“Quite an interesting collection you have here, Jim.”
Pam and Jim are learning all sorts of interesting things about each other.
A smattering of short(ish) scenes on the subject...
6 No. I refuse to believe there is actually a book out there titled "Tickle His Pickle". No. <fingers in ears> Lalalala I can't hear you!
Author's Response:
psst.....It's true!! Even I couldn't make that one up. ;-)
Jim and Pam's first date, using the constraints of the 55 word challenge.
It comes with a side order of burned feet.
Oh, Swedge, I do love you.
It's about damn time -- not only for Pam & Jim to go on a date, but for me to get in on this whole fanfic writing thing. I hear it's the next big thing. 8 Love the way you set this up and then delivered. 'Help me find my pants' indeed! What a way to jump into the deep end of the pool, lisahoo! Glad to see you in here with the rest of us. Welcome!
Author's Response: Thanks , NEJ. I still have my water wings on, but if it will get Jim out of his pants, I'll paddle in a little further....
10 I like her struggle to be strong in the face of her fears and how Jim doesn't immediately leap into a car and drive to her rescue. I like the way you describe the thunder shaking her bones. When I grow up I want to write like you.
A year or two before the cameras arrived, Michael takes the staff to the Poconos for a camaraderie event. Much unresolved sexual tension and angst ensues (uh, between Jim & Pam, not the entire staff).
While I enjoyed this story, I have to say that the ending surprised me a little. Maybe I've got this all wrong, but it sounds as if Pam is having sex with Jim in order to get back at Roy. That's pretty low, even if Roy has hurt her. It's cruel beyond words to Jim. Even when she thinks
Even in her haze, she knows the logic is dangerously, recklessly flawed -- that what she's feeling right now has nothing to do with Roy and everything to do with Jim.
That says she knows what she's doing--and still does it. So she knows she is going to hurt Jim, hurt Roy, hurt herself, and she goes right on ahead? Very self-destructive. Hard to believe that's Pam. She's too kind to do this.
"I just want to...once."
That sounds pretty rough on Jim, whose about to get his heart's desire only to have it snatched away again after she's gotten her revenge.
Am I totally reading this wrong? I hope so. I loved all the rest of this story. I loved the line
Sometimes the sheer promise of all that could be burns so brightly it's painful.
And Jim's story about the dog curing Jon of his blindness was funny.
I know it doesn't always have to end happily for Pam and Jim. I know fluff isn't necessarily where you were headed here. Maybe I've misunderstood all of this? Sorry if I'm rambling.First of all: Thanks so much for taking the time to write such a detailed, thoughtful review; I really appreciate it. Second, much of what you mentioned in your review is exactly what I struggled with while writing this. The original ending/concept that I had in mind was very different from this (it's the ending that appears in chapter ten), but there were a lot of reviews expressing a desire to see an AU version; I thought it'd be an interesting challenge to write one, so here we are.
That said, what I'm actually trying to convey here (and am apparently not doing so well with it) is that Pam's not, actually, doing this as a means to get back at Roy; I've tried to emphasize that what she's most upset about is not the fact that Roy slept with someone else, but that it has cast their lives into uncertainty (and this means she might have to confront just what it is she feels for Jim).
More than that, though, she showed up at Jim's because it's what she's wanted to do all week (longer than that), and Roy's confession is the catalyst for her doing that. In other words, she'd almost like to believe that what she's doing with Jim is just revenge sex that'll mean nothing, but she knows deep down that it has absolutely nothing to do with Roy -- that this is something that she's been building toward since the weekend before when things got out of hand. And she knows full well that it's not just physical attraction, on either of their parts.
As far as Jim is concerned, I think he'd be aware on some level that this likely won't end well -- or rather, that it won't change things between them (at least not in a positive way), but he's still hopeful. And he's also a man, of course -- and isn't going to turn down an opportunity to be with the woman of his dreams, even if it's only for one night.
Now, it's still a pretty horrible and reckless thing for Pam to do (not to mention simply stupid, given that she has no real intention of leaving Roy). It's why I had such a hard time writing this and figuring out a way to make it plausible; this was the best scenario I could come up with.
But as for your statement that Pam's too kind to do this -- I absolutely agree, totally. It's why this is the AU version and not the "real" one.
Thanks again for the review!
While MTT was down for a brief time one night, I wrote a couple 55 word fics in the TWOP thread about Jim and Pam reading fanfic. I will likely continue this as a long running series, referencing my favorite stories and also newer stories as they come about.
These are very funny, larry, and I totally agree with Maybe Once that this is the best format for recommending stories! It's like little commercials!
Fictional characters commenting on fiction written about them by real people...my brain just imploded like a dying star!
Author's Response: Yikes. I didn't mean to break your brain.
6 She didn’t hesitate. “43 minutes and 15 seconds. 16. 17. 18.”
Hee! I love it that Pam's automatic response to Michael's meltdown is to time it.
Some early morning fun with Jim and Pam.
10 Oh, yeah. The old call-in-naked-on-Monday-morning. Never gets old. :) Thanks, bitterpill. I am now off to take a cold shower. Is it hot in here or what?
Jim and Pam and two telephones, post-Season 3.10 I reserve that word for near-naked situations. Also pastiche and tubular.”
Oh, I am laughing so hard right now. I didn't know anyone could write a new version of a Jam phone call and make it funny and hot, but boy you did! Thank you!
10 “Eisenhower,” she says. “Because Angela said he was the dominant male. I don’t know, it sounded right. I call him Ike.”
OMG I laughed at that, because I thought she named him "Eisenhower" after Dwight.
should this end in smut or a barn dance? It could go either way.
I vote for barn dance.
Kidding! I kid. I vote for the other option. :)
10 I speak fluent Stupid
What a wonderful line. I love Witty!Pam. It's so hard to do her well (TWSS) and you do her very well (TWS oh, you know).
“I want you to take off the bathrobe,” he says.
Her answer is immediate. "I want you to do it," she says. "Tell me how."
That is so many kinds of hot I can't tell you. Ditch the barn dance, Annabel, and go for the smut!
10 Trying on a Dwight hat might put me in a coma
Too hilarious! What a great line! What great banter/dialogue. Not just sexy, but funny, like Jim and Pam. Way to go, Annabel!
10 I cannot talk.
Author's Response: Sorry, NeverEnoughJam! :)
8 Loving all of this. Forearms!!! Yay! Banter! Double-yay! The return of the beloved Rubber Band Ball! Yay x 3! Can't wait to see more.
Author's Response: Love the yays! Thanks.
Mid-season 3, Pam's night out with the boys takes a bit of a turn.10 Ah, Vanilla. The most incorrectly titled story ever, because this is SO not "vanilla" in any way. It's every luscious flavor there is, and maybe a couple that haven't been named yet. I only wish there had been more of it, but as it is, it's about the hottest Pam/Jim/Ryan (as voyeur) I've ever read. I love how you've captured Jim's amazement and lust and longing, and how Pam is assertive and yet still in character. So, so jealous of your skills here. :) Thanks for reposting this. I've saved it, of course.
Author's Response: Hee. I loved starting a story called Vanilla and then watching as it spiralled into a dark, drunken finale in a dirty alleyway. You are too kind, NeverEnoughJam!
Mid-season 3, Michael takes the staff out for some much-needed fresh air.
10 I read this the first time you posted it, and reviewed it then. I have now printed it out and saved it in multiple locations because I do not ever want to lose this story. Without a doubt this is one of the best, most sensual, most romantic and sexy stories I've ever read on MTT. I love not just Jim and Pam (which takes my breath away every time I read it) but Ryan and Kelly (thank you for making them -- if too briefly -- happy with one another), Toby (my heart broke for the poor guy) and Dwight and Angela. Of course Dwight brought bear spray, that's a given--but remembering tofu for Angela? So, so sweetly Dwight of him. And even Bob and Phyllis got a little on the trail. Annabel, this is just wonderful from top to bottom, and I can't say enough good things about it. Thank you so much for reposting it.
Author's Response: Thank you for this, NeverEnoughJam. I wanted to write something happy and healthy for Pam and Jim (Vanilla is many things, but it's neither happy nor healthy), so I thought of nature, and that feeling of peace you get looking up into the night sky. I'm so glad you like it!
A glimpse into the instant messaging history of Jim and Pam. Written with the intention of expanding on what we see on the show, as well as to tie up some loose ends. There will be a conversation for each episode through Season 3.
Yay, Pam's mom! Nudge that girl in Jim's direction! Jim would make an awesome son-in-law.
Author's Response: Yes, yes he will ;-)
I love Pam's mom. She's cool.
8 Brilliant idea to have this take place before the Big Reveal. Poor Jim and Pam. Their last happy hours together. :(
8 I am loving all of these. So cute! So Jam. So fluffy! And fluffy is good. Thanks for posting them!
Author's Response: Thank you, though I hope it's not too fluffy . . . I try to also have a little tension in some of these too ;-)
Does anyone else feel that "The Job" turned Office Olympics from an okay, middle of the road episode to a pretty good one?
Hey, I never felt that Office Olympics was a middle-of-the-road episode. For me, it's always been one of the funniest, Jammiest, sweetest episodes. :) Loved your idea of what Jim does with his yogur-lid medal.
the gears are already turning in your head, aren't they?
I love that line. So Pam. She knows him so well.
10 then he had to report Michael for something
You know, I've always wondered why Michael hates Toby so much, and this very simple, very believable explanation never occurred to me. Wonderful!
Oh, I LOVE the missed message at the end. Awww!
Author's Response: Yeah, I do as well. I like having my heart broken for some reason.
Fanfic is a fun outlet for me after a long day at the office, but it's also a chance to work on some writing issues: character development, style, pacing. So thanks to anyone who gives me reviews!