XIII first came to the page (and shortly thereafter, the computer screen) more than ten years ago. At first, it was a series of handwritten notes, essentially a semi-therapeutic way for two crazy teenagers to denigrate those they perceived as their enemies, imagine themselves dating and marrying fantasy lovers, and live heroic lives that didn’t seem possible when they were still living under the tyranny of public school rules, hormonal angst, and relationship drama.
Then something happened. The characters took on lives of their own and demanded to have their own identities and a storyline that actually made sense. So as the years went on and those mundane high school classes were left behind, XIII continued to evolve through countless drafts and endless rewrites.
XIII has had stints on various other online sites besides this one. (You can even find old drafts if you search long enough. These are not plagiarized copies; they’re kinda like Easter eggs.) The story has been abandoned for years or months, only to be picked back up when one of the authors developed a brilliant idea or when the characters clamored for more attention (and when they clamor, they clamor loudly).
So if XIII entertains you until you laugh out loud, makes you roll your eyes at how bad it is, shows you that you could write a better story in your sleep or by hiring ten thousand monkeys to clack away on typewriters, or simply burns a couple hours on a boring weekend, then it has done its job.
Thank you for reading, and please make your opinion known in the comments section on any post or page. If you have a more confidential concern, you can send an email to xiii.series@yahoo.com.
The XIII Series 