From the Bard's Quill Interview with Judy (Wishes)
| Interviews by Fans | |
|---|---|
| Title: | From the Bard's Quill Interview with Judy (Wishes) |
| Interviewer: | |
| Interviewee: | Judy (Wishes) |
| Date(s): | June 23, 1997 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom(s): | Xena: Warrior Princess |
| External Links: | interview is here, Archived version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Judy (Wishes) was interviewed in 1997 by for the Xena: Warrior Princess site Tom's Xena Fan Fiction Archive.
Other interviews in the series: From the Bard's Quill Interview Series.
Some Excerpts
Q: XWP fanfic has created a mythology all its own—separate from the TV show. Do you find in your own writing that you try to stay true to the series, or have you also added to the fanfic mythology?
It’s true that much of what we "know" about Xena and Gabrielle comes from fan writings, not from the series. Also, some characteristics that are mentioned once in all the episodes are magnified in the fan fiction. During the second season, especially with "A Day in the Life," there has been some blending of the two mythologies.
I try to stay true to the series in terms of the personalities of the characters and their histories. What is going to come through, of course, is the way I interpret those things. I love the series and its irreverance regarding time and place. In "serious" (ahem) stories, however, I enjoy being as accurate or SEEMING to be as accurate as possible in regard to the time period.
Having done one Janice and Mel adventure, I can say that’s a different experience. From the "Xena Scrolls" episode, we know a few details such as their fathers’ names, who their most famous ancestors’ were, and where Mel is from. Almost everything else can come from the writer’s imagination. If I’ve created any "mythology," it was Mel’s Aunt Helen. Some people seem to think that Aunt Helen was actually mentioned in the episode. I love it.
Q: Many readers feel that the fanfic often surpasses the TV series in its appeal. What are your thoughts on this? Do you find yourself attracted to themes which are not normally explored on the show?
First and foremost, I love Xena: Warrior Princess, the television series. I am a hardcore, nutball fan who can watch each episode over and over. During the first-run season, it is the only television show I regularly watch, the only one I tape. Everything else, the NetForum, the fan clubs, the fan fiction, is secondary to the real thing for me.
I like to write stories that pick up themes from the series and take them farther than can be done in the forty minutes or so that are available in an episode. You don’t have to read much fan fiction to realize that it is "talkier" than the series and usually contains much less action. I think this is because fan fiction fills in the gaps between the episodes, tells the backstory of the characters, and further develops the relationship between Xena and Gabrielle. The series would be boring if it had the proportion of talk to action that fanfiction has. Fanfiction would be unsatisfying to the writer and to the reader if it didn’t explore different adventures or deeper feelings than the series.
Q: Do you read fan fiction written by others? If so, do you have any favorite authors? Have you been influenced by any?
I had never heard of fan fiction until I signed onto the Forum several months ago. I was fascinated to find that people wrote their own stories about Xena and posted them, usually as serials, for other people to read. This was at the time of "Return of Callisto," and I thought it interesting that Callisto’s only human relationship was with Xena, her creator and destroyer. Inspired by my discovery of fan fiction, I wrote a little story called "Fair Trade?" in which Callisto gets to come back as a Gabrielle-substitute. Then I read "All Through the Night" by Rebekah and realized what fan fiction could be. Ever since reading Rebekah’s story, I have tried to make each story special in some way, to make it the best I was capable of at the time.
Now I don’t read much fan fiction, especially if I am working on something myself. I do still read new stories by my favorites, such as WordWarrior, Rie (Star Warrior), and nafanex. . . .xenafan. WordWarrior brings a professionalism and beauty of expression to her stories. Rie, for me, comes closest to the emotional inner life of the characters. And nafanex mixes humor with action in a way I envy.