The K/S Press/Issues 051-060

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The K/S Press 51 (November 2000)

The K/S Press 52 (December 2000)

  • contains 32 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction Actions Speak Louder, Backrub, As Others See Us, The Diver, Enterprise Roulette, The Healing, The Heat, In Celebration, Home Again, K/S Generations, The Letter, Love Is, Rain, Tirizandi, Save Water, The Valley of Love and Delight, Venus Descending, When Rain Comes in the zines As I Do Thee #21, Amazing Grace #4, Beyond Dreams #1, Fever #1, #2, First Time #11, #42, #45, #51, Kaleidoscope #3, Splendor, T'hy'la #21, see those pages
  • the editors note that you can now pay for your subscription with Pay Pal
  • fan writes an entertaining account of her experiences trying to sell her zine collection in the essay, "I Was a Zine Sale Virgin." In it, she recounts horrors with the U.S. Postal service, how the internet has changed zine sales, how to price zines, how to account for postage, how to describe your zines, and many other similar subjects. In the end, it took her 2 years to sell 144 zines.
  • a notice that a fellow fan, [J B] has passed on, along with a written memorial by a friend
  • an eloquent short essay on "why I write K/S"
  • some discussion on the writing process and did others want there to be more of this topic in future letterzine issues
  • the editors note that it's been a while since they've printed an age statement:
    By subscribing to The K/S Press you are stating that you are eighteen years of age or older. If you’re not, they you are being very naughty as you read about Kirk and Spock and how they make wild, passionate love with each other. Whatever you do, don’t turn that page, don’t read about how well-endowed Spock is or how Kirk’s lovemaking techniques drive his Vulcan bedmate wild. And for goodness sakes, we wouldn’t want anyone under the age of eighteen to consider the mysterious, ethereal love that unites James Kirk and Spock of Vulcan. That would be corrupting the morals of a minor, right?

  • a fan says that Jim Rondeau has just posted a list of zines for sale on the internet:
    I’ve used Jim’s services for five years and have never had cause for complaint. He is a reliable dealer. And a very nice man. I sincerely recommend him.

  • a notice that Gerry Downes, one of the first K/S writers, passed away on November 22, 2000, along with a nice memorial about her contributions to K/S. Included were these words:
    I never had the pleasure of meeting Gerry… but I have long honored her for her courage. Imagine what it must have been like in the mid 70s, before our society became even slightly tolerant of homosexuality, to contemplate actually published a K/S zine. Many ideas in K/S that we take for granted were being developed by the courageous and imaginative women who boldly went where their hearts and souls and convictions led them.

  • the editor of Festival explains the zine’s origins:
    There have been a plethora of “fests’ online since the summer. A person/persons thinks up various scenarios … then people sign up for the fest and are assigned one these scenarios. … A group of K/Sers decided to create a Fest that was purely K/S, and so the Kirk/Spock Online Festival was born… I’m talking about this particular zine project now because I’m very curious about how it will be received by the zine-buying public. All the stories are easily available to read online, so who will buy it? Those who aren’t online? Those who prefer not to read their fiction from a computer screen? Thos who enjoyed the fest so much that they might want a permanent bound record of some of the stories, lovingly presented?...There might not be a market at all, and I guess if not, that’s something we need to find out. But it has always seemed to me that there is plenty of space in the universe for printed K/S, online K/S, and every permutation of the two in between.

  • a query:
    I sometimes wonder what makes some people interested in K/S, and the wider slash phenomenon that it spawned, and what makes other people impervious to it? Is it because we K/Sers have vivid imaginations?

The K/S Press 53 (January 2001)

  • contains 34 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction ComeupPANce, Forbidden Colors, The Date, They are Immortal, All Those Stars, Winds of Chance from the zines Amazing Grace #4, Beyond Dreams #2, Fever #2, Setting Course, T'hy'la #21, see those pages
  • detailed information about KiScon
  • a 2000 Philon ballot
  • the editors note how some specifics of fandom have changed over the years:
    Upon reflection, it seems only a little while ago that a K/Ser would only be able to watch some episodes when they were broadcast on TV or go to a Star Trek convention for a treasure trove of precious zines, or wait a long time for an order of zines, or actually talk on the phone to another K/Ser… Now, we have access to any episode at any time in any format: we download, upload, scan, digitize, copy, and go online for our K/S; we buy zines and read online stories; we email, IM, phone and visit all our fellow K/Sers; we don’t care about any of the new Star Trek movies; but we still dream of Kirk and Spock.

