Let me tell you a little story.....

I hated slash.  I thought it was dirty, filthy, horrible and disrespectful to *NSYNC.  I couldn't imagine that anyone would want to read it because all the fans know that the *NSYNC guys aren't gay.  I thought that only gay guys would want to read and write it and I didn't particularly want to partake in their seamy fantasies about Justin (he's *my* happy place).

Someone I don't recall (but THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!) told me to check out a website that had some very good slash stories or "gay erotica" that I would like.  That is how I discovered a little corner of the internet where Nsyncgrrl resides.  As I waited for her site to load, I just didn't *get* why people, who weren't gay men, would read or write this stuff.   I read a few of her stories out of curiosity.   Well, let me tell you!  A few stories later, I was hooked.  I was a goner.  Now, more than half of the stuff I read is Slash.

While *I* myself haven't written any (yet), I found someone who loves to read it as much as I do and even writes it pretty well.  So, I'ma spotlight her in my slash section.

What follows here is something I was sent that attempts to explain this slash thing.  I hope it helps!  If not, email me and I'll give you some more food for thought.

Lindsey is the author of this essay that follows:
[I reprint this with her permission--thanks Lindsey :o)]

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Why Slash Fiction Is Better Than Non-Slash

Fanfiction appeals to many different kinds of people. From pre-
adolescents to adults well into their twenties. Girls and guys alike
prefer this writing style over all others, as well. What makes it so
wonderful? You're putting someone just like you and me, a normal,
everyday, run-of-the-mill person into a fantastically realistic
setting. Placing them with a popstar. How much more wonderful can you
get? You're making a connection with that famous person, that person
you adore, and saying that maybe...just maybe...you have a chance.
But, greater still, is the notion that perhaps, the popstar could get
together with...another popstar! Oh the ideas that come rushing to my
mind...and what two better people than the beloved Justin Timberlake
and JC Chasez...or Lance Bass and Joey Fatone...Nick Carter and Brian
Litrell (before he got married, of course) the possibilities are
endless! But, you may say, EV: why in the world would I want to read
homosexual fanfiction! Oh the horror! But, ah, it is not so, little
grasshopper, let me tell you a story...

Slash fanfiction has become rapidly popular...why? I think I have
discovered the secret. Sure, the characters are wonderful: a lusting
JC, an oblivious Justin, enter one evil villain and you've got the
next bestseller! Ah, but then you add some great plot turns, a few
surprise cliffhangers and...ohhhh the things that can be done! But
just what makes it so special? I can read great cliffhangers with
interesting characters at FictionLyn, can't I?? Well, here's what I
have discovered:

There's a passion. A raw, lusting, passion, that undermines in every
great slash story. The need of one person to be with another that is
totally absent from most heterosexual fictions. When JC longs for
Justin, it can't help but pull at your heartstrings. That is what
makes a great slash story...that, and to the extent at which the
writer develops it.

There's another element that must be implemented correctly in order
for a story to be great. The writer must portray the characters in
such a way so that, even though JC and Justin might be gay, it does
not make him any less of a man. A Justin that goes walking around
saying "Oh honey that just sooo isn't your style" is not going to be
very realistic. The great stories are the ones that show just how
sexy they are, and just how much they care for eachother. When JC
gazes at Justin with that wistful look in his eye, admiring the great
creature that he is, all I can do is sigh. It's so refreshing to read
such a loving, beautifully written story.

Now, you can read this and take what I say into consideration,
believe me or not, but, mind you, I would like to say I know what I'm
talking about. I just get slash. I understand. And I'm not gay. So I
guess that makes me pretty dern special.

I know that they're not gay, but...what if..........

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ADD ON: (This is not part of the original essay) The other night, I
was lying in bed, contemplating, as I often do. I was particularly
entranced by these two posters I have, one of Justin, and one of JC.
Seeing as though I am a somewhat new-comer into the whole slash
thing, I started thinking, again, about what makes it so awesome. And
I realized that in my essay I had failed to mention one of the most
obvious answers of all:

Justin and JC are damn HOT.

I know we all know this, I'm just re-stating it for emphasis. And
it's not like I just up and realized it. I realized it a long time
ago. But it just adds to the effect, ya know. Two really hot guys are
way better than two really ugly guys, or a hot guy and an ugly girl.
It's just nicer that way.

When you set a slash story into the *NSYNC situation, it becomes so much more than just  slash.  Justin, JC, Lance, Joey and Chris are good friends and know each other better than anyone.  In many of the stories, they have an image to upkeep and fans to consider, so the desperate feelings that bounce around their buses and hotel rooms seem to magnify the loneliness they already feel.  The longing they have for each other seems also to mirror my own.  They seem to see each other through the same eyes that I do, yet have an actual history of friendship and brotherhood to build on.

The sweetest stories I've read have been slash.  The sweeter the story, the more I like it.  The stories Nsyncgrrl writes about Justin and Lance make my heart physically ache.  She has Lance thinking the same things *I* think about Justin.  She has Lance loving Justin the way that *I* want to love Justin.  They treat each other with friendship, love and respect and it radiates off the page.

Sure there's sex but many of the best stories don't even go into the details.  What's important is the way they feel about each other and how that longing comes to life on the page.

I'm gushing here, but I know this is a controversial area and I wanted to get my two bits in before the hate mail starts rolling in.