From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG9904D" ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 22:08:33 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Smith Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain >>Those of you who are new to writing fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does it make you less willing to try?<< I fall into the "still deciding" category. Reading wonderful fanfic stories inspires me. The fact that most of authors are amateurs makes me think, "if they can do it, so can I." My stories might not be the same high quality, but that's okay. Browsing through the archive, I've read some excellent stories and some less well-written stories; the former are inspiring, and the latter are still enjoyable to read. Diyan Smith _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:55:37 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: The British are coming... In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Hi all, Again coming to this thread late due to the time difference - I'm glad, actually, because it's given me a change to see everyone else's views first! Nice thread again, Yvonne - you just keep on posting here! When I first started writing fanfic I didn't really think about the differences between UK and US English. I just wrote it as it 'appeared' in my head. More recently, though, I have clarified my thinking considerably in relation to the so-called 'common language' we share. I was brought up using British English (we do in Ireland, although we have a few variations of our own... who understands what I'm talking about if I mention the presses in Clark's kitchen [nothing to do with printing presses ;)], or describe something as 'banjaxed'?). I use UK spelling... consistently... (yes, Erin, and thanks for being so patient about it!). However, I now make a distinction in my own mind between spelling and vocabulary. There are some US words or word usages I will not use because I just don't like them (call me intolerant, but...). I dislike 'gotten' as the past tense of 'get'; it sounds ugly to me, and since I know that the UK version, 'got', would not be used in the US I work around it - find a different verb or phrasing. I am aware that I am dealing with American characters, and so in dialogue I *try* to make them sound American, although I'm now aware - thanks to Sheila's posting - that I don't go nearly far enough with 'gonna' and so on. But, to me, even if I *write* Clark as saying 'going to', I hear him *saying* it as 'gonna'. But perhaps others don't, and perhaps I need to work on it. There is another way in which I've changed my word usage: as Kathy said: > If I come across an unfamiliar British idiom or phrase in a story I'm > editing, I will question the author about it, mainly for my own benefit but > also to point out that it may be unclear to some of their American readers > (which make up the majority of FoLCs). Some time ago, Kathy challenged me about 'rucksack', which I'd used in 'Guest from the Blue'; we agreed that it should become 'backpack'. 'It Happened One (Super) Night', my most heavily edited story, also underwent some changes in that respect: I learned that Americans call a takeaway 'takeout', and I now use that instead. Sheila queried 'duvet' - I never realised that Americans don't use that term for a continental quilt. So in these respects I now also try to 'internationalise' my vocabulary in the narrative. And by the way, if I'm not doing it enough - which I'm probably not - I'd welcome comments on this privately. > However, I make an exception for dialogue. It is distracting for me, as an > American reader of L&C fanfic, to have Lois or Clark or any of the American > characters speaking in British expressions. Kathy, you're spot on there! (Sorry, 'dead on' - that's another one I was told about: thanks Sheila!). I read a lot of Regency romances, and as there aren't anywhere near enough published over here, I read American regencies. I can cope with American spelling, Americanisms in narrative, but when it comes to the characters (all British!) using 'gotten', 'the both of us', 'quit doing that' and so on *in speech* it interrupts my concentration on the story. These words or phrases wouldn't be used over here anyway, and certainly not by the aristocracy two hundred years ago. > > Actually, I've always wondered ... to the British writers, when you hear > Lois and Clark speaking in your story, do you hear them as using those > British-isms? Or is it simply an automatic reaction to type dialogue for > them using the phrases that are most natural to you? It may well have been the latter, Kathy; as I said, when I first started writing fanfic I didn't really think about language or vocabulary at all. I do sometimes 'hear' the characters speaking the words I write for them, and my writing style in dialogue is much less formal than in narrative. However, I'm fully willing to admit that it isn't idiomatic or 'American' enough. > Are you ever "jarred" > of a fanfic by the American phrases that Lois and Clark use? > Only, I suppose, if it's a phrase which I see as grammatically incorrect. Although I dislike the usage of 'regular' to mean 'normal', I can accept that this is the American usage. I do dislike 'the both of us' or 'couple beers'. No, what jars me, if anything does, is something which seems to me to be out of character as opposed to 'sounds wrong'. Though I was watching 'DLW' again last night and found myself jarred by Clark saying 'on the lam (?)' - I didn't hear it properly before. That's not a word I'm familiar with at all. I think previously I thought he'd said 'on the run'. Talked too much as usual... I'll shut up now... Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 07:02:44 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Re: the "critique" thing and Poor Grammar in Fanfic and MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy Brown wrote: > At 2:06 PM +0100 4/21/99, Wendy Richards wrote: > >Perhaps we're getting a couple of things mixed up here, though. I > >would be surprised if anyone objected to public postings saying 'I > >really loved (insert name of story), and I think (insert name of > >writer) needs to write more as soon as possible!' Perhaps even, 'I > >particularly liked (insert scene which especially appealed).' > > This whole discussion has been amazingly similar to the private discussion > a few of us have been having while trying to come up with an FAQ for this > fanfic list and the Fanfic Archive. The difference between "feedback" and > "critque" was questioned there as well. I would love to be a part of this discussion. I don't know how FAQ's "happen." I assume listowners put them together with other administrative people, etc. Anyway, I'm sure this is being taken into account (and *I'm not* making an accusation), but I hope people with varied feelings on this issue are represented. Sandy smcdermin@erols.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 07:35:10 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy Brown wrote: > At 10:03 PM -0700 4/19/99, Eileen Barnard wrote: > >I understand exactly what you mean. I also haven't dared to send any of my > >stuff to the list yet because it can be quite daunting with such a wealth of > >excellent writing around. > > This comment, originally on the critique thread, got me thinking about an > email exchange I had last month. Those of you who are new to writing > fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your > reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does > it make you less willing to try? On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth > Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the > presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list > intimidate you? I consider myself a very fledgling writer, as a matter of fact I don't consider myself a writer at all. (Calling myself by that title makes me feel very uncomfortable and so I don't -- at least not in public.) The first thing I ever wrote that wasn't forced out of me by a university is "Something's Missing" and I started that toward the end of ... 95? Can't remember. Anyway, the fact of the Kerths hasn't affected (effected?) whether I wrote, but I think it has affected how I feel about my writing. Sandy smcdermin@erols.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 05:43:44 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: irene d Subject: Re: Kerths and Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain > >At 10:03 PM -0700 4/19/99, Eileen Barnard wrote: >>I understand exactly what you mean. I also haven't dared to send any of my >>stuff to the list yet because it can be quite daunting with such a wealth of >>excellent writing around. Kathy B wrote >This comment, originally on the critique thread, got me thinking about an >email exchange I had last month. Those of you who are new to writing >fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your >reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does >it make you less willing to try? On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth >Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the >presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list >intimidate you? As a brand new fanfic writer, I thought I should add my two cents. I can't point my finger at any one thing that made me decide to try writing a fanfic. But, just the fact that the fanfic archive actually exists, and that there is a forum for literature about my favourite show, that had a huge effect on me. The Kerth Awards didn't specifically inspire me, but when I found out that Wendy Richards had only been writing for a year approximately, that did inspire me. Wendy is my all time favourite writer (although Margaret Brignell, Chris Mulder, Debby Stark, Zoomway and a multitude of others rank right up there too). The most important motivator for me was the idea. While watching Brutal Youth (repeatedly of course), I kept wondering what effect the whole thing would have had on Jimmy. Voila, the idea for "Firestorm". The final push for me was Karen Ward's encouragement. (Hey Karen, hope your exam goes well today!) When I told her my ideas, she said something along the lines of "You have to write that down. That sounds great!" Music to my ears, of course. Changing the topic to irritating phrases that slip by the spellchecker, I hate it when someone means "Voila" as spelled above, and spells it "Viola" instead. And of course the spellchecker doesn't catch it, a viola is a musical instrument! Anyway, enough out of me - I'm heading back to bed, trying to get over severe bronchitis or mild pneumonia (the doctor wasn't quite sure which.). Take care, Irene ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 08:40:13 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: the "critique" thing and Poor Grammar in Fanfic and In-Reply-To: <371F01D4.1DD90679@erols.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 07:02 AM 22/04/1999 -0400, you wrote: >I would love to be a part of this discussion. I don't know how FAQ's >"happen." I assume listowners put them together with other >administrative people, etc. Anyway, I'm sure this is being taken into >account (and *I'm not* making an accusation), but I hope people with >varied feelings on this issue are represented. Well, that would be the purpose of a FAQ, yes, to represent the many varied feelings of those to whom it will apply. However, ultimately, it's impossible to have a committee comprised of an entire list's subscription base. As different from a newsgroup, the owner of the list also has final say. I'm sure both Zoom and Farah will attest to the fact that it's no piece of cake administering for a few hundred people's happy discussion every day, so the FAQ needs to reflect not only the 'will of the people', but maintain the *sanity* of the listowner and moderators, additionally. This is not an 'anything goes' newsgroup. It can't be. That said, there are so many different opinions and sources going into the FAQ which Kathy mentioned (most of which come directly from this list and the FOLC opinions which have been shared in the past couple of weeks -- including your own, Sandy), that I'm certain there shouldn't be a problem. I'm glad you're not making an accusation, either, because I hope you know how much background work goes into putting together a FAQ to begin with. Its impossible for any sort of 'guide' to please 100% of the people, 100% of the time, but in the end, neither does it have to. Especially on a closed list. Best All, Demi ___________________________________________ Demi aka Demona nightangel@home.com http://fantasia.simplenet.com/lcfantasy/ "Far away, long ago, glowing dim as an ember. Things my heart used to know, things it yearns to remember.." - 'Anastasia' (excerpt: 'Once Upon A December') I went to the doctor, I went to the mountain. I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain. There's more than one answer to these questions, pointing me in a crooked line. The less I seek my source for some definitive The closer I am to fine. - Indigo Girls ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:42:11 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Fanfic Grammar MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >Sorry, but I can't resist, considering the subject matter...what exactly is >'Fanfice'??? > >Yvonne Something I wish the next poster would correct? Hey - that's me! LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:24:57 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Combo Post MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit LabRat wrote: ><< At first I just assumed it was a > typo, but it was mentioned often enough in the fanfic that I realized it was > there intentionally. Is this a US/UK variation or have I been missing > something all these years? >> Laurie responded: > >Well, what do you call that thing on a camera that opens & shuts when you >snap a picture? Over here we call that a shutter. Were there that many >fanfics about Jimmy's photographic talent? > Ah no, Laurie - I've confused you. And others. The fanfics in which I saw 'shutter' used - and they were all from US authors, which is where I became confused - definitely meant to convey 'shudder' in the context of the narrative. (e.g. Lois shuttered as she stood in the doorway.) I just wasn't sure whether they had used shutter as an error or whether it was indeed the case that shutter was habitually used in the US as a variant on shudder. Which was entirely possible. From the posts in response I now realize that the answer to that one is no. And yes, we call that thing on a camera a shutter too. > On the subject of Yvonne's interesting post - I have to say that I think it should ben entirely up to the individual writer whether they use UK or US grammar and spelling etc. I don't think a UK writer, for instance, should have changes demanded of them. Each is equally valid. I myself have some basic reasoning for switching almost entirely to US, which are entirely personal to me. I've been in love with the American language since I was knee high to a grasshopper and it has always permeated my spoken language. Especially the insults, which always seem to have more verve and color than ours. I've spent most of my fanfic writing life writing for almost exclusively US shows to a predominently US fanfic readership (with a few noteable sidetrips like Blake's 7 and Robin of Sherwood), so it made sense to adopt the language to save countless back and forth shuttling between me and editors. Remembering that I've spent most of my time submitting fanfic to pen and ink zines when such debates could take literally months of snail mail to resolve. And, to be brutally honest, I've met a couple of editors in my time who seemed to think that UK writers had no place thinking they could write fanfic about US shows, (not the majority of them, but enough to make me twitchy) so I'll confess now that when I first started writing fanfic for LNC online, realizing that it would be read by a majority US readership, I did somewhat try to sneak in under the wire, as it were, and not be immediately spotted as being from the UK. Course, by the time I was able to discover that FoLCs were pretty much sanguine about who wrote what just so long as they could read more adventures from our heroes, I was pretty much inured to spelling color without a u. Not that I mind. Well, apart from the fact that I have to consciously think about putting the u in these days and mostly forget. And I'll confess too that writing for LNC has been the first time where I've *completely* immersed myself in the US language in my writing, to the exclusion of anything UK. Before it was usually a mixture, gleaned mostly >from what I knew about the US from watching TV. I've found it fascinating finding out just how many variations there are from things my US proofers have picked up since I started having my fanfic checked out before posting. I'm learning something new about my favorite language day by day. My only proviso on the UK/US debate would be that if you are writing about American characters living in the States then you should never use UKisms in dialogue. Lois and Clark are Americans, not British. They are therefore unlikely to use British expressions peppered into their speech - unless they are making a specific point. To take a recent example, I accidentally used the phrase 'struggling like a stoat in a gin-trap' in my nfic Sugar & Spice - something which one of my proofers picked up just last week when I asked her to look over the reworked pg-13 version for the Archive. The phrase confused her entirely. Not surprisingly, because you couldn't get anything more Scottish as a reference. A stoat is a small Scottish weasel type animal and gin-traps are those nasty serrated jawed traps that rely on the animal walking on a trigger before they snap closed on its leg. They were banned at the turn of the century. Anyway, I was happy enough to use it in narrative, but I wouldn't accept using it in dialogue, since Lois is unlikely to know what a stoat is. Or care. Christy wrote: (as far as I can remember) it was used when Lois was out of character (perhaps in DTOSC?) I personally cannot 'hear' her say 'Clarkie'- it makes my shiver, in fact. Sorry. Oh, Christy, you have no idea how much I agree with you there. One of my personal bugbears. It is clear - to me at least - that when Lois uses it in the show she does so sarcastically and with the intention of putting Clark's loopy 'girlfriend' down. As though it's one of the most stupid endearments she's ever heard. I find it hard then to accept that she would go on later to use it as an endearment herself, especially as most instances of useage I've read in fanfic have her using it seductively as a 'come hither' intro to some romp. And Clark looks pained and practically winces ever time he hears it in WIEAK, so why he would find it a turn on..... But then I'm sure there are others who disagree. Sorry this has been so long. But then it's your fault for making such interesting posts, as usual. ;) LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris (as far as I can remember) it was used when Lois was out of character (perhaps in DTOSC?) I personally cannot 'hear' her say 'Clarkie'- it makes my shiver, in fact. Sorry. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:41:52 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy wrote: >During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that >the Kerth Awards were actually bad for L&C fanfic because fledgling writers >would be intimidated by the awards/winning authors and would not submit >their stories, were they to write them at all. I disagreed, citing the >fact that the number of fanfics per year has actually increased since the >first Fanfic Kerth Awards (especially impressive considering the show has >been off the air for 2 years now). I also cited ancedotal evidence of >over-hearing several FoLCs say that the Kerths were so much fun that they >now wanted to write some of their own. > >However, I recognize that since I am neither a lurker nor a new fanfic >author, I really can't speak for those of you who are. Comments? >Opinions? Obviously, even though I disagree with this person's opinion, >it's stuck with me. > Kathy, if I'm thinking about the same FoLC you are, then they also ventured this opinion to me. And I too disagree with it completely. And I think the FoLC in question had other personal issues beyond this one which colored her opinion on the subject. I did point out my own pov at the time, in tandem with the comments you also point out above, that as far as I've been able to judge from discussing the Kerths with fellow FoLCs, both writers and non-writers, none of them really care two hoots whether a nominated writer is a professional or just a gifted amateur. They just know that they liked the story. And they vote for what they like. For what moved them or made them laugh or produced a lump in their throats. I myself thought that the nominations were a nice mixture of professional and amateur. And certainly the winners proved that a writer's credentials weren't the guiding factor! As to whether the Kerths encourage or discourage new talent - well I guess that's down to personalities, just like everything else. If the Kerths weren't around, would new talent be put off or otherwise by reading the stories in the Archive? On this list? I guess you could submit just as good an argument for it if you were keen. But I have to say that it would seem to me to be pretty basic logic that the argument holds no water. If you take it to its generic roots and if it were true for the majority of new writers then pen and ink zines would have killed the golden goose long since. Fanfic writing would have died out years ago. It didn't. So what's inspiring these new writers to keep on? Even though I'm a new writer (well, in the sense that I only posted my first LNC nfic last March - I guess that's new for me ) I can't really comment on the core of the subject because I've been writing fanfic elsewhere for so long that it would never occur to me not to because I'd read other great stories by wonderful writers. It's become part of my life. If I don't write, there's something missing. So it's not a criteria for me. But I can't speak for anyone else. I've been trying to remember how it was for me way back when I started, but it's lost in the mists of time unfortunately. I can remember feeling trepidation when I submitted my very first fanfic to a zine (a Trek story), but that's about it. I don't think it ever occurred to me that maybe I shouldn't though. I will say that even today I can find myself wondering what the heck I'm doing when I read a really good LNC story and be utterly depressed that I'm never going to be able to write anything that compares. For that reason I try and avoid re-reading Dawning or Sheila's fic or Meet Me In Kansas City when I'm in the middle of writing. I save them for when it's posted and I can relax and not be distracted by their achievements. But, again, it wouldn't make me stop. I'll be interested in hearing what those thinking about submitting or writing their first fanfic think on the subject though. And I hope it won't be that they are intimated. As someone who's entire adult life has been enriched by fanfic and by writing it and by all the wonderful people I've met along the way, I think that would be very sad. LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris . >______________________ >Kathy Brown >kathyb@springnet1.com >KathyB on IRC >______________________ > ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:45:06 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Fanfice Grammar MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ><< Maybe I'll stop torturing the poor boy and work on letting him > have some fun. >> >Please dol The rest of us want to have some fun too. :) > >Ann LOL! Soon, Ann. Soon. I've reached the stage where Burnout could probably be posted and no one would blink an eye, but it's not entirely there 100% for *me*, so I'm at the tweaking stage. Not to mention deciding at the eleventh hour, just before falling asleep last night, that I should switch two major points in the narrative. But I'm getting there. There's a new nfic board at Zoom's mb. I want to be first to post to it. So I'd best get my skates on. LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris > ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 09:27:49 EDT Reply-To: Cdfisler@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: New fanfic alert + the critique thread Recognition MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/19/99 11:54:10 PM !!!First Boot!!!, Ccmalo@AOL.COM writes: << I can't decide on the title for this story. --- "Recognition: The Way" [my original title], or "R: The Rules" or "R: Trust". Carol >> Carol. I absolutely loved the story. I was thrilled to read a sequel to the earlier Recognitions so I printed it out the same day and read it that night. Wonderful. As for title. This may seem silly but what's wrong with Recognition ??? After I thought about it, I realized that fit just as well as any of the others for reasons I won't go into since it could spoil the story for others. Probably not what you want to here but it is MHO. Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 06:52:52 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: Re: Kerths and Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain >This comment, originally on the critique thread, got me thinking about an >email exchange I had last month. Those of you who are new to writing >fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your >reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does >it make you less willing to try? On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth >Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the >presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list >intimidate you? >Kathy > Okay, I know I should be studying or something, but I think this is a subject on which I am an expert, being a fledgling writer myself :) First off, I don't think the Kerths are a bad idea. They were well done and I know they made me wish I had more time to write. Second, I think that reading the 'big names' of fanfic's stuff inspires me. How can you fail to be inspired after reading 'Meet Me in Kansas City' or 'Heaven's Prisoners' or any of those others? However, I will say that sometimes they scare me b/c I start to think that I could *never* write like that. However, I feel the same way after reading War and Peace so I don't think that counts. Finally, about the list. I have to say that I *am* hesitant to post here. I'm not quite sure why, but it *might*(and I say might hesitantly) be because of the people on the list. I think it might be the same fear that I have when I play the piano in front of the music department. I am deeply in awe of their talent and that makes me a bit nervous. It's not like I think they'll be thinking 'She's the worst thing in the world' or anything like that, but I am somehow still intimidated. Of course, that might be b/c my piano teacher told me last week that it was a (and I'll edit for those people who don't want to hear her actual words :) "It's a darn good thing that you're not a music major, Rachel. All I want to say is that I hope you're better in the courtroom than you are on the piano". She was in a bad mood, and I realized that, but I have a fragile ego I guess, so that sort of bruised it. This sort of goes back to the critique thread, but if anyone ever wrote me somethiing like that about my work, which I value more than my piano, I think I would probably refuse to ever write LnC again, and maybe everything else. I value people's honest opinions, but perhaps b/c of the sheer number of talented writers on this list I feel a bit hesitant about throwing my piece out there. Well, sorry I rambled on for so long. What started as a simple answer to a question became something ridiculous in length, and I apolotize :( Rachel rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 09:56:37 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Brown Subject: Re: Fanfic - A Reader's POV In-Reply-To: <3.0.5.32.19990421180301.007cd2c0@mail.capitalnet.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Hi, Margaret! Since these posts are easier to respond to then our 40K+ e-mails... ;) >>Maybe it's because I'm not enough of a Superman fan to realize the mythos >>was different, but it wasn't until I came across a reference to "chocolate >>brown eyes" ;) that it suddenly dawned on me that something was "wrong" >>here. "Wait a minute! Clark's eyes are supposed to be *blue*!" I was still >>confused until I followed another link to Margaret Brignell's site and saw >>Dean's picture. :) Ah, enlightenment finally strikes! > >You could see his brown eyes from *that* picture? You *are* good > No, I prolly couldn't, but the picture *was* clear enough to see that it wasn't Chris Reeve. ;) Obviously it was some other incarnation of Superman I'd never heard of before -- such as LnC-TNAOS. :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:21:16 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: ninety-six and i planted poppies Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers Kathy wrote: << During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that the Kerth Awards were actually bad for L&C fanfic because fledgling writers would be intimidated by the awards/winning authors and would not submit their stories, were they to write them at all. I disagreed, citing the fact that the number of fanfics per year has actually increased since the first Fanfic Kerth Awards (especially impressive considering the show has been off the air for 2 years now). I also cited ancedotal evidence of over-hearing several FoLCs say that the Kerths were so much fun that they now wanted to write some of their own. >> Having written fanfic for a few years, I don't really consider myself a new fanfic writer anymore (though I do feel like a new writer- without the fanfic qualifier- since I haven't been writing very long compared to people who spend their lives writing). But L&C fanfic writers have only written L&C fanfic during the duration of the show, nowhere near their whole lifetimes. However, reading others' fanfic made me want to start writing- it didn't discourage me because I thought I could never be that good. Instead (maybe chalk it up to hubris), I figured I'd get better as time went by, like I figured the fanfic writers I admire must have. No matter how much writing talent someone has, they had to work with it to a certain extent to get where they are (I hope). Labrat wrote: << I will say that even today I can find myself wondering what the heck I'm doing when I read a really good LNC story and be utterly depressed that I'm never going to be able to write anything that compares. For that reason I try and avoid re-reading Dawning or Sheila's fic or Meet Me In Kansas City when I'm in the middle of writing. >> I have to say that I'm just the opposite. When I'm writing, I try to reread a variety of my favorite fics (stories written by Debby or Sandy, Chris's Meet Me in Kansas City, etc) as well as novels by favorite authors (Fitzgerald, Madeleine L'Engle, Carl Sagan's Contact). If I don't, my writing ends up sounding emotionless and stilted- it starts to resemble the usually poorly-written science textbooks I'm forced to read too much of. After I read what I consider 'quality' writing (fanfic or not), then I can usually relax into my fiction-writing style, instead of being bogged down by the formality needed to write lab reports and grant proposals. -Christy (crawling back under her physics book now ;) kubitc@kenyon.edu ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 08:40:12 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Ruth Link-Gelles Subject: Re: Recognition Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain > I can't decide on the title for this story. --- "Recognition: The Way" [my > original title], or "R: The Rules" or "R: Trust". I haven't read the story, because I'm in the middle of R: Truth (which is GREAT by the way). But someone mentioned R: The American Way. I really like this title, and almost any L & C story would fit the title. Just MHO. Ruth ruthlg@hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 09:49:03 -0600 Reply-To: erink@ida.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Erin Klingler Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers In-Reply-To: <009501be8cb6$1b4cb120$759201d4@default> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi all :) >Kathy wrote: > >During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that >the Kerth Awards were actually bad for L&C fanfic because >fledgling writers >would be intimidated by the awards/winning authors and would not submit >their stories, were they to write them at all. I disagreed, citing the >fact that the number of fanfics per year has actually increased since the >first Fanfic Kerth Awards (especially impressive considering the show has >been off the air for 2 years now). I also cited ancedotal evidence of >over-hearing several FoLCs say that the Kerths were so much fun that they >now wanted to write some of their own. > >However, I recognize that since I am neither a lurker nor a new fanfic >author, I really can't speak for those of you who are. Comments? >Opinions? Obviously, even though I disagree with this person's opinion, >it's stuck with me. Okay, I realize I'm not a "fledgling" fanfic writer since I've been writing fanfic for a few years now, but I wanted to jump in and give my 2 cents on this. But does that fact that I was involved with the Kerths this year disqualify my opinion? I hope not. As Kathy can attest to, the whole situation she's talking about was very frustrating when it came about, and it caused us to doubt our efforts with the Kerths. But deep down, I still agree with LabRat's view that a fanfic is great if it's great, whether written by a "professional" or an amateur. I don't care what the person's qualifications are. If a story touches me, I love it. :) And I know many, many "amateurs" who've written stories I've liked SO much better than many of the books I've gotten off a Barnes and Noble bookshelf. So that just tells me that a writer doesn't have to be "professional" to be good. Okay, I got a bit off the original subject, but I wanted to share my opinion on that. ;) Now back to Kathy's question about intimidation. Personally, I can remember back when I first got involved with internet folcdome and with writing LNC fanfiction. I'd written most of my first fanfic before I even realized there was such a thing, and when I found the fanfic archive, I remember being SO inspired by all the terrific stories on the archive that I actually felt *more* motivated to finish mine. When it *was* finished, I turned to the folcs on IRC and begged pitifully for someone to read through it and tell me what they thought. Yes, there were authors on the channel then that I considered to be "fanfic big wigs", meaning those who had written stories that I absolutely loved, and admired those authors' writing ability. And yes, I do remember feeling intimidated, but *not* because they were "big wigs", but because I was new to folcdome, and I didn't know if I was overstepping my bounds by asking for help. But I shouldn't have worried. When I nervously asked the entire #loiscla channel if anyone wanted to help me, I had lots of kind folcs offer to help me, including these "big wigs". And even though they were extremely talented, they never once looked down their noses at me, even though a lot of my story was in dire need of help. And I've formed a life-long friendship with my very first editor, who was kind enough not to tell me to "give it up", even when I clearly had so much to learn about plotting, writing consistent characters, etc. Kathy Brown took pity on me, and I've learned a lot from this "big wig" who was very official and intimidating to me at first, but showed me later that she was really just a big teddy bear with a big, kind heart. ;) I just wish we lived closer so we could have as much fun in person as we do on the phone and on-line. And because of her willlingness to help me with that first fanfic, and to show this LNC newbie that FoLCdome wasn't about putting ppl up on pedastles, or being so intimidated by others that I didn't dare give fanfiction a try, I've had lots of satisfying years that have come out from writing about my favorite characters. I also know this isn't an isolated incident. I've heard of lots of other folcs who've had supposed "big wigs" take fanfic writer newbies under their wings and teach them the ropes that lots of great friendships have been formed. And yes, there are still times when I read somebody's stories or follow a fanfic thread on the list and think, "Geez, I have a lot to learn! I'll never be as talented as so-and-so!" But I've learned over the years that there will *always* be somebody who is better than me. But if I were to let that stop me from trying something --*anything*-- new, I'd be living life cowering at every turn. The only person I have to be better than is the person I am right now. I guess the point I'm trying to make here is, *nobody* should ever feel intimidated to write fanfic if that's what they want to do. There are TONS of very generous and kind folcs here in folcdome that would be perfectly happy to help, and believe me, they won't turn their noses down because someone is new at writing and still has things to learn. FoLCs are wonderful people. I just wish the rest of the world was as kind as the ppl I've met here are. ;) Okay, I've given a long enough sermon. Byee. ;) Erin :) _________________ erink@ida.net ELK on IRC Visit my 1999 Official Kerth Awards Website! http://www.ida.net/users/davek ***** "The truth is, no one knows how long they've got. Anyway, it's not the years that count, it's the moments...right now, as they happen." _________________ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:06:09 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Brown Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers In-Reply-To: <009501be8cb6$1b4cb120$759201d4@default> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sorry for replying to Labrat instead of Kathy, but it's easier this way. :) >Kathy wrote: > >>During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that >>the Kerth Awards were actually bad for L&C fanfic because fledgling writers >>would be intimidated by the awards/winning authors and would not submit >>their stories, were they to write them at all. I disagreed, citing the >>fact that the number of fanfics per year has actually increased since the >>first Fanfic Kerth Awards (especially impressive considering the show has >>been off the air for 2 years now). I also cited ancedotal evidence of >>over-hearing several FoLCs say that the Kerths were so much fun that they >>now wanted to write some of their own. >> >>However, I recognize that since I am neither a lurker nor a new fanfic >>author, I really can't speak for those of you who are. Comments? >>Opinions? Obviously, even though I disagree with this person's opinion, >>it's stuck with me. Since I'm mostly a lurker (although I seem to have posted an awful lot recently and not (yet?) a writer of fanfic, praps I am somehow entitled to answer this. The Kerths are a marvelous idea -- giving us a chance to let our favorite authors know how much we enjoyed our favorite stories. I don't think winning or losing matters as much as being nominated. As to intimidating new authors: I find that basically incomprehensible. C'mon guys, there's an award presented to best new author now! Admittedly, given the sheer volume of Wendy's work, it's kinda hard to imagine her as a "new" author, ;) but that new category still offers the newer authors an extra chance to shine on their own. So how could the Kerths scare anyone off? I admit that being an author in RL might color my attidtude, but that's my opinion of things. Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:37:35 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Anita Hook Subject: New Fan In-Reply-To: <009301be8cb6$19013a80$759201d4@default> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" FanFic Writers: I'm a relatively new fan of LNC and decided recently to join this e-mail group because I've fallen in love with the FanFic site and can't seem to get enough of LNC. My kids tell me I'm obsessed. I guess I am. Indulge me a while as I can give you a short story of how I ended up here. I never watched Lois ‘n Clark when it was on ABC (what a fool was I!). However, my brother was a huge fan of the show and in fact when he and his wife would be visiting my home on any Sunday, they would always leave early in order to get home so he could catch the show. I would tease him about watching a ‘kids show', but he'd just give me an indulgent smile and not say anything other than it was a good show and I should watch it. I should have listened to him. He's a hopeless romantic and still calls his wife his ‘bride', even after 19 years of marriage. Then last year TNT started running the series daily and about the middle of the second season, I started watching it. (I was between jobs and waiting for the new semester to start in the fall, and I couldn't deal with the talk shows or the soaps!) Well lo and behold, I really started liking it. In fact when my new job started, I had to tape them in order to see them when I got home from work. I ended up taping every episode, (except Xmas Greedings, they never played it.) It saddened me when TNT took the daily episodes off the air, but at least I had my tapes, so that was some consolation. Anyway, after I saw the final episode, I began to have withdrawals, I was furious that ABC canceled the show in the first place and angry TNT didn't pick up the show and make new episodes like they did for the Babylon 5 series. So I got on the Internet one night and started surfing for LNC stuff and came across the Fan Fiction site. Boy, what a God sent! I've read almost all the stories on it and have found some of them to be spectacular! Even better than some of the original episodes. I've become acquainted with your various styles of writing and enjoy them tremendously. I even remember the first story I read. It was Werewolves of Metropolis. I never laughed so hard in my life reading something. I kept having to stop and wipe the tears from my eyes so I could continue. The first story that forced me to e-mail the author was Chris Mulder's two part LBAM and DOL. I couldn't get over how well written they were. I've read so many of the stories it's hard to express how much I've enjoyed them. I've just finished Demi/Demona's Heaven's Prisoners and God what a great story it was. Well I've been very long winded and hope I haven't tested your reading endurance too much, but I just had to let you know how much your work is appreciated by non writers. And I think the Kerth Awards is a great idea. It helps guide readers to stories that deserve special attention, not that it prevents reading of all the stories. It doesn't. I'll read them all anyway. Keep up the good work. Regards Anita ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:45:04 EDT Reply-To: MPSL27@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy wrote: >>Those of you who are new to writing fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does it make you less willing to try?<< I'm kind of a new writer, I guess--I mean it was less than a year ago that I sent my first story to the archive, so I think I count Anyway, my answer to your question would be yes *and* no. It's like this--if I read a REALLY REALLY good fanfic, I say to myself "Hmmm, I could never top that, but I can sure have fun trying". I just love to write, and what other people write, I love to read, but I try not to compare my work to theirs. For one thing, everyone has a different style of writing (I go for humorous and WAFFy, some people like action, or drama). Also, all the writers are different ages and have had different experiences. I have talked to several FOLCs who are around 15-18 years old, and are just starting fanfic writing. They seem intimidated, I think, and think their stories are dumb (which they aren't--they're actually very talented writers! I've read em!) So I would like to say to them--just write. Write as much as you can, and maybe you'll end up with a couple diskfulls of duds, but sooner or later you're going to get the hang of it and actually enjoy your own work, and that's when you become a great fanfic writer. Or something like that... >>On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list intimidate you?<< More likely! I don't know of any writer out there who wouldn't like to win a Kerth If you want to win one, you have to write! But personally I care more about writing than about awards. But the Kerths were fun:) Molly MPSL27@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 12:06:06 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Mr. D8a" Subject: Re: New Fan MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" >From MR. D8A's work email Welcome to the List from Mr. D8A and his lovely and talented wife Elisabeth MR. D8A A.K.A. James Still slaving away with the dancing pixels! Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path. Please visit and explore my house at: http://www.geocities.com/area51/starship/7859 mailto:mr_d8a@yahoo.com -----Original Message----- From: Anita Hook [mailto:hook@TIAC.NET] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 1999 11:38 AM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: New Fan FanFic Writers: I'm a relatively new fan of LNC and decided recently to join this e-mail group because I've fallen in love with the FanFic site and can't seem to get enough of LNC. My kids tell me I'm obsessed. I guess I am. Indulge me a while as I can give you a short story of how I ended up here. I never watched Lois 'n Clark when it was on ABC (what a fool was I!). However, my brother was a huge fan of the show and in fact when he and his wife would be visiting my home on any Sunday, they would always leave early in order to get home so he could catch the show. I would tease him about watching a 'kids show', but he'd just give me an indulgent smile and not say anything other than it was a good show and I should watch it. I should have listened to him. He's a hopeless romantic and still calls his wife his 'bride', even after 19 years of marriage. Then last year TNT started running the series daily and about the middle of the second season, I started watching it. (I was between jobs and waiting for the new semester to start in the fall, and I couldn't deal with the talk shows or the soaps!) Well lo and behold, I really started liking it. In fact when my new job started, I had to tape them in order to see them when I got home from work. I ended up taping every episode, (except Xmas Greedings, they never played it.) It saddened me when TNT took the daily episodes off the air, but at least I had my tapes, so that was some consolation. Anyway, after I saw the final episode, I began to have withdrawals, I was furious that ABC canceled the show in the first place and angry TNT didn't pick up the show and make new episodes like they did for the Babylon 5 series. So I got on the Internet one night and started surfing for LNC stuff and came across the Fan Fiction site. Boy, what a God sent! I've read almost all the stories on it and have found some of them to be spectacular! Even better than some of the original episodes. I've become acquainted with your various styles of writing and enjoy them tremendously. I even remember the first story I read. It was Werewolves of Metropolis. I never laughed so hard in my life reading something. I kept having to stop and wipe the tears from my eyes so I could continue. The first story that forced me to e-mail the author was Chris Mulder's two part LBAM and DOL. I couldn't get over how well written they were. I've read so many of the stories it's hard to express how much I've enjoyed them. I've just finished Demi/Demona's Heaven's Prisoners and God what a great story it was. Well I've been very long winded and hope I haven't tested your reading endurance too much, but I just had to let you know how much your work is appreciated by non writers. And I think the Kerth Awards is a great idea. It helps guide readers to stories that deserve special attention, not that it prevents reading of all the stories. It doesn't. I'll read them all anyway. Keep up the good work. Regards Anita ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 10:17:11 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Christina Batouli Subject: Off Topic - Wonder Woman Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain Does anyone know the status os the Wonder WOman series that NBC is thinking of making with the producers of LnC? Last I heard, they were having casting and scripting problems, and decided to delay it to mid season, early 1999. Apparently, they didn't. Does anyone know if it might be released next year? Or the year after that, or the year... Thanks in Advance Christina forum101@hotmail.com P.S. Gerald Christopher has announced that he would like his Superboy series back on the air. I have no opinion as I've never watched it or are to young to remember having watched it, but I've heard that it used many of the same ideas that were used in LnC. _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 13:41:16 EDT Reply-To: Kismet3838@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alicia B. Ablola" Subject: Re: Off Topic - Wonder Woman MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ::coming out of lurkdom:: I don't remember hearing about any Wonder Woman series but I do remember the series Superboy with Gerald Christopher. Except I think that in that series it was Lana Lang and not Lois Lane that held his interest Hope this helps, Kismet ::back to lurking:: ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:21:08 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity 2/6 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Part 2 of 6 A Few Hours Later: Whalin's Museum Opening "No closets so far," Lois said disappointedly. Clark grinned at her. He could tell she was getting bored. He couldn't say this was the most stimulating experience, but he was enjoying himself anyway. As long as he was with Lois, he was happy. However, if *she* wasn't happy, he knew things could get disastrous in a hurry so he discretely lowered his glass and looked around. He smiled and reached for his wife's hand, pulling her close so he could whisper in her ear. "There's one just around the bend, so let's drop back," he said. Her face lit up. Fun, at last. They slowed their pace so that they were at the back of the group. As they reached the closet they stopped and waited for the last member of the group to go around the bend. As soon as the back of the Star's cultural events reporter turned the bend, Clark whisked Lois into the closet. Lois wrapped her arms around his neck and giggled. "Very nicely done, sweetheart." "Anything for you," Clark answered with a smile. "You sure know how to show a girl a good time," she whispered. "You ain't seen nothing yet, baby." ~*~*~*~*~ Twenty Minutes Later A closet door opened and Metropolis' hottest team emerged, slightly rumpled, but looking euphoric. That mood was shattered though, as Lois pulled the door shut. "Damn!" she said loudly. "Shhh," Clark cautioned, "What happened?" "I got my ring caught in the door, and oh, Clark, look, the diamond's loose in the setting," she said dismally. Clark looked at it and hugged her. "It's okay, honey, it'll fix. We can drop it off at the jewelers on the way to the Planet," he said soothingly. Lois nodded. Nothing could spoil her good mood today. After one last glare at the door, she linked her arm with Clark's. "So, where do we go meet our esteemed party?" she asked. Clark did a quick look and motioned, "They're right over there. I think it's over, because they're getting refreshments. And it looks like they have chocolate eclairs." Lois brightened considerably. She handed her ring to Clark to pocket and said, "Chocolate and closets. Mmmm." Clark laughed. He was glad to see that she was in a good mood again. They rejoined the party unobtrusively. Luckily, it seemed that only one person had noticed their absence, and he was rapidly taken care of when they explained that they had gotten behind while looking at the Egyptian artifacts. Lois, who had always made it a point of knowing the competition, knew that this particular person's hobby was researching Egyptian artifacts so she knew how to sidetrack him. Clark smiled admiringly at his wife and handed her an eclair. So far today hadn't been half bad. ~*~*~*~*~ End part 2 rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:22:44 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: New FanFic: Relative Anonymity 4/6 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Part 4 of 6 That night: New Lifestyles Lois parked her car, grabbed her gym bag and headed into the gym. During dinner, Superman had been required in Uzbekistan. There had been yet another coup attempt, and despite Superman's stance against choosing sides, he was always on hand to protect the innocent and prevent the inevitable looting. She was sure this would be an all nighter so she figured that tonight was as good as any to check out the new gym. She walked through the door and headed for the desk. When she had called and accepted the offer they had told her to check in at the desk. They had told her that they used only first names at the gym to protect privacy. Lois had wondered about that at first, but it occurred to her that they were probably trying to cater to the nouveau riche who had enough money to desire privacy, but not enough to have a private gym. Therefore, she was forbidden to ask for interviews if she recognized someone. Lois wasn't sure if she would be able to abide by that rule, but for now she had agreed. The receptionist seemed friendly and had greeted Lois with professional enthusiasm. She told Lois where things were and warned her to be careful with the treadmills because last week someone had *gasp* fallen off. Lois hid a smile. After all the adventures she'd been in, a treadmill seemed pretty harmless. As she entered the room that held the treadmills and weight machines she smiled broadly. This gym had TV's by the treadmills and some of them were tuned to LNN. For a news centered human being this was as close to perfect as exercising could get. As she climbed on a treadmill a report from Uzbekistan flashed on the screen, and there, magnificent in blue and red, flew her husband. At the sight, Lois' face took on a dreamy quality and she unconsciously curled her hand to finger her wedding ring as had become her habit when she thought of Clark. It wasn't there. *That's right. Clumsy me,* she thought with a frown. Her wedding and engagement rings were sodered together to keep them from turning independently so with her engagement ring's setting being repaired she was completely ringless. Lois put in her time on the machine and as she hopped off... "Hi!" she heard a man's voice say. "Hello?" Lois turned slightly to look at the greeter. She didn't recognize him. He was one of those blond haired, blue-eyed, muscle people. The kind you saw on beach shows. "Oh, sorry," the man apologized. "My name's Kurt. I'm one of the managers here and self appointed greeter of newcomers, which is what you are, right?" He smiled a toothy smile. Lois nodded. He seemed nice enough. She shook his hand and remembering the no first names clause said, "Nice to meet you. I'm Lois." "I just wanted to tell you that if you have any questions, you can ask me," he said in a friendly tone of voice. "Thanks. I might take you up on that," Lois said as she turned away. As she walked away and out of earshot from Kurt another man walked up behind him. "She new?" he asked. "Yup. Looker ain't she?" Kurt said with an appreciative look. "She looks familiar, but maybe she was in one of those magazines of yours," the other man said with a shrug. "Gotta be. Who knew that a model would walk in to my life, Mark. Today's my lucky day," Kurt said. "Why do you say that?" Mark asked. "No ring, Mark. No ring," Kurt said with a grin. "And I saw her first so she's mine." The man called Mark rolled his eyes. His friend was a ladies man. No doubt about that. Of course, if he weren't married himsel, he would have given Kurt