Dear Yuletide Letter 2014
Dear Yuletide Writer,
Firstly, you're ready to attempt to write something for me and you share a tiny fandom with me, so that makes you pretty awesome in my eyes - thank you, dear writer!
I am a great believer in the story that you want to tell being the one that's going to be the most compelling to read, so please, write that. So, if you are the sort of person who likes a concise letter and a free hand, please, just go for what you have in mind. All the extra details are for souls like me who want them. Do not attempt to give me everything below in one fic; you'd do yourself an injury. If anything seems contradictory, it's mostly because I like all sorts of different things at different times in different fandoms.
Likes: Humour, missing adventures, friendships, mild hurt/comfort, fantasy, history, mysteries. Despite some of the things listed below, I do enjoy mild shippiness, and I adore reading about the subtleties, interactions and differing dynamics of all sorts of relationships between people/groups.
Dislikes: graphic horror, explicit pr0n, too-sugary sentimentality, or unending angst without hope mainly, and I'm not keen on unexpected character death (though, again, it depends on the fic and the fandom). I tend to love all of a fandom, so if you happen to have a pet hate, it's probably best not to go there. I don't have any triggers, though, so please don't panic about upsetting me, and I can absolutely take stories edging towards some of these things if that's what the fic needs.
(A note on shippiness, for clarity: I mean generally that where I like a pairing everything up to the traditional row of stars/closing of the bedroom door is great, and in many cases will be adored because I can never write it for myself & the less explicit/detailed things are, the more I can even read beyond that happily. I just get squicked out embarrassingly early once things get detailed/explicit. Either way, I wouldn't nominate anything for Yuletide where I wasn't happy with gen, so please don't worry.)
Feel free to engage in any Yuletide stalking as you wish. Most fannish things here are open, my fic is on AO3 under the same name, and you can check my recs tag here (or see my reccing stints on Calufrax) if any of that helps. But mostly... good luck, don't worry - and I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with!
Shadow of the Tower
Any (Henry VII, Elizabeth of York, Margaret Beaufort, John de la Pole | 1st Earl of Lincoln)
Despite the oddness of this series even by 1970s UK standards (I've come to believe it really really wants to be theatre, and often experimental theatre at that, & it'll use crappy CSO if it wants, dammit), I do rather love it for the ideas, the themes and the interesting portrayal of Henry among other things. If you want to give me more Henry/Elizabeth, more Elizabeth, more Margaret & Henry, or explore an incident that isn't covered by the series, or anything that strikes you from it, I'd be delighted.
I'm intrigued by SotT's version of Henry and all his contradictions (I loved James Maxwell a worrying amount by the time I was halfway through), but also its take on the period & I'd love for someone to play with that in fic - I think it could make a great jumping off point for historical RPF in what's otherwise something of a gap period. (I swear it sees itself in so many ways as the unofficial sequel to Shakespeare's Histories rather than the prequel to the BBC's Henry VIII and Elizabeth R.) It's a portrait of paranoia, of someone who has to be constantly in denial to rule, and the various attempts to replace him. Feel free to write historical RPF with an edge of the show, or write completely within it; I'd be delighted with either.
If you want some suggestions, then any historical incident of the time not covered by the series as a missing bit of the series would be great. Also more Henry/Elizabeth, or more Elizabeth generally - she's not in it half enough. Nor, for that matter, is Margaret Beaufort. The two actors get some nice unspoken things in whenever they have a scene, but there's no real overt look at Margaret and Henry, and I'd love that. (In particular, there's a moment midway through "The White Hart" where Margaret confronts Henry and there's an indication of hurt/betrayal that passes between them, but they don't follow it up.) Margaret is such a fascinating historical figure, so anything you want to write with her & her relationship with Henry (and/or Elizabeth) would be lovely.
I included Lincoln because of the whole Henry/Elizabeth/Lincoln/Throne of England thing in the first four episodes. Play with that how you will, especially Lincoln and Henry's effect on each other. (Lincoln at the end claims he feels Henry Tudor is in his heart, watching him. Henry's a bit less moved, but he still says to Lincoln's body "Bury my trust with his carcass.") I don't want outright slash here (Henry/Elizabeth!!) but they do seem to see each other as significant and if you wanted to play with that in any way you want, that'd be cool (anything you like up to slash-in-denial, as long as you don't mess with Henry/Elizabeth). (Since most of the prisoners in the Tower are in some way parallelled/contrasted with/seen as connected to Henry, you could equally follow one of those if you wanted.)
And deciding on the last character (and whether or not to include one) was difficult, so if you'd rather go for Jasper Tudor, or Elizabeth Woodville, or William Stanley, or Warwick, or whoever, feel free. Preferably in relationship to one or more of Henry, Elizabeth and Margaret, but wherever you feel led.
