TrekGirl Interview with m.c. moose
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| Interviews by Fans | |
|---|---|
| Title: | TrekGirl Interview with m.c. moose |
| Interviewer: | Annie M. |
| Interviewee: | m.c. moose |
| Date(s): | November 2000 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom(s): | Star Trek |
| External Links: | interview is here; reference link |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
m.c. moose was interviewed for the website TrekGirl.
"Author of Personal Effects, Should Have Stood in Bed, Up-'Lifting Conversation, Life Lines and more."
Interview Series
- TrekGirl Interview with D'Alaire
- TrekGirl Interview with DangerMom
- TrekGirl Interview with Dave Rogers
- TrekGirl Interview with J Winter
- TrekGirl Interview with Jane St Clair
- TrekGirl Interview with Jungle Kitty
- TrekGirl Interview with m.c. moose
Excerpts
I stopped writing when I was in college, when it was clear that I wasn't Pulitzer prize material (which was the only sort of writer my college encouraged) and focused on science instead. Strangely enough, fanfiction lured me back to writing. It looked like such a fun sandbox, and the other kids playing there were kind and encouraging... All my fanfiction has been Janeway-centric, but I enjoy reading other Voyager stories and some DS9 as well. I've not explored TNG or TOS fanfiction much because there are only 24 hours in a day.
I think the writers face an inherently difficult task -- writing a 24th century Starship captain who happens to be a woman for a 20th/21st century audience who finds such an idea rather remarkable. It's difficult for them to write a woman captain as the non-issue it should be. The fact that Janeway is a woman should be no more notable than the fact that Sisko is African-Amercian, and both should be less notable than the fact that Picard has a French name yet a British accent.
I think it's admirable for TPTB to explore the issues associated with the isolation of command, but frankly don't feel they've done a very impressive job. The DS9 writers did a better job with Sisko. They captured his initial bitterness (toward Picard) and skepticism (toward Bajoran religion) as well as his obsessions (with Eddington and Dukat), yet made it all play within the context of being a dedicated and admirable Starfleet officer. The Voyager writers haven't been as successful, I don't think. We still don't fully understand the extent to which Janeway feels she must maintain "a captain's distance" (nor why she feels this way, given Voyager's extraordinary circumstances). I'm willing to accept that Janeway might battle despair and depression (as shown in "Night"), but not for the reasons given, nor to have her demons purged by one good battle with the Malons. You can't handle Janeway's depression (or Torres' survivor guilt) in a one-shot episode -- these are problems that require long-term exploration/resolution.
[regarding the recent addition of the holodeck character, Michael Sullivan, as a companion]; I think TPTB opened a can of worms they're ill-prepared to handle. There's a ton of potentially challenging issues here (from the status of holographic beings to whether Janeway's use of a hologram reaffirms or denies her humanity), but the writers prefer to deal with Harry kissing a cow.
I'm a stickler for accurate characterization. Unless the author is intentionally exploring alternate universe versions, I expect the characters in the story to act like the characters we see in the show (well, they can be more interesting and multidimensional, but still). If Janeway comes off as a love-sick teenager, my teeth start to hurt. If writers want to invent new characters, that's fine. I don't dismiss every original character as a Mary Sue. But don't reinvent the established characters. That's just jarring to the reader. Yes, I try to write the Voyager characters accurately. It's up to the reader to decide whether I succeed.