  • a reader comments about the tribute to Gerry Downes in a previous issue:
    I do think we all forget how much harder it was to be in K/S in the beginning.

  • a reader has made the move to a new fandom:
    My slashy heart is now more in another fandom that isn’t so overrun with good writers and zillions of stories. It’s an easier fandom (Blake’s 7) to write in because there isn’t the competition and almost no one I know writes slash concentrating on Blake now. So, I want to read about him, basically I have to write it.

  • a fan talks about “custom bears”:
    I have a good friend who makes custom bears in all fandoms, all with attached furry balls and penises. She would make a Kirk and/or Spock bear for you WITH or without the ‘private equipment.’ Actually, she can make the ‘family jewels’ and put them on elastic so you can choose whether or not to make your bears adult… An individual bear with uniform BUT not private parts is $35. The ‘family jewels,’ whether attached or on elastic, are $5 extra.

The K/S Press 54 (February 2001)

  • contains 35 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction The Bond, Echoes of Forever, Games, The Captain's Needs, Heartstrings, Life Lines, La Ronde, Lord of the Dance, Lost Sailor, Morning Dew, Ripple, Sadness, Loss and Love, Ravage, Thoughts: Letting Go, Tirizandi Voyages, The Word Withheld, Worlds Apart from the zines Naked Times #14, #17, First Time #38, #51, Cheap Thrills #1, Songs of the Dirhja, T'hy'la #21, Festival, Worlds Apart, Nome #8, see those pages
  • a fan says she thinks the food synthesizers could come up with vegetarian food for Vulcans and others than boring salads
  • there is much discussion about what makes a story a “Spock story” or a “Kirk story”
  • an announcement that KiScon is looking for zines for the orphan zine table
  • the editors write:
    Happy Valentines Day to all!.. Do you think Kirk and Spock reaffirm their Bond on Valentine’s Day? Maybe there’s a Vulcan equivalent?...

  • a reader comments on a story:
    This is another one of those ‘Kirk and Spock are forced to have sex in public’ stories. Isn’t it interesting how so many of our K/S stories fall into distinct categories? That means the stories can turn into unsatisfying clichés, but can also sometimes transcend their category and become truly memorable.

  • a reader writes of LoCs that backfired:
    Years ago, I wrote my heart out to the editors, to the authors, telling them all just how their stories and zines made me feel. My reviews always contained an overabundance of exclamation points and bold-type words expressing my passionate emotions/reactions. I’m sure those eds/authors thought they were dealing with a nut! I mean a worse one that the ‘normal’ K/S fanatic. One of them wrote back to me, ‘Whew, what a letter!’ not meaning it in a good way. Another editor wouldn’t entertain the possibility of even looking at a story from me, because I’d one a little criticizing of her own story. I considered them fan letters, they were mostly positive.

  • a fan writes of her early day paranoia:
    Back then [K/S] was a slightly dangerous thing to believe in, to write, to sketch, to draw. I even went so far as to burn any writings I did… I wouldn’t put any in the trash, afraid there were spies out there pawing through it…

  • the change with art and computers:
    I’ve been thinking about K/S art, that changes these days are even more striking than the changes in writing. The mode of delivery of K/S stories , on-line, is different, but they are still stories about Kirk and Spock. There are always changes in style and tone when any new people come into K/S. But the changes in the art are even more different. Because people can do photo composites now, it seems it would be easy for us to get jaded. We used to rely on drawings by our wonderful artists and the only way we could see Kirk and Spock in naked embrace, but now we can see what appear to be actual photographs of Kirk and Spock in naked embrace… This is a marvelous new creative medium, photo editing. I know it takes a particular talent to do these, well, and I’ve enjoyed seeing them… [But] I worry for our artists, that their efforts won’t be appreciated.

