DOB: Oct. 4, 1955 (Sputnik went into space on my 2nd birthday)

Just started writing, which is a radical departure from my usual pastimes. I write for Firefly and Gen 13, which appeal to me for the same reasons: they take a new approach to an established genre and give them a fresh twist. In the case of Gen 13, it’s the teen superhero team; in Firefly, the space Western (yes, there really are a lot of them). Usually these genres treat their characters like cardboard cutouts moved around by the plot; you could switch the characters’ lines around and no one would notice. Firefly and Gen 13 create an ensemble of interesting, complex characters and place them in a mixture of dramatic and everyday situations.

I assume everyone knows the crew of Serenity, but the Gen fandom is much smaller, if no less devoted. It's an easy fandom for a new reader to get into. I wrote these stories assuming everyone is new to it, and anyone taking an interest can get into the story and characters solely from my fics. Note to all the 'Firefly' fans who enjoyed 'Man of Honor' and 'Man of Action': if you read Firefly fic for the reasons I mentioned, give the Gen13 stories a look. Read 'Foxhunt,' or 'Class Reunion,' or 'Bobby's Girl,' or 'A Normal Life,' or 'Lab Ratz' (Chapter 2 of 'Anna the Caterpillar', a sort of story-within-a-story), and I bet you'll want to get to know these people better.

Here's a short list of the principal characters:

Caitlin: every nerd’s fantasy girl. Redheaded, green-eyed lingerie model on the outside; shy computer geek with astronomical IQ on the inside. Her inner monologue is… complicated. Also, she can juggle bulldozers. Not that she ever would; people would stare.

Roxanne: youngest and smallest of the teens, with the biggest chip on her shoulder; she often dresses in revealing or punky styles just for the reaction. And yet, sometimes she seems so level-headed and wise beyond her years, you wonder if there’s a very different girl under the façade. Rox can play games with gravity, and her power gets difficult to control when she’s angry.

Sarah: think Pocahontas in the Disney cartoon. Half Apache Indian, Sarah’s into her family, her native heritage, worldwide social reform, and other girls. She has a strange kinship with the forces of nature, and her favorite trick is zapping people with miniature lightning bolts. But she has other talents, oh my yes.

Anna: the group’s pixyish and awesomely capable little housekeeper and den mother, devoted to her boss and the kids in her care. ‘More than meets the eye’ is a phrase that was coined just for her. Starting with the fact that, strictly speaking, she’s not human…

John ‘Jack’ Lynch: the scarred mystery man who rescued the kids from government ‘custody’, and now hides and protects them. He has issues, and nobody who gets in his way does it twice. But he’s devoted to the kids in his own way, for his own reasons, and he’ll never let them down. Witnessing his special talent in use has been known to produce nightmares.

Bobby Lynch: Jack’s son, a young man with a troubled past; all things considered, it’s scary how normal he seems. Estranged from his father Jack for most of his life (they were separated when he was a newborn, and he thought he was an orphan) Bobby has unresolved relationship issues with his dad and with Sarah, who he’s been crushing on since first meeting. His magic trick is pyrokinesis, which earns him nicknames like ‘Burnout’ and ‘Hot Stuff.’

Eddie Chang: if still waters run deep, this guy must be the Marianas Trench. Nothing gets to him but the sight of Caitlin in a swimsuit. A true horn dawg, he’s constantly dodging Rox, his sort-of girlfriend, in his appreciation of strange. The joker of the group, he sometimes lets his clown mask slip to reveal a keen intelligence. He has the ability to assimilate and transmute things he touches, which makes him a riot at parties.

The Gen13 stories are written in the form of a serial. They are, in chronological order:

Commitments
Anna the Caterpillar
A Normal Life (Unfinished, but only because I may keep adding to it forever)
Foxhunt
Stand and Deliver
Girlz Night Out
Geographical Solution
Measured Response
Girl Talk
If It Looks Like a Duck
Clear the Air
Dear Anna: Advice to the Lovelorn
Bobby's Girl
Skeletons in the Closet
The Game's Afoot (This one can actually be read any time after Measured Response)
Showdown
The Hammer Falls
Family
The Edge of Sanity
Class Reunion
Childhood
Adult Education

Reading them in order isn't strictly necessary, but knowing the story order may tell you where to look for answers to continuity questions. I've been adding stuff regularly, as you can see by my publish and update dates.

If you've read any of my stuff yet, you might think I rate them conservatively. This is a result of my age and upbringing. The first time I said 'damn' in a conversation with my father, he slapped me, only the second time he'd ever struck me. I was nineteen. I don't doubt there are thirteen-year-olds on this site who think even my M-rated stories are kid stuff. So be it. Jack Lynch's wards aren't the only kids growing up too fast these days.

I don't abandon stories. But I usually complete stories before I publish, rather than string them out chapter by chapter; also, I'm usually working on several stories at a time, and not necessarily the next one in line. Both habits sometimes make for a bit of a wait between stories. Among the dozen or so projects on their journey to publication:

Gen 13 Stories

Blinded by Science: IO shows Dan Grissom a side of Kat he never expected. (A. N. I've decided to combine this one with 'Adult Education', so look for updates to that story)

Three Blind Men and the Elephant: Anna gets in touch with all the members of her former research team, and makes a full -and surprising- discovery of her beginnings.

Seduction: Frank Colby only thought he had bad luck with women, until Nicole Callahan came calling.

Race Relations: Anna's sisters are preparing for a war of extinction with humanity. Can she negotiate a settlement?

Hitters Never Prosper: IO contracts a hit from the Angels of Death. Things don't turn out as planned, oh no precious.

Dad and Lad: A buddy-road-trip fic with Eddie, Bobby and Mr. Lynch, inspired by a suggestion from TheJudge2.

Reunions: Sarah takes Bobby to the reservation to meet her folks, and he learns some things about prejudice.

A Walk in the Woods: A Twilight/ Gen 13 crossover story. Don't be scared, I know what I'm doing.

Firefly Stories

A Man of Conscience: What is Shepherd Book doing on Serenity, anyway?

A Man of Principle: Badger-centric. There's more to the little cock-a-walk in the derby hat than meets the eye.

Children of Darkness: Reaver-centric. Approach with caution; therapy is expensive.

I write mostly for myself, but I enjoy sharing. For some reason, my visitors hesitate to review my work. I don't bite. If you did more than a drive-by, and you liked it, drop a line, no matter how brief. If you have a problem with it, drop two. I enjoy praise as much as anyone, but I learn more from people who disagree with me. A simple suggestion from Vettac about pronoun usage caused me to edit half my published stories, and I think they're better for it.

3/29/2009: I've finished Measured Response, the replacement story for Conference. It's not quite the same story. I only hope it leads the reader to the same place.

6/10/2009: Only been posting for six months; just passed the half-million-word mark. Writing is addictive.