Frienz/Issues 07-08
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Frienz is a gen and non-explicit slash Starsky & Hutch letterzine.
They contain letters, want ads, con reports, clippings, flyers, and occasional fiction.
Issue 7 (December 1989)
Frienz 7 was published in December 1989 and contains 24 pages.
- TOTM: Holiday stuff. C'iron [B], send us that Hanukkah story! Also, Zcon reports, song lyrics, vignettes, and, of course, comments on the S&H XMAS episode, LITTLE GIRL LOST.
- the editor notes that 20 issues of this letterzine are to UK subscribers
- "A S/H Christmas, (or 'Fowl Play')" fiction by Betsy Barr
- "Vingt-et-un," fiction, part 5 by Terri Beckett
- "Teeny/Tiny/Tenders" for season three by Maria Farina
- "Answers for My Lonely Soul," poem by Pat Massie
- "No Apologies, No Cigar," poem by Lucy Cribb Walk
- "Rebuttal," fiction by MRK, another in the "P.O.V." series in which Starsky and Hutch write letters to fans/readers explaining why they act like they do
- an ad for Zircon, an ad for RevelCon
- a long con report for ZCon #9 by Ruth Kurz
- other recollections of ZCon
Issue 7: Sample Fan Comments
From the editor:
Frienz, I need your help. I need to know if you want this publication to continue. I need feedback. I need response. I need letters. Without you, FRIENZ CANNOT continue.As you can see, the format of this issue is a bit different. This change not only shows just how few letters we received, but also highlights this fine story by B. Barr. This lovely holiday moment breaks our non-"/" policy a bit. It is not graphic, however, but it is definitely "/". So, if you don't enjoy that premise, read ahead to the next contribution....
Well, that's enough begging. I've prostrated myself enough before the altar of your neglect. (Grovel, Grovel) I'm committed thru issue #9. And, I need more than those regulars (ie. Farina, Davis, Beckett, [MRK]) to make this baby viable. I've received locs and renewal checks that say you like to read FRIENZ, but without the contributions...YOURS...in the form of a LOC, VIGNETTE, CARTOON, ARTICLE, OPINION, SUGGESTION, GRIPE, SNIDE REMARK, INSULT, LETTER BOMB... these pages will become blank, silent, and cancelled. I'd really hate FRIENZ and S&H FANDOM to become the dead letter office, wouldn't you?
A fan is puzzled:
The 'violence' that so many mundanes associate with S&H always puzzled me -- I still have the correspondence from the BBC 'explaining' why they would not be showing THE FIX or the other three 'banned' episodes. Their reasons didn't make any sense to me then, nor do they now, when the screened violence has escalated to a point when the most 'violent' S&H scene would be mild by comparison.
Issue 8 (March 1990)
Frienz 8 was published in March 1990 and contains 20 pages. At this point, the letterzine has just under 50 subscribers.
- "I Am More Desirous of the Passionate Embrace of Life Even Now as I Decay," poem by Pat Massie
- "The End of Love," fiction by Leah S.
- untitled vignette by Jackie Wagner
- "Vingt-et-un," part six, by Terri Beckett
Issue 8: Sample Fan Comments
From the editor:
Hello to all of you out there and many thanks for the great response to the editorial letter last issue. I've heard from some new voices and from some new subscribers and also from some old-timers. This all made me feel like you really do like me. Okay, so I sound like Sally Field, but I was definitely having editor angst there around Christmas/Hannukah. From your response, I feel inspired to carry on this project and am committing to ISSUES 10-11-12. I think there are still things to say, not only about SH, but about ourselves as fans, as writers, as readers, and as women. Your renewals will show me how interested you are in the future of FRIENZ.... FRIENZ, WE HAVE VOICES... LET'S USE THEM. Let's talk about who we are, what we like, what we think, what we read, what we watch on video, what we listen to, what we care about... WHO WE ARE.
