Character Manifesto: Blair Waldorf
Fandom: Gossip Girl
Character: Blair Waldorf
Pairings Included in Manifesto: Blair/Chuck mainly, with side helpings of Blair/Nate, Blair/Dan
Blair Waldorf is the best part of Gossip Girl. Seriously - I barely even watch the show anymore, and even die-hard fans can admit that it's just not that good anymore. And yet ever week I DVR the show, and skip past all the boring parts to the interesting parts; i.e. Blair's scenes.
She has always been my favorite character on the show. Serena never held much depth for character development beyond whichever guy she was in love with that week, Nate was pretty much the male-Serena, and Chuck? Well Chuck was my close second until his character was assassinated (metaphorically, of course) last season. But Blair, through the good times and the many bad times, has always brought the most to the table.
What makes her such an interesting character to watch, and write, is the fact that she has layers (like a cake, not an onion :P). On the surface, she's bitchy and rude and entitled, using her money and loose moral compass to destroy people's lives. One the surface, she's confident and ruthless and always seems to get what she wants. Then you keep watching, and every episode discover that she's much more complicated than that.
Yes, she's mean. She's the Queen B, and she is really mean - but next to that she's loyal and protective and she'll use her considerable powers to protect the people she loves. That brings me to another point - she loves, a LOT. Through her actions throughout the series so far, even if she's being horrible to the person, she always loves them. No matter that Serena slept with her boyfriend, and then left without a word - Blair forgave her because she loved her. No matter that Chuck hurt her by running away countless times, she still always forgave him because she loved him. This is a gift, and a curse, for she lets herself be run over by these people again and again - because she thinks she's strong enough, even though it's clear that she's not.
So I've rambled on for quite a while, but I'll wrap up by saying that Blair, to me, is one of the most interesting characters on television, and thus she has some great fanfiction written - so lets get started!
Title: Fake Empire
Pairing: Blair/Chuck
Author: bama02614
Link: here @ ff.net
Rating: Light M (for sexual scenes)
WIP?: Yes
Why This Must Be Read: The first rec on my list is one of the few AU stories I've ever liked. I'm not big into AU - as the characters are never really in character, which is important to me. But this story? This story kicks AU's ass. Admittedly it's not that AU; it's still set in NYC, all the characters are basically the same but with the distinction that Blair and Serena are a couple years younger than the rest of the characters. This is just a wonderful exploration of a Blair that we never really got to see on screen - one that's a bit more innocent and wide eyed. Still though, the author manages to keep her in character, biting remarks and all, but with a little more 'Alice in Wonderland' naivete.
Title: Limo Party
Pairing: Blair/Chuck, Serena/Nate, NJBC
Author: DaeDreemer
Link: here @ ff.net
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: Oh my god, I love this fic SO much. This is one of those fics that you desperately wish you could have seen played out on screen, because it's just what the actual show needs a dose of. It takes place directly after the Prom in Season Two, and is basically just four chapters of Non Judging Breakfast Club shenanigans, with a side of Eric awesomeness. It's hilarious, lighthearted, and yet the ending is perfectly contemplative and leaves you in a great mood.
Title: Just Love Me When You Can
Pairing: Blair/Nate, Chuck/Serena, Blair/Chuck, Serena/Nate
Author: singsongsung
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: So I just re-read this story before writing this, and as I was reading was thinking of all these things to say in the rec. And then I realized I couldn't say any of them, because this is the kind of story that is super powerful, but even more-so if you don't know where it's headed. So all I'm going to say is that this story is amazing, and you really do feel the emotions jump off the screen - so go read it, now!
Title: I Have Arrived
Pairing: Nate/Blair-ish, Chuck/Blair
Author: SaturnineSunshine
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: A cute little Nate-POV one-shot. I love Blair in this, and seeing her from Nate's point of view is hilariously awesome.
Title: The Unbearable Lightness of Being Chuck and Blair
Pairing(s): Chuck/Blair, Nate/Serena/Dan/Vanessa-quadrangle
Author: Nyx Underwood
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: In one word: EPIC. And yes, capitalization was necessary. This story is just plain beautiful. The author is an amazing writer, and really brings these characters to life. And the Blair in this story is just fantastic - she's still herself, and yet the author somehow manages to make her friends with Vanessa (not to mention, she somehow made me like Vanessa). Thankfully this is completed, but it does have a WIP Sequel: Lightness and Weight. If your read nothing else on this list, read this. And maybe everything else this author has written.
