Dear Rarewomen Author
First of all, thank you so much for agreeing to participate in this challenge! This is my 3rd Rarewomen and it's a highlight of my fannish year. There are so many fantastic female characters out there and I'm so glad we have this challenge where likeminded fans can get together and celebrate them.
Please take all my optional suggestions and fannish blatherings as just that...suggestions. If there's a story idea you have for these characters that you like better, go for it! I’m comfortable with any rating. Follow your muse and I know you'll write a great story! If you'd like to see the type of stories I write and like, please feel free to check out my work on AO3 or at ffn where I write as green lion Very little of my journal is flocked, so feel free to explore my entries here as well.
General Likes: Humor, bittersweet emotions, character studies,“five things” fic, shades of grey morality, canon divergent AUs, competence, relationships where both partners learn from each other
Dislikes: I don't particularly like stories that involve non-con, hurt/comfort, or death of a major character- if a character dies in canon, that's fine. I'm also not a fan of wildly divergent “in space” or mundane (coffeeshop, high school, college...) AUs.
On Porn: I often say that I enjoy "Porn With Plot." What does that mean? I take that to mean smutty sexytimes that feel true to the characters and their world. It doesn't necessarily mean that I want a well-plotted mystery with a sex scene thrown in ( though I'd probably read the hell out of that and really enjoy it!) but just that sex should hopefully reveal something about the characters and have some relationship to the larger themes of the story. As someone who has written everything from G-rated fluff to explicit BDSM, I'm pretty easygoing about sexual content. I don't think things need to be sexually explicit in order to be sexy. But I don't object to smut, either, if that is something you want to include. As far as kinks go, I don't particularly enjoy watersports, ageplay, furries, breathplay, or a/b/o. But anything else is fair game!
Note: This letter contains spoilers for Breaking Bad.
Edited and updated as of 3/9/14.
Breaking Bad- Gretchen Schwartz, Lydia Rodarte-Quayle, Holly White
So I am a huge massive Breaking Bad fan. While I love the show and many of its characters, I do feel sometimes like the female characters were a little underserved and not rendered in the same level of complexity and awesomeness that characters like Gus, Mike, and Saul were.
For Gretchen, it's pretty obvious that we only got Walt's side of the story about her, and even in the little that was revealed, it seemed like the failure of their relationship (and Walt's participation in the company) was yet another instance of Walter White feeling threatened and lashing out, leaving her before she could leave him. I'd love to know more about how Gretchen saw their relationship. What attracted her to Walt and what allowed her to move on? How did she react when his identity as Heisenberg was revealed? And I loved the TV interview in the second-to-last episode where she effectively said that Walter White as she knew him was dead. For all that Gretchen and Elliot were supposed to be these Santa Fe yuppies Walt resents, Gretchen seemed to have a moral certainty about her that I always really admired. If you would like to write a post-canon fic about her making good (or not) on her promise to Walt's kids, that could be really interesting too.
I know a lot of people always thought of Lydia as this annoying shrew, and yea she was super-neurotic, but I kind of admired her gumption, her desire to play a very dangerous, very masculine game. The show never revealed what drew her to these criminal activities in the first place- so I'd love to learn more about her motivations. I'd especially like to see her business relationship with Gus explored a bit more- I can see them having a healthy respect for one another. I'd rather not see something that dwells too heavily on her ricin poisoning in the finale, unless of course you'd like to write a fix-it fic for that.
Finally, I'd just love a post-canon fic about Holly. How does she deal with her father's infamous legacy? What's her relationship with her mother and her Aunt Marie? It would be great to watch her cross paths with Jesse or Saul as well. It would be amazing (well, from a narrative perspective) to see her follow in either Walter or Hank's footsteps...either into a life of crime or its opposite.