I asked for a bit of an unreasonable fandom, so write me anything you will! Weird experimental fic (including attempts at medieval mystery plays/hallucinations/whatever) or crack explaining why Henry has been given an anachronistic monkey in episode 3 or why everybody keeps telling me Warwick and Lambert look alike when they don't and aren't even nearly the same age, or more improbable things you can make maps out of (the wine & food one in ep9 is probably my favourite). It is my own fault and will I take the consequences. Well, except for an essay about how dreadful Shadow of the Tower is, because I love it. (Also I'm pretty sure that would be against the rules. ;-p)
If you're willing to watch even a couple of episodes to get the idea and the interpretations of the characters, I'm willing to take whatever you want to give me, basically.
Ripper Street
Rose Erskine, Edmund Reid
This was an either/or request, really. (That said, if you saw the two together and got an idea for case fic where Inspector Reid solves something with help from Rose (or vice versa), I would be all over that, absolutely.) Anyway, I find Reid & his relationships fascinating. He's such a positive upright character who somehow turns those things into destructive negatives for the people around him. Any exploration of that, or missing case fic would be lovely. Also if it was something that appealed to you, too, a case with the edge of the supernatural could be really great in this fandom and setting.
And Rose! I always feel as if I should like some of the other women better, but I adore Rose. Give me backstory, in-between-series fic, Rose as an actress, Bennet/Rose (love Bennet Drake, too), Rose solving mysteries, Rose & Susan, it's all good.
I think that might be all I need to say? I didn't catch up with Ripper Street till this summer, but I loved it so much & am very glad it's been saved from cancellation. I love its mix of period-feel, the East End as the Wild West, and the excitement over then-modern science (and Reid loving all that and wanting to fix everything with science and reason). It's such an energetic, engaging mixture. I like all the characters (though I watched S2 first, so it took me till watching S1 to warm up to Jackson a bit more - S1 helps!) and Rose and Reid are just (probably) my favourites, so feel free to include anyone else you want to bring in. (Well, not Jack the Ripper. I like the show's moving out of that shadow; I'm not especially into Ripperology as such.) Also, I know the show can be very gory at times, and I don't mind your fic reflecting that in events, but I'd rather there were no long and explicit details of blood, autopsies etc. (So much easier to put your hands over your eyes while watching the telly than while reading!) Thank you. ♥
ETA: Dear author, if you matched me on this, I'm not going to be able to see S3 till it makes it to the BBC - if you're lucky enough to be watching it, please don't spoil me! Thank you. :-)
Enemy at the Door
Dieter Richter & Philip Martel
I love Richter & Martel and their relationship (that can't ever be a friendship, except it kind of is) & anything you want to give me regarding that would be marvellous, with bonus points for anything post-series, or even a post-war meeting for them.
I enjoy all their interactions in the series and would love to see more, especially since we never found out exactly where canon would have taken them. (And this is a show with an unusually consistent character development for the time, so it's doubly frustrating.) In essentials they come across as two men who could have been great friends in any other situation, but here it would be a betrayal for both of them, especially for Martel. The respect they have for each other & value they get from their encounters is lovely, though. If you're not inspired by them together, I'd be happy with fic for either of them separately - the German officers are always great with their politicking, friendships and rivalries; as is Martel with his family, his clients - and trying to work out what's the right thing to do. Given the nature of the series & the rl events, I'm also okay with character deaths here, even including these two. (Though ideally not both in one fic.)
For possible ideas - Post-war meeting for them both (feel free to include Olive and Anna Richter, too, if you like), and whether or not they can finally be friends (♥) or if it's too difficult, too much to ask. Maybe Martel gets in some way to return Richter's favour of saving his life? (I don't know in what way, but... the last few months of the Occupation were horrendous all round and if anything worse for the Germans by that point.) While I'm happy with fic set at any point, I would love to know anything about what happens next, given the show's cancellation.
I think with Richter particularly, he always maintains he's a pragmatist first (he's doing this job as well as he can, which in the situation benefits everyone) but he's also a principled man - and I think, towards the end of S2, we're beginning to see the tension between those things as he's forced to realise more of what's actually going on. At what point does principle overtake pragmatism for him? What happens with his wife? He also seems to be waiting for people like General Beck and (fictionally) von Wittke to restore sanity, and there's a known link between him and them, so what happens after the conspiracy to kill Hitler fails? Obviously, EatD is fictional, but in rl, an Admiral who was a Nazi fanatic took control of the island later in the war and cleared out all of the Wehrmacht officers, barring two (I think they'd be Freidel or Richter's equiv and Reinicke's equiv). Does that happen in this fictional version and if so how does it play out? (I'm interested, but I'm also reluctant to lose all of the officers.)
With Martel, everything's more practical and straight-forward, really, but I love him, too. How do he and Olive go on, with more shortages? What happens with Clare? What about Martel in prison, or the after-effects of that (and the double-edged fact that Richter is responsible for saving his life by that means)? Or just battling on, never finding enough bicycles, and trying to get medical supplies, running water, whatever it is? How will he feel at the end of the war when Richter has gone? (As Olive points out, he's much more alive having someone to battle).
Any of those things, together or apart; anything you can think of, any rl event you want to pull in; post-war fall out and/or reunions, or missing scenes, whatever you can think of. Even some backstory (though generally I'd like to keep things on Guernsey where possible), especially for Richter (did he and Martel narrowly miss each other somewhere along the Rhine back in the 30s? What was it he liked so much about Cambridge, or was it just the cherry trees?) Or a look at Olive and Philip back in happier days?
