A.  Yes and no.  Passion is what defines BtVS and AtS.  Passion for their lovers, friends and the passion of hate.  Angelus's commentary in this episode really struck a chord.  We have passion we have for them and passion for reading and writing fanfic.
 

Q.  A BtVS and AtS fanfic archive, it's hardly anything new.  Why another?

A.  No it's not an original idea or anything.  There are lots of archives out there.  But with this site, I intend not only to give everyone the chance to house their writing but find the diamonds in the rough. I want to expose the little known fanfic genius's.  There are a lot of specialist archives out there like Forbidden Fruit, the Lindsey and Cordelia relationship archive but I want to bring them all together to one place ~ here. 

Q.  So these genius's.. how do you define it?

A.  You can't.  But I think I know it when I see it.  It's a special way of exploring a character.  I want stories that cut into the character.  Original, exciting, shocking, truthful, funny.  I like darker fics like Komodo by Kita which is fantastic.

Q.  How, when and where do you get fic ideas?

A.  Usually in class.  Instead of listening to whoevers talking and damage my higher education, I'll be thinking about dialogue between characters and what I'm going to do next. 

I usually think of ideas when I'm most bored, which is usually at work.  I'll have to grab a paper towel and scribble everything on it.  I put them (the characters) in situations and think how they'd react.  Take them down the road Joss doesn't want them to go down.  I sometimes get ideas just as I switch my computer off in the small hours of the morning when i decide I must sleep.  Then I'll want to switch it back on and continue.  So instead, I jot it down and go try to sleep.  Big mistake.  I'll toss and turn and not be able to get it out of my head, developing it.  I work in spite of myself like that.  Sometimes lyrics of a song will inspire me and off I go.

Q.  What stumps you when you sit down to write, and how do you overcome it?

A.  What gets me is that I try to do something I haven't read before.  Be original, try something new and different.  The only limit is my ocean of an imagination.  I think it's the part between when you've imagined the perfectly scripted beginning and have some inkling where the ending's gonna be.  Between then.  I guess they call that the middle.  Hate it.  Although sometimes the middle and the events that I somehow come up with, change the ending.  Which is cool.

Q.  Ever had writers block?  I do all the time.  How do you get over it?

A.  Ha!  Blockage is my most hated thing when it comes to writing fanfic.  *Hate* blocks.  Wish they would die and go to Hell.  I'm currently working on about six fics because of stupid blockages.  The last block I had was with AYWS Chapter Three.  Someone sent me feedback about the previous two parts and it inspired me to write.  So I wrote the final 3/4 of the fic in a day and a half because of feedback.  See how powerful it is?  I was also sent feedback about my C/L fic and was nudged to working on I Can't Feel A Thing a bit more.  Before that all I had was a basic outline and some dialogue notes.

There is no 100% cure that I know of for damned Writers Block but in the top ten things that can help, feedback is number one.  So if you want a writer to write more send feedback.  Everyone's happy.

To get through the block I do stupid stuff like make pics for my fics or for the website.  I read (as in actual books - shock), I watch tapes of Buffy and Angel because there's a bunch of crap on whenever I want to watch TV.  I'll go online and try to find challenges to help get inspiration.  I try to live my life depsite the fact I'm in inner turmoil and not being able to finish a fic.  I'm quite hard on me and think it's just because I'm lazy (which I'm generally not) that I'm not being able to sit down.  I get restless and have to walk around.  Which I soon get bored of.  Then maybe I'll try to think up ideas for new fics. 
 

Q.  Any favourite characters?

A.  Angel.  Angel is mine.  But I love them all.  I love Anya's bluntness.  I love Xander's loyalty.  Anthony Stewart Head is fantastic as Giles - especially when he's distracting thee police in "Who Are You?"  Alyson Hannigan carried the show in a few Season Four episodes.  Gunn is a God and he needs more exposure.  I have recently become very attached to Lindsey McDonald.  Wesley is so sweet and he's the boy trying to be the man.  I love my peroxide blonde Billy Idol-ish Spike.  Cordelia is incredible.  I loved her on Buffy but on Angel she is superb.  As for out other Slayer Faith, she intrigues and fascinates me so much.  Her darkness, her attitude.  Faith is a favourite and that's largely thanks to Eliza.  I was coming around to Riley a little but in the Yoko Factor there was no contest.  I *really* hated him from NMR onwards and TYF solidfied this.  In OOMM, I could hardly watch I was so annoyed with him.  I was pretty delirious when he left the building but MB is pretty cool.  Dawn, I am really attached to.  The whole season five arc is pretty much genius.  I have a younger sister and really identify with this whole story.  As for Buffy herself.. well in Season Four she wasn't the same Buffy.  Let's just say I prefer Angels' Buffy in Season Two and Three and more towards the end of Season Five.
Oh (*lustful moan*) and Angelus.. don't get me started.  Actually, do.  He is sooo..
Did you get my favourite from all that?  Angel and Angelus.  Which pretty much explains the me being too Angel-happy when it comes to graphics.

Q.  Any particular relationship?

A.  First and foremost it's Buffy and Angel but I've started to love others as well.  Anya and Xander.  Joss screws about with them, they'll be so much damn trouble.  And due to my recent Lindsey liking, I've been reading Cordelia and Lindsey fanfic and Oh My God!!  As much as I want Cor and Gunn to be Cor-and-Gunn, that is one hot 'ship.  I pretty much love Oz and Will too.  Not to say I don't think the Willow/Tara relationship isn't sweet, I do think that.

Q.  Favourite episodes?

A.  Here's the list in no order; Buffy -  Hush, Becoming Pt 1+2, The Body, The Gift, Passion, Surprise, Blood Ties, Graduation Day Pt 2.  Angel - I Will Remember You, Sonambulist, To Shanshu In LA, Redefinition and Epiphany.  The episodes I love are the well scripted and well acted ones.  Most likely emotionally charged.

Q.  How'd you create this site?

A.  Well it's the kind of funny story that's not so funny.  My PC ain't hooked to the internet but the downstairs one is.  Constantly downloading fic to read at my leisure.  Addiction I think.  Anyway, I picked up one of my friends internet magazines and read this part of an article on how to design your own web site on Netscape Composer.  I thought, 'Hey I have that CD free'.  I installed it and for fun messed about creating a Angel front page.  Although the article was pretty basic, such as how to use horizontal lines, properties, linking and inserting graphics, i never bothered to get part two and three because I picked it up myself.  I studied the layouts of good pages.  Experience really.  Once I understood it, I did it.  I'm still learning.  I hope everyone is.  Like now I'm using tables and it took me 30 minutes to get the ins and outs and ba da boom.  I'm so proud of me.  Nothing else of note about me anyway.  Kidding. 
You don't need fancy software costing $80.  You can download Netscape free or get a CD and it's simple to pick up.  I'm always experimenting. 
I did originally have these sites "Fighting For Redemption" and "Slayer comma The" dedicated to AtS and BtVS respectively, but basis would be on galleries and ep guides which is a lot of work.  Kudos to those who do, but that wasn't for me.  Maybe someday they'll be up and running but for now they live on my computers hard drive.  But I love fanfic and i wanted a site so I thought that I could do this. It probably be more work but it's the work I love.
The original layout for this site was black black and more black.  Classic, plain ol' black.  But I like this a lot more.

Q.  What can I submit?

A.  Anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel that's fan-ficy.  It'd be cool if when submitting a piece, that you submit a challenge but it's not a must have.  Nearly everything is admitted and archived under No Discrimination but it will be marked clearly. (I draw the line at bestiary - wouldn't you?  Like eugh.)

Q.  On feedback...

A. OK people, you have no idea how much feedback means to a writer.  Well unless you are one.  Please feedback the authors, a quick 'Liked this' ectera.  Don't be afraid to criticize but do it constructively.  Don't flame people cuz it's upsetting.  Say you read a fic in which your favourite character dies, (saaay.. Riley Finn) horribly and embarrassingly try to be as calm as possible.  And what are you, a Riley lover, doing reading a fic entitled Die, Riley, Riley?  Use your own common sense on the stuff you wanna read.  Authors, try and reply to your feedback.  Makes it good for all.  If a reader gets no feedback from an author to a question they asked, it can be off putting.

Oh and pur-lease feedback me on the site, any improvements you feel necessary and maybe on a fanfic that should be in the Woah category. 

I LIVE for feedback

Enjoy!!