Interview with Sister Zooey
By Megan Reilly (with Nicola Simpson)

Tell me a little about yourself.

The basics - I'm 21 years old (born 17 June 1979, Father's Day). I was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, even though my parents are from New England. I grew up in a suburb of Milwaukee, attended public school, graduated, and moved on to the University of Wisconsin - Madison. I've majored in English Literature, done the honors track, and wrote my thesis on Ulysses. I'm now in my last semester of college. After this, I'll either be attending Trinity College in Dublin for graduate school or I'll be a big ol' bohemian until that wears thin.

I was (and am) that kid everyone had in their class who was too short, too pale, wore glasses, and was always reading. I just want to tack this on here, since I've had this asked of me in many feedback emails: My fic nom de plume derives from two sources - first, I'm a member of OBSSE, hence Sister. Second, "Zooey" is one of the two main characters of JD Salinger's novella "Franny and Zooey." It is a book that means more to me on more levels than I am able to explain.

I have no favorite authors. I love them all. My favorite color is yellow. I'm left handed. I play the violin and I once sang at Carnegie Hall (no joke). As I am typing this, I am listening to a bootleg of Jeff Buckley's concert at Club Logo in Hamburg, Germany (thank you Napster!). I recommend that everyone listen to Jeff Buckley. He's good for you, like iron or vitamin C.

Them's the basics. I hope that was neither too much nor too little. Now onto the stuff I *know* you want to hear:) ...

I got a job working at Blockbuster Video (which I have since quit) over summer break a couple of years ago. One of the perks of this job was that I got five free rentals a week. Since I really don't like watching movies, I bequeathed them to my younger sister, who begged me to bring home the tapes they had of X-Files episodes. She was 14 at the time and had been a fan since the second season. She had been on my ass for a long time, begging me to watch this show with her. So when I brought her the Pilot/Deep Throat tape, I caved and watched it with her. I was hooked by the halfway point of the Pilot. We watched every episode they had, one a night, and then watched the ones we liked the best again. This was the summer before the beginning of the (um) sixth season. FX helped me to make quick work of all of the episodes I had missed. By the premiere in November, I was up to speed.

I started reading fic that winter. When it's freezing cold out and there's nothing to do, a dorm room T3 connection becomes your best friend. I accidentally found the fic link on Haven and the first stories I read were Rachel Anton's, I think. The first story I distinctly recall reading is "Pandora's Box." It blew my mind. It was filthy and funny and well-written. I spent my down time between my two honors English seminars (two hours, twice a week) reading everything on Hidden Gems, Chronicle X, and Haven.

Cold weather was the catalyst once again when I began writing fic. Couldn't go outside, boyfriend was elsewhere, no other friends to speak of, didn't want to read, to watch TV, to nothing. To be totally and utterly honest, I was in the bathroom in my dorm, brushing my teeth when I got the idea for Redhead Dancing Girl. It's very clear in my memory... I was bent over the sink, spitting toothpaste out (gosh, this is graphic), when I, apropos of nothing, had this very vivid image in my mind of Scully crouched down next to Mulder's desk, rifling through one of the drawers. I recall lifting my head and looking at myself in the mirror for a moment. I was kind of wondering if the chick looking back at me had seen that too. I went back to my room and wrote the whole story in one sitting. The other stories in the series came out as a reaction to that. I started writing "Elephant Hunting" concurrently, and finished it at about the same time as the first "Redhead Dancing Girl" story.

What has your experience been as a fairly new writer in the XF fanfic community?

I was amazed at how quickly I was accepted. Before I started writing, I had been talking to other Philes who were trying to get some attention for their fic and failing. I was expecting to have the same problems. I posted the first Redhead Dancing Girl story to Ephemeral and started getting feedback immediately. It also helped that I was friends with both Michelle of the XFFA and Kimberly at Hidden Gems. They were big early supporters of my fic.

The best advice I can give is to have friends in high places. It doesn't help if your initial contact with them is "Hi. This is my first story. Will you post it?" Unless you're the James Joyce of fic, that's never going to work. I had been talking with Michelle for a long time before I asked her to consider Redhead Dancing Girl for her site. The other writers were great, too. I got lengthy feedback emails early on from JLB and Exley61. JLB and I are now a mutual admiration society. :) She gives the best feedback and is the sweetest girl.

Why do you think newbie authors have difficulty gaining attention for their fic?