Maybe people would say it's a depressing, dull old series, I don't know, but I think it's so well written and I love the thoughtfulness of it, the way it explores every nuance of its title (living with the enemy, the threat of further invasion, collaboration, yourself your enemy etc.) & is full of shades of grey and it's just about human beings on both sides trying to deal with the events of war. So, you know, fic, any fic and I'll love you a lot, really. I think that's probably already clear, isn't it? (So much so, if you wish I'd chosen any characters but these two, there's none of the regulars I wouldn't want fic for, so just go for it. I would actually take nearly any of the guest characters, too.)
Poldark (TV 1975)
Ross Poldark, Demelza Carne
More of Ross & Demelza, especially earlier rather than later, but any really. I ship them hard, so fluff, being happy and not caring what the hell the neighbourhood thinks, rescuing each other, Demelza being fierce and awesome ♥ and just more basically.
As I said, really. I read the books as a teenager and found Ross and Demelza both appealing and very annoying, so avoided the series for long time while forever being curious about it. When I finally gave in, I found that it was great and that Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees have a chemistry that makes any of my objections to the characters fall away. So, more of the same, please. Or anything. Would totally take a pirate AU (they have every 18th C cliche, but pirates! Ross and Demelza would make great Robin Hood-ish pirates. And George would say they already are, heh), even a crossover with Jane Austen or Heyer where characters are SHOCKED by Ross and Demelza (if they're someone like Lady Catherine) or learn to like them anyway - I do rather like how the series must have looked like the latest Classic Adaptation back in the day, and then really, really wasn't. But Ross and Demelza fighting for justice, flouting convention and the neighbours, & being in love with each other, it's all good.
If you want to write them separately, then Demelza with any of the other women would be great, or just her being awesome and getting to solve problems herself. As for Ross, I like his relationship with Verity, and his tendency to get in any danger going (for Justice! Liberty! Etc.) & his friendship with Dwight and Caroline, too. I also really like how the series always sees his feud with George as destructive and petty, rather than Ross being epically wronged.
I like pretty much everyone else, too, so don't worry if you want to bring anyone else in - Verity, George, Dwight, Caroline, Morwenna, Drake, Elizabeth, Aunt Agatha, I'd be fine with any of that.
Sapphire & Steel
Sapphire, Silver, Steel
S&S is such a beautiful fandom & I am immensely fascinated by Elements, so I'd adore anything you can come up with - OT3-ness, missing assignments, and any mentions of or appearances from other Elements gives me a thrill, too.
I nearly put any here, so don't be afraid to bring in Lead if you're sad at my leaving him out. It's only that I do like a little Sapphire and/or Silver in with my Lead or Steel. Anyway, I love this series! It's so unlike anything else. If you're looking for prompts, I'd love any missing assignments, especially with all three of them. Two of the three have to rescue the other one, in any variation? I'd also be intrigued by their previous history - Sapphire & Steel have been working together for nearly 100 years, and before that Sapphire & Silver used to hang out together more often. I would be all over any 18th C Sapphire & Silver solving weird stuff in elaborate costume and flirting with everyone, including each other, or indeed, historical Sapphire & Steel. Or Silver in that time - who was he working with? (And wishing he could be with Sapphire and Steel?)
I do OT3 them in their weird, inhuman way, as you can tell. They're probably my only real OT-anything, to be honest. I adore them & all their weird interactions and three-way flirtiness! They are - as canon strongly implies - the perfect combination of Operators and Technician.
I don't tend to like humanising the characters - their sheer otherness is just beautiful, so I'd prefer not to have crack or AUs as a rule, or more human romance/sex. The fandom's made for crossovers, though, if you want to go that way. (Fandoms I do know are best, though!) And I am, as I said, so very fascinated by Elements! If you want to bring in any other Elements, whether previously mentioned or picked off the periodic table or whatever, I'd be all over that, in any combination with any of these three. (They seem so important to each other, and of course, all Elements act/react differently in the vicinity of other Elements. That's just chemistry. Or physics, possibly.
The one thing I'd ask you not to do is hate on Silver, or go with the theory of him being a traitor (and I tend to think that they all got out of the SPOILER at the end, though sometimes I like playing with the opposite). If you write Sapphire & Steel without him, a mention at least would make my heart happy. And, as I've said, any Elements welcome, absolutely including Lead and the two from Big Finish, if you know them. (I haven't met Ruby yet or heard all of Gold's & have mixed feelings, audio-wise but... ELEMENTS, basically. Wherever you find them.) Otherwise, go anywhere. Missing assignments, whatever you want to do. It's such a fascinating fandom to see how everyone else approaches it - I've never come across anything like it, and I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with it.
Bleak Expectations (Radio)
Any (Gently Benevolent, Pip Bin, Harry Biscuit, Pippa Bin.)
