"How do I write Skinnerfic?"
by Mary D. Mastrangelo
At the time I began my first Skinner story late in 1995, the A.D.'s background and motivations were as shrouded in mystery as was the Cigarette-Smoking Man's last name. There were few, if any, hints in the scripts, and no clues from the set decorations (i.e., photographs or mementos in his office) to reveal Skinner's personal standards or habits, with the exception of the little "Devil Dog" paperweight on his desk. Therefore, in constructing my view of Skinner and how I would write him, I had to work from the outside in.
I learned from an official X-Files book that Skinner was an ex-Marine, and that Mitch Pileggi patterned his portrayal of Skinner on Mitch's own father, who had been a tough but fair defense department contractor. That information, coupled with the fact that Skinner had reached an Assistant Director's position by his early 40s, showed me that Skinner knew how to "follow the rules", how to let associates have their say without riding roughshod over their opinions, and how to protect the backs of those who served with him or worked under his authority. That Skinner thwarted the Smoking Man more than once to protect Agents Mulder and Scully told me that the A.D. possessed a personal code that didn't bend to expediency or threats. Finally, that he was still solid and fit showed me that he understood and respected his physical abilities. I put the whole package together this way in my story "Shadow and Steel":
"Walter Skinner had never doubted the powers of his body. Disciplined and strong, his muscles had never failed him; the coordination and panther-like grace of his limbs was always at the ready call of his coolly-ordered mind. His physical prowess had become for him an accepted part of his being, as much Walter Skinner the man as his bittersweet-dark chocolate eyes and the rough velvet of his deep voice."
Hmm... sounds as though I like the guy, doesn't it? Well, that's no secret to anyone who knows me, or who has read any of my Skinner tales. Anyway, back to the point. I blended my conclusions outlined above with Mitch's commanding physical presence and fascinating portrayal, and I had my Skinner. He fleshed out more in my mind as I wrote, but I had my basics.
I've written stories since my childhood -- and no, this is not where I reveal my age! -- and I also trained as a classical musician. I think my knowledge of rhythm and pacing appears in the flow of my stories. As for the "nuts and bolts" of how I write, be it Skinner fanfic or op-ed pieces, here's how it works for me:
First I compose paragraphs and sections in my mind. (And yes, this means I have a good memory.) I redo what seems "off" to my mental ear, mentally test the "feel" of dialogue, and adjust the rhythm and flow of the words as I go. I make sure that my characters are physically connected to the scene by writing details about the location, the sights and smells and sounds that surround them. I write about the character's human habits and gestures, i.e., fiddling with a pen, pushing hair out of eyes, etc. (This keeps the characters from becoming "talking heads".)
After that I write my scenes down longhand in notebooks. Sometimes I bypass the notebook and write directly into my computer, but I always return to my pen when I'm stuck. For me, the actual physical motion of my hand as I draw the pen across the paper and form the letters helps my brain smooth out awkward phrasing, fix sentences that are in the wrong place for proper story flow, and so on. I have a sense of writing music with my words, so to speak, so that all the parts of the story blend into the proper whole.
Another aspect of my style came into play when I wrote the "Walter and Mariel" series. When I started this series, the television episode that established Skinner as a married, soon to be divorced, man ("Avatar") had not yet aired, and X-Files viewers didn't have a clue about his personal love life. So I decided to give him a wife and family and provide him a haven of peace away from the turmoil of FBI business and the X-Files. Because of my religious beliefs as a practicing Catholic, I don't believe in writing gratuitous, deliberately erotic scenes. Since I wanted to portray a loving marital relationship between equals, which obviously would include physical intimacies, I wrote the love scenes without sexually explicit language. Personally, I think it's a greater challenge to a writer's skills to be able to portray the romance of such a loving union without getting "anatomical". I think my "Walter and Mariel" series -- for which I received 1996 Spooky Awards nominations in two story categories and most recently nominations in the Wirerims Awards -- is a good example of my ability to write highly romantic but non-explicit love scenes. I recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a good romance/adventure tale! (I'm archived on Gossamer, and a web friend is working out a nice page of my own for my stories.)
There! That's my X-Files fanfiction career in a nutshell. If anyone cares to contact me to discuss my stories or my views on writing, please feel free. However, don't bother to send e-mails that deride my religious beliefs or assert that I have no right to express them through my writing and my style. I have received such e-mails and I handle them as I do junk mail: I hit the delete key.