  • a well-known and prolific artist makes this comment about art and the internet:
    Because of the internet with its K/S lists and groups and posted stories, there’s les of a demand for zines, and with fewer zines, there less demand for art. [Online participants] have less of a need for art… “because they get their K/S art fix from photos and pictures on the internet.

  • a reader notes that Orion Press is changing its Star Trek options:
    It is dropping all non-classic Star Trek PLUS it’s dropping all its non-canon Star Trek [43 titles]. Frankly, that makes it sound pretty boring to me. All material is gen of course. BUT if you are into gen classic Stars Trek, you can contact Orion Press.

The K/S Press 55 (March 2001)

  • contains 40 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction Beneath the Sands of Gri'Alon, The Fragile Bottle, Catalysis, Home, Going Public, Lady Amanda, Lord of the Dance, Making a Captain, Remember Me, Sadness, Loss and Love, The Same Mistake, The Sting, Thoughts: Letting Go, To Journey's End, The Valley of Love and Delight, The Unknown Quantity, Voyages, The Word Withheld from the zines Naked Times #13, #14, #20, As I Do Thee #13, #16, T'hy'la #21, First Time #51, Festival, see those pages
  • excerpt from "Beneath the Sands of Gri'alon" by Dovya Blacque in As I Do Thee #13
  • a comment about art:
    As someone who loves to draw Kirk and Spock, I was very sad to read the last issue that two people thought K/S art might be losing its popularity...I have seen some excellent photo manips and some that have really taken my breath away, however, I get more from hand drawn art as I can examine the style of the artist, and the many, many styles which can be used... I love the art in zines and sincerely hope that all the artists carry on drawing for years to come, I hope and believe that there is room for both computer and manual art. Whilst photo manipulations have the WOW factor of actually 'seeing' Kirk and Spock as I might imagine them, manual art has a kind of mystique which can make even a technically imperfect drawing draw the eye again and again.

  • a comment about zines losing their popularity:
    I must say I feel a touch guilty about that as I rarely buy new zines, but I like to think that if I had more money I would buy them all as a gesture of support for something which I love so very much.

  • an artist talks of photo manipulations and art:
    The more I become involved with it [photo manip] the more I consider it an art... I can spend as much time or more on a photo manip than I can drawing a picture, expanding just about the same amount of creative energy... Having said this, what has had me in a confused state lately is the mixed signals I am recieving from K/Sers. Everyone enjoys the results, they wan tmore. However, quite a few individuals in this slash fandom, including some publishers, do not accept this as a true art form... Perhaps due to the fact that slash fandom is a recent addition, born on the internet, I have found photo manips to be totally embraced and begged for online with e-stories and in published zines. K/S is, and rightly so, considered the origin of slash, However, I wonder if it needs to embrace the modern times in order to continue to flourish.

  • an artist ponders whether making photo manips is ethical:
    From those with the-look-don't-touch mentality, I have received the following two lines of reasoning. First I am sometimes told the images are of Bill Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, unlike sketchers who are creating their interpretation of Spock and Kirk. Personally, I have come to the point I totally cringe and disagree with this viewpoint. Shatner and Nimoy ARE Kirk and Spock. When we read fanfic, watch ST episodes, or as I sometimes do, gaze longingly into the artwork of such greats as Shelly [Butler], I see Spock and Kirk in Shatner and Nimoy's bodies. These two created the characters we love and I could not visualize them in any other way. So in essence we are USING their bodies when we write and draw. To me the second reason has a bit more validity: copyright. Some zines do not accept photo manips for this reason. At first, I felt a bit hesitant -- here I am basing a work on someone else's work. Yet, is this not what fanfic is about? We are basing our stories on someone else's original concept?

  • a comment on the rise of photo manips and graphic nudity:
    Yes, K/S is more than sex. As with anything new and interesting you will see a flood of work -- once people discovered photo manip we have had an overabundance of nude works. It was that way for the artwork in K/S zines. We had an overflow of nude and graphic pictures from such people as [G F]. However, I now see increasingly more wonderful pictures without the nudity. I also see the tide changing in photo manips on the net.

