More decisions....

So I've been encouraged to try writing something for a Man from U.N.C.L.E. fanzine. I was pleased and touched for my work to be considered good enough for that, especially since I don't write for the series a whole lot. I thought and thought about what I could write and decided that maybe I could pick up my idea of Illya being stalked by a recovered Mr. Ecks from The Odd Man Affair. I never did figure out how to work it in my drabble series after I watched the episode a second time. Starting the idea fresh sounded great.

I started. It came together very well, and then I decided that I wanted a scene between Ecks and Wye after Ecks and Illya meet and converse. I felt the story would look more well-rounded to see things both from Illya's and Ecks' POVs. I'm a little worried that the scene went on too long and picks apart both Ecks and Wye too much for an Illya-centric fanzine, though. But that's the way I wanted the story told and I don't want it changed.

I decided maybe I'd better try writing something else for the fanzine that would focus more directly on Illya all the way through. So I thought some more and came up with an idea where Illya and Napoleon wander into a haunted house. Ecks is stalking Illya and ends up in there too. At the end, when whatever happens freaks everyone out so much that they flee, Ecks screams and runs out of the house, colliding with Wye. I was so amused by the scene in my mind that I wrote it first and then went back to write the rest in chronological order.

I really kind of wanted something serious for the fanzine, though, and the haunted house fic is coming out humorous. The first fic is a lot deeper and definitely serious. But, still figuring I needed something with a more direct Illya focus than the first fic, I started a third fic.

This one takes place before Illya and Napoleon go home in The Odd Man Affair. They wonder exactly where Ecks' body disappeared to, discuss whether killing him was too extreme, and muse on enemy agents' training versus their own.

I love all of the fics in their own ways, honestly. I'm excited by each one and am anxious to share them all. And I hope the fans will love them too.

Problem is, I'm not very good at having patience when it comes to sharing fics.... It's hard in any case to think of selecting one for the fanzine and knowing that no one other than the editor will read it until May. Once I get a fic done, I really like to immediately post it.

And I wonder about possible edits for content.... I hate to think of chopping up any of the scenes I put in the fics, since they're not just random and they're there for a reason.

Naturally I'll have to learn to deal with making edits, changes, rewrites, etc. that editors want, if I want to ever be a published author. But that doesn't change that it's hard to think of any of the fics not going up the way I originally wrote them to be.

I want to submit something to the fanzine, especially since I already contacted the editor to learn the guidelines and now she'll be hoping I'm coming up with something. The problem is figuring out what to give her. With each new piece, I'm hoping I'll feel more okay about handing it over for editorial scrutiny and the fact that it won't be publicly seen until May. But I keep loving them all so much that it's torture trying to decide which one to part with.

Well, in any case, at least I sure got writing for the series again.

Ah, I think I've got it....

Piece 3 will be my submission, once it's finished. I've written some more of it and am very proud of it. It's serious, and Illya and Napoleon are the only characters who actually feature into it, so there's no danger of a oneshot character gleefully sweeping in and stealing the story, even though they discuss a oneshot character at length.

Only problem is, it's the shortest of the bunch and I'm sure it will remain so when it's finished. But if there's no minimum limit, that should be okay.