I'm in this for the tone, the pure crack, the loving parody of just about every 19th C/early 20th C literary genre/author going, and I await anything in that line you can give me with much eagerness and admiration, dear author.
Any Classic Lit authors you can think of who haven't already been done* (or for whom there could always be more crack, or less classic authors), but ideas for this are hard, because it's so out-of-the-box, and who am I to limit things for you? I'm really just after more of the same - missing/further adventures of our heroes (and very special villain), any of those diversions into unlikely history & cracky world-building.
I have listened to the whole thing, so any appearances from other characters are fine (especially Napoleonic agent Aunt Lily; I would absolutely be up for more of her adventures if you wanted to include them). If you want to steal from/parody any of my other fandoms here in any way, feel free; that could be fun (some of them overlap with the period, too). And, yes, just, whatever it is, go for it. This is one fandom where I'm just pretty much on the "more of canon, please!" front. The whole thing was witty, hilarious, adorable and pure crack in all the right ways and listening to it last year was one of the few bright spots in a stupidly bad summer & I loved it. If you can get anywhere near canon, you're awesome and I love you. I hope that's okay. *hands you unnerving blank canvas*
* It's been a year since I listened to it - in too short a time! - so forgive me if these have been done, but I'm not sure if we've had much Gaskell, Wilkie Collins, or Trollope?? Or modern novels/events parodied by it if you can see a way to do that. But I do love the whole period/history/lit cliche mishmash.
Anyway, congratulations, author, you made it to the end of my letter! The uneven lengths of text devoted to each fandom in no way means I want any noticeably less or more - I think very carefully before I request fandoms & won't choose anything I don't want to find fic for when the archive goes live.
Also, I don't really have a fandom that can act as an escape hatch this year. If the request we matched on is impossible for you and you want to attempt one of the others then I'm sorry, (I'm so, so sorry), but here's where you can find them should you wish to:
Enemy at the Door is at YouTube here (though lacking episode 2, and S1 is slightly out of order - check the titles on the uploads not the descriptions). It's 26x50 mins (2 series) and is a 1978/80 WWII drama set in the Channel Islands (with Alfred Burke, Bernard Horsfall, Simon Cadell etc. & some great guest stars, including a very young Antony Head in eps 4&5). Also out on DVD. (I think, by the nature of it, it's something you need to watch through, but particular Martel-and-Richter episodes are "The Judgement of Solomon", "Angels That Soar Above", "No Quarter Given" and "Committee Man" (the latter two involve of lot of Richter desperately wanting Martel back on the committee). "The Education of Nils Borg" has the most personal info for Richter. (We see Martel with his family all the time).
Shadow of the Tower is also up on YouTube here. (13x 50 mins, complete serial about the reign of Henry VII made by the BBC in 1972. It is, though, theatrical even by 1970s standards & rather stiff in a couple of episodes, especially ep1, but once you get into it, it's excellent, & does some more experimental & interesting things than you would expect of a BBC 1970s period piece. With James Maxwell, Norma West, Marigaold Sharman, Brian Badcoe, James Laurenson.) Also out on DVD. (Eps3,5,6,9,12&13 are probably my favourites and the end section of ep4 is great.Elizabeth is mainly in 1-2,6,9,12&13; Margaret 1-2,6,11&12; Lincoln is in eps 1-4. Henry's in all of it, though not so much of him in 7,8&10. Not-so-coincidentally, those are my least favourite eps.)
Ripper Street is only 2 series of 8x1hr episodes, and is shiny new TV and not decades old (gosh, go me!). It follows the investigations of the police officers who failed to catch Jack the Ripper, among other things. It's pretty awesome and is probably available via things like Netflix, as both series are out on DVD, and Amazon is funding S3 (due next year). It's absolutely great, although rather gory in places, if that's not your thing. (It's not mine, but I'm okay with Ripper Street.) With Matthew Macfadyen, Jerome Flynn, Adam Rothenberg, MyAnna Buring and Charlene McKenna.
Sapphire & Steel is comprised of six serials (4-8 25 min episodes each) and several people have it up on YouTube. It's an ITV series from 1979-1981, and while it takes a little getting used to, it's also one of the most original and weird bits of SF ever made, and stars David McCallum and Joanna Lumley (and occasionally David Collings as Silver).
Poldark: I can't find this on YouTube, except in Spanish. (If that's of use to you, it's here). However, the series is pretty close to the books and if you can get hold of the first couple of those, you can find lots of clips of the series to give an idea of Robin Ellis & Angharad Rees's performance. Also out on DVD.
Bleak Expectations is a recent BBC Radio drama/comedy about, er, well, a sort of parody of Dickens but with amazing crack, cliches being killed all over the place and invaders from Mars. (Voice artists including: Antony Head, Celia Imrie, Richard Johnson, David Mitchell). BBC iPlayer have some episodes up currently, but may not by the time you read this. However, at the moment, the whole thing seems to be up on YouTube here Also out on CD.
Mostly, however, I hope you have a good Yuletide and find something that you can enjoy writing. I shall look forward to reading whatever you come up with. Thanks once again! ♥
Crossposted from Dreamwidth -- Comments there:
Firstly, you're ready to attempt to write something for me and you share a tiny fandom with me, so that makes you pretty awesome in my eyes - thank you, dear writer!
