Dear Yuletide Writer
Dear Yuletide Writer,
Greetings! We have again rolled around to Yuletide season. I'm exciting and I hope you are as well.
Thank you in advance for the work you will put into the story. I hope that my letter will offer you some guidance.
General Notes
1) I'm honestly open to all kinds of stories. I love angst and drama but humor and a light touch things that I always appreciate. Adventures and complex stories are fun but I also enjoy slice-of-life/lived-in stories that deal with seemingly mundane things.
2) While I may have certain things in mind for these fandoms/characters, you may not come to the same conclusions and that is all right. Hell, the rules insist that the details beyond fandom and characters are optional.
3) While I have a certain fondness for smut, I don't necessarily search for it or expect it in most of what I read. I'm also pretty vanilla with my smut preferences. Outright romance without sex is great. UST can be even better. And, of course, I love gen.
4) Just looking at the characters/prompts, most lend themselves to gen, het, or M/M/F. Should you want to include background, past relationships, or see other options, don't feel constrained by that initial make up.
Fandoms and Requests
As it goes with requests and characters, I wanted to offer up a background on the various fandoms, what I enjoy about them, and few possibilities for each. Of course, Yuletide rules note that optional details are optional and I understand if you don't do any of these things. I just want to give you a few ideas in case they are needed.
1) Trouble in Paradise (1932)
The Movie: The delightfully crafty thieves Gaston Monescu and Lily meet by chance in Venice, fall in love, and join forces to steal their way across Europe. A chance robbery brings to their notice one Mariette Colet, the free-spending head of the Colet perfume company. They plot to steal from her, but once the sophisticated Mariette sets her sights on Gaston, their plans and relationship are put into jeopardy.
Trouble in Paradise is an 83 minute long film directed by Ernst Lubitsch and written by Samson Raphaelson and Grover Jones. It stars Miriam Hopkins, Kay Francis, and Herbert Marshall.
What I Love About...: This is the ideal sophisticated pre-code comedy. Everyone is so absurdly charming, sexy together and apart, and they live in this beautiful Art Deco world that only existed for a very select group of people (if it ever did for anyone at all). Yet it still allows glimpses that their particular world is rarefied.
The Characters and Possibilities: Gaston Monescu, Lily, and Mariette Colet
When we last left our trio: Gaston and Lily had left with some of the money but with less faith in each other and Mariette was left sad for not cementing the relationship with Gaston and knowledge that the head of her board was a thief. Where are they going next? Do our thieves run the chance of meeting with Mme Colet again? Or are there other difficulties they have to overcome? And what is next for Mariette?
2) Dead Like Me
The Series: Georgia Lass' life was going nowhere until it stopped. Shortly after her death, she learns that she will be a grim reaper whose job it will be to “reap” the souls of those about to die and, in her own way, point them towards the afterlife. Through this job, she learns to cope with death and her new life with her set(s) of quirky co-workers.
Dead Like Me is a 29-episode US TV series from the early-ish 00s created by Bryan Fuller. There was eventually a straight to DVD follow-up movie, but you are free to forget it exists (I sure wish I could!).
What I love about...: While I love a lot of the characters as individuals, I really love them as an ensemble. Everyone's interactions feel very real and I love how they get to know and appreciate each other as the show goes on just as we get to know and appreciate them. I also appreciate how the show doesn't really shy away from the painfulness of death and acceptance and that our protagonists can be real jerks, even if we understand why they're acting the way they do.
The Characters and Possibilities:Betty Rhomer and Rube Sofer
This was all inspired by a recent re-watch of the first season...While watching Betty and George interact, I began to wonder about Betty's first years as a reaper. She's not the kind of person to just accept fate, so I don't think Rube's pearl's of wisdom would go over well with her, at least initially. But they get along well by the time the story begins. Was there conflict? How was it resolved? Was George the first fledgling reaper she took a liking to? And/Or, if you feel up for it: what was Betty's fate?