Hannibal- Bedelia du Maurier
Oh Bedelia, you're my favorite. So shrewd, so clever...perhaps too clever. I have a sad, sneaking suspicion she will not survive s2. But I love her icy vulnerability, her ambiguity, and her courage to hold her own against none other than Hannibal Lecter. I'd love to know more about the incident with her former patient and why she continues to see Hannibal. Or just learn more about her professional motivations- what motivated her to get into psychiatry in the first place? I do kind of ship her with Hannibal...they totally hit one of my favorite ship kinks, a partnership of equals. I'll be following s2 along, so if the worst does happen and you want to write fix-it fic for Bedelia or an AU where she escapes and lives to psychoanalyze another day, go for it. But I'd prefer fics that focus on her life, not (her perhaps inevitable?) death.
Update: Having seen s2-02, and Bedelia's amazing ability to nope out of a dangerous situation, I love her more than ever. It is totally my headcanon that Hannibal manipulated Bedelia's patient into attacking her, so that he could play savior, and tried to manipulate Bedelia the same way he later tried to manipulate Will. And maybe she did initially regard him with gratitude...which sharpened into suspicion. I don't know if that helps you...I just think she is the flawless queen of everything right now. And I loved her words to Will about trauma and survival.
Kushiel's Legacy- Melisande Shahrizai, Alais de la Courcel, Jeanne de Mereliot
I love the Kushielverse and fic about any of these women would be wonderful, just because it is such a rare fandom and its universe is such a fun place to escape to.
Melisande is such an inscrutable, fascinating character- it would be wonderful to see an event like the Longest Night from her POV. I think the bond between scion and dart tugs both ways- we know how Phèdre turns to mush around Melisande, I’d love to see that bond explored more from Melisande’s side. Melisande/Ysandre is the not so secret crackship of my heart. Well, actually not really a crackship to me because I totally think there's something there. I'm fascinated by what Ysandre might feel when confronted with someone who is outside her authority and control. And like Sidonie, I think Ysandre harbors certain dark unexplored desires. Pre-canon, post-canon, AUs where Melisande went after Ysandre instead of Baudoin, all welcome! I also ship Melisande/Delaunay hard- tell me all about their ill-fated romance and the odd understanding they share. I'd equally love genfic about Melisande's relationship with Imriel or how she passed the time in the Temple of Asherat or made her escape. I've been written fic for Melisande before and it was wonderful- I only request it again because I love her so much and can't help myself!
Alais is such a great character and there is hardly any fic written about her, which is a pity. I'd love to know more about how she negotiated the D'Angeline part of her heritage, especially as many seem to reject her for appearing more Cruithne than D'Angeline. Why was she never given a Royal Companion like Amarante- did she ever want one? Did she ever visit the Night Court- which house did she choose? I could see shipping her with Roshana or Amarante if you were so inclined. Or maybe something about the family dynamics between Alais and her parents.
Jeanne de Mereliot only made the briefest of appearances in Scion, but she made quite an impression on me. She just seemed so calm and steady and sure of herself. She took her pleasure with Imriel as it came and didn't angst or mope when it turned out their relationship was not to be. Tell me about what happens to her after Scion. Maybe Amarante visited her during her Year of Service. Maybe she eventually came to court and had a evening of fun and passion with Sidonie and Imriel. Or perhaps an AU where Imriel did decide to marry her instead of Dorelei or Sidonie because was good for him and so accepting.
Wise Child series- Wise Child, Juniper
On the odd chance that you are familiar with this childhood favorite of mine...I love the family of choice that exists between Juniper and Wise Child and the mentor/apprentice, mother/daughter aspects of their relationship. Since we get Wise Child's POV in the book, it would be great to view their relationship from Juniper's perspective. Juniper really has always intrigued me. She apparently was once in love with Wise Child's father who threw her over for the evil and selfish Maeve. Yet, she never seemed to find another partner. Did Juniper have a longing for motherhood and for Finbar's daughter in particular? How did she work through Finbar's rejection to become the mature and grounded figure we meet in Wise Child's narrative? I have read all of the books including Colman. I didn't really care for Colman the book (though I like Colman the character)- so something set between Juniper and Wise Child, or during the events of Wise Child would be my preference. This entry was originally posted at http://kmo.dreamwidth.org/ Comment here or there as the spirit moves you.
