due South Author Profiles

Author: exbex
Website/link to fic: her lj this way
Fanlore page: right here
First DS fic posted: mid-2009
Full disclosure: exbex and I are mutual flisters. We beta and write for each other, and she profiled me in the last round.
Pairings: Kowalski/Vecchio, Fraser/Kowalski/Vecchio, Fraser/Kowalski, Fraser/Vecchio, Stella/Kowalski.
Other DS/C6D activity: exbex is active in the C6D fandom, including Harper's Island, BSG, Wilby Wonderful and Last Night.
Style and strengths: exbex 's affection for the characters is a particular feature of her writing. This doesn't mean it's all fluff all the time, because she's more than capable of turning the screws, but this just gives her an opportunity to let them flourish under adversity. She'll pack a punch, or cause a tear or a laugh in a handful of words, and she plays angst for despair and for wistfulness. She'll also write comfort!fic to beat the band.

Some favourites:

Epiphanies
I beta'd this fic, and it grabbed me from the start. A series of short character studies, it focusses on one epiphantic and revelatory moment for each major character. Not only does exbex provide canny insights, but she does it from unexpected angles. Frannie's determined pursuit of Fraser is, here, not a ditzy failing but a demonstration of the strength of her personality and belief in following her dreams. Thatcher's antagonism towards Fraser isn't cliched sublimated desire, but has roots in a much deeper issue of chauvanism and respect. I could talk about each of these sections in depth, and at length. Their brevity shows just how well exbex works the snippet format to reveal much in a few, shrewdly-chosen scenes and words.


exbex has a way of writing about Stella that I really enjoy - there's a smart, sassy, passionate woman there, with a sense of humour and depth to her character that can often be neglected in fanfic. Two favourite glimpses of Stella:
The Morning After
An affectionate, gentle (and teasing) look at Stella in her ex-husbands' house one hungover morning.
Because Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History
A realistic and sensual look at Stella and RayK's relationship when it was still good.


It's a good thing we have that full disclosure thing, because I'd hate to look biased, but to round off the set I'm picking another one I beta'd: Ordinary Heroes. Without melodrama, exbex shows us a post-Vegas Vecchio who has given up on himself entirely. Determined that something good should come out of the mess of the past few years, he sets about fixing the rift between Fraser and Kowalski. His own quiet surrendering of his life is subtle and unsettling, and although there's a definite dramatic irony in the sense that Vecchio will find redemption through mending the relationships of his friends, again it's subtle. There are some particularly pleasing nuggets in this, ideas of the practicalities of Vecchio returning to his life in Chicago, what he would do and where he would live. I relish the end: there's no third wheel, and nobody left out in the cold - instead there's a clear foundation for everyone to start rebuilding their lives.