Hop on kids, this week’s author takes us for a ride on the feels bus! Meet lyndsaybones. Her tumblr bio may say “I Write” but I’d like to politely suggest an edit to that. Read through her work and you may agree with me that “I weave painful magic that will leave you gasping” or “I write, you cry” would be more appropriate!
Season 8 can be difficult to watch for a lot of Philes, for me, it’s all the things left unsaid between Mulder and Scully that make it particularly hard. So if you need a good cry for all the things we didn’t see, check out these wonderful S8 drabbles. I won’t give away which actually had me in tears or feeling the need to flip the table, but do yourself a favor and go read all of them.
I love anything that tries to make sense of Mulder and Scully’s crumbling relationship pre-season 10 and when I first found “Cling,” it had me clinging to my laptop for another chapter even though I was supposed to be getting ready for work. The state we find Mulder in in the first chapter is both plausible and heartbreaking and I highly recommend it.
One more well worth your time is “In Dreams.” It’s both a WIP and an a/u but don’t let that scare you away. Set in Season 5 just after the end of the cancer arc, it begins with a terrifying nightmare for Mulder that twists into something beautiful that has you questioning reality right along with him.
We talked with lyndsaybones about The X-Files, inspiration, and of course writing!
How long have you been a Phile?
I was a casual watcher in the first and second seasons and got knocked head over heels by Season 3. David Duchovny was my first crush…Gillian Anderson was my second. My youth is tied up in The X-Files and the original run ended just as my days as a kid did. It was very bittersweet but deeply emblematic for me.
What was your first episode?
“Squeeze!”
How long have you been writing fic?
Off and on for 20 years.
What inspired you to start writing?
I’m probably most inspired by an unsatisfying moment that I want to re-imagine or by unresolved moments that I want to complete or understand better.
Who is your favorite XF character to write?
Scully. Definitely Scully. I’m a cradle Catholic and a bone-deep skeptic who has trouble showing emotion, so there’s a lot to relate to there.
Are there any XF characters you dislike or find too difficult to write?
I guess I’ve kind of been avoiding Einstein and Miller…not out of dislike, but unfamiliarity probably?
Is there a story you’re most proud of or that’s a favorite?
I’m really, really proud of “Hebron” and not just because it was exactly 3,000 words. Although, I’m proud of that too.
Where can people find your work, and what’s the best way to send feedback?
I’m on tumblr as lyndsaybones and my email is
Do you take fic prompts from fans?
I’ll gladly take prompts!
Have you written your own original characters outside of fandom?
I have, although I’ve never fleshed out a story I like well enough to keep running.
Anything you’d like to share about your writing process?
I don’t even know that I have a process. I tend to get an idea and let it percolate. I usually tap out a line of dialogue or a moment I want to create and then build from there. Sometimes the initial idea ends up somewhere in the middle of a story or it might even get scrapped altogether because something more compelling or interesting eclipsed it. Sometimes I outline, sometimes I don’t. If I do have a process, it’s messy.
Do you have a favorite author? (fanfic or published!)
I adore Christopher Moore and will read literally anything he writes. Lamb is probably one of my all-time favorite books. I love so many wonderful fic authors that I’d be afraid to leave someone out if I started a list.
Is there any advice you’d give to aspiring writers?
I would say the best thing you can do to write is to read. Read things that are outside your comfort zone, read things that are familiar, read things your friends loved, read things you think you might hate, read, read, read. I find that good writing will have me thinking in prose long after I’ve finished it.I find that slogging through not so great writing keeps me mindful, reminds as I’m writing to think like a reader. So that’s my advice, especially if you get stuck: go read something
Anything else you’d like to share that I missed?
When I was a kid, just absolutely obsessed with this show, I didn’t have fandom. I didn’t even have a computer, let alone internet. It wasn’t until maybe the 6th or 7th season that I got semi-regular access to the message boards and fic and discussions and I was thrilled to find out that I wasn’t the only one who was so thoroughly owned by these characters. The revival brought me right back to those days and I am just so grateful and happy for the creativity it’s fueled and the connections it’s given me.
Thank you so much to lyndsaybones for talking with us!