Please take all my optional suggestions and fannish blatherings as just that...suggestions. If there's a story idea you have for these characters that you like better, go for it! I’m comfortable with any rating. Follow your muse and I know you'll write a great story! If you'd like to see the type of stories I write and like, please feel free to check out my work on AO3 or at ffn where I write as green lion Very little of my journal is flocked, so feel free to explore my entries here as well.
General Likes: Humor, bittersweet emotions, character studies,“five things” fic, shades of grey morality, canon divergent AUs, competence, relationships where both partners learn from each other
Dislikes: I don't particularly like stories that involve non-con, hurt/comfort, or death of a major character- if a character dies in canon, that's fine. I'm also not a fan of wildly divergent “in space” or mundane (coffeeshop, high school, college...) AUs.
On Porn: I often say that I enjoy "Porn With Plot." What does that mean? I take that to mean smutty sexytimes that feel true to the characters and their world. It doesn't necessarily mean that I want a well-plotted mystery with a sex scene thrown in ( though I'd probably read the hell out of that and really enjoy it!) but just that sex should hopefully reveal something about the characters and have some relationship to the larger themes of the story. As someone who has written everything from G-rated fluff to explicit BDSM, I'm pretty easygoing about sexual content. I don't think things need to be sexually explicit in order to be sexy. But I don't object to smut, either, if that is something you want to include. As far as kinks go, I don't particularly enjoy watersports, ageplay, furries, breathplay, or a/b/o. But anything else is fair game!
Note: This letter contains spoilers for Breaking Bad.
Edited and updated as of 3/9/14.
Breaking Bad- Gretchen Schwartz, Lydia Rodarte-Quayle, Holly White
So I am a huge massive Breaking Bad fan. While I love the show and many of its characters, I do feel sometimes like the female characters were a little underserved and not rendered in the same level of complexity and awesomeness that characters like Gus, Mike, and Saul were.
For Gretchen, it's pretty obvious that we only got Walt's side of the story about her, and even in the little that was revealed, it seemed like the failure of their relationship (and Walt's participation in the company) was yet another instance of Walter White feeling threatened and lashing out, leaving her before she could leave him. I'd love to know more about how Gretchen saw their relationship. What attracted her to Walt and what allowed her to move on? How did she react when his identity as Heisenberg was revealed? And I loved the TV interview in the second-to-last episode where she effectively said that Walter White as she knew him was dead. For all that Gretchen and Elliot were supposed to be these Santa Fe yuppies Walt resents, Gretchen seemed to have a moral certainty about her that I always really admired. If you would like to write a post-canon fic about her making good (or not) on her promise to Walt's kids, that could be really interesting too.
I know a lot of people always thought of Lydia as this annoying shrew, and yea she was super-neurotic, but I kind of admired her gumption, her desire to play a very dangerous, very masculine game. The show never revealed what drew her to these criminal activities in the first place- so I'd love to learn more about her motivations. I'd especially like to see her business relationship with Gus explored a bit more- I can see them having a healthy respect for one another. I'd rather not see something that dwells too heavily on her ricin poisoning in the finale, unless of course you'd like to write a fix-it fic for that.
Finally, I'd just love a post-canon fic about Holly. How does she deal with her father's infamous legacy? What's her relationship with her mother and her Aunt Marie? It would be great to watch her cross paths with Jesse or Saul as well. It would be amazing (well, from a narrative perspective) to see her follow in either Walter or Hank's footsteps...either into a life of crime or its opposite.