I am a great believer in the story that you want to tell being the one that's going to be the most compelling to read, so please, write that. So, if you are the sort of person who likes a concise letter and a free hand, please, just go for what you have in mind. All the extra details are for souls like me who want them. Do not attempt to give me everything below in one fic; you'd do yourself an injury. If anything seems contradictory, it's mostly because I like all sorts of different things at different times in different fandoms.
Likes: Humour, missing adventures, friendships, mild hurt/comfort, fantasy, history, mysteries. Despite some of the things listed below, I do enjoy mild shippiness, and I adore reading about the subtleties, interactions and differing dynamics of all sorts of relationships between people/groups.
Dislikes: graphic horror, explicit pr0n, too-sugary sentimentality, or unending angst without hope mainly, and I'm not keen on unexpected character death (though, again, it depends on the fic and the fandom). I tend to love all of a fandom, so if you happen to have a pet hate, it's probably best not to go there. I don't have any triggers, though, so please don't panic about upsetting me, and I can absolutely take stories edging towards some of these things if that's what the fic needs.
(A note on shippiness, for clarity: I mean generally that where I like a pairing everything up to the traditional row of stars/closing of the bedroom door is great, and in many cases will be adored because I can never write it for myself & the less explicit/detailed things are, the more I can even read beyond that happily. I just get squicked out embarrassingly early once things get detailed/explicit. Either way, I wouldn't nominate anything for Yuletide where I wasn't happy with gen, so please don't worry.)
Feel free to engage in any Yuletide stalking as you wish. Most fannish things here are open, my fic is on AO3 under the same name, and you can check my recs tag here (or see my reccing stints on Calufrax) if any of that helps. But mostly... good luck, don't worry - and I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with!
Shadow of the Tower
Any (Henry VII, Elizabeth of York, Margaret Beaufort, John de la Pole | 1st Earl of Lincoln)
Despite the oddness of this series even by 1970s UK standards (I've come to believe it really really wants to be theatre, and often experimental theatre at that, & it'll use crappy CSO if it wants, dammit), I do rather love it for the ideas, the themes and the interesting portrayal of Henry among other things. If you want to give me more Henry/Elizabeth, more Elizabeth, more Margaret & Henry, or explore an incident that isn't covered by the series, or anything that strikes you from it, I'd be delighted.
I'm intrigued by SotT's version of Henry and all his contradictions (I loved James Maxwell a worrying amount by the time I was halfway through), but also its take on the period & I'd love for someone to play with that in fic - I think it could make a great jumping off point for historical RPF in what's otherwise something of a gap period. (I swear it sees itself in so many ways as the unofficial sequel to Shakespeare's Histories rather than the prequel to the BBC's Henry VIII and Elizabeth R.) It's a portrait of paranoia, of someone who has to be constantly in denial to rule, and the various attempts to replace him. Feel free to write historical RPF with an edge of the show, or write completely within it; I'd be delighted with either.
If you want some suggestions, then any historical incident of the time not covered by the series as a missing bit of the series would be great. Also more Henry/Elizabeth, or more Elizabeth generally - she's not in it half enough. Nor, for that matter, is Margaret Beaufort. The two actors get some nice unspoken things in whenever they have a scene, but there's no real overt look at Margaret and Henry, and I'd love that. (In particular, there's a moment midway through "The White Hart" where Margaret confronts Henry and there's an indication of hurt/betrayal that passes between them, but they don't follow it up.) Margaret is such a fascinating historical figure, so anything you want to write with her & her relationship with Henry (and/or Elizabeth) would be lovely.
I included Lincoln because of the whole Henry/Elizabeth/Lincoln/Throne of England thing in the first four episodes. Play with that how you will, especially Lincoln and Henry's effect on each other. (Lincoln at the end claims he feels Henry Tudor is in his heart, watching him. Henry's a bit less moved, but he still says to Lincoln's body "Bury my trust with his carcass.") I don't want outright slash here (Henry/Elizabeth!!) but they do seem to see each other as significant and if you wanted to play with that in any way you want, that'd be cool (anything you like up to slash-in-denial, as long as you don't mess with Henry/Elizabeth). (Since most of the prisoners in the Tower are in some way parallelled/contrasted with/seen as connected to Henry, you could equally follow one of those if you wanted.)
And deciding on the last character (and whether or not to include one) was difficult, so if you'd rather go for Jasper Tudor, or Elizabeth Woodville, or William Stanley, or Warwick, or whoever, feel free. Preferably in relationship to one or more of Henry, Elizabeth and Margaret, but wherever you feel led.
