it will get written and if so, when.

<Rosalita> A lot of people have asked me that question. Reminder: I do take bribes!

<Host1> ah...what works for bribes?

* Guest7 wonders what kind of bribe would be acceptable

<Rosalita> Money. Wine. Dates with DD.

<Rosalita> Get me a date with David and I'll write anything you want. <eg>

* Host1 , unfortunately, has none of the above. 8^(

* Rosalita spirits it away to her wine closet. She doesn't have a cellar. I'm partial to blush wines, actually.

<Guest9> Damn, had I known, I had asked DD when we had tea yeasterday afternoon!! <veg>

<Rosalita> LOL!

<Guest10> Rosalita writes the Fates conspiring series right?

<Rosalita> Yes, Guest10

<Guest10> wonderful stuff rosalita..A+ , ur a mentor for me.. i love m/k

<Rosalita> Thank you so much, Guest10.

<Host2> New Question Alert:

<Host3> How do you go about the actual writing, outlines, scribled notes or just an idea?

<Rosalita> This is a hard question for me, I'm not a process person. Give me a second to answer.

<Guest9> Could you explain what this is, please?

<Rosalita> I come up with an idea. I usually have a beginning in mind. I don't do outlines or notes, usually, unless I think of something that will go in the middle of the story. I'll jot it down so I don't forget. I'm not a linear thinker so I tend to write scenes as I think of them and then go back and connect them all.

<Rosalita> Sometimes I start a story at the end, and sometimes I'll start in the middle.

<Guest5> Do your storys ever change in mid-stride heading off into unexpected directions, how do yo uhandle that?

<Rosalita> I don't think I've ever had a story go in the direction I intended it to. I just let the story go where it will. I love it when a character does something I wasn't expecting and it takes the story off somewhere.

<Rosalita> I'm a very slow writer. Writing is sometimes excruciating for me. For me to get four pages done in one day is quite an accomplishment.

<Host1> Do you write longhand, or only on the 'puter, or both?

* Guest7 thinks if four pages is slow, then I am a snail

<Rosalita> Both. Usually at the computer but if the spirit strikes me when I'm away from it, I'll write it down and put it on the computer later. The first humor story I wrote with my writing partner was written on a napkin at the Black Eyed Pea..

<Rosalita> Thank God they have really big napkins.

<Guest5> Any favorite 'writing moments' sometime when you just said 'Yes!' after writing something?

<Rosalita> While we have a lull, I want to let you guys know that there are now over 600 stories on the eligible story list for the Whammy Awards. That's up from about 350 for all of 1997. I think that's pretty damned impressive.

<Host1> wow!

<Guest9> ROFL... Rosalita, so how about the Black Eyed Pea cycle???

<Host2> That is impressive, Rosa!

<Rosalita> Yeah, the forever stalled "Beacon in the Night" was like that. It was one of those rare days when everything came together and everything was crystal clear. And I do vow to finish that story before the season premiere!

<Guest8> Please, Rosalita!

<Host3> Yeah!

<Rosalita> Unfortunately, I haven't had a day like that since. :-)

<Guest2> can you tell when something you've written will be well received, even before you post it?

<Rosalita> Well, I usually know when something is good and when it isn't. But I never expect for anything to be well received. It cuts down on the disappointment later.

<Guest9> 600!!! Oh my... can you give us the the URL for voting?

<Rosalita> Voting begins in January.

<Guest2> in the 'old' day, was response greater to stories than it is now?

<Guest2> everyone seems to complain about 'lack of feedback'

<Rosalita> Definitely. I got much more feedback two years ago than I do today. I really think that's a function of the slash explosion. I don't think anyone is getting the amount of feedback they used to.

* Guest7 all that fiction and so little time :(

<Rosalita> That's exactly it, Guest7.

<Guest8> I started later than you did, Rosalita... what was feedback like then? How much more then?

<Guest8> Know that's hard to quantify

* Guest7 thinking of her hard drive and the 2Mb of unread Krycek fiction she's going to take on holiday

<Guest2> what was the most number of 'letters of comment' you ever received from a single story?

<Rosalita> It is hard to quantify unless I actually went back and looked at my feedback. Yes, I do keep everything I get. I don't think it was a *lot* more. I will say that I got more feedback from that almost-MSR than any other story I've done. :-/

<Rosalita> Guest2: I don't know. I'd have to go back and look.

<Guest9> Yes, Guest7, that's my main problem ::winks at Guest8::

<Host1> Yes, MSR/almost MSR seems to draw a lot more feedback. Probably just because of having more readers!

<Guest2> what is the number of feedbacks you might expect on a story today

* Guest8 thinks Host2 has another use for that bullwqhip

<Rosalita> If I get even one, I'm happy. But I guess I usually get around 20 or so per story. Some more, some less.

<Host1> Still on topic, I think...How do you come up with ideas? (the classic question)

<Guest9> But I guess that's because so many shippers are around... in comparison to slashers.

<Rosalita> I'm really just guessing at that number.

<Rosalita> I really don't know. Stuff just pops into my head. Sometimes it's something I see on an episode, sometimes it just comes out of nowhere.

<Rosalita> I just got an idea for an M/Sk/K that just hit me between the eyes for no apparent reason.

<Host1> Ever dream ideas for stories?

<Rosalita> No, I never have. Although a friend of mine had a dream and I made her write it down. I may use it someday.

<Host2> New Question Alert:

<Host1> Q: What's your favorite story that you wrote? Favorite by another author? And why on both.