Hannibal- Bedelia du Maurier
Oh Bedelia, you're my favorite. So shrewd, so clever...perhaps too clever. I have a sad, sneaking suspicion she will not survive s2. But I love her icy vulnerability, her ambiguity, and her courage to hold her own against none other than Hannibal Lecter. I'd love to know more about the incident with her former patient and why she continues to see Hannibal. Or just learn more about her professional motivations- what motivated her to get into psychiatry in the first place? I do kind of ship her with Hannibal...they totally hit one of my favorite ship kinks, a partnership of equals. I'll be following s2 along, so if the worst does happen and you want to write fix-it fic for Bedelia or an AU where she escapes and lives to psychoanalyze another day, go for it. But I'd prefer fics that focus on her life, not (her perhaps inevitable?) death.
Update: Having seen s2-02, and Bedelia's amazing ability to nope out of a dangerous situation, I love her more than ever. It is totally my headcanon that Hannibal manipulated Bedelia's patient into attacking her, so that he could play savior, and tried to manipulate Bedelia the same way he later tried to manipulate Will. And maybe she did initially regard him with gratitude...which sharpened into suspicion. I don't know if that helps you...I just think she is the flawless queen of everything right now. And I loved her words to Will about trauma and survival.
Kushiel's Legacy- Melisande Shahrizai, Alais de la Courcel, Jeanne de Mereliot
I love the Kushielverse and fic about any of these women would be wonderful, just because it is such a rare fandom and its universe is such a fun place to escape to.
Melisande is such an inscrutable, fascinating character- it would be wonderful to see an event like the Longest Night from her POV. I think the bond between scion and dart tugs both ways- we know how Phèdre turns to mush around Melisande, I’d love to see that bond explored more from Melisande’s side. Melisande/Ysandre is the not so secret crackship of my heart. Well, actually not really a crackship to me because I totally think there's something there. I'm fascinated by what Ysandre might feel when confronted with someone who is outside her authority and control. And like Sidonie, I think Ysandre harbors certain dark unexplored desires. Pre-canon, post-canon, AUs where Melisande went after Ysandre instead of Baudoin, all welcome! I also ship Melisande/Delaunay hard- tell me all about their ill-fated romance and the odd understanding they share. I'd equally love genfic about Melisande's relationship with Imriel or how she passed the time in the Temple of Asherat or made her escape. I've been written fic for Melisande before and it was wonderful- I only request it again because I love her so much and can't help myself!
Alais is such a great character and there is hardly any fic written about her, which is a pity. I'd love to know more about how she negotiated the D'Angeline part of her heritage, especially as many seem to reject her for appearing more Cruithne than D'Angeline. Why was she never given a Royal Companion like Amarante- did she ever want one? Did she ever visit the Night Court- which house did she choose? I could see shipping her with Roshana or Amarante if you were so inclined. Or maybe something about the family dynamics between Alais and her parents.
Jeanne de Mereliot only made the briefest of appearances in Scion, but she made quite an impression on me. She just seemed so calm and steady and sure of herself. She took her pleasure with Imriel as it came and didn't angst or mope when it turned out their relationship was not to be. Tell me about what happens to her after Scion. Maybe Amarante visited her during her Year of Service. Maybe she eventually came to court and had a evening of fun and passion with Sidonie and Imriel. Or perhaps an AU where Imriel did decide to marry her instead of Dorelei or Sidonie because was good for him and so accepting.
Wise Child series- Wise Child, Juniper
On the odd chance that you are familiar with this childhood favorite of mine...I love the family of choice that exists between Juniper and Wise Child and the mentor/apprentice, mother/daughter aspects of their relationship. Since we get Wise Child's POV in the book, it would be great to view their relationship from Juniper's perspective. Juniper really has always intrigued me. She apparently was once in love with Wise Child's father who threw her over for the evil and selfish Maeve. Yet, she never seemed to find another partner. Did Juniper have a longing for motherhood and for Finbar's daughter in particular? How did she work through Finbar's rejection to become the mature and grounded figure we meet in Wise Child's narrative? I have read all of the books including Colman. I didn't really care for Colman the book (though I like Colman the character)- so something set between Juniper and Wise Child, or during the events of Wise Child would be my preference. This entry was originally posted at http://kmo.dreamwidth.org/ Comment here or there as the spirit moves you.