3) Design for Living (1933)
The Movie: Boys meet Girl. Girl takes a liking to boys and has separate flings with them. Unwilling to let the inevitable happen (boys bicker over girl, become dissatisfied with each other and, eventually, her), Girl proposes a “Gentleman’s Agreement” by which they call exist in a mutually beneficial relationship. While the initial arrangement did not work out, they all have a sinking suspicion that they can't live apart...
Design for Living is a 91 minute long film loosely adapted from the Noel Coward play of the same name. It was directed by Ernst Lubitsch and adapted by Ben Hecht. It stars Fredric March, Gary Cooper, and Miriam Hopkins.
What I love about...: This was a serious mid-year obsession for me. It's really a case where the “love triangles are solved by threesomes” trope is true. That's, of course, the point...but I really enjoy their chemistry with one another and can buy that they are all better together than apart or sliced off into twosomes.
The Characters and Possibilities: George Curtis, Gilda Farrell, and Tom Chambers
The most obvious place to go would be future-fic. Did they ever make it back to the garret? Can the jealousy be worked past? But I also wonder about them as artists and muse? How did that work once the Gentleman's Agreement became unenforceable? Did Gilda ever want to be more the a “Mother of the Arts” and create her own thing? What does success look like once they decide they need each other more the material success? And does (or how does) their relationship cause problems in regards to that?
4) Ookami to Koushinryou | Spice and Wolf
The Series: Kraft Lawrence was just a simple traveling merchant until he met Holo. She is harvest god whose town has forsaken/moved beyond her with the help of technology. Now, all Holo wants to do is return to her former home, Yoitsu. They make a deal to make that trek together.
Spice and Wolf began as a light novel series but is just as well known for its manga and, particularly, anime adaptation.
What I like about...It's a series that lives or dies based on the likability of its main characters... and I love the two of them so much. Love the way they play off each other, get other the others' skin, and still manage carry on in spite of the difficulties. Their relationship is so real and it caught my imagination very quickly. Even apart, they are both richly drawn characters.
The Characters and Possibilities: Holo and Kraft Lawrence
It may seem cliché, but I'd like travel/adventure fic. It's where they are at their best and, at the same time, it's where they trip up. It can take place anywhere within their journey. I'm most familiar with the anime and have a little knowledge of the light novels (though I have quick access to the first five). If you know spoilers and want to include them, go ahead. I am not adverse to spoilers and the additional knowledge will only encourage me to pick up the books!
5) Dark Shadows (1966)
The Series: synopsis and length: The initial story was that of Victoria Winters, an orphaned young woman who returns to Maine in order to work for the Collins family and discover a little about her past. But the story shifts away from her a little over a year into its existence after the introduction of Barnabas Collins, a vampire who is equal parts sinister and romantically melancholy. As the story progresses, we follow is origins and later watch as he tries to reclaim his humanity and help the Collins family with the various supernatural boogeymen who rear their heads.
Dark Shadows was a daytime soap opera that aired between 1966 to 1971. There are 1,225 episodes. The original series spawned two movies, House of Dark Shadows and Night of Dark Shadows, the former being an alternate version of the original Barnabas storyline and the later having little connection to the series beyond character names and actors. The original series also spawned a novel series and comic strip.
What I love about... Dark Shadows was my first fandom and I just have a ton of positive memories with it - whether they be the mailing lists or watching with it my Grandmother during my gap year. Yes, the series is a campy, soapy melodrama. That's what makes it fun! I also appreciate its sprawl. Time moves backwards, forwards and sideways and they include so many supernatural creatures. There is something for nearly everyone. The canon can be intimidating (1000+ episodes). I picked up the series during the 1968 episodes and, for me, that's where the show always begins.
The Characters and Possibilities: Angelique Bouchard Collins and Nicholas Blair
Love these two and I love them together just as much as I do apart. And they have some sort of deep and bitter history that the show never really delved into. So where did they meet? Was this purely an underworld thing or did they meet up in the real world? Did they ever have to work together toward a common goal, either for their master or for other reasons? Was that a success?
So that is it! I'm committed to these fandoms but I will probably re-visit this letter throughout the sign-up period. Again, thank you for your efforts. I'm certain your story will be awesome!
quietcuriosity at AO3
Greetings! We have again rolled around to Yuletide season. I'm exciting and I hope you are as well.
