YULETIDE!
Dear Yuletide Author:
Hi. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is... wait, wrong fandom.
Since we matched, you've presumably actually volunteered for one of my favorite bizarre fandoms. Now, you'd probably like to know what kind of thing I'm actually hoping to get, yeah? I'm going to err on the side of massively too much information, and casually mention that there isn't much at all that's an automatic dealbreaker in a fic for me. There are some landmines, which I will attempt to label, but it's more of a 'be careful' then a 'don't go here'.
First, some things which make me happy--
-quiet characters being quiet. Any kind of communication between characters that is nonverbal, or unclear, or is taken to mean something completely different than what the person saying it thought they were saying. A remarking on the weather and B thinking it's about their relationship. That sort of stuff.
-pining that is not secret. Characters being in unrequited love and not trying to hide it.
-sex! Any combination of genders/sexes/alien races containing any number of people so long as all of them are clearly consenting people. Especially when said sex does not solve any of the relationship's problems except for sexual frustration.
-characters being forced to explain what they're thinking. Especially characters that would rather disarm nuclear bombs naked than talk about their feelings.
-tropefic. I've rarely met a trope I didn't love.
-worldbuilding. Worldbuilding fic makes my id turn handsprings of joy.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand the squicks--
-nonconsensual, dubcon, or really underage sex. (15 or so.) This one is non-negotiable.
-violence between partners, within families, or generally coming from anyone but the designated bad guy. Violence inspired by racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and other kinds of small-mindedness. Also non-negotiable---I just won't read it. At all.
-Character death by suicide. It's okay if it's not a huge part of the fic, and in fandoms like Heathers it's virtually unavoidable, but I would like to avoid on-screen suicides, or suicide attempts. Just not my cup of tea. Murder, however, is totally okay. Solutions to a problem that will probably cause the character's death as a side effect are also okay.
-genderswap. See the note below on landmines.
And finally, the landmines. These are the things that when handled well will make me love you forever, when handled badly will make me want to pelt you with rotting squash, and when absent aren't generally missed. Consider it the bonus points category.
Landmines--
-gender and sexuality as they relate to identity. Trans characters, queer characters, characters who've had to make up their own words to describe who they are and whose worlds are inherently more complicated than 'gay' and 'straight' because they don't necessarily fit into the checkboxes they've been offered. Limnal identities, if you will. This is a fascination of mine with teeth, so unless this is something you've written before, or are willing to do a lot of research on, it's probably safer to let it lie.
-suicidal ideation, romanticization of death, recklessness beyond all reasoning. "The obsession with death becomes a way of life." -shrug- I was a high school goth, okay? The reason this is under landmines is because it's something that I tend to feel strongly about no matter how it comes up, but there's a right way and a wrong way to do it for my taste. The right way is when the CHARACTER is fascinated/romanticizing the dark stuff. The wrong way is when the author is. So. Author beware.
Finally, happy writing!
Hi. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is... wait, wrong fandom.
Since we matched, you've presumably actually volunteered for one of my favorite bizarre fandoms. Now, you'd probably like to know what kind of thing I'm actually hoping to get, yeah? I'm going to err on the side of massively too much information, and casually mention that there isn't much at all that's an automatic dealbreaker in a fic for me. There are some landmines, which I will attempt to label, but it's more of a 'be careful' then a 'don't go here'.
First, some things which make me happy--
-quiet characters being quiet. Any kind of communication between characters that is nonverbal, or unclear, or is taken to mean something completely different than what the person saying it thought they were saying. A remarking on the weather and B thinking it's about their relationship. That sort of stuff.
-pining that is not secret. Characters being in unrequited love and not trying to hide it.
-sex! Any combination of genders/sexes/alien races containing any number of people so long as all of them are clearly consenting people. Especially when said sex does not solve any of the relationship's problems except for sexual frustration.
-characters being forced to explain what they're thinking. Especially characters that would rather disarm nuclear bombs naked than talk about their feelings.
-tropefic. I've rarely met a trope I didn't love.
-worldbuilding. Worldbuilding fic makes my id turn handsprings of joy.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand the squicks--
-nonconsensual, dubcon, or really underage sex. (15 or so.) This one is non-negotiable.
-violence between partners, within families, or generally coming from anyone but the designated bad guy. Violence inspired by racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and other kinds of small-mindedness. Also non-negotiable---I just won't read it. At all.
-Character death by suicide. It's okay if it's not a huge part of the fic, and in fandoms like Heathers it's virtually unavoidable, but I would like to avoid on-screen suicides, or suicide attempts. Just not my cup of tea. Murder, however, is totally okay. Solutions to a problem that will probably cause the character's death as a side effect are also okay.
-genderswap. See the note below on landmines.
And finally, the landmines. These are the things that when handled well will make me love you forever, when handled badly will make me want to pelt you with rotting squash, and when absent aren't generally missed. Consider it the bonus points category.
Landmines--
-gender and sexuality as they relate to identity. Trans characters, queer characters, characters who've had to make up their own words to describe who they are and whose worlds are inherently more complicated than 'gay' and 'straight' because they don't necessarily fit into the checkboxes they've been offered. Limnal identities, if you will. This is a fascination of mine with teeth, so unless this is something you've written before, or are willing to do a lot of research on, it's probably safer to let it lie.
-suicidal ideation, romanticization of death, recklessness beyond all reasoning. "The obsession with death becomes a way of life." -shrug- I was a high school goth, okay? The reason this is under landmines is because it's something that I tend to feel strongly about no matter how it comes up, but there's a right way and a wrong way to do it for my taste. The right way is when the CHARACTER is fascinated/romanticizing the dark stuff. The wrong way is when the author is. So. Author beware.
Finally, happy writing!