I asked for a bit of an unreasonable fandom, so write me anything you will! Weird experimental fic (including attempts at medieval mystery plays/hallucinations/whatever) or crack explaining why Henry has been given an anachronistic monkey in episode 3 or why everybody keeps telling me Warwick and Lambert look alike when they don't and aren't even nearly the same age, or more improbable things you can make maps out of (the wine & food one in ep9 is probably my favourite). It is my own fault and will I take the consequences. Well, except for an essay about how dreadful Shadow of the Tower is, because I love it. (Also I'm pretty sure that would be against the rules. ;-p)
If you're willing to watch even a couple of episodes to get the idea and the interpretations of the characters, I'm willing to take whatever you want to give me, basically.
Ripper Street
Rose Erskine, Edmund Reid
This was an either/or request, really. (That said, if you saw the two together and got an idea for case fic where Inspector Reid solves something with help from Rose (or vice versa), I would be all over that, absolutely.) Anyway, I find Reid & his relationships fascinating. He's such a positive upright character who somehow turns those things into destructive negatives for the people around him. Any exploration of that, or missing case fic would be lovely. Also if it was something that appealed to you, too, a case with the edge of the supernatural could be really great in this fandom and setting.
And Rose! I always feel as if I should like some of the other women better, but I adore Rose. Give me backstory, in-between-series fic, Rose as an actress, Bennet/Rose (love Bennet Drake, too), Rose solving mysteries, Rose & Susan, it's all good.
I think that might be all I need to say? I didn't catch up with Ripper Street till this summer, but I loved it so much & am very glad it's been saved from cancellation. I love its mix of period-feel, the East End as the Wild West, and the excitement over then-modern science (and Reid loving all that and wanting to fix everything with science and reason). It's such an energetic, engaging mixture. I like all the characters (though I watched S2 first, so it took me till watching S1 to warm up to Jackson a bit more - S1 helps!) and Rose and Reid are just (probably) my favourites, so feel free to include anyone else you want to bring in. (Well, not Jack the Ripper. I like the show's moving out of that shadow; I'm not especially into Ripperology as such.) Also, I know the show can be very gory at times, and I don't mind your fic reflecting that in events, but I'd rather there were no long and explicit details of blood, autopsies etc. (So much easier to put your hands over your eyes while watching the telly than while reading!) Thank you. ♥
ETA: Dear author, if you matched me on this, I'm not going to be able to see S3 till it makes it to the BBC - if you're lucky enough to be watching it, please don't spoil me! Thank you. :-)
Enemy at the Door
Dieter Richter & Philip Martel
I love Richter & Martel and their relationship (that can't ever be a friendship, except it kind of is) & anything you want to give me regarding that would be marvellous, with bonus points for anything post-series, or even a post-war meeting for them.
I enjoy all their interactions in the series and would love to see more, especially since we never found out exactly where canon would have taken them. (And this is a show with an unusually consistent character development for the time, so it's doubly frustrating.) In essentials they come across as two men who could have been great friends in any other situation, but here it would be a betrayal for both of them, especially for Martel. The respect they have for each other & value they get from their encounters is lovely, though. If you're not inspired by them together, I'd be happy with fic for either of them separately - the German officers are always great with their politicking, friendships and rivalries; as is Martel with his family, his clients - and trying to work out what's the right thing to do. Given the nature of the series & the rl events, I'm also okay with character deaths here, even including these two. (Though ideally not both in one fic.)
For possible ideas - Post-war meeting for them both (feel free to include Olive and Anna Richter, too, if you like), and whether or not they can finally be friends (♥) or if it's too difficult, too much to ask. Maybe Martel gets in some way to return Richter's favour of saving his life? (I don't know in what way, but... the last few months of the Occupation were horrendous all round and if anything worse for the Germans by that point.) While I'm happy with fic set at any point, I would love to know anything about what happens next, given the show's cancellation.
I think with Richter particularly, he always maintains he's a pragmatist first (he's doing this job as well as he can, which in the situation benefits everyone) but he's also a principled man - and I think, towards the end of S2, we're beginning to see the tension between those things as he's forced to realise more of what's actually going on. At what point does principle overtake pragmatism for him? What happens with his wife? He also seems to be waiting for people like General Beck and (fictionally) von Wittke to restore sanity, and there's a known link between him and them, so what happens after the conspiracy to kill Hitler fails? Obviously, EatD is fictional, but in rl, an Admiral who was a Nazi fanatic took control of the island later in the war and cleared out all of the Wehrmacht officers, barring two (I think they'd be Freidel or Richter's equiv and Reinicke's equiv). Does that happen in this fictional version and if so how does it play out? (I'm interested, but I'm also reluctant to lose all of the officers.)
With Martel, everything's more practical and straight-forward, really, but I love him, too. How do he and Olive go on, with more shortages? What happens with Clare? What about Martel in prison, or the after-effects of that (and the double-edged fact that Richter is responsible for saving his life by that means)? Or just battling on, never finding enough bicycles, and trying to get medical supplies, running water, whatever it is? How will he feel at the end of the war when Richter has gone? (As Olive points out, he's much more alive having someone to battle).
Any of those things, together or apart; anything you can think of, any rl event you want to pull in; post-war fall out and/or reunions, or missing scenes, whatever you can think of. Even some backstory (though generally I'd like to keep things on Guernsey where possible), especially for Richter (did he and Martel narrowly miss each other somewhere along the Rhine back in the 30s? What was it he liked so much about Cambridge, or was it just the cherry trees?) Or a look at Olive and Philip back in happier days?