It's hard to attract attention because people tend to go for what they know will be good. God knows I do it. Name recognition is a big part of being a fic writer. People don't have all day to sit around and read fic, so they're looking for the quick fix, for the author that will make Mulder and Scully do what they want them to do. So if you manage to make a name for yourself as a certain sort of writer, people are going to come to you for that.
There's a downside to this, though: fic writers tend to rest on their laurels. I won't name any names, but there are some big name authors out there who continually disappoint me because their style hasn't evolved since their second or third posting. They found a way to gratify not only their audience but also themselves (feedback galore) and so they don't change a thing. It's like fic Mad Libs - Insert character here, insert activity here, insert phone call/heart wrenching revelation/special occasion here/ insert sexual position here. Viola! Fic. The problem is that people still fall all over themselves for these authors. The way to become one of these authors when one is new to it all is to have friends in the right places, as I did. One has to write well enough to win the approval of someone who runs a reputable site. Once one manages to do that, they're in.

On your web site, you offer thanks to your readers for their support of your writing, yet in the introduction to one of your stories you remind people to think before they write feedback, that there is a real person reading on the other end. What sort of feedback have you gotten on your stories, and how important is it to you?

Feedback - I would say that about 50% of the feedback I get is excellent. It's well thought out, constructively critical, and generally positive. The other half... I have to be honest. About 40% of the feedback that I get goes exactly like this -- "I LOVED (insert story name here)!! I've read it (insert number) times!!!! When are you going to write a sequel?!?! :) :) !!" Now, I really do appreciate this sort of feedback. It makes me happy and I like to know that people are enjoying my work. However, it's not very useful. Fanfic authors really like it when you tell them why you LOVED their story. You don't have to go on for three pages and provide examples (like JLB *always* does). Just mention something specific. It brings us no end of joy. 5% of the feedback I have gotten are fans that turned on me when I told them that there wasn't going to be any sequel to "A New Commandment." Hence, the signature I now attach to all of my e-mails. The other 5% have been very rude, nitpicky e-mails that usually do nothing but prove that the author has too much time on her (and it's *always* a her) hands and didn't read my story closely. One in particular was incredibly cruel and, in addition to prompting me to include that note at the beginning of "Definitive," I also sent her a rather lengthy reply. I am still awaiting an apology. I also used to have a stalker. I haven't heard from her lately.

Several fanfic writers have had stalkers -- some of them to the point where they've changed their screennames and "disappeared." How did getting a stalker make you feel, and did you take steps to avoid this person?

Stalkers -- At first, I didn't mind having her around. She didn't mail me all that often and was very nice when she did it. I'm worried that if I'm too specific about the details, I'll hurt her feelings. So, dear, if you're reading this, consider this my apology in advance, but this *is* what happened. In one of the stories in the Redhead Dancing Girl series, I used the word "cunt." This really upset her and she wrote me a very long email telling me that it was irresponsible, disgusting, and offensive. She went into a lot of the personal details of her life, telling me that I should be more responsible in my word choice because of people like her. It was insane; I'd only communicated with her through e-mail about three or four times before. I got the distinct impression that, if she had known my phone number, she would have called me and yelled at me, that's how angry this e-mail was. I wrote her back, defending my word choice (if anyone wants to know what my defense was, if I offended anyone else who wasn't forward enough to email me and complain, read "Cunt - A Declaration of Independence by Inga Muscio). This didn't pacify her at all, and her follow up e-mail was equally as scathing. It was really ridiculous. Finally, I just told her that if she didn't like it, tough, don't read my work. Then she started kissing my ass, telling me she'd never do that. Now, she occasionally emails me, begging me to write more, telling me what I should write, or asking if we can collaborate on a story. She's never even posted fic, as far as I know. Generally, no, I don't avoid her, but my responses to her tend to be very brief.

Importance of Feedback - Honestly, I can work just fine without it. I really love getting it, and it has helped to light a fire under me at times, but I do well without it, also. I got a lukewarm response for the later parts of the "Meaning of the Term" series. In all honesty, I don't really care. *I* know that "How Bright It Shows" and "A New Commandment" are the best pieces of fic I have ever written. I'm grateful for my very devoted audience and their feedback, but I'm more interested in the process of writing that I am in the results.

Why do you think the latter parts of the series got a lukewarm response?

I received about half the usual amount of feedback for the last two installments of the "Meaning of the Term" series. Most of that which I did receive wasn't to congratulate me on a job well done, it was to demand that I write another part. We've gone over this - nothing irratates me more. It was as if the audience wasn't willing to go where I wanted to take them. They were waiting for the punchline, for Mulder to turn to Scully and say "We've been fools, my touchstone!! Let's get married for real! Skinner can be the best man AND he can give you away, Dana!" I think they wanted me to keep writing so this would happen. I knew exactly where I was going with that story from the time that I began "Definitive" and all of the cajoling in the world wasn't going to change that. I was satisfied with where the story had ended up, because it ended both exactly where and exactly how I wanted it to end. Fic audiences don't seem to mind a little experimentation, as long as the story is brought back to a recognizable place. I didn't do that with "Meaning of the Term." Of course, I'm making some vast generalizations here. I did get a lot of feedback from people who really enjoyed what I did in that series. I don't want to ignore them. I really appreciated their feedback. But generally, that series seemed to put my fan base off.