Thank you in advance for the work you will put into the story. I hope that my letter will offer you some guidance.
General Notes
1) I'm honestly open to all kinds of stories. I love angst and drama but humor and a light touch things that I always appreciate. Adventures and complex stories are fun but I also enjoy slice-of-life/lived-in stories that deal with seemingly mundane things.
2) While I may have certain things in mind for these fandoms/characters, you may not come to the same conclusions and that is all right. Hell, the rules insist that the details beyond fandom and characters are optional.
3) While I have a certain fondness for smut, I don't necessarily search for it or expect it in most of what I read. I'm also pretty vanilla with my smut preferences. Outright romance without sex is great. UST can be even better. And, of course, I love gen.
4) Just looking at the characters/prompts, most lend themselves to gen, het, or M/M/F. Should you want to include background, past relationships, or see other options, don't feel constrained by that initial make up.
Fandoms and Requests
As it goes with requests and characters, I wanted to offer up a background on the various fandoms, what I enjoy about them, and few possibilities for each. Of course, Yuletide rules note that optional details are optional and I understand if you don't do any of these things. I just want to give you a few ideas in case they are needed.
1) Trouble in Paradise (1932)
The Movie: The delightfully crafty thieves Gaston Monescu and Lily meet by chance in Venice, fall in love, and join forces to steal their way across Europe. A chance robbery brings to their notice one Mariette Colet, the free-spending head of the Colet perfume company. They plot to steal from her, but once the sophisticated Mariette sets her sights on Gaston, their plans and relationship are put into jeopardy.
Trouble in Paradise is an 83 minute long film directed by Ernst Lubitsch and written by Samson Raphaelson and Grover Jones. It stars Miriam Hopkins, Kay Francis, and Herbert Marshall.
What I Love About...: This is the ideal sophisticated pre-code comedy. Everyone is so absurdly charming, sexy together and apart, and they live in this beautiful Art Deco world that only existed for a very select group of people (if it ever did for anyone at all). Yet it still allows glimpses that their particular world is rarefied.
The Characters and Possibilities: Gaston Monescu, Lily, and Mariette Colet
When we last left our trio: Gaston and Lily had left with some of the money but with less faith in each other and Mariette was left sad for not cementing the relationship with Gaston and knowledge that the head of her board was a thief. Where are they going next? Do our thieves run the chance of meeting with Mme Colet again? Or are there other difficulties they have to overcome? And what is next for Mariette?
2) Dead Like Me
The Series: Georgia Lass' life was going nowhere until it stopped. Shortly after her death, she learns that she will be a grim reaper whose job it will be to “reap” the souls of those about to die and, in her own way, point them towards the afterlife. Through this job, she learns to cope with death and her new life with her set(s) of quirky co-workers.
Dead Like Me is a 29-episode US TV series from the early-ish 00s created by Bryan Fuller. There was eventually a straight to DVD follow-up movie, but you are free to forget it exists (I sure wish I could!).
What I love about...: While I love a lot of the characters as individuals, I really love them as an ensemble. Everyone's interactions feel very real and I love how they get to know and appreciate each other as the show goes on just as we get to know and appreciate them. I also appreciate how the show doesn't really shy away from the painfulness of death and acceptance and that our protagonists can be real jerks, even if we understand why they're acting the way they do.
The Characters and Possibilities:Betty Rhomer and Rube Sofer
This was all inspired by a recent re-watch of the first season...While watching Betty and George interact, I began to wonder about Betty's first years as a reaper. She's not the kind of person to just accept fate, so I don't think Rube's pearl's of wisdom would go over well with her, at least initially. But they get along well by the time the story begins. Was there conflict? How was it resolved? Was George the first fledgling reaper she took a liking to? And/Or, if you feel up for it: what was Betty's fate?