A fan writes:
I have not read such a splendid grovel (as demonstrated by ye ed) for many years. Very touching it was. I was immediately stricken with guilt and had to go and lie down for half an hour. Of course, Pat is quite right. If we want to want to see Frienz continue then we do. have to contribute although, to be fair, those who do not write letters are making a contribution simply by having a subscription to the letterzine. It would be just as unsatisfactory if fourteen people wrote letters but those same fourteen people were the only ones to be buying the zine. All the S&H letterzines over the years have been entertaining, thought-provoking and instructive. But, more than the sum of those things, they have kept members of fandom in touch with one another and that has to be the most important thing of all. For that reason alone I should like to see Frienz continue, and I hope that it receives enough support to keep it going for a few more issues at least.
The lack of feedback from two perspectives:
I confess! I am one of the non-writing culprits. I feel horribly guilty, and will commit ritual suicide as soon as I finish this letter, okay? There's no why except terminal laziness. I still love the boys, I still love to get Frienz, and I just haven't been doing my part lately. That's why Terri doesn't have an NEA LOC from me yet. I kept wanting to do a good job of it, I was going to reread it to refresh my memory, and well, you know.... It's not just a distance problem either, Carol and Merle are local, I loved Shadowplay, but I haven't written yet. As to [M's] question of why or why not LOC's, I can tell you from an author's and an editor's POV that they are wonderful. By whining continuously, we managed to elicit fewer than ten LOC's on Lifeline. We had a print run of 150. Nonetheless, the responses we got were encouraging, and most went into a deeper analysis than "I liked it," we were very pleased to pass these along to the authors.
Some encouragement:
Oh, Lawd, I can't stand it! The thought of Pat waiting fruitlessly beside her mailbox in the bleak midwinter... Move over, Tiny Tim! Please, please, PLEASE everybody write letters? Then Pat will die happy, crushed under the weight of our deathless prose as it pours from the postman's hands. Do we WANT a l/z? Well, yes, naturally, it goes without saying, or we wouldn't be buying this, would we? I guess the question has to be What are we willing to do to keep it going? If your answer, like mine, was 'just about anything', then FRIENZ is gonna continue into the new decade with lots of new correspondents. Okay?... Or do you really want to read a skinny little l/z every time? Huh?... It has been often said that you get out of fandom as much as you put into it. This isn't strictly true -- I've certainly got far more out of fandom that I could ever have contributed -- but let's face it, no one likes to write into a vacuum. Without l/zs, Cons, LoCs, without FEEDBACK, fandom withers. It doesn't die, not while we hoard our tapes and zines and dreams, but it can't flourish. I want it to flourish. We all do, don't we? Well, it CAN'T without YOU.
The author of the Vas & Dex stories has been encouraging fans to write her distributor about a story, but isn't getting the response she wants:
Also, as Jody reports a dearth of interest in SOMETHING ON ACCOUNT, anyone who wants it had better write direct to me, then I can see if it's worth putting my private fantasies down on paper!
Regarding LOCs:
There's a lot to be said for LOCs. Next best thing to direct, face-to-face discussion, and in some ways, more satisfying than reviews. They serve different purposes, but the scope of an LOC may offer more immediacy. Reviews may require more concise, abbreviated treatment: LOCs can spread themselves, enter into more detail and dialogue (hopefully) between writer and reader. Reviews are fine — especially when everyone is clear that they can be no more and no less than one person's opinion among any number of valid opinions. A' review' which(a) summarizes story-line and (b) indicates reviewer's preferences doesn't make the most interesting reading or take us very far. Reviewing makes big demands—if it is to be competent - concerning adequate terms of reference. Could mean there's even more to be said for LOCs.
Some shame has been successful:
You've shamed me into writing at last. I have been part of this fandom almost from the beginning, and my conscience tells me I've not been playing fair recently, in failing to contribute in any material way...Personally, I would prefer FRIENZ to continue as a letterzine, or at least with part devoted to letters. Some fiction is always welcome (thank you, Betsy, for the lovely Christmas story in this issue), but letters are a way of snaring thoughts, ideas, reminiscing about the episodes and finding new interpretations of certain scenes and aspects of the characters.
Clearly this can only work if people actually write letters, and I'm hanging my head, and endorse every one of the points made in your editorial.
Obviously we have all become too complacent, too ready to sit back and enjoy, leaving the participating to others. I would hate to see the l/z fold, and can only hope others will have been stirred into action, and put pen to paper.
Feedback and letters of comment:
Yes, those who create, no matter how insignificant others believe the creation to be, like a little feedback.In the case of fandom's response to said creations we're talking about LOCs.
No, I am not going to scream and shout; I am just as guilty as the next person when it comes to not sitting down and writing to a zine ed. Merle and I got no LOCs on 'Good Kisser', nor did we expect any. When I got promises from people at Zebra that they would send LOCs for SHADOWPLAY, my natural instinct was not to hold my breath. Luckily, I didn't.
I will not pretend that no LOCs trickled in, we did get 5. I suppose we should be thrilled. Now, in case no one knows what happens to LOCs when a zine editor gets them — this is the accepted route. They are xeroxed and passed on to the contributors (unless there is a notation that the LOCer wishes otherwise). They don't even have to be signed. The reason LOCs are important is not so much the fact that the editors see that fandom is completely indifferent to their work if they don't get any, but it is usually the only way the authors get any feel for what those reading their pieces thought about them. How else can they judge what people are interested in reading? How will they know if they're on the right track? Why the hell should they bother to continue writing if no one cares?
Will there be a SHADOWPLAY 2? I doubt it. We're doing 'Flesh Wound' not only for the fun of it, (there isn't that much work involved in an unedited publication aside from typing), but we're hoping to make up some of the money that we lost in our larger zine. Profit? I dare anyone to find one.
Speaking of 'What Do You Mean It's Only a Flesh Wound', we have three stories so far. Our deadline is the Ides of March. If you'd like to see this thing published, some of you might think of submitting some stories. We've badgered all the folks in our immediate area and gotten promises, (and that's as good as the story in hand), but we'd like to hear from some of you other authors out there. In case anyone missed our ad in SNITCH, this is going to be another FRIENZ size, unedited goodie. Will you get to read an LOC on your work? Well, I won't promise a thing.
A fan wants the letterzine to get more tribs, but is feeling worn out:
I want to see FRIENZ continue. To keep Pat happy (and too busy to get into any trouble!). To continue a letterzine in fandom. But do I want to do what it takes (write in) to keep it going? In all honesty, not really. I'm at a "passive" stage in this fandom... I still like to read what's being said, but I don't feel any urge to write in with my own opinions. Since I "Captained" the S&H Apa for over a year, I do know how frustrating it is to try to keep something going with few contributors. The obvious problem with S&H fandom is that there's noting new coming out, and neither of our beloved actors are doing much acting in other new things, either. Since most of us have been involved in this fandom for some time, this means we've run out of much that is new or insightful to say. In my own case, I've also had a resurgence in my love of my first fandom, Star Trek, this past year, and added to lots of stress at work, I generally only have enough time to feel much real involvement in one fandom, which is ST for me, for now. I'm sorry about it, because there are lots of wonderful women in this fandom, but that's how things are from my perspective.
Where's Penny Warren when you need her? Or, maybe what this letterzine needs is some fighting to perk things up?
By the way, Pat, I don't think it's your breath, interest waning, or fandom being dead. The problem is we don't have a Penny Warren. What you need is to get someone to say something so off-the-wall that no one can resist writing in to explain in long and loving detail why said person is an idiot and an asshole. In all probability, neither side will be right, but you can have a really good fight. Nothing perks up a letterzine like vengeance, hatred, and vitriol.Don't like that idea? Then why not try a prize for the letter with the most typos. Maybe a free issue or the movie rights to" Judge and Jury". My question is: is there anything left to write a letter about? After the original SH Letterzine, Between Friends, the Times, Hanky Panky, Intermission, and any other letter-type zines that I've omitted, do we have anything left to say in this form?
It seems most of the original ideas are being crafted into stories — which is good, I'm not knocking it. Thankfully we've gone beyond the do-they-don't-they, anti and pro slash arguments that were a trademark of years gone by. But what are we going to replace them with? If the Dreaded SH TV Movie ever comes about, I'm sure that will engender some discussion, is there an interest in re-re-hashing the episodes? What do people want to talk about? What kind of letters do people want to read? Why have I rambled on for so long and not given you any answers?...