Title: Those Flashing Lights
Pairing: Chuck/Blair
Author: shadows and sunshine
Link: here
Rating: PG
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: To follow the monster-length of the previous rec, is probably the shortest fic I've ever favorited. I like long stories a lot more than one-shots, but this one is an exception because it's just wonderful. Just a quick look at how Blair has had to endure being in Serena's shadow - until she isn't anymore.
Title: Waking Nightmare
Pairing: Chuck/Blair
Author: suspensegirl
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: This is a really sad fic. Like grab some tissues and ice cream sad. Or turn off the lights and cry sad. Seriously. But it's also really good, which makes up for the sadness. Really, this fic is pretty much the reason I don't watch the show as voraciously as I used to - because if the actual writers of the show would have written it in character, they would have ended up with something very similar to this. And they would have had all their viewers in normal tears instead of the angry ones the viewers get now.
Title: Blair
Pairing: Blair/Chuck, Chuck/OC
Author: Nyx Underwood
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I'm really not trying to depress everyone who passes through this rec list, but apparently all my favorite stories are really sad. I went back and forth about whether I should add this too the list, not because it's not good enough (it's VERY good), but because Blair isn't technically present in the story. Then I read it again and saw that though she technically not in the story, the basic plot is about the fact that she's still very present even without being there. Another beautiful story by this author.
Title: Paint Your Silhouette
Pairing: Blair/Dan, Blair/Chuck
Author: Possibilist
Link: here
Rating: R
WIP?: Yes
Why This Must Be Read: If you couldn't tell from all the previous recs, I'm a Chuck/Blair shipper. And while I enjoy Dan and Blair as friends, I have a really hard time buying them as anything more than that. So when it comes to reccing Blair/Dan fics, this is about all I can do. A fic in which Blair and Dan are together, but as a stepping stone rather than the end-all be-all. Really though, this is a really well paced and uses interesting formatting, and manages to give me everything I love out of Blair, even while she's involved with Dan.
Title: 12 Synonyms For Hate
Pairing: Blair/Chuck
Author: SaturnineSunshine
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I think this story is a good bookend for the rec list. It's an awesome story that basically converts Kat's speech in 'Ten Things I Hate About You' into Gossip Girl fanfiction. And it works superbly.
Character: Blair Waldorf
Pairings Included in Manifesto: Blair/Chuck mainly, with side helpings of Blair/Nate, Blair/Dan
Blair Waldorf is the best part of Gossip Girl. Seriously - I barely even watch the show anymore, and even die-hard fans can admit that it's just not that good anymore. And yet ever week I DVR the show, and skip past all the boring parts to the interesting parts; i.e. Blair's scenes.
She has always been my favorite character on the show. Serena never held much depth for character development beyond whichever guy she was in love with that week, Nate was pretty much the male-Serena, and Chuck? Well Chuck was my close second until his character was assassinated (metaphorically, of course) last season. But Blair, through the good times and the many bad times, has always brought the most to the table.
What makes her such an interesting character to watch, and write, is the fact that she has layers (like a cake, not an onion :P). On the surface, she's bitchy and rude and entitled, using her money and loose moral compass to destroy people's lives. One the surface, she's confident and ruthless and always seems to get what she wants. Then you keep watching, and every episode discover that she's much more complicated than that.
Yes, she's mean. She's the Queen B, and she is really mean - but next to that she's loyal and protective and she'll use her considerable powers to protect the people she loves. That brings me to another point - she loves, a LOT. Through her actions throughout the series so far, even if she's being horrible to the person, she always loves them. No matter that Serena slept with her boyfriend, and then left without a word - Blair forgave her because she loved her. No matter that Chuck hurt her by running away countless times, she still always forgave him because she loved him. This is a gift, and a curse, for she lets herself be run over by these people again and again - because she thinks she's strong enough, even though it's clear that she's not.
So I've rambled on for quite a while, but I'll wrap up by saying that Blair, to me, is one of the most interesting characters on television, and thus she has some great fanfiction written - so lets get started!
Title: Fake Empire
Pairing: Blair/Chuck
Author: bama02614
Link: here @ ff.net
Rating: Light M (for sexual scenes)
WIP?: Yes
Why This Must Be Read: The first rec on my list is one of the few AU stories I've ever liked. I'm not big into AU - as the characters are never really in character, which is important to me. But this story? This story kicks AU's ass. Admittedly it's not that AU; it's still set in NYC, all the characters are basically the same but with the distinction that Blair and Serena are a couple years younger than the rest of the characters. This is just a wonderful exploration of a Blair that we never really got to see on screen - one that's a bit more innocent and wide eyed. Still though, the author manages to keep her in character, biting remarks and all, but with a little more 'Alice in Wonderland' naivete.