What is your writing process? How do you develop a story?

My Writing Process - It's tough to explain. I'm not even fully aware of it most of the time. I usually start with a single image or idea and build the story around that. For example, the entire Redhead Dancing Girl series came from the image of Scully rummaging through Mulder's filing cabinet. The Meaning of the Term series came out of several attempts on my part to explain my perception of Mulder and Scully's relationship as homoerotic (please don't ask. The story is the best explanation I've been able to manage to date :)).

Also on your web site, one of the recommended links is to the Wicked Witches website. There's been some controversy over the approach of that particular site -- what do you think succeeds on the site, and what do you think of the controversy?

The Witches - I love the Witches because I am terrified that I am going to visit their site one day and find one of my stories eviscerated there. Because anyone can post a story to Ephemeral, because I have seen inferior stories heaped with praise because they were loaded down with sex or contained some gratifying yet convoluted plot twist, the Witches are necessary in this community. I am the first to admit that I am a snob and that my standards for anything that I care about are very high. I have voiced this opinion in several different Phile forums and it is always received poorly. Generally, people tell me that this is just for fun, that I shouldn't be such a jerk, and that not everyone is a good writer. I do agree that fic is pretty much solely for fun. But that doesn't give us carte blanche to post any un-revised, hastily composed story that stumbles off our fingers. No, everyone isn't a good writer and I personally loathe egalitarianism....

That's a really strong statement. There are many who believe that anyone can be a great writer if they only put in the effort and write and write and write. Do you think that's true or is some inherent talent necessary?

I believe that people can become passable writers with lots of practice and instruction. I believe that most anyone can write a fine piece of fic with work and practice. But if we are going to stray into the larger world of Writing then, no, I do not believe that anyone can be a writer. I mean, anyone can write a book or a poem, but there are very few people who can write great books or great poetry. I am aware of the fact that this is a very unpopular/depressing idea. If you don't have an ear for language, no amount of toil is going to change that. It does require some inherent talent. This is only my opinion, of course. Feel free to ignore me or prove me wrong.

...To quote Stephen King: "If it's bad, kill it. In life, mercy killing is against the law. In writing, it *is* the law." Really, when I read a poorly written, unedited story, I am annoyed at the obvious lack of effort and I am also embarrassed for the author who doesn't have the ear to hear that she has just humiliated herself or the good sense to just *not* post a story that was written in 20 minutes at three a.m. In my short career, I have posted ten stories. I have written a substantial part of at least ten others. I think the most important thing I know about writing is the difference between those two groups of ten. As for the controversy (I assume that you're referring to the snit that everyone is in because the Witches aren't very nice), I think that as long as people are allowed to post out-of-character, unedited, poorly conceived fic, that the Witches should be allowed to continue along on their sinister little way. I personally find the former much more offensive than the latter. And, anyway, they make me laugh my ass off. God knows that most writers I know (myself included) engage in that sort of behavior with poorly written fic in private. I'm just thrilled that someone finally had the balls to come out and do it in a public forum.

Do you think there should be some kind of moderation of ATXC for quality?

I am fine with the various lists and pages having no quality control. I don't think there should be, really, because then politics would come into play. It would be all about power plays and people attempting to ingratiate themselves to those who run the various lists and sites (as if that doesn't go on enough already...). Fundamentally, I think that fic should simply be for fun and if someone wants to post, more power to them. I would like to see people being a bit more responsible about what they post, though.

Posting a story that hasn't even been spelled checked and has basic problems with subject-verb agreement and tense shifts is a really bad idea. No one wants to read it and the author has succeeded in humiliating herself.

How do you decide what is "poorly conceived" fic?

"Poorly Conceived" - Pretty much any piece of fic with "Hey! I wrote this in 20 minutes at three a.m. while I was high on NyQuil and NoDoz!!! Isn't it funny how little effort I put into this!? Now everyone e-mail me and tell me what a great job I did anyway!!!" in the Author's Notes is poorly conceived. I have a really low standard, honestly. If it seems to me that the author put even a modicum of thought into their story, I'm fine with it. I may not agree with their version of Mulder and Scully, but that's what this particular genre is all about. Personally, I'm a stickler about characterization. I have my own opinions on how Mulder and Scully "should" act, but they're just that. My opinions. It's all relative.

