I wrote this little bit as a response to the May 99 Ter/Ma (now RatB)
Challenge, which asked us to describe our "relationship with slashfic."
To someone not in the know, I've explained how I got into it and why I
read it. Feel free to email me if you have any comments/questions.

This sounds corny but I must thank the entertainment industry (mostly
independent films) for showing me how wonderful and fascinating m/m
interaction could be. I've watched many films (Jeffrey, Johns,
Beautiful Thing, Last Night) in the past where intimate relationships were formed
between two men. This became really apparent in HBO's "Oz" with the
Beecher and Keller story arc, which I saw in September 98. I was so intrigued
by how the relationship formed and how real & honest the emotions were.
Plus how often can one see full frontal *male* nudity on TV at 10pm?! So
being a fan, I went searching for sites on the show, found a webring that
listed a fanfiction site. Figured it would be interesting to read other people's
interpretations of the characters. I had no idea what slash was but
there was a link to it under a B&K pic so I assumed it was good stuff. I
quickly found out what slash meant. I was caught up in an amazing Homicide/Oz
crossover piece that took me a good week to read. I then found myself
wanted more so I followed links upon links--hitting slash on Oz,
Homicide, Due South and the X-Files mostly. All the shows I had a working
knowledge of the characters became my starting point for slash reading. I was
intrigued by the Mulder/Krycek pairing mostly because there was so much
of it! I found ter/ma and just kept going back, first reading the stand
alone stories then moving onward to the longer series stuff. 
	Why do I read it? As I mentioned I like reading the different
interpretations of familiar characters' actions, emotions & lifestyles
and if that means being involved with the same sex--so be it! I like
getting into the characters' heads through those interpretations. I can see
Mulder being psychotic or insecure and Krycek being a dirty rat or a sex
maniac. It's all about perspective. I can see the love the couples have for each
other because the author has given them another fictional life beyond
the screen. Yes, even though these are fictional characters on a television
show, they can have some sort of emotional and sexual side that people
can relate to. Not necessarily the m/m sexual intimacy, but the emotions
behind it all. I'm into the emoting, aren't I? But that's something I'm
struggling with each day, to be more positive and receptive to the many feelings I
have or to ones I get from loved ones. I wouldn't go so far to say
slash is therapy but it certainly can brighten up a dreary day! 
                I've never thought myself to be a creative writer, but
I have been toying with a few M/K story ideas. The ter/ma listserv and
website has helped me gather some courage to let my creativity flow. So
who knows I may be a slash writer one day, instead of a really grateful
slash reader!