The K/S Press 56 (April 2001)

  • contains 39 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction An Anguish to Pay, The Body's Treason, Catharsis, But Never Parted, Dreamweaver, Echoes, Lessons, Lost Sailor, Ripple, Golden Silences, A Matter of Trust, Personal Devil, The Missing Piece, Sing the Tune, This Dialogue of One, The Word Withheld, The World Turned Upside Down in the zines Year of the Ram, Festival, First Time #40, #52, Matter/Antimatter #3/4, Naked Times #1, Scattered Stars #2, T'hy'la #19, see those pages
  • announcement of Philon winners
  • includes a Kiscon con report by Dusky, Linda W., Karen P, [K S], Shelley Butler, Jenna
  • an interview with Mary Sweeney who won an honorable mention for her story in the published anthology "Strange New Worlds IV."
  • a fan encourages others to go back and re-read some older K/S fic. She recounts an anthology of stories by Ginna La Croix called "Encore":
    It doesn't really matter whether her stories were non-explicit because of the times or because of her own perception or even reticence. What is important is that she concentrated on the pure unselfish and naturally evolving love that triggered the conception of K/S in all its forms... Together they [Encore] represent the unfolding of a timeless love story. It would difficult to see how they might offend even the most sensitive or non-K/S reader. Yet they lead us inexorably to the many talents and K/S entries to follow. Perhaps we all must grow, just as Kirk's and Spock's love for each other had to evolve naturally and over an extended period of time. Those of us were were initiated by these gentle offerings perhaps needed more over time to pique our interest and sustain our passion, but that doesn't diminish their importance. For those of you who entered K/S after the innocence and modesty had faded, I would heartily recommend going back to some of these stories to savor the ease with which the relationship developed, the awe that we all felt as such forbidden feelings began to blossom. I don't know that I would be content with these alone now that I've tasted more exotic and adventurous fare -- probably not. But I am equally as certain that erotic and explicit encounters would begin to lose their appeal if not bolstered by all those things so well captured by those who pioneered K/S.

  • more thoughts on the new photo manips:
    I'm sure that there is and will be a place for both drawings and photo-composites... When photography first came into being, the worry was that it would replace painting. Well, it did put some portrait painters out of business. But also, it put imagery in the hands of the people. I'm not being resistant to this new technology...Nor am I not into 'diversity' (Sometimes, just because a person criticizes something, trots out the accusation that one is not doing the IDIC thing.) I had just been thinking with nostalgia about the good old days when we found satisfaction with less. It's this way in all of life these days -- a glut of everything makes us want more and more faster and to be satisfied... The copyright issue is more complicated, though. Not so much that you are editing someone else's work/photographs. But don't copyright laws speak to the actors' ownership of the images themselves that we're playing so fast and loose with? However, I think it's all so out of hand that it can hardly be stopped anymore anyway, all the messing around everyone's doing on the net with other people's intellectual property, if it is indeed that.

The K/S Press 57 (May 2001)

  • contains 42 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction An Act of Salvation, Communication, Debriefing, A Deltan Dilemma, The Flavor of Gold, A Doctor's Tale, Fruits and Nuts, Into the Light, Hour of Freedom, Just a Kiss, A Midsummers Night's Dream, The Necessary Meld, Players in the Game, "No Brighter Moment", The Power of Suggestion, Paradise?, Reaching Eden, Ritual, Remember Me, Sound of Heartbeats, To End is to Make a Beginning, To Serve, To Dance with a Warrior, The Touch of Your Hand, The Valley of Love and Delight, Whatever Thou Wouldst Crave, Untouched, When Fate Summons, When Rain Comes from the zines Beyond Dreams #3, First Time #37, #45, #46, Kaleidoscope #2, Legends, Naked Times #7, Nome #10, T'hy'la#17, #21, When Fate Summons, see those pages
  • the editors hoped, if they could figure out the digital camera, there'd be photos from KiScon
  • a Heartbeats bio from Linda B.
  • some con reports for KiScon
  • some fans describe what they did on K/S Day
  • a fan brings up "the panel on pornography at KiScon:
    How do we handle our slash property in case of death? Like in the case of Joyce's collection, her husband does not know she's involved with it... yet what if (heaven's forbid) she had died prior to this weekend? Should we make provisions? [1]

