commented this on a recent sydcarmy fic but i just think it’s funny that if you think about it….

Sydney is Y/N.

Carmy is a celebrity (i think) chef who she has admired since he made the best meal she’s ever had. followed his career, actively defends him to Richie, possibly had a celeb crush (👀?).

She literally manifested working with him. Not only that but unbeknownst to her became the object of his affection by simply being herself?

this is like straight out of a corny wattpad boy band member fic. i love it

OUT & ABOUT: ARSHT LIVE @ SEASPICE FEATURING DEBORAH COX

By Michael Bustamante

From hit musicals such as The Bodyguard, Aida and Jekyll & Hyde, get ready to experience Grammy Award-nominated and multi-platinum R&B/pop recording artist and actress Deborah Cox like never before at Arsht Live @ Seaspice. Deborah recently teamed up with legendary director Richard Jay-Alexander to work on a new show for her. On January 31 at 7 p.m., Deborah’s fans will get a sneak peek along with the world premiere of her latest song produced by American songwriter and producer, Desmond Child. Attendees will also get to hear amazing Broadway covers, some of Deborah’s biggest hits, personal stories from her career along with many more surprises. Part of the proceeds of the performance will support the Arsht Center’s arts education programs that help more than 55,000 Miami-Dade children and their families annually. Tickets to Arsht Live @ Seaspice featuring Deborah Cox can be purchased by visiting arshtcenter.org

Wire Magazine sat down with Deborah Cox and Richard Jay-Alexander to preview the intimate performance.

Deborah Cox

Michael Bustamante: You’ve had an incredible career, tell us about some of your favorite high points so far. Deborah Cox: I would say being able to travel all over the world performing my songs – definite highlights! Accolades are great and nominations are great too, but the connection with the audience on many stages becomes some of the most memorable moments. From Mardi Gras in Sydney, Australia to the audiences on Broadway. I’ve been fortunate to be able to still be in this game, doing what I love to do. Longevity has always been my goal and motivation. 

MB: What can Wire Magazine readers expect from your upcoming performance at Arsht Live @ Seaspice? DC: An intimate show, with personal backstories that I’ve never shared publicly. Richard and I are still working through the larger narrative for the full show, but this will give you a glimpse into what’s to come and into what makes me tick. 

MB: I was blown away by your performance in The Bodyguard, will we hear some songs from the musical as well as Aida and Jekyll & Hyde? DC: Thank you! Yes, I plan on revisiting those songs from Broadway. Those were such magical moments for me. Aida was my debut on Broadway and that was the moment that reminded me of why I wanted to be a performer. 

MB: What do you enjoy the most about performing live onstage? DC: I love the connection with the audience. I love exploring different musical styles and seeing the reaction from the audience, especially when they hear their favorite songs.

MB: What have been some of your favorite fan interactions throughout the years? DC: The personal stories from people who have come out to my songs are humbling and serves as a constant reminder of why I should continue to do what I do. There’s a whole generation of people that are fighting against a system to be their authentic selves and they’ve told me that my music has been instrumental in that fight. 

MB: Are you working on any upcoming collaborations or projects that we should be aware of? DC: I’m currently working on a new album. I’m very excited about new music! 

MB: This event supports arts education. Why do you believe access to the arts is important – especially for young people? DC: I think it’s important to continue to give the young people an outlet. It’s also important for us to give them the support they need to thrive. 

MB: Is there anything else you’d like to share with Wire Magazine readers? DC: Thank you all so much for the support!! 

Richard Jay-Alexander

Michael Bustamante: Tell us about your newest project with Deborah, and the exclusive sneak peek to come January 31st. Richard Jay-Alexander: Well, we’re pretty excited. This is a great opportunity that the Arsht offered us to raise money for their program. On the 31st, those who attend will sort of be right in the middle of our work for building this new concert tour we’re working on. You’ll see the Deborah Cox that you want and you’ll see a Deborah Cox you didn’t even know about. So, my byline has been, “If you think you know Deborah, think again." 