a run for his money. One thing was for certain. She had a great body. ~*~*~*~*~ Early morning: 348 Hyperion Lois had to get a drink. Now! She'd had some over salted Chinese take-out for dinner, and she couldn't seem to get the taste out of her mouth.. She shoved herself off the bed and headed for the bathroom.. When she returned she flopped down on the bed. She stifled a shriek as she realized that her leg had landed on her husband. When had he come back? He was sound asleep and looked exhausted. *Poor baby* she thought to herself as she curled up next to him. Even in his deep sleep he recognized her, because he sighed happily and put an arm around her. Lois moved even closer and quickly fell back to sleep. ~*~*~*~*~ "BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!!" The alarm was going off, and Lois shot out an arm to whack it violently. Her alarm clock was one of those hardy types. It had to be to deal with her every morning. Clark shifted slightly. Lois moaned mentally, but knew that she couldn't avoid the inevitable, so she pulled herself out of bed and headed for the shower. When she got out, Clark was still sleeping. She went to wake him up. She bent over and lightly kissed him. "Honey, wake up," she said softly. She gently stroked his hair, and watched his eyes flutter open. He smiled sweetly and her heart turned somersaults. It never ceased to amaze her how he could do that to her. "Hi," he said softly. "I didn't want to wake you up, but I know you wanted to go to work today," Lois said regretfully. "That's okay," he said. "I like waking up like this." Lois leaned down to kiss him once more before straightening up to finish getting dressed. ~*~*~*~*~ End Part 4 rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:25:08 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity 5/6 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Part 5 of 6 Daily Planet They had finally gotten a story. It wasn't the greatest, but it was better than what Jimmy called bustin' small and sticky thieves. It had been discovered that there were problems caused by the underground sewage system. There was going to be a lawsuit. Generally, Lois scoffed at covering lawsuits, but now it seemed like a wonderful gift. Lois and Clark were typing at their respective desks when Jimmy emerged from the elevator with a stack of folders. "Hi, guys!" he bubbled. "These are for you, Lois," he said as he handed her half the stack. She reached out with her left hand to grab the proffered pile. "Hey, where's your ring?" Jimmy asked cheerily. "Huh?" Lois looked up. Clark walked over because he could see that his packet of folders was not arriving as quickly as he had expected. "I asked where your ring was," Jimmy repeated. "She got it caught in a door," Clark replied as he relieved Jimmy of the rest of the stack. "Kent!" Perry yelled as he emerged from his office. Clark forever plagued by his superhearing winced. "Right here, Chief." "Good," Perry said. "I have an assignment for you." Clark waited. "It seems that Ralph has come down with the chicken pox, so he's temporarily out of commission," Perry said. They all grinned a little. Trust Ralph to come down with a childhood disease. "Unfortunately he was supposed to go to Miami this week," Perry said. "Mr. Stern's granddaughter is competing in the International Cooking Bazaar." "You mean Miami, Ohio, right, Chief?" Clark said. "You really know your geography, CK," Jimmy said admiringly. "Perry had to tell me before I called for a ticket." "Well, my mom went to it once," Clark said modestly. "So, Clark...," Perry said. "Why Clark?" Lois interjected. "Is your name Clark, Lois?" Perry asked sternly. He did not appreciate interruptions, and Lois was the only one who had no fear of doing it to him. "As I was saying," he continued. "Someone has to go. The reason Clark was chosen is because it's the International *Cooking* Bazaar and *you* can't cook." Lois frowned. He had her there. "You'll be gone for four days tops, Kent," Perry said. "Ralph was going to be there for the full week, but I can't spare you for that long so get as much as you can in that time and leave the rest of it alone. Jimmy?" "Yes, chief," Jimmy said promptly. "Do you have a ticket?" "Yep. It leaves in two hours," Jimmy replied. "Two hours?" Lois said. Perry turned to Clark, "Would you tell your partner to be quiet? She doesn't seem to be listening to her boss today." Clark chuckled. Lois scowled. Clark reached for her hand and pulled her toward him. "I'm going home to pack," he said. "I like to hear her so I'll take her with me." Perry and Jimmy rolled their eyes. Clark was so pathetic sometimes. Lois took Clark's hand and looked disdainfully on the other two. "At least somebody appreciates me," she said haughtily. Perry and Jimmy groaned in unison as the reporting team left the newsroom. ~*~*~*~*~ 348 Hyperion "So, four days, huh?" Lois was sitting on the bed watching Clark pack stuff in his suitcase. "I bet you're excited with covering a food thing." "Could be worse," Clark said with a shrug. "Mom enjoyed it." "Uh huh." Lois got a look on her face as she watched him bend over to pick something that had fallen off a hanger. If Clark had been looking at her he would have been warned. "Must be a lot of people there." "So they say," Clark answered from the closet. "Where is that shirt?" Clark did the laundry so he was pretty sure that he had put it in the closet. "Oh, here it is." Lois stretched out on the bed and reached her arms up to clasp the bedframe, "Will you miss me?" she said with a glint in her eye. She knew perfectly well how this pose took advantage of the fitted suit she was wearing. Clark turned around and drew in his breath sharply. "Lo-is. What are you trying to do?" he asked, half amused and half aroused. "I'm just stretching," Lois said innocently. "Sure you are," Clark said knowingly. "I have a plane to catch." "We both know you aren't going to take it, because a, you hate planes and b, you don't need planes," Lois said seductively, "Why, don't you want me? You promised we could continue later, and we never got to. Superman *always* keeps his promises." Clark laughed. "Ms. Lane, you are *not* a good influence on me." Lois smiled and moved suggestively, "Why thank you, Mr. Kent. Care to elaborate on that?" The closet door slammed shut with a gust of wind that had certainly not emanated from the closed window. ~*~*~*~*~ That evening: New Lifestyles Lois was back. She figured she might as well come here and do something useful. She knew that if she were home she'd be alone and wishing for Clark. Her leads on their story had dried up. She had left a message for Bobby Bigmouth so she had brought her cell phone with her to the gym just in case he called. She entered the room and started running on the treadmill. As she neared the end of her desired distance, she noticed that the same guy, what had he said his name was? *Oh, yeah, Kurt* Lois thought to herself. He was there again. "Hi!" he greeted her. "You're back." Lois nodded. "I have to say, this place is impressive." Kurt beamed. "Thanks for the compliment. So, you're a frequent gymmer?" "Excuse me?" Lois asked startled. "Sorry," he apologized. "That' s our lingo for someone who comes to the gym all the time." "Well, I wouldn't say that I come all the time," Lois said. "Depends on my work load." "Ah, a career woman," Kurt said knowingly. Lois smiled, "Definitely." "What do you do?" Kurt asked. Her phone rang "Sorry," she said as she picked it up. "Hello?...Bobby, finally...I need to talk to you...what do you mean you didn't get enough last time. I even gave you dessert...NO, I'm not giving you dinner at Chez Pierre. I'm not made of money. Pick something else...Fine Dan's Deli it is...Meet you there in half an hour...This had better be good or you don't get dessert...Bye." Lois hung up. She was going to have to have a talk with Clark when he got back. Clark was spoiling Bobby. Chez Pierre indeed. Kurt was still waiting there when she finished. She was slightly surprised. She assumed that he had heard of people being allowed *private* phone calls. As she was about to say something to that effect her mind was diverted by the sight of someone walking into the room. Clearly the person recognized her too. It seemed that she had to pass Lois to get to the showers, because she headed in Lois' direction with a reluctant look on her face. Lois stiffened up. "Well, well, if it isn't Lois," Mary Martin, a writer for the Star, said in a nasty tone of voice as she reached Lois. "Martin," Lois said coldly. "I had no idea people like you frequented clean establishments like this." Mary glared at her and walked past. Lois smiled. She didn't really have much against this reporter because she was no threat to her. She and Clark's pieces were ten times better than hers ever would be. Mary knew it too. Lois' major problem with her was that every time she and Clark met her, she kept making passes at Clark. It annoyed both of them, but was nothing new. "Bad blood," Kurt said sympathetically. "You could say that," Lois said as she decided that her time was over. She didn't feel like being in the same room with that woman. She said goodbye to Kurt. He watched her leave. "Ask her out yet?" Mark who had seen the exchange, asked. "Not yet. Next time," Kurt replied. Mark, who read his morning paper had figured out who she was, but decided that Kurt's ego could deal with a blow so he kept silent. ~*~*~*~*~ End Part 5 rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 11:27:07 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity Conclusion Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Conclusion Two days later: Evening, 348 Hyperion Lois had gotten back from the gym. She had been preoccupied the whole time. Clark usually called every day he was gone, but she hadn't heard from him so far. Kurt had talked to her briefly, but he had been needed in another room. Now, Lois sat on her couch watching an old movie. She was restless, though. Somehow, after she had met Clark movies weren't the same when watched alone. *Maybe it's because we rarely get to the end the first time through* she thought to herself with a smile. The phone rang just as the curtain was pulled back to reveal Debbie Reynolds. "Hello?" she said. "Hi, honey." It was Clark. "Clark, I'm so glad you called." Lois flipped off the tv and concentrated her full attention on the call. "How are you?" "I'm fine," he replied. "I'm sorry I didn't call earlier, but this thing is really confused. No organization. You get lost. I don't have much time now either because I'm waiting for Julia Child's demonstration on how to make chocolate souffle." "Chocolate," Lois said jealously. "I had take out." "If I figure out how she does it, I'll make some for you when I get home," Clark laughed. He had understood her tone of voice. "Good...I miss you," Lois said wistfully. "Miss you too, darling," Clark said quietly. "Oh, I've got to go. It's starting. I love you." "Love you, too," Lois replied, and she hung up the phone. She curled up on the couch and sighed happily. ~*~*~*~*~ Two days later: Daily Planet Lois had finished up her story on the lawsuit over the water problem. Bobby had been worth the money spent. The story had the usual Lane and Kent byline because he had worked on it, too. Clark was coming back today. She had an appointment at the gym after work to talk to Diane Shultz, the PR person, to get a few statements for her article so she could finish it off. At six she closed down her computer and headed out. ~*~*~*~*~ New Lifestyles Lois strode up to the receptionist and told her that she had an appointment. The receptionist had been informed of this so she was ushered into the office. After about half an hour she had a few decent quotes to put in her article. Diane had been thrilled that Lois liked their gym. Diane told her that she would run off the information Lois had asked for and asked Lois to wait for it in the lobby. Lois exited the office and was accosted by Kurt. "Hi!" he looked at her. "What? No exercising today?" "No," she said with a smile. "Well, then, I was wondering if I could ask you a question," Kurt said. He was confident of the answer to his question. "Um, sure..." Lois trailed off as she looked over his shoulder. It was dark outside, and she saw a figure enter the lobby. He had his suit jacket hooked over his shoulder and he was whistling. There was something familiar about the dark haired figure. "Clark?" she said. Forgetting Kurt she walked forward. He watched her in surprise. "Hey, babe," Clark replied with a smile. She threw her arms around him, pressing her lips against his. "I missed you," Clark murmured against her lips. "Mmm. Kiss me," Lois commanded. He tightened his grip on her waist and her arms curled around his head as their kiss deepened. The other people walking through the lobby did a double take. When they came up for air Lois looked at him questioningly. He interpreted the look and answered. "I got an 'earlier' flight so I took it. I stopped by the Planet and they told me where you'd gone, so I thought I'd come here," Clark said. "Oh, I read the article. Very nice." "Thank you," Lois said, then stopped. "Wait a minute. The edition isn't out yet. That means you read...They let you proof my copy didn't they?" she scowled. "Hey, my name's on that thing too," Clark said with a smile. He knew she wasn't upset. Lois made a "mad" face at him. Kurt had inched closer and was eavesdropping on them. Diane walked up just then. "Ms. Lane, here you go," she held out the document's Lois had asked for. "Thanks," Lois said, " oh, this is my husband..." "Clark Kent," Diane finished. "As in Lane and Kent." Clark smiled and shook her hand, "Nice to meet you." "Wow!" Diane said under her breath. Lois and Clark exchanged looks. "Not another one," Lois mumbled so quietly that only he could hear. Clark managed to keep a straight face. "I guess that's all I need," Lois said. "You should see my article in the Planet tomorrow or the next day." "I can't thank you enough," Diane said. "No problem," Lois answered. "Come on, Clark. I guess this means you're doing that chocolate souffle for dinner." "Lois," Clark moaned as they started out towards her car. Clark had 'walked' to the gym. "That's a dessert. You can't have it for supper." "Wanna bet?" Lois laughed. Kurt stood at the door and watched them leave. Mark walked up behind him. "So, now you know. She *is* taken," he said. He couldn't help grinning. Kurt had a fallen look on his face that rarely occurred. "She didn't have a ring," Kurt mumbled. That question was solved when they saw Lane and Kent reach the car. They couldn't hear the words, but they could see the exchange. "Oh, I picked this up on the way over," Clark said as they reached the car. "My ring," Lois exclaimed. "Sure is." Clark popped open the box and took the ring out. He reached for her hand. "Do you?" he whispered. "I do," Lois answered softly as he slipped the ring back on her finger. He laid his lips against her hand. Her eyes shone with that look that was reserved for him alone. The look that spoke of the complete trust and love that only a couple who had been through as much as they had could share. She reached up for a quick kiss. "Come on, Big Boy," she whispered against his lips. "That souffle can wait for a while." ~*~*~*~*~ Later that evening: 348 Hyperion Lois and Clark lay in each other's arms. Lois ran her finger up Clark's arm. "You know, it seems like it's been forever," Lois sighed. "It's only been four days, Lois," Clark said with a smile. "But I know what you mean...Did you have a good four days while I was gone?" "Other than missing you?" Lois teased. "I can't say it was a whole lot of fun. I spent a ton of time at that gym. But then you wouldn't know about that, would you?" Clark laughed and kissed her forehead. "I bet they were all jealous, honey. I mean, you do great things for spandex." Lois giggled. Her voice turned thoughtful. "Clark?" "Hmm?" he said drowsily. "You remember that guy that I was talking to when you walked in?" Lois said. "Vaguely, but I was really only looking at you," Clark admitted. Lois smiled to herself. He was *so* incredible, because she knew that he really meant it. "Well, he was going to ask me a question when you walked up. I think he was going to ask me out." Lois said. "Oh, really? Should I be jealous?" Clark queried. "Please," Lois said. "Wait, wasn't he that big blond guy?" Clark asked. "Yeah," Lois answered. "The cute guy with all the muscles." Clark raised an eyebrow. Lois giggled. "Okay, he's got nothing on you, but everybody can't have a perfect body." Lois ran her hand down his chest. "Glad you noticed," Clark grinned. Lois gave him a dreamy look, "How could I help it? Spandex does great things for you too. Although, there's nothing quite like the man of steel au naturel...Clark, you're so cute when you blush." "I'm not blushing," Clark protested. "Right," Lois laughed and shifted a little. The blankets moved, and she got a glimpse of a little more. "Oh my, when you blush, you *really* blush. Do you suppose that's a Kryptonian thing?" "Lo-is," Clark moaned. "I'm not sorry," she said impudently. "But you're gonna be," Clark said as his arms circled her and held her in a grip that only a man with his strength could achieve. "Yes, you're going to be." "Try and make me," she taunted as she wriggled in his grasp. "Ready?" "Nooooo!" she squealed. "You're going under anyway," Clark grinned. "One, two, three..." He pulled her under the blankets. Soon their laughter changed into all together different sounds. ~*~*~*~*~Fin~*~*~*~*~ Well, there you have it. Any thoughts are much appreciated especially ones that help me better myself :) Rachel TenHaaf rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:12:09 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: Sheila's Audience ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Demi wrote: > The fallacy is for the performer to choose "themselves" -- "There's no one > else here, therefore I'm talking to myself". But that's probably the > surest road to a poor performance one can take. Just because a piece does > not have a visible audience, doesn't mean there's no one there -- at least > in concept. An artist needs to choose a target. Demi, you've piqued my curiousity now - what targets do they pick? Sorry, this is a bit 'off-topic'. Promise I won't do it again :) Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:28:55 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Carol wrote: > > Nevertheless, having read the posts on this thread I note the hint of a > dilemma and so I suggest a solution --- we go with the Canadian version -- a > compromise between the American and the British. ;-) LOL! Maybe you could give us some tuition? Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:06:02 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit KathyB said: > Actually, I've always wondered ... to the British writers, when you hear > Lois and Clark speaking in your story, do you hear them as using those > British-isms? Or is it simply an automatic reaction to type dialogue for > them using the phrases that are most natural to you? Are you ever "jarred" > of a fanfic by the American phrases that Lois and Clark use? Kathy, the problem is, we (or maybe I should say I) don't even notice when we're using British-isms when we write their dialogue, so it doesn't sound wrong. I try quite hard to make my American characters sound American, but it's incredibly difficult. I read my story through in my head, hear the characters say what I've written, and it all sounds quite normal and natural. Then later I discover I've overlooked something very small but significant...can't think of an example right now - and it makes me want to scream! It's obvious once it's pointed out to you, so you think - why didn't I notice that? As far as being 'jarred' by American phrases is concerned, I can't say it's ever bothered me. They're American, so they speak American - what could be more natural? I, too, agree with the use of idiom to give the sense of a character's speech patterns - and I'm sure I don't do it enough. > The same goes for Clark ... face it, he says "gonna" a lot. ;) And if I'm > writing dialogue for him, I'm going to sprinkle those kind of spellings in > there. I think it provides authenticity as long as it's not overdone. You've taken me by surprise, Kathy! I didn't even notice he said 'gonna' all the time - I'll have to watch a few episodes (aw, shucks! ) and listen more carefully. Oh, and I wholeheartedly agree with Sheila's eloquent contribution to this thread - which wasn't pedantic at all :). Personally, I've evolved the practice of reading/editing/spell-checking/tweaking the chunk I wrote last before writing the next bit of the story. That way, I read myself back into the flow of the story, and avoid the daunting task of editing the whole thing all at once - although I still read it through when I've finished before sending it to the archive. Enough waffle, time to make the dinner. Yvonne yconnell@ukf.net PS - is waffle a Britishism? ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 15:34:42 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Emily Angerer Crawford Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers In-Reply-To: from "Kathy Brown" at Apr 21, 99 11:22:06 pm Content-Type: text Now that I'm finally caught up on the fanfic list after being out of town over the weekend -- it's amazing how quickly the messages do pile up! -- I can take a minute to respond to Kathy's questions. Kathy Brown wrote: > > At 10:03 PM -0700 4/19/99, Eileen Barnard wrote: > >I understand exactly what you mean. I also haven't dared to send any of my > >stuff to the list yet because it can be quite daunting with such a wealth of > >excellent writing around. > > This comment, originally on the critique thread, got me thinking about an > email exchange I had last month. Those of you who are new to writing > fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your > reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does > it make you less willing to try? On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth > Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the > presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list > intimidate you? I'm definitely new to writing fanfic -- I have yet to finish anything to my satisfaction, and mostly what I have at this point are beginnings that don't go very far. It's no longer a lack of ideas but a definite lack of time! High quality fanfics both inspire *and* intimidate me. I read the more remarkable pieces and think, Yes! This is exactly what fanfic should be! They make me realize that it can be done and that it's worth doing. On the other hand, I tend to want to hold myself to their standards -- I want my first fanfic and every fanfic to be as high quality: well-written, deep, full of character development and plot, yet true to the characters we know. I get frustrated when I sit down with these great ambitions and fail to turn out a "Meet Me in Kansas City" (for example). I don't dare submit something of lesser quality than that, yet I can't begin to create something at that level! (Certainly not on the time frame I'm limited to, anyway; that's not something you can do in one or two sittings, and I don't have the days, weeks, and months, let alone the patience, you need to dedicate to a high-quality piece.) So by reading the top fanfics I set myself up for failure by allowing our more impressive authors to set a standard a beginner -- or, more to the point, *this* beginner -- generally can't meet. The Kerths, I think, only serve to motivate me. It's appealing to think that I could get some kind of formal recognition if I did a really, really good job. It's nice to feel that that acclaim is attainable. I don't find the awards/authors intimidating; I find them encouraging. By the same token, I don't find the presence of more experienced authors on this list intimidating, either. It brings them down from semi-celebrity status to a more human level. :) By sharing this community with them we declare ourselves to be equals on some level regardless of experience. Well, I've taken too long to answer such simple questions! No one ever accused me of being succinct. ;) Cheers, -Emily -- Emily Crawford/Warbler on IRC ccsupec@helen.oit.gatech.edu "Thus grew the tale of Wonderland: thus slowly, one by one, Its quaint events were hammered out -- and now the tale is done, And home we steer, a merry crew, beneath the setting sun." -Lewis Carroll ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 15:24:54 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Mr. D8a" Subject: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" >From MR. D8A's work email My wife and I have often discussed who should know, who wouldn't know, and who would know but doesn't let on. Any ideas out there? Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't letting on. "I didn't get this job because I can yodel!" MR. D8A A.K.A. James Computers, and networks, and modems. OH MY! Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path. Please visit and explore my house at: http://www.geocities.com/area51/starship/7859 mailto:mr_d8a@yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:53:54 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mandy Crustner Subject: Traveling Fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hiya FoLCs :) I'm going to be going out of town about the middle of May, so of course, I'm starting to think about printing some fanfic off to take with me for the trip since I won't be driving. My question is, what's everyone's suggestion for some good 'traveling fanfic?' I wouldn't mind some pretty long stories (especially since the resent thread on how to print them off to save paper!) so, here's the chance to toot your own horn, or toot someone else's. Thanks for the help, Mandy Crustner mandyc@lcc.net ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 16:54:51 EDT Reply-To: Kristen036@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Subject: list MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit how do i get off of this list??????????????? ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:38:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mandy Crustner Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy wrote: >Those of you who are new to writing > fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your > reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does > it make you less willing to try? Reading all the wonderful fanfic actually encouraged me to try my hand at it too, though I figured I'd only do it for myself and didn't think I'd ever be brave enough to submit anything I'd written. I did finally get up the courage though, after I'd seen so many people (when I started reading there were like 700 stories on the archive) I figured that in that many stories, surely no one would ever read mine > On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth > Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the > presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list > intimidate you? I love the Kerths! :) This year was my first year to attend and I even presented an award and it was loads of fun! The Kerths have given me incentive, I want to write better stories in hopes that one day I might win one. I have to admit, some of you more experienced authors do intimidate me, and I've had a hard time posting the two stories I have posted to the list, knowing that ya'll might read them. I'm getting past that though, I've talked to some of you personally, and I even popped in on one of the IRC sessions (expect to see more of me there, that was *so* fun!) and ya'll are a great group of people, so it doesn't really scare me near as much as it used to. I've yet to meet one of the 'Fanfic Greats' that wasn't a nice person and really easy to talk to! ;) That's it for me! :) Take Care Guys! Mandy Crustner Moonlight on IRC mandyc@lcc.net ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:18:31 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: On the Run MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Have there been any more chapters written yet of On the Run? I read everything on the Kerth web page, and am dying to see where it will go from the cliffhanger. Thanks! Vicki (who has been trying to wait patiently.....) Vicki.Krell@asu.edu ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 00:30:19 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Brown Subject: Re: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity 2/6 In-Reply-To: <19990422182110.51924.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Rachel, dear, Tempted as I might be to start reading a fanfic that refers to "Whalin's Museum," ;) I have decided to be strong and steadfast and not start until you send us parts 1 and 6. Please hurry up, as an unread fanfic is worse than a time bomb on my computer! Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:35:30 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity 2/6 MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" I'm missing parts 1 and 3, but I have part 6. Did anyone get the whole thing? -----Original Message----- From: Hazel Brown [mailto:zis-s@ACTCOM.CO.IL] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 1999 2:30 PM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: Re: New Fanfic: Relative Anonymity 2/6 Rachel, dear, Tempted as I might be to start reading a fanfic that refers to "Whalin's Museum," ;) I have decided to be strong and steadfast and not start until you send us parts 1 and 6. Please hurry up, as an unread fanfic is worse than a time bomb on my computer! Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 16:37:18 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: Kerths and Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain >This comment, originally on the critique thread, got me thinking about an >email exchange I had last month. Those of you who are new to writing >fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your >reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does >it make you less willing to try? On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth >Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the >presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list >intimidate you? No and yes. No, Kerths didn't discourage me from writing fanfiction at all. I've been thinking on and off for the last year about writing possibly writing one, but after watching the Kerths I decided I was definitely going to have to. Sure, I probably wouldn't win. (at least my first year but there's always later ) Just the thought of having a fanfiction in the archive sounded so fun. I'm still procrastinating about actually writing the thing, but now I'm resolved to do it. Yes, the experienced fanfiction writers on this list scare me to death. I mean, I'm sitting here typing a post in response to something Kathy Brown said. Do you know you're the first author I ever read a fanfiction by? It's really intimidating to be thinking about the fact that these amazing writers are going to read my emails. So I usually sit back in awe on this list, and post occasionly on the other (when it's not down anyway). Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1998 16:30:30 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mandy Crustner Subject: Re: On the Run MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Have there been any more chapters written yet of On the Run? I read > everything on the Kerth web page, and am dying to see where it will go from > the cliffhanger. I saw part 60A on the newsgroup this morning :) > Thanks! > Vicki (who has been trying to wait patiently.....) > Vicki.Krell@asu.edu Mandy :) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:51:04 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Audrey Rempel Subject: Re: On the Run MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii The saga continues at Zoom's message boards: http://www.actwd.com/zoomway/general/welcome_to_the_message_board_are.htm the current fanfic folder. Come join the addiction! Audrey --- Vicki Krell wrote: > Have there been any more chapters written yet of On > the Run? I read > everything on the Kerth web page, and am dying to > see where it will go from > the cliffhanger. > > Thanks! > Vicki (who has been trying to wait patiently.....) > Vicki.Krell@asu.edu > _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 14:54:21 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: On the Run MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Thanks, Mandy and Audrey. Well, I'm not going to be able to do any work now! And I totally agree, addiction is the right word!! V -----Original Message----- From: Audrey Rempel [mailto:audo65@YAHOO.COM] Sent: Thursday, April 22, 1999 2:51 PM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: Re: On the Run The saga continues at Zoom's message boards: http://www.actwd.com/zoomway/general/welcome_to_the_message_board_are.htm the current fanfic folder. Come join the addiction! Audrey --- Vicki Krell wrote: > Have there been any more chapters written yet of On > the Run? I read > everything on the Kerth web page, and am dying to > see where it will go from > the cliffhanger. > > Thanks! > Vicki (who has been trying to wait patiently.....) > Vicki.Krell@asu.edu > _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 17:55:31 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: OT: Acting 101: For Yvonne ;) In-Reply-To: <199904221850.TAA11072@radius.connectfree.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" This is for Yvonne, who asked. :) It's OT, so if you're not interested in acting theory or technique, quit now! -- Forewarned. I know at least a few other people have written to me in the past and expressed interest in this kind of thing, however, so I thought it'd be okay to post it to the list. Again, no L&C per se.. only an allusion here or there, so you may not be interested. >Demi wrote:>>>> The fallacy is for the performer to choose "themselves" -- "There's no one else here, therefore I'm talking to myself". But that's probably the surest road to a poor performance one can take. Just because a piece does not have a visible audience, doesn't mean there's no one there -- at least in concept. An artist needs to choose a target.>>>>> Yvonne Wrote: >Demi, you've piqued my curiousity now - what targets do they pick? >Sorry, this is a bit 'off-topic'. Promise I won't do it again :) Well, for example, lets say that you, Yvonne, have a monologue to perform as an audition piece. You're going to be playing the part of a 34 year old woman named Sophie whose husband, Jack, just left her for another lover. Ouch! I bet you can picture it now, can't you? What a wreck. Poor thing. Well congratulations, she's you. Hi Sophie! >From now on, when I say "You" I mean Sophie, you ARE Sophie for all intent and purpose... Now, it's probably some scene in the middle of a stage or screen play. You're standing (ALONE) in your bedroom when the script calls for you to begin speaking for about 5 minutes. 5 minutes?! That's about five *pages* of screenplay... Imagine there's no further action suggested, you've just got this extremely long paragraph, several pages long, which you have to rattle off. You get up, take a few deep breaths, hang your head and then raise it again just as you're ready to begin speaking. You utter the first line: "In the beginning, I was a princess." And I (being the pesky director I am) say: "STOP. Who are you talking to?" What do you say? ;) Uhh.. erhm... well, there's no one there! Myself? Nope, you may be all alone in the bedroom, but for SOME reason you start speaking and don't shut up for over 5 minutes! Why would you do that? You're not schizophrenic. Nix that alternative, in fact, you're a pretty average woman for the most part (remember, you are Sophie). Never been convicted of tax fraud, never killed a squirrel in cold blood ;) .. you've got 2 best friends and a mother who's pretty good as far as mothers go. (Yvonne the actor knows) that in order for an audience to be carried along, she needs to find some way to reach them. To do that, she has to play TO someone.. she has to involve her character in some form of conflict with a possible resolution, even if it's not explicit in the script. We need conflict because this is drama, and drama calls for struggle. Internal or external, character driven or motivated by plot. So YOU (Sophie) are about to start pouring your heart out (to yourself?) -- Won't work. It's a proven fact of performance, we cannot 'stroke ourselves' on stage or in front of the camera. We reach no one if we do that, even though WE may feel pretty great about it when it's all over. ;) Maybe in 'real life' we mumble to ourselves occasionally, but I think anyone would agree that talking to *ourselves* for 5 minutes or more is a little odd. ;) So who are you talking to? Nice, normal Sophie. Your mother? Your best friend? Your therapist that you just started seeing so that you could save your relationship with Jack only it didn't work and now you don't even know if you should pay your last shrink bill because of it? -- All possibilities. Does the person *actually* have to be there in the room with you? No way. As an actor, Yvonne doesn't even have to tell a soul who she's chosen, but she DOES have to make that choice. Because it's going to be a different 5 minutes if Sophie talks to MOM than it is if Sophie talks to Kate, her best friend since college, or Dr. Frisken, her shrink. ;) It'll affect everything about the way Sophie speaks, what she does, HOW she says what she says. Because once you've chosen WHO you're talking to.. you have a relationship with that person. It's inherant. You also then decide WHAT you want from them by the end of the scene. And we always want SOMETHING. That's the struggle in any scene. It may be implicit, but it's there. Does Sophie get what she wants from (say MOM) by the end of this scene? Does she win the scene, or does she lose it? (Yeah, mom's not really in the room with you, but it's all about conflict, so you're going to create some -- any good actor would). You choose MOM. Then you do backstory on Mom. (But she's not in the screenplay! I don't even know what her first name is?!) -- So make it up. No one's ever going to know, but you. Say mom is a....maid, she cleaned houses to keep her 5 kids in school after HER own husband left her. She was strict, but also very loving, she'd do anything for her babies. Yadda yadda yadda.. now you've got the WHO. (You may also decide that your mom was a twisted heroine addict.. that'll change things, won't it? -- If MOM's backstory isn't in the script, the actor may decide pretty much whatever s/he wants. ;) But there's still something else. When you start talking, Sophie, there's that moment -- that instant before you even open your mouth when SOMETHING makes you do it. Something makes you look up, sideways, around the corner, and start TALKING. Something makes you say: "In the beginning, I was a Princess." -- what is it?? What makes you say THAT? Why not say: "It was a long time ago" or "Do you ever wonder why an ant is an insect and a spider isn't? What difference does two legs make, REALLY?" In order to find out, you need to do a little backstory on yourself for the moments JUST before this scene takes place. Use whatever you've been given in the script to begin with. (But this is the first line of a brand new scene, it doesn't tell me where I was before this scene!) -- Okay.. fair enough. Make it up. You were --- shopping, you bought baby clothes for a shower for your best friend Kathy whose marriage is GREAT! Then you got home, excited, biological clock ticking, you wanted to show Jack how tiny the baby feet are in the jumper you got at K-Mart... only Jack wasn't there was he? You went into the bedroom and set the bags down. There was a note... You get the idea... Now you've got the WHO, the WHAT and the WHY and I guarantee you, the next time you open your mouth and say the words: "In the beginning, I was a Princess." -- They're going to mean a whole lot more to YOU *and* to your audience. That's what I meant by "pick a target". In a very loose, very broad nutshell. Bet ya'll thought this "acting stuff" was for people who couldn't make it through calculus in highschool so they took them artsy-fartsy courses instead, EH? ;) It's easy to get up in front of people and goof around, but it's not easy to make those people *want* to begin to explore their own lives in order to draw analogies to the character you've created. That's what acting (and I'd argue, ANY artform, including writing fiction) is all about: Touching one's audience, whomever they may be. Whether we've chosen a 'universal' message, or one which relates very specifically to a very definite group or societal subset; who we're talking to, is key. I know that was long winded, I tend to get that way with this issue... the process an actor goes through is also a lot more complex than I have outlined here as well, this was comparatively point form and only to give you an idea of what I'd been referring to in my previous post. Truthfully, I could probably write a book about this, but really, there are a billion others out there already, I'd only be killing another tree. So I'll sign off for now, without any more rambling. :) Take Care All, Demi nightangel@home.com demi22@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 15:16:06 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: Relative Anonymity Resend 1/6 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Part 1of 6 Opening Scene: 348 Hyperion Lois Lane was laying in bed, enjoying the fact that she and Clark did not have to go into the Planet until later today. As everyone knew, she was *not* a morning person. She stretched slightly and rolled over. Clark was gone to who knew where. Not unusual for a superhero, just annoying for his wife. "Good morning," she heard a lilting voice say. *Why is Clark such a morning person? How can anyone be a morning person?* Lois asked herself. "Go 'way, " she muttered. Clark laughed, but was not deterred. "C'mon sweetheart. It's time to get up," he coaxed. "Claaark," she wailed. "Shut up. We don't have to go in early today." "No," Clark agreed, "But remember, today's the day you said we were going to go pick up new hubcaps for your car to replace the ones that got stolen. I'd go by myself, but since it's your car and I don't even need one, that's pretty silly. So, up and at em, honey." "Oh, spare me from morning friendly superheros," Lois moaned as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. Clark got that look in his eyes. The I-hear-something look that she knew well. "What now?" she asked as she headed for the bathroom. Clark pulled down his glasses and looked down at the floor. He smiled. "Just the paper being delivered. The paper boy missed the porch again." Lois sighed and turned on the shower. Clark, convinced that his wife was awake, went back down the stairs to retrieve the paper so he could read it as he ate breakfast. ~*~*~*~*~ Twenty minutes later, Lois entered the kitchen and took her cup of coffee from Clark. After a few sips she was feeling good enough to smile at her husband who was buried in his paper. "So, Clark, are you going to give me some of that or what?" she asked. He looked up, "Oh, sorry, here you go." He gave her the front page and returned to the sports section. She looked at it, "What happened to this?" she asked in disgust. There were splotches on their front page story, practically obscuring the famous Lane and Kent byline. "Paperboy hit some mud," Clark answered. "I'm thinking he's not going to last long because the Garrisons next door keep getting it thrown in their window plants and Mr. Kelly has to retrieve his from the Winters who keep getting his edition even though they subscribe to the Star, not the Planet. They've complained several times." "They get the Star?" Lois said, making a face. "I can't imagine why. Remind me never to talk to them again." Clark held his peace. The Winters had told him that they enjoyed the articles by Mary Martin, one of the feature writers at the Star, and he didn't feel that this was something Lois really needed to hear as she and the said Mary Martin did *not* get along. "Well, do you want to go pick up new hubcaps or not?" Clark asked, neatly changing the subject. "I'm up aren't I?" she said. She noticed that his tie was crooked so she came around to fix it. As she finished Clark flashed one of his megawatt smiles at her. The kind that made her knees feel funny and her head spin. She retained enough control to ask, "Why are you smiling at me?" He reached up to caress her face, "You have no idea how often I envisioned mornings with you. I can't help smiling, Lois, because you made all my dreams come true." Lois sat down in his lap quickly, before her knees gave way completely. "And you, Clark Kent, answered prayers I didn't even know I prayed. I love you so much," she whispered. She bent her head and kissed him. "Love you, too," He murmured. Lois gently removed his glasses and set them on the table behind her, all the while continuing to rain sweet kisses all over his face. "I take it hubcaps aren't a priority today," he teased. "Later, love, later," she answered as she reached his lips. He smiled and opened his mouth before her tongue asked. She tasted like coffee mixed with that special taste that belonged only to her, and he had never tasted anything so wonderful. He pulled her closer as their kiss deepened. Just then the phone rang. They groaned against each other's mouths. Loathe to let her go, Clark lifted her in his arms and stood up, kissing her all the while. The phone rang again. He walked over to the phone and leaned against the wall. Their mouths disengaged. She continued kissing his neck while reaching for the phone with one hand. When she grabbed it, she held the receiver up to his ear. "Hello?" he asked. It was a slightly breathless hello as Lois' free hand was roaming in dangerous places. "Uh, huh...yeah, just a second," Clark looked at Lois. "For you," he whispered. Lois sighed. She quickly pushed the mute button and kissed him, hard, one more time before he set her down. He moved away to start cleaning up the kitchen, and she turned to the task at hand. "Lois Lane...Oh, really? I don't know, I'm pretty happy with the one I'm at...I see...How about you let me think about it?...Okay, bye." Lois hung up the phone. Clark looked at her questioningly. "Who was it?" "It was a place called New Lifestyles. It's a gym. She said that she'd heard that I used Winkler's gym, and she said that they were looking for publicity and would be willing to let me in free for a month trial if I would write up the place, good or bad. Seemed nice enough and gyms aren't cheap," Lois answered. "They must be pretty sure of themselves if they want you to go check it out," Clark said. "But why would they ask you? I mean we're in the investigative end of things, not the social section." "We *do* write up restaurants sometimes," Lois said pointedly. "True, but then we all have to eat. And that's not a common thing; it's mostly when Carl from foods is on vacation," Clark replied. "Who knows, maybe they thought they'd try something new." Lois shrugged. "So you're thinking about it?" Clark asked as he hung up the dishtowel. "Well, I can't say that it isn't tempting. I mean, if this place is any good, it could save us money. With our incredible pay and the fact that we have to get a new parts for the car all the time to replace the stuff people steal off it while it's parked, it isn't a bad idea. If I don't like it, I can just switch back to the old place," Lois answered. "Whatever you want," Clark said. The phone rang again. Lois answered. "Hello?...Oh, hi, Jimmy, what's up?...Shoot...Okay, we'll be there. Bye." "Work?" Clark queried. "Yep. Ralph called in sick, and he was supposed to cover the opening of that new museum downtown," Lois answered. "Can't say I love museum openings." "They're not that bad, Lois," Clark said with a grin. "Remember the last one?" Lois blushed slightly as she remembered how they'd discovered an unused closet and had stepped in for a little tour. And what a tour they'd had! "Okay, so they're not all bad," she admitted. "But who's to say this one has closets like the last one." "Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't, but we can certainly find out," Clark replied as they headed for their coats and the door. ~*~*~*~*~ End part 1 _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 15:18:14 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: Relative Anonymity Resend 3/6 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain "Relative Anonymity" Part 3 of 6 A Little Later: Daily Planet Lane and Kent walked into the newsroom, hand in hand. They had pushed the red button on the elevator on the way up, causing some annoyance to the secretary from one of the offices below who wondered why some days the elevator took so long to come. They said hello to a few people as they passed by on their way to their desks. "Hi, guys," Jimmy said in his usual exuberant fashion. "Heard you got stuck with...uh, I mean...you got the museum piece." Lois and Clark laughed. "It wasn't so bad," Lois answered with a sly glance at her husband, "Some of the rooms are very nice." "Very clean, too. Lots of space," Clark added innocently. Lois bit her lip to keep >from laughing, and squeezed his hand hard. Jimmy, oblivious as always to the subliminal conversation being held, said, "I'm glad you liked it. Perry wants to see you." Clark hopped off Lois desk and pulled her up out of her chair. "Thanks, Jimmy," he said as they headed off to see Perry. ~*~*~*~*~ "Sorry to bring you in like this, but somebody had to do it," Perry said as they walked into his office. "That's okay, Chief," Clark said with a smile. "So, anything new?" he asked. "Not really," Lois answered. "I mean, we've got the usual, small thefts, petty crime, but nothing really big yet." "Well, find something," Perry said, "Lane and Kent are supposed to be bringing in the big crooks, snooping out the truth, not bringing in candy store thieves." "Got it," Lois said, trying not to smile. Just then Claudia Mezzelheimmer, from the social page walked in. "Mr. White, I tried, but they said they already asked somebody >from our paper. Now what am I supposed to do?" she asked. Claudia was new to the whole business and didn't have the flair that Cat Grant had. Personally, Clark didn't think that any of Cat's successors had had Cat's flair. Unfortunately for Claudia, she also didn't have the contacts. "What were you supposed to be doing again?" Perry asked. "I was trying to get in and cover the gym called New Lifestyles, but they turned me down and said they wanted somebody else, but I asked Marsha and she said that they hadn't asked her." Claudia shrugged. "Actually," Lois said. "They asked me." Claudia turned to her. "You?" "Why are you so surprised?" Lois asked as she raised an irritated eyebrow. Clark, expert on reading his partner's smallest movements, felt it his duty to diffuse the situation. Lois occasionally took offense where none was intended. Claudia was new and there was no reason for her to come under the fire so soon. He laid a hand on Lois' arm. "She's probably just surprised that they would ask an investigative reporter. Remember, so was I," Clark said soothingly. Lois settled down. Perry smiled to himself. There was only one person who could calm her down so quickly. Usually all it took was a touch and a few words, and he had her settled. This time was no exception. Claudia, who had only heard of the Lane temper, never been the brunt of it, had no idea what she had almost seen. She wasn't dumb, however, so she followed his lead and nodded, "That's what I meant." "Okay," Lois said agreeably. "Actually, I was surprised myself. They're probably just trying to get more clientele. It sounds nice enough, and I have to admit that their policy of first names only is nice. You have no idea how annoying it is to be working out and have somebody come up and talk to you about how they like your stories. I appreciate the thought, but it's really hard to be cordial when you're sweating and out of breath." Claudia grimaced slightly. She wished she had that problem. Lane and Kent were household names, but nobody ever walked up to her in the street and recognized her. They didn't even recognize her when she gave them her name. "So, do you want it?" Perry asked. He was pretty sure she'd say no, but with Lois you could never be certain. "You know, I just might try it out, Perry," Lois answered. "It's closer to home for one thing." "Fine. It's yours," Perry said. "Abnormal, but you can have it anyway. Now get out of here. I want that museum piece on my desk in half an hour." They walked out of the room. As Claudia passed Clark she said quietly, "Thank you." Clark flashed his famous smile at her. "No problem, Claudia." Claudia watched him walk away. Like most of the new girls, she was half admiring, half scared of Lois Lane, but they all loved Clark Kent. He was gorgeous, but the quality that endeared him to them was that he was just so *nice*. He was the only one who bothered to learn their first names. Too bad he was taken. And taken he was. That was obvious to everyone. They weren't quite sure why he put up with Lois Lane, the hardheaded, stubborn reporter, but the way he looked at her made them all sigh with envy. Lois had seen the look in Claudia's eyes when she was around Clark, and she smiled to herself. That Kansas charm had done it again. She recognized that dreamy look as the same one that every other woman in the building, married or un-married, gave her husband. Heavens, she looked at him like that herself. "What are you smiling about?" Clark asked. He had come up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist. "Oh, nothing," she said. "Come on. No secrets," Clark said as he kissed her neck. "Mmm, okay," she succumbed. He knew what that did to her. "I was just thinking about how mad the Planet's female employees were when you married me." "Why would they be mad, honey?" Clark asked, bemused. "Because, my incredibly handsome, but naive husband, they all wanted you for themselves," Lois said, smiling. Clark rarely realized how desirable other women found him. It wasn't that he was dumb, he just had an inbred sense of modesty. "But they lost. I won. End of story." Clark laughed. "That you did, Lois. And I couldn't be happier. Now, as much as I'd like to continue this, we have a piece to write, and I think we've already used up some of our allotted time." Lois sighed. "Okay, you slavedriver. We can finish this later." "Promise?" Clark asked with a twinkle. "You better believe it," Lois replied. ~*~*~*~*~ End part 3 rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 18:46:46 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: COMBO: closet fan, britishisms, critique MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/21/99 11:41:39 PM Eastern Daylight Time, kubitc@KENYON.EDU writes: << The only thing I could think of, though, was Lois's use of the moniker 'Clarkie' (bracing myself for the onslaught of posts by authors using this name in their story) I know this was used in the show, but (as far as I can remember) it was used when Lois was out of character (perhaps in DTOSC?) I personally cannot 'hear' her say 'Clarkie'- it makes my shiver, in fact. Sorry. >> I know what you mean. It seems out of character for Lois to call Clark "Clarkie". The young woman from the museum who did research on druids for Clark called him Clarkie in WIEAK. Lois used the term as they flew to the bank robbery--"Clarkie? Really!" in tones of derision as she questioned Clark's taste in taking the woman to dinner. Ann Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 18:57:19 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/22/99 6:56:20 AM Eastern Daylight Time, ida18@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << who understands what I'm talking about if I mention the presses in Clark's kitchen [nothing to do with printing presses ;)], or describe something as 'banjaxed'?). >> I think I know what you mean about presses. They are a type of cupboard, aren't they? Here in the American South we have antique furniture called presses which are big moveable cabinets for dishes, etc. And when I went to school, there were large cabinets in the room for our coats called presses. Then again, in Kentucky and other Appalachian states, a lot of old British expressions live on thanks to isolation from the mid 1700's until the advent of television and radio. I must admit, you've got me stumped on "banjaxed." Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 23:23:36 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Yeah, that's a point. Come to think of it, Wendy....what *are* presses? The only thing I can think of are some kind of kitchen utensil which I've never used (Lois is my soul sister when it comes to cooking) but which I have the vague idea are used to crush things like cloves, etc. Or am I thinking of something completely different here? LabRat :) >In a message dated 4/22/99 6:56:20 AM Eastern Daylight Time, >ida18@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: > ><< who understands what I'm talking > about if I mention the presses in Clark's kitchen [nothing to do with > printing presses ;)], or describe something as 'banjaxed'?). >> > >I think I know what you mean about presses. They are a type of cupboard, >aren't they? Here in the American South we have antique furniture called >presses which are big moveable cabinets for dishes, etc. And when I went to >school, there were large cabinets in the room for our coats called presses. >Then again, in Kentucky and other Appalachian states, a lot of old British >expressions live on thanks to isolation from the mid 1700's until the advent >of television and radio. I must admit, you've got me stumped on "banjaxed." > >Ann > ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:18:48 EDT Reply-To: IdBBosko@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: IdB Bosko Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Last summer at the Superman Festival in Metropolis, Lane Smith stated that , although TPTB didn't write it, he played Perry White as knowing or at least suspecting. In a message dated 4/22/99 3:29:41 PM Central Daylight Time, James.Tull@EMRSN.COM writes: << Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't letting on. "I didn't get this job because I can yodel!" >> ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:31:59 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/22/99 4:29:41 PM Eastern Daylight Time, James.Tull@EMRSN.COM writes: << Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't letting on. "I didn't get this job because I can yodel!" >> I agree. There are too many episodes where Perry has that knowing look. The one that struck me the most was We Have a Lot to Talk About. At the end, when Superman tells Lois he has something to show her and they go off, Perry looks very smug. This is after he has been on Clark's case for calling her "Lane" at the party at the museum but has been happy to see them kiss after the bomb was defused. I can't believe he doesn't know. Also, if he didn't know, wouldn't he have fired Clark for all his absenteeism doing Superman things? I think Jimmy must have suspected as well. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:42:12 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Re: the "critique" thing, etc. MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" wrote: > I hope you know how much background work goes into putting together a FAQ to begin with. No, I haven't a clue. I assume it's not easy, but I would have enjoyed helping and learning along the way. Kristen wrote: > how do i get off of this list??????????????? It's easy, just follow these "simple" steps: 1. Without a "by your leave," write a detailed critique of a work of L&C fanfic, preferably one from the archive. 2. Comment on every absent comma, dangling participle, or split infinitive you might be able to find. 3. Rewrite said sections, changing the plot and characterizations if need be. 4. Post the entire thing to this list. 5. VOILA! 6. If you don't know that this is a joke ... you should. Sandy smcdermin@erols.com (Maybe this should be the FAQ's answer to that old, dog-tired question.... how do i get off this this list????????????) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 19:50:06 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: OT: Acting 101: For Yvonne ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Demi, It may have been off topic, but I was fascinated by acting 101. It makes a lot of sense to pick someone to talk to, even in a monologue. That whole "addressing your audience" thing again. Thank you. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 21:28:14 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melissa Day Hall Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that >the Kerth Awards were actually bad for L&C fanfic because fledgling writers >would be intimidated by the awards/winning authors and would not submit >their stories, were they to write them at all. Scare me off?? Well, heck no! Last year's Kerth's just flat out convinced me that FoLCs were some of the nicest, most supportive people on earth, and not long after that I jumped into the irc RR's headfirst without checking the water depth. Don't let my solitary solo fic fool ya- I'm up to 19 (or is it 20) RR's! Now, granted, I'm not exactly a thin-skinned person, and I've never had much doubt about my writing skills (Not to seem like a complete snob- I never said they couldn't stand improvement ;), so I might be coming from a completely different direction than some of the shyer FoLCs. Misha (mhall@sound.net) - - - - - "Pay no attention to what the critics say; no statue has ever been put up to a critic." -- Jean Sibelius ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 22:38:05 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Karen Ward Subject: Relative Anonymity :) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Hi, Rachel, et al! :) Sorry for those who've already read this on the list Afolcslife, but I just want *everyone* to know how much I enjoyed Rachel's fic! :) I just finished Rachel's fic and thought I'd share with everyone all the wonderful things I enjoyed about it! :) WARNING! Possible spoilers ahead . . . The very first thing that jumped out at me in this story was the opening scene . . . what a way to start! :) Lois's struggle to face the morning was very funny and an excellent taste of the witty dialogue to come! :) Secondly, I loved Rachel's witty dialogue! As with her previous fic, 'Cloud On My Tongue', she blended a perfect combination of humour and and WAFFs in L&C's exchanges that had me sniffling one minute and overcome with mirth the next. Great job, Rachel! :) Numero trois, I thought the kissing/answering the phone scene near the beginning was one of the cutest scenes I've ever read! It flowed nicely, and was very creatively thought out. :) Next, Rachel's clever innuendo, particularly that pertaining to closets, had me lapsing into a fit of giggles on more than one occasion. I loved it! :) Finally, and probably what I love most about Rachel's writing, is her portrayal of L&C's daily routine. She brings a lot of character to what would normally be mundane daily tasks and makes them infinitely enjoyable to read. Great writing, Rachel! I look forward to reading more of you lively work! :) BTW, I love your choice of title, Rachel! It was great! :) Take care, everyone! :) Karen :) KamikazeK on IRC ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 22:34:06 EDT Reply-To: Kirshnera@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Susan VanCott Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/22/99 12:56:07 PM Eastern Daylight Time, MPSL27@AOL.COM writes: > Also, all the writers are > different ages and have had different experiences. I have talked to several > FOLCs who are around 15-18 years old, and are just starting fanfic writing. > They seem intimidated, I think, and think their stories are dumb (which they > aren't--they're actually very talented writers! I've read em!) So I would > like to say to them--just write. Write as much as you can, and maybe you'll > end up with a couple diskfulls of duds, but sooner or later you're going to > get the hang of it and actually enjoy your own work, and that's when you > become a great fanfic writer. Or something like that... I second this motion. :) I was 14 when I started writing fanfic, and I can look back on those now as clunkers, but with *some* real talent to them. Lots of younger people are teriffic writers-- for example, the relative "newbie" Rachel TenHaaf ("Cloud on My Tongue" and "Relative Anonymity") is one of the many fanfic writers under 20 with exceptional talent. :) (and I know she won't mind me mentioning her) I'm still only 16, and yet I managed to become a '99 Kerth nominee with my story "Disquiet Nights (Like Dreamers Do)" Everybody's been a fledgling at one time. Believe me, I know from experience that it takes a lot of courage to post something if it's your first story and you've decided that next to Chris Mulder or Debby Stark, you're a terrible writer. If you compare yourself to them, the "bigwigs" *are* intimidating. But it's like Lois' story in "Twas the Night Before Mxymas"-- it usually smells a whole lot better than you think. :) >>On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list intimidate you?<< I don't consider myself a fledgling (any more), but I was one during the time of last year's Kerths. It didn't upset me at all-- it was fun to see which of my favorite stories would win. After the Kerths, I really got into writing fanfic, just because I wanted to be a part of this "wonderful thing." :) And as for the presence of more experienced authors, it is in one sense intimidating knowing that these "important people" are reading your ideas, and I'm sure I speak for more than myself when I say it's easy to view them (or perhaps I should say "you," depending on who's reading this) as a sort of fanfic elite, and it's even easier to feel left out if you're newer or younger. But they're nice people, too, and they started where we all started or are starting. I don't view fanfic overall as a contest. If the Kerths were the main goal of fanfiction, it wouldn't last very long, and it wouldn't be nearly as satisfying. Rather, the Kerths serve more as a party the authors throw for each other and everyone else. People (including myself) say all the time, "I'm going to win a Kerth next year..." and grin about it. It's a nice goal to aim for, but the *most* important thing is enjoying what you write and what others write. And intimidation does not play a big part in fun. <~~whoosh back to lurkdom :) Peace, Love, and Superman, ~~>Susan VanCott<~~ http://www.angelfire.com/ny/loisclark ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 23:19:40 +0500 Reply-To: mulders@mindspring.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Bob or Chris Mulder Subject: Re: To critique ... or not to critique MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/enriched; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Hi, everyone, I have been reading the posts on this topic with a great deal of interest. I want to try and write down some of my own thoughts about critiques in general, and why I prefer private critiques in particular. It is my intention to produce a logical and thoughtful post, but ... well, we'll see how it goes. :-) First a little background, if you will bear with me. I was an art major in college. When I signed up for those classes, I knew that group critiques would be a part of the class. Being an introvert, and an extremely private person, I always looked forward to these with dread, *but* I'd signed on for the classes--in effect agreeing to be a willing participant--so I would grit my teeth and bear it. Now, it's true that I learned things from those discussions, but mostly from watching other people discuss their work. Whenever it was my turn, I'd get dry mouth, sweaty palms, and my tongue would refuse to produce much beyond the most basic of English sounds. < Fortunately for me, I wasn't the best student in the class, nor was I the worst, so (since the class periods were time limited) the teachers didn't always get around to my work. ;-) Writing for S6 was a little like those art classes, only more fun. ;-) I knew going into it that it was a group effort and that I'd be subject to the same group critiques as everyone else, and I was fine with that, in that setting. It's a relatively small group, which helps, plus most of us knew each other from IRC or having met at LAFF, etc. We couldn't get the job done if we weren't willing to work together. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to work with such a talented and committed group of FoLCs. Kathy has the patience of a saint, too, btw. < When we make comments on each others episodes, it doesn't feel like a public critique because it's just among the S6 group. So, in that situation, I don't have much of a problem posting or reading others' comments on my comments. It's been an interesting learning experience for me, mostly because I knew that my story would impact upon what came later. Other writers had points that they needed brought up in the first couple of episodes--things that their episodes depended upon--which meant that Pam, Barb and I had to tailor our stories to include those points. Also, there were time pressures, and length restrictions (a *very* hard thing for me to handle<). As much as I've enjoyed it, however, I can't honestly say that I'd recommend that experience for a beginning writer. I'm sure I couldn't have handled it, way back when I'd just finished LBAM. I have found over the years that I learn best by doing, and re-doing, and then doing it again, if necessary, in peace, and quiet, and solitude. My best stuff comes out when I can just be left alone to write. I can be fairly objective about my own work--I know if something stinks, and I also know deep within me when something I've done is truly right. And--perhaps most importantly--I know when I need to ask for help. My editors (lovely, long-suffering people :-)) will tell you that I'm prone to re-working a section until it flows, or "sounds right" or has just the right rythm to it. If they had a dollar for everytime I've asked them to read over something "just once more," they'd be very well off by now. < Knowing how I learn best, I've been pondering how this might apply to the topic currently under discussion. Some FoLCs have put forth the notion that open, public critiques are a great way to learn. Yes, that's true. But, only for some people. Just as we all love different kinds of music, or books, or hobbies, so too do we all learn in different ways. For some people, it's a hands-on approach, for others it would be talking it through with a colleague, still others prefer to plunge into a project without much prior thought, learning through their mistakes, and yet another approach might be to write out a detailed plan beforehand. While it's not impossible for a hands-oner to learn by talking it all out first, it's certainly not easy. So, where is Chris going with this, you ask. No place in particular. :-) I just thought I'd put these observations out there for you all to think about. I think we should all be careful about such statements as, "open critiques would benefit everyone on the list," because I don't think that's true. In fact, I think that, if we're not careful, we might scare off some people. Hey, I just had a thought--I wonder if those self-directed computer classes were designed by introverts who'd been forced in the past to get up in front of the class. :-) Okay, we've had some "general" now let's move on to the "particular" that I promised you. :-) In my particular case, I'm not comfortable with a public forum. I started writing fanfic because of my love for L&C, plain and simple. This is the only show I've ever even felt like writing stories for, let alone actually doing it. I've always loved making up stories, and I've been doing it since I was a child, but I never let anyone else see them until I put my first 'fic, "Love Beyond All Measure" out on the old fanfic majordomo list. I'm still not quite sure why I did that, and I certainly never expected the response I received. I got so many kind and encouraging letters from people who had enjoyed that little story (okay, Pam ... "little" for me <), that I was quite frankly overwhelmed. I also received something I really hadn't expected--a new best friend in Pam Jernigan. Yes, it's true that she lured me to an abandoned restaurant, < for our first meeting, but we've long since overcome that minor setback. ;-) In fact, Pam played a large part in helping me get "Dimensions of Loving" finished. She accepted it 20-30K at a time, bless her!, and was generous with both her praise and her suggestions for how it could be better. She gave me what I needed: a one-on-one relationship with an appreciative reader, a perceptive editor, and an endlessly patient sounding board. So, if you liked that story, maybe you should send Pam a thank-you note! < Wade Smith encouraged me in the beginning also. (Some of you "old-timers" will remember Wade and his countdown to each new episode. < He's doing well, btw, and is still a FoLC.) In addition to Pam, Sarah Wood was a tremendous help with "A Hero's Journey," and "Meet Me in Kansas City" would not have been quite the same without Jeff Brodgen's generous input. Claire (Klaire-El) was very supportive while I was working on "The Child Who Fell From the Sky," as well as during the second half of MMIKC. They all played a part, and I'm more grateful to them than I can possibly ever say, but I've tried. :-) In the end, tho, those stories are mine and I take responsibility for what is in them. Not everyone has liked what they've read, and some have written to tell me so. That's fine. :-) I know that no one writer can please every reader, nor should he/she try; I believe that we have to write what feels right for us. However, I've learned things from each of the letters I've received--both the positive and the negative ones--and I've made a point of responding to every letter that I could. (One time my note kept bouncing back to me, only the Internet gods know why.) I enjoy those exchanges very much. One person writing to one other person suits me just fine. Maybe it's partly because I grew up in a time before computers, when letters were still private things, but primarily I think it's because I feel most comfortable with the idea of personal exchanges between two people as opposed to addressing a crowd of folks in an amphitheatre. That's what posting to the list feels like for me. Okay, I'm just about done here. :-) It's taken me three evenings to finish this because I don't get a lot of time during the week to write, but I felt it was important to make my preferences known. Nor have I had the time to download my mail since Monday, so you all may have voted or something and moved on already. So, if this is "old news" I apologize. :-) I'd like to think that there's room for each of us on the fanfic list-- introvert, extrovert, whatever. One possible solution might be that if people want to carry out detailed critiques of the stories on the list (or the archive), they could email the author(s) first and just ask them if they're willing to participate in an open discussion of their fanfics. I don't think that's being unreasonable. That way, the FoLCs who want to engage in open discussions can do so, and those who don't, won't have to. Thanks to all of you for listening. :-) --Chris ... the quiet one in the corner booth. ;-) mailto:mulders@mindspring.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 22:58:04 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pat Subject: Re: Kerths and "fledgling" fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit KathyB asked: >...Those of you who are new to writing >fanfic (or are still deciding whether to write it at all), does your >reading of "high quality" L&C fanfics make you want to write more? Or does >it make you less willing to try? I'm not a fledgling fanfic author, but I'd really like to add my opinion here. The only fanfic I'd heard of before L&C was the photocopied Star Trek fic that circulated via snail mail 10 or 15 years ago. Some Trek fic that I'd read was less than stellar (sorry, couldn't resist the pun ;) so I read my first L&C fic with relatively low expectations. I hadn't planned on reading fanfic, but my LCWS was pretty severe due to the summer re-runs; our library had just gotten an internet terminal, and as luck would have it, I stumbled upon Chris Mulder's "Dimensions of Loving." I downloaded it, printed it out, carried it home, and read the entire story in one sitting. Then I read it a second time, and passed it on to my husband with the comment, "I can't beleive how *good* this is. This story is better than some of the episodes I've seen on tv, and it's very professionally written." He read it and agreed, but we wondered if maybe Chris's story was the exception. They couldn't all be this good, could they? So I picked another author at random, and downloaded Debby Stark's "Dawning" saga. There were only 8 or 9 parts to Dawning back then, and Mike and I them (no more than 2 parts in an evening) so that we wouldn't finish them too quickly. I was hooked. I didn't write my first fanfic until a year or so after that, but the high quality fics were, if anything, an incentive for me to write. As I read more fanfic, I discovered that just as there were a number of very good, very professionally written fics, there were also a good number of beginning authors. That range made me feel very comfortable. If the new authors' stories were welcome to share webspace with those of the "bigwigs," then it would seem to follow that FoLC community was ready to welcome those of us who hadn't written fiction since high school. And those very well written stories not only gave me something to shoot for, they also implied, in the authors' thank you's to their editiors, that help in improving one's writing might be available from within the group. >On a related note, did the Fanfic Kerth >Awards make you more or less likely to try your hand at fanfic? Does the >presence of more experienced fanfic authors on this fanfic discussion list >intimidate you? I can't really answer this one, since I started writing before there were Kerth awards, but I *think*, if I were a new author, the awards would encourage me. I'd feel that I'd found an interested, critical, audience; one that valued good fiction so much, they wanted to reward it. What could be more encouraging to an artist? Pat peabody@mcs.com pattijean@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 01:01:17 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Re: Kerths and In-Reply-To: <19990422213719.42896.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 4:37 PM -0500 4/22/99, Jessi Mounts wrote: >Yes, the experienced fanfiction writers on this list scare me to >death. I mean, I'm sitting here typing a post in response to >something Kathy Brown said. Do you know you're the first author I >ever read a fanfiction by? It's really intimidating to be thinking >about the fact that these amazing writers are going to read my emails. >So I usually sit back in awe on this list, and post occasionly on the >other (when it's not down anyway). That's really sweet to say, but remember what Erin just wrote .. I'm just an ol' teddy bear. (Glass eyes, black nose, stitched mouth ... and boy, it sure is hard typing with paws! ) Thanks to everyone who's responded to this thread so far ... my goal was to get to bed every night this week by midnight, but I had to break that tonight (it's nearly one am right now) because I've been enjoying reading all these responses. I'm going to have to leave the last 20 or so until tomorrow, though, since my contacts are sticking to my eyes and making my vision blur. My first fanfic was Counter-Clark-Wise, by Zoomway and I thought "wow, that guy can sure write!" I got on IRC a few weeks later (fall 1995) and was set straight on the gender issue ;) but my opinion on the quality still stands. :) Considering I had never even heard of fanfic before (you mean I could actually take all those stories I had running around in my head and write them down??), it was the beginning of a long and wonderful obsession ... er, relationship. Kathy (who devoured the first 200 or so stories on the archive, back when it was a majordomo site and mailing list, like a person stranded in the dessert might guzzle water. ) ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@springnet1.com KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 02:34:09 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Patricia Chenenko Subject: Combo: Kerths and "fledgling" (and travelling and printing) In-Reply-To: <009D703A.B3AAC3E0.111@kenyon.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy wrote: > During the course of the Kerths this spring, a FoLC suggested to me that the Kerth Awards were > actually bad for L&C fanfic because fledgling writers would be intimidated by the awards > winning/authors and would not submit their stories were they to write them at all. Here's another fledgling writers pov. I love the Kerth Awards. I joined this list shortly before the first Kerth's and am still here over a year later. For me, the Kerth's were an opening to this "world" of fanfic writing. They made me feel welcome. Instead of just observing from the sidelines, they allowed me to become an active participant, cheering for my favorite authors, even though I was not a writer. I wrote my first fanfic around the time of the first Kerth's. I haven't submitted it anywhere, but not because the presence of Kerth-winning authors on this list has been a deterrent. I do admit to a feeling of trepidation every time I click on "send," whether it be on IRC or on the mailing list. It is just the nature of my personality, and I think it is the main reason that I am reluctant to submit my writing. After all, if it takes me 2 days and 3 or 4 re-writes just to send a ten line message, imagine the time it would take me for a 10 page story. (Let's see...at 25 lines per page x 10 pages, thats 50 days and 200 rewrites, yikes!) So, for the time-being, I write for myself and someday (when I finish all those re-writes) I'll post it here. On the subject of travelling with fanfic and printing: 1. I just found a nifty utility called "Double Page" that automates the process of landscape 2-column printing. It's freeware, but, it's only available for Word 6,7 and 97. It's amazingly fast, easy to use, and it doesn't alter your original document. The URL is http://www.cam.org/~donato/index.html. It even has an option for "manual duplexing" that automatically prints all the odd pages, prompts you to flip them over and then prints the even pages. It doesn't condense quite as far as my manual process did, but it's many times faster. 2. I guess if we can have "closet" fanfic writers we can have closet fanfic readers . On a recent ski vacation with my family, I carried 5 volumes of fanfic with me. We stayed in a small hotel and saw the same people every day, so it was inevitable that someone would ask me what I was *always* reading. The questioner had provided me with an easy "out" by asking me if I was working and I guiltily replied that I was. He felt sorry that I had to work on vacation and I felt like I did in 10th grade when I got caught reading a Harold Robbins novel in social studies class . I laugh, but I'm actually a little ashamed that I felt that way. It just seems that when I've been honest about my fanfic reading in the past, I've had to spend lots of time and energy defending my choice of reading material. Time that I could better spend reading . Any other closet readers out there? Patty C pchenenko@worldnet.att.net My ICQ# is 7824988 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 02:49:18 EDT Reply-To: MsLoisette@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Combo: Kerths and "fledgling" (and travelling and printing) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 99-04-23 02:37:04 EDT, you write: << Any other closet readers out there? >> Well, I used to be a closet reader.. meaning only reading the LnC fanfic inside my room. But now since i have 4 hours to kill between my college classes, I pull out my LnC fanfic in public. I don't really care what others think! Because i will continue to read it no matter what! =) Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 08:54:14 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Re: To critique ... or not to critique MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Bob or Chris Mulder wrote: >I just thought I'd put these observations out there for you all to think about. I think we should all be >careful about such statements as, "open critiques would benefit everyone on the list," because I don't think >that's true. In fact, I think that, if we're not careful, we might scare off some people. Too late -- and I don't mean to be flip. When I posted my review to the list last year which generated a lot of flak -- no matter what you thought of the review itself -- I thought the reaction I received went over the line. Having your story discussed is one thing, but having your personality publicly dissected and found wanting is quite another. That put a chill through me which *did* scare me off the list. The only reason I made a reappearance was for "Little Man, Super." I knew that if I wanted to introduce that story, which I had been in the middle of writing for *this* audience, I had to swallow my anger, my hurt, my fear (and I do mean fear at being attacked again) and get back here temporarily. I also wanted to answer any questions about the story and discuss it, if people so desired. "Little Man, Super" is probably my last L&C story no matter how much I play with the idea of "correcting" a blooper or whatever. Frankly, I've noticed messages where people are trying to make comments or review stories and they end up posting three or four lines of apologies before they do so. Why do they have to do that? Why do they have to apologize for their opinions -- all of which are downright innocent? We all know -- at least I hope we do -- that we're not out to hurt each other. To me, and this is *my* opinion, *that* is the chill which endangers this list. The chill of self-censorship. I'm not talking about the necessary self-censorship we all *must* abide by not to hurt each other, especially with personal attacks, but a self-censorship about commenting on fanfic which, in effect, puts a ban on it. Now, I've written this message very quickly. It's from the gut. So, I *do* apologize for any mistakes I've made doing so. Sandy smcdermin@erols.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 09:17:37 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Terry S. Horowit" Subject: Re: fledgling readers In-Reply-To: <000001be8d53$4ae3d600$49d04e0c@patricic> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Patty C. wrote: >2. I guess if we can have "closet" fanfic writers we can have closet fanfic >readers . On a recent ski vacation with my family, I carried 5 volumes >of fanfic with me. We stayed in a small hotel and saw the same people every >day, so it was inevitable that someone would ask me what I was *always* >reading. The questioner had provided me with an easy "out" by asking me if I >was working and I guiltily replied that I was. He felt sorry that I had to >work on vacation and I felt like I did in 10th grade when I got caught >reading a Harold Robbins novel in social studies class . I laugh, but I'm >actually a little ashamed that I felt that way. It just seems that when I've >been honest about my fanfic reading in the past, I've had to spend lots of >time and energy defending my choice of reading material. Time that I could >better spend reading . Any other closet readers out there? Yes, I definitely count as one of these. I discovered fanfic and the Archive just the end of last year, and my husband went through a period of being VERY annoyed with me for "wasting" so much time reading "those stories". He's better about it now (he likes to read bits of a story over my shoulder while waiting for something to happen on his computer and point out every absurdity and inconsistency he thinks he spots - usually its just that he missed the premise of the plot or doesn't understand something about a character), but he'll still send my daughter in to check on whether I'm "reading one of THEM again". Most of my close friends have known for awhile that I was obsessed with the show, but the one time I admitted to a less close friend that I've been reading the fanfic, she looked at me in shock and said, "Terry, I am just SO disappointed in you!" I was kind of shocked myself by this sweeping comment, and just sort of shrugged in embarassment and didn't tell anyone else until just last night. A very good friend is suffering through a severe asthma attack and is temporarily home-bound. I brought her over a goodie bag full of VCR tapes and books and while we were discussing scifi authors, I mentioned the List and the stories. And SHE said, "Oh sure, I'm on a List like that for La Femme Nikita"! I felt better after that. Maybe I'll tell someone else someday (and maybe not...) Terry ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 09:54:12 EDT Reply-To: Ccmalo@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "C.C. Malo" Subject: Combo post- the critique thread, Recognition, group writing, MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi, I've got my nerve up to post again, so here goes. Warning: it's long. I wanted to thank Zoomway, Charlotte, Brenda, and Rachel for their comments about my latest story. It's encouraging to know that you read it and enjoyed it. :-) And thank you for the suggestions about the title. I was serious [ maybe foolish, too] when I said I would welcome criticism, both good and bad, of the story. It's hard thing to ask for help but I would like to improve the story before I send it to the archive. To me, the story seems uneven; I think this is why I can't decide on a title. I have enjoyed reading the critiques (although I certainly respect the wishes of Margaret and Chris on privacy here) that have been posted to this list because they've raised issues about writing that hadn't occurred to me, like Sandy's comments on "For the Good of the Child" about Internal Dialogue and Exposition vs. Action and Chris's reply to that which gave some insight into her writing process. I thought a lot about that, but could not get my nerve up to post on it. Anyway, on the basis of their comments, I rewrote two of the sections in my latest R story. One of the things that I have appreciated about writing with S6 is the criticism that has been a part of that. When I wrote episode 4 , I deleted a couple of parts of the story, revised another aspect of it, and cleaned up a several sloppy plot details ( although I still made a mistake about the universities in Kansas in the story). I consider myself a new writer -- R : Truth is the first fiction of any sort that I have written since two attempts when I was in my early teens many years ago :). Writing is something I enjoy; I do it for the fun of it but that doesn't mean I don't hope to make it better :). Carol ( who also dreams of improving her skiing technique ) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 08:57:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sheila Harper Subject: Re: Recognition Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > I can't decide on the title for this story. --- "Recognition: The Way" [my > original title], or "R: The Rules" or "R: Trust". Carol, now that I've read Recognition: ?? (which I loved--exciting, suspenseful, WAFFy, full of relationship details--you have such a good handle on how to write a "Closed" mystery as opposed to an "Open" one :), I'm more convinced than ever that you should use my earlier suggestion from the credo. However, I think it should be Recognition: The American Way? (and I'm using the question mark deliberately to indicate irony and incredulity). I think that that would work okay for international FoLCs because you would be questioning that whole concept of whether Superman has an American flag on his chest instead of a red S, and I think it'd fit the story beautifully. Just my $.02 Sheila :) sharper@cncc.cc.co.us ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 10:33:58 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Peggy Mueller Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit From: Mr. D8a >My wife and I have often discussed who should know, who wouldn't know, and >who would know but doesn't let on. Any ideas out there? I think Perry knows, and Jimmy and Dr. Klein do *not* know, but I think the writers/producers were setting things up for them to find out in Season 5. (SLV for Jimmy, and several eps where Lois & Superman appeared together in front of Dr. Klein, looking (I thought) very much in love.) Peggy :) gremlino@pathway.net ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 04:59:21 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mikki Uyehara Subject: Re: COMBO: closet fan, britishisms, critique In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Greetings and Aloha, Now ladies and gents, wouldn't it be wonderful if we had a fanfic titled, say "The British are Coming," The premise of the story has Lois and Clark playing host to an English Family . The differences in dialects, and the creative wordplay involved in evolving the language of any culture, regardless of the similarities, creates a comedy of errors. Hilarious attempts to hide Clark's secret identity, rivalry between the young people, but ending with love conquering all. We could create an entire category of L&C puns based on Britishisms vs. Amercanisms. Sort of a Fawlty Towers meets Seinfeld. The Zoomway could set up a round robin fanfic session , with the american group writing one part and the british group writing the other. If anyone agrees that this would be a great idea, do respond. I say "Let the Idioms Flow!" Mahalo nui loa Maeve, the kids, and the cats At 06:46 PM 4/22/99 EDT, you wrote: >In a message dated 4/21/99 11:41:39 PM Eastern Daylight Time, >kubitc@KENYON.EDU writes: > ><< The only thing I could think of, though, was Lois's > use of the moniker 'Clarkie' (bracing myself for the onslaught of posts by > authors using this name in their story) I know this was used in the show, but > (as far as I can remember) it was used when Lois was out of character >(perhaps > in DTOSC?) I personally cannot 'hear' her say 'Clarkie'- it makes my shiver, >in > fact. Sorry. >> > > >I know what you mean. It seems out of character for Lois to call Clark >"Clarkie". The young woman from the museum who did research on druids for >Clark called him Clarkie in WIEAK. Lois used the term as they flew to the >bank robbery--"Clarkie? Really!" in tones of derision as she questioned >Clark's taste in taking the woman to dinner. > >Ann > >Ann > > ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 11:13:55 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP part 1 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST PART 1: FIELD TRIP An IRC Round Robin by ChrisM (mulders@mindspring.com); Ckgroupie (NKWolke@t-online.de); Eraygun (Eraygun@aol.com); Lansbury (Lansbury1@aol.com); Misha (mhall@sound.net);zoomway (zoomway@aol.com); chrispat (cp13607@aol.com);EmmyRose(emmyrose@sprint.ca) "I'm tired of winter. I'm tired of being pregnant. I'm tired of this story, and I'm especially tired of no chocolate!" Me, too, Clark thought, as he listened to the love of his life letting off steam. "I know these past couple of months have been tough, sweetheart--" "Three! It's been *three* months, Clark!" "Sorry, honey. I know it's been tough, but Dr. Klein said that the morning sickness should disappear soon, then you can go back to chocolate again." In fact, he thought, I'll personally fly to Switzerland and stock up. "Oh, Clark, it's not just the chocolate, and I'm sorry to be so grouchy today." Another hormone-induced mood swing was hitting her and she could feel herself getting teary. "I don't know what's wrong with me lately." Clark gave her a hug. "There's nothing wrong with you, Lois. You're just pregnant." "Pregnant and moody and grouchy and--" "Beautiful," he told her as he kissed her. A big tear rolled down her cheek, but she was giggling a bit, too. "You're just saying that." "Only because it's true." Now she was able to chuckle, and the tears were completely gone. "Thanks, Clark. You always seem to know how to cheer me up." "You're welcome. My pleasure, Mrs. Kent." He held her for another moment, then she seemed to remember that they were supposed to be getting ready for work, because she slipped out of his arms with a sigh. "Now if only you could get us a more interesting story to work on, Clark, I'd be eternally grateful." He grinned at her. "You mean you haven't enjoyed poring over those ledgers and account books, Lois?" "You know I haven't. What we need is a good scandal or crime wave. Something more exciting than S&Ls playing fast and loose with depositors' cash." "Well, we'll be able to finish this up today and then maybe Perry will give us a new story to work on." "I hope so!" Lois responded fervently. "If I had some excitement in my life maybe I could forget how lousy I feel. I'm ready for *anything!*" Clark held her coat so she could slip it on. "Be careful what you wish for, Lois," he reminded her with a grin. * * * "We're almost there!" Kara whispered excitedly to her friend Dara who was standing next to her, intently watching the monitors in the control room of the spaceship. Dara nodded. It had been a long journey from New Krypton to Earth. Lord Trey also watched the monitors, carefully directing the small ship towards Metropolis, the city he knew from his last visit two years ago. It would be interesting to see Lord Kal-El again, and he hoped it also would be informative to the pupils he had with him. He hadn't been so sure it was the right thing to do, taking twenty young Kryptonians to Earth, but the citizens of New Krypton, those not part of the ruling families, were asking difficult questions about what had happened on Earth. The students who attended Trey's classes in Ancient Kryptonian Law and Culture discussed nothing else, and the Lady Zara had proved a surprising ally in their demand for more firsthand information. Maybe he should try to reach Lord Kal-El before they arrived? He certainly would be surprised to see them. Trey heaved a heavy sigh as he thought more about the prospect of seeing Kal-El again. Jor-El and Lara had been his closest friends back on Krypton. He remembered the day young Kal was born. He also remembered the many arguments he had with Jor about his plan to send the child to Earth rather than New Krypton with Lady Zara. But his attempts to change Jor-El's mind had been futile. Both he and Lara had been adamant about their decision and had even sworn him to secrecy about their plan. He had intended to keep the location secret, but the passage of time had convinced him that despite Jor-El and Lara's feelings, Kal needed to be with his own people. And so he'd revealed his knowledge to Lady Zara when she expressed her concerns about the rise of Lord Nor and his disruptive influence in New Krypton's society. Trey sighed again. Seeing Lord Kal-El fighting against Nor for the people of Earth only reminded him of how much New Krypton needed a leader like him. And to see him living on a backward planet in this tiny corner of the universe was just a bit much, though Kal did seem content there, whatever the reason. Trey's musings were interrupted by the sudden appearance of Jax-Ur, one of his students, at his side. "Excuse me, Lord Trey?" "What is it, Jax?" "I was wondering if you'd allow us to use the telecom to pick up some transmissions from Earth?" Trey nodded. "Certainly. It would be wise for you and the others to obtain any additional information you can about Earth and its culture. Just remember to maintain shield integrity during your monitoring. Our ship must remained cloaked at all times, if we are to avoid being detected by the Terran military..." Before he could finish his statement, Jax had darted to one of the ship's control panels and the entire vessel began to vibrate with the sound of what Trey perceived as electronically enhanced stringed and percussion instruments. "What in Rao's name is *that*?!" Trey shouted. "Earth music," Kara replied calmly from her station at the navigation console. "I've been monitoring this frequency for the last few minutes and the ..." She hesitated and frowned slightly as she struggled to think of the proper Terran term... "*pronouncer*," she continued, "said, 'This is WMET - home of the hits - your 24-hour source for rock and roll!'" Trey shook his head. Perhaps he should have thought more carefully about this trip and its impact on his charges after all. As the ship went into a low orbit, Trey turned the controls of the vessel over to the student who was acting as co-pilot. "Take the controls while I once again warn the others of the dangers of Earth and Earthmen. I don't want any accidents while we are there." The sounds of the Earth music were still echoing through the ship as Trey made his way towards his charges. "Gather around quickly. We are almost there." He watched the young Kryptonians made their way to him their eyes full of excitement as each watched his every move. "While we are visiting here there are a few things you must remember. First, we want to blend with the populace. That means, once there, refrain from using any strengths you might acquire. Do you all understand what that means?" The tall one called Leva looked around at the others. She repeated in a sing-song voice. "Lord Trey has said again and again. 'If we couldn't do it on New Krypton, we can't do it on Earth.'" Laughter could be heard from the back of the group. "Is there something funny about that, Dara? Do you want to share with the rest of the group what you consider so humorous?" "No, Lord Trey. I...I must have had something stuck in my throat. I beg your forgiveness for interrupting you." "Well, see that you listen more carefully." Leva and Dara's eyes met. Each gave the other a mischievous grin. Trey, oblivious to the machinations of the Kryptonian teenagers before him, counted the gathered students quickly. "Now, I need four volunteers for the first group down to Metropolis." He was nearly toppled over by the mass of students who stepped forward, and he scrambled a few steps backwards. Composing himself, he eyed the students closely. "Four volunteers, not forty." "But Lord Trey, there are only twenty of us," Dara interjected. "Yes, I realize that, my dear. Kara, Jax-Ur, Mir and..." Trey pointed at students randomly, then when Dara's lower lip started quivering, "Dara. You will accompany me to Lord Kal-El's domicile. The rest of you may divy yourselves into groups of four. I will accompany each group to the surface in turn." The undercurrent of grumbles among the students left behind was mercifully telepathic, and not a peep of outward disgruntlement leaked from the unfortunates not chosen for the first foray. Trey caught the edges of a few 'It's not fair.' comments that leaked from his students, but mindful that discipline was a skill only mastered by time, he kept his own counsel. Trey and his students emerged from their cloaked ship into the growing gloom of a Metropolis evening. The chill of night was swiftly settling on the city, with its companion neon glow of nightlife. "Where are we, Lord Trey?" asked Kara silently as she sidestepped an imposingly smelly dumpster. "I believe it's called an alley. There are apparently many in Metropolis." Trey sniffed once, then covered his nose and led them quickly away. "These Earthers are so careless," Jax-Ur sneered as they dodged pedestrians right and left on the crowded sidewalk. Dara shot him a much-practiced glance of disbelief in his utter stupidity. "At least they've still got their original home planet." Jax-Ur looked down his nose at her, not a far distance, as she was an inch taller. "Like that's so special." Kara elbowed him in the side and glanced quickly at Trey before admonishing them both telepathically to shut up before they looked like complete weirdos and were sent home without even meeting Lord Kal-El. Trey smiled to himself as they approached the brownstone. Continued in part 2 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 11:13:50 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC ALERT: BLAST FROM THE PAST MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone The IRC Round Robin writers have been at it again, and as a result I have the pleasure of posting our latest story a two parter called Blast From the Past. Part I is called Field Trip and in it Metropolis must contend with a mini invasion of sorts when Lord Trey returns with some of his young students to visit the legendary *Lord Kal-El* and his *concubine* ;). Part II is called "Return of Lord Kal-El" and in it Lois and Clark learn that sometimes you need to beware of Kryptonians bearing gifts ;) We enjoyed writing this story and we hope you enjoy reading it. As always comments (both positive and negative, as well as public and private) are welcome. Cheers, Eileen ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 11:14:04 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP part 4 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 1: FIELD TRIP Continued from part 3 __________________________________ Lois rolled her eyes. "That's because I'm not a concubine. When will those half-witted excuses for a Council that can't even find their own..." She glanced at the two girls. "Anyway, I'm Clark's wife, not his concubine." "But..." Kara finished Dara's sentence again. "But Zara is Ka-Clark's wife. They've been married since birth." Lois shook her head and smiled sadly. "Marriage isn't about whose kid is going to make the best dynastic alliance. It's about sharing yourself with someone who loves you and it's about how every moment you spend with your partner is the best moment of your life." Dara sat back with a small 'oh' on her lips. Kara pressed the point, a small wrinkle growing on her forehead. "But how do you provide for your family, your clan? How do you ensure the safety of your vassals?" Lois looked her in the eye. "That's the job of society." Her eyes took on a glow. "That is every sane person's goal- to make Earth, or wherever, a safer, better place for everyone involved, not just one or two privileged or wealthy families." She waved the bowl of popcorn, spilling white kernels across the counter. "It's my job as a reporter to find those people who have abused their position or their wealth and expose them and to inform the public of what they can do to make society a better place." Kara's puzzled frown deepened, but she subsided into silence. Lois placed the bowl down on the counter and felt two familiar arms wrap around her expanding waist. "Thank you," Clark whispered in her ear. "For what?" He twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. "For just being you." He kissed her cheek, and brushed his lips lightly across hers. "I take it you found them?" she murmured as she returned his kiss. "Um-hmm." He sighed and drew away. "Time to send them home." "But first," Lois said softly, "I think you should make a few things clear to Trey." Clark smiled weakly. "Honey, there's nothing he can do to or for our child, but--" Clark looked into her gently pleading eyes. "I'll have a talk with him." Lois sighed with relief. "I love you too, Clark." Clark walked into the living room where he had left Trey and Jax-Ur and Mir. The two young men were dozing side by side, the effects of fermented hops taking a toll on their unaccustomed palates. Clark took a bracing breath and faced Trey, who seemed to be busying himself with a small calculator device. He glanced up. "Ah, Clark, I'm making departure calculations. The remainder of this field trip is canceled. I and my pupils will be leaving you shortly." Clark nodded. "That's great, Trey. I ... well, I want to make sure that we part company on good terms and an understanding about--" "Your son?" "I don't know if it's a son or daughter," Clark said and raised a hand. "And before you feel x-ray inclined, I don't *want* to know." "Very well," Trey acknowledged. "However, I believe you would be passing up a wonderful opportunity if you don't at least consider having your child raised and educated on New Krypton." Clark's expression of incredulity matched his thoughts. "Trey, you've got to be kidding. I'm not going to send my child to New Krypton, Old Krypton, or Old Miss. Lois and I will raise this child, if you don't mind too much." Trey's expression remained placid. "Of course, Clark. I didn't mean to imply that you and your wife wouldn't be raising your child. You and Lois can come to New Krypton. We can easily devise a pressure suit for her." Clark removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He laughed, but without really laughing. "Neither I nor Lois are going to New Krypton, and quite frankly, if you tried to put her in a pressure suit, you'd be up to your knees in floor." Trey frowned. "I don't understand how anyone could resent a life-saving pressure suit." "That's just it, Trey," Clark said and sighed with exasperation. "You don't understand *life*." Trey shrugged. "What's to understand? Life is the absence of death. A very simple equation." Clark shook his head and sat on the arm of the sofa. "Okay, Trey, then how about the *quality* of life?" he asked. "When I met Ching and Zara, I wondered why my father sent me to Earth instead of New Krypton as he was apparently ordered to." Trey lowered his gaze. "It was heresy." "Exactly," Clark smiled. "I have a feeling my father was a passionate man." Trey folded his arms. "Too passionate. Too ... different." Clark's smile widened. "I gathered that when I met Ching and Zara. They were cold, logical ... pragmatic." "Naturally," Trey agreed. "The ideal of Krypton and its teachings." "And my father, Trey?" Trey softened. "A great and brilliant man, and a good friend." Trey cleared his throat, emotion almost overtaking him. "But he was so far outside the mainstream of Kryptonian law and teachings--" "That he was branded a heretic." Trey nodded. "I warned him not to send you here, but his mind was made up. He said--" Trey cut himself off and lowered his head. Clark touched his shoulder gently. "He said ...?" he prompted. Trey raised his head and searched Clark's eyes. How like his father he was. "He said when you opened your eyes on a new world, he wanted it to be a place of passion and feelings, like Earth. That he did not want you on a world that no longer understood nor had a name for ... love." "Don't you see, Trey? I'm living the life my father wanted for me. For a long time I didn't feel like I belonged here, I wondered why I was sent here. My Kryptonian heritage was stolen from me by a madman named Trask, but you know what, Trey?" Clark smiled. "I wouldn't trade anything I've experienced here for a hundred years of peace and logical contentment on New Krypton." Trey nodded. "I told your father that he was banishing you to a chaotic wilderness. He told me that you would be a hero to Earth," Trey said, shaking his head. "How he knew this, I don't know, but he said that the job of a hero is to bring meaning to chaos." Trey finally looked up. "For what it is worth to you, Clark, he loved you very much." Clark tried to swallow but couldn't. He blinked several times, fighting back tears of mourning for the death of a man he never met. "Thank you, Trey," he said, his voice hoarse. "If it makes you feel any better though, it's Lois, more than Earth, or Krypton, or even Never-Neverland, that gives me that feeling of belonging. I wanted to be a hero for her, and she helped me be a hero for everyone else." Trey smiled with grudging admiration. "Are you saying she's Superman?" Clark laughed softly. "She's half of him, yes. The best half." Trey stood and offered his hand. "She is indeed, Lord Clark Kent." He tapped the two young men to awaken them, and mentally called Kara and Dara >from the kitchen where they had been helping Lois break ... wash dishes. The two young ladies hurried from the kitchen and fell in step with their groggy male counterparts. Dara turned to Clark. "Your wife could certainly teach the women of our planet a lot of things." Trey pushed Dara along. "She'd never get into the pressure suit, and I don't want to be up to my knees in floor." "Excuse me, sir?" "Never mind," Trey smiled, but then stopped as the students began retrieving their traveling satchels that had lain unused by the door since their arrival. Taking one from Jax-Ur, Trey removed a small statue. It was shaped a bit like a trophy of some sort. Trey handed it to Clark. "We brought you this Kryptonian artifact, and during the hectic events of the visit, I almost forgot to give it to you." Clark smiled, but looked puzzled. "Thanks ... Not to seem ignorant, but .. what is it?" "It belonged to the El family. Something your father would have sent with you to Earth had he thought of it, I imagine." Clark examined the curiosity. "Well, I guess I'll never know what it is, but just knowing it came from my father is enough. I appreciate you bringing it to me." "I was happy to, Clark," he said, smiling a final time as he and his pupils exited. Clark held the object in his hands and examined it. "I wonder where I should put it?" "How about next to the Kerths?" Lois suggested. "It looks sort of like one," she added, studying it with a frown. "Thank you, honey," he murmured, placing the artifact down and wrapping his arms around her. "Thanks for understanding. I know this hasn't been easy." "Well, nothing for us has ever been easy," she stated with a grin. "I'm only hoping labor will be the exception to the rule. And 'the terrible twos.'" "And 'threes'," he added. "'Fours' too, I guess." "Yeah, by that time he or she will probably be flying." "Good babysitters are hard enough to find," joked Lois. "We'll have to get someone who's got a pilot's license." "Super," muttered Clark under his breath, just realizing what he had said. Lois started to giggle and Clark joined in soon after, answering her laughter with a rain of kisses on her face. "Sometimes I can't believe that I'm the luckiest woman alive." "Then we're a perfect match," added Clark. "*I* am the luckiest man alive because I have you." "The luckiest man with the deepest, chocolate-colored eyes." Lois bit her lip. "Uh-oh. I said the 'c' word again." "How about a 'b' word, Lois?" "Baby?" she guessed. "No, dear--bed." "Ah yes. That's what got us the other 'b' word in the first place." Clark scooped Lois up into his arms and carried her up the stairs. In the darkened hallway, he fumbled for the door and whisked them both into the warm familiarity of their bedroom, shutting the rest of the world outside. As he laid Lois down on their bed, he accidentally knocked open the door to their night table. Another crunching sound beneath his feet greeted his ears. "Lo-IS!" To Be Continued in: Blast From the Past Part II: Return of Lord Kal-El ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 11:14:01 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP part 3 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 1: FIELD TRIP Continued from part 2 __________________________________ "Lord Trey! This isn't evil!" Dara and Kara piped up from the quiet corner in which they had swiftly been erasing the last vestiges of evidence of Lois' chocolate stash. Their conscientious scientific studies were very much in evidence around the corners of their mouths. Lois and Clark rounded on them, and the two girls shrank into themselves at the blazing fire in the two pairs of eyes. "Um. We'll just be ah...leaving now." They backed quickly out of the kitchen, leaving the doors wildly swinging behind them. "I think you'd better leave too, Trey," Lois warned him, struggling with playing the part of the logical half of the partnership. Trey sighed and nodded. "I'll just collect the boys, and..." He swept the house with his x-ray vision. "Oh dear." Clark double-checked. The girls were huddled over the last few Double Crunch bars, foreheads pressed silently together. The two boys who'd been there only a few minutes earlier complaining about Lois and Clark's taste in Earth music were conspicuously absent. "Great!" Clark said, and gave an exaggerated shrug. "Now what?" Lois asked. "Where could they be?" Trey's words moaned out as if he'd received an IRS audit. "Who!?" Lois asked. "Out there," Clark sighed. "Among eleven million unsuspecting humans." "Who, dammit!" Lois asked, and both Kryptonians fell mentally and orally silent. Clark ran a hand through his hair. "Jax-Ur and Mir, the two boys. They're ... gone." "I've had bad ideas," Trey said, "and made bad judgments, but coming back to Earth in direct violation of the "no-fly zone" ban of Earth..." He shook his head and sat down heavily. "Mental illness used to be rare on Krypton, but I seem to have brought it back into fashion single-handedly." Clark, feeling his natural compassion overriding his earlier outrage, patted Trey on the back. "We'll find them, Trey. I .. I'm sorry about losing my temper, it's just that--" Trey looked up thoughtfully. "I find so much of your culture unfathomable. However," he said, recouping some dignity, "I finally understand that expression." "Which is?" Lois asked curtly, her own compassion slower to kick into gear. "Finding a needle in a haystack." * * * "Bars?" Jax-Ur asked, his unflaggingly haughty tone in place. "Yes," Mir said as he walked up the crowded street. "There are all kinds of these .. social gathering spots." He consulted a phone book he had broken >from its two-inch thick chain at the phone booth. "There's "cigar bars" and "bars and grills" and a bar for "aroma therapy"." "Aroma therapy? Hmm, remember that 'dumber' thing we passed earlier." "Oh," Mir smiled. "I believe it was 'dumbster'. Yes, I recall. Perhaps Earthers who have had their sense of smell abused go to an aroma therapy salon." Jax-Ur considered that a moment. "But do Earthers have anything that actually smells *good*?" Mir's expression became wistful. "Lord Kal-El's concubine smelled quite pleasant." Jax-Ur shrugged. "Yes, I suppose she did," he admitted grudgingly. Mir pointed to a large building near the waterfront. "'The Ace 'o' Clubs,'" he said and frowned. "Curious name, though their building advertises 'fine food and entertainment.'" Jax-Ur nodded. "I would say it is a sign of class to advertise on your building. Shall we.. investigate?" "In the name of science." "Naturally." The two boys approached the building and stood outside for a few minutes watching the Earth people entering and leaving. They noticed that the people entering were showing something to a burly individual stationed at the door before they went in. "What are they showing him?" Jax-Ur whispered to Mir. "I don't know, but they seem to need it to get in." Suddenly, Jax-Ur winced and covered his ears. "Ow. I think that superhearing Trey was telling us about just kicked in. He's asking them for ID, whatever that is." "Then we'll just have to get some ID," Mir said, looking around. He noticed a couple of Earthers approaching, taking in their leather jackets, shaved heads and multiple piercings with interest. "Hey. Can you tell us what ID is and where we can get some?" The Earthers goggled at them and the bigger one growled, "You talkin' to me, Pretty Boy?" "Pretty Boy? Is that a derogatory name?" The thug looked puzzled. "Yeah...I think. What's derogatory? Jax-Ur straightened to his full height of 5'6". "You take that back. No one insults a member of the House of Ur!" "Oh yeah?" The thug sneered and took a swing at Jax-Ur. Jax-Ur easily sidestepped the blow aimed at his head, which caused the other man to lose his balance, spin halfway around, and fall right on his rather broad butt. The young Kryptonians had never seen anything quite like that and they made the mistake of laughing. Other people ... large, broad-shouldered people with assorted concealed weapons were converging on the scene. Things might have gotten ugly, but just then an even larger person thrust himself into the middle of the crowd. "Awright, what's goin' on 'ere?" At the sound of Bibbo's voice, the more prudent members of the crowd decided that they had business elsewhere. Jax-Ur and Mir stood, mouths agape, staring at the largest human they'd ever seen. "You!" Bibbo pointed to the man sitting on the pavement, "Make yourself scarce, see!" A couple of the men seemed inclined to argue, but Bibbo effortlessly picked one of them up by his collar and explained the situation to him. "I don't want no trouble outside my place. Ya got that?" "Yeah, sure, Bibbo. Sure. Anything you say. We was just gonna teach those two punks a lesson for laughin' at Matt." Bibbo set the man down and turned to look at the two Kryptonians. "I ain't seen youse guys around here before. Whatcha doin' here? Tryin' to start trouble?" Mir actually found himself stuttering. "N-n-no." Jax-Ur, with more bravado than bravery, stepped between the advancing Bibbo and Mir. "You'd better not d-do anything to us. We're friends of Ka-- er, Superman!" Bibbo considered the two youngsters before him. "So, you're friends of my pal Sooperman, eh? Well, we'll just see about that." He grabbed them and ushered them towards the bar. "Ya don't look old enough ta be in here, but if youse are really friends of Sooperman, I guess I oughter look afta ya." Jax-Ur and Mir looked at one another. Well, at least they were actually going to see the inside of a real Earther bar. * * * About an hour later, Clark, in the familiar red, yellow and blue outfit, walked through the door of the Ace o' Clubs. Up on the stage were two slightly inebriated young Kryptonians. Their invulnerability hadn't completely kicked in yet, it seemed, probably because they'd landed at night rather than in the daytime. Clark didn't recognize the song they were singing, but he thought that it might be the Kryptonian version of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction." Bibbo lumbered from behind the bar, belched and gave his 'fav'rit' a huge grin. "Sooperman! I only half believed 'em when they sez dey wuz friends o'yours, but I guess that call to Miss Lois paid off," he said as he grabbed Clark's arm and began to pump it up and down. Clark sighed. "Let's just say I know them, Bibbo, and leave it at that," he replied as he disengaged himself from the burly barman and made his way to the stage. Clark winced as the two boys brought their song to a very loud --and very off key --finale, and then slumped to the floor. Mir looked up and grinned and pointed at Clark. "See, Jax. I told you Lord Kal-El would find us." Jax stood up and staggered over to Clark. "Yes, you did, Mir," he replied with as much dignity as he could muster in his intoxicated state. "It would appear I have underestimated you, my lord," he slurred to Clark with a deep bow. Clark fanned the air as Jax's stale beer breath reached his sensitive nostrils. "Yeah, I've found you," he replied. "Now the question is what am I going to do with you?" * * * "Do you think Lord Kal, I mean, Clark will be much longer?" Kara asked Lois as she watched her prepare popcorn and fudge in the kitchen. "Not if he knows what's good for him," Lois mumbled. Lois turned her attention back to the popcorn. Even halfway across the room, the fudge was making her stomach churn, and while the sharp scent of butter and salt cut the nausea a bit, she mourned the loss of one of her favorite treats. After a long silence, she grew conscious of two pairs of eyes staring at her in amazement. "What?" she finally asked. "Well, it's just that..." Dara trailed off and Kara traded a thought-laden glance with her. "You don't act like any concubine we've ever met." Continued in part 4 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 11:13:58 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP part 2 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 1: FIELD TRIP Continued from part 1 __________________________________ Lois sighed hearing the knock at the door. It was like peddlers and phone solicitors knew when the wine was poured and the ER reruns were starting. Or in this case, when the milk was poured, but it was the principle of the thing ....When she didn't get her dose of hospital angst lately, she became homicidal. She opened the door and saw Trey. It was an awkward moment. It was as if her mind deliberately blanked. She knew him ... from somewhere, but ... "Oh, God!" she shouted, and slammed the door. Trey, partially in the threshold, was propelled backward into his students. "Claaaaaark!" Her baleful cry brought her husband instantly to the ... rescue? "Honey, what's wrong?" he asked as he looked around the room. He wasn't sure any longer what might trigger a mood swing. "Is TNT preempting ER with another "Back to the Future" marathon?" "Clark," she said, grabbing the front of his shirt. "They're back!" "*Who*?" Clark asked, feeling exasperated, and a little helpless. "Your homeboys, the Kryps from the 'hood, the --" Clark rubbed his temples. "Honey, is this about that 'Yo MTV Rap' nightmare?" Lois, still holding his shirt, dragged him to the doorway, opened the door, and pointed to Trey and his young charges. Trey bowed politely just a second before Lois slammed the door again. "See? They're back!" "Okay, calm down. I'm sure there's a good explanation." Lois folded her arms. "Borrowing sugar? Collecting for the paper?" Clark straightened his shirt. "Why don't we find out?" "Let's not, and say we did." Clark looked at her sympathetically, but sternly. "It'll be fine, Lois. I'm not going *anywhere* with them." Lois nodded. "You're right. It's not like Earth recognizes the Kryptonian draft board." Clark winked at her. "Exactly. We'll be okay." Clark approached the door with Lois right behind him. Trey backed away as the door opened but beamed when he saw Clark, not the deranged Earth woman. "Lord Kal-El! I am pleased to bring you greetings from New Krypton." He gestured to the little group of teenagers. "And I have brought some of your subjects to meet you." Clark shook his head in bewilderment. "Trey. I thought New Krypton had an agreement with Earth. No more visits. Do the rest of the Elders know you are here?" Trey looked a little uncomfortable. "Well, this isn't an official visit. The children here were curious about why you chose to stay on Earth and not return to your rightful place as their leader." He faltered to a halt under Clark's glare. "Trey, I can't believe you, of all people, would go against the wishes of the Elders." Trey looked even more uncomfortable. "I ... uh, I just thought I would check to see if might have changed your mind about returning." Clark rolled his eyes. "Well, you're here now. You might as well come in." He stepped back and Trey scuttled in, throwing an apprehensive glance at Lois as he passed her. The kids followed closely, trying not to stare at Lord Kal-El and his concubine. Kara and Dara's eyes widened as they took in Clark's appearance. He was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt...unfamiliar attire to them. Both gasped and looking at each other began to giggle. Lois watched the two young Kryptonians as they eyed her handsome husband, and cleared her throat in decided disapproval. They hurriedly began to exam the decor of the Kents' living room. Trey looked around to see what was going on and also came in contact with Lois' disapproving glare. He turned back to face Lord Kal-El, perhaps thinking his chances of survival were better. "My humblest apologies, Lord Kal-El, for ... invading your home in this manner." He smiled up at the young lord, but saw no answering smile in Kal-El's eyes. "If I may explain further ...?" he continued nervously. Clark sighed, looking over at Lois, his natural instincts for politeness warring with his desire to keep Lois calm and happy. Correctly interpreting Clark's dilemma, Lois rolled her eyes, then shrugged, granting her approval. Both Clark and Trey knew, however, that they were on borrowed time. Clark gestured for Trey to sit down, then held out his hand for Lois to join him on the other love seat. She was glad to do so. It seemed like a good idea to make her claim on Clark as obvious as possible. "All right, Trey," Clark said, "we're listening." "Thank you, my lord." He paused for a moment to make sure his pupils were behaving themselves, then, apparently satisfied, he began his tale. "You are a legend on New Krypton, Lord Kal-El." Clark was startled. "What! Why? And, my name is Clark, or have you forgotten?" Clark felt Lois squeeze his hand a little tighter and he glanced in her direction. She approved of this assertion of his Earth identity, and was letting him know it. If Trey noticed their silent communication, he gave no sign, choosing instead to continue his story. "My apologies ... Clark. You defeated Lord Nor, destroyed his followers--" "That wasn't me!" "Perhaps not directly, my l-- Clark, but Nor and his followers were killed, despite their apparently superior tactical position. You followed that by being merciful to the remaining Kryptonians, helping the Lady Zara to achieve her heart's desire, and then deciding to remain behind with ... Lois." Clark looked from Trey's intense face to those of his companions and had to suppress a groan. He had only done what he'd thought was right. How could things have gotten so out of hand? "Being with Lois has never been a sacrifice," Clark asserted, squeezing his wife's hand. "Even when she's been without chocolate." Her gentle squeeze in return soon transformed into a tight clench that could rival the strength of her Kryptonian husband. Clark winced in spite of himself. "I was kidding, Lois!" "You said the "c" word, Clark," she whined. "It's not fair." Trey's eyes darted back and forth between the couple, fixated in a look of pure bewilderment. What strange relationships these Earth people have, but, he reminded himself, Lord Kal-El was still a Kryptonian. His thoughts, and the couple's conversation, were suddenly interrupted when a loud bang resounded in the brownstone. "Uh-oh," muttered one of the Kryptonian girls. The girls had been poking around in the kitchen and had accidentally knocked over the breadbox in their curiosity. A large pile of Double Fudge Crunch bars lay on the kitchen floor, along with a package of Oreo cookies and a bag of Rosebuds. Clark bolted up from his seat and dashed into the kitchen to find the source of the noise. Lois' intuition advised her to quickly follow her husband. Still perplexed about the couple's antics, Trey stood and joined the parade into the kitchen. Clark rushed in, and was halted by the crunching sound beneath his feet. "Lo-IS!" "Uh...umm...yes, Clark?" she cooed. "What happened to the 'no chocolate' thing? So this is why your morning sickness has been so bad," he said, giving her a stern look. "What *is* this 'chocolate'?" asked the quizzical Dara. "The evil of Earth I had warned you about," interjected Trey. "Or at least in this household." Lois' eyes bore into Trey's. "If Earth is so evil, then maybe you should go back to where you came from." "Lois." Clark's voice betrayed his disapproval. "I'm sorry, Clark. I'm just a little pregnant right now." Trey looked stunned. "Pregnant?" He pointed at Lois. "Does that mean that she is going to ..." he hesitated and stared at Clark. "Have a baby?" Clark finished with a smile, as he pulled Lois closer to him. Trey nodded. "Yes, that's exactly what it means." The older Kryptonian swayed a little and sat down at the kitchen table. "Sheesh, and I thought my mother took the news hard," Lois said with a smirk. "Trey are you all right? Would you like a glass of water?" Clark asked. "No, no, I am fine my lor-, I mean ... Clark. It's just this is something of a surprise." Trey sat quietly for a few moments and then suddenly stood up as if galvanized into action. "This changes everything." he said forcefully. "I must get word back to New Krypton and to Lady Zara and her consort Lord Ching." "What?!" "Why do you need to do that?" Trey stared at them as if they'd suddenly achieved negative IQs. "Why, to start the plans, of course." Clark moved in front of Lois. "What plans, Trey?" Lois stepped around her over-protective husband with a sidelong 'Don't even try it' glance reserved just for him. Then she upped her glare to Killing-Glare-Mark 4, reserved only for Kryptonians, and demanded in the same tone as Clark, "What plans?" Trey backed up to the kitchen counter. "The celebrations for the upcoming birth, of course." He swallowed as Lois settled her ruffled feathers. "And to elect a Regent from the Council and arrange a birth-marriage." He paused. "This could well prove fortuitous, as Lady Zara has confided in me that..." Lois ratcheted her glare up to Mark 5, and Trey suddenly thanked Rao and every other deity that might be listening to him that the yellow sun of Earth provided him with invulnerability. Then Clark again moved between Trey and Lois, his eyes blazing. "You will arrange nothing for my child. No celebrations. No Regent. No birth-marriage." He fairly spat out the last phrase. "My Lord Kal-Clark! It is expected! After all, no one really believed that you would continue the House of El with a..." Continued in part 3 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 05:49:25 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mikki Uyehara Subject: Re: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP part 4 of 4 In-Reply-To: <5ac66312.2451e83c@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Greetings and Aloha All, Ahhhhhhhh, a glass of wine, a loaf of bread, and a new fanfic. Does it get any better than this? ( Oh yeah, there is also the video's, the books, and of course you wonderful Folc's out there:O) Mahalo nui loa Maeve, the kids and the cats ( sighing contentedly over all of her L&C stuff, and feeling all is right with the world, okay, well at least in this particular portion of the time space continuum) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 12:23:49 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL: Part 4 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL Continued from part 3 ____________________________ "He is. That is, he was ... here," Lois assured him, stumbling over her words. Taking what she hoped would be a calming breath, she managed a smile. "I'm sure he'll be back." Lois was frantically trying to figure out how to separate Dr. Klein from his ladylove, since she didn't yet know about Clark's secret. Apparently, however, Dr. Friskin sensed that the slightly distraught young woman in front of her wanted to speak to Bernie in private. "Don't you just hate guests who arrive and immediately ask where the powder room is?" There was a half-hearted attempt at laughter from those gathered in the living room. As it died away, Martha stepped forward and offered to show the good doctor the whereabouts of the facilities. Lois threw Martha a grateful look, but her attention was already on forming a coherent explanation for Dr. Klein. As soon as Martha and Ruth had left the room, Lois grabbed Klein by the arm and practically dragged him over to one of the sofas, pushing him down onto it and then plopping down beside him. "Dr. Klein, you've got to help us. Clark is getting further and further away >from us, from himself, every time I see him." Jonathan stepped forward, holding the Kryptonian artifact by one end. "We think it might have something to do with this ... thing." Klein took it from him and turned it all around, examining it from all sides. "Why?" he asked. "It looks harmless enough." He shook it slightly and held it up to his ear. "We're not sure of anything, but Clark started acting weird sometime after the New Kryptonians left." Dr. Klein looked skeptical. "Lois, they've been gone for months-- "No, not those ... the other ones." "What other ones?" "It's not that important." Klein still looked confused however, so she decided to take the time to elaborate. "So, you see," Lois concluded, some few minutes later, "Clark didn't start doing these bizarre, retro-Kryptonian things until after Trey and the others had left." "Well," Klein admitted, scratching at his chin, "I can see that you have a point, Lois, but Clark's behavior could have been caused by anything." "Like what?" Jonathan asked, impatiently. "Well, did they give him anything to eat while they were here?" Lois shook her head. "I don't think so." "Did he go on their ship?" "No. I wasn't about to let him out of my sight this time," Lois told him firmly. Klein reached forward to pick up the object again. He held it for a while, just studying it. "The carving on the base is quite lovely," he said, softly. "It kind of reminds me of some of the fertility totems I've seen," he added as he began to stroke it. "Dr. Klein!" Lois said sternly, hoping to recall his wandering attention. She didn't want him bringing up chimps' mating calls or anything like that. Things were complicated enough. "Sorry, Lois, I do tend to lose focus sometimes," Klein said with a shrug. "Let me take a took at these carvings." "I didn't know you could read Kryptonian," Jonathan interjected. "Well, I've been studying the carvings on Cl--" he looked around nervously for Ruth, "I mean Superman's ship. Maybe something will look familiar." Klein took out a small jeweler's eyepiece began to closely examine the artifact. "Yes, this one is the symbol for the family name - I recognize that." Suddenly a commanding voice rang out from the window. "Put that down!" In an instant Clark was at the sofa, and as he snatched the object from Klein's hands Lois noticed that it had begun to glow again. But this time the glow was brighter and the hum was almost deafing. Giving Lois, Klein, and Jonathan a look of pure fury, he placed it back in the corner where it became dormant again. That's when Lois noticed that Clark was no longer wearing his regular Superman suit. Instead he was wearing a skin-tight black suit, similar to the one he had worn when he was with the New Kryptonians, but this time the outfit had a matching black cape and he had a blue metallic headband to match the blue bands on his wrists. "Cl--Kal-EL, what happened to your suit?" Lois asked. "The other costume was inappropriate." "Inappropriate?" "Far too garish and outlandish." "Garish? You liked it just fine when I made it for you, Clark." Martha stepped into the room, her cheeks burning. Clark flinched minutely. "It was adequate for the time." Martha fairly growled, and Jonathan moved to her side. "Now, Martha..." "Don't you 'Now, Martha' me, Jonathan. Our son is behaving like a spoiled six- year-old and I won't stand for it." She reached for Clark's ear and he backed off, fear and a silent plea flashing in his eyes. "But, Mom..." "Clark!" His head swiveled towards Lois as his body slowly floated into the corner. She placed a hand on her stomach. "You wouldn't want your child to act like this, would you, Clark?" His head swung from his wife to his mother and back. "No." The whisper was dragged from his lips. "You're being affected by that trophy-thing, son. You don't do this." Jonathan stepped forward, and Clark shrank back another floated inch. Clark closed his eyes. The three...four heartbeats that he knew so well were closing in on him, surrounding him. Part of him screamed tactical advice, logical arguments, but it was slowly being drowned out by three angry heartbeats and one steady, silent flutter. He shook his head, a small, helpless jerk. Lois asked quietly, "Does it have an off switch, Clark?" His voice was frozen, but he nodded. The heart rates surrounding him picked up. Her beloved voice, quiet despite her racing heartbeat, the steady flutter underlying her desperation, asked, "Where, Clark?" He shook, but found his voice. "Press the 'el' sigil on the under side." He listened to the rush of footsteps toward the precious object, trembled violently as he heard the base scrape as someone picked it up, and slumped to the ground as the tiny crystal flashed red/white again and then dulled. He didn't hear Lois' strangled 'Clark!' and he didn't feel her arms cradle his head close to her. He didn't smell her sweet fragrance or taste the silent tears that dropped to his pale face. But the tension in his body and the lines on his face were erased as if they had never been. Silence reigned for several long seconds, each of the occupants of the room listening to the sound of their breathing and their racing hearts. Then a flush echoed through the townhouse. Ruth reentered the living room with a smile and a hesitant, "Is it safe to come out now?" She saw that Clark had appeared out of nowhere while she was gone, and now rested on the couch, his glasses askew, his hair mussed and the afghan pulled up to his chin. Lois sat with his head in her lap, cradling him carefully. "Oh my, is Clark all right?" "He's fine, Ruth," Martha assured her. "He's just had a long day." "Oh." Ruth's voice sank to a whisper. She turned to Klein. "Did you see Superman, Bernie?" Klein nodded, finding his voice. "Oh, yes." He showed her the thing in his hand. "I didn't know they gave out awards for superheroism." Jonathan snorted, coughed and excused himself from the room. "It's a Kryptonian artifact, Ruth. It was somehow affecting Superman's behavior." She nodded, her forehead creasing. "There certainly are a lot of Kryptonian things that affect the mind. It suggests a high degree of telepathic activity." Klein nodded enthusiastically. "I've often thought that, Ruth. In some of the tests I've performed, Superman has shown a remarkably high level of upper alpha waves, much more than is normal in humans. The pattern is just slightly different from a normal level of alpha waves..." "So he's on a different wavelength? Is that why he hasn't demonstrated obvious telepathic abilities?" "Exactly! It's probably a wavelength unique to Krypton, and I'll bet it was duplicated here as a means of mental data transfer." Klein waved the object, and Martha removed it gently from his hands. "Whatever do you mean, Bernie?" "Well, cupcake, you know I've been studying Superman's spaceship, and based on the technology I've examined there I think that this device was meant to be benign. It's probably some sort of repository of Superman's family history and was meant to link up telepathecally with him and provide information -- guidance perhaps, except..." "Except here on Earth something made it malfunction," Lois interrupted. Klein nodded. "Exactly. Maybe exposure to the sun gave it a *super* charge, so that instead of just imparting information it actually tried to take over and control Superman. This is pure speculation on my part and I really need to study it some more to make sure." Klein's gaze wandered off into space. "This technology could revolutionize the telecommunications industry!" Ruth pointed him towards the door. "I'm going to take him back to his lab before he thinks to start testing that." They left, Klein muttering something about 'highlevelalpha-pathictranscommunicators.' Silence descended on the Kent household once more. * * * Clark swam out of choking blackness and opened his eyes with a gasp. Above him, Lois slumped in the corner of the couch, her eyes closed, her breath feathering the strands of hair in her face. He reached up a trembling hand to cup the side of her face. Her eyes fluttered open. "Hi, honey," he whispered up at her, and she leaned into his hand. "Hi." "I'm sorry." Lois shook her head slowly. "It's not your fault, Clark." "I almost moved us to the Antarctic, honey!" "You couldn't make me move if you tried, superpowers or no." Clark grimaced. "True, but I would have tried, if..." "If?" He shrugged. "Under all that logic, that emotional straitjacket, there was one thing that I couldn't do." Lois shifted a little, and Clark floated up a tad to let her settle into a more comfortable position. "What's that?" "I couldn't keep you out of my thoughts." Clark reached for her hand. "You're my wife, my other half, and no matter what else I wanted to do, I couldn't do it without you." They laced their fingers together. "Not even rule the world?" Clark wrinkled his nose. "Oh god, I'm gonna have to apologize to the UN, aren't I?" "You'd better apologize to your mother first." Clark nodded. "She deserves better than I treated her. Her and Dad." "And the UN?" "They can wait until I give *you* a proper apology." Clark smiled up at his wife. Lois arched an eyebrow. "Oh? I was hoping for something more along the lines of an improper one." "As you wish, Wif-mmmff!" THE END ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 12:23:42 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL: Part 2 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL Continued from part 1 ____________________________ "Don't worry, sweetie," Martha said soothingly. "I'm sure it's nothing serious. Clark may be just overtired. But if it will make you feel better, Jonathan and I will be there on the first available flight. Now, why don't you go get some rest. You're sleeping for two after all." Lois chuckled. "All right, Grandma, I'll do just that." "What was that all about?" Jonathan asked as Martha hung up the phone. "I didn't want to worry Lois, but something is seriously wrong with Clark. We need to get to Metropolis." "What's the matter?" Martha shook her head. "I don't know, but something's wrong with our boy and I'm going to find out what it is." * * * Lois walked glumly into the newsroom the next morning. She had tried to wait up for Clark the night before, but had fallen asleep. When she woke up this morning it was clear that he hadn't been home that night at all. A quick scan of LNN showed that there were no disasters, natural or otherwise, requiring Superman's assistance after the initial fire down on the docks of Hobs Bay. So where the heck was he? As she sat down at her desk Jimmy walked by. "Hey, Lois," he said happily. "Where's CK?" "Oh, hi, Jimmy. Clark is... well...he's... " Lois hesitated. "I had an appointment," Clark said, suddenly appearing beside Jimmy. "Cool, CK. Anyway, I was just wondering if we're still on for the Met Nets game tonight?" Clark grimaced. "The what?" "The Metropolis Nets play the Gotham Goons tonight! Didn't you say you'd gotten tickets from one of the players?" "Ah. Yes, I had obtained a promise of the tickets, but when Charles called, I declined to pick them up." Jimmy just stared. "What is with you today, CK?" "Why, nothing." Jimmy watched him for a long moment, then retreated, shaking his head. "Clark?" "Yes?" "Are you feeling all right?" "Physically, I am excellent, as always, Wife. Mentally, however, I have a conundrum with which I wish to present you." Clark took her elbow and pointed her in the direction of the conference room. Lois felt herself steered across the newsroom by an implacable force. She'd never felt so out of control in her life, not even on one of the many occasions when she'd been thrown off a building. What was this 'wife' business, anyway? Conundrum? Clark was Mr. Encyclopedia, not Mr. Dictionary... Her thoughts looped in wild tangents as Clark guided her to a seat at the conference room table in complete silence. When he let go of her arm, she checked her elevation. Her feet seemed nailed to the floor, they felt so heavy. "Clark, what the heck do you think you're doing? You've been looking forward to the game for weeks now! You practically begged Chuck for three days straight to get those tickets, and now you're just not going to pick them up? And what's with this 'wife' crap? I have a name!" Clark raised an eyebrow as her tirade halted with Lois standing braced against the table. "You are my spouse, are you not?" "Well, yes." Clark gestured for her to take her seat again, and Lois slid back into a sitting position. "As such, you have a vested interest in my future, a thing which I have spent many hours contemplating." "And?" Lois tried not to sound like her voice was a winter wind off the Arctic, but failed. Clark seemed not to notice. "I wish to share the fruits of my contemplation with you." "I'm listening." Lois' voice warmed to the average temperature of Fairbanks in February. "Well, after the fire by Hobs Bay, I attempted to lecture the inhabitants on proper fire safety procedures, but they simply failed to heed me, so great was the emotional impact of their gratitude. I instead retreated to a snowbank in Antarctica with which I am familiar." A slight grimace betrayed Clark's sober facade, but it was banished almost immediately. "I briefly contemplated constructing a retreat for myself on that spot. After careful consideration, I decided that it was an unwise course of action, considering our offspring's Terran heritage and your own inability to handle extremes of temperature. Thus, too, the ideas of a retreat on the Moon or perhaps one in the Sun were discarded." "Retreat? What are you talking about, Clark?" "Why, an answer to the cumbersome alias of Clark Kent, and a domicile for myself as Lord El, my spouse," he gestured to Lois, "and our offspring." Lois rose and placed her palms on the table. "Okay," she said, with surprising calm, considering she expected Clark to grow antlers any moment. "This has gone on too long to be a gag, and I don't think they're casting for "Spock, The Musical", so you can't be auditioning. So *something* else is going on. What is it, Lord Clark-El?" Clark blinked for a moment, as if he were a computer processing illogical and contradictory information. Lois could see the struggle. Something internal was consuming the man she loved. She walked around the table. Her tone softened. "Clark, what's *wrong* with you? There's someone else looking at me through your eyes. Who *is* he, Clark? Let me help you." Clark shuddered for a moment. "Lois?" His eyes were warm, and deep, but only for a moment. They quickly returned to ice. "I am in no distress," he finally managed to say. Lois swallowed hard. Clark was 'missing,' or 'usurped' was perhaps the better word. Someone or some *thing* was overpowering him, but not defeating him. He was still there, but she had no clue as to how to free him. She'd wait for reinforcements. "Your parents are coming out for your dad's birthday." "My adoptive father's natal anniversary is five weeks hence, Wife." Lois closed her eyes a moment. She had an overwhelming urge to scream, but then her mother had warned her about aliens. "True, Cl--Husband, but you have to consider the logic of the planting season. This time of year there is less work to be done." He nodded an acknowledgment. "Of course. Quite remiss of me to discount their agrarian career." "I'll be working on a cake this afternoon. We celebrate 'natal anniversaries' with those." "Affirmative. I have no aversion to celebratory customs. They are a festive part of Krypton as well." Lois raised her eyebrows in recognition. Clark was having a 'strange visitation' from another planet. Now how to send the 'intruder' packing would be the hard part. Lois faked her best smile. "So, you sound as if you remember Krypton. Funny, I thought you had no memories of living there." "I.. that is..." Lois, seeing Clark struggling, took advantage of his confusion. She grabbed his lapels and kissed him hard. He moaned and seemed to respond, but then pushed her away. He straightened quickly, trying to regain his breath. "You put your tongue in my mouth." Lois shrugged. "It was cold," she said, and hurried from the room before he could deliver a treatise on lingual bacteria. She could only hope the Kents had arrived. If not, maybe she'd have to visit STAR Labs ... or a witch doctor. Lois stood outside the conference room, thinking furiously. This was getting scary. She had to think of some reason that would sound logical enough to get Clark out of the Daily Planet for a while at least. There was no way people weren't going to notice the change in him, and at the rate things were going, he wasn't going to care about keeping his identity secret for much longer. She looked back into the room. Clark had sat down again and seemed deep in thought. "Clark?' she called softly. He looked up at the sound of her voice, and for a second, his expression softened and he started to smile. Before she could even begin to smile back, all expression left his face again, and she found herself staring into a pair of icy brown eyes. "Yes, Wife? Did you have something you wished to impart to me?" Lois winced at the coldness in his voice but forged ahead. "Yes, Husband, I do. I think it might be logical for you to pick your parents up at the airport and leave the writing to me for today at least." That infamous eyebrow rose again. "Yes. Mr. White has not been pleased with my efforts lately. Perhaps you are right. Lois breathed a sigh of relief. That had been easier than she had hoped. "All right. I'll see you back at the house." She moved in for a goodbye kiss, but froze at the look in his eyes. "Bye," she squeaked and left the conference room again. * * * Lois had some difficulty repairing Clark's stories. Normally, she found the facts, and Clark added the emotions. She wasn't used to changing roles with him. She reminded herself that she had won Kerths long before they had been a team, and dove into the stories with as much enthusiasm as possible. More than two hours later, feeling emotionally drained, she managed to get away from the Daily Planet. Perry hadn't been truly happy with the stories, but he hadn't been able to find anything exactly *wrong* with them, either, so he had allowed her to leave and meet Clark as he checked on a lead. She wondered if she'd ever get good at the lies she had to use to explain her life. Lois climbed the steps to the brownstone with as much energy as she could muster. She needed Clark, her Clark, on days like this. She needed his understanding, his support, and his love. With a sigh, she unlocked the door, and almost hoped that 'Husband' was busy this evening. When she saw the lights were on, she assumed she would not get her wish. However, to her surprise, she found herself caught up in a warm hug as soon as she had closed the door. "Oh, Honey, it's worse than we thought," Martha said, squeezing Lois' hands gently. "He didn't say two words to us before he left for an emergency...nothing!" "I've never seen him so detached," Jonathan added. "He kept calling me 'Father'." Lois nodded, and to her dismay felt tears slip from her eyes. She had known that she was right, that Clark's behavior was completely abnormal, but there had been a part of her that had hoped it was a case of prenatal hormones run amok. Continued in part 3 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 12:23:45 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL: Part 3 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL Continued from part 2 ____________________________ Martha took Lois back into her arms and soothed her as she had Clark when he was a child. "We'll get through this. We'll get our Clark back. There's nothing in this world that's stronger than the love he has for you, and that will bring him back. I'm certain of it. "I wish I could be as certain," Lois said, wiping tears as she pulled out of her mother-in-law's embrace. "He's like a different person. I look into his eyes, and it's like seeing into an arctic winter." Martha nodded her agreement. "He didn't even say goodbye when he left. He just said, 'I'm needed, Mother,' and flew out the window." Lois sat and allowed Martha's words to echo in her mind. Nothing in this world could keep her and Clark apart. That was the problem, though. She felt as though it was *his* world causing the problem. He was as cold and distant as Ching and Zara had been when they'd put him through test after test to determine if he was 'worthy' of New Krypton. It was almost as though he were turning into one of them. She wondered briefly if it could be some latent Kryptonian virus that kicked in at this late date. No, she thought, there would be no way to confirm that without Dr. Klein's assistance, and she couldn't see Clark consenting to see a doctor when he felt as though nothing were wrong. "There are times he slips through," she said quietly. "Times that he's almost himself." She shook her head as though she was in pain. "I can't keep him with me, though." Martha took Lois by the arm, and guided her over to the couch. While Jonathan made her a cup of tea, she and Martha went over the possibilities. By the time Jonathan joined them with three cups of tea on a tray, they were no closer to a solution. Lois winced when she heard Clark's entry through the window. She had never thought that she'd dread her own husband's arrival. She corrected herself ...this man was not her husband, but her Clark was in there somewhere, and she would find him. As she heard him approach, she stood and faced him. Before he could say a word, she grabbed him by the front of his cape and pulled him in for a kiss. As before, there was a moment of response before the resistance. She held on, though, pressing her lips closer to his and sliding her arms around him beneath the cape, holding him tightly. She kissed him until she was breathless, until her own light-headedness caused her to break the kiss so that she could gain some oxygen. She looked up into stunned brown eyes, and hoped for a miracle. But there was no miracle tonight. The stunned look quickly faded and the 'iceman' was back. Lois' heart sank as Clark disengaged himself from her embrace. He arched his eyebrow again. "You must learn to control yourself, Wife," he said, his voiced laced with disapproval. "Such emotional outbursts are not appropriate in front of my adoptive parents." Lois shuddered a bit at the chill in Clark's voice, then turned to Martha and Jonathan. "Honey, we've seen you and Lois kiss hundreds of times," Martha interjected. "That's right, son..." "That may have happened in the past, but such displays will not occur in the future. They are the reflection of an undisciplined intellect. One that is incapable of controlling its emotions." "Clark..." Lois began. "Please, Wife, do not call me that." "What?!" "And I request that you also refrain from using that name," Clark continued, pointing at the Kents. "Well, if we're not to call you Clark," Jonathan asked, "what are we supposed to call you?" "Kal-El." Lansbury> Lois excused herself to the kitchen. "I'll make us something to eat. I know you both must be starved from your trip." As she moved past the phone it began to ring. She reached to pick up the receiver but a hand was quickly placed over hers. "Do not bother with that, Wife. You are correct. My adoptive parents need nourishment. See to it immediately. I will take care of this." As she pulled her hand from under his, their eyes locked. What she saw sent a chill through her. "I'll do it now. Martha ... Jonathon, would you like to come with me and give me some help? Cla--Kal-El is going to answer the phone." The phone was on its fourth ring. Clark picked it up. "Greetings. Kent domicile." On the other end of the line a chuckle could be heard. "Hey, CK, who you trying to impress, the Queen of England?" "Master Olsen, why are you calling? Do you need assistance?" "Where's Lois? The chief wants me to verify a detail from the article she just wrote. Is she around?" Clark stood rigid as he listened to Jimmy talk. "I will see if she can come to the phone." Clark placed the phone on the table and moved into the kitchen. All three occupants looked up as he entered. "Wife, your presence is needed by the young Master Olsen. He is waiting to speak to you on the phone." "Thank you. I'll get it in here." As Lois picked up the phone, Martha and Jonathon put the food they had prepared on a tray. "Son, would you please carry this into the dining room for your mother? I'll bring the coffee." Lois watched as Clark carried the tray through the swinging door. She heard him again remind his parents to call him Kal-El. Her eyes met theirs and they quickly moved from the kitchen. She put the receiver to her mouth. "Hi, Jimmy. What's up?" On the other end of the phone a very confused Jimmy waited patiently. "Hi, Lois. Boy, what's with CK? Has he been watching a Star Trek marathon or something? He sounds just like that Mr. Spock character." Lois chuckled. "That he does, Jimmy." Trying to change the subject before Jimmy could make any more observations about Clark's behavior, she quickly continued. "What can I help you with?" "Well, Perry wanted to know if some of the statistics you quoted were correct." Lois started to jump in with a justification, but he went on, "But I checked 'em myself. Y'know, I think he really wanted to know if Clark's feeling okay." He was met with silence. "Lois?" "To tell you the truth, Jimmy," now there's a good one, she thought, "he's not feeling quite like himself lately." "Hey- that reminds me- he's not the only one. Did ya hear about Superman's latest stunt?" Lois heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. "Ah, no, Jimmy," she managed through a suddenly dry throat. "Oh, he showed up at the UN with a proposal for world order. The thing was an inch thick, dry as the Sahara, and basically spelled out... oh, man, what was the quote? Oh yeah- 'proper positional strata for a logically organized society.' He's... hey- you think maybe one of those Kryptonians is back and trying to masquerade as Superman?" "I don't know, Jimmy." Lois felt the receiver shake against her head, and she snugged it up with her shoulder, wringing her shaking hands in front of her. "What did the UN do?" "Well, they're still arguing over a response, but I heard Perry muttering something about proactive strikes and Kryptonite when he was on the other line just now." "Jimmy, were you listening at his door again?" "Umm..." "Good. Keep it up. If you hear anything- call me." "Sure thing, Lois." "Thanks, Jimmy." Lois let the receiver slide from her shaking hands to the cradle. Silence, broken only by the muffled clink of silver on china from the dining room, settled over the kitchen. She angrily blinked away the tears welling in her eyes and reached for the phone again. "Doctor Klein, please." "Oh, Lois, it's always good to hear from my favorite pregnant patient," Klein said cheerfully. "Well, my *only* pregnant patient, actually--" "Dr. Klein," she said softly. "I need your help." "Though if I had other pregnant--" "Dr. *Klein*!" Lois heard a glass-breaking sound in the background and Klein sighing loudly. "There's a stain that won't come out," he muttered. "Dr. Klein, I *need* your help." "I'm sorry, Lois. I heard about Superman at the UN. I don't mind him wanting to take over the world, really, but he sounded a little ... well ... nuts." "He's not *nuts*. He's just not ... Clark." "Well, I can see what I can find out, but Ruth phoned and said he's finally displaying messianic tendencies." Lois shook her head. "Maybe that's what Clark *really* needs. A psychiatrist." "I'll drop by as soon as I can get away. I'll pick up Ruth on the way. She's been counseling a basketball player with green hair who changed teams--" "I'll be waiting," Lois interrupted, and hung up the phone. She took a deep breath and left the kitchen. She entered the dining room to see a very unusual scene. Jonathan, the usually quiet, supportive man whose biggest concerns had been getting the crops in on time, and not being late for pie, was red-faced with anger. Clark, placid in his new position as Lord Kal-El, regarded him with curiosity. "You are not my biological father, therefore I see no reason to address you as such." "Listen to me, Clark Jerome Kent," Jonathan said, slapping his hand down on the table so hard the knives and forks jumped. "A man that diapered your pink behind, taught you right from wrong, took you fishing, and dried your tears when you cried about being 'different' *is* your father. Any other man responsible for you being here is a sperm donor!" "Honey--" "No, Martha, I've tried it his way, now he's going to try it mine. I've had all I can stand of this nonsense. I'm a farmer, he's a farmer's son, and not some *Lord* of Krypton." "Dad, I...I'm...sor--" Clark immediately rose from the table. In a blur, he was gone. As the breeze from Kal-El's departure died down, the three looked at each other in shock. Lois' eyes filled with tears again, and Martha put her arms around her. "Oh, Martha, what are we going to do? That isn't our Clark." Lois brushed at her damp cheeks almost angrily. Martha patted her back and looked over at Jonathan. For once, she was at a loss. Jonathan thought for a moment. "Maybe if we can figure out what's causing this, we can come up with something. When did you notice Clark starting to change?" Lois pulled away from Martha and sat down at the table. "Let's see. I think I noticed he was acting a little odd shortly after the Kryptonians visited." Martha gasped. "Kryptonians?" "Yes. Didn't he tell you? Trey brought some New Kryptonian teenagers to see Earth, and he also brought Clark something that had belonged to his family...a crystal sort of trophy thing." She got up and led the way into the living room where she retrieved the strange looking object from the cabinet. "Here it is." As Lois picked up the artifact it began to glow slightly and it hummed. "That's odd," she remarked. "It didn't do that before." "It doesn't look dangerous," Jonathan remarked as took the object from Lois. As soon as the thing left her hands it fell silent and stopped glowing. "I guess it doesn't like me," Jonathan said with a wry smile. Just then the doorbell rang, making them all jump. Lois looked a little more cheerful. "That must be Dr. Klein and Dr. Friskin. Maybe they will have some ideas." She rushed to the door and opened it to find the two doctors locked in a fond embrace. "Ahem." The doctors jumped apart guiltily. "Oh! Lois...er, um..." Lois smiled slightly and gestured for them to enter. Dr. Klein looked a bit startled when he saw the Kents. "Oh, I thought it was Superman who was having a problem. Where is he?" Continued in part 4 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 12:23:39 EDT Reply-To: Eraygun@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL: Part 1 of 4 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit BLAST FROM THE PAST PART 2: RETURN OF LORD KAL-EL An IRC Round Robin by Misha (mhall@sound.net); zoomway (zoomway@aol.com); chrispat (cp12607@aol.com); CrystalW (JCWimmer@aol.com); Eraygun (Eraygun@aol.com); Lansbury (Lansbury1@aol.com); ChrisM (mulders@mindspring.com) Lois sat on the couch, turning the gift left by Lord Trey over and over in her hands, muttering to herself. "Lois!" Clark called out from the kitchen. "What is it, Clark?" Lois snapped, setting the thing down hard on the coffee table. "You're muttering about Krypton again." "And?" "It doesn't look like a Pulitzer." "I know." Lois sighed and regarded it again. "More like a Kerth, I think, only chartreuse." "It doesn't look like a..." A tray of snacks appeared in front of her on the table, bumping the object over a few inches. Clark was silent for a moment, his head settling next to hers. "Well, okay, I guess it sort of does. Except for the Kryptonian lettering." Lois stared at the array of bean sprouts, celery, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and a few unidentifiable vegetables on the tray in front of her. She poked one crisp carrot with a sprout. "It's healthy." Clark nuzzled her neck, oblivious to the censorious tone in her voice. "It's good for you and the baby." He took a celery stick and stirred it in the dip. "Try it." "It looks like mud, Clark." "It's hummus, and it's really good." Lois turned to look up at him with disbelief. "You would choose to eat this over a bag of Twinkies?" Clark flushed. "Well, ah..." He slid around Lois and sat down next to the couch. "Not really." "Ah-hah." "But if you eat it, I'll show you what I got you for dessert." Lois groaned pitifully. "No chocolate?" she asked in a small voice. "Better." "Clark, nothing is better than chocolate." Lois looked up into her husband's eyes. "Well, okay, one thing." A smile escaped her lips. Clark produced a small dish with dramatic flair, and lifted the lid to reveal a mound of dark brown chips. "Carob." He smiled at the quizzical look on Lois' face. "Fake chocolate." Lois gingerly took one of the innocuous little chips and sniffed it. Nothing. She nibbled on the edge, then popped several more into her mouth, closing her eyes and letting it melt over her tongue. "Not chocolate, but it'll do." She sighed and snuggled into her husband's embrace, reaching for more carob chips. "You're the best. Clark laughed softly and held her close. "Only the best for you." * * * The first change was a tiny one. A small beam of stray sunlight hit the object. The yellow-green crystal glowed in the sunlight, flashing red deep within it's heart. The curtains fluttered, blocking the sun, and the glow died. * * * Lois stared at her closet, attempting to will her wardrobe to fit her expanding body. Finally, her telepathic command unheeded, she reached for one of her maternity suits. A sudden thought arrested her movement. She stared at the closet, puzzled. "Clark?" "Yes, honey?" "What happened to all your ties?" "What do you mean? They seemed a little bright, I wanted to tone down the color a little." "Tone down? But..." "Car pile-up downtown. I'll meet you at the Planet." Lois felt the whisper of a kiss on her cheek as the curtains blew suddenly open and he was gone. * * * The morning sun slanted across the collection of crystals in the display cabinet, warming the collection of journalism awards and the Kryptonian curio. As the sunlight highlighted the dancing dust motes, the single green figure glowed faintly, growing in intensity until the sun passed overhead and the sunbeams cast their light elsewhere. * * * "You feeling okay, Kent?" Clark looked up at his editor. "Fine, Perry, why?" "This piece is not your best work. Re-write it." Perry slapped down an article on the desk in front of him. From across the way, Lois' eyes widened. "What's wrong, Chief?" "It doesn't sing, Clark. You've got a real handy way of making copy sing like the King, and this one's got laryngitis." Lois glanced at the copy Perry had returned. She shrugged. "Well, Clark, I have to agree with Perry. This is kind of ... flat." Clark frowned. "It has all the facts." "So does a grocery list, Clark, but nobody wants to pay to read one." Clark seemed unconcerned, even a bit disinterested. "Mr. White told us three years and seven months ago that we need facts. Well, he has them." Lois leaned back and folded her arms. "You left out days, hours, and seconds, Clark, and it's been about that long since you called Perry 'Mr. White.' Are you feeling okay?" Clark thought a moment. "I did say 'Mr. White,' didn't I?" He smiled, but it was the first time Lois could recall a smile looking out of sync with his face. Like it was an effort for him to conjure the expression. "Don't worry, Lois, I'm fine," he said, trying to sound reassuring. "Maybe I'm thinking a little too much about the baby, and not enough about work lately." That sounded reasonable to Lois. She had to admit thoughts of the baby would break her concentration. She stroked his shoulder. "Good," she smiled. "I was afraid red Kryptonite had been slipped into your coffee." Clark laughed, but again, it was off somehow. It wasn't *Clark's* laugh. "Not that I'm aware of." He then tipped his head to the side. "What are you hearing?" "Some type of traffic imbroglio," he said, loosening his tie. "I won't be long." "Imbroglio?" Lois repeated as he vanished. She tapped a pencil absentmindedly as she stared off in the direction Clark had left. Jimmy dropped some files on her desk. "Slow day?" he teased. "Hm? Oh, hi, Jimmy," she said, relieved that at least he didn't seem to be a pod person version of himself. "Have you noticed anything different about Clark?" "CK?" Jimmy thought a moment. "Just that his wardrobe is kind of ... Wall Street today. I thought maybe he was going to a funeral or something." Lois sighed. "Maybe it's just my imagination. I mean there's no reason he wouldn't use 'imbroglio' I guess." "Imbroglio?" Jimmy said, and smiled conspiratorially. "Isn't that the new Italian cologne that makes women so wild they rip men's clothes off in the commercials?" Lois rolled her eyes. "Yes, Jimmy. I can barely keep my hands off of Clark." "Cool," he beamed. "I'll get some on pay day," he said, and headed for the elevators. Lois brushed a strand of hair back. "Maybe it's the pregnancy. Hormones, mood swings, floating, and it makes men seem like idiots." The phone rang. "Lois Lane. Superman did what? Oh, god, I'm on my way!" She slammed down the phone. "Hold the elevator, Jimmy!" * * * Later that evening, Lois picked at the remains of a particularly unappetizing meal as she listened to her husband talk to his mother on the telephone. "Yes, Mother. Everything is satisfactory here...Yes I know I haven't called recently...There has been no logical reason to call." Lois sighed. She could imagine Martha's response to that statement but after the way Clark had been acting for the last few days, it didn't surprise her. She jumped when he appeared beside her. "Here, Lois, you talk to my parent. She seems to be upset about something, and I hear a call for help." Lois rolled her eyes but took the phone. She listened for the familiar whoosh before she spoke. "Martha! I am so glad you called. Clark has been acting really strange, and he's getting worse." Her eyes welled with tears, to her annoyance. She hated getting so weepy all the time. She brushed the tears away angrily. "It's like I'm living with a stranger. First he started wearing depressing colors. Then his writing started to read like a textbook, and he didn't seem to care. He cooks disgusting food and says taste doesn't matter if it's nutritious. And he hasn't kissed me in three days!!!" she wailed. Lois sniffled as she listened to Martha's soothing reply. "But it's not just Clark acting this way. It's Superman, too. Today he told the police that he refused to handle any more traffic problems. If people couldn't learn how to drive competently, that wasn't his problem... Oh Martha, I hate to ask, but could you and Jonathan please come? Maybe you can figure out what I should do." Continued in part 2 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 13:41:20 EDT Reply-To: JuliHale@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Juli E. Hale" Subject: Fwd: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="part1_236ea359.24520ac0_boundary" --part1_236ea359.24520ac0_boundary Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/22/1999 10:27:49 PM Eastern Daylight Time, JuliHale writes: This was suppossed to go to the list--sorry. << a message dated 4/22/1999 7:34:17 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Aerm1@AOL.COM writes: << The one that struck me the most was We Have a Lot to Talk About. At the end, when Superman tells Lois he has something to show her and they go off, Perry looks very smug. This is after he has been on Clark's case for calling her "Lane" at the party at the museum but has been happy to see them kiss after the bomb was defused. I can't believe he doesn't know. Also, if he didn't know, wouldn't he have fired Clark for all his absenteeism doing Superman things? I think Jimmy must have suspected as well. Ann >> I personally don't think that Jimmy has a clue, because of the way he acts in "Chip off the Old Clark." He continually sticks his foot in his mouth by calling LouAnn a babe in front of Lois. In COTOC and UW, Lois and Clark were both so obvious, there were times that I wondered how everybody didn't catch on to the secret. Perry's silence in the face of such instances made me think that he just had to know. Juli :-) >> --part1_236ea359.24520ac0_boundary Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Disposition: inline Return-path: JuliHale@aol.com From: JuliHale@aol.com Full-name: JuliHale Message-ID: <236ea359.245134a5@aol.com> Date: Thu, 22 Apr 1999 22:27:49 EDT Subject: Re: Who would know? To: Aerm1@aol.