  • a fan comments on another fan's observation:
    You also wrote about early zine stories having the capability of drawing the reader into the K/S world, perhaps due to less sophistication. I think you are right -- the very early stories were obviously written nearer to the episode's first transmissions, without the computer/technological knowledge that exists today, and therefore largely free of the 'techni-calise' we tend to use now. Also, in general, there was not so much psychological analysis then -- not exclusively of course -- there are exceptions, particularly in stories written in the 80s and early 90s. There was a forthright simplicity about a lot of the stories, even though this simplicity was often contained in complex plots.

  • a fan is a little frustrated:
    ... [regarding] some of the art reviews. The First Time zines don't have art if the zine has been reprinted. So, I've read some descriptions of First Time art that made me salivate, only to realize that when I go the zine that it was a second edition with no art! Not that I'm complaining -- Robin hasn't raised her prices in years, and I'm sure this is the reason why.

  • a fan says about reviews and LoCs:
    I have been ordering zines based on the story reviews in the KSP, so am grateful to those who've taken the time to write one. I even decided to try writing a LoC myself, and now have a whole new appreciation for those who have written them. It took me a lot longer than I thought it would, and I'm not thrilled with the result. I am NOT a writer -- wish I was -- and it shows. I kind of droned on and on for too long without saying anything of very much interest and in the process gave away the whole plot!

  • a frequent contributer offers a:
    ... recipe for which I have recently acquired a definite taste. The main ingredient of this delectable entree is CROW. Sprinkled generously with embarrassment and just a touch of humility, I find it tastes a lot like chicken... You see, having been a prime and rather outspoken opponent to internet K/S, I had an opportunity recently on a borrowed laptop to see just a sampling of what is out there. I am nothing short of astonished and nothing less than profoundly apologetic fro my earlier tunnel vision. I had simply no idea the quantity and quality of material and the pure pleasure of being able to pull these touches of K/S literally out of thin air. I am sure with the limited access I have to the internet, I have barely skimmed the surface. And I readily admit it has created much the same thirst for more than my first taste of zines in the early '80s. Would I give up zines? Not on your life. They are my bread and butter. I can hold them in my hand and know they aren't going to vanish into thin air. I can drool over the artwork for hours. I can stand and look at the rows of carefully labeled (in code) boxes and gloat over the millions of words of glorious love and devotion they contain.... Yes, my concern was and remains to some extent, that the openness of al this will force issues that might have been carefully ignored while we were underground. It may be an understatement of the century to say we are no longer underground. But I absolutely have had an eye-opening experience about the impact of instant-access K/S gratification.

  • of photo manips and composites:
    I would love to learn more. I'd also love to see some of the results form folks who are more proficient than I. Several of you have spoken of websites where these are available. Would anyone like to share those sites for those of us who have no idea where to look and limited tim in which to 'surf.'

  • a fan wears her Star Trek uniform for the costume contest at KiScon and gets a reaction in the hallway:
    My Gaud, that girl is wearing a Star Trek uniform!' her friend replies, 'Yeah, I think they're having a trek convention, weird huh?'... the odd thing was that these two ladies were wearing cowboy costumes complete with large hats, and frankly, what they were doing was at least as odd as what I was doing and probably at lot less fun!

  • a British fan makes an KiScon observation:
    I was amazed how much better art seems to sell in America. A lovely Gayle F print went for $250 when in England I have seen an almost identical print go for twenty pounds.

The K/S Press 58 (June 2001)

  • contains 41 pages
  • has LoCs from fiction Acceptance, The Awakening, Along the Way, But Never Parted, Contemplations, Dilithium Dreams, Duet for One Voice, The Edge of the World, Dark Star, The Gol Letters, Just a Kiss, One Winged Angels, The Necessary Meld, Remember Me, Ritual, Standing in the Shadows, Second Time, Test of Faith, Someone to Watch Over Thee, The Things I Cannot Change, Things That Go Bump in the Night, To Dance with a Warrior, The Valley of Love and Delight, Whatever Thou Wouldst Crave, To Dance with a Warrior, Transparent, What Has Always Been Between Us, The World Turned Upside Down in the zines As I Do Thee #15, #16, KaleidoScope #3, #5, Festival, Courts of Honor, Naked Times #18, #21, Legends, KiScon Zine 2001, Scattered Stars #7, #12, T'hy'la #15, #20, #21, Beyond Dreams #3, Standing in the Shadows, First Time #49, #52, Festival, see those pages
  • many KiScon con reports
  • an excerpt from Nome #8, "And Never Parted" part three by Elwyn Conway
  • a fan suggests that others look at Kirk's erection/pants in the episode "The Apple"
  • in a rare mention of other fandoms, a fan says she was an avid K/S zine collector but had to sell her collection to make way for her Blake's 7 zine collection
  • the editors write:
    June is upon us, and the fragrance of K/S wafts through the early summer's cool night air...so recline on a soft blanket spread over a cool carpet of grass beneath the gently rustling trees, and read this latest issue of "The K/S Press.

  • a fan tells of some correspondence from Gerry Downes shortly before she died:
    The artwork [of "Alternative 1 and 2/3"] was amazing. And this was artwork done in the very, very start of K/S. I sent Gerry a card telling her how much I appreciated her work in ST and K/S before she died and received a lovely note from her husband afterwards telling me how much she had enjoyed the card, and also how much she had enjoyed Star Trek, right up until the end. Her love of Star Trek was evident in what she wrote, what she drew, and also all the very nice zines she published. I think one thing people sometimes forget -- and especially anti-slashers -- is that slash fans really do love the series and the shows they slash. And most slash fans support not just slash, but the overall fandom.

  • a fan disagrees, "sort of," with a fan's praise of internet fiction in the previous episode:
    I read hundreds and hundreds of online stories first, before discovering fanzines. I've read too many stories in too short of time period (a lot of them are starting to blur together in my memory) to make any valid comparisons on net stories versus zine stories, so can't really compare them or make any general observations... I will say that the worst stories I've ever read --truly dreadful, dreadful stuff -- were online. I think that's because anyone with access to a computer can write and post a story.... The editing process in fanzines must cull out the truly dreadful stories. However, many authors online use beta readers to proofread their stories, so the general quality of stories is actually pretty good online., and there are some really excellent writers. After reading about 100 zines by now, some of my favorite authors include authors I first discovered on the Internet, such as Killashandra, Greywolf and Kira-nerys.

  • a fan ruminates on a theory she heard "some years ago" on switching allegiances:
    The theory goes that women who saw ST when young generally go for Spock more than Kirk as Spock is the most sensitive and tortured soul. However, as they mature they change their allegiance to Kirk, as by that time what they want is a strong, rather mach man, considerably less 'complicated' than Spock. This may have something to do with the teenage/young person's sense of 'being apart' from society, a feeling which generally lessons as we grow older and make our way in the world. However, the theory goes on to say that the move is really tangled up with feminism and concepts of new-man, which we don't really want. What we do want, apparently, is someone strong, powerful, uncomplicated, and independent (and good-looking) like Kirk to carry us away and order our lives, and we become more aware of this as we grow older. Now, before you all start shouting at once, may I make it clear THIS IS NOT MY VIEW. I merely proffer the notion for discussion!

  • a reader wishes the letterzine would provide a section on listing K/S websites as this would be helpful:
    When I first got my PC, I spent hours trying to track stuff down and searched on all the obvious things. You wouldn't believe how many people named their dog Spock, and created sites about them.

  • a fan in Puerto Rico discovers a whole new world:
    After I wrote this letter, I bought my first zine on the internet!!!!!! My god, I didn't know they sold them by INTERNET!!!!!!

  • fan is confused by the Internet:
    I've seen that people often talk about reading K/S stories on the Net. But they don't provide addresses... Please, if it's possible, can you provide me those addresses? Also, I don't know if, by being on the Net, it's a violation of copyright or something but, if I have to pay for reading them I'll gladly pay for them.