MB: What can we expect from Arsht Live @ Seaspice? RJA: First of all, the environment at Seaspice is beyond glamorous. It’s really conducive to this kind of informal Deborah talking about the work, and where she’s headed. And there are going to be a couple of world premiers, I mean real world premiers. A song by Desmond Child, called “Stronger Than a Man” and we’re going to do some fun Broadway and… I don’t know, at this moment, we’re in the midst of it, so even I don’t know. But, it’s going to be a night unlike anything I’ve ever done. So, we’re just going to face it head on, and look for the love from the audience to bless the work that we’re doing so that we know we’re going in the right direction. Sort of like a backers’ audition in New York… only not.

MB: What is a typical day like in the life of a Broadway producer/director? RJA: The typical day in my life is… I guess… bedlam is a fantastic word. Unlike most people who get up and go to work every day, every single day of my life is different. It can change with a phone call, a text, an email, a demand for a conference call… you know, I deal with so many people at so many different levels of the job whether it’s press agents, producers, stars, dancers, songwriters, arrangers. I will say one thing – the time flies – you know, most people have their morning, then their mid-morning, noon, then their mid-afternoon, late afternoon, early evening, dinner time… and my day just gets sucked up and all of a sudden I’m on the couch watching World News Tonight. That’s my life.

MB: Out of all the Broadway productions you've worked on, which has been your favorite so far, and why? RJA: Of all the Broadway productions I've worked on, they each have their own stellar situations. You know in 1978 or 79 at the Winter Garden, I made my Broadway debut in Zoot Suit and I remember opening night with my parents, and getting a limo, and going to Sardi’s, and I just thought, “Well, I can die now.” and I was twenty-something, and of course, you can’t die then, but, you know, I do that – I just think, “Please, God, let me make it to the opening night of Les Misérables!” It’s always something. You’re always asking for an extension, and now I feel like I’m living on borrowed time, and I’m grateful. Having just done Porgy & Bess this week, was extraordinary. It was probably one of the most humbling experiences of my career, musically. The score is beyond classic, epic, defining – just all the elements really move me to my core, and I haven’t felt anything like that since Les Miz. Each situation is different, From doing Song & Dance with Bernadette Peters, doing the Bette Midler tour… It’s hard to explain, but Baby Dickie is always jumping around with joy, just pinching myself. You know, I had the life that I dreamt. I never dreamed of being partnered, or having children, I dreamed of being in show business, and boy did my wish come true.

MB: You've worked with some of the biggest names in Broadway, who would you still love to work with? DJA: Wow! What a great question! I guess I would love to work with Cher on something dramatic, because she’s such a wonderful actress. People might laugh when they read that, but, you know, she’s got something very very special besides being a survivor, and I don’t mean flying in on a helicopter singing “Fernando.” That’s not what I do, but I’d love to work with her.

I guess I would still love to work with Diana Ross. We came close a couple of times and it didn’t happen. Of course, the great thing about my career, is getting to work with so many people that I loved when I was growing up, but I missed them by about a 10-year span. So, I was 10 years off, but lucky, because I could work with so many people that I admired. But, I haven’t gathered any moss. I’ve worked right into current talent whether it’s the Il Divo, Ricky Martin, Debbie Gibson, or even discovering Lea Michele at 8 years old. Something about my timing has turned out great, and I don’t look at it as luck, I know I have a skill set, I know I have gifts, but things have been going way too well, and I’m imagining I’ve got to be hit by a truck sometime very, very soon.

MB: This event supports arts education. Why do you believe access to the arts is important – especially for young people? DJA: I was one of these young people, and you know, if even half of the programs that exist now were around in the little town I grew up in outside of Syracuse, I’d be even more psychotic than I am today. Nothing is more important than the arts, and expression, and in an era of YouTube and all of the ways that people get discovered, training and education are so important. If somebody comes to see an opera or a dance show… all you have to do is spark one fire and they grow up and you hear the story – it’s like the people who tell me they grew up on Les Miz, of course, it makes me want to slash my wrists, because I realize how old I am, but, you know, it affected them. Even my own assistant talks about the Bernadette Peters Carnegie Hall album. You don’t think about these things until somebody puts it in perspective to their life or what it lit up in them, and then it becomes something of great importance, and I’m very proud of that. We just started putting together my career, and you don’t think about it when you’re living it and doing it, but then you see the lists, and the venues, and the photos, and the travel around the world, and it's amazing, and you have to pinch yourself. I’m only just now starting to comprehend my own career, and I think it’s coming right on time so that I can appreciate, enjoy, discuss, and amplify the experiences. But, I’m absolutely sure you can’t rest on your laurels. You don’t get jobs because of your credits, you get them because you keep showing up and delivering.

MB: Is there anything else you'd like to share with Wire Magazine readers? DJA: I’ve had my house in Miami for 26 years and Wire Magazine has always been part of my life. When I see the Wire Magazine boxes, I always grab a copy. It’s always been there for the community. It’s been there for me, personally, for projects, for information, and information sharing. I have a lot of old issues that I was in, and when I look at them, and I look at all of the people that are gone, who have passed on, but were a vivid part of the community in Miami, I’m really happy that there’s this documentation. It’s kind of like Miami Beach’s version of After Dark, which documented an incredible period of life in publishing. So, I’m grateful to Wire Magazine. I’m also glad that Wire Magazine cares about the arts and the things that I’m interested in. So, this is a great time, at the end of this interview, to say thank you because I love it.

Play it again, Jack I: A love letter to the mfmm fic writers

“Haven’t you read that story already, Miss Fisher?” “Once is nothing, Jack... and this one makes you come off especially well.”

A month ago, I asked you for recommendations of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries fanfic -- more specifically stories that you reread, choosing to come back to them again and again, and also saying something of why you come back. I have gotten many wonderful answers, and I will give them back to you in posts over the coming weeks, where I mix the recommendations together. 

Also, please know that you can still send me recommendations. I will keep my inbox open for another couple of weeks -- I know there are many of you that have been meaning to send stuff but haven’t gotten to it yet! Being allowed to hear what people love so much that they reread it is such a wonderful gift, I hope you’ll indulge us! (for how to write me, see the original post.)

But -- there was one answer that was so eloquent and loving that I felt I couldn’t cut it up for the mix. Therefore, I will start this short series by posting that in its entirety. This is what @quiltingmom sent me, and I answered her that it’s like a love letter to the fanfic writers of this fandom, which she agreed it rather is. 

So, now I’ve given you my initial comment and reminder -- the rest of this post is @quiltingmom‘s answer to my question. 

Look at this, Dot. It’s a love letter!

Hi whopooh,

When you issued this request my first thought was oh my goodness, that's practically all of them, but then I started to think about the ones that I have read over and over again. Truly, there are just too many to list. One of my favorite things to do is to go into an author's portfolio and reread all of their works again. We have so many -- so many, truly gifted and talented writers in this fandom that it is an embarrassment of riches -- and makes it so hard to cite everyone. I've decided to limit myself to a few which believe me has been incredibly difficult. The fan fiction milieu of MFMM offers so much variety in storylines, character development, style of writing, and AUs that there is a story for everyone. While I love them all, I think my favorites are the ones that incorporate a beautiful or interesting setting, an intriguing casefic, witty and clever banter, gorgeous wardrobe (I know, I can't help it) and a romance between Jack and Phryne. So trying to follow my own criteria, here's my list: When I first discovered fanfic I don't think I really understood what I stumbled into. Reading “Creatures of Stillness” by @gaslightgallows was life changing for me. I had never read anything like it before and I was hooked and so began my hopeless journey down the rabbit hole of fanfic. This story has Jack showing up in London after a harrowing trip on board a ship to get to Phryne. He shows up disheveled and unshaven and the reunion with her is glorious. Then there's that shaving scene... “That Moment is Now” [only available for registred users of ao3] by @phrynesboudoir/Sassasam. Well anything by Sassasam really, but this is my favorite of hers. It has got everything. Everything. I can't even count how many times I've reread it. Jack and Phryne embark on a two week trip to the Blue Mountains in Sydney because even though she and Jack had been courting she has decided that the moment is now for their romantic coupling. The setting is positively gorgeous, those ice caves, wow, the murder mystery terrific, the banter between the two of them is perfect, clever, funny, witty, sweet -- sigh, the romance and steamy passion is off the charts, oh and yes, her wardrobe is stunning. I think I'm going to go read it again now. “Like the Deserts Miss the Rain” by @flashofthefuse. I love everything she writes, that's why I'm the president of her fan club. She is just so gifted in her storytelling. She's one of my go-tos, her portfolio is amazing and prolific. I could lose myself for a day or week or two in it (not that I'd fess up to it). In this story, Phryne is in London but as they are romancing each other through letters they decide to meet halfway in Columbo and a romantic and thrilling adventure ensues. Phyrne buys a plane and she and Jack travel back to Melbourne via several stops along the way. In Singapore they are pulled into defending a party guest against the charge of murder. This story has it all. I really think this should be made into a movie. Again it's another one that I have read countless times. “A Man in Need” by @jeneenp/Collingwoodgirl. As I told her, I was glad I arrived late to the party because I got to enjoy this story in one sitting. If I had to wait the entire year for her updates I would have pulled my hair out of my head. But I'd have gladly worn a wig for this story. It's delicious because it has all of our favorite co-conspirators working together to unite an estranged inspector and lady detective. The reunion, ensuing murder and investigation, and romance are stellar. That train scene though -- in the window... “Fear Not the Bugle” by @firesign23. I can't even begin to comment properly on the depth, variety, richness of her portfolio of stories. She kinda leaves me speechless -- well except her angsty ones, I can't remain speechless about those, lol. “Fear Not the Bugle” explores Phryne and Jack in an established relationship but when a brutal murder takes place orphaning a traumatized 2 year old named Anthony, their relationship goes into an entirely different direction. It's such a captivating look at the character development of Jack and Phryne given these circumstances.  @omgimsarahtoo, @omgimsarahtoo, sigh. Yet again another author who it is so hard to pick just one of her works that I've read over and over again. She writes steamy passion with such poetic beauty that I'm in awe of her. But sticking with my it's got it all theme, “Coded Expressions” is another one of my absolute favorites. Jack is called away into the Australian outback by one of his war buddies in a mystery surrounding another one of their war buddies just as he and Phryne are about to take their relationship to the next level. She decides she's missing him too much and goes after him. The story, the original characters, the art, and the reunion are to die for.  Taking a departure from the it's got it all theme, another one of my favorites is actually a two-fer by RakishAngle/@afterdinnerminx. “Truth or Dare” followed by “Messengers and Forfeits” starts with a still chaste Phrack and Phryne getting Jack to agree to a game of truth or dare. It is sexy times indeed and a great read. And as this is getting ridiculously long my last three are ones I absolutely adore because they are so fun to read. Light hearted and full of moments that just make you smile or outright laugh, they are the ones I go to when I need to giggle. The first is “Lost in Vegas” which is @ollyjayonline and @221aubrina's hilarious story of a broken Phrack and the cast of characters, based on real life characters, that they meet along the way to their reconciliation. It is a hoot. The next is “Breakfast with Jack and Jane” by @davidandbillie. I love fics with Jane in them and this one is terrific. Phryne is away on a case and this story follows breakfast each morning between Jack and Jane and her attempts to get him to drive her to school. It's funny, sweet, and just so adorable. My last reread recommendation is “Wardlow Whoopie” by @olderbynow. Every time I read this I start giggling uncontrollably. I love her work but this tongue and cheek fic is hysterical. She has another WIP that I absolutely adore but as I don't want to pressure her -- I'll just do it passive aggressively through here -- I'll wait patiently for her to update it.  There are so many, too many more works of a huge variety of authors that I haven't named in this post, but I'll have to stop to not make this too long. I cannot begin to express how many countless hours of joy I've had reading the stories of this amazing group of people dedicated to blessing us with their talent and creativity. I am eternally grateful for finding this fandom and falling into the rabbit hole of MFMM.

Thank you so much for this letter, @quiltingmom!