Welcome to the first edition of HEART AND SOUL. This fanzine has only been in the works for a few short months, as I never set out to do a zine. What I was doing was writing a lot of STARSKY & HUTCH stories, and the idea occurred to try publishing them myself. I had done a letterzine before, but never an actual fanzine. So, it seemed like a good excuse to get my feet wet.
As you may know, I've come over from K/S fandom, after having also dabbled in writing TWIN PEAKS (Cooper/Truman) the past couple of years. But while I am new to S&H fandom, I am not new to the show. I was fourteen years old when the first season originally aired, and it would take a whole zine to explain the impact the show had on me personally. My reluctance to write for the fandom previously was caused by my belief that the written word couldn't top the love shared by those two characters on screen. But after focusing on extending what was on screen, and not competing with it, I think I have found a comfortable niche in which to write.
Though I consider HEART AND SOUL a "slash" zine, not all of the stories are necessarily slash. The sexual element was something I wrestled with for quite some time in writing for this fandom, as I felt that sex between Starsky and Hutch would add very little to their relationship; it would hardly cause them to love each other more. I have since gotten past that block; but, as with most of my writings in other fandoms, the "friends first" theme is prevalent here. If anyone finds the sex a bit bland in this zine, but otherwise enjoy the writing, I recommend purchasing a copy of PLAYFELLOWS 6 which contains my S/H novella, "Waterfall". It includes a lengthy, highly explicit sex scene.
All the stories in this zine are intended to stand on their own. While there are recurring themes, none of the stories are meant to be sequels of each other.
The biggest drawback to printing a zine with one author's stories is that it can be easy for the stories to have a similar tone. For variety, I'm pleased to include a novella by Sylvia Bond. Sylvia is a new author who has had a couple of K/S stories published in recent months to rave reviews, and her writing style is quite different from mine. I think most readers will find "Hour of Separation" a refreshing treat.
Paper-clipped to the backcover of this zine is a SASE with a questionnaire inside. After having edited the K/S letterzine THE LOC CONNECTION for five years, it should be no surprise that I consider feedback a very important part of fandom. Therefore, I hope that everyone who purchases this zine will take a moment to fill out the LoC and send it back. I also hope that those who loan this zine to friends will encourage their friends to write. Let me know what you like and what you don't like about this zine. Your input is the only guideline I have for future efforts.
In closing, a big thank you to Sylvia Bond for her enthusiasm, encouragement, and, most importantly, her novella. Thanks also to Trish and Mary for their proofreading assistance.
Read and enjoy.
Charlotte Frost
January 1994