The K/S Press 59 (July 2001)

  • contains 38 pages
  • has LoCs for fiction And We Fall in Love, Bet, Dilithium Dreams, The Body's Treason, Enemy Mine, Fire and Rain, Ever Warm, Forbidden Colors, Getting to Know, Keeping Secrets, Just a Kiss, Losing Myself in You, A Meal to Remember, Mirror Mirror Mirror, The Love Song of Lt. Commander Spock, A Moment's Surrender, The Necessary Meld, Night Lessons, Pacing the Cage, Personal Devil, Rejected Tryst, Present Tense, Future Perfect, Sharing the Sunlight, Save a Prayer, Snowman, To Defy the Night, Together in the Afternoon, That of Which We Do Not Speak, Transfer of Affection, Up to Something, Voyages, Wednesday's Child, Bitter Circle, What Can I Offer? in the zines Beyond Dreams #1, #2, The KiScon Zine #2, Legends, Matter/Antimatter #3/4, Within the Mirror #13, Naked Times #17, Festival, Charisma #17, Encore, First Time #52, T'hy'la #21, see those pages
  • con organizer tells of her attempts to find a bakery that would make her explicit erotic cake and how she succeeded as well as purchasing the two large dildos and a pornographic sports bottle used in the play “CinderSpock.”
  • includes a list of online K/S sites and comments/reviews of them
  • a reprint of an article in the Los Angeles Times: “Fandom’s Final Frontier: Homoerotic Literature” by Mary McNamara
  • A writer, [D B], says:
    I figured this might be the best way to thank the many, many of you who have written to me privately about Legends. I cannot believe the torrent of e-mails and letters I've received; the response has been extremely gratifying. I'm sorry I can't respond to each and every one of you privately, there are just too many, but I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you who ha ve written with detailed LOCs and to those who've just taken the time to say 'loved it.' I cannot tell you how much your time and effort means to me.

  • a zine publisher says:
    Also, a few people have asked why my zines cost more when they buy them at conventions from Agent With Style. Well, she charges more! No other explanations. You can always buy everything I publish from me by either going to my website, emailing me or writing to my mailing address.

  • a fan says she fell for Spock hard as a child, and as she grew older she:
    ... started to really dislike Kirk; I found him manipulative, sexist, and worst of all, arrogant enough to believe that it was all right to ignore the Prime Directive and reshape entire cultures as he saw fit. If you don’t think these are serious character flaws, imagine someone without Kirk’s good points but with all his bad points running around the galaxy with the power of a starship at his disposal. Think about Kirk’s evil half in the Mirror Universe.

  • where to put all the zines?! a reader says:
    I fondly recall in the early years a frequent topic of discussion, and still is, was our creative approaches to managing the physical zine collection.

  • a fan writes of her earlier years:
    As a hippie and a feminist, Kirk was everything I wasn’t interested in a man – the white kind of all-American macho authority figure and ladies man. Ugh. Spock was my man for sure. But later one, in my matured and more all-inclusive sexuality, I absolutely couldn’t deny the animal magnetism of Kirk. Simply a gorgeous man; and I could clear away the stereotypes an see his sterling qualities, too. Besides, trite but true: as I fell in love with K/S, I got to see Kirk through Spock’s eyes, and if Spock could love him, I could, too.

  • a zine publisher, with her arm in a cast, has a collating party with her husband (a man who she says should get a medal.) They were sitting at the table:
    with me handing him carefully counted stacks of pages (always being certain that the erotic pictures that were sure to bring a frown to his face were NOT visible!) and him using my binding machine to punch holes in them.