Title: Limo Party
Pairing: Blair/Chuck, Serena/Nate, NJBC
Author: DaeDreemer
Link: here @ ff.net
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: Oh my god, I love this fic SO much. This is one of those fics that you desperately wish you could have seen played out on screen, because it's just what the actual show needs a dose of. It takes place directly after the Prom in Season Two, and is basically just four chapters of Non Judging Breakfast Club shenanigans, with a side of Eric awesomeness. It's hilarious, lighthearted, and yet the ending is perfectly contemplative and leaves you in a great mood.
Title: Just Love Me When You Can
Pairing: Blair/Nate, Chuck/Serena, Blair/Chuck, Serena/Nate
Author: singsongsung
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: So I just re-read this story before writing this, and as I was reading was thinking of all these things to say in the rec. And then I realized I couldn't say any of them, because this is the kind of story that is super powerful, but even more-so if you don't know where it's headed. So all I'm going to say is that this story is amazing, and you really do feel the emotions jump off the screen - so go read it, now!
Title: I Have Arrived
Pairing: Nate/Blair-ish, Chuck/Blair
Author: SaturnineSunshine
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: A cute little Nate-POV one-shot. I love Blair in this, and seeing her from Nate's point of view is hilariously awesome.
Title: The Unbearable Lightness of Being Chuck and Blair
Pairing(s): Chuck/Blair, Nate/Serena/Dan/Vanessa-quadrangle
Author: Nyx Underwood
Link: here
Rating: T
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: In one word: EPIC. And yes, capitalization was necessary. This story is just plain beautiful. The author is an amazing writer, and really brings these characters to life. And the Blair in this story is just fantastic - she's still herself, and yet the author somehow manages to make her friends with Vanessa (not to mention, she somehow made me like Vanessa). Thankfully this is completed, but it does have a WIP Sequel: Lightness and Weight. If your read nothing else on this list, read this. And maybe everything else this author has written.
Title: Those Flashing Lights
Pairing: Chuck/Blair
Author: shadows and sunshine
Link: here
Rating: PG
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: To follow the monster-length of the previous rec, is probably the shortest fic I've ever favorited. I like long stories a lot more than one-shots, but this one is an exception because it's just wonderful. Just a quick look at how Blair has had to endure being in Serena's shadow - until she isn't anymore.
Title: Waking Nightmare
Pairing: Chuck/Blair
Author: suspensegirl
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: This is a really sad fic. Like grab some tissues and ice cream sad. Or turn off the lights and cry sad. Seriously. But it's also really good, which makes up for the sadness. Really, this fic is pretty much the reason I don't watch the show as voraciously as I used to - because if the actual writers of the show would have written it in character, they would have ended up with something very similar to this. And they would have had all their viewers in normal tears instead of the angry ones the viewers get now.
Title: Blair
Pairing: Blair/Chuck, Chuck/OC
Author: Nyx Underwood
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I'm really not trying to depress everyone who passes through this rec list, but apparently all my favorite stories are really sad. I went back and forth about whether I should add this too the list, not because it's not good enough (it's VERY good), but because Blair isn't technically present in the story. Then I read it again and saw that though she technically not in the story, the basic plot is about the fact that she's still very present even without being there. Another beautiful story by this author.
Title: Paint Your Silhouette
Pairing: Blair/Dan, Blair/Chuck
Author: Possibilist
Link: here
Rating: R
WIP?: Yes
Why This Must Be Read: If you couldn't tell from all the previous recs, I'm a Chuck/Blair shipper. And while I enjoy Dan and Blair as friends, I have a really hard time buying them as anything more than that. So when it comes to reccing Blair/Dan fics, this is about all I can do. A fic in which Blair and Dan are together, but as a stepping stone rather than the end-all be-all. Really though, this is a really well paced and uses interesting formatting, and manages to give me everything I love out of Blair, even while she's involved with Dan.
Title: 12 Synonyms For Hate
Pairing: Blair/Chuck
Author: SaturnineSunshine
Link: here
Rating: PG13
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I think this story is a good bookend for the rec list. It's an awesome story that basically converts Kat's speech in 'Ten Things I Hate About You' into Gossip Girl fanfiction. And it works superbly.