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: AOL 4.0 for Windows 95 sub 214 Reply-To: JuliHale@aol.com In a message dated 4/22/1999 7:34:17 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Aerm1@AOL.COM writes: << The one that struck me the most was We Have a Lot to Talk About. At the end, when Superman tells Lois he has something to show her and they go off, Perry looks very smug. This is after he has been on Clark's case for calling her "Lane" at the party at the museum but has been happy to see them kiss after the bomb was defused. I can't believe he doesn't know. Also, if he didn't know, wouldn't he have fired Clark for all his absenteeism doing Superman things? I think Jimmy must have suspected as well. Ann >> I personally don't think that Jimmy has a clue, because of the way he acts in "Chip off the Old Clark." He continually sticks his foot in his mouth by calling LouAnn a babe in front of Lois. In COTOC and UW, Lois and Clark were both so obvious, there were times that I wondered how everybody didn't catch on to the secret. Perry's silence in the face of such instances made me think that he just had to know. Juli :-) --part1_236ea359.24520ac0_boundary-- ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 14:43:36 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Subject: Re: Combo Re: critiques/group writing Comments: To: Blind.Copy.Receiver@compuserve.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Another late reply ... sorry. I wanted to think this through before replying, and then of course my hands have been kinda full lately :-) I had said a lot of things, and Sandy requested clarification: >> So, let me understand.... No comments on a story -- not even those which are strictly laudatory -- are to be posted to the list unless the reader contacts the author privately first and asks permission. << Err... well, that's not what I meant, although I guess it sounded that way. (and I call myself a writer!) Let me try to express myself more clearly. And of course, this is purely= my opinion, worth no more than anyone else's. = I believe there are several different types of comments: First, there's the "great story, write more" variety. Nice to hear, certainly, and IMO perfectly appropriate for the list -- I like to = be alerted to a good fanfic as much as anyone. Some people also elaborate with "I particularly liked the bit where..." and I'd say that's fine, too= , as long as spoiler spaces are provided. When you get into questions along the lines of "I was confused by this point, what did you mean?" that's getting in deeper, but if it's phrased tactfully, I'd be comfortable with that sort of thing being public -- if one person was confused, others may be too, and this allows the author to= clarify (or maybe the first person was just missing something incredibly obvious :-) and thus has only embarrassed herself). The point at which permission should be asked, I feel, is when the comments start challenging the author's choices: "Why show this but not that?" "What was the motivation here?" "Why was so-and-so out of character?" Those are all perfectly legitimate questions, I hasten to point out, but some authors prefer to receive them in private, and I strongly believe that their preferences should be respected -- it's basic= courtesy, to my mind. = (Typo/grammar/spelling corrections fall into this category, too -- it's things you want a good editor to look for, but if you already consider th= e story finished, it's annoying to be edited) Now, there are times when an author posts a story to this list with the explicit purpose of soliciting just that kind of critique, and I'm al= l in favor of that. As several have pointed out, it's a very valuable editing tool, and as a reader I enjoy following those discussions (I've a= fanfic now that's *this* close to being done, and I plan to ask for just that sort of group beta reading). That's a terrific use of bandwidth, IM= O. But if you don't know which venue (public or private) an author prefers for "challenging" comments, how hard is it to ask? I honestly don't thin= k that puts too much of a burden on a would-be reviewer. >> I think it's unfair to treat so-called "critical" comments differently than other types. For instance, my review of your story was complimentary but it also brought up a "critical" point. The same could be said of my review of Chris' episode, although I had a lot more to say because her story raised more questions with me. << In our particular case, Sandy, for me, it all comes down to permission (Is permission too strict a word? Maybe assent would be more accurate --= I'm really looking at this as an issue of courtesy, not control). You mentioned that you had comments to make on my story. I respect your opinion and so I responded that I'd like to see what you had to say (although I did have a certain amount of trepidation because the reas= on Sandy's good, is that she's tough) -- voila, permission. I also mentione= d that I'd like to see your comments on Chris's episode if you *and she* would care to discuss them on the list. I can't give permission for her.= = Maybe she should have spoken up then and there, but she didn't, and there= we are. = As Zoom said, help is something that should be asked for or offered, not forced. In my original post, I said: >> > So I suppose my point (opinion) is that a detailed critique has its place, > but I don't believe this list is the place. << and I'd like to reword that ... like I said above, I don't want to stifle constructive group discussion when the author has invited it. I just meant that this is not a workshop-type list where everything is fair= game, with authors implicitly expecting detailed critiques. We're not being graded here, and we're not all here to hone our craft. Those who just want to share their love of L&C (no matter how good or bad a writer)= should be able to do so in peace. PJ who hopes this made sense; halfway through composing it, my darling new daughter spit up all over everything and we had to clean that up.= = She doesn't spit often, but when she does, look out! Such are the reward= s of motherhood !^NavFont02F0F000036MGHHGA6MGA8HH4FMH51HOACMOAEHPBAMPBCHS63MS65HSC7MSC9HV= I2 B1C Pam Jernigan (jernigan@compuserve.com) ChiefPam on the IRC ~~~~~ http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jernigan/folc.html ~~~~~ baby pictures due on the website Real Soon Now... ;-) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 16:16:43 EDT Reply-To: SilvrBrwne@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Liz *<:o)" Subject: Combo: fledgling readers & closet writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >2. I guess if we can have "closet" fanfic writers we can have closet fanfic >readers . On a recent ski vacation with my family, I carried 5 volumes >of fanfic with me. We stayed in a small hotel and saw the same people every >day, so it was inevitable that someone would ask me what I was *always* >reading. The questioner had provided me with an easy "out" by asking me if I >was working and I guiltily replied that I was. He felt sorry that I had to >work on vacation and I felt like I did in 10th grade when I got caught >reading a Harold Robbins novel in social studies class . I laugh, but I'm >actually a little ashamed that I felt that way. It just seems that when I've >been honest about my fanfic reading in the past, I've had to spend lots of >time and energy defending my choice of reading material. Time that I could >better spend reading . Any other closet readers out there? Hi everyone :) :::comes out of lurking mode::: ;) Well, I kind of qualify for this category :) My family and one friend knows that I read fic. My friend, which is the only one that does know that I scribble down ideas and write for this show and another. She has given me great feedback on my SS fic and doesn't think of me any different as when I didn't spend my time not writing them. She doesn't think of it as dumb or anything, she really enjoys it. People that really know me, know that I love watching Superman, but they do not know that I write. Maybe one day I will tell them, or maybe I won't. When I print out fics and bring them to school, I usually read them in the library. Friends ask what I'm reading and I usually say something like, oh it's just something that someone has written. I'm not really lying, I just don't want them to know *what* I'm reading; some of them have big mouths and well, you know, lol. My family does not know that I write, well I think my mom has an idea, but I'm not letting on ;) They already think I spend too much time on the internet reading and searching, and talking on IRC and the VL, and I don't need anymore criticism because I give myself enough of that when writing. I was reluctant to send my first Lois and Clark fic to the list because of all the great writers that were out there. I was nervous at first but then I asked some FoLC friends online to read it and give me their honest opinion. I didn't get any bad reviews on it but I was still reluctant. Then I was sitting here w/ it addressed to the list and everything; what do I have to lose? I'm not going to learn anything if I don't send it, so I did. It's going to sound odd, but my heart was beating like I was getting ready to bungy jump, lol. Now, I'm glad I did because I received some great reviews and some really good suggestions on how to make future stories better. After getting such reviews and comments, next time I won't be so "shy" to send my work to the list, but since I am relatively new to writing fan-fic I will always have doubts about my work until I feel comfortable about it. Liz SilvrBrwne@aol.com ICQ # 23588950 SuprBrwne on IRC ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 16:30:56 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: "Impressive" hobbies :P (was Re: fledgling readers) In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 9:17 AM -0500 4/23/99, Terry S. Horowit wrote: >, but the one time I admitted to a >less close friend that I've been reading the fanfic, she looked at me in >shock and said, "Terry, I am just SO disappointed in you!" I was kind of >shocked myself by this sweeping comment, and just sort of shrugged in >embarassment and didn't tell anyone else until just last night. See, now this is what I just don't get! How can people make these sweeping generalizations when they have no idea what they are talking about? (I'd be $50 she'd never read a fanfic in her life.) And how could you *not* respond? I would have quirked an eyebrow, given her a look like she was crazy and said "what in the world are you talking about?!?" Then made her flounder around explaining herself. ;) Did she explain exactly *what* she found so disappointing? Or what you should have been doing with your time instead? (Pursuing *her* favorite hobby, no doubt.) If you have an otherwise balanced life, what does it matter what you do for enjoyment? If you spent every evening watching television from after dinner to bedtime (the way the vast majority of people do), would that impress your friend? What about reading romance novels or westerns? What about reading every "woman's magazine" (Cosmo, Glamour, etc.) on the newsstand? What if you were obsessed with your vegetable garden and read every book published on the subject? Or loved horses so much you spent 30 hours/week at the barn on top of your work/school? How is time spent pursuing those hobbies inherently more worthy than being involved in an on-line fandom?? Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@springnet1.com KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 14:54:19 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: "Impressive" hobbies :P (was Re: fledgling readers) MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" What if you spent hours chatting on AOL??? Oh, gee, I guess I actually do that..... Seriously, I totally agree with you on this, Kathy. My feeling is if someone's life is balanced, and spouse or significant other and kids are taken care of, work is done on time and well, then it's that person's own business how to spend any leisure time he or she is lucky enough to find. I too would be frustrated and irritated by a friend's reaction such as the one Terry described. However, I've never done well with judgmental people under certain circumstances!! I might have a hard time not reacting the same way you would, Kathy, or at the very least, throw out a "don't knock it if you haven't tried it" comment (but hopefully in a more witty way...). Terry, that's one of the best things about this list, to have this great group of smart, funny, diverse and interesting people, many of whom write such wonderful fanfic, but who also share your enjoyment/obsession (or insert any other word that fits!) with anything LnC related. At least we all know EXACTLY where you're coming from, so please don't feel alone in your hobby! Vicki (who REALLY would rather be reading more new fanfic, or shopping, instead of working.....and is wondering why she's been posting so much lately, instead of lurking....) Vicki.Krell@asu.edu -----Original Message----- From: Kathy Brown [mailto:kathyb@SPRINGNET1.COM] Sent: Friday, April 23, 1999 2:31 PM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: "Impressive" hobbies :P (was Re: fledgling readers) At 9:17 AM -0500 4/23/99, Terry S. Horowit wrote: >, but the one time I admitted to a >less close friend that I've been reading the fanfic, she looked at me in >shock and said, "Terry, I am just SO disappointed in you!" I was kind of >shocked myself by this sweeping comment, and just sort of shrugged in >embarassment and didn't tell anyone else until just last night. See, now this is what I just don't get! How can people make these sweeping generalizations when they have no idea what they are talking about? (I'd be $50 she'd never read a fanfic in her life.) And how could you *not* respond? I would have quirked an eyebrow, given her a look like she was crazy and said "what in the world are you talking about?!?" Then made her flounder around explaining herself. ;) Did she explain exactly *what* she found so disappointing? Or what you should have been doing with your time instead? (Pursuing *her* favorite hobby, no doubt.) If you have an otherwise balanced life, what does it matter what you do for enjoyment? If you spent every evening watching television >from after dinner to bedtime (the way the vast majority of people do), would that impress your friend? What about reading romance novels or westerns? What about reading every "woman's magazine" (Cosmo, Glamour, etc.) on the newsstand? What if you were obsessed with your vegetable garden and read every book published on the subject? Or loved horses so much you spent 30 hours/week at the barn on top of your work/school? How is time spent pursuing those hobbies inherently more worthy than being involved in an on-line fandom?? Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@springnet1.com KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 22:52:30 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: Acting 101: For Yvonne ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Demi, That was absolutely fascinating. Thanks for giving me a brief insight into the world of acting. I've got more to ask/say, but I'll email privately, because I don't want to mis-use the list. Cheers, Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 23:00:05 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: RR about UK/US language confusion MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Mikki wrote: > Now ladies and gents, wouldn't it be wonderful if we had a fanfic titled, > say "The British are Coming," The premise of the story has Lois and Clark > playing host to an English Family . The differences in dialects, and the > creative wordplay involved in evolving the language of any culture, > regardless of the similarities, creates a comedy of errors. Hilarious > attempts to hide Clark's secret identity, rivalry between the young people, > but ending with love conquering all. We could create an entire category of > L&C puns based on Britishisms vs. Amercanisms. Sort of a Fawlty Towers > meets Seinfeld. The Zoomway could set up a round robin fanfic session , > with the american group writing one part and the british group writing the > other. If anyone agrees that this would be a great idea, do respond. I > say "Let the Idioms Flow!" I, for one, think that's a great idea. I'm not sure if I'd be brave enough myself to take part, but I'd love to see the round robin experts give it a try. Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 18:55:04 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: Who would know? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain >>From MR. D8A's work email > >My wife and I have often discussed who should know, who wouldn't know, and >who would know but doesn't let on. Any ideas out there? > >Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't letting on. "I didn't get >this job because I can yodel!" >MR. D8A A.K.A. James > Oh, I love this question. I've been thinking about it myself for almost as long as I've been watching L&C. I have no doubt that Perry knows and is playing dumb for Clark's sake. Jimmy, I think, definitely doesn't, but is perfectly capable of figuring it out. A continuation of SL&V by Wendy Richards, which I can't remember the name of right now, is a great example of that. Out of the news room, I'm sure neither of Lois' parents know and I stubbornly maintain that the government doesn't either. I've read some great fanfics where it does, but I still disagree with them. Dr. Klein is a maybe. I think he does, but I've got no evidence to support that other than he's a smart guy. I could also point you in the direction of many wonderful fanfics where Dr. Klein knows but doesn't tell Clark. Of course, that isn't a shred of proof as far as the show goes, but their a lot of fun to read! Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 21:05:34 EDT Reply-To: Ccmalo@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "C.C. Malo" Subject: Re: Recognition MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sheila wrote: << I think it should be Recognition: The American Way? (and I'm using the question mark deliberately to indicate irony and incredulity). I think that that would work okay for international FoLCs because you would be questioning that whole concept of whether Superman has an American flag on his chest instead of a red S, and I think it'd fit the story beautifully.>> Thanks, Sheila, the ? does it! :) But what is the difference between a "closed" mystery and an "open" one? Carol ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 18:21:42 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel Ernst Subject: Re: closet fanfic readers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Hello all I just had to add to the closet fanfic reader thread. I'll admit, I have not fully come out of the closet yet. My friends and family know I read fanfic, but I'm usually embarassed to be caught. I'm not a fanfic writer (Although, I could have been during those summers between seasons, when I imagined the perfect ending the a cliffhanger and counted the days until the season started again!), but I love reading fanfic. Still, it does cause some uncomfortable situations, when people do not understand the attraction of a show that has been off the air for so long. My roommate rolls her eyes when she comes into the room and sees the words "Superman" or "Lois and Clark" on my computer screen. My Mom saw me earlier today reading emails from this list and she said "Oh, Superman AGAIN?! (This may be because, since I've been home >from college on Spring Break (2 days!) I've been dominating the tv by watching the first 16 episodes of L&C -- what can I say? Finals were rough! I need some down time!!). But, luckily, I have a good friend who is also a FoLC and we recommend stories to each other. Also, one of my friends recently confessed that she reads fanfics of her favorite soap opera. Now, we have fun by getting online at our separate colleges, simultaneously reading our fanfics, and chatting through aol instant messenger. She'll say "Oh, (insert soap couple here) is having a baby!" and I'll reply "And Jimmy is finding out Clark is Superman!" We really have no knowledge of each other's shows, but it's fun to share the love of fanfic without embarassment. I guess it is just one of the things we do to keep close, because she's in school in Maryland while I'm in Indiana. So, I guess my contribution to this thread, after that long-winded rambling, is that I completely understand the nature of being a closet fanfic reader. Some people just don't understand L&C. But, I agree that it is as valid as any other hobby. Some of my close friends and family know about my hobby, but I try not to let many people know that I sometimes enjoy reading fanfics, even if I must stay up until 2am, or be late for class, or skip a social outing with acquaintences. It seems too hard to explain. If I'm reading a fanfic at school and someone knocks on the door, it's almost an automatic reflex for me to minimize the computer screen so the fanfics will not be glaringly obvious. I'm not sure how effective this hiding is, though, because the background wallpaper of my computer is the picture of Dean and Teri at the Emmys, where Dean is ripping open his tux to reveal a Batman shirt!! Wow. This is long. I usually don't post to the list very often, but I am in a very Lois and Clark mood. I have watched all of the first season episodes up to "Ides of Metropolis" just since yesterday morning! And I still have a week of Spring Break left! Is it wonderful or pathetic that I'm tempted to veg out on the couch all week and try to watch all 4 seasons?! You know, once I started watching, I just couldn't stop! Back to the couch! Sheriff Rachel "Later dude. Lay off the amino acids!" _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 21:55:34 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language confusion MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/23/99 5:01:17 PM Central Daylight Time, yconnell@UKF.NET writes: << > L&C puns based on Britishisms vs. Amercanisms. Sort of a Fawlty Towers > meets Seinfeld. The Zoomway could set up a round robin fanfic session , > with the american group writing one part and the british group writing the > other. If anyone agrees that this would be a great idea, do respond. I > say "Let the Idioms Flow!" I, for one, think that's a great idea. I'm not sure if I'd be brave enough myself to take part, but I'd love to see the round robin experts give it a try. >> It could be confusing US-Clark: "I just stopped by to see how you were doing." UK-Clark: "I just stopped by to see how you were getting on." US-Jimmy: "Hold the elevator!" UK-Jimmy: "Hold the lift!" US-Clark: "We waited so much longer than two weeks." UK-Clark: "We waited so much longer than a fortnight." US-Lois: "Get out! You can read lips from here?" UK-Lois: "Pull the other one! You can read lips from here?" US-Klein: "Darn!" UK-Klein: "Pants!" Okay, I'm not so sure how common any of those are, but I've heard them occasionally on IRC Zoomway@aol.com (now if you want the Brits and Yanks on the same channel writing at the same time, a serious time zone compromise will have to be made ;) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 22:09:14 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Combo post- the critique thread, Recognition, group writing, MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/23/99 8:55:42 AM Central Daylight Time, Ccmalo@AOL.COM writes: << I wanted to thank Zoomway, Charlotte, Brenda, and Rachel for their comments about my latest story. It's encouraging to know that you read it and enjoyed it. :-) And thank you for the suggestions about the title. >> You're welcome, Carol, though I admit I didn't suggest a title so much as get the title wrong I actually thought it was titled "Runaway", and I might have remembered the "R" and then associated a theme of "running away" and so thought that was the title. I'm afraid Eileen can testify to the fact that I don't remember titles of stories My apologies on that mix up. >>>I was serious [ maybe foolish, too] when I said I would welcome criticism, both good and bad, of the story. It's hard thing to ask for help but I would like to improve the story before I send it to the archive. To me, the story seems uneven; I think this is why I can't decide on a title<< When I hear someone say a story was "uneven", it usually indicates a feeling that certain areas were "slow" compared to the rest, or a train of thought was derailed at a crucial point and never addressed again, or a reader didn't find certain passages as engaging as others in the story, and so on. What I've found helpful has been hearing readers talk about what they particularly like and don't like in a general sense when it comes to fanfic. I was fascinated one night on IRC a couple of years ago when the subject of fanfic came up and some readers said that they often scrolled past the "A" (villain) plot in the stories if it was set apart too obviously from the B plot (usually the Lois and Clark interaction plot) and went on too long. They tended to skim past it until they found themselves back at Lois and Clark interaction. It was sort of the equivalent of fast-forwarding past the A plot in the series. Not all readers do that, but when three or four people on the channel confessed to doing that, I found that information helpful. And no, I don't mean it caused me to cut out A plots Rather it made me more mindful of how I handle the A plot. I try to integrate it as much as possible into the B plot, and when that's not possible, I try to spoon it in a few paragraphs at a time rather than page after page of unremitting villain plot line. Sheila had mentioned in a post how important it is to consider your audience. Be clear on who you are trying to communicate with. In any form of fiction it's the *reader* (respecting the particular genre of the audience), and with fanfic, you're dealing with a very *specific* group of readers. The interesting thing about fans who are strictly readers and have no interest in writing, is that they often view fiction from a different perspective from writers. It made sense to me when the readers said they skimmed the main/villain plot if it dragged on page after page. When you think about why most of us fell in love with the series, very few would say it was because of the main plots or villains I try to keep the reader in mind when I write. I want to give enough information so that I make myself clear, but not so much that it becomes superfluous and bloated. It's easy to get carried away while in the process of writing and I have to stop and ask myself, "Is this much information really necessary?" It's not always easy to tell either, that's why I like using "beta readers" after my story has been edited. Some of them are fellow writers, but most are readers who have no interest in becoming writers. Since they're the audience I'm shooting for, It's very valuable to me to have their input. Some writers use the list itself as a "testing ground" before posting to the archive. In that sense, most subscribers become prospective beta readers, and given that the list has over three hundred subscribers, it's a good bet most of them are readers rather than writers. I think the only difference is, those who volunteer to be beta readers know what the writer is looking for. I ask those who do beta reading for me if the story flowed well, did it leave anything ambiguous, was anything confusing, did it drag at any point, or, was it uneven ;) As for help with improving the writing part, I tend to gravitate towards writers who share a similar style and approach to mine. A vastly different style and approach, or seeing the characters very different from the way I do, becomes more distracting than helpful for me. Now if it were a matter of wanting to become a professional writer, I'd likely drop fanfic writing all together because I think it would take me forever just to "unlearn" fanfic formatting Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 03:11:34 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Maggie Subject: Re: closet fanfic readers (long) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Closet? what closet!?!? LOL The Official Kerth Groupie Speaks.... I didn't become the official groupie for knowing how to yodel, now did I? Hmm, I first discovered Fanfiction at work, at the time the one computer we had connected to the Internet was in our Copy/Fax room, a very public, very populated teensy-weensy little space right in the middle of our office. I will never forget it!! I had done a search on Yahoo on Dean Cain, he just popped into my head like, hmmm, that would be an interesting topic to see if this yahoo-thingie really works... (yes I really thought that, my mind works in mysterious ways, okaaay? ;o)) Somehow, one of the listings was TUFS, I swear I thought I had died and gone to computer heaven! I could not *believe* my good fortune. I started reading during my lunch time, standing up in the copy room, smiling from ear to ear, *then* I actually put two and two together and realized I could _print_ -- Eureka! Well thank goodness I have a very understanding boss, quite entertained by my many zany habits (including but not limited to, giving Office Buddy Hugs during stressful moments, distributing Looney Toons Stickers that say Super! and Great Job! throughout the office, oh! yeah, and my little superman fixation....) Now, where was I? Oh, yeah....happily reading my season of TUFS, going to Office Depot to buy reams of paper which I plunked on my boss's desk with a thank you note and lots of happy faces :o)....and THEN it happened..... I stumbled upon the **A*r*c*h*i*v*e**, at the time I believe it had 370 Original Stories and Poems based on Lois and Clark. Only thing is I found it once, and then being the neophyte I was, I LOST it. It took me like _days_ before I found it again, made sure it was real and not a mirage, and then formulated a plan of action to get me one of those computer thingies at *home* Needless to say I read fanfic, anywhere, anytime, anyplace I can. So far : various planes airport terminals hotel rooms the local subshop (where I giggle to my heart's content at all the appropriate moments and no one cares ) my mom's car (while she drives) various locations throughout my office and at home of course Oh! almost forgot, on vacation at my mom's best friend's house!! So far, I haven't had any stranger come up to me and ask me what I am reading, though I'd just *love* to tell ;o) In my office, I think just about anyone who even remotely inquired in passing is thoroughly informed as to the wonders of modern technology and the creativity of these superlative creatures we call FoLCs. (Which reminds me of the time a girl at work asked some inane question about Dean, like if he was from Hawaii or something, and I proceeded to recite his life story.....but, uhm, I digress...hehehe so, what else is new?!?!) My mother not only knows of my obsession, er, hobby, she thinks it's great. My best friend is also informed and used to my zany ways and this to her is no big deal. In conclusion, I'd have to say, being that weirdness works so *well* for me ;o), that I'm like at the other end of the Spectrum, not only very *far* from being a closet reader, but *Proud* of reading these stories, made with so much love and care. I truly think it's a magical experience. You create a story, and give life to something new, something that didn't exist before you gave it wings, and somehow, when I read this story, I become your accomplice. That just fascinates me to no end. stopping now, before War and Peace starts looking like a short story Maggie yep, no yodeling experience required :o) maggie13@bellsouth.net (aka supermags on IRC) There are no short cuts to any place worth going. Anonymous ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 04:07:13 EDT Reply-To: MsLoisette@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 99-04-22 19:27:49 EDT, you write: << Lois is my soul sister when it comes to cooking) >> Lois is your soul sister too? LOL! Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 09:47:28 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >>>From MR. D8A's work email >> >>My wife and I have often discussed who should know, who wouldn't >know, and >>who would know but doesn't let on. Any ideas out there? >> >>Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't letting on. "I >didn't get >>this job because I can yodel!" >>MR. D8A A.K.A. James >> This reminds me of one of those 'Did I see that? Or am I just making it up?' moments that strikes me at times when watching MOSB. At the end when Perry returns the unopened envelope with his resignation in it to Clark and they have the conversation about not opening it/not needing to. Sometimes, when I watch, it plays out just like that on the surface, no hidden messages - they're talking about the resignation and Clark's return, pure and simple. But at other times I sometimes think that I see (or hear) some subtle subtext and it sounds as though, beneath the main conversation, there's a second going on. That Perry is making it known that he knows Clark's secret and Clark that he knows he knows. I wonder at that point if Clark included the entire truth to Perry in that letter. I hear an undertone and something in the way he glances at Perry when he says 'You didn't open it?' and something passes between them, unspoken, when Perry replies that he didn't think he needed to. A reassurance that Clark's secret is safe with him? And then....of course, there are times when I watch that scene and wonder where I got that idea from. But it kind of lingers, although there's little real evidence to support the theory. Like fairies. Not sure they exist, but I'd like to think it's a nice idea. ;) LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:22:33 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chris Carr Subject: Re: Who would know? In-Reply-To: <19990424050335.QTHF16164.mta1-svc@piano.ucs.indiana.edu> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Re the question of who knows about Clark's double life: I'm interested to see that several people have responded to this thread by saying that they think Perry knows. In some respects I agree with this notion: it's hard to see how he could *not* know. After all, he is very aware of everything else that goes on in his newsroom. However, I am more inclined to suspend disbelief, and assume that, in this one instance, he is being a wee bit blind -- just like Lois was for so long. I have two questions for those people who think that Perry knows: 1) When do you think he found out? and 2) If you came across a fanfic with a plot that included a Perry revelation, set sometime around the end of the fourth season / early fifth, would you find it hard to accept? (This is not an entirely idle question. Intermittently, I'm working on something long that might see the light of day this side of the new millenium...) Chris c.carr@virgin.net ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:19:23 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Eileen Barnard Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Actually, I have to jump in here. I always thought that Perry knew, or had a very good idea that Clark was Superman and it was always hinted on the show that Jack knew. I think it may be like one of those open secrets where a lot of people know but never let on. I'm always reminded of a Superman comic I read when I was quite young. It involved a special school for blind children, who Superman visited one day. He had also visited the school as Clark Kent on an investigation and quite a lot of the children guessed that he was the same person - mainly because they only had their remaining senses to rely on. There was a really sweet scene at the end when they chalked a message on the playground floor - I can't remember the words but it was to let him know that they knew but that his secret wouldn't go any further. They also say that some people never forget a face - even if it's disguised and I have a doctor friend who says this in his opinion if somebody who studied anatomy saw Clark Kent in say a swimsuit and soon afterwards saw Superman in that wonderful clingy costume, then there is a good chance they would make the connection. Maybe some of you out there may agree with this - I can't comment as I do not have any medical experience. All I can say is that since I have lost a good deal of my hearing capacity over the past couple of years, my other senses have learned to compensate so maybe I would have guessed if I had been in a situation to do so. Kind regards Eileen - ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 10:42:41 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Irene D." Subject: New email address & feedback MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Just wanted to let all my friends on this list know that I have a new email address as follows: sirenegold@yahoo.com My hotmail account was not very reliable. I am going to keep it however just in case. To change the subject, I loved the new fanfic posted by the Round Robin group. It was witty, fastpaced, and well written. Very enjoyable. Keep up the good work, guys. Take care, Irene sirenegold@yahoo.com sirengold on IRC _________________________________________________________ DO YOU YAHOO!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:10:00 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Peggy Mueller Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit From: Chris Carr >I have two questions for those people who think that Perry knows: 1) When do you think he found out? 1. I'm sure Perry knew, but it's hard to say when he found out. I have sometimes thought that he knew as early as MOSB, although for different reasons than Labrat mentioned. Reinforcing that guess is that in Fly Hard, right after the bad guys took them hostage, Perry gave Clark a sidelong glance, like he was thinking, "okay, son, how are you going to get us out of this one...?" I'm convinced that Perry knew Clark's secret by the end of WHALTTA. >and >2) If you came across a fanfic with a plot that included a Perry revelation, set sometime around the end of the fourth season / early fifth, would you find it hard to accept? Wouldn't bother me at all. Fanfics create their own universes, as Claire said. > (This is not an entirely idle question. Intermittently, I'm working on something long that might see the light of day this side of the new millenium...) Sounds interesting...hope you finish it soon! Peggy :-) gremlino@pathway.net ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:09:06 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Peggy Mueller Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit From: LabRat >This reminds me of one of those 'Did I see that? Or am I just making it up?' >moments that strikes me at times when watching MOSB. At the end when Perry >returns the unopened envelope with his resignation in it to Clark and they >have the conversation about not opening it/not needing to. Sometimes, when I >watch, it plays out just like that on the surface, no hidden messages - >they're talking about the resignation and Clark's return, pure and simple. > >But at other times I sometimes think that I see (or hear) some subtle >subtext and it sounds as though, beneath the main conversation, there's a >second going on. That Perry is making it known that he knows Clark's secret >and Clark that he knows he knows. I wonder at that point if Clark included >the entire truth to Perry in that letter. I hear an undertone and something >in the way he glances at Perry when he says 'You didn't open it?' and >something passes between them, unspoken, when Perry replies that he didn't >think he needed to. A reassurance that Clark's secret is safe with him? That scene always puzzled me; I saw the exchange of glances you mention, but I was never able to figure out what it meant, so I just shrugged it off. Now that you mention it, that's certainly a reasonable explanation. There was something else in this ep that made me believe Perry knew, and that is how Perry acted when Superman called Perry from jail to tell him that he (Clark) would be away from the office because he was covering the Superman story. Perry said eagerly, "Yeah, yeah, you stay there..." It seemed to me that Perry knew that Clark had to stay away because he was in jail. Peggy :-) gremlino@pathway.net ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:40:55 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sarah Wood Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 >> several people have responded to this thread by saying that they think Perry knows. In some respects I agree with this notion: it's hard to see how he could *not* know. After all, he is very aware of everything else that goes on in his newsroom. << On the other hand, he's been remarkably dense when it comes to: Bill Chur= ch Jr. (Individual Responsibility); Senator Truman Black (Super Mann); the head of the Men's Club of Metropolis (Chi of Steel); Larry Smiley (Just S= ay Noah). Sarah Wood sarahwood@compuserve.com http://www.geocities.com/hollywood/2501/ ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 15:06:05 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: ninety-six and i planted poppies Subject: Re: Who would know? >>>>> several people have responded to this thread by saying that they think Perry knows. In some respects I agree with this notion: it's hard to see how he could *not* know. After all, he is very aware of everything else that goes on in his newsroom. <<<<< << On the other hand, he's been remarkably dense when it comes to: Bill Church Jr. (Individual Responsibility); Senator Truman Black (Super Mann); the head of the Men's Club of Metropolis (Chi of Steel); Larry Smiley (Just Say Noah). >> That's an interesting point. (And one that I'll have to consider since I decided to let Perry know in a fic I'm working on.) However, there are one or two differences between the situations you listed and knowing that Clark is Superman. First, the above examples are all things that Perry might see hints of but not want to believe. Sort of like someone who might sense that their spouse is having an affair but might not "let" themselves believe it so they don't have to deal with it. (This could be the case more with Church and Black then than the other two since they were close friends of Perry's.) Also, the above examples are all in Perry's personal life, where he could be much more clueless than with what goes on in his newsroom. Even though he and Clark have a more personal relationship than the usual employer-employee one, Clark's disappearances effect the efficiency of the newsroom and I would think Perry would notice that, despite the relatively open-door, follow-your-lead atmosphere the Planet seems to have. -Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 22:13:17 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language confusion MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Zoomway wrote: > It could be confusing > > US-Clark: "I just stopped by to see how you were doing." > > UK-Clark: "I just stopped by to see how you were getting on." > > US-Jimmy: "Hold the elevator!" > > UK-Jimmy: "Hold the lift!" > > US-Clark: "We waited so much longer than two weeks." > > UK-Clark: "We waited so much longer than a fortnight." > > US-Lois: "Get out! You can read lips from here?" > > UK-Lois: "Pull the other one! You can read lips from here?" > > US-Klein: "Darn!" > > UK-Klein: "Pants!" > OK, so maybe you avoid the confusion by making the US people write the US characters, and the UK people write the UK characters? Also - "Pants" ??? Never heard that one before. Although I used to have a friend at school whose favourite curse was "Radishes!", so I guess anything's possible. She was once given lines ("I will not swear in class") by her maths teacher, because he thought she said "Jesus!" when in fact she said "Radishes!". Pants, as far as I'm concerned, is either a noun meaning an item of underwear (unless I'm reading something by an American, in which case it means trousers), or it's a verb meaning to inhale and exhale rapidly. >now if you want the Brits and Yanks on the same channel > writing at the same time, a serious time zone compromise will have to be made Maybe an email RR instead? Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 22:23:24 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: closet fanfic readers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Rachel wrote: > computer is the picture of Dean and Teri at the Emmys, > where Dean is ripping open his tux to reveal a Batman > shirt!! What! I never heard about this - tell me more, tell me more! Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 18:16:39 EDT Reply-To: DonnaH7@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Donna Hafner Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit labrat@UKF.NET writes: >> sometimes think that I see (or hear) some subtle subtext and it sounds as though, beneath the main conversation, there's a second going on. That Perry is making it known that he knows Clark's secret and Clark that he knows he knows. << This made me think of Demi's recent Acting 101 post in which she said actors think of back stories for their characters to give them inner motivation. Perhaps Lane Smith decided in his own mind, as a part of his back story, that 'Perry knows' and this back story colored all of his scenes. Wasn't Lane even heard to say once that of course Perrry knows, or did I imagine that? Anyway I agree that this scene and several others mentioned seem to subtly imply that Perry knows the secret. I am definitely in the 'Perry shouldn't know' camp myself, but perhaps Lane Smith thinks it the only reasonable position for his character. Donna H donnah7@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 20:03:15 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/24/99 2:41:23 PM Eastern Daylight Time, SarahWood@COMPUSERVE.COM writes: << On the other hand, he's been remarkably dense when it comes to: Bill Church Jr. (Individual Responsibility); Senator Truman Black (Super Mann); the head of the Men's Club of Metropolis (Chi of Steel); Larry Smiley (Just Say Noah). < >> BUT... none of those people were in the newsroom on a daily basis, and some of them weren't people that Perry knew all that well (Larry Smiley). Clark, on the other hand, worked for Perry and was around him every day. Perry had to have noticed his comings and goings. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:43:00 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Terry S. Horowit" Subject: Re: "Impressive" hobbies :P (was Re: fledgling readers) In-Reply-To: <82E57D16D1D7D111A6B300A0C99B541005234FC4@mainex2.asu.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >Terry, that's one of the best things about this list, to have this great >group of smart, funny, diverse and interesting people, many of whom write >such wonderful fanfic, but who also share your enjoyment/obsession (or >insert any other word that fits!) with anything LnC related. At least we all >know EXACTLY where you're coming from, so please don't feel alone in your >hobby! > Vicki, thank you (and thank you, Kathy, as well). I doubt I'll bother trying to explain my obsession (definitely 'obsession'!) to anyone else who doesn't get it, but it makes me feel much better about myself to know there are so many others who do "get it" who lead full, interesting lives - at home and at work- who know where I'm coming from. Terry ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:49:39 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/24/99 1:07:16 PM Central Daylight Time, gremlino@PATHWAY.NET writes: << I'm convinced that Perry knew Clark's secret by the end of WHALTTA. >> I can't tell you how ironic this is...okay, I could, but you wouldn't believe me Seriously, last night I was talking about We Have a Lot to Talk About, and that the scene where Jimmy and Perry see Lois leaving with Superman near the end of the episode is somehow read as Perry knowing that Clark is Superman. In the director's cut of the scene though, the scene is a couple of seconds longer. Both Jimmy and Perry smile and shrug. It doesn't look "knowing" at all. I have a link to a .rm file that shows the aired version of the scene, and the director's cut version of the scene. In the aired version, where the editing stops Perry and Jimmy's reaction, it can almost be seen as an "aha" look on Perry's face, but in the longer scene, it's clear when he and Jimmy shrug, neither of them have a clue what's going on. http://www.acreativetouch.simplenet.com/zoomway/whaltdc2.rm I'm sure Lane Smith loved the idea of playing Perry as if he knew, but I never got the impression Perry ever did. If Perry had known from say Man of Steel Bars forward, then Perry's attitude in Lucky Leon wouldn't make much sense. He tells Clark to put his butt in his chair and work on the story. Would Perry knowingly keep Superman from retrieving stolen nuclear warheads? I hope not One of the amusing but important points about Just Say Noah, for example, was that it's not easy having a lover's quarrel with Superman when everyone else in the world knows him only as Clark Kent. Lois couldn't run to Perry, Jimmy or anyone else and say, "Oh, Clark and I are apart right now because he's really Superman, and he thinks that puts me at too great a risk, and so broke my heart for my own good." It's thrown in Lois' face repeatedly in the episode that either Clark Kent is swell or Superman is swell, and if she can't see that, then there's something wrong with her "I still like you, I'm just upset, and even though this is *your* fault, I feel like it's mine. Even if I could tell someone about this, which I *can't*, they'd still think you were the good guy and I was the bad guy. Good old Clark. Good old Superman. Crabby old Lois." Perry says of Clark to Lois, "You know that boy'd walk on water for you, or drown trying." Larry Smiley can't understand why Clark even puts up with her. It's a wonderfully insightful episode from Lois' point of view of what it's like to be in a relationship with two *perfect* men, who also happen to be one *imperfect* man. As for Perry or Jimmy knowing, I doubt it. I remember after Top Copy aired, a lot of fans wondered if Lois knew, but was keeping it to herself. However, it's clear in succeeding episodes that she does not know. In SLV, I think Jimmy's odd look wasn't , "Oh, man, maybe Clark is Superman" so much as "Oh, man, Lois and Superman might have really had an affair." As Sarah Wood brilliantly pointed out: >>On the other hand, he's been remarkably dense when it comes to: Bill Church Jr. (Individual Responsibility); Senator Truman Black (Super Mann); the head of the Men's Club of Metropolis (Chi of Steel); Larry Smiley (Just Say Noah). << Not to mention Perry thought that Lois and Clark eloped in And the Answer Is Perry hasn't had the best track record with reading people correctly, *especially* his own wife...ouch. If he could so misread someone he lived with for over 25 years, don't expect him to figure out that Clark is Superman Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 19:12:59 -0700 Reply-To: desertrat@uswest.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Desert Rat Organization: Desert Rat Computer Services Subject: Unsubscribe MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I will be out of town for the next week. Please remove me from the list. -- Eagles may soar, but sneaky rats don't get sucked into jet engines. -author unknown www.knight.cncfamily.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:30:50 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Dennis A Arendt Subject: Re: closet fanfics MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I think (sometimes) that when I first posted to this question, I didn't fully understand it. Duh!! I am not in the closet when it comes to Lois and Clark and how much I loved them and the show and how I love to read the fanfics.........I'm only in the closet when it comes to submitting any story that I've written. I have never been in the closet when it comes to Dean Cain (unless he was there,too) I even have a room in my home that is totally dedicated to Lois and Clark----floor to ceiling and I show it off every chance I get. I'm sorry if I miss understood the question. Oh well, I'm sure it won't be the last time. Brenda ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:51:41 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Dennis A Arendt Subject: Re: WOW MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm not even sure if I should put this on the list, so if someone out there wants to yell, it's okay. Sedgwik sent me the tapes of 90210 with Dean of course. She is the sweetest thing. Anyway, watching them for the second time it finally dawned on me. How many of us girls get to hear Dean Cain say our name and lovingly at that. Well I did and it sounded Sooooooo Gooood!!!!!!!. So go ahead and yell, I'll just listen to Dean again and eventually get over it. Brenda ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 23:18:41 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Georgia E. Walden" Subject: Re: Who would know? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 09:49 PM 4/24/99 EDT, you wrote: >In a message dated 4/24/99 1:07:16 PM Central Daylight Time, >gremlino@PATHWAY.NET writes: > ><< I'm convinced that Perry knew Clark's secret by the end of > WHALTTA. >> and Zoom and Sarah replied with a lot of very good reasons why Perry didn't know. Now me, I wasn't exactly *thinking* that, but I was *feeling* ;) that I really don't want Perry or Jimmy or anyone else (okay, Dr.Klein, but only when the time is right ) to know Clark's secret. Or rather, Lois and Clark's secret, because for me, it would take a lot of the shine off that special thing they have going, if a lot of regular characters were put on the same footing but knowing, even if they never admitted it. Kind of petty, I guess, but I do feel that way. :) Georgia gwalde14@mindspring.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 22:24:51 -0600 Reply-To: erink@ida.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Erin Klingler Subject: Re: "Impressive" hobbies :P (was Re: fledgling readers) In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Terry wrote: >Vicki, thank you (and thank you, Kathy, as well). I doubt I'll bother >trying to explain my obsession (definitely 'obsession'!) to anyone else who >doesn't get it, but it makes me feel much better about myself to know there >are so many others who do "get it" who lead full, interesting lives - at >home and at work- who know where I'm coming from. Interesting lives???? Wait! Who's leading an interesting life?? Could someone here who has an interesting life please email me? I think I'd like to trade with you from time to time. Sorry, I couldn't resist. Erin (off to change diapers and get kids ready for bed... ;) _________________ erink@ida.net ELK on IRC Visit my 1999 Official Kerth Awards Website! http://www.ida.net/users/davek ***** "The truth is, no one knows how long they've got. Anyway, it's not the years that count, it's the moments...right now, as they happen." _________________ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 00:29:17 EDT Reply-To: MsLoisette@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: WOW MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/24/99 7:51:59 PM Pacific Daylight Time, d.arendt@WORLDNET.ATT.NET writes: << How many of us girls get to hear Dean Cain say our name and lovingly at that. Well I did and it sounded Sooooooo Gooood!!!!!!!. So go ahead and yell, I'll just listen to Dean again and eventually get over it. Brenda >> I can totally agree with you Brenda! Dean yelled my name in one of the eps he wrote for LnC. He yelled Alexis! ::SIGH:: I have that on computer wav and I just about feel like i have reached heaven each time i watch my tape of the show! So yes I TOTALLY know where you are coming from... ;) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:53:29 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel Ernst Subject: Re: WOW MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Brenda wrote: <> Brenda!! I totally understand this joy! I took the scene from Green Green Glow of Home when Clark shouts "Rachel!" upon seeing Sheriff Rachel in Smallville and recorded it as a wav file. Now my computer lovingly shouts "Rachel!" whenever I get email, courtesy of Dean Cain. It is the most wonderful sound I can hear, because as I get emails from my friends and family that make me feel loved, I also get to hear Dean shout my name, to make me dream of a love from such a super man!! If only I were named Lois... Sheriff Rachel dithyramb1@yahoo.com _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 01:07:16 EDT Reply-To: MsLoisette@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: WOW MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/24/99 9:55:27 PM Pacific Daylight Time, dithyramb1@YAHOO.COM writes: << If only I were named Lois... Sheriff Rachel >> Yeah me too! ;) Oh well at least we both have Dean yelling our names on the show! Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 23:28:21 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Smith Subject: Re: Who would know? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain >>In COTOC and UW, Lois and Clark were both so obvious, there were times that I wondered how everybody didn't catch on to the secret. Perry's silence in the face of such instances made me think that he just had to know. Juli :-)<< I gave a lot of thought to this subject after reading Wendy's "A Love So Long In The Making." For 20 years, Perry had known the secret, but hadn’t told Lois and Clark that he knew. This really struck me. For 20 years, they missed out on having Perry as a confidant and advisor. They missed out on a level of depth and beauty that their friendship could have –*should* have--had. What a waste! My own heart is heavy when I think of their loss. Diyan Smith _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 07:06:49 EDT Reply-To: Ccmalo@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "C.C. Malo" Subject: Re: re Combo post - the critique thread, etc MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Zoomway wrote: << When I hear someone say a story was "uneven", it usually indicates a feeling that certain areas were "slow" compared to the rest, or a train of thought.....etc >> Zoomway, this is a most helpful summary. Thanks! [it's on my hard drive ] I'll refer to it as I do my final draft and look for places where I can eliminate parts that have a bit too much "information." Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many readers prefer stories without A plots? Carol ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 07:32:07 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Farah Meitzen Chisham Subject: OT: Dead thread (was Re: WOW) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Yeah, its pretty much off topic. I can say this is definately one to place an OT before the information in the subject. At 09:51 PM 4/24/99 -0500, you wrote: >I'm not even sure if I should put this on the list, so if someone out there wants to yell, it's okay. Sedgwik farah :) farah@chisham.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 09:49:24 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Recognition: ? (SPOILERS) Comments: To: Ccmalo@aol.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit * * * * * * * * * * * * * Carol: I enjoyed your story very much. No, it was *not* hard to read. My reference to "Recognition: The Hard Way" was a joking bow to all the trials and tribulations poor L&C had to go through before they got to their happily ever after. But, of course, that's the row heros and heroines have to hoe -- unfortunately for them. I thought the plot was more than fine -- quite good in fact -- and the characterizations dead on. (As a matter of fact, Mandy might want to take this story on her trip in May.) By the way, I still like: "Recognition: The Only Way." You asked a question in a recent post about how many people prefer their stories without "A" plots. I don't, although I have enjoyed stories where the traditional "B" plot *is* the "A" plot. I think the best stories combine the two so seamlessly that you don't feel like you're being jerked back and forth. When you *can* skip entire sections of stories, (i.e., the "A" plot), and not miss a beat, that's when I would worry. I don't think you have that problem. I think it's important to weave bits and pieces of your "B" plot into your "A" plot just to keep your readers on their toes. (I mean this as a general statement. Not as a comment to you.) As for your story specifically, I did find myself racing through Clark's dream sequences when he was in the capsule. But, that wasn't out of boredom so much as it was out of wanting to see exactly what would happen next and how much his kidnappers would actually end up doing to him. I also wondered what would happen to all of that information the Bureau scientists managed to gather on him. Perhaps another story here? A question: Considering all that Renata and her Bureau 39 crew knew about Lois and Clark and their relationship with Superman, why would they seek to draw Sam Lane into their work? I understand he had some sort of special expertise, but they *had* to know he's Lois Lane's father and could be sympathetic to Superman. (You, yourself, mention the many times Superman had saved Lois.) What would've made them have no doubts about Sam's cooperation? I suppose they were going to force him, but then they would have had to do something to him too. Finally, I do have more specific grammar-type comments. I won't bore the list with that, but I would be happy to pass along my thoughts to you if you'd like. However, I'm sort of late in doing this so I definitely won't be insulted if you don't. Thanks for a very good read, Sandy smcdermin@erols.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 10:03:29 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: Re: Who would know? In-Reply-To: <3.0.1.32.19990424231841.00690640@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:18 PM 4/24/1999 -0400, Georgia wrote: >and Zoom and Sarah replied with a lot of very good reasons why Perry didn't >know. Now me, I wasn't exactly *thinking* that, but I was *feeling* ;) >that I really don't want Perry or Jimmy or anyone else (okay, Dr.Klein, >but only when the time is right ) to know Clark's secret. Or rather, >Lois and Clark's secret I'm with you there Georgia:) I don't like the idea of either Perry or Jimmy knowing, either. (I always groan when I realize a fanfic is heading in that direction;\) I know, I know, I'm currently writing a series where *everyone* knows, but that was the premise in the alt-World and it *does* make a difference. >, because for me, it would take a lot of the shine >off that special thing they have going, if a lot of regular characters were >put on the same footing but knowing, even if they never admitted it. Kind >of petty, I guess, but I do feel that way. :) Me, I *like* that only Clark's immediate family knows (Jon, Martha and Lois). I don't care how "close" he is to Perry and Jimmy, they are *not* his family and they shouldn't know (whether they admit it, or not). I'm not even sure I want Dr. Klein to know, but I recognize that someone will have to be in the know if Lois and Clark are going to have children (on the other hand, maybe not, if Martha gets that mid-wife certificate she's been working on) Definitely in the "I never want Perry or Jimmy to *know* camp". Margaret %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 11:34:31 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: L&C FANFIC ARCHIVE> WEBSERVER Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" FoLCs, Some of you may have noticed that it's impossible to access the primary Fanfic Archive Website at the moment, or to access the MESSAGE BOARDS on the Fantasy Land Pages. Both resources are located on the same web presence provider, and apparently, during the process of upgrading their fileserver systems, they accidentally suffered a major system crash and lost ALL client data for those entities who were being hosted by that particular server. As a consequence, you are all noticing that when you visit the L&C archive website at http://lcfanfic.actwd.com, or the Fantasy Land Message Boards at http://destinyy.com/boards/ you will receive a HOST UNREACHABLE error. Our web presence provider is the process of *restoring* all data at the present moment (thank god for backups), and everything will be back to normal once that process is completed (their estimate was around 3-5am Monday morning). HOWEVER -- the data being restored was backed up to 04/17/99 -- nothing which was stored or updated after that point will be replaced, it's gone. Naturally, they are mortified by what happened and are scrambling to figure out how to compensate their clients -- it IS unacceptible, but there isn't a lot they can do since the data was deleted. In terms of the Fanfic Archive that's not a major problem, we've kept *awsome* records and we have everything we need to bring things up to date -- in fact, you will see if you visit the MIRROR SITE (thank god for Lauren too ;) -- http://www.win.net/~lcw/fanfic/index.html that an update to the 25th of April has already been done by St. Lauren and you should be able to access the stories there this weekend until we've got our 'power' back on at the main site. :) In terms of the Fantasy Land Message Boards, however, it's not as simple. The message system was a CGI interface, and posting since the 17th was stored directly on the server with special extentions. Anything which was sent or posted there since the 17th of April is gone forever. :( I'm very unhappy about that too, but, there isn't a thing I can do there. I wish there was. I'll be receiving a letter regarding the status of the restore from the system admins who host the site(s) within 5 minutes of it's completion (I'm told) and we will then be able to go in and do as much of a cleanup and 'restore' of our own as is necessary. Needless to say, we're going to be keeping our own backups on a weekly basis of BOTH sites, just in case, for the future. We'll keep you all informed. Thank you for your patience... and your letters. We know the site is down. We'll do our best to get it back up ASAP. Please visit Lauren's Mirror in the meantime - http://www.win.net/~lcw/fanfic/index.html Best Regards All, Demi __________________________________________________________ Demi/Demona Lois & Clark Fanfiction Archive Coordinator nightangel@home.com or demi22@aol.com WWW - http://lcfanfic.actwd.com/ FTP - ftp.lcfanfic.actwd.com MIRROR - http://www.win.net/~lcw/fanfic/index.html ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 11:54:24 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Zoomway's Website (Fanfic Message Boards, etc..) In-Reply-To: <3.0.1.32.19990425113431.00a71670@mail> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" FYI-- I'm not sure if Beth (or Zoom) will also want to comment on this or not, but I did see the question appear and while I've got nothing to do with the upkeep of Zoomway's website, FoLCs should also know that her site is being affected in the exact same way as the Fanfic Archive and the LCFLP message boards. Likewise, her boards should be back online around Monday 3-5am and will have (unfortunately) lost all discussion posts (fanfiction or otherwise) AFTER the 17th of April -- everything up until that point SHOULD be back with the restore. (See my previous post for more details). I'm certain that Beth or Zoom may have more to say about this issue since they're probably trying (as we are at the Archive) to piece things back together even now. Take Care All, Demi ___________________________________________ Demi aka Demona nightangel@home.com http://fantasia.simplenet.com/lcfantasy/ "Far away, long ago, glowing dim as an ember. Things my heart used to know, things it yearns to remember.." - 'Anastasia' (excerpt: 'Once Upon A December') I went to the doctor, I went to the mountain. I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain. There's more than one answer to these questions, pointing me in a crooked line. The less I seek my source for some definitive The closer I am to fine. - Indigo Girls ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 18:22:51 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: A plots versus B plots MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Carol wrote: >Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many readers prefer stories >without A plots? My vote goes to stories with A plots. I want something to happen in the stories I read - but then, as I've said before, I'm a heavy drama queen, and I think the best way to create tension between characters is to put them into a situation where they have to cope with something outwith their normal day-to-day existence. It might not be subtle, but it works. Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 13:48:42 EDT Reply-To: AStory2873@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: April Story Subject: Message from Beth (Re: Zoomway's Website (Fanfic Message Boards, etc..) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 99-04-25 11:53:05 EDT, you write: << FYI-- I'm not sure if Beth (or Zoom) will also want to comment on this or not, but I did see the question appear and while I've got nothing to do with the upkeep of Zoomway's website, FoLCs should also know that her site is being affected in the exact same way as the Fanfic Archive and the LCFLP message boards. I'm certain that Beth or Zoom may have more to say about this issue since they're probably trying (as we are at the Archive) to piece things back together even now. >> Beth has asked me to pass this on to you all...... While parts of Zoomway's site are affected like what Demi has already posted about (please see her first post) - if you use the URLs I will list below - you can still get into Zoomway's boards. It seems that the site is actually split onto 2 different servers and so while one part did indeed crash - the boards through *simplenet* are ok with the exception of the nfic board as it was on the server that did crash. You can get to the Fanfic board with the "On The Run" story as well as others by using this URL: http://acreativetouch.simplenet.com/ff4_toc.htm You can access both the Fanfic board and the Discussion board by using this URL: http://acreativetouch.simplenet.com/general/welcome_to_the_message_board_are.h tm Beth wanted you all to know that the only boards that were affected in this problem were the Nfic boards and as long as you use the simplenet URLs listed above you can access the other boards just fine. Also, the posts on the fanfic and discussion boards are still intact with nothing lost. However, the nfic boards will be the April 17th date as Demi mentioned and so will need to be reposted. If you try to go into the main part of Zoom's site - that *is* currently down since it is on the affected server that crashed. Well, I think that is all from me Thanks to Demi and Beth for letting us all know about this so quickly as I am sure they both have spammed mailboxes from fans that can't get into their sites =) Have a great Sunday everyone =) April I shall pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now...for I shall not pass this way again. Etienne de Grellet ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 08:53:39 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Comments: RFC822 error: MESSAGE-ID field duplicated. Last occurrence was retained. From: Debby Subject: Re: Fanfic - A Reader's POV In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.19990421102310.0079d8d0@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I'm way behind on reading and am getting behind-er every day, it seems but I read... At 10:23 AM 04/21/1999 +0300, Hazel Brown wrote: >[snip] >I surfed over to Debby Stark's FTP site and started downloading. And want to say thanks for visiting :) I'm working on a big story now and will be putting it on my site eventually, complete with some jpgs and other material I can't post to this list. Soon, soon... Debby Debby@swcp.com ftp://ftp.swcp.com/pub/users/dstark Stories ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 16:08:39 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Help Please MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Jocelyn R Hoffman wrote: > Just had to say something here. I was homeschooled > and I loved it. > But would Lois be patient enough to teach? I don't > really think so. > ~Jocelyn Jocelyn, My bro-in-law was homeschooled and loved it, as well. Only he was taught by his *father*. And I believe Clark would make an excellent teacher. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 20:02:57 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: FAQ (Part 1/2) - LOISCLA-GENERAL-L DEBATE/DISCUSSION/CRITIQUE Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" THE PEACEKEEPING MISSION OF DEBATE, DISCUSSION & CRITIQUE IN A PUBLIC FORUM. (PART 1 of 2) A FAQ intended to be distributed to LOISCLA-GENERAL-L and the Lois & Clark Fanfiction Archive. Created: 04/18/99 TABLE OF CONTENTS ------------------- (PART I -- This Post): I. Introduction to Debate/Critique II. Essential RULES of Discussion and Critique (PART II -- Next Post) III. Fanfic Criticism: Who Should Do It & When? IV. Define "Fair Play" I. INTRODUCTION TO DEBATE/CRITIQUE Disagreement in a public form is GOING to happen. Whether we choose to fortify ourselves with 'thick skins' or to attempt to sit in on the sidelines and watch the action flow by, praying to our own personal deities that it'll never get near ourselves, any number of otherwise civil discussions can quickly escalate into an all out cyber- tomato tossing contest if folks aren't careful. By careful, we mean TACTFUL about the way they advance their thoughts, suppositions and critical analyses. There are rules of engagement for every different kind of circumstance. For the purposes of a fan creative writing and/or discussion forum, we're going to suggest what *we* feel are the most all-round fair and considerate, (under these said conditions) rules for what can probably aptly be termed a 'literary leisure play area'. Let us start with some basic facts of FAN FORUM communication. II. ESSENTIAL RULES OF DISCUSSION & CRITIQUE A. There is no such thing as a PROFESSIONAL FAN -- Likewise, there is no such thing as a PROFESSIONAL FAN (fiction or editorial) WRITER. No matter what is being written, whether a creative piece of prose, or someone's editorial take on a discussion, it is wrong to assume that the person writing: i) wants to be a paid professional writer or ii) cares whether or not s/he misspelled the word 'anecdotal' in paragraph four of their article/story. B. BE COURTEOUS & RESPECTFUL. The person you're debating with DOES have feelings. Never assume that just because a computer screen and 50,000 miles of ocean separates you from another writer, you have been given licence to treat that person as if they were a machine, instead of a person *using* a machine to communicate their very human ideas. ASK before you offer negative (even constructive) criticism on their creative work; is the person willing to receive it? This isn't Random House Books -- No one is being monetarily compensated to share their mind as either an editor OR an author. Likewise, there's nobody out there compensating folks for hurt or abused feelings because a self appointed critic has decided to be 'brutally honest' with a fan's creative work. 'Brutally Honest' is usually 'Brutally Selfish'. Be considerate of others, first and foremost. The following is an excerpt from Peg Robinson's "MANNERLY ART OF CRITIQUE" (originally posted to ASC c. 1997) "There are two basic approaches to crit, and one of them doesn't work well in an environment like [a fan creative forum]: That's the approach of the professional critic reviewing and evaluating the professional artist. The attitude of the pro critic is 'anything goes;' his persona is that of the Watchdog, defending the purses of the consumer and the high ideals of art; and his motto is "I calls 'em as I sees 'em...and if you don't like it, take a hike." The professional critic is loyal to the consumer, and to the world of art as a whole, and he or she owes no particular consideration to the artist. The critic is there to protect the world from trash, shoddy craftsmanship, and trivial sensationalism. It's an unpleasant but honorable calling when practiced by an ethical and competent master of the art. Granted, there are a lot of vicious, pompous, meshugenah schmucks plying the trade; but many a critic, be he or she ever so spiny and ill-tempered, is hoping to ensure a better and brighter world. But for all his or her curmudgeonly virtues, a pro critic is a BAD THING to set loose on a band of amateurs -- particularly unprepared amateurs who are honorably trying to pursue their education in the safe shallows of a supportive and interested community of peers. When amateurs finally decide to make the break and go pro they'll be appropriate game for the Big Game Hunters-- in the meantime it's best to treat them as a protected species, and let them develop some size and scope before cutting them down to size." "That leads us to the second approach to criticism. This is the approach of the teacher, the editor, the workshop director, the dramatic director, the friend, and the peer. "The idea is that the work and the artist are both still 'In Progress.' Comments are intended to help and support the artists, give them insight into their own work, provide a clear and accurate view of the responses the artist has generated, to make suggestions on areas of potential improvement, and provide information regarding the standard assumptions, skills, and craft of the trade. Negative comments are as appropriate as positive ones, but they should be expressed politely, they should probably come in moderate doses, and they should be aimed at specific and clear-cut problem spots in a story or consistent patterns of failure in a series of stories. The idea is to make it easier for the writer to see her own work clearly -- not to hurt her, make her ashamed, or to confuse the heck out of her." C. BALANCE every negative comment you offer with a POSITIVE counterpoint. Every author craves feedback, and sometimes that feedback may entail a few points of constructive criticism. However, the old adage "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." DOES apply! No matter how many 'constructive' points you may wish to bring up with the author, always preface these with at least a few points of what's GOOD about the piece of work. Don't assume the author already knows, or it would be a waste of bandwidth, TRUST US, it's always a good idea. Arguably, you should have at least ONE good point for every ONE criticism you offer. If you find you have nothing good to say about the piece of writing at all, then ask yourself WHY ARE YOU WRITING to the author about it? It can't be to help them improve, when you've got nothing good to say about their work as it is. No one is that generous. D. DO NOT CRITIQUE SIMPLY TO DISPLAY YOUR OWN ELOQUENCE. No one likes an arrogant know-it-all. If you don't really care about whether the author improves his/her work at all, or if you're more concerned with showing off to a few hundred people just how much you know about the semi-colon, DON'T BOTHER. Reread your critique BEFORE you send it off to the public forum. If it's more about you than it is about the author, everyone will know, and you won't make any new friends by it. E. ALLOW DISAGREEMENT. The person you're having a discussion with can and does have the right to disagree with your point of view. Disagreeing with another person should NOT in any way, shape, or form, constitute an AD HOMINEM attack. For those unaware, the definition of ad hominem from the Webster's English dictionary is: "marked by an attack on an opponent's character rather than by an answer to the contentions made." In other words "NO FLAMES OF ANY KIND." If you attack another person's character, ethnicity, personal intellect, background, or social standing in any way, you may be removed from the list/discussion without warning. F. EDITING vs. FEEDBACK - what does it all mean? "CRITIQUE", in it's purest form, has become almost an arcane practice, and certainly an esoteric one. A true critique is what you'll find in creative writing classes and on technical/creative writing forums in cyber space that are there mainly for writers who hope to improve their skills enough to become professional writers. However in the "fanfic" arena, they're all but nonexistent. Mainly because not every fanfic writer wants to become a pro, and because fanfic itself with so many shortcuts built in, doesn't always make the best stepping stone to pro writing. "Feedback" should not and is not an opportunity to reedit and rewrite someone's finished work. For the purposes of this FAQ, we wish to define a difference between what is to be considered FEEDBACK and what is otherwise EDITING. The primary adjudicating factor is INTENT. Are you commenting on an author's overall story or any portion thereof, as a reader? Or are you attempting to assist the author with their style, grammar, punctuation, etc...? What's the difference? To do the former, one may almost always email the author privately and let them know how their story made you feel. However, to do the latter, one should ALWAYS ask permission FIRST. Even for private EDITING. You may find that without permission, an author is either hurt, or insulted (or both) by your attempt to edit their work in an unsolicited manner. NEVER EDIT without permission. And offer FEEDBACK, only if you feel you have something of constructive use to say. You may find that, while most authors on this list enjoy receiving FEEDBACK and will indicate as much on their work, whether they choose to receive their feedback publicly or privately, MOST authors on this list are NOT likely to enjoy an EDIT of their story, in any format, unless they've specifically REQUESTED as much, first. G. FACTS vs. OPINIONS. 2+2=4 is a FACT. Dean Cain is HOT is an OPINION. Facts are generally not disputed. Opinions ARE. Do not assume that simply because 95% of the rest of the forum may share your *opinion*, it is alright to berate or use an ad hominem attack against another person. Likewise, if you are stating an opinion, a good idea is to always preface it with some form of qualifier. "It has been my experience that.." or "IMHO (in my humble opinion)" or "I believe that.." all of these are examples of an individual putting forth their OWN thoughts and ideas. Simply because we're all on a LOIS & CLARK discussion list, does not mean we must all believe that Dean Cain is HOT, for example. The issue may be up for debate, but the integrity of those who are involved in the debate is NOT. H. A DEAD THREAD is a thread which is closed by the LIST MODERATOR (Mom), at which point posting further on the subject may be grounds for your immediate removal from the list without notice. Know when to concede an issue. There comes a point in time in ANY debate when further discussion is moot, and only leads to repetition. It is NOT that important that you have the last word! Bow out gracefully with something like: "I'm afraid we'll simply have to agree to disagree." We guarantee you, if you handle yourself that way, people will RESPECT you for it. If you still feel there is more to discuss, it is then your prerogative to email the debate participants PRIVATELY and continue without subjecting the public forum to the thread any farther. A list moderator will not close a thread unless it becomes tiresome (to everyone), repetitive, or otherwise antagonistic. Any form of direct attack will be cut off without warning. I. POSTING FORMAT. In the interest of clarity, we would like to distinguish FANFIC posts from DISCUSSION. In order to do that, we ask that you please include an appropriate subject line with your stories in the form of: NEW: Story Title (1/24) [PG13] In this way, we hope to bring a little order to an otherwise fairly arbitrary configuration. Additionally, within each chapter or part of your story, please include a short header at the top of EACH SEGMENT so that posts which do not appear in sequence, or may appear several days apart, are still recognizable. The header should look like this: TITLE: My Story PART: (12/24) AUTHOR: Bob Smith RATING: (No greater than PG-13 please) FEEDBACK: Comments welcome PUB/PRIV. No Editing please. SUMMARY: blah blah blah J. POSTING SIZE LIMIT. Try to limit the size of your posts to the list to around a 20K maximum. If you are unsure how to find out how large your post is before you mail it out, do some reading up on your own email program. Don't be lazy about it, or assume it won't matter. If you send off a huge post to the list, it will end up as an ATTACHED FILE in the mailboxes of some users and YOU will end up with a mailbox full of hate-mail because of it! Attached files of any kind are NOT to be posted to the discussion group. Ignorance is bliss, but it's not an excuse. Know Thy Email Program! ;) K. POSTING RATING. This is an ALL AGES list as it reflects a great deal of the content on the fanfiction archive as well. We maintain a PG-13 maximum rating on this list and within the Fanfiction Archive (http://lcfanfic.actwd.com/) Generally speaking, that means that if you'd see it on prime time TV, or if you could pull it from a supermarket grocery store shelf, you can probably post it here. Instances of explicit romantic/sensual content which border or cross the NC-17/R barriers are not shared in this venue. Failure to adhere to this guideline will result in your removal from the list. Your work will not be posted to the archive, either. There ARE other venues for more explicit content in creative work, however we will not address them here. Suffice it to say that if you are looking for these venues, they're not difficult to locate. L. SPOILER SPACE. When giving FEEDBACK, always include at least 10 lines of space at the top of any email containing specific remarks or excerpts from a story which may reveal elements of it's plot. In this way, people who have not yet read the story, are far less likely to be 'spoiled'. Something like this will suffice: s p o i l e r s p a c e M. How do I get my work on the FANFIC ARCHIVE? The answer is simple. Visit: http://lcfanfic.actwd.com/ and read up on procedure in the Archive FAQ. If you still have questions, send them to: LCStories@cryogen.com /CONT in PART 2/ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 20:03:32 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: FAQ (Part 2/2) - LOISCLA-GENERAL-L DEBATE/DISCUSSION/CRITIQUE Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" THE PEACEKEEPING MISSION OF DEBATE, DISCUSSION & CRITIQUE IN A PUBLIC FORUM. (Part 2 of 2) A FAQ intended to be distributed to LOISCLA-GENERAL-L and the Lois & Clark Fanfiction Archive. Created: 04/18/99 TABLE OF CONTENTS ------------------- (PART I -- Last Post): I. Introduction to Debate/Critique II. Essential RULES of Discussion and Critique (PART II -- This Post) III. Fanfic Criticism: Who Should Do It & When? IV. Define "Fair Play" III. FANFIC CRITICISM: WHO SHOULD DO IT & WHEN. A. AUTHORS: Please INDICATE on your creative work, if you intend to post it to a public venue, whether or not you desire criticism, constructive or otherwise, and to what extent. An example might be: "All forms of comments and/or criticism are welcome PRIVATELY at bobsmith@hotmail.com" or "Comments welcome PRIVATELY at bobsmith@hotmail.com, please no negative remarks or flames." or "Comments, suggestions, criticism, welcome PUBLICLY or PRIVATELY. Email me at sandrabrown@hotmail.com" If you DO NOT indicate your preference on your story, we will assume that it is OPEN to public remarks of any kind! Please be aware of this, and please mark your work accordingly. B. ANYONE may offer comments. Don't assume that only the seasoned pros out there are able to intelligently comment on a piece of writing. If you feel you have a suggestion or comment to offer any given discussion, even a newbie can add their voice and enrich the debate. We welcome all new input, so long as it is courteous and respectful to the rest of those in the forum. Please make sure your comments will be welcomed by the author, and if so, post away! The following is an excerpt from Peg Robinson's "MANNERLY ART OF CRITIQUE" (originally posted to ASC c. 1997) "Only crit those who have INVITED crit, or who have given you permission when you ask. If they impose limits, like "I'm new at this, go easy, " respect those limits. If they ask you to avoid particular types of crit, or conversely to pay particular attention to an area they are working on, respect those requests, too. It's not a bad idea to consider writing and asking permission to do a serious public crit even if the writer HAS asked for that kind of feedback...and be prepared to at least give some idea of what you want to say. It isn't that the writer lied when she asked -- but people change their minds, and even the most sincere find themselves quivering when the reaction they get is worse than they had really expected, so try making the extra effort in the interests of peace." "...try to be sure not to leap out of the shrubby and ambush a writer who was not expecting crit, or not expecting 'serious' crit. No matter how naive that lack of expectation may appear to you, the fact is that there are two very different schools of thought as to what one can and should expect when making a public posting -- and it's best to assume the worst and compensate, rather than reduce a writer to tears or rage because she was not prepared for crit. Treat it as a 'multi-cultural' issue, and know that the two schools of thought are not in agreement, and need to work hard not to hurt each other inadvertently. "The point is not to 'win out' over the writer. It's to help. If you make a point, and it becomes clear that the writer can't use it, either through her failing or yours, or just because it doesn't fit at the time, and it isn't merely a matter of her misunderstanding what you were saying, then *stop pushing it.* I'm serious. More damage has been done in crit by "I'm going to win you over or go down trying" attitudes than by anything else short of true malice." C. DO NOT ASSUME CONTROL of another writer's piece of work. By that we mean, do not send that writer criticism in the form of a laundry "to do" list, and do not rewrite their story for them "better" and send it back. Doing so will only rob the writer of his/her artistic input in the piece of work, and that is not the objective of constructive criticism. Offer questions, advice in a subjective manner, and support in ideas only when asked to do so. D. WORK with the writer only in so far as s/he WANTS the assistance. If you begin with a writer who invites the critical help, and that writer then begins to waffle, or suggest that they no longer appreciate the input.. STOP. Never assume that a *yes* in the beginning gives you absolute free rein to do as you see fit from that point on. As difficult as it may be, if the author lets you know s/he doesn't want the advice anymore... back away and let it be. IV. DEFINE "FAIR PLAY" IN CRITICISM & DEBATE Aside from the obvious (and everything else we've managed to impart thus far), there are certain tenants of fairness in discussion and feedback which we wish to address not only in terms of how a person should conduct THEMSELVES while participating in list discussion, but in terms of how we must deal with the occasional (unforseen) act of random rudeness and/or e-terrorism. A. RUDENESS/INSULTS are bound to happen from time to time. There will always be those who don't care, or don't know any better, who choose to converse with others in a negative and/or abusive manner. Profanity and personal insults will NOT be tolerated on this list or within the context of any discussion/creative piece of work. There are other ways to communicate clearly and effectively, and there is no reason for us to employ vulgarity in order to get our opinions across. When someone FLAMES another person, or disregards the rules of engagement set forth in this FAQ, s/he will be removed from the list without notice. B. DEALING WITH RUDENESS is simple. Ignore it. Do not respond to it, do not strike up a counter attack on the list. It is easy for people to become insulted and/or affronted by the appearance of profanity, spamming, flames or other sorts of negativity violating the rules of this list, however, responding to it will only FEED the aggressors. Silence is golden. Pretend the offenders aren't there and they will be far more affected than any 100 angry response posts might make them. If we are to band together and defend our own, let us show that solidarity by shutting out the problem in the best possible way. IGNORE THE OFFENDER. C. HURT FEELINGS are bound to happen from time to time. Some people have thicker skin than others, and some people are offended by phrases as simple as: "I completely disagree with that." So how do we decide what's 'fair' and what isn't? First of all, a DEBATE ISSUE stands on its own. Even if it is YOUR idea, the fact that someone or a group of someone(s) may disagree with your IDEA does NOT mean that these persons are disagreeing with your right to exist on the planet. Try to take each comment with a grain of salt. People's points of view are fallible, and by no means are they able to set you on the course of the rest of your life without your very participatory consent. By that we mean, YOU decide what gets to you personally and what doesn't. And no one can (or will) protect you from dissenting points of view. These are a part of life and a lively part of any public discussion forum. Generally speaking, if you KNOW you are easily hurt (and you should know that about yourself, if you're honest), then the best course of action is to AVOID DEBATE and request as little critical feedback on your creative work as you feel you will be able to accept. You may also opt to only request positive feedback. D. DEFENDING FRIENDS in a debate situation is iffy at best. Make certain, when you enter the debate, that you are prepared to become a very active participant if you defend another person's ideas. People WILL think that you have something of value to add to the discussion and they WILL address you directly. Be prepared to BACK UP what you say. If you have only entered the debate to make your best friend feel better, then you've entered for the wrong reason. Individuals may take care of themselves. If they cannot take care of themselves, or are easily hurt, they should not enter into public discussion. It is NOT your responsibility to bodyguard anyone else or their point of view. We discuss IDEAS and CREATIVE CONCEPTS here, not people specifically. Critique and Debate are tag team competitive sports, and you will be drawn in, like it or not, if you make your voice heard on the issue. Posting about the issue is an invitation to enter the discussion. E. SPAM. No chain mail, FWD: mail or petition mail of any kind will be allowed on this list. Failure to adhere to this rule WILL result in your immediate removal from the list and your subsequent inability to resubscribe. F. CAVEATS on messages must be used when posts are not of specific interest to the purpose of the list: Lois & Clark. While OFF TOPIC posting is generally frowned upon, there are sometimes instances where an off topic idea becomes of interest to more than a few members of the list and posting it would then be condoned. In those instances, you MUST preface your SUBJECT heading with OT: for off topic posting, TAN: for posts which are offshoots of another thread and may deviate slightly from topic, and SPOILER: if you are going to spoil either your own story, or some other L&C related piece of media before it becomes widely available. In a nutshell, use common sense, tact, and diplomacy and you'll be fine. Fan discussion forums are about like minded individuals getting together and sharing their ideas, stories and creative muse collectively. They are not about making everyone into professional authors, or automatons. While there may be those individuals out there for whom professional aspirations are their ultimate concern, the goal of the fan discussion and creative writing forum is not to create such individuals, nor to cater to their form of critical feedback. Individuals who wish such critical feedback should get together with others who feel similarly and do so PRIVATELY. That said.. HAVE FUN! That's what it's all about in the end. No judgements, and no expectations other than mutual respect and consideration for your fellow discussion partners. ===================== This FAQ was compiled on 04/18/99, with the input and assistance of Farah Meitzen Chisham (LOISCLA-GENERAL-L Listmom), Demi (L&C Fanfic Archive Coordinator), Kathy Brown (L&C Fanfic Archive Editor-In-Chief), the administrators of LOISCLA, and the many varied voices of the members of the Lois & Clark Fanfiction Listserver. It is intended for posting on the LOISCLA-GENERAL-L Fanfiction List and the Lois & Clark Fanfiction Archive. Excerpts from Peg Robinson's "MANNERLY ART OF CRITIQUE" (originally posted to ASC c. 1997) have been cited with permission by the author to freely distribute her words as necessary. The complete essay may be located by visiting the alt.startrek.creative newsgroup and looking up: "THE MANNERLY ART OF CRITIQUE". -30- /END/ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 20:03:39 EDT Reply-To: Larus2407@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Help Please MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 99-04-25 19:04:43 EDT, all4_mr_d8a@YAHOO.COM writes: << And I believe Clark would make an excellent teacher. >> Perhaps he would, but I doubt he'd take on that responsibility as he knows all too well that he can't count on being there constantly. Nor do I think that either Lois or Clark would give up their careers to home school kids. --Laurie (the Ord one) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 17:13:58 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Yvonne Connell wrote: > No, it's not a threat! I was talking to Wendy > Richards about the fact that > us Brits seem to be on the increase in L&C > fanfic-dom, and it got me > thinking about American/British idiom. I know it's > been touched on before > here, so I don't want to rake over old ground, but > I'm still interested to > know from the US contingent how important or > otherwise you think it is to > use American idiom. I know that some of us go to > great pains to sublimate > our British-ness, while others steer a course > somewhere down the middle. > What do you prefer? > > This leads me to another question: what do people > think about writing out > accents - the prime example, I think, is Perry's. > Personally, I find it a > little artificial when writers spell out his accent > - I prefer to imagine > it in my head instead of having to translate > oddly-spelt words which try to > represent how he sounds when he speaks. Opinions, > anyone? > > Yvonne > (yconnell@ukf.net) > Just my personal opinion, but I adore reading different writing styles (whether they're regional wording or just personal style) in the descriptive portions of fan fic. However, IMO, the dialogue ought to remain true to the character's origional voice. (Unless, of course, you're writing a farce. And then, all bets are off.) === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 19:20:52 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Farah Meitzen Chisham Subject: Please read (Re: FAQ) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" First and foremost, I would like to thank Demi for posting this huge thing and to Kathy for putting up with the both of is after so many email back and forth "Okay, one *last* thing, I promise" That being said, I wanted to comment on this Posting format issue. I've seen this on other fic lists and have got to say that this helps out so much. I have been able to look at a quick header and know instantly if it sounds of interest to me. I do have to say that after seeing some wonderful posts about a "such-and-such" fanfic, I would be more inclined to read it-- or seing spoilers for said fanfic making me go back to the interface and searching for it because it sounds interesting. I implore you to take this to heart and begin using it. I am a person to be reckoned with. If everyone hates it, of course you don't HAVE to do it. I won't kick you off if you don't do it--I just think it'll help. One other thing, if you don't want to post a summary because you don't wanna give anything away of any kind, its understandable. I don't believe the fanfic police exist on this list of any kind. If you want to know where the idea came from, its from the x-files.creative newsgroup. I just thought I'd give credit where it was due. I thought I'd point this out because it is totally new and different from what we have been doing. And also, thanks for all of the advice and ideas about this FAQ I've seen on the group. It really helped! Your voices do count. Farah :) > I. POSTING FORMAT. In the interest of clarity, we would > like to distinguish FANFIC posts from DISCUSSION. In > order to do that, we ask that you please include an > appropriate subject line with your stories in the form of: > > NEW: Story Title (1/24) [PG13] > > In this way, we hope to bring a little order to an otherwise > fairly arbitrary configuration. Additionally, within each > chapter or part of your story, please include a short header > at the top of EACH SEGMENT so that posts which do not > appear in sequence, or may appear several days apart, are > still recognizable. The header should look like this: > > TITLE: My Story > PART: (12/24) > AUTHOR: Bob Smith > RATING: (No greater than PG-13 please) > FEEDBACK: Comments welcome PUB/PRIV. > No Editing please. > SUMMARY: blah blah blah > ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 12:52:11 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Characters MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Debby wrote: > Here's a general question for everyone: what > characteristics of CK, Lois, Lex, > Perry, Jimmy, Martha, Jon, etc. one and all - do you > expect to see in a story? > What tells you that the person under the hood is the > character if the author > doesn't come right out and name he or him? What > characteristics do you *not* > expect to see attached to any of the characters? > > I think exploring this may help new writers go > beyond stereotypes. Forgive my late response to this message. Life has been much too real for comfort lately and I'm awfully behind on having any fun. One pet peeve I have concerns Jimmy. Too many authors write as if Jimmy had no brain in the world. While this may have been true in *other* Superman story lines, L&C always treated every character with respect. (That's part of why I like the show.) === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 17:39:31 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: my husband thinks I'm having an affair with Clark Kent MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Sheila Harper wrote: > Oh, yeah: closet fanfic writers. Nope. Never have > been. My parents think > I'm wasting my time; my husband thinks I'm having an > affair with Clark Kent; > my kids think I'm a total screwball, and my boss > reads everything I write > :), but I'm too passionate about writing to worry > about what *any*one else > thinks (don't tell me: you guessed, right? :) Recently my husband and I came to a total and frustrating standstill at writing. We knew exactly what we wanted to say, but couldn't write a cotton pickin' word. Finally, we found a blank cassette tape, flipped it into the recorder, and role played the scene. It worked like a charm. There was a lot of good stuff written and a lot of garbage we later edited out, but the writer's block was gone! The next day, my mother gave me a ride home from work. We chatted on the way and even into the evening. After the long role playing session, I referred to James as Clark *TWICE*! My mother now thinks I'm a horrid wife in need of a new hobby before I lose my hubby. Oh, well. You can't win... === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 18:43:10 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- "Mr. D8a" wrote: > From MR. D8A's work email > > My wife and I have often discussed who should know, > who wouldn't know, and > who would know but doesn't let on. Any ideas out > there? > > Personally I believe that Perry knows, but isn't > letting on. "I didn't get > this job because I can yodel!" > MR. D8A A.K.A. James James and I have beaten this one to death, but I believe only Jack knows (see Fly Hard). For one thing, have you ever noticed how seldom Perry sees Superman in person? === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 22:00:00 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: TAN: Re: Please read (Re: FAQ) In-Reply-To: <2.2.32.19990426002052.006e15a0@sheepskin.cs.indiana.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 07:20 PM 4/25/1999 -0500, Farah wrote: >I wanted to comment on this Posting >format issue. I've seen this on other fic lists and have >got to say that this helps out so much. I have been able >to look at a quick header and know instantly if it sounds >of interest to me. I do have to say that after seeing some >wonderful posts about a "such-and-such" fanfic, I would >be more inclined to read it-- or seing spoilers for said >fanfic making me go back to the interface and searching >for it because it sounds interesting. Also, for those of us using filters on our incoming e-mails, this new process (especially the "NEW" and "SPOILER" headers) will help put the e-mails in the "right" boxes for future enjoyment:) Thanks for the FAQs:) Margaret %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 18:08:34 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Combo Post MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- LabRat wrote: > I myself have some basic reasoning for switching > almost entirely to US, > which are entirely personal to me. I've been in love > with the American > language since I was knee high to a grasshopper and > it has always permeated > my spoken language. This is precisely the reason why I feel Canadians should use Canadian spellings and phrases, the British should use British phrases, the Irish should use Irish phrases, Australians... I've been in love with the diversity of the world for as long as I've been on-line. Although, I feel a good work should have the dialogue remain in character, the rest of the story is up for grabs. Do your own thing, and have fun. The rest of us will probably enjoy ourselves, too. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 11:10:25 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Combo Post MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Elisabeth wrote: >--- LabRat wrote: >> I myself have some basic reasoning for switching >> almost entirely to US, >> which are entirely personal to me. I've been in love >> with the American >> language since I was knee high to a grasshopper and >> it has always permeated >> my spoken language. > >This is precisely the reason why I feel Canadians >should use Canadian spellings and phrases, the British >should use British phrases, the Irish should use Irish >phrases, Australians... > >I've been in love with the diversity of the world for >as long as I've been on-line. Although, I feel a good >work should have the dialogue remain in character, the >rest of the story is up for grabs. Do your own thing, >and have fun. The rest of us will probably enjoy >ourselves, too. >=== >Elisabeth > Not quite sure I get your drift here, Elisabeth. I am doing my own thing. If I wasn't, I wouldn't be doing it. There's no one standing behind my office chair with a whip snarling "Type American, British Englisher pig!". I swear. LabRat :) (looking quickly over her shoulder to check, but, phew, no, there isn't.) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 11:36:55 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: The British are coming... In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Hi Ann, and anyone else who was baffled by my Irishisms ;) 'Presses' *are* cupboards, in Ireland that is. Doesn't matter what type - fixed, moveable, sliding doors or ordinary doors. We just don't use the term 'cupboard'. And 'banjaxed' is a slang term for broken, wrecked, useless. So perhaps it won't seem too strange to suggest that when I moved >from Ireland to England I almost had to learn a completely new set of vocabulary! But I still never spoke like Patrick or Colleen in WIEAK... [don't get me started... :( ] Wendy On Thu, 22 Apr 1999 18:57:19 EDT "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > << who understands what I'm talking > about if I mention the presses in Clark's kitchen [nothing to do with > printing presses ;)], or describe something as 'banjaxed'?). >> > > I think I know what you mean about presses. They are a type of cupboard, > aren't they? Here in the American South we have antique furniture called > presses which are big moveable cabinets for dishes, etc. And when I went to > school, there were large cabinets in the room for our coats called presses. > Then again, in Kentucky and other Appalachian states, a lot of old British > expressions live on thanks to isolation from the mid 1700's until the advent > of television and radio. I must admit, you've got me stumped on "banjaxed." > > Ann ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 12:21:57 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language confusion In-Reply-To: <199904232217.XAA14589@radius.connectfree.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Fri, 23 Apr 1999 23:00:05 +0100 Yvonne Connell wrote: > Mikki wrote: > > > Now ladies and gents, wouldn't it be wonderful if we had a fanfic titled, > > say "The British are Coming," [snip] The Zoomway could set up a round robin fanfic session , > > with the american group writing one part and the british group writing > the > > other. If anyone agrees that this would be a great idea, do respond. I > > say "Let the Idioms Flow!" > > I, for one, think that's a great idea. I'm not sure if I'd be brave enough > myself to take part, but I'd love to see the round robin experts give it a > try. I agree with Yvonne: it sounds great! Are there any Brit-based writers involved in the RRs? Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 12:32:03 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language confusion In-Reply-To: <199904242141.WAA07480@radius.connectfree.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Sat, 24 Apr 1999 22:13:17 +0100 Yvonne Connell wrote: > > UK-Klein: "Pants!" > > Also - "Pants" ??? Never heard that one before. [snip] > > Pants, as far as I'm concerned, is either a noun meaning an item of > underwear (unless I'm reading something by an American, in which case it > means trousers), or it's a verb meaning to inhale and exhale rapidly. More recently, I've seen 'pants' used over here to mean 'Rubbish', as in 'that new TV show is pants'. It's not by any means in common usage, though. I *loved* Zoom's contrasting dialogues. This could be a lot of fun, if the logistics could be worked out and if we could round up a few writers from this side of the Atlantic to participate. Of course, if I did it I'd have to take care to avoid certain terms... such as 'you eejit!'... because they're neither UK nor US English! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 17:56:12 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART I FIELD TRIP In-Reply-To: <5ac66312.2451e83c@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII I had to write to say how much, again, I enjoyed this story! The RR writers just get better and better. s p o i l e r s p a c e I *particularly* liked the references to 'concubine', and the two young Kryptonian men on the loose in Metropolis; Trey's reference to understanding the meaning of 'needle in a haystack' was hilarious. And when Trey talked about making plans for Lois and Clark's child... education, arranged marriage, etc, I was gasping at his audacity, as well as cheering Clark on. But Zoomway's long section in the final part, where Trey told Clark more about Jor-El, was very touching. Particularly this: >>>>Trey nodded. "I told your father that he was banishing you to a chaotic wilderness. He told me that you would be a hero to Earth," Trey said, shaking his head. "How he knew this, I don't know, but he said that the job of a hero is to bring meaning to chaos." <<<< I'm now off to read Part 2; if it's even half as good, I know I'll love it! Thank you all for such a great story. Wendy ---------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 18:12:51 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: NEW FANFIC: BLAST FROM THE PAST: PART 2 In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Should have waited, shouldn't I? Part 2 was *gob-smackingly* good! What a plot! Thank you all, again, for providing us with so much entertaining and enjoyable reading matter. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 11:08:35 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Ruth Link-Gelles Subject: OT: Slow Messages Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain Hi all I was wondering if anyone has been having any problems getting messages on time. I am just getting messages from the 22 and its the 26! Anyone else having trouble, or is it just me? Ruth ruthlg@hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 11:31:34 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Debra Gray Subject: Re: [FAQ (Part 2/2) - LOISCLA-GENERAL-L DEBATE/DISCUSSION/CRITIQUE] Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable I want to take just a moment and thank Demi and all her helpers and anyon= e else involved, for the list FAQ they have sent out to us. (Whew! What a L= OT of work that must have been!) Quite a bit of it had to do with common courte= sy and decency, which most people SHOULD know, I think, but which sometimes = may get forgotten even by the most well-meaning person. So thank you for the reminders! Then I really appreciated the parts on netiquette. I confess t= o still considering myself a newbie internet user, and certain things which= more experienced folk might think to be second nature, I had never thought of = at all. And finally, I welcomed the information on what is appropriate for T= HIS list, and on how to post fic to this list. I'm sorry, I guess I'm not ver= y eloquant today, but I really want Demi and everyone else to know that I'm= glad you took the time to get these things out in the open for all of us. I'm = sure they will be a big help to all of us. Best wishes, Debra G. dlgray@usa.net Melisma on IRC = ____________________________________________________________________ Get free e-mail and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=3D= 1 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 14:43:32 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/26/99 6:32:31 AM Central Daylight Time, ida18@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << More recently, I've seen 'pants' used over here to mean 'Rubbish', as in 'that new TV show is pants'. It's not by any means in common usage, though. >> Ah, "pants" is something I saw Dharsh type on the channel. She's from the UK but now lives in Australia. One night she typed "Pants!" when she was upset about something and explained the usage. Dharsh is also the one who told Julie to use a "torch" when Julie said there was a mess all over her bedroom floor and the power was off in her room. I had to explain to Julie that Dharsh meant a "flashlight" when she said "torch". Julie was relieved. She wondered why Dharsh would think she'd have a stick with fire on it (how we Americans picture a torch...that Olympic thing) in her drawer ;) As to Brits who write RR, there's Dom, she's from Scotland, she wrote on one of our RRs. She was vital since the story dealt with Hogmanay (I'm sure I spelled that wrong ;) and we'd never heard of it before I think the big problem is timing it so that it's not terribly late at night or the wee hours of the morning for British folc. Maybe we could try an RR that starts around noon or 1 p.m. Eastern (East Coast) time on a Saturday. I'm not sure what time that would be in the UK. We could come up with some fun story premise like a glitch in the overlap of alternate universes. In one universe Metropolis could be in the UK and it keeps phasing in and out with the Metropolis in the US Thanks too for the compliments on the recent RR "Blast from the Past", we appreciate it ;) Though I wanted the title for part II to be "The Stone Boy" har >>>Of course, if I did it I'd have to take care to avoid certain terms... such as 'you eejit!'... because they're neither UK nor US English!<<< Well, it sounds similar to something I heard Yosemite Sam say, "You igit galoot!" In his usage I think it was the way he pronounced "idiot", but I'm not sure However I hope we can work out the timing because this type of RR sounds like it could be fun ;) Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 14:04:55 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: fchisham Subject: Re: OT: Slow Messages In-Reply-To: <19990426180835.92925.qmail@hotmail.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Listserv at Indiana is having some slight problems. They are trying to iron them out and asked everyone to be patient. On Mon, 26 Apr 1999, Ruth Link-Gelles wrote: > Hi all > > I was wondering if anyone has been having any problems getting messages > on time. I am just getting messages from the 22 and its the 26! > Anyone else having trouble, or is it just me? > > Ruth > ruthlg@hotmail.com > > > > _______________________________________________________________ > Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com > ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 19:39:27 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: Please read (Re: FAQ) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Can I suggest that the authors of the FAQ are listed at the beginning rather than at the end? I was a little confused as I started to read it - my thoughts ran: Oh, this looks like a good idea...Is this a document for discussion or is it being posted as a finished article...Who are 'we'? BTW, this post follows the guidelines of the FAQ (I hope) - ie, no preference was expressed regarding feedback, thus I'm assuming you're inviting remarks of any kind . Otherwise, I think it's an excellent document which everyone on the list should read. Cheers, Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 14:11:37 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: fchisham Subject: Re: Please read (Re: FAQ) In-Reply-To: <199904261925.UAA09641@radius.connectfree.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Actually, yes, it is a finished document and if you read it on the web page (maybe Demi could post that for us as well?:), it makes more sense. On Mon, 26 Apr 1999, Yvonne Connell wrote: > BTW, this post follows the guidelines of the FAQ (I hope) - ie, no > preference was expressed regarding feedback, thus I'm assuming you're > inviting remarks of any kind . farah ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 22:17:29 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Brown Subject: Fanfic Recommendation: Awakenings In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" For all of you (strange) people out there who don't devour fanfic the moment it's uploaded to the archive, I just wanted to recommend the short-and-sweet "Awakenings." Without spoiling anything for anybody, it starts out on a sad note but quickly transforms into something sweetly special. And the Jimmy/Perry parallel is priceless! :) Nice work, Trevise! Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 17:03:50 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: re Combo post - A vs B plot and exposition MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/25/99 6:07:08 AM Central Daylight Time, Ccmalo@AOL.COM writes: << Zoomway, this is a most helpful summary. Thanks! [it's on my hard drive ] I'll refer to it as I do my final draft and look for places where I can eliminate parts that have a bit too much "information." >> You're welcome, Carol. Those are some things that work for me or help me identity spots in my own stories that need work. I don't know how helpful those techniques will be for other writers, but I hope you find something useful in my random ramblings ;) >>>Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many readers prefer stories without A plots?<<< Never be bullied out of an A plot On the other hand, never feel obligated to put in a main/villain plot if it serves no other function than that. I know that sounds a little confusing, but what I mean by that is your main plot in "Recognition.." was important to the B (Lois and Clark) plot. Your main plot raised the issues of trust, communication, honesty and what a true "partnership" should comprise. It was in your A plot that the "truth" of how much Lois, even on a metaphysical level, meant to Clark. Your A plot was essential to the B plot. Now back to the "on the other hand" type of A plot -- creating a main/villain plot ... just because ;) Probably ninety percent of Lois and Clark episodes would fit this definition Honeymoon in Metropolis' main plot, for example, was created for the sole purpose of examining Lois and Clark's interaction and insights in a situation of forced intimacy. However, *any* similar plot (The Phoenix, Just Say Noah) could have accomplished the same thing, so nothing essential or crucial existed in the episode's main plot line when it came to its influence of the B plot. While that was "business as usual" on the series, it can slow a story down to a crawl in prose format if too much needless attention is given the main plot's exposition. I always try to stay focused on what I want my story to say as I'm writing. This is helpful in determining if too much information is being included in the A plot. Especially if it has little to no bearing on the B plot. I would likely avoid a character like "Sore Throat", for example, since he was trotted out only to add *more* hamburger helper exposition to the A plot. I didn't care about all the microscopic details regarding Project Shockwave and actually resented that plot intruding on the fun I was having watching Lois and Clark in the hotel suite ;) For me, if an A plot truly isn't essential, I tend to do just a straight B plot story. More often than not, I start a story with the idea, "I want *this* to be true." "This" being the premise. Then I look at that premise and create a plot that I hope will logically make it come true. For example, I wanted first season Clark to have a taste of everything he wished for, Lois in love with him, in on his secret and even marriage. Wanting that premise to be true led to the creation of the plot for "Counter Clark-wise". Lois and Clark was a character-driven series, so regardless of how good or bad the main/villain plot might have been in any given episode, how it impacted Lois and Clark and/or their relationship was its true function. If it failed in that capacity, then it failed ... period. Characters learn, grow, evolve, succeed, fail, strive to improve or in the case of someone like Lex -- spiral downward in a relentless decline, but they don't just *sit* there and stagnate. How a character will fare within a given plot situation is determined by that character's *character* ;) Clark, for example, is a character who is good-natured, will "do the right thing", turn away from temptation, and is pretty bright. However, meeting and falling in love with Lois Lane was an event he was utterly unprepared for. He learned as early as the pilot that self-set rules are sometimes broken in the name of love and the vulnerability it creates. These *truths* about Clark (or any established character) will determine how he reacts and interacts in a given main/villain plot line. The best conflict created in character-driven stories takes place in a character's heart rather than in a showdown with the villain. This "character credo" approach to writing can lead to good techniques for minimizing the "A plot" without undermining its importance. Tim Minear did something very amusing in Meet John Doe. A security guard confronted Tempus and asked him what he was up to, and Tempus told him (and the audience) *exactly* what he was doing. Then he said, "Is that enough exposition for you?" Yes, in fact it *was* enough exposition. This episode is a great example of how to minimize the exposition of the main/villaion plot without taking a bit of its importance away. A clever plot will stand on its own merits and won't require page after page of exposition. Learning this *one* truth has made writing more fun and less complicated ... for me anyway ;) Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 18:18:00 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <107961c1.24560dd4@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:43 PM 4/26/1999 EDT, Zoomway wrote: >We could come up with some fun story premise like a glitch in the overlap of >alternate universes. In one universe Metropolis could be in the UK and it >keeps phasing in and out with the Metropolis in the US You mean that's not the way it *really* is? Aaarrrgggh! Who knew! To think, I've been deluding myself all these years! Margaret The one who *knows* they spell British in the "real" Metropolis (at least they did the last time she was there;) ****************************** Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% My fanfic now available at: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ ****************************** ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 16:40:31 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: Please read (Re: FAQ) In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:11 PM 4/26/99 -0500, fchisham wrote: >Actually, yes, it is a finished document and if you read it on the web >page (maybe Demi could post that for us as well?:), it makes more sense. I sure can. It actually *was* posted online, until yesterday! Since the server crash, however, I'd been waiting on getting our Archive mainpage back online (if you all recall, it died on us yesterday ;) -- It is up and running once again as of this morning -- so the FAQ (in it's entirety) will be posted and linked through the Fanfiction Archive by tomorrow morning. Check back and you should see it. I'm very glad that so many people have already taken the time to read the document, by the way! :) In all seriousness, we monitored every instance of discussion on this issue with the list while we were putting the FAQ together. It was our hope to come up with something which was as universal as possible, while still maintaining the integrity of the list membership and management. It wasn't always possible to please all voices, but we did our best. I think (IMHO) what we came up with should work out alright. The concessions are fairly small and the benefits, in the long term, will likely be great. :) Best, Demi nightangel@home.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 15:46:38 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Irene D." Subject: Re: Fanfic Recommendation: Awakenings MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Hazel, did you mean the main LnC fanfic archive? I cannot find this story there and wonder where else you might have read it. Thanks, Irene sirenegold@yahoo.com sirenegold@hotmail.com --- Hazel Brown wrote: > For all of you (strange) people out there who don't > devour fanfic the > moment it's uploaded to the archive, I just wanted > to recommend the > short-and-sweet "Awakenings." Without spoiling > anything for anybody, it > starts out on a sad note but quickly transforms into > something sweetly > special. And the Jimmy/Perry parallel is priceless! > :) > > Nice work, Trevise! > > Hazel > _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 18:45:20 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: A plots versus B plots MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/25/99 1:26:42 PM Eastern Daylight Time, yconnell@UKF.NET writes: << Carol wrote: >Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many readers prefer stories >without A plots? >> I'm definitely in the A plot camp. While I read the stories that are pure B plot and enjoy them, the ones with strong A plots are the ones that I find myself re-reading and being unable to put down. (i.e. Recognition ) Ann ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 01:55:44 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Subject: Re: Fanfic Recommendation: Awakenings In-Reply-To: <19990426224638.3926.rocketmail@web904.mail.yahoo.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >Hazel, did you mean the main LnC fanfic archive? I cannot find this >story there and wonder where else you might have read it. "Awakenings" is the top story in the "What's New" for this week at the main archive. At least, it was yesterday. :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 20:31:28 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: Fanfic Recommendation: Awakenings In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.19990427015544.0079ea40@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 01:55 AM 27/04/1999 +0300, Hazel wrote: >>Hazel, did you mean the main LnC fanfic archive? I cannot find this >>story there and wonder where else you might have read it. The primary archive site is still a little behind from the server crash yesterday. That's probably why you can't locate the story up there. We're working on restoring and relocating everything at the moment, the process is well under way and we should be back up to speed soon. We'll keep everyone informed as we have news. In the meantime, you can still find all stories uploaded since the 17th of April (including Awakenings) on the MIRROR SITE: http://bsd.lcw.win.net/~lcw/fanfic/index.html Best All ;) Demi __________________________________________________________ Demi/Demona Lois & Clark Fanfiction Archive Coordinator nightangel@home.com or demi22@aol.com WWW - http://lcfanfic.actwd.com/ FTP - ftp.lcfanfic.actwd.com MIRROR - http://www.win.net/~lcw/fanfic/index.html ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 20:40:56 EDT Reply-To: Kismet3838@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alicia B. Ablola" Subject: Off Topic Nfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ::coming out of lurkdom again:: I don't mean to get off topic but I was wondering if anyone could help me out. I recently changed my email address and I've been trying to get on the NFic list for a while now. Unfortunately I haven't heard a response. I don't mean to bother anyone but I was wondering if someone could let me know whether or not I'll be able to view the site. I am over 18 years old and used to have access so I won't be getting anyone in trouble. Again sorry if I have bothered anyone, ::back to lurking:: Kismet ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 10:19:36 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Fanfic Recommendation: Awakenings In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.19990426221729.007bb2c0@actcom.co.il> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII I agree, Hazel - I thought it was a beautiful, and very well-worked, little story. Wendy On Mon, 26 Apr 1999 22:17:29 +0300 Hazel Brown wrote: > For all of you (strange) people out there who don't devour fanfic the > moment it's uploaded to the archive, I just wanted to recommend the > short-and-sweet "Awakenings." Without spoiling anything for anybody, it > starts out on a sad note but quickly transforms into something sweetly > special. And the Jimmy/Perry parallel is priceless! :) > > Nice work, Trevise! > > Hazel ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 04:42:15 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: D Stark Subject: Re: Off Topic Nfic In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 08:40 PM 04/26/1999 -0400, you wrote: >::coming out of lurkdom again:: > >I don't mean to get off topic but I was wondering if anyone could help me out. > >I recently changed my email address and I've been trying to get on the NFic >list for a while now. Unfortunately I haven't heard a response. I don't mean >to bother anyone but I was wondering if someone could let me know whether or >not I'll be able to view the site. I am over 18 years old and used to have >access so I won't be getting anyone in trouble. > >Again sorry if I have bothered anyone, > >::back to lurking:: >Kismet Well, if you mean mine & Joyce's nfanfic list, I/we haven't heard from you... If you do mean mine/ours, write to me at Debby@swcp.com restating the above info... with your old address :) If you mean the web-based list, I can't help you there. Debby Debby@swcp.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 07:55:00 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Reynolds, Raymond H." Subject: Feedback: Blast From The Past Parts 1 & 2 & A Spoiler MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Blast From The Past - Field Trip Blast From The Past - Return of Lord Kal-El Just finished reading these stories and I wanted to congratulate the authors for another excellent round robin effort. As has been said by many others, I'm amazed at the consistently high quality of work that comes out of these sessions. To make the work of EIGHT different authors read as though it were from one is truly astonishing. I want to thank all the authors for the time and effort they take to entertain the readers with their work. S P O I L E R S P A C E Now to comment on the stories themselves. Field Trip was hilarious. I could just see Trey and a bunch of teenagers trooping to Earth to visit Lord Kal-El. It almost reminds me of a group of high school kids going to Washington, DC to see the president. Of course these teenagers having normal youthful curiosity only makes for more trouble. It seems as though that once these New Kryptonians get to Earth all that fabled Kryptonian restraint goes right out the window! Lois' reaction to seeing Trey on her doorstep is classic. She sees him there, slams the door in his face, calls Clark, shows him and slams the door again! It reminded me of a scene from I Love Lucy. Clark, the ever polite one invites them into the house but is cautious, can't blame him. The whole thing just gets more funny with the girls finding Lois' stash and the boys going out and getting drunk. The scene at the end is very touching with Trey telling Clark about his father and his motivation for sending Clark to Earth rather than to New Krypton. It's really very nice when Clark tells Trey that he wants to be a hero for Lois who then helped him be a hero to everyone else. I don't know if Trey suspects the artifact he gives Clark is anything more than a family artifact. I have the feeling that he doesn't based on his comments and sincerity, but maybe one of the authors could expand on this a little. Return of Lord Kal-El This story starts off with a homey little scene that give no hint of the coming trouble. The glow in the artifact gives no hint as to its effect on Clark either, at first there is no outward sign, then the subtle change starts. First it's the ties, then it's his writing style, then it spills over into his speech patterns, all the while the little hints to the reader that the artifact is becoming more "active". I'm curious, is the artifact something similar to the comic creation called The Eradicator? If I remember correctly this device affected Superman in the comics in a similar way, i.e. making him act more Kryptonian. Again, maybe the authors can comment on this. I really thought the tension generated during this whole ordeal was very well done. Lois feels as if she is slowly losing her husband, then realizes that her husband is still in there, he is just being sublimated to a more powerful force. She is at her wits end as to how to deal with this and she calls in the cavalry in the personages of Jonathan and Martha. I find it interesting that the only times that Clark can make an appearance and put Lord Kal-El down is when the emotions are the strongest. Those times that Lois kisses him passionately or Martha and Jonathan are angry or disappointed with his behavior are the times the real Clark can be seen. Even though it may not seem funny, Clark's behavior to the people he rescues is hilarious, he actually thinks this logic is going to make a difference. That is the area where the Kryptonians have always missed the boat, logic doesn't always work and has to be tempered with an emotional response. I wonder if it took as long as it did for effects of the artifact to change Clark to give him the knowledge of how to shut it off. If he had this knowledge earlier I would think he would have shut it off himself, but it seems as if only being forced by the overwhelming emotions of Lois, his parents and his unborn child is Clark finally able to answer Lois on how to shut it down. Both stories worked very well together and were extremely entertaining. Thanks again to the authors. Ray ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 14:16:43 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <107961c1.24560dd4@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Mon, 26 Apr 1999 14:43:32 EDT The Zoomway wrote: > Ah, "pants" is something I saw Dharsh type on the channel. Well, even though Britain is a small country (in comparison to the US, that is, not to my homeland ) there are variations in usage. A Londoner wouldn't use 'scally', and I think Stoke-on-Trent is the only part of the country where people call each other 'duck'. > She [Dom] was vital since the story dealt with Hogmanay (I'm sure I > spelled that wrong ;) Nope! > Maybe we could try an RR that starts around > noon or 1 p.m. Eastern (East Coast) time on a Saturday. I'm not sure what > time that would be in the UK. The UK is 5 hours ahead of EST; Western Europe (France, Germany) is 6 hours ahead. > > We could come up with some fun story premise like a glitch in the overlap of > alternate universes. In one universe Metropolis could be in the UK and it > keeps phasing in and out with the Metropolis in the US > Sounds fun! Can I be the little Irish leprechaun who causes the glitch? ;) (Sure, begorrah, and I never meant for dat to happen at all, at all! Bejasus, and would you look at dat!). > > Well, it sounds similar to something I heard Yosemite Sam say, "You igit > galoot!" In his usage I think it was the way he pronounced "idiot", but I'm > not sure 'Eejit' is more or less the Irish version of idiot; the 'ee' is a long sound, like the 'ee' in 'freedom', or even longer depending on the impact the speaker wishes to have ;) > However I hope we can work out the timing because this type of > RR sounds like it could be fun ;) Yep! Just got to work out our participants. And where do the Canadians fit in? (Hi Margaret!) They use UK spelling, but US vocabulary for the most part. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 11:24:34 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Peggy Mueller Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Yvonne said: >This leads me to another question: what do people think about writing out >accents - the prime example, I think, is Perry's. Personally, I find it a >little artificial when writers spell out his accent - I prefer to imagine >it in my head instead of having to translate oddly-spelt words which try to >represent how he sounds when he speaks. Opinions, anyone? I've been trying to make up my mind about this question ever since Yvonne first asked it. I think, for me, it depends on what type of story I'm reading--whether the story is a fast-moving "thriller" type, or a slower-moving character study. I've noticed that best-selling U.S. author John Grisham, who writes thrillers, uses a minimum of dialect in his writing--possibly to make his books more accessible or more widely appealing, or maybe just to avoid slowing the reader down. Since it definitely slows the action down to have to decipher oddly-spelt words, if the author wants his/her story to move quickly, she should probably keep dialect to a minimum, just throwing in an occasional "Great shades of Elvis!" or dropping a "g" from the ending of a word to give the flavor of Perry's speech. Peggy :-) gremlino@pathway.net ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 12:22:30 EDT Reply-To: PJPiasecki@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: PJ Piasecki Subject: Re: The British are coming... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/27/99 9:22:25 AM CST, gremlino@PATHWAY.NET writes: << Since it definitely slows the action down to have to decipher oddly-spelt words, if the author wants his/her story to move quickly, she should probably keep dialect to a minimum, just throwing in an occasional "Great shades of Elvis!" or dropping a "g" from the ending of a word to give the flavor of Perry's speech. >> I agree completely. To me, dialogue written completely in dialect is very distracting from the story, sometimes stopping the action completely while I sound out the words in my head to figure out just what the heck the character is saying! On the other hand, the inclusion of just a word or two of dialect (ie: darlin') is just enough to indicate (at least, to me) how the character should sound. Piper ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 14:06:21 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/27/99 8:17:52 AM Central Daylight Time, ida18@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << The UK is 5 hours ahead of EST; Western Europe (France, Germany) is 6 hours ahead. >> Okay, that's not so bad. If we started this special story around noon or 1 p.m. Eastern time, it would still be early in the evening in most of Europe ;) >>Sounds fun! Can I be the little Irish leprechaun who causes the glitch? ;) (Sure, begorrah, and I never meant for dat to happen at all, at all! Bejasus, and would you look at dat!).<<< Okay, you can be the leprechaun. You wouldn't be the one Colleen communed with, would ya now? >>>Yep! Just got to work out our participants. And where do the Canadians fit in? (Hi Margaret!) They use UK spelling, but US vocabulary for the most part.<<< Well, any time Demi is writing with us, we have a Canadian, so Canadians have a long standing tradition in our RRs Also Deb, who actually has to catch a bus to a "cyber cafe" (a cafe that has computers) took part in our last round robin, is also in Canada. You're right. They tend to use the UK spelling, "colour", "centre" etc., but the slang and pronunciation sounds American...except when you *hear* Demi speaking she pronounces words with "ou" like an "ooo" sound She'll deny this of course, but she does ;) Zoomway@aol.com (waiting to be smacked by Demi ;) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 14:25:53 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:16 PM 4/27/99 +0100, Wendy Richards wrote: >Yep! Just got to work out our participants. And where do the >Canadians fit in? (Hi Margaret!) They use UK spelling, but US >vocabulary for the most part. Yeah, and it's a pain in the 'hind end' -- let me tell you! ;) I think *we* are still trying to figure out which language we're supposed to be using, *ourselves*. We might even look into changing Canada's national anthem to: "Stuck in the middle with you." ;) I always have to laugh when I use spell check on something which is going out to the net. I usually use the US version if that's the case, if only to avoid the onslaught of editorial mail later on -- but sometimes I forget to switch over, and I'll get people writing to me and saying something like: "Great story, but isn't there only one L in Counselor?" (Counsellor/Counselor -- as the world comes to an end and we reflect back on the sum of our fleeting existence, what difference is an L here or there going to make? ;) It's just another fun thing we do differently for no truly *good* reason, other than that we *can*. I say we all just drop English and speak Spanish like they do in the US. You *do* all speak Spanish down there... N'est pas? Demi (crawling back into her igloo for a nice long ice bath ;) nightangel@home.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 19:28:26 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... Comments: To: Zoomway@aol.com In-Reply-To: <1248736e.2457569d@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Tue, 27 Apr 1999 14:06:21 EDT The Zoomway wrote: > Okay, you can be the leprechaun. You wouldn't be the one Colleen communed > with, would ya now? Okay then, the next person to mention the 'Oirish' characters in WIEAK gets a spell put on them by the evil banshee who lives at the end of my parents' garden in Dublin... Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 14:52:44 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <1248736e.2457569d@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:06 PM 4/27/99 EDT, The Zoomway wrote: >Well, any time Demi is writing with us, we have a Canadian, so Canadians have >a long standing tradition in our RRs ... They tend to use the UK >spelling, "colour", "centre" etc., but the slang and pronunciation sounds >American...except when you *hear* Demi speaking she pronounces words with >"ou" like an "ooo" sound She'll deny this of course, but she does ;) >Zoomway@aol.com (waiting to be smacked by Demi ;) SMACK. ;) Okay. I'll admit to saying per-feh-ct instead of per-fict, and abowoot instead of ab-ah-wut -- but I'm a weird wordsmith, even for a Canadian. Please Pharaoh, don't blame my people! I lived in the west until I was 9 years old and then moved to the east where I've been ever since. When I first came east, the other kids told me I had an accent. A western Canadian accent (imagine that! ) -- but I don't get that anymore. Probably because I spent a lot of years afterwards growing up in 'Little Italy' over here, and screaming "MAH!!" and "ANDIAMO!" (and a few other words I won't repeat here in any language) just like all the other kids in my neighborhood (nobody bothered to tell me growing up, that I wasn't Italian, so I went with the flow -- even my Dog knows some Italian now. ;) I think I now have a pretty average, "North American Broadcast Standard" dialect, honestly. When I watch TV, whether American or Canadian, or when I've heard or seen myself recorded back, *I* think I sound just like the next Torana babe. But I suppose we've all got a few baby quirks in our pronunciation, EH? ;) It could be worse.. I could live in a Texas swamp and pretend I have a Southern Californian accent.. Demi (who's expecting that smack back any minute now -- and it's abOOt time! ;) nightangel@home.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 15:55:41 EDT Reply-To: Katzee112@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Kelsey J. Croft" Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit << A Londoner wouldn't use 'scally', and I think Stoke-on-Trent is the only part of the country where people call each other 'duck'. Wendy>> So that's what 'duck' means! I was reading some type of book and in it a British villian kept calling someone else a duck. I thought that that he was either calling her the animal, or telling her to crouch down! Ah, now it makes much more sense. Kelsey Katzee112@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 21:07:27 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >I say we all just drop English and speak Spanish like they do in the US. >You *do* all speak Spanish down there... >N'est pas? > >Demi (crawling back into her igloo for a nice long ice bath ;) >nightangel@home.com Well...Karen and I have just decided that we should mount a campaign to adopt Esperanto, Demi...then we'll all start from an even playing field. ;) Although, it does spark off thoughts of LNC ending up like a sober version of Red Dwarf really... LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@ukf.net "When I hear someone sigh, "Life is hard," I'm always tempted to ask, "Compared to what?" - Sydney J. Harris ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 21:50:19 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Demi wrote: >We might even look into changing Canada's national > anthem to: "Stuck in the middle with you." ;) > > "Great story, but isn't there only one L in Counselor?" > (Counsellor/Counselor -- as the world comes to an end and we reflect back > on the sum of our fleeting existence, what difference is an L here or there > going to make? ;) It's just another fun thing we do differently for no > truly *good* reason, other than that we *can*. > > I say we all just drop English and speak Spanish like they do in the US. > You *do* all speak Spanish down there... > N'est pas? > > Demi (crawling back into her igloo for a nice long ice bath ;) ROTFL! Demi, as a child of English parents who was brought up in Scotland, I can sympathise with the 'stuck in the middle' thing. My schoolfriends thought I was an English interloper (I didn't sound Scottish enough), whilst when I travelled to England to visit our relations, I was accused of having a thick Scottish accent. Talk about an identity crisis! So I decided I was British, which didn't go down very well in certain partisan situations (like England/Scotland football matches :)). Yvonne (who's wondering if she's going a little too O/T?) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 18:32:51 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 02:16 PM 4/27/1999 +0100, Wendy wrote: >Yep! Just got to work out our participants. And where do the >Canadians fit in? (Hi Margaret!) They use UK spelling, but US >vocabulary for the most part. Hi Wendy! Well, of course, the Canadians will represent the quiet, mild-mannered, reporter in the story (I'm assuming he'll be present) How do Canadians fit in? They'll act as peacekeepers Margaret Ducking for cover in (surprisingly) sunny Ottawa;) %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 19:05:11 EDT Reply-To: Zoomway@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Feedback: Blast From The Past Parts 1 & 2 & A Spoiler MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/27/99 6:55:30 AM Central Daylight Time, REYNORA@MAIL.NORTHGRUM.COM writes: << Just finished reading these stories and I wanted to congratulate the authors for another excellent round robin effort >> On behalf of the other RR writers (some of them aren't on the list), I thank you, and will pass on your compliments and comments. >>>To make the work of EIGHT different authors read as though it were from one is truly astonishing. <<< That's due in *large* part to our ringmaster...er editor, Georgia Walden S P O I L E R S P A C E I can only respond specifically to the parts I wrote and hopefully the other writers will get a chance to respond to the parts of their work you cited. >>>Lois' reaction to seeing Trey on her doorstep is classic. She sees him there, slams the door in his face, calls Clark, shows him and slams the door again! It reminded me of a scene from I Love Lucy.<<< I have to admit I was *heavily* influenced by a similar scene from What About Bob? Richard Dreyfus plays a psychologist plagued by his patient "Bob" (Bill Murray) At one point he opens the door, sees Bob there, and then slams the door. His family is appalled by his behavior fearing he has scared Bob off. Dreyfus says, "he's *not* gone," and opens the door to illustrate his point. Sure enough, Bob is still standing there. Dreyfus slams the door again. "See!" ;) Also, I can't picture Lois without picturing her as Teri Hatcher portrayed her. Teri was so good at that kind of scene and humor, that it becomes irresistible to write. >>>The scene at the end is very touching with Trey telling Clark about his father and his motivation for sending Clark to Earth rather than to New Krypton. It's really very nice when Clark tells Trey that he wants to be a hero for Lois who then helped him be a hero to everyone else.<<< I'm really flattered you liked this part. I wanted to give some back-history on Jor-El and a motive for sending Clark (Kal-El) to Earth rather than to New Krypton as he'd been ordered. I also confess that I'm an big supporter of the notion that Lois and Clark together are responsible for "Superman" ;) >>>I don't know if Trey suspects the artifact he gives Clark is anything more than a family artifact. I have the feeling that he doesn't based on his comments and sincerity, but maybe one of the authors could expand on this a little<<< I think this is a good point. As I recall it was assumed that Trey found the artifact among Jor-El's possessions and felt it was something that Jor-El himself would have sent with Clark if he had had the opportunity. >>>'m curious, is the artifact something similar to the comic creation called The Eradicator? If I remember correctly this device affected Superman in the comics in a similar way, i.e. making him act more Kryptonian. Again, maybe the authors can comment on this.<<< Most definitely. In fact I think the comic book arc should have gotten a credit for the story idea. I remember that story arc quite well because it was Clark's apology to Lois for his behavior and Lois forgiving him that was partly responsible for launching the romance of Lois and Clark in the comics. You know, back when the comics treated it as something important >>>That is the area where the Kryptonians have always missed the boat, logic doesn't always work and has to be tempered with an emotional response.<< Exactly. Logic can be pretty cold by itself ;) >>>I wonder if it took as long as it did for effects of the artifact to change Clark to give him the knowledge of how to shut it off. If he had this knowledge earlier I would think he would have shut it off himself, but it seems as if only being forced by the overwhelming emotions of Lois, his parents and his unborn child is Clark finally able to answer Lois on how to shut it down.<< Right. When he was running on pure logic, there was no "logical" reason to turn it off. Once Lois and the Kents got through to him on an emotional level, he was able to tell them how to turn it off. >>Both stories worked very well together and were extremely entertaining. Thanks again to the authors.<<< Thank *you*, Ray, for the comments and compliments. Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 18:41:30 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Looking For Fanfic List Archive Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain I, the world's biggest RR fan, accidentally got delete button happy and deleted the entire thing, so could someone either point me in the direction of list archive or send it to me privately? Thanks a lot. Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 19:06:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mandy Crustner Subject: In search of a Psychiatrist MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay, I need to talk to a Psychiatrist on the list (no, I haven't flipped the rest of my lid just yet), I'm not even sure if we have one on here, but if we do, would you mind emailing me privately at mandyc@lcc.net ? If you're wondering why, in my latest story (which I'm trying to finish up tonight or tomorrow) Lois needs to be seen by a Psychiatrist, but I won't say for what right now, because it'd be a big give-away of my story plot. In the event that there's not one present on the list (I mean, there are a *lot* of occupations represented here, but I'm not sure about this one), I'd like anyone else who might think they could give reasonable 'psycho-babble' to contact me also. Thanks in advance for all of your help, Mandy Crustner Back to the story! ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 18:10:58 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > I agree. There are too many episodes where Perry > has that knowing look. The > one that struck me the most was We Have a Lot to > Talk About. At the end, > when Superman tells Lois he has something to show > her and they go off, Perry > looks very smug. This is after he has been on > Clark's case for calling her > "Lane" at the party at the museum but has been happy > to see them kiss after > the bomb was defused. > I can't believe he doesn't know. Also, if he didn't > know, wouldn't he have > fired Clark for all his absenteeism doing Superman > things? > > I think Jimmy must have suspected as well. > > Ann I know I'll step on toes here, but I always *hated* that scene. It never occured to me that Perry and Jimmy knew; I just thought they looked wishy-washy. They're so supportive of Lois and Clark that I truly didn't get the "Go get her, Superman" look they send. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 18:41:17 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Jessi Mounts wrote: > Dr. Klein is a maybe. I think he does, but I've got > no evidence to > support that other than he's a smart guy. I could > also point you in > the direction of many wonderful fanfics where Dr. > Klein knows but > doesn't tell Clark. Of course, that isn't a shred > of proof as far as > the show goes, but their a lot of fun to read! Sure, Klein is an extremely intelligent man, but that doesn't mean he knows. I was raised with a genius in the house and came to realize that intelligence, common sense, and the ability to pick up subtle clues don't necessarily go hand in hand. I don't think Klein knows. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 18:50:11 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: closet fanfic readers/writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii I can't say I'm a closet fanfic reader or writer. I'm just too honest not to admit what I do in my free time. This year was the first Kerth I was able to attend. I was so wired! But I wanted to be a truly informed voter, so James printed out all the stories whether we'd read them before or not so we could get a clear picture of all the nominees. I ended up reading them in the office breakroom over my lunch hour, just so I could get through them all before voting closed. A co-worker asked me what I was reading. I gave him a brief synopsis of fanfic and turned to go back to my reading, only to be interrupted every few moments with more chatter about sci-fi, fiction, etc. I was so glad when his break ended. It seemed so obvious to me that people bring reading material because they want to read. As for writing, James and I have done a ton of brainstorming waiting for tables on dinner dates. (I suppose we could make reservations, but then how would we work out the snags in our B-plots?) === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 21:58:29 -0700 Reply-To: Ara Swanson Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Ara Swanson Subject: Re: Looking For Fanfic List Archive MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit -----Original Message----- From: Jessi Mounts > I, the world's biggest RR fan, accidentally got delete button happy >and deleted the entire thing, so could someone either point me in the >direction of list archive or send it to me privately? Thanks a lot. > >Jessi Okay, I admit to being a little delete happy lately too, and I've deleted most of the posts in the last few days and I'm also opening myself up to some kind of embarrassment or ridicule or something here, but what exactly is RR?? Thanks to all the patient FoLC's in advance! Ara :o) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 19:02:43 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Eileen Barnard wrote: > Actually, I have to jump in here. I always thought > that Perry knew, or had > a very good idea that Clark was Superman and it was > always hinted on the > show that Jack knew. I agree that Jack definately suspected. Although he may not have *known* for sure. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 21:59:24 EDT Reply-To: MsLoisette@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I have to say that I find all of these revelations very fascinating. There were some scenes ie: the elevator scene at the end of WHATA when I too couldn't help wondering, but honestly during those 4 years I never thought he knew! Now that I have read your thoughts, the idea of Perry knowing seems real. I am going to have to go back and watch these eps! hehehe.... Now on the subject of Jimmy, I personally feel that he never found out, as with Dr. Klein, but it would of been so exciting if the TV version of S5 could of explored that option! Now Jack, I knew from the beggining knew the secret. It was especially noticeble during Fly Hard. Alexis ;-.) "I'VE DIED AND GONE TO HEAVEN AND ALL THE ANGELS LOOK LIKE ALEX{IS}" Tremaine Ramzey, FUTURESPORT aka: Dean Cain "Dear Dean... You Rock MY World!!!" ;-.) LoisLane and iluvdean on IRC. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 19:21:53 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: Re: A plot preferences MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- "C.C. Malo" wrote: > Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many > readers prefer stories > without A plots? > > Carol > I like variety when I read, but I never write without a solid A plot. === Elisabeth Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1999 22:03:24 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Smith Subject: Re: who would know MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_039B_01BE90F9.C6093060" This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_039B_01BE90F9.C6093060 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Here are my opinions: -*Clark* thinks that Jack suspects, but I'm not so sure. He didn't know = in "Fly Hard", but he *may* have suspected. -Dr. Klein is brilliant, but absent minded. He doesn't know. -Perry would probably let Clark know he knew. *If* Perry knows, it's = not until after "Big Girls Don't Fly". I'm basing this on how he would = find out, rather than on how he acts. -Jimmy doesn't know. To him, Clark is his bud, and Superman is his = hero: plain and simple. *If* he suspects anything in "Sex, Lies, and = Videotape", it's that Lois and Superman are having an affair; however, I = think he was just confused, not suspecting. -Ellen doesn't know. -Sam's character is too vague to know if he suspects. He certainly got = enough clues in "Home Is Where The Hurt Is". -Diyan zimri@hotmail.com p.s. I really like this *asterisks for emphasis* thing, I apologize if I = go overboard. ------=_NextPart_000_039B_01BE90F9.C6093060 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Here are my opinions:
 
-*Clark* thinks that Jack suspects, but = I'm not so=20 sure.  He didn't know in "Fly Hard", but he *may* have=20 suspected.
