Nottasha

Name or Pseudonym:
NotTasha -- yes, that's right. Not Tasha... never call me Tasha

Emailaddress:
murh@att.net

Website:
www.nottasha.com for all your non-tasha needs

Where are you from?
I'm from somewhere within the great state of Washington. ’Where’ exactly is a state secret. The location can only be accessed by boat, helicopter, a large crane, mule, or ... car. Okay, by foot too

How did you get into the Mag7 fandom?
Let's see. When the show originally aired on CBS, I caught a couple of episodes, but never managed to stick with the show. Years later, bored, I was poking through fanfiction.net and happened upon Magnificent Seven fanfic. I thought, ”Gee, I kinda liked that show. I wonder if anyone else liked Ezra,” and the rest is history

How long have you been writing Mag7 fanfiction?
Since February 2000 - Hey’s, it’s my fourth anniversary!

How has your writing changed since you first started?
I hope my writing has improved over the past four years. When I wrote my first M7 Fic, I hadn't written anything in years. I was a bit rusty. I think practice has helped. Also, when I began writing M7 Fic, I hadn't seen the shows in years and had only seen a couple episodes at that. My first stories suffer from this. I'd picked up as much fanon as canon. What? Ezra didn't have special relationship with his horse? He didn't know how to pick locks? Josiah never called him ’son’? Vin wasn't claustrophobic? Vin and Chris weren't able to mentally zap instant messages to each other? Really?

Is this your only fandom, your major fandom or one of the many?
This is it, baby

What is it about this fandom that you like?
The fandom is great – very supportive and friendly. And it’s such a terrific fandom to write in. I was shocked by how much encouragement and feedback I received on my first story. Great people.

Did you like the Old West before Mag7 or did that come afterwards?
My parents have always been big John Wayne fans, but honestly... I haven't seen very many westerns. Yes, it's true... I haven't been that interested in horse operas. I have always been fascinated with ghosts towns though, and information about that age. I just hope I get it right.

Did you see the show before you got into the fandom or after, or haven’t you seen the show yet?
I saw the show first, but only a couple episodes. I remember seeing the ads for the show when it first came on CBS and I found something to love in Ezra. I do appreciate a sneaky bastard. I was a little disappointed in how the character was treated on the show. There seemed to be SO MUCH potential for him, but he was always off doing silly little sub-stories that mostly belittled him. I stopped watching because I was fed up with that. After it was off the air, I was strolling through fanfiction.net when I saw that there was a Magnificent Seven category and I wondered if anyone actually liked Ezra. Maybe someone out there wrote a story about him where he didn't end up the butt of the joke. So, although I HAD seen the show first, I hadn’t seen much of it and there was a long pause before I saw any more of it.

What do you think about the show opposed to the fandom? Is the show your main interest and the fandom comes after or the other way around and why?
The show was great, but Fanfiction is the main thing for me. It just keeps expanding and growing. It turned a short lived television show into an entity that lives on today.

What are you working on right now?
I have a couple things simmering... must finish up the Annie Greer saga, and probably could add to the Amazon series or to South Bridge. But I haven’t been able to get into any of that. Right now, I'm just trying to finish up a challenge story, then waiting for the next challenge to be posted. I used to be able to write long drawn-out stories, but find I can't do that anymore. I used to have this one-hour commute by bus. Now that I drive 10 minutes, I've lost that wonderful time for my thoughts to fester. Of course, I like the 10-minute drive. I wouldn't give that up, but there's something to be said about long boring bus rides.

How and where do you write?
Again, that bus ride was a wonderful place for pounding out plots. I do some of the rough writing at work. Yes, between other responsibilities, when it's quiet. I fine-tune it at home, when I can devote long periods of uninterrupted time to it. It usually takes a month to complete a decent length story

What’s the hardest part about writing in this fandom?
Coming up with new ideas. There are so many stories out there. Hell, I've written a lot of stories too! It's hard to come up with something exciting and fun and new and different and important.

Why do you write?
Because it's fun! It's wonderful to create something out of nothing! To build up a whole story and move all those pieces around -- and get others excited about it too. Oh, it's so nice to produce a piece of work that gets other people excited.

What writers do you think you've been influenced by?
Hmmm... let's see. I don't have a favorite author... I don’t draw strong opinions about things usually. Here's some writers that I have enjoyed quite a bit: Steinbeck -- loved his style. Thurber - loved his quirky silly tales and his sometimes remarkably sad stories. Richard Adams - his ability to get into the heads of animals helped me with the Horse Tales. Jane Austin - she writes good girly stories and helped me figure out Annie Greer. Douglas Adams for his pure insanity. Has anyone read Loren Eilsey "All the Strange Hours" or Steinbeck's "The Moon is Down"? Great stuff. Trumbo, Faulkler, Fitzgerald, Remarque, Salinger. "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" is remarkable. Loved it. "I Heard the Owl Call my Name" is probably my most recent 'favorite'... but "To Kill a Mockingbird" has to be my all-time favorite book.

What advice would you offer to beginning writers?
Have fun. Write what you love. When I first started writing M7 Fic, I did so because I hadn't found a story that did exactly what I wanted. I figured I had to be the one who wrote it. So write what YOU like. Write the story YOU would like to read. Have fun with it -- you aren't getting paid for it so you can goof off. Don’t worry too much about it. This is fun stuff.

Where do you get your inspiration for your stories from?
Gee, they come from everywhere. They sometimes start with germ of an idea, an theme, a plot. Sometimes I have one scene and have to figure out how to get there, and where to go after I make it. Sometimes I have an opening. Sometimes I have an ending. Sometimes I have a killer title and have to figure out how to utilize it. My ideas come from everywhere.

Do you read any of the other AU’s (ATF, LB and so on) out there and do you have a favourite?
I don't have a favorite AU. I'll read any of them, as long as they have my favorite guy in them and are well written. Some of the more ’far out’ AU’s don’t catch my interest. I do have a problem with crossovers. I have to really like the other show -- AND have to find a good enough mesh between the two shows. Usually, I avoid crossovers.

What do you look for as a reader of fanfiction?
Good Story, excellent narration, believable characterizations, dialogue that sounds reasonable. I must admit, Ezra does have to play a role in the story. People trying to phonetically spell out everyone’s accent is a laborious thing to read through. And the story has to be formatted for easy readability. Often, I’ve immediately given up on a story without even trying to read it if the formatting makes it all one block of text with no white space.

Do you think there's anything missing in the fandom? Types of stories or certain characters that you'd like to see more of?
Missing? Well, there seems to be less fic coming out these days. I'd like to see more please.

Are there any characters or situations that you don't think you'll ever write?
I prefer to think of the guys as getting along. I don't think I'll be writing a story where they're beating on each other for unfathomable reasons. I won't be writing a sex scene because... well, I'm prude. I won't be writing slash because I don't see the guys that way.

Who’s your favourite character and why?
Care to guess? Yes, Ezra is wonderful. I love his way of speaking, his intelligence, his mannerisms, his sense of style. Everyone drools over his 'tablecloth' scene, but I gotta tell ya -- I love a well dressed man and doesn't he look good in those ridiculous jackets? I love him because he's not entirely good -- he's got this darkness around him. He's a sneak, a snake, and a smart-aleck and not entirely trustable. He's reckless to the point of being suicidal. Perhaps what I like best about him is that he knows exactly how bad he is. I think he's a bit ashamed of himself and wishes he was a better person.

Who’s your second favourite character and why?
I like all the guys for different reasons. They all bring something wonderful to the table. That’s why it’s so good to write about these seven guys. I try to write stories that highlight Ezra and another one of the seven. It’s nice that I can pick the one that would be perfect for that particular tale.

Who’s your favourite bad guy and why?
I suppose that would have to be Ma Nichols. That was one powerful mama!

What’s your favourite episode and why?
Vendetta. What a wonderful story! Wow. There is so much to this.. the knots vs. the rosary... the music... the action... the gunfight... Ezra on that armored wagon! And that other wonderful Ezra scene where he happens past the shop with the poor storekeeper who is being attacked by those naughty Nichols boys. There's that a wonderful moment as Ezra walks by the window and he sees what's going on within.

What’s your favourite story and why?
Oh man, that's a hard one. There are SO MANY! Really, I find it hard to pick. I have found so many wonderful, magical fic. Sometimes I’ll want to read a Hurt/Comfort... sometimes I’ll want something funny. Sometimes I get a jones for one certain story... and tomorrow it will be something different. Sorry, I can’t choose.

Any favourite author?
Couldn't say. There are plenty of them I seek out. One of my problems is that I don’t have very strong opinions about things. Do I like any of them better than the rest? – no, can’t say I do. But, I do my best to harass them into writing new stuff.

What storyline would you most have liked to see in season 3?
I would have liked to learn more about their pasts. I'm sure that Chris had brothers and sisters. What happened to Nathan's siblings? What happened to Josiah's sister? What about Vin and that bounty over his head? What about Buck and his past as an officer of the law? JD had plenty of stuff that needed to be revealed, too. And what about Ezra? Yes, I would have liked to have learned a bit more about our guys. I guess that’s one of the reasons that fanfic has flourished though – there’s so much mystery left to these guys – it leaves plenty of room for writers to play.

If you could change one thing about the show, what would it be?
I would have liked to have seen Ezra get better storylines.
Oh.. I guess that’s it. Thank you for having me. Yes, I know the way out. Good day

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