You mentioned editing and having stringent standards. What's your editing process like? Do you do it yourself or use beta readers, or both?

Editing - I have the most fucked up editing process in the world. I don't even know if I can explain it. It tends to be a bit different for every story. Typically, though, it goes like this - I will write an entire story in one sitting. It usually takes me about three hours, tops. I write whatever comes into my head, speaking the dialogue aloud to hear how it sounds. Very Jack Kerouac, very spontaneous prose. Then I don't even look at the story for about two days, in the hope that I can then return to it and be objective. I never have and never will use a beta reader. I do all of my editing myself. So any mistakes you find (and there are a couple, I will admit) are mine. I go through the story, sometimes cutting out entire scenes, fussing with the dialogue, making the descriptions more exact. If I find myself essentially rewriting the whole story, I scrap it. I save it, though, and sometimes I use pieces of those stories later. Then I read the whole thing aloud, to make sure it sounds right. I'm a violinist, so the best explanation I can give for what "right" means is this - when one is learning how to play the violin, a big part of it is learning how to tune it by ear. A violin is tuned in fifths - each string is five whole steps away from the one higher or lower than it. So, to tune a violin, you have to learn how to hear a perfect fifth. The thing is, it's not something you can explain to someone: you just know it when you hear it. My editing process is a lot like that. I know precisely what I'm listening for. It's the prose equivalent of a perfect fifth. JLB is usually involved at some point; She will read large parts before I post and comment on the strengths and weaknesses. Generally, though, she just heaps me with praise and encourages me to post so she can read the rest.

Do you think this method will adapt to writing longer works, or do you even have interest in writing longer works?

I think that my particular editing system dictates the length that my stories can be. I can see myself writing a longer piece, yes, but it would most likely be done in parts. It's never really occurred to me to write a longer work: frankly, I don't know if I have the time or the patience for it. I have been encouraged to do so on more than one occasion by more than one of my fans, but I never really gave it much thought.

You also mentioned you'll never use a beta reader -- why not?

Zooey's Controversial Opinion of Beta Readers - I could never use one because it's my writing and I am very protective of it. I have never met anyone that I trust well enough to let them have some say in my work. I take feedback from fans and from other writers to heart and I give it serious consideration, but, simply put, I'm just not very comfortable with the idea of involving someone in any of the early stages of writing. I think that learning how to edit my own work goes a long way toward making me a stronger writer. Not that there aren't strong writers who use betas, I just feel as if being able to be judge, jury, and executioner of my own writing really helps me be a better writer.

Do you think that people could read that as a potentially egotistical statement? Do you think your writing can become more compelling without using critical feedback from fellow writers? What do you think some successful authors get out of the beta relationship that you're not interested in?

If I am going to be honest, I don't really care if people read that as an egotistical statement. It very well could be. It's a completely honest statement, though. I am a very young writer. I am still trying to find what I want to say, where I want to write from. Fic has been a part of that search for me. At this point in my development, I need to listen to my own opinions much more than I need to listen to the opinions of others. As I said, I adore constructive criticism, but only after I have finished a story. When I said "better writer" I didn't mean a superior writer in terms of skill or talent. I meant a stronger, more self-assured writer. I need that more than I need interaction with other writers now.

Truthfully, I really don't know what writers get out of their interactions with Betas. I've never done it myself and I don't know any writers personally who use them. I would assume that a lot of it is about getting an objective opinion and boosting confidence. I may be totally wrong. In a nutshell, I think that people should do whatever makes them comfortable when it comes to writing. I am uncomfortable with the idea of a Beta reader, so I don't use one.

It looks like most, if not all, your stories have been written in first person POV. What about that point of view appeals to you?

POV - lol... I never really noticed that my stories are all first person. I don't know... perhaps this implies something really seamy and egocentric about me. :) In light of the fact that I didn't notice it before, I guess the answer to that question is that it must be the most natural and comfortable place for me to write from, since I seem to turn to it instinctually. Also, I really like the characters, and I enjoy the view from inside of their heads. Especially Mulder. I *love* it in Mulder's head. It's a very funny, dark, complicated place.

That's interesting. I guess with the "Sister" part from OBSSE, I figured you to be a Scullyist. Which of the characters do you find easier to write? How does the characterization in your stories compare with what we see on the show?