3) Design for Living (1933)
The Movie: Boys meet Girl. Girl takes a liking to boys and has separate flings with them. Unwilling to let the inevitable happen (boys bicker over girl, become dissatisfied with each other and, eventually, her), Girl proposes a “Gentleman’s Agreement” by which they call exist in a mutually beneficial relationship. While the initial arrangement did not work out, they all have a sinking suspicion that they can't live apart...
Design for Living is a 91 minute long film loosely adapted from the Noel Coward play of the same name. It was directed by Ernst Lubitsch and adapted by Ben Hecht. It stars Fredric March, Gary Cooper, and Miriam Hopkins.
What I love about...: This was a serious mid-year obsession for me. It's really a case where the “love triangles are solved by threesomes” trope is true. That's, of course, the point...but I really enjoy their chemistry with one another and can buy that they are all better together than apart or sliced off into twosomes.
The Characters and Possibilities: George Curtis, Gilda Farrell, and Tom Chambers
The most obvious place to go would be future-fic. Did they ever make it back to the garret? Can the jealousy be worked past? But I also wonder about them as artists and muse? How did that work once the Gentleman's Agreement became unenforceable? Did Gilda ever want to be more the a “Mother of the Arts” and create her own thing? What does success look like once they decide they need each other more the material success? And does (or how does) their relationship cause problems in regards to that?
4) Ookami to Koushinryou | Spice and Wolf
The Series: Kraft Lawrence was just a simple traveling merchant until he met Holo. She is harvest god whose town has forsaken/moved beyond her with the help of technology. Now, all Holo wants to do is return to her former home, Yoitsu. They make a deal to make that trek together.
Spice and Wolf began as a light novel series but is just as well known for its manga and, particularly, anime adaptation.
What I like about...It's a series that lives or dies based on the likability of its main characters... and I love the two of them so much. Love the way they play off each other, get other the others' skin, and still manage carry on in spite of the difficulties. Their relationship is so real and it caught my imagination very quickly. Even apart, they are both richly drawn characters.
The Characters and Possibilities: Holo and Kraft Lawrence
It may seem cliché, but I'd like travel/adventure fic. It's where they are at their best and, at the same time, it's where they trip up. It can take place anywhere within their journey. I'm most familiar with the anime and have a little knowledge of the light novels (though I have quick access to the first five). If you know spoilers and want to include them, go ahead. I am not adverse to spoilers and the additional knowledge will only encourage me to pick up the books!
5) Dark Shadows (1966)
The Series: synopsis and length: The initial story was that of Victoria Winters, an orphaned young woman who returns to Maine in order to work for the Collins family and discover a little about her past. But the story shifts away from her a little over a year into its existence after the introduction of Barnabas Collins, a vampire who is equal parts sinister and romantically melancholy. As the story progresses, we follow is origins and later watch as he tries to reclaim his humanity and help the Collins family with the various supernatural boogeymen who rear their heads.
Dark Shadows was a daytime soap opera that aired between 1966 to 1971. There are 1,225 episodes. The original series spawned two movies, House of Dark Shadows and Night of Dark Shadows, the former being an alternate version of the original Barnabas storyline and the later having little connection to the series beyond character names and actors. The original series also spawned a novel series and comic strip.
What I love about... Dark Shadows was my first fandom and I just have a ton of positive memories with it - whether they be the mailing lists or watching with it my Grandmother during my gap year. Yes, the series is a campy, soapy melodrama. That's what makes it fun! I also appreciate its sprawl. Time moves backwards, forwards and sideways and they include so many supernatural creatures. There is something for nearly everyone. The canon can be intimidating (1000+ episodes). I picked up the series during the 1968 episodes and, for me, that's where the show always begins.
The Characters and Possibilities: Angelique Bouchard Collins and Nicholas Blair
Love these two and I love them together just as much as I do apart. And they have some sort of deep and bitter history that the show never really delved into. So where did they meet? Was this purely an underworld thing or did they meet up in the real world? Did they ever have to work together toward a common goal, either for their master or for other reasons? Was that a success?
So that is it! I'm committed to these fandoms but I will probably re-visit this letter throughout the sign-up period. Again, thank you for your efforts. I'm certain your story will be awesome!
quietcuriosity at AO3