 
-Dr. Klein is brilliant, but absent = minded. =20 He doesn't know.
 
-Perry would probably let Clark = know he=20 knew.  *If* Perry knows, it's not until after "Big Girls Don't = Fly". =20 I'm basing this on how he would find out, rather than on how he=20 acts.
 
-Jimmy doesn't know.  To him, = Clark is his=20 bud, and Superman is his hero: plain and simple.  *If* he suspects = anything=20 in "Sex, Lies, and Videotape", it's that Lois and Superman are having an = affair;=20 however, I think he was just confused, not suspecting.
 
-Ellen doesn't know.
 
-Sam's character is too vague to know = if he=20 suspects.  He certainly got enough clues in "Home Is Where The Hurt = Is".
 
 
-Diyan zimri@hotmail.com
 
p.s. I really like this *asterisks for = emphasis*=20 thing, I apologize if I go overboard.
------=_NextPart_000_039B_01BE90F9.C6093060-- ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 09:30:17 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jernigan/folc.html Subject: Re: Who would know? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The scene that looked the most to me that Perry knew was in DTOSC. Bad Brain had escaped, and Perry was requiring L&C to wear bulletproof vests. Clark objected that he was sure that Superman wouldn't let anything happen to them, and Perry replied, "Well, I don't see him anywhere around here, do you?" I always thought that was said in a tone of heavy irony, as if to say "if you're here as Clark how openly super can you be?" But that's probably just me And I don't really want Perry to know, anyway... I like the idea of them telling Dr. Klein, though, mostly because he's one of the few people who treats Superman just like a regular guy. Elisabeth wrote: > > --- "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > > I agree. There are too many episodes where Perry > > has that knowing look. The > > one that struck me the most was We Have a Lot to > > Talk About. At the end, > > when Superman tells Lois he has something to show > > her and they go off, Perry > > looks very smug. This is after he has been on > > Clark's case for calling her > > "Lane" at the party at the museum but has been happy > > to see them kiss after > > the bomb was defused. > > I can't believe he doesn't know. Also, if he didn't > > know, wouldn't he have > > fired Clark for all his absenteeism doing Superman > > things? > > > > I think Jimmy must have suspected as well. > > > > Ann > > I know I'll step on toes here, but I always *hated* > that scene. It never occured to me that Perry and > Jimmy knew; I just thought they looked wishy-washy. > They're so supportive of Lois and Clark that I truly > didn't get the "Go get her, Superman" look they send. > > === > Elisabeth > > Feel free to visit my home at http://geocities.com/Area51/Starship/7859 > _________________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Pam Jernigan | I'm changing e-mail from compuserve ChiefPam on IRC | to bellsouth! Please use this new jernigan@bellsouth.net | address :-) | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jernigan/folc.html ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 10:03:19 EDT Reply-To: Cdfisler@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: re Combo post - the critique thread, etc MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit RE: recognition??? You asked I answer. Not much though. Sorry I love it just the way it is. And I read and reread both of the earlier two parts. Don't change a word. It's so beautifully done in the way it ties together everything from the earlier two recognitions (answers so many questions about Bureau39 and about Clark and Lois as well) and adds to that some of the most touching parts I've seen in any fan fiction about Superman's alieness which is after all one of the major characteristics of this Superhero - he aint human guys - and the critical Lois and Clark theme - why Lois Lane is so important to Superman/Clark Kent. (Aside - sometimes even the comics get that relationship right - see 'From Krpyton with love' - in the new 80 page Giant Superman special comic book. Thanks DC you didn't let me down. LOL Charlotte) This one recognition answers all the questions. That's why I said it I thought you should keep your working title - outvoted again - oh well. The only suggestion I would make is in the way of an addition or two if you've a mind, 1) I would really love to have more detail than just 'Bureau 39 was disbanded.' Did Jeff Anderson and Renata Fox get off scot free? They kidnapped and performed an illegal operation on Superman. This is a crime not something you slap someone's wrist for. (I like ends tied up - I know a lot of people could care less but not me) and 2) How about a reaction from Clark/Superman on finding out that the ship has been sent safely to Smallville. I guess it was a plot device but you did bring it up and I would like this included. It just kinda got dropped in favor of the wedding. 3) Do not change any of the memory loss parts -these were done perfectly nor should you change the confrontation between Clark and Lois after she runs away and he finds her. <] I'll refer to it as I do my final draft and look for places where I can eliminate parts that have a bit too much "information." Your comments on A plots led me to wonder how many readers prefer stories without A plots?>> Sorry Zoom but I love A plots and want them full developed along with the B plots - and long informational parts not only don't bother me but I savor them. Charlotte who loves Dawning and let's face that is as long and detailed as it gets. See my comments above about what is left out of Recognition - not enough information bothers me much more than too much. Carol. Thank you for a wonderful piece of fan fiction - actually three wonderful pieces - but you knew that - that's why they won a kerth. Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 10:09:34 EDT Reply-To: Cdfisler@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: Closet fanfic writers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay, I'll jump in here too. I write some Superman fiction for Metropolis_Times. Actually CASusan tricked me into it and I love it. I also write some much longer private saga which may or may not see the light of day. But the reason I am writing is to tell you that both my actor-theater grad student son Benjamin and my PhD geophysicist daughter, Dr. Diana, receive e-mail copies of my stories and both read them. Neither has ever complained about my writing about a "TV" show and both are college grads and experts in the arts and sciences respectivley. Tell that to anyone who looks down on fan fiction. Charlotte AKA Daydreamer80 PS Apologies in advance for shortness of this post. You will all eventually be the receipients of another of my long, involved posts -this one about fanfiction esp Superman fanfiction - in the near (?) future. (It's okay to ignore it if you aren't interested in my opinion. Still swamped trying to write my Best Men review, read LNC posts and Superman newsgroups stuff, not to mention keeping up with the comics which are finally coming in on a regular basis and wonder of wonder the current storyline is good with great conclusions. LOL Charlotte - NO ONE messes around the MY Superman. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 10:11:27 EDT Reply-To: Cdfisler@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: the "critique" thing MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/20/99 11:38:32 AM !!!First Boot!!!, Zoomway@AOL.COM writes: << An in depth critique tends to look more like this: >>"To be or not to be: that is the question:<< Okay, Bill, I'd suggest replacing the colon with a question mark. Then you will not have to state "that is the question" because it will be clearly worded and marked as such. Also, this next bit: >> Once again you had me laughing out loud. Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 07:14:51 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel TenHaaf Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain ><< A >Londoner wouldn't use 'scally', and I think Stoke-on-Trent is the >only part of the country where people call each other 'duck'. > Wendy>> > >So that's what 'duck' means! I was reading some type of book and in it a >British villian kept calling someone else a duck. I thought that that he was >either calling her the animal, or telling her to crouch down! Ah, now it >makes much more sense. >Kelsey >Katzee112@aol.com LOL! I promised myself that I wouldn't say anything this time around, but I just broke my promise ;) When I was little, my aya used to call me that all the time. So, imagine my surprise when I grew up and discovered that calling someone a 'duck' was *not* a term of endearment, but something that got weird looks. As a matter of fact, it was only when I joined this list that I discovered *why* I have so many problems spelling certain words when I'm a really good speller. None of my teachers ever bothered telling me that spelling neighbour, judgement and most of all centre, was perfectly correct in *other* places of the world. I learned 'British' spellings and words through most of grade school, then started getting marked down for all this stuff when I did hight school in the US. I was one confused person. However, I'd just like to say thanks to this list for allowing me to call my mother 'mum' and for letting me know that I really *can* spell after all :) And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the word 'bloody' for anything? Rachel rae@usXchange.net _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 11:01:29 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jernigan/folc.html Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Rachel TenHaaf wrote: > None of my teachers ever bothered telling me that spelling neighbour, > judgement and most of all centre, was perfectly correct in *other* > places of the world. I learned 'British' spellings and words through > most of grade school, then started getting marked down for all this > stuff when I did hight school in the US. I was one confused person. > However, I'd just like to say thanks to this list for allowing me to > call my mother 'mum' and for letting me know that I really *can* spell > after all :) And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the > word 'bloody' for anything? Hehe, I'm with you, Rachel! I grew up in the US but reading British fiction & watching Brit TV shows (Dr Who, for one, and Blakes 7, later) and have acquired an eclectic taste in speech & spelling (I once got in trouble for spelling "troupe" instead of "troop" -- 6th grade, I think). I always put that middle "e" in judgement (never knew why til today, tho!), and I never can spell exercize properly... And yes, I tend to say bloody hell when annoyed :) PJ the mixed-up Anglophile :) -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | "Dan?" "Yeah?" "I just want to say that ... Pam Jernigan | if anything terrible ever had to happen ChiefPam on IRC | to one of us ... I'd want it to be you." jernigan@bellsouth.net | "Thanks." | --Casey & Dan, best friends, on SportsNight --------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/jernigan/folc.html ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 08:03:02 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Debra Gray Subject: NEW: Moments of Illumination (1/1) [PG] Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: Moments of Illumination PART: 1/1 AUTHOR: DEBRA GRAY (AKA Melisma on IRC) RATING: PG tops! SPOILERS: Brutal Youth THANKS: Most importantly to my beta reader, editor, inspiration, and sl= ave driver :), Wendy Richards. I could not have done it without your constant= support! And all the people who have given me moral support and encourage= ment: the IRC Round Robin group, Hazel, Irene, Cris, Anne, and anyone I forgot (sorry!)... FEEDBACK: Yes please! Public or private is fine, but remember : This i= s the first LC fic I have finished, and I wanna learn to do it right. Be gentle= on me in public - I'm not sure how thick my skin is yet. If you have r= eally nitpicky comments or suggestions about how I can improve my next one, ple= ase email me at dlgray@usa.net or PM me on IRC. SUMMARY: This short vignette views the events toward the end of "Brutal Youth" through Lois's eyes, as she realizes that both she and Clark must = face being separated from each other by time. -------------------------------------------------------------------------= "I don't understand any of this." Lois Lane looked up from the bank video= stills she was holding when she heard Perry White's voice. He and Clark K= ent were just coming out of Perry's office, where they had been trying to com= fort a frightened, mysteriously-aged Jimmy Olsen. As her editor and her newlyw= ed husband crossed the space toward her, the older man demanded in the gruff= , blustery way she loved, "What in the name of *all* that is Memphis is goi= ng on here?" "It's the fountain of youth, Chief," Clark said simply. "And Jimmy figured it out," Lois added, proud of the young reporter's = accomplishment, yet horrified by the price he had paid for it. Clark picked up some of the stills she had set on the desk. "Here." He pa= ssed them to Perry. "These stills that Jimmy made from the bank security tape = prove it," he explained, pointing at the photos as he spoke. "Here at 4:02 the gunman takes six hostages and puts them in the vault. T= hen he enters himself. At 4:04, when Superman arrives, seven people exit the vault. But no gunman." "However, there is a new face," Lois broke in, eager to share what she ha= d noticed. "This old man here," she tapped the offending image with her fin= ger, "wasn't in the bank before." "Lois!" Brenda's voice broke into her concentration. "Lois, line three." = Lois nodded acknowledgement. "Thank-you." As she excused herself and went towa= rd the phone, Perry's sputtering voice followed her. "Now... now wait a minute. Aw, Judas Priest! Are you telling me that this= old guy and this young guy here... that they're the same person?!" "Lois Lane speaking..." Lois had been expecting this call from her source= =2E In fact she had been formulating a theory beforehand, so she was able to ask= questions while simultaneously following Clark and Perry's conversation. "Connor Shenk, the guy who busted out of prison," her husband was saying.= "And Olsen figured this out?" "Yes, sir." Her questions answered, Lois hung up and walked back to them. "Well, that= seals it," she announced. "That was my contact on the university board. V= eda Doodsen wanted to conduct youth experiments on human subjects. When the university forbade her, she defied them and did it anyway. Guess who she = used as guinea pigs?" she asked, looking at Clark. "Prisoners," he said flatly. It wasn't a question. "Yup, she lied her way in. Told the warden that she had the full backing = of the university." A movement in the corner of her eye caught Lois's attent= ion. It was Dr. Klein, who had been in Perry's office examining Veda Doodsen's= latest guinea pig. "Dr. Klein, how's Jimmy?" she asked, though she was af= raid of the answer. "He's aging, rapidly," the scientist reported bluntly. In all the time sh= e and Clark had known him, he had never had much of a gift for tact. He went on= =2E "And there's no sign it's leveling out. Unless we can somehow reverse thi= s process, or at least stabilize it, he'll be dead in a matter of hours." Lois had known it was serious when she and Clark had found Jimmy under Pe= rry's desk an hour ago, but to hear it like this just tore at her heart. She lo= oked over at Clark. He had a determined expression on his face, as though Supe= rman might be able to perform a medical miracle, and she began to hope. Then s= he looked at Perry. Poor Perry! He had taken Jimmy under his wing, she know,= and often thought of him as one of his sons - just as she and Clark sometimes= thought of him as a younger brother. Perry sighed and turned away, as if = he was going to cry but didn't want to show it. A phone began to ring loudly on one of the desks behind them, and Clark p= icked it up. "Clark Kent," he said. Then his eyes widened and he gestured frantically for Lois to join him. "Uh, yeah, hi Doctor," he said, then co= vered the mouthpiece and mouthed "It's Dr. Doodsen" to Lois. She hurried over a= nd put her ear next to the receiver Clark held out between them. "I'll get straight to the point," the older woman was saying. "Tell = Superman with his help I can restore James Olsen. Tell him to bring the b= oy to me, but to hurry - even *I* can't raise the dead!" She hung up with a decisive-sounding click. Lois and Clark shared a look. It was all they needed. She knew he couldn'= t refuse to do as Doodsen had demanded - Superman just *couldn't* refuse t= o try *anything* that might help, no matter how strange-sounding. Clark headed = off toward the men's room, loosening his tie en route to save time. Lois went back into Perry's office, suddenly realizing that they had left= Jimmy all alone. She knew he must be terrified, needing some friendly con= tact. Kneeling beside him, she took his hand. "Jimmy," she whispered. He started awake at her touch, then he relaxed when he recognized her. "L= ois! I guess I screwed up pretty royal, huh?" She smiled gently. "No, you didn't screw up," she tried to reassure him. "All I remember is, I... I wanted the story," Jimmy tried to explain. = "Ha! Guess now I *am* the story. I'm not *me* anymore." Suddenly Lois knew what was bothering him. She tried to put it into words= , because she knew Jimmy needed to hear it from at least one of his best friends, even if the men couldn't articulate it. "Jimmy, you're still you= =2E The outside's not important. That's not why people love you." A familiar foot= step made her look up. It was Clark, now changed into the Suit. She stared int= ently at him, trying to convey the sudden sense of foreboding she felt. But he = just gazed back at her determinedly. Quickly Lois and Superman explained to Jimmy what was going on. Then = Superman scooped the young-old man up in his arms and flew out Perry's wi= ndow. After they left, Lois couldn't shake the feeling that Doodsen was up to n= o good. So many evil people had targeted Superman, Clark, her and their fri= ends in the past that she wasn't surprised at how paranoid she felt. Quickly scratching out a note for Perry, she ran downstairs and hailed a taxi. When she got to Veda Doodsen's brownstone Lois could hear a whining, = generator-like noise coming from inside. In the window she could see that= the room lights were dark, replaced by a bluish glow. Alarmed, she hurried in= to the enclosed porch area and turned the doorknob. The door was locked. Of course! What was she thinking? Veda Doodsen was a crook - she would be su= re to lock her doors, especially if she was doing something nefarious at the mo= ment. Trying to avoid the panic rising in her throat, Lois at last succeeded in= picking the lock and stepped into a scene from her worst nightmare. Encased in two glass tubes like museum specimens were her beloved husband= and... someone else. Must be Connor Shenk, she decided. Yes, there was Ji= mmy over on a sofa near the window. Why wasn't he in the machine? As she watc= hed, bright tendrils of white light arced from Superman to Shenk, and they bot= h writhed as if in agony. The light hurt her eyes, so she shaded them with = her arm. A mad scientist of a woman stood in front of the machine, a radiatio= n vest over her blouse and goggles over her eyes. Veda Doodsen. Lois would = have known her, even if she *hadn't* met the bitter and therefore dangerous researcher, earlier today. So this was how Doodsen had turned Jimmy into an old man! The cold knot i= n Lois' stomach tightened as she looked back to Shenk and Clark. Benny Rock= land, one of Jimmy's childhood friends, had stumbled into the Daily Planet news= room and died on their sofa as a result of Doodsen's machine. Would her husban= d be the next one to go? Was she to be a widow after only two weeks of happine= ss? Even if his Kryptonian anti-aging process was able to keep him alive, wou= ld he be irrevocably damaged? = = Suddenly one of the dials on the machine went over to the far right side.= Doodsen gasped, "Too much power! The machine can't take it!" Tearing off = her goggles, she ran toward the door. Horrified, Lois realized that she was abandoning her subjects. Desperate to save Clark, she grabbed Doodsen jus= t before she reached the door and wrestled her inside. Doodsen struggled fiercely, but Lois managed to force her back over to = a stuffed chair. Furious, she raised her fist to punch the older woman bu= t realized that this would not help Superman. Pulling Doodsen up, Lois grow= led in her most authorative voice, "Shut it down. Now!" With her hand over her eyes to shade them, Doodsen almost meekly complied= =2E Blessed silence filled the room, now back to normal lighting, as the tube= s hissed open and Superman shook his head slightly. All three looked over a= t Connor Shenk's tube, shocked to find a gurgling baby looking up at them. Doodsen found her voice first. "*He* won't be pulling guns on anyone for = a while!" she remarked icily. Suddenly Lois recognized what had happened - = Shenk had forced Doodsen at gunpoint to restore his youth before Jimmy's. Someh= ow they had used Clark's lifeforce to accomplish this, but since his Krypton= ian nature made him stronger than humans, he had overloaded the machine, turn= ing Shenk into a baby. But, she worried, what had it done to her husband? And= if he helped to restore Jimmy's youth, as she realized was the plan, would i= t help hasten his own aging? Would he even be able to regenerate again? A c= old sword of panic thrust through her heart at the thought. As she watched, Clark superflew Baby Shenk out of his tube and returned w= ith Jimmy. Lois stared at her friend in horror. In just the time since she ha= d seen him last, he had aged at least ten years, and seemed nearly comatose= =2E "Let's go," Superman growled. "If anything happens to either one of them," Lois added as menacingly as possible, "you won't have to worry about getting *any* older." That was, = after all, why Veda Doodsen had invented the machine in the first place, to res= tore her own lost youth. Doodsen must have heard Lois' sincerity because she turned the machine on= and monitored the process carefully, turning it off at just the right moment,= when Jimmy had returned to his previous youthful self. Lois looked from her fr= iend to her husband, anxiously holding her breath as they both tried to shake off whatever effects the transfer had given them= =2E *Please*, she prayed to whichever deity might be listening, *please let t= hem be okay!* "What a rush!" Jimmy exclaimed. He seemed to be okay, but... Lois looked worriedly at Superman. Clark must have been a mindreader, = because he stammered, "I... I feel okay." "Is he?" Lois turned on Doodsen. "Is he okay?" "It's too soon to tell..." ***** Several hours later Lois was back at her desk, supposedly writing up the story. But she couldn't concentrate on her prose. After the police had ar= rived to arrest Veda Doodsen, Dr. Klein had taken Jimmy, young Connor Shenk and= Superman to Star Labs so he could try to figure out what exactly had been= done to them. Lois had tagged along, but it had quickly become evident that he= r presence was superfluous. In fact, if she stayed around much longer, it w= as likely her concern would give away Superman's identity. So she had return= ed to the Daily Planet to try to meet the press deadline. Lois' thoughts were in a jumble now. She was terrified for Clark, of = course. The main side effect of Doodsen's youth machine was that the = "donor" aged rapidly, eventually dying of old age. Dr. Klein had shocked = her earlier by telling her that Superman did not age as quickly as humans. Bu= t he had had so much youth drained from him that Lois worried that his super-regeneration would not be sufficient. How selfish and petty she had= been with Clark - to think that she had been concerned about her own mortality= compared with his, when now her husband was probably already aging at superspeed. It had been so long since she had seen him, Lois was afraid h= e was already dead. And life without Clark was... She couldn't imagine what lif= e would be like without him. *Come back to me, Clark*, she begged silently, looking wistfully over at = his desk. It wasn't fair - when you got married you were supposed to have a l= ong and happy life together, right? You weren't supposed to have your husband= stolen from you only two weeks later. You were supposed to settle down, b= uy a house, have kids, just be Joe and Judy Regular, as he had once called it.= The sound of the elevator doors opening intruded into Lois' obsessings. S= he raised her head as Perry exclaimed, "Hey Jimmy! What'd Doc Klein have to = say?" "Gave me a clean bill of health," her friend announced happily. "Haho! that's good news. Great to hear that, son," Perry rumbled. Lois couldn't stand the wait any longer. She stood up and went over to wh= ere they were standing. "Jimmy," she asked, not trying to hide her worry, "di= d Dr. Klein say anything about Superman?" He shrugged apologetically. "He was still examining him when I left." "Oh..." Well, at least he was alive *then*. "Lois!" Ralph called, "There's a message on your desk." Snatching up the note, she read, "MEET ME AT 348 HYPERION AVE. LOVE, YOUR= HUSBAND." With a relieved laugh that he was still alive, but still worrie= d that he might not be completely okay, she grabbed her briefcase and dashe= d for the door. When she got to the address, she realized that it was Veda Doodsen's = brownstone. Why had Clark asked her to meet him here, she wondered? This = time when she turned to doorknob, it was open. Cautiously she poked her head through the door. "Clark?" she called, surprised to hear an echo. Obviously Veda Doodsen = had moved, or had been moved out. The room was bare: no furniture, no = knicknacks, and, thankfully, no machine. "Lois?" Clark's voice made her look over to the front windows. There he w= as - her husband - sitting in the window sill, looking up at her with an almos= t reverent expression. The sunlight reflected off and through his hair like= a halo, and she thought he looked almost mystical. He stood up and started = to go to her, then stopped. "What's going on?" she asked. As much as she wanted to hold him and never= let him go, she could just as easily stand here and look at him all day. That= was how good he looked to her. "Nuthin'. C'mere." She walked slowly toward him. He stopped her when she reached a patch of sunlight on the floor. "Stand right there." Clark sat = back down on the window sill, gazed up at her and sighed happily. "I was right= =2E" Suddenly Lois felt slightly foolish. "Clark, what are we doing here?" she= asked, looking around the room again. After all, this wasn't their place.= What right did they have to be here? And would he *ever* tell her if he was alright? "I just had this vision of how you would look standing in the light from = this window. I *had* to see," he insisted. "Are you okay? What did Dr. Klein say?" she finally asked, sitting down b= eside Clark and taking his hand anxiously. = "Jimmy... is gonna be fine." "I *know* that. What else did he tell you?" "Connor Shenk is already going through the terrible twos." Clark grinned.= "Dr. Klein thinks he'll be back to his old, *old* self by next week." Why was he beating around the bush? "What did Dr. Klein say about *you*?"= she insisted. Didn't he know she'd much rather know how *he* was doing, not J= immy or Shenk? She reached up and caressed his ear. "Apparently my body has already... compensated... for whatever age drain = there was," he finally admitted. "Compensated? Then you *have* lost something." That's what she had been a= fraid of. He laughed a little. "My friend is healthy. I'm sitting here with my wife= =2E I haven't lost anything." "You gave up years," she countered. Years that we won't have together, sh= e wanted to add. "I gave them up for a friend." Jimmy must never be allowed to know the sacrifice Clark had made for him - it would kill him, Lois thought. "How many?" She *had* to ask. "I dunno." He looked down, then hurried on, like he had to explain = something he'd just figured out. "The truth is, no one knows how long = they've got. Anyway, it's not the years that count, its the moments... ri= ght now... as they happen." He smiled again and kissed her. A million thoughts still swirled through Lois' mind. Despite his protesta= tions to the contrary, what *had* Clark lost? What effect would this horrible experience have on him... and her? She was sure that she would always val= ue the time they had left together, after today. He was certainly right abou= t one thing - life was made up of moments, and she should treasure each one the= y had. Lois nearly broke off their kiss to ask her husband what he thought,= but then realized that he probably didn't want to think about it right now. = After a moment Lois asked coquetishly, "So how do you suggest we make the= most out of *this* moment?" Clark laughed again. "Maybe... we could look at wallpaper samples." Huh? Where had *that* come from? "Wallpaper samples?" she asked, pulling = back. "Oh, well, what do *you* think for this room?" He stood and looked around= them. "Wood paneling? Aged-down walls?" Suddenly the light went on in Lois' head. "You didn't!" she gasped. So *t= hat* was why he had taken so long to contact her, and why he'd wanted to meet = her here. He grinned back at her mischievously. "Well, you seemed to really like th= e place. I... I mean, it's in the city. It's got a lot of character." He wa= lked past the fireplace, gesturing as he went, over to where the machine had b= een. "Plus, it has a secret compartment, which, well, I have to tell you, is v= ery very difficult to find in a building of this style." He walked back over = to her and put his arm around her. "All you have to do is say the word. It's= *ours*, if you want." Lois laughed, delight, wonderment and love for her darling husband warrin= g within her for expression. "Well, you know *I* love it. But is it you?" s= he wanted to know. "No. It's us," he replied. She couldn't stand it anymore - she twined her= arms around his neck and kissed him, grateful that he seemed to be alright. Al= l thoughts of crazed scientists and sacrifices and being separated by time = fled her mind. She held him tighter, and he picked her up in his arms. She concentrated on the moment, right then, as it happened. = The sun shone in through the window. It was a beautiful day. ____________________________________________________________________ Get free e-mail and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=3D= 1 ____________________________________________________________________ Get free e-mail and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=3D= 1 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 16:07:23 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <19990428141451.93467.qmail@hotmail.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Wed, 28 Apr 1999 07:14:51 PDT Rachel TenHaaf wrote: > And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the > word 'bloody' for anything? Yeah... bloody students, bloody traffic, bloody awful weather... you name it!! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 08:08:07 PDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Avia Tikotsky Subject: Chocolate Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain Hi All! I'm de-lurking for a sec to let everyone know that it's Chocolate Day on geocities. Just go to : http://www.geocities.com and you'll be sure to find some of Lois' (and I must admit - my own) favorite recipes. Sorry if this was already mentioned! Avia (a proud chocoholic) ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 16:15:16 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <372722C9.5E7B754C@bellsouth.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Wed, 28 Apr 1999 11:01:29 -0400 Pam Jernigan wrote: > I always put that middle "e" in judgement (never knew why til > today, tho!), The weird thing about 'judgement' over here is that in normal usage it's spelt with an 'e', but lawyers - when referring to court cases - spell it 'judgment' and are *very* po-faced about it. My occasional academic co-author is a lawyer and he will not let me spell it any other way in the law book we're writing together. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 12:01:41 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Demona (Angel Of The Night)" Subject: Re: NEW: Moments of Illumination (1/1) [PG] In-Reply-To: <19990428150302.15653.qmail@nw175.netaddress.usa.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Debra, that was a beautiful vignette! I loved the way you filled in the blanks, and of course, the WAFFs along the way (no spoilers, I promise. ;) You made my morning, thank you for sharing that. :) I also want to congratulate you on being the first to use (impeccably, I might add!) the new system of posting. Great job all around! Many kudos... and keep writing! :) Demi nightangel@home.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 09:15:47 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Irene D." Subject: Re: NEW: Moments of Illumination (1/1) [PG] MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Debra, Thank you for this short and sweet vignette. You have done an excellent job of capturing Lois's thoughts (who has to be one of the most difficult characters to write!). We're all looking forward to the next story we receive from you. Take care, Irene P.S. See you on the IRC _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 19:35:49 +0300 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Subject: Re: NEW: Moments of Illumination (1/1) [PG] In-Reply-To: <19990428150302.15653.qmail@nw175.netaddress.usa.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Debra, Nice work! Especially fun to see a story evolve from "babbling" on the IRC to reality... but I must complain (and compliment at the same time), it's *very* hard to tell which parts are yours and which parts are actually from the eps! (I'll save the caps for private e-mail ) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 21:57:49 +1000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jenny Stosser Subject: Re: The British are coming... In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:36 AM 26/04/99 +0100, you wrote: >Hi Ann, and anyone else who was baffled by my Irishisms ;) > >'Presses' *are* cupboards, in Ireland that is. Doesn't matter what >type - fixed, moveable, sliding doors or ordinary doors. We just >don't use the term 'cupboard'. My Mum used to call the cupboard where she kept towels and bed-linen, the "linen press", but I've never heard of calling kitchen cupboards presses. Then again, my husband insists that the kitchen counter is the top of the cabinet, which is a collection of cupboards used for storage. At home, we used to call the whole thing the cabinet, and didn't really have a kitchen counter (and both Joe and I are true blue Aussies). > >And 'banjaxed' is a slang term for broken, wrecked, useless. Funny, when I first read this word, I mentally translated it as "totally stuffed", but some on this list might be put to thinking of Thanksgiving and turkeys when I mention being "stuffed"! > >So perhaps it won't seem too strange to suggest that when I moved >>from Ireland to England I almost had to learn a completely new set of >vocabulary! But I still never spoke like Patrick or Colleen in >WIEAK... [don't get me started... :( ] > jenerator@ozemail.com.au -*-This message is umop ap!sdn (Jenerator or Some1Else on IRC) -*- JenerEight on AIM -*- ICQ: 11477318 Photos of David (6) and Megan (3) on the Stosser Family HomePage: http://geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4583 Please sign our guestbook! ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 29 Apr 1999 06:14:11 +1000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jenny Stosser Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... In-Reply-To: <19990428141451.93467.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 07:14 AM 28/04/99 PDT, Rachel TenHaaf wrote: >And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the >word 'bloody' for anything? > >Rachel >rae@usXchange.net There's a whole (award winning etc) advertising campaign here which goes "If you drink and drive, you're a bloody idiot." jenerator@ozemail.com.au -*-This message is umop ap!sdn (Jenerator or Some1Else on IRC) -*- JenerEight on AIM -*- ICQ: 11477318 Photos of David (6) and Megan (3) on the Stosser Family HomePage: http://geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4583 Please sign our guestbook! ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 17:58:24 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Peggy Mueller Subject: Re: Closet fanfic writers Comments: To: Cdfisler@aol.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit From: Charlotte Fisler >But the reason I am writing is to tell you that both my actor-theater grad >student son Benjamin and my PhD geophysicist daughter, Dr. Diana, receive >e-mail copies of my stories and both read them. Neither has ever complained >about my writing about a "TV" show and both are college grads and experts in >the arts and sciences respectivley. Tell that to anyone who looks down on >fan fiction. > LOL! Well, Charlotte, maybe you'd better have a talk with correspondent Sam Donaldson! On ABC's "This Week" he made a comment like (I forget his exact words) "...and for the *lower classes*, those who like Superman, we can talk about truth, justice, and the American way." My husband and I were ROTFL-ing at Donaldson's remark about the "lower classes." (Donaldson probably has a highbrow hobby like watching football or hockey, hmm?) Peggy, one of the "lower classes." ;-) gremlino@pathway.net ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 22:34:57 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Rachel wrote: >And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the > word 'bloody' for anything? Rachel, I have to confess to using it probably far too often. I realised this when my newest member of staff started to use it in his speech - I think he's unconsciously trying to fit in by copying my way of speaking, but to hear myself bounced back like that is quite revealing. I'm trying to moderate my use of it as an adjective now ;) Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 17:45:17 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Farah Meitzen Chisham Subject: OT: Re: NEW: Moments of Illumination (1/1) [PG] Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >congratulate you on being the first to use (impeccably, I might add!) the >new system of posting. Great job all around! I howled with happiness and smiled so much when I saw the headers! Believe me, you made my day when I saw your post. BTW, it was a lovely viagnette. Thanks for making me smile. Farah farah :) farah@chisham.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 19:30:38 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sandy McDermin Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > On Wed, 28 Apr 1999 07:14:51 PDT Rachel TenHaaf > wrote: > > > And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the > > word 'bloody' for anything? Wendy Richards wrote: > > Yeah... bloody students, bloody traffic, bloody awful weather... you > name it!! Bloody glove. Sandy smcdermin@erols.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 21:51:28 EDT Reply-To: Aerm1@aol.com Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: RR about UK/US language and RR Blast... MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 4/28/99 10:15:10 AM Eastern Daylight Time, rtenha@HOTMAIL.COM writes: << And, as a final note, does anybody else out there use the word 'bloody' for anything? >> I don't, but my 16 year old son, who went through a period in life when he read anything and everything ever written by James Herriott, does. He uses it a lot. He also gets weird looks from people since we live in Kentucky. Ann