Maybe people would say it's a depressing, dull old series, I don't know, but I think it's so well written and I love the thoughtfulness of it, the way it explores every nuance of its title (living with the enemy, the threat of further invasion, collaboration, yourself your enemy etc.) & is full of shades of grey and it's just about human beings on both sides trying to deal with the events of war. So, you know, fic, any fic and I'll love you a lot, really. I think that's probably already clear, isn't it? (So much so, if you wish I'd chosen any characters but these two, there's none of the regulars I wouldn't want fic for, so just go for it. I would actually take nearly any of the guest characters, too.)
Poldark (TV 1975)
Ross Poldark, Demelza Carne
More of Ross & Demelza, especially earlier rather than later, but any really. I ship them hard, so fluff, being happy and not caring what the hell the neighbourhood thinks, rescuing each other, Demelza being fierce and awesome ♥ and just more basically.
As I said, really. I read the books as a teenager and found Ross and Demelza both appealing and very annoying, so avoided the series for long time while forever being curious about it. When I finally gave in, I found that it was great and that Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees have a chemistry that makes any of my objections to the characters fall away. So, more of the same, please. Or anything. Would totally take a pirate AU (they have every 18th C cliche, but pirates! Ross and Demelza would make great Robin Hood-ish pirates. And George would say they already are, heh), even a crossover with Jane Austen or Heyer where characters are SHOCKED by Ross and Demelza (if they're someone like Lady Catherine) or learn to like them anyway - I do rather like how the series must have looked like the latest Classic Adaptation back in the day, and then really, really wasn't. But Ross and Demelza fighting for justice, flouting convention and the neighbours, & being in love with each other, it's all good.
If you want to write them separately, then Demelza with any of the other women would be great, or just her being awesome and getting to solve problems herself. As for Ross, I like his relationship with Verity, and his tendency to get in any danger going (for Justice! Liberty! Etc.) & his friendship with Dwight and Caroline, too. I also really like how the series always sees his feud with George as destructive and petty, rather than Ross being epically wronged.
I like pretty much everyone else, too, so don't worry if you want to bring anyone else in - Verity, George, Dwight, Caroline, Morwenna, Drake, Elizabeth, Aunt Agatha, I'd be fine with any of that.
Sapphire & Steel
Sapphire, Silver, Steel
S&S is such a beautiful fandom & I am immensely fascinated by Elements, so I'd adore anything you can come up with - OT3-ness, missing assignments, and any mentions of or appearances from other Elements gives me a thrill, too.
I nearly put any here, so don't be afraid to bring in Lead if you're sad at my leaving him out. It's only that I do like a little Sapphire and/or Silver in with my Lead or Steel. Anyway, I love this series! It's so unlike anything else. If you're looking for prompts, I'd love any missing assignments, especially with all three of them. Two of the three have to rescue the other one, in any variation? I'd also be intrigued by their previous history - Sapphire & Steel have been working together for nearly 100 years, and before that Sapphire & Silver used to hang out together more often. I would be all over any 18th C Sapphire & Silver solving weird stuff in elaborate costume and flirting with everyone, including each other, or indeed, historical Sapphire & Steel. Or Silver in that time - who was he working with? (And wishing he could be with Sapphire and Steel?)
I do OT3 them in their weird, inhuman way, as you can tell. They're probably my only real OT-anything, to be honest. I adore them & all their weird interactions and three-way flirtiness! They are - as canon strongly implies - the perfect combination of Operators and Technician.
I don't tend to like humanising the characters - their sheer otherness is just beautiful, so I'd prefer not to have crack or AUs as a rule, or more human romance/sex. The fandom's made for crossovers, though, if you want to go that way. (Fandoms I do know are best, though!) And I am, as I said, so very fascinated by Elements! If you want to bring in any other Elements, whether previously mentioned or picked off the periodic table or whatever, I'd be all over that, in any combination with any of these three. (They seem so important to each other, and of course, all Elements act/react differently in the vicinity of other Elements. That's just chemistry. Or physics, possibly.
The one thing I'd ask you not to do is hate on Silver, or go with the theory of him being a traitor (and I tend to think that they all got out of the SPOILER at the end, though sometimes I like playing with the opposite). If you write Sapphire & Steel without him, a mention at least would make my heart happy. And, as I've said, any Elements welcome, absolutely including Lead and the two from Big Finish, if you know them. (I haven't met Ruby yet or heard all of Gold's & have mixed feelings, audio-wise but... ELEMENTS, basically. Wherever you find them.) Otherwise, go anywhere. Missing assignments, whatever you want to do. It's such a fascinating fandom to see how everyone else approaches it - I've never come across anything like it, and I'm looking forward to seeing what you do with it.
Bleak Expectations (Radio)
Any (Gently Benevolent, Pip Bin, Harry Biscuit, Pippa Bin.)