The K/S Press 60 (August 2001)

  • contains 45 pages
  • has LoCs for the fiction The Assessment, Bet, ComeupPANce, Bargains, Destiny's Way, The Extremists, Dracus, I Told You So, Lost Sailor, Odds and Abbs, Mirror Mirror Mirror, P.R., Ripple, The Same Mistake, "Report from the Rim", Sweet Surrender, Thicker Than Blood, Thoughts: Letting Go, The World Turned Upside Down, the Time Between, Voyages, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, see those pages
  • on why do some K/Sers start out as Spock lovers and end up loving Kirk more:
    I have always considered myself leaning more towards being a “Kirk-ophile”, even though I really loved them both. But in recent times, I can see myself being drawn, more and more, to Kirk. I see Kirk as so complete—good aspects of masculinity, but also important ones of femininity. Beautiful. Charismatic. Strong, yet sensitive. A powerful leader, yet able to admit mistakes. I think I see Kirk as more of a complete person than Spock is without Kirk. Does that make sense? I mean, Kirk absolutely loves Spock, but is not incomplete without him. Whereas I think Spock is made whole by his deep, intense relationship with Kirk.

  • on obsession:
    Like others, I am intrigued by the power of my response to these fictional characters. In the friendly pages of KSP we can admit to one another that our passion for K/S can be all-consuming. We can admit that, right? This is scary, potentially. I have to say that, if I hide my K/S interest from others, it’s not just the sex I’m shy about so much as the “weirdness” of so much deep emotional investment in a sixties space adventure... As a fan, I have an intense relationship with Kirk and Spock which I find it hard to explain even to myself. It’s undoubtedly enriching, comforting and life-enhancing, but very difficult for people outside fandom to understand. I wonder if it is a kind of illness (I’m joking, sort of).

  • a fan comments on favorite characters:
    I have a fascination with the heroic. First it was Peter Pan, then Batman, Jim Kirk, Alexander, Earnest Shackleton, etc. I’m getting heavily into mountaineering literature just now because of the daring deeds. As a child, I loved Spock for all his goodness, his suffering, and his touching devotion to Kirk. But it was Kirk himself I adored. The sexism was a sixties thing, though I did want to punish him for it (and I did!). The man’s flaws make him doubly compelling.... I see great value in Kirk’s striving for what he believes in. His greatness. He is successful, too, you have to admit he usually gets what he’s after, whereas poor Spock never seems to. The arrogance, over-confidence and occasional ruthlessness are the other side of this coin—they make him vulnerable, for they are shortcomings. One thing I find entrancing is that his forceful, dynamic masculinity is totally balanced by his receptive, intuitive side. He’s a very complicated man. I think he hides it under his captain’s persona, but it’s there. That futile search for love, the loneliness of command, the extravagant expressiveness—emotional and physical. Neediness, held in check by his integrity and courage. In The Price Of The Phoenix by Marshak and Culbreath, Omne says something like, “Determination is even more attractive in one so vulnerable.” Only with Spock can Kirk safely develop this softer, “feminine” side. It’s deeply sexy. Controversial suggestion coming up: Some of us love to see Kirk suffer to pay him back for his arrogance, and to see him submit with grace and courage. We will always reward him with Spock’s love.

  • a fan thanks another for some internet info:
    Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the website info. As explained earlier, my time to browse the internet is so very limited, I might never have found some of these sites. I’m so grateful you have taken the time to go into the detail you did. Now when I have a moment for a “quickie” download, I won’t have to waste time searching. I already have “Bitter Glass” stashed on a disk. Even though you said you weren’t a fan of that particular saga, your description was most intriguing.

  • a fan is amazed at a new world:
    Thanks so much for all the internet sites you listed in last month’s KSP. Wow! I’m familiar with some of them, but never knew there were so many out there.

  • a fan congratulates another one on her determination:
    I was greatly amused and impressed by the wonderful story of the KiScon cake. Amused? I nearly fell off the chair laughing! Impressed? The sheer matter-of-fact aplomb and determination with which you set about your task left me awestruck. Now that’s what I call dedication over and above the call of duty! A bizarre and lovely story, with such incredibly surrealistic dialogue....

  • a fan writes:
    Patricia, aka Jane Doe: It is amusing, our connecting after all these years (it was 1993 when we met at Eileen’s). I, too, have enjoyed your stories over this time, without realizing the connection. Of course, you got to remember me more easily as I was the stranger in your group, but you-all were friends, and I can’t say I remember who everyone was, especially if you use pen names. It was funny for me, also, because you were all talking fast an slangy and about raunchy K/S things and such, and I couldn’t even follow it all, like a foreign language.

References

  1. ^ YES!