<Rosalita> My favorite story that I wrote is probably "Another Life." It's the first story I wrote that actually had a plot. I researched it. I worked very hard on it.

* Guest7 - a favourite of mine too :)

<Guest10> great story!!

<Host1> The ones you work hardest on can become quite meaningful to yourself.

<Rosalita> I don't have one favorite story. I have lots. Kass' Out of the Dark is a favorite. I love Saundra Mitchell's Mulder/Bayliss stories.

<Rosalita> Wombat's Rapture series is another favorite of mine, as well.

<Host3> So you like long, complicated, angst filled stories :)

<Rosalita> Yes, exactly. The angstier, the better.

<Guest9> Angst... have just started reading "Cruel summer" and like it a lot!!

<Rosalita> Thanks, Guest9!

<Rosalita> That's my one and only Skinnerangst story.

<Host2> New Question Alert:

<Host1> Speaking of Mitchell's stories...do you read other fandoms much?

<Host3> Rosa, I love your Mulder/Skinner stories. You create such a romantic coupling, without losing the edge. What are your thoughts about these two characters.

<Rosalita> Actually, no I don't. I read some Due South and some Highlander. I just recently gotten interested in Rat Patrol. I read other fandoms but not on a regular basis.

<Rosalita> I love Mulder and Skinner together.

<Guest9> Love that too, Rosalita!! So you keep on writing...;-)

<Rosalita> I think that Mulder needs the stability that Skinner can offer him. And Skinner, if you think about it, is the only person on XF who never ridicules Mulder. He doesn't necessarily believe him all the time, but he never ridicules him.

* Host2 hugs Rosalita for her opinion

<Guest9> So you see Skinner as a rock of strenght in Mulder's stormy seas?

* Rosalita hugs Host2 back

<Rosalita> Yes, Guest9. Exactly.

<Guest10> nah...ur M/K is more exciting..

<Host1> Would you describe yourself as a romantic mainly with M/Sk?

<Rosalita> Yes, it's funny because I don't consider myself a romantic in the usual sense of the word. But Mulder and Skinner just bring out what little romance I have in my soul.

<Host3> And you do it beautifully.

<Rosalita> Thank you.

<Rosalita> Now, on the subject of M/K since Guest10 brought it up.

<Guest10> I can't help it..M/K rulez

<Rosalita> I like M/K. I write it. I prefer M/Sk. To me, the M/K dynamic is totally different than M/Sk. M/K is a fling, it's dangerous. But I don't believe that Mulder and Krycek can have a real relationship. There is too much baggage there.

<Rosalita> That said, I think they are drawn together despite themselves. Hence, Fates Conspiring.

* Host2 concurs completely with Rosa... too much baggage for M/K to work out a real relationship. Cut out canon background - maybe.

<Guest10> most relationships are about baggage i think

<Guest9> Guest10, that's a pretty black view on relationships.

<Rosalita> The interesting thing to me in M/K is to see Mulder struggle against his desire and lose.

<Guest9> Those angsty things are gorgeous to read.. but I rather have a more solid and calm thing in RL going:-)

<Host3> Amen, Guest10

<Rosalita> Everyone brings baggage into a relationship, sure. But there's baggage and then there's an entire set of Samsonite luggage.

<Guest10> i think unless u have two virgins..two ppl are gonna have some amount of 'baggage' and its not a BLACK VIEW ..

<Host2> New Question Alert:

<Host3> What are your fovarite books and/or writers outside fanfic. Who's books are on your bookshelf right now?

<Guest9> No, two people don't have baggage if they fit and love... just a little, mybe, as everybody has:-)

<Rosalita> I adore Anne Rice and have a huge collection of vampire books.

<Rosalita> I also like David Wiltse who created an FBI profiler character who is very much like Mulder.

<Guest10> ohyes rosalita.. mrs rice is awesome

* Guest9 toasts to The Vampire chronicles!

<Rosalita> I'm working on a Mulder/Lestat story that may turn into a stand alone novella if I can make it long enough.

<Guest10> ohno..lestat would freak..mulder is so like louis..

<Rosalita> That's why he wants him, Guest10.

<Rosalita> Trust me, it will work.

<Guest9> Wow... now THAT sounds interesting!!! -- Yes, Guest10... and I want to read it;-)

<Host2> Problem with Louis, Guest10?

* Host2 adores Louis

<Host3> Me too!

* Rosalita adores Louis too.

<Guest10> i love louis and lestat but i love lestat MROE

<Rosalita> I love Louis more.

<Guest10> Louis needs a smack in the whiney head of his sometimes

<Guest9> Krycekophiles like Lestat, MulderFans Louis more... now what a surprise!! ::chuckles::

<Rosalita> Doesn't surprise me in the least.

<Guest10> lestat is the star.. and krycek makes Xfiles 100times more interesting whenever he shows up even if its for 30 seconds

<Guest9> Lestat is one glamorous kinky and beautiful asshole... like a certain AK:-)

<Host2> Guest10 - all a matter of taste and perpective.

<Guest10> i think all angst and whining gets tiring..after a while..like duh Mulder.. i had no idea my opinion was godlike text..LOL

<Guest9> guest10, don't bash... we all have different tastes, and every right to have so:-)

<Rosalita> That's only if you think that Louis and/or Mulder is whiney. I don't.

<Guest10> ok you guys r right.. sorry i am wrong

<Guest9> It's a matter of taste.. perhaps what you want to see in RL for yourself. We cannot really argue who's better or more interesting.

<Guest10> i am only giving my personal taste.. i don't understand why that is so misunderstood just cause its different