FlamesRising.com is pleased to present you with the introduction from Whedonistas: A Celebration of the Worlds of Joss Whedon by the Women Who Love Them. This collection of essays was edited by Lynne M. Thomas and Deborah Stanish, and was recently published through Mad Norwegian Press.

Introduction

Lynne’s Story:

You may know me as a Chick Who Digs Time Lords, but I’m also an avowed Whedonista. Although Whedon fandom is not my primary active fandom (that belongs to the Doctor), the Whedonverse has been a part of my life for just about as long.

I mentioned in Chicks Dig Time Lords that watching Doctor Who got me through much of my pregnancy; Buffy the Vampire Slayer got me through oh, I dunno, my whole adult life.

Even though I’ve seen the Firefly series, I don’t think you need to have a background in this part of the ‘verse because of the way the film was constructed. This is a well done balls-on space western that has a tight storyline that keeps you entertained. For the people not familiar with the ‘verse, the film has a great visual introduction into this stark future. Overpopulation used up the earth, so humans sought life elsewhere. Through the miracle of terraforming, we humans pioneered the great unknown into something manageable and majestic. Just like a true Western, there are places that are “civilized” beyond belief, and there are those that are the last of the space cowboys—won’t adhere to Alliance rule, so they’re outlaws.

How did you get into gaming? I began my roleplaying game journey in 1979 when a friend from high school introduced me to a game called Dungeons & Dragons. The game allowed me to use my vivid imagination to create characters and explore worlds where I could carry out deeds similar to heroes from comic […]

Chaos Bleeds is a story based on the second Buffy computer game, written by Christopher Golden and Thomas J. Sniegoski. Buffy fans will recognize the telltale attributes of the Buffy universe in this book, written by James A. Moore.

Hands down, this book is the best gaming fiction I’ve read in a long time. Moore brilliantly use third person narration to accurately depict the Chaos Bleeds’ team of Xander, Willow, Spike, Anya, Faith and Buffy. While the combat was hard to follow due to the fast pace of the book, the material reads well. So well in fact, that you quickly lose yourself in the story.