Meet your new favorite fan fiction author

If you are a millennial, then you probably remember growing up watching Clarissa Explains It All and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. But what you probably don’t remember is that one time that Clarissa and Sam got it on, or the underlying homoerotic tension between Will and Carlton that punctuated episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

You don’t recall these things because they never happened on the shows, but they are exactly the type of sexy story lines you can expect from TGIFanFic, a new Tumblr dedicated to steamy fan fiction about '90s sitcom characters — often in unexpected pairings. 

Kateri Maier is the 29-year-old comedic genius behind TGIFanFic, which we have no doubt will soon become one of your favorite Tumblrs. We sat down with her to talk about what inspired her to start TGIFanFic, the strange world of fan fiction and what outlandish 90s sitcom romances to expect in the near future. 

What are you currently doing as a day job?

Currently, I am looking for a full-time administrative position in film or TV production, and hopefully taking some more improv classes this summer. I also work as a background actor and as a brand rep at various trade shows. 

When did you start this blog and why? 

We started it a few months ago. My friends and I would email stories back and forth, and we finally decided that putting them up on a blog just made it easier for everyone. We also had a lot of spare time on our hands!

How did you get the idea for the blog? Why fan fiction and TV?

It all started when Melissa Joan Hart came out with her tell-all book [Melissa Explains It All]. We (and the rest of America) were very disappointed when the most "wild" story was leaked and it was just about smoking pot. Since we didn't get to hear about a crazy love story between her and Sam [Joan Hart's co-star actor Sean O'Neal] we just made one up to our liking. 

We stick to what we know: we watched all of these shows growing up, so it's easy to imagine these characters in awkward situations. 

Have you always been in to fanfic? It's kind of a weird corner literature and now the web.

Not really. People take it very seriously. The friend who edits our blog does the same work on cheesy erotic fiction. She opened our eyes to a whole new world that would accept our odd stories. 

Where do you get inspiration for your fanfic tales? 

I like to take the forgotten stars or the underdogs of a show, and finally give them the spotlight they deserve, such as the daughter they got rid of in Family Matters. Inspiration strikes anywhere. While writing the Flesh Prince of Bel Air, I really wanted eggs Benedict, and the story practically wrote itself. 

In the digital age, anyone and everyone can be a "writer" or content creator; anyone can set up a blog or website. Do you think this is an overall good or bad thing? Is there too much noise and bad content on the web, or has its accessibility and immediacy translated to more creative content? 

There is a lot of garbage out there (and it will just continue to get worse), but it is good that everyone has the same opportunity to start on a similar platform which allows them to learn and grow as a creative individual at a faster pace. That said, the ability to distinguish between the decent and awful content is an important skill that can shape someone's output.

What 90s sitcom fanfic pieces should we expect in the near future?

I'm almost finished with Are You Afraid of a Poke, based on Are You Afraid of the Dark. I am also still trying to find the right storyline for Seinfeld.

In addition to manning the helm of TGIFanFic, Kateri is a communications graduate and TV enthusiast with an extensive knowledge about Spanx. Follow her on Twitter: @TGIFanFic.

Saya Weissman is a social media manager at Obviously Social. Follow her on Twitter: @SWeissman.