Many people simply call me Maggie. I recently finished my degree in sociology at the School of Social and Political Sciences in University. I am a lesbian in my early thirties. I am a proud atheist, a cat-lover and an intellectual & political thinker. I am a joyful vegan. I am also very much interested in feminism, especially second-wave feminism.
I love films and shows that feature strong women and/or lesbians. I also love reading feminist books and Lesbian Utopia fiction. In terms of music, I enjoy listening to female singers. I love cooking vegan Asian and Italian foods, and I also love going out with lesbian friends.
As I live in Britain, I write my fiction stories using an UK English spelling. It is easier for me to write this way, and I’m sure American readers can still understand my stories fine. 🙂
I am a new author of Xena/Gabrielle femslash, and I consider myself part of a new wave of Xena: Warrior Princess fans. I watched the show a little when it was on TV, but (unfortunately) never really paid serious attention to it until I bought the XWP DVD box-set in 2009 (after friends’ recommendations of the show). I completely fell in love with it. I loved the way Xena fights the good fight and cares about Gabrielle’s well-being (For instance, see Rebecca Hall’s important Whoosh! article; my favourite article on XWP). I became a hardcore X/G subtexter and femslasher.
I totally loved detecting the Xena/Gabrielle subtext on XWP. Thus writing and reading X/G femslash is a way for me to deepen the subtext, and explore the beauty of this warrior/bard relationship in further depth. I totally hated FIN and some elements of the (Season 3) rift, and I tried (as a writer) to heal some wounds through writing follow-up to those XWP stories.
Please do not call my stories that contain lesbian love scenes “pornography;” I myself certainly do not view them as such. I rather view my explicit stuff as some sort of romantic erotica, because there is always respectful lovemaking (at least to me it is) with a lot of love and feelings involved and it is non-degrading to the characters involved (which is why I don’t view my stuff as ‘porn’ but as romantic erotica). And yes, there is a difference between the two.
My favourite XWP episodes are: One Against An Army, Ides of March, When Fates Collide, Remember Nothing, A Day in the Life, To Helicon and Back, the Rheingold trilogy, The Greater Good, The Quest, A Necessary Evil, Is There a Doctor in the House?, Callisto, A Family Affair, Between the Lines, Endgame, Paradise Found, Altared States, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Blind Faith, The Deliverer, Sacrifice (1 & 2), Lost Mariner, Tsunami, Destiny, Forget Me Not, Fins, Femmes and Gems, If the Shoe Fits, Fallen Angel, The Abyss, Legacy, Many Happy Returns, Seeds of Faith and Chakram.
My favourite XWP seasons are probably Season 2 and Season 6, but I also love Season 1 in terms of action and Season 4 in terms of subtext. I love all seasons anyway (yes, even Season 5; it had great action and I could still find a bit of subtext here and there).
Here are my favourite quotes from the XWP show:
“… you’re my source, Gabrielle. When I reach down inside myself and do things that I’m not capable of, it’s because of you.” ~Xena, in One Against An Army.
“Even in Death, Gabrielle, I will never leave you.” ~Xena, in One Against an Army.
“Xena and I have a connection. It’s stronger than either one of us. We’re soul mates… There’s more to being a warrior than skill. There’s fighting for what you believe in, for people that you love.” ~Gabrielle, in The Ring.
“With each battle, I lose more of myself.” ~Gabrielle, in To Helicon and Back.
“War’s tough on us all, Gabrielle.” ~Xena, in To Helicon and Back.
“I am the truth of who you are. Our souls are united, Xena.” ~Gabrielle, in Return of the Valkyrie.
“More of us may die today, but the Amazon nation… It will live on forever. That is the duty that we carry, and the everlasting honour that we will hold.” ~Gabrielle, in To Helicon and Back.
“Watch me, I have many skills.” ~Xena, in Ties That Bind.
“You like shoving women around so much? Try me.” ~Xena, to a soldier, in The Black Wolf.
“Go home. There are thousands more like me!” ~Xena, to the Persians, in One Against An Army.
“I want you to know that I still think you are the best thing that ever happened to me. You gave my life meaning and joy– and you will be a part of me forever.” ~Xena, to Gabrielle, in Sacrifice 2.
“Gabrielle, you were the best thing in my life.” ~Xena, in Ides of March.
“Xena, when I’m with you, this emptiness that I have felt my entire life is gone.” ~Gabrielle, in When Fates Collide.
“[Fates: Burning the loom will destroy everything] So be it. Your loom destroyed what was meant to be.” ~Gabrielle, in When Fates Collide.
