Krooela

February 2020

What brought you to the Fifty Shades fandom?

I had never heard of FSOG, and had taken a new job in Iowa which I started in early February 2015, and I kept hearing all the commercials on the radio for the first movie. I googled it, and then downloaded all 3 books. I binge read the first one, and then I finally got a day off from work and went to see it at the theater. I read the other 2 books, and Grey and Darker when they came out...the rest is history.

Can you recall the first fanfic you read and how it made you feel?

I googled FSOG to see if there was a 4th story, and "Meander" popped up. I had no clue what FF was, so I wasn't sure what I was reading but I loved the story, and when I was done, I googled FF to see what it was, and discovered an entire new library of stories.

What attracted you to fanfiction?

Once I figured out what it was, I really enjoyed reading everyone's different take on the story. We have all watched a movie or read a book that didn't end the way we wanted it to, so FF gives a person a chance to get the ending they want!

EL James is on record stating her canon Christian would never cheat on Ana. Thoughts?

I thought about this question for days, and IMHO I do believe he would have cheated. His world was so controlled and ordered, and had been that way for his entire adult life. I had a hard time believing he could give up everything overnight for Ana. I think a few years down the road, after being in a completely domestic lifestyle, married, wife, kids, diapers, etc...that he would get bored and the desires would come back. Plus with every female throwing themselves at him…...I think someone would eventually catch his attention.

You have developed a lovely friendship and collaboration with Snoopylover60. Tell us how you met and how your collaboration works.

DEBBIE IS THE BEST! I was working in Indiana when the 2nd movie came out, and one of the FB groups I joined was Cheatwards, which is her group. There was an author writing a story, which was very good, but English wasn't her first language, and she asked for help with her grammar because she was getting a lot of negative reviews because of the grammar. Debbie volunteered to help her, and I volunteered to help Debbie. We worked on the story together-I would edit the chapters and send them to Debbie to review, and then send them back to the author, and within a day or so she would update the story. I was glad to help, and the reviews started getting better after the re writes were posted.

I had read several cheating stories, and the ones that weren't abandoned almost all were HEAs… I wanted something different where Ana didn't take him back, so since there weren't many out there, I decided to write one...I sent the first chapter of From Ana's Perspective to Debbie to get her opinion, and she loved it, and encouraged me to keep writing, and she agreed to be my pre reader and beta. She even had to send me step by step instructions on how to post it on FF! I am a bit technologically impaired…

When I wrote One Night In Boston, I actually started with the 3rd chapter and worked my way backwards to the beginning. I didn't tell Debbie what it was about, I just sent it to her. I was nervous because there wasn't a story like it out there, and I wasn't sure how it would be received. She again encouraged me to write it and post it, and agreed to pre read and beta it, so I kept plugging away. After the 4th chapter, my husband and I had to hospitalize his mother, and since then we have become her full time caretakers...My free time became nonexistent, and updates were taking over a month for me to post. Writing it was becoming stressful, not enjoyable and I thought about pulling the story, but Debbie encouraged me to keep going. I would get a chapter partially done and hit a mental block, and would send the chapter to her, and she would give me her ideas and inputs, and we would somehow manage to get the chapter finished and uploaded. And boy, she came up with some really good stuff!

The funeral chapter was the most difficult one to write, as we had both recently lost loved ones…several times we both had to take a break for a few days and then go back and work on it again. I was drained by the time that chapter was done. So, Debbie became my co-author, beta, pre reader, and my great friend. I am so thankful to her. I wish we could have met in person when I was working in Indiana. One day…...

You are always friendly and engaging online, which goes a long way in this community. In RL, are you an extrovert or introvert? What do you do to recharge and fuel your imagination?

Oh I am definitely an extrovert-in my line of work I have to be!

I get ideas out of the blue, and when that happens I grab my phone and start talking to my Samsung Notes app...I have so many plot bunnies right now but no time to write….

What do you enjoy most about the Fifty fandom?

I love reading and participating in conversations with people from all over the world. Different cultures have different views and opinions, and it's so interesting to speak with and learn from people from around the globe.

Thank you to everyone who has read my stories, left comments or taken the time to PM me. One day, I hope to have time to follow up on my plot bunnies!