Scullyism - I thought I was a Scullyist, too. That's why I joined OBSSE. My true colors shone through when I wrote "Elephant Hunting." By then I had already posted under the name Sister Zooey and was already getting some name recognition. I didn't want to mess with a good thing. Besides, you have to admit, it has a nice ring to it. I do still consider myself to be a Scullyist in that I sympathize with her. I find Mulder much more interesting as a character, though. Scully can't help it - she was created to play the straight man to Mulder. He's always going to be more interesting.

Characters/My Writing - I find Mulder much easier to write. I feel like he always has something to say, whereas one has to beg and plead with Scully in order to get her to open her mouth. I feel she's great as an observer, which is why so many of my stories have been from her point of view, but it's very hard to write something for her that gives shape to her character. She's really a cipher. I think this is why there is such a wide range of Scully characterization out there, so much of which is mere projection of the nature of the author. I'm not offering this as a criticism: God knows I've done it when backed into a corner while writing about Scully. But I also thing this is why there is so much (to my mind) *bad* Scully characterization. One can really go in a million and one different directions with her. She doesn't have an overwhelmingly strong personality like Mulder. When one is writing Mulder and he begins to slide out of character, it's immediately apparent. With Scully, one can drift a long way from CC's idea of her on the show before one's inherent sense of her protests loudly against what is being written. Reductively - I think Mulder's character is more defined by what he is and Scully's character tends to be defined by what she is *not* (namely, Mulder). That's why one can go pretty much anywhere with her, and why there is so much debate over accurate characterization of Scully.

I think that my characterization of Mulder and Scully emphasizes aspects of them that we see on the show. My Mulder is very smart, quick-witted, and decidedly an outsider. My Scully is a very thoughtful, self-reliant woman who tends to keep a lot to herself. She's an observer, not a doer.

I think that my Mulder and my Scully are very protective of one another and that they place more value on their friendship and their past relationship than they do on the frequently sexual nature of their relationship. I think a lot of fic authors choose to paint Mulder and Scully in such a way that their friendship is only a stepping stone to the consummation of their relationship. I instead perceive the romantic/sexual aspect of their relationship to be an extension of that friendship.

If, as you've said, poor characterization is a pet peeve for you, what do you do when you find yourself in that corner as a writer?

I start over. It's the quickest way around it. I find it very difficult to back up and begin again from where the characterization went wrong. The whole story is tainted for me once my characterization goes awry.

How did you develop the "Meaning of the Term" series? [Nic] found that series of stories some of the most *romantic* MSR [she'd] ever read, perhaps because it was so subtle. What were you trying to accomplish with it?

That was, frankly, a bitch to write. About five versions exist of each part in the series. There are about three versions of a final part that I never posted (and never will, so don't ask. It sucks, I swear to God. I'm doing all of you a favor by keeping the outbreak contained in my computer). I guess the story began with that line in "Chimera"... Mulder says something about having a significant other, but not according to the "conventional meaning of that term." I latched on to that line. I loved it. The entire series is me playing with that idea. I wanted to unpack all of the implications of their strange relationship and see how it would play out if they decided to act on the sexual aspect of it. I was trying to write the most unconventional MSR that I could manage that still stayed in character (my vision of "in character," of course). I'm really pleased with how it turned out. I love "How Bright It Shows" and "A New Commandment."

What I really loved was that, according to the feedback I received, people either adored them, hated them, or completely misunderstood them. To me, that was a sign that I had done something right. I had gotten people to respond strongly one way or another. I didn't receive a single "I LOVED it!!!!! It was sooooo NEAT!!!" feedback for either of those stories.

Speaking of the show, how are you liking Season Eight? What effect have the twists in the new season had on your writing?

Season Eight (I was wondering when this was going to come up...) - I despise the turn the show has taken. In all honesty, I haven't been able to watch it for several weeks. If there is a Witch reading this, I have a suggestion for you, sister: CC and company are not above reproach. I would like to see if one of the scripts could stand up to the Witches' intense scrutiny. I recall a banner slogan that was floating around for a while - "It's Chris's fic" - which implied that we should have respect for him and the creative decisions that are being made. There's a flip side to that slogan, though: It *is* Chris's fic. And you know what? It's riddled with sloppy characterization, glaring errors in continuity, and laughable plot devices. If it were on Ephemeral, no one would read it and the author would get trashed. So have a go at it, Witches. There's no reason that we have to take what he says as the gospel truth. I know many fic writers and fans who exhibit more care and concern for his characters. I think those are the people who Mulder and Scully really belong to, all legal rights aside.

The Effect on My Writing - I haven't posted to Ephemeral since 28 June, 2000. I think that says it all.

Thank you, Zooey, for your honesty. You can read Zooey's work on her website, at http://sisterzooey.homestead.com/MyFic.html