My all-time favourite Xena/Gabrielle femslash stories are: Heaven Down Here by Rebecca Hall (this is my favourite first time story ever!), most of Rebecca Hall’s stories (incl. Wildfire and Her Gabrielle: A Response), most of BL Miller’s stories (incl. The Show, A Lazy Loving Morning, The Cloak, Ulysses Revisited, Cards Anyone? and The Treaty), most of My OSage’s stories (incl. Beyond Melosa’s Shadow, Gabrielle’s Dream, Aphrodite’s Gift, Another Amazon Princess and Why are you here?), Patricia L. Givens’ stories (esp. The Kiss, The Labrys, Life From Death and Heart of a Warlord); A Fine Line by Jenbob, Sleepyhead by Dana Cory, Best Friend by Katelin B., Her Gabrielle by Della Street, The Wedding Night by Seska, Closest to Heaven by KR Brendan, Unexpected Touch by Big Kat, Creative License by Grrl Writer, Lessons Learned… Or Teach Me Some More by Pink Rabbit, The Real Thing by Vertigo, The Secret Scroll by Wolvie, Alone, At Last, Again by Wordsmith, Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace by CN Winters, The Stoic Warrior by ArdentTly, Kissing Gabrielle by Annmaray, Illuminations of the Soul by Cousin Liz, A Half Moon Before and Two Summers After by Portia Richardson, The Magical Orb by Mil Toro, Anything by Suzar, The Queen, The Regent, The Warrior by CN Winters, Two Hearts, One Whole by Jamie Boughen, You’re it by Sara, Peaches and Cream by Jenx, Vacation Time by Moonwarrior, and Sweet Desire by Cris. You will find links to all those delicious X/G femslash fanfics linked to my website on this page here.
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Apart from XWP/Outside the Xenaverse:
My favourite (non-lesbian) films are: Resident Evil trilogy (with Milla Jovovich, only the first three films in that franchise), Ms. 45, Born in Flames, Chaos (French film by Coline Serreau), Provoked, Panic Room, Thelma and Louise, The Brave One, Double Jeopardy, Enough, Fried Green Tomatoes, Girl Interrupted, The Accused, Puberty Blues, Volver, The Quiet (lesbian subtext in this one), Girls Town (90’s film), The Burning Bed, Extremities, Dolores Claiborne, Underworld: Awakening, the Alien film franchise, Dark Water (Japan), Pulse (Kairo, Japan) and Ringu (Japan).
My favourite lesbian movies are: Show Me Love (a.k.a. Fucking Amal, Swedish film), Eloïse (a.k.a. Eloise’s Lover, Spanish film), Kyss Mig (a.k.a. Kiss Me, Swedish film), Spider Lilies (a.k.a. Ci Qing, Taiwanese/Chinese film), Love My Life (Japanese film), When Night Is Falling, Desert Hearts, Finn’s Girl, The Chinese Botanist’s Daughters (Chinese film), Butterfly (a.k.a. Hu Die, Hong Kong film), Aimee & Jaguar (German film), Pariah, But I’m a Cheerleader, Itty Bitty Titty Committee, Fire (Indian film), I Can’t Think Straight, The Journey (Indian film), Fingersmith, Saving Face, Amour de Femme (French film), Water Lilies (French film), Clara’s Summer (French film), Bound, Loving Annabelle, and Claire of the Moon.
My favourite books are: Feminist non-fiction literature (first and foremost). In terms of fiction, I love: The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Curious Wine by Katherine V. Forrest, Choices by Nancy Toder; some Lesbian Utopia fiction: The Female Man by Joanna Russ, Daughters of a Coral Dawn (and sequels: Daughters of an Amber Noon & Daughters of an Emerald Dusk) by Katherine V. Forrest, Ammonite by Nicola Griffith, A Door into Ocean by Joan Slonczewski, The Wanderground by Sally Miller Gearhart, and the Holdfast Chronicles saga by Suzy McKee Charnas.
My favourite music artists / singers / bands are: Collide (band), Heather Nova, Evanescence, K.D. Lang, Uh Huh Her, Melissa Etheridge, Milla Jovovich, Flyleaf, L7, Vixen, Le Tigre, Icona Pop, t.A.T.u., Ani DiFranco, Alanis Morissette, Delta Goodrem, Nightwish, La Roux, Tegan & Sara, Ladytron, Bonnie Tyler, PJ Harvey, Sinead O’ Connor, Tori Amos, Kidneythieves, Portishead, Neneh Cherry, Lauryn Hill, Pat Benatar, Robyn, Kelly Clarkson, The Bangles, Sade, Alisha’s Attic, and many more…
maggielassie's Xena/Gabrielle femslash 