I'm in this for the tone, the pure crack, the loving parody of just about every 19th C/early 20th C literary genre/author going, and I await anything in that line you can give me with much eagerness and admiration, dear author.
Any Classic Lit authors you can think of who haven't already been done* (or for whom there could always be more crack, or less classic authors), but ideas for this are hard, because it's so out-of-the-box, and who am I to limit things for you? I'm really just after more of the same - missing/further adventures of our heroes (and very special villain), any of those diversions into unlikely history & cracky world-building.
I have listened to the whole thing, so any appearances from other characters are fine (especially Napoleonic agent Aunt Lily; I would absolutely be up for more of her adventures if you wanted to include them). If you want to steal from/parody any of my other fandoms here in any way, feel free; that could be fun (some of them overlap with the period, too). And, yes, just, whatever it is, go for it. This is one fandom where I'm just pretty much on the "more of canon, please!" front. The whole thing was witty, hilarious, adorable and pure crack in all the right ways and listening to it last year was one of the few bright spots in a stupidly bad summer & I loved it. If you can get anywhere near canon, you're awesome and I love you. I hope that's okay. *hands you unnerving blank canvas*
* It's been a year since I listened to it - in too short a time! - so forgive me if these have been done, but I'm not sure if we've had much Gaskell, Wilkie Collins, or Trollope?? Or modern novels/events parodied by it if you can see a way to do that. But I do love the whole period/history/lit cliche mishmash.
Anyway, congratulations, author, you made it to the end of my letter! The uneven lengths of text devoted to each fandom in no way means I want any noticeably less or more - I think very carefully before I request fandoms & won't choose anything I don't want to find fic for when the archive goes live.
Also, I don't really have a fandom that can act as an escape hatch this year. If the request we matched on is impossible for you and you want to attempt one of the others then I'm sorry, (I'm so, so sorry), but here's where you can find them should you wish to:
Enemy at the Door is at YouTube here (though lacking episode 2, and S1 is slightly out of order - check the titles on the uploads not the descriptions). It's 26x50 mins (2 series) and is a 1978/80 WWII drama set in the Channel Islands (with Alfred Burke, Bernard Horsfall, Simon Cadell etc. & some great guest stars, including a very young Antony Head in eps 4&5). Also out on DVD. (I think, by the nature of it, it's something you need to watch through, but particular Martel-and-Richter episodes are "The Judgement of Solomon", "Angels That Soar Above", "No Quarter Given" and "Committee Man" (the latter two involve of lot of Richter desperately wanting Martel back on the committee). "The Education of Nils Borg" has the most personal info for Richter. (We see Martel with his family all the time).
Shadow of the Tower is also up on YouTube here. (13x 50 mins, complete serial about the reign of Henry VII made by the BBC in 1972. It is, though, theatrical even by 1970s standards & rather stiff in a couple of episodes, especially ep1, but once you get into it, it's excellent, & does some more experimental & interesting things than you would expect of a BBC 1970s period piece. With James Maxwell, Norma West, Marigaold Sharman, Brian Badcoe, James Laurenson.) Also out on DVD. (Eps3,5,6,9,12&13 are probably my favourites and the end section of ep4 is great.Elizabeth is mainly in 1-2,6,9,12&13; Margaret 1-2,6,11&12; Lincoln is in eps 1-4. Henry's in all of it, though not so much of him in 7,8&10. Not-so-coincidentally, those are my least favourite eps.)
Ripper Street is only 2 series of 8x1hr episodes, and is shiny new TV and not decades old (gosh, go me!). It follows the investigations of the police officers who failed to catch Jack the Ripper, among other things. It's pretty awesome and is probably available via things like Netflix, as both series are out on DVD, and Amazon is funding S3 (due next year). It's absolutely great, although rather gory in places, if that's not your thing. (It's not mine, but I'm okay with Ripper Street.) With Matthew Macfadyen, Jerome Flynn, Adam Rothenberg, MyAnna Buring and Charlene McKenna.
Sapphire & Steel is comprised of six serials (4-8 25 min episodes each) and several people have it up on YouTube. It's an ITV series from 1979-1981, and while it takes a little getting used to, it's also one of the most original and weird bits of SF ever made, and stars David McCallum and Joanna Lumley (and occasionally David Collings as Silver).
Poldark: I can't find this on YouTube, except in Spanish. (If that's of use to you, it's here). However, the series is pretty close to the books and if you can get hold of the first couple of those, you can find lots of clips of the series to give an idea of Robin Ellis & Angharad Rees's performance. Also out on DVD.
Bleak Expectations is a recent BBC Radio drama/comedy about, er, well, a sort of parody of Dickens but with amazing crack, cliches being killed all over the place and invaders from Mars. (Voice artists including: Antony Head, Celia Imrie, Richard Johnson, David Mitchell). BBC iPlayer have some episodes up currently, but may not by the time you read this. However, at the moment, the whole thing seems to be up on YouTube here Also out on CD.
Mostly, however, I hope you have a good Yuletide and find something that you can enjoy writing. I shall look forward to reading whatever you come up with. Thanks once again! ♥
Crossposted from Dreamwidth -- Comments there: