May 18, 2010

Sue's interview with 107yearoldVirgin about her fic 'Decoy'


Decoy by 107yearoldvirgin

Summary: A deal that will change their lives: Bella Swan is tired of being a nobody and makes a deal with one of the most popular guys in high school, Edward Cullen, to help her break into the "cool" clique. But is she who he thinks she is? Or is she more? AH/AU
Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Angst - Chapters: 16 - Words: 84,736 - Reviews: 3764 - Updated: 5-13-10 - Published: 3-21-10 - Bella & Edward


I have tried and tried to write up funny for this post, and everytime I write about this fic it comes out sounding like the narrative to an afterschool special! (For those outside the US, back in the day there were these programs run afterschool about different pre-teen and teen-related topics. Things like drinking, drugs, bullying, etc. LOL!)

SO consider yourself warned, and if I sound like an old fogey, you know why.

I am not a superfan of the high school fics. Oh, sure, I like them. But oddly enough, most of them are very similar.

Then there is Decoy.

This fic is very real. I am gonna try to talk about it without spoiling so much of the story, that I make you not want to read it.

Bella goes to Forks high school. She has a crush on the pretty and popular guy, Edward. He is in the top tier of the high school hierarchy.

And we all know that means.

He does not know she exists.

She is not a popular girl. She does not dress the way the other girls do. She sits on her butt and reads, and hides away from the world, watching those around her.

Sounds pretty typical so far, right?

SO what happens to thrust these two together?

Bella blackmails Edward into pretending to date her.

WHY?

Well, we have all been in high school. We all remember the pretty girls, the ones who were popular, and we remember the good looking guys, and how hard it was to try to be a part of that.

It is hard for the kings and queens of the school, and it is hard for those who are on the outside looking in.

Decoy looks at the elements that make up the struggle to be in a clique.

There is pressure to be perfect.

A pressure to fit in.

A pressure to be distinguishable from others, but you can't be too different.

I have to say, I am so glad that part of my life is over, cause it was such bullshit LOL!

NOW I am gonna say, there is MORE TO THIS FIC than my description.

Just trust me. You do not want me to spoil all the fun! Go read it, and don't forget to leave her some lovin'!! You will not regret it!

And now, let's hear from 107yroldvirgin about her fic Decoy:




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1. What was it that gave you the ‘spark’ for your story? Was it a picture? A moment or event? Can you remember the initial inspiration?

This is for Decoy, right?

The truth is that all of my fic is inspired by music. I 'see' notes, if that makes any sense. They come out in colors and can drastically shift my mood or thought. My husband is a musician and I've sung my entire life, so it's kind of a 'part' of me - as cheesy as that sounds. I am a human radio - songs flip through my mind all day long due to situations or words that others say. I actually scroll through my iPod for specific 'moment' songs.

Rambling...sorry. That's what music does to me! Or maybe I need my meds? I dunno.

I was in my car one day listening to Paramore - as I do every day - and their song 'Decoy' came on. I started thinking about how it was a perfect high school scenario. This eventually led me to think of my fave high school movies from the 80's and I thought of Can't Buy Me Love. The nagging idea just wouldn't go away, so I started there.

2. Do you have a particular process when it comes to your writing, perhaps a certain mood, environment or music? Do you have any ‘triggers’ to get you in the writing mood?

My writing actually depicts my mood a lot. When writing fun things like Progress and Eight Days, I find myself happier and laughing a lot more, searching for inane hilarity in my day to day life.

Writing Maybe made me really sad, as does Decoy, because I have to pull from a painful place to get 'there' in a chapter. So, I choose the story's 'theme music' on my iPod and put it on repeat until that chapter comes out. Decoy is fueled by 30 Seconds ToMars.

3. Give us an elevator pitch. Say you’re in an elevator with a prospective reader for 2 minutes – what would you tell them about the story?

"Hey, you remember how much High School sucked? Wanna read a fic about it?" Ahahaha...I work in a type of 'sales' position. I just now realized that I might kinda suck at it!

4. Do you picture particular actors for your characters, or are they someone else entirely? If so, who?

Definitely! I think this is a must when writing. I always cast the fic with people from Hollywood, and try to envision their mannerisms as I write.


Edward: Rob - only Rob. Ever. THAT MAN!

Bella: I would like to say that my Bella is more Ellen Page than KStew, but there are more Stewy pics to work with for banners and whatnot, so...


Rose: Jaime Pressly...seriously. Bitchy and skinny? Hello?

Emmett: Kellen Lutz with better hair than in the movies.

Jasper: Jackson Rathbone...with better hair than in the movies. Damn. I am sensing a theme, here...

