I really am beyond thrilled that I got a chance to interview Naelany for SYTYCW. Nae is well known in the slash community for her beautiful writing, super sexy lemons and fabulous way with words. Her stories range from sweet and simple to angst filled tear jerkers, and despite the direction she takes them in, they're all instant favorites.
It's hard for me to pinpoint which of the various fics/one-shots I like the best. I was drawn to Nae's stories when I first read At The Deep End. This fic follows the journey of Edward and Jasper as they reconnect after having known each other at summer camp. I've enjoyed watching how they navigate their blossoming relationship as well as the trials of coming-out (on Jasper's end) and can't wait to see where they end up. Nae's other ongoing solo fic is pure angst at it's best (worst?). I'm a total wussperv, yet knowing how much I enjoy her writing, I took the plunge and read Live Like No Tomorrow. There's no sugar coating what we learn in the first chapter. After successfully battling cancer once, Edward finds out he has been stricken with it again. In telling Jasper about his health, the two also reveal to each other their love. Bring a box of kleenex to this one, for sure.
In addition to these ongoing fics, as well as a handful of one shots, Nae has been collaborating on two other slashy fics with SorceressCirce. The dynamic duo have created two distinctly different stories, but both worthy of attention. My absolute favorite, Marked, was based off of a one-shot for the Tattward & Inkella contest. Edward enjoys taking pictures of people with tattoos for a book celebrating body art and graffiti. Despite his conservative appearance, Jasper has plenty of ink for Edward to ogle. After a start filled with miscommunication and a few missteps, the two finally get together, but will their past relationships haunt the one they are trying to create with each other? It's been an interesting ride as we watch these two men fall for each other.
I have to be honest and say that Nae had some convincing to do to get me on board with her other collab,Be Careful What You Wish For. The pairing is Charlie and Carlisle and I hesitated for a bit, unsure if I could get into it. I'm incredibly glad I did, because the sweet love story that has been whipped up here is lovely, regardless of the pairing. Hell, I may have become a C/C shipper after this...
In addition to writing her amazing fics, I'd be remiss if I didn't include this last tidbit...Naelany is, in my mind, the godmother of slash! ;) Or, at least - my godmother of slash. She was the one that essentially held my hand as I wrote my 1st slash o/s and has been there beta'd her butt off on any future slash endeavors I have worked on. I still fangirl over the fact that I somehow duped her into beta-ing my slash fics. But shh...don't tell her that
FF profile: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/1817305/naelany
From now on her fics can be found at either her blog or on Twilighted
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Thanks so much for agreeing to be interviewed! Sit down, get comfy and let's do this thang ;)
1. I'll start out with the burning question us fellow addicts always wonder...what brought you to Twilight? To Fanfic?
Hmm, how did I get into Twilight...Well, I'd heard about the books for ages, and kept resisting them. Mainly because people whose judgment I trusted kept telling me they were glorified vamp-fics and way too...I can't even remember what they all thought of it. Anyway. When the movie came out, I still resisted. Until I saw the previews, which I had somehow managed to avoid. Once I saw them, I knew I had to see the movie. And I did. A total of five times. The first time was with my hubby, and we immidiately went to the bookstore and got the first book on CD - so we could both "read" at the same time, and I could knit. We went through that first book by the next day...and went right back and bought the rest of them. I kept listening to them again and again - to the point of driving my poor hubs absolutely crazy. And when I was talking to lambcullen (friend on a forum where we discuss all things Twilight...and knitting/crocheting), she talked me into trying fanfic. Again, I resisted for a while. I'd taken a look at the one she had rec'ed (Sorry AngstGoddess, it was WA) and cringed because I still had canon-Edward firmly lodged in my head...and I just couldn't reconcile him with the language and actions of WAward. Then one day when I was bored, I figured I'd try again. Same story...wildly different results. I fell in love...and I've been fully immersed in fanfic ever since.
2. Were you always a slash fan or did you dabble in <gasp> canon/'regular' AH fics first?
I didn't even know what Slash was when I first joined the fandom. Someone on the forum mentioned All I Ever Knew and how good it was...and I was on an absolute reading binge (which, by the way, I'm still paying for now as I am so far behind now it's not even funny) and thought, hey let's try it. And again...hooked. After AIEK, I think I read Over The Top next as well as Passion and Disaster. I haven't looked away since.
As for writing...you can 'blame' lambcullen again. She convinced me I could write, too. I had told her about an idea that had popped in my head, but I had never written anything in my life before. Well, not outside of school related stuff (and my teachers always seemed to fail my grades for my efforts...what would they think now ;-)). Funnily enough, the idea was for a E/B fic. I even managed to write about six paragraphs or so - and then Jasper began to shout at me...and At The Deep End happened.
3. You've written numerous one shots and have a few fics ongoing at the moment. Of the fics you've written/are writing - do you have a favorite(or is that like asking Sophie to make her choice)?
Oh my gosh lol. Bitte, lassen Sie mich nicht wӓhlen! I love all my boys. They all own me completely. My first love is of course At The Deep End -simply because they were my first (oh sounds dirty!) - but aside from that...
4. In addition to your ongoing fics, At The Deep End and Live Like No Tomorrow, you have two collaborations going right now. How have you found writing as part of a team to be in contrast to writing solo?
It's different, for sure. With ATDE and LLNT, I know for the most part everything I want to do. However, SorceressCirce lives in my brain. She's proven this time and time again. Whenever I stumble with something, she's the one I go to and she usually is very good at figuring out what the boys are (trying to) tell me - or not wanting to tell me, as the case may be.
Working with her on a collab level is awesome. I seriously love that woman to bits. She's fun to work with, and our writing styles are very compatible. We're usually on the same wavelength with things and it's been a pain-free experience (for me at least, I can only hope she feels the same). We've got a lot more planned for the future :-). Yes I'm mean, because that's all you're getting from me ;-)
5. Let's discuss At The Deep End for a minute. How did you come up with the plot for that?
Hah. Well, as I said above, Jasper started yelling at me. I've done a short stint as both a helper and a teacher for kids' swimming, and my ex played waterpolo, so I got some of it from that. As for the journey these two are on...I just write what the boys tell me happens, if that makes sense. I tell their story. I know, sounds kinda cooky and maybe it is, but it just works that way for me.
6. What's the hardest part about writing slash in your opinion? The best part?
*chuckles* The hardest for me has to be the lemons. I hate writing them with an absolute passion. Don't get me wrong, I love reading them. I just hate writing them. Mostly because really I'm not that imaginative and I don't feel I have enough of a vocab to keep things interesting.
The best part? Aside from getting to work with SC and having some of the coolest fangirls around? I love writing the emotion, the relationships themselves. I love watching my characters grow and move forward.
7. Let's talk about your writing style for a bit. Do you do anything special while writing a chapter like listen to special music or do you need total silence? Do you eat an entire bag of M&Ms or drink heavily? Perhaps peruse the Corbin Fisher website? *winks*
It's changed a lot, actually. When I first got started with ATDE, I listened to nothing but André Rieu (don't judge). Then I switched to my playlist dubbed -Random Happy (oh hush). I've also created a Mood list on Youtube. But mostly I prefer silence. Whether I listen to anything while I write depends very much on how I'm doing. I do better with no distractions though. Absolutely no TV on...at all.
8. What do you do after you click the submit button for a chapter?
Depends. Most of the time I'll go right to the next chapter or work on a different story. Sometimes I take a break and read. I read every single review that comes in, and I used to reply to them but it's gotten to the point where I simply don't have the time anymore. Which is sad, because I loved that connection with my readers - I miss it. But I do my best to stay active on the forums at least.
9. Do you have a soundtrack to your stories?
No. The only exception - so to speak - for that would be Live Like No Tomorrow, since the inspiration for it came from the song Live Like You Were Dying by Tim McGraw.
10. Do you have any more fic plans in the future?
*laughs hysterically* You do realize who you're asking this of, right?
11. Time for random FF questions. What's your biggest FF pet peeve?
*shutters* <- That is my biggest peeve. Or at least, the first one that comes to mind ;-)
12. What do you LOVE to see in FF that you read?
Emotion, connection, reality.
*OK FANTASY TIME*
13. If you could have 15 minutes with any Edward - FF or SMs - which one would you choose and what would you do?
You know, I've been trying to think of an answer to that ever since you interviewed Starfish, and I haven't been able to think of a single one. And by that I mean that I can't make a choice, because there are too many out there I'd love 15 minutes with ;-).
14. If you could ask any Twilight Cast member a question who would you ask and what would your question be?
Again, hard to pick one...mind if I cheat a little?
Robert - How are you holding up - really? Also, did you get your hats?
Jackson - Please come play in Eugene...and there's this trick a friend of mine shared with me. No you pervs! Nothing like that.
Peter - Did you get your scarves? (Okay, I supposed I'd better explain the hats/scarves thing a bit. The forum I mentioned earlier, well a group of lovely ladies got together and made hats for RPattz, sending some to him and some to Covenant House. They did another round, this time choosing Peter as the recipient - since he wears so many scarves - and sending some to him, some to The Love Scarf Project. Both charities have received their hats/scarves, and I would love for those ladies to know whether Robert and Peter got theirs, and if they liked them)
and lastly...
15. Do you have any slashy rec's for us that you think others *must* check out?
Oh dear. Over The Top, All I Ever Knew/All I Ever Wanted, of course. There's also this cool little FML example I heard about, what's it called again...it's written by those Yoga-chick I talk to every now and then... Oh yes... Time Turns Elastic ;-).
Oh, another one I absolutely love is A Tangible Dichotomy...and Exposure...and Simple...and A Brand New Start...and...there's to many! Ack! You get the idea though ;-)
Thanks SO much for allowing me the pleasure of interviewing you!! xo
You're welcome! This was fun. Thank you for asking me. Now, didn't you mention something about a backrub after we were done? No? Damn! ;-)
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