Keviana: Hi! I’m grateful you’re taking time out of your day to talk to us!

Bee.Eh.Vee: No worries! I like to be productive while I procrastinate.

You are rumored to be very possessive of your tv time, as your bio states, “NCIS: LA (do not mess with my Deeks time, I will throw things)”… Tell us how you got hooked on the show.

My Mom liked JAG and I vaguely remember the final season, so when they spun NCIS off, we carried on watching and the same thing happened with NCIS:LA. However, NCIS:LA moved to being one of my favourite shows when they brought on Deeks. I think the humour his character provides balances out the show (as evidenced by Season 4 Episode 9 when he was missing).

For those not acquainted with your fan fiction “Brothers in Arms”, can you give us a quick summary?

Callen and Deeks are put undercover as arms-dealing brothers that were created by Eric and Nell for a cyber-sting that has moved into the real world. Naturally, it doesn’t go smoothly, and what should have been a simple bait-and-trap operation turns into something more dangerous. The chase to capture a group of Colombian guerrilla fighters, an assassin, and Deeks’ sanity takes them through LA, Colombia, and finally Mexico where a long walk in a big desert finally delivers justice.

It’s a fascinating story. What goals did you have in mind when you first began “Brothers in Arms”? 

I don’t think I had completely thought out the whole idea. I wanted to write something creative instead of my usual research work and the first chapter just flowed out. I had the plot up to Chapter 10 planned out (it was supposed to end there) but the twist at the end wrote itself. I grabbed on and wrote the rest of it while flying by the seat of my pants.

My goal was to complete a story! I have the habit of starting a story, jumping to the middle, back to the start, write the ending, abandon it, come back, tweak stuff, and then never finish it. My brain apparently does not function in a straight line. I thought if people wanted more, it would be motivation to complete it.

It’s common knowledge that I am always on the lookout for fan fiction stories that take G Callen’s character through some interesting twists. The fact that you take Deeks and Callen undercover is nothing new. What IS new, in my humble opinion, is that you have them go lone wolf to finish the case, leaving behind their partners. (And Hetty.) What barriers did you have to overcome with Deeks and Callen’s personalities to get them to work together with such determination?

It’s an interesting dynamic, two people who are quite happy working on their own, deciding (together) to work together. I wanted to force a situation where their partners really couldn’t be involved and they were working with less supervision. That opened up the possibility for them to get more in tune with each other’s abilities.

The more I thought about it, the more similarities emerged between them. They have both spent a lot of time in undercover operations, have limited family ties, have a protective streak, and can think on their feet. Yes, Deeks is more of a goof and Callen tends to be more serious, but opposite personalities do work well together.

In the end, the formula was to take two people with similar motivations and skill sets, drop them into an intense situation, assume they’ll fall back on their go-to move (drop off the map and fix the problem themselves) and watch the fireworks.

And, fireworks there were. Would you like to see this platonic partnership played out on the show? Why?

I would like to see it on the show for several reasons. One, their back stories have similar elements and finding that common ground would add another layer to the show. Two, I think Chris O’Donnell and Eric Christian Olsen would portray it well. Three, I would finally get an answer to my burning question: if Sam and Kensi were in a car together, who would drive?

Haha, my guess is it’d be a stand-off! Okay, for us who adore the Callen side of things, tell us how you write him. What Callen-traits do you try to focus on?

As much as he seems to fight the idea of being a part of a team at times, he’s quite good at leading one. There was a lot of planning and being one or two steps ahead required in this story. In that way, he has hints of Hetty in him. He’ll take chances, like the one he took on Deeks’ cover. The other part of his character that I enjoyed playing with was that he has been in the business so long that he must know random people from different agencies scattered across the globe.

Tell us a little about the hilarious sequel to “Brothers in Arms”… Did you mean for it to be so funny?

My personal tag line for that one is “…and then hilarity ensues.”

That story bubbled out during a very stressful October that was followed by a very busy November when I spent a lot of time working with my hands, but my mind was free to roam. And when my mind wanders, it takes some wacky turns.

I cannot be completely serious, which I believe is why Deeks is close to my heart (that and I also style my hair with my pillow), and BiA was getting quite serious near the end. All the wackiness that was being stifled was released in the sequel. Kind of like an escaped un-tied balloon or a hot water heater with a faulty pressure valve (See: Mythbusters).

Are there any future lone wolf episodes currently planned for Deeks and Callen? Any rampaging plot bunnies?

Yes. The villain has been chosen, the early-story hook has been figured out, some scenes are bouncing around my head, but I’ll probably wait until the summer to start writing it. The first chapter picks up a couple weeks following Brothers in Arms: Hetty’s Revenge.

Thank you for making time for us. Glad we were able to catch up with you!

Always! It was fun to do.

Any parting words for aspiring fan fiction writers?

Cannonball in, save the story, and then go back a day later to re-read it. I like starting in the middle because it takes the “empty page/blinking cursor of doom” pressure off.

You can check out all of Bee.Eh.Vee’s writings here: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/4076310/Bee-Eh-Vee
Please note that the next adventure for Callen and Deeks is already in progress: “Fracture Pattern.” Be sure to leave her a review!

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