James: Cam Gigandet

Victoria: Ashlee Simpson with the long red hair! LOL

Jessica: Ashley Tisdale - that totally makes me giggle

Mike: Hayden Christiansen


Tyler: Jared effing Leto (you don't hate him as much now, yeah???)

5. Is the story all planned out or do you do it as a fly by the seat of your pants thing?

I have a general idea of the story line, but rarely do an outline. My pants are usually in flight by chapter 3.

6. Have you got any other projects going on? Any planned for the future?

As far as fic goes? No projects are being worked on other than Decoy, because EDAW just ended. Writing 2 fics is hard. I commend other authors for pulling it off so gracefully!

Okay. I lied. I've already pitched my next story to my beta. *facepalm* It's a secret, though...

7. What was it that brought you to Twilight fanfic? What is it that has kept you here (besides your own writing)?

I was directed here from IMDB, strangely enough. I started with The Office and then fell in love with I'll Be Your Lover, Too by EBT. And I was hooked. Period.

Why do I stay? The people I have met make my life better on a daily basis. This is all for them.

8. Do you have a background in writing? Has the fanfic experience expanded your creativity?

I used to write in school and started writing some novels - kinda Fear Street (RL Stein) type stuff. I tossed them and never got back into it until FanFic smacked me in the face with some Eddie peen.

Writing fic has definitely allowed me to hone my creativity and it's very therapeutic for me.

9. How about your creative self-confidence? By nature writers tend to be a notoriously insecure lot so how are you finding the online writing experience?

Oh, gahd. Have we met? LOL I am massively insecure about everything. Always. One bad review makes me catatonic for days. I used to have panic attacks before each post and then would get up at 2am to see if people were responding positively or not.

I'm a lot better about it now, thankfully.

10. Do you tell your friends and family that you’re an online author with a devoted following, or is this something that you tend to keep for yourself?

I just recently told my mom about my stories. I have told almost all of my friends and two coworkers. If they ask if people like my stuff I start stuttering and my hands get all awkward. It's hard to think I have a following - I like to think of them more as friends who humor me by saying nice stuff. And the word 'Fans' is weird to me. I like to call them 'h00rchies' or 'peg legged hookers' or, ya know, 'readers'.

12. Is there a particular character in your story that you identify with the most?

As a woman I think I tend to always identify with Bella, but some stories I am more in tune with Edward. Maybe the doc is right and I have too much testosterone?

Honestly? Whichever character has the best one liners or snark is probably who I am most attuned to at that moment.

13. Which RL author(s) inspires you?

Alice Sebold. Hands down. The Lovely Bones tore me apart and left me snivelling on the floor. That is talent.

14. Did any FF authors inspire you? What was it that had you reading FF and thinking “I could do this”?

I owe all of this to Edward's Blood Type. If I hadn't found her first, I may never had given myself the opportunity to try my hand at fic.

15. I have a hard time winding these things up so let’s have some fun. What would your porn star name be? That’s the name you get when you combine the name of your first pet with the first street you lived on – personally I’m *cough* Fluffy Brockman.

Oh, here is where you get a random fact about me: I am already named after a porn star! What?? Yeah. Thanks, Dad. Amber Lynne. Google that shit. Blonde hair. Big boobs. A lot to live up to when you're a lil' girl, don'tcha think?

But, if we are playing by your rules...Ugh. Gross. Omar Springlake. I demand a re-do!

16. Give us a Random Fact about yourself.

I am a pop culture machine. MACHINE! Wanna play Trivial Pursuit 80's Edition? I have also always wanted to be a hair dresser/make up artist/ fashion designer.

17. If you could have 15 minutes with any Edward FF or SMs which one would you choose and what would you do?
(If you do not LIKE any of the Edwards feel to substitute an actor here. Rob, Kellan, PFach or Jackson.)

Oh...well. Hmm. I LOVE almost all Edward's. There are a few that I would never want to meet in a dark alley. But, I have a soft spot in my heart and panties for Rob. If I had 15 minutes with him I would just want to say something to make him do that 'Pfft' thing he does and then watch him laugh. I love his laugh. And his teeth. Oh, and his hands...

18. What is your FanFic Pet peeve?

Pain and blood when losing one's virginity. I took a poll once...it's not even 50/50. Most women didn't have that type of experience.

19. What is your Fandom Pet peeve?

Negativity. I think it's just so unnecessary. OH! And backhanded reviews. WTF? "You suck because 'blah' but I love you and your story!" Huh?

20. What do you want to be when you grow up?

Trick question: You can't grow up if you have a toddler!

21. Anything else you would like to add?

Huh? Oh, sorry.

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3 comments:

Kassiah said...

Great interview! Thanks so much <3

Unknown said...

Awesome job Sue. I <3 you! This is on my to read list. May have bumped it up a few notches.

Anonymous said...

So cute! Loved the interview guys!

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