Dear Yuletide writer,
Dear Yuletide writer,
Given we've matched up or you've offered for any of these fandoms, I already kind of love you. I'll try not to be too creepy about it though.
Please feel free to have a rummage around my LJ or DW or to check out my own fic (also at AO3) if you want to get a feel for what I like.
Now onto actual fic stuff.
First, general fic stuff.
I’m a huge, huge fan of banter and strong woman characters. Huge fan. I also like happy endings, dancing, schmoop, bittersweet fics, competent people fic, first times (not just sexual, could be first kiss, first time sleeping together, first time living together, first time on holiday together etc) and slightly angsty fics (though I usually prefer them to have a happy ending). I’m perfectly fine with any rating, shippy or gen fic, PWP’s or plotty, crimefighting fics (and anything in between really) and am pretty kink friendly.
I'm not a fan of incest, mpreg, scat, gore, too much angst, character bashing or anything too out of character (ie a relatively quiet character suddenly shouting things from the rooftops) without a good reason. Also, non-Britishisms have a tendency to throw me out of a fic set in a British fandom.
Second, the fandoms.
DCI Banks (tv)
DCI Banks is a series following the fictional Yorkshire Major Crimes Unit (the first series is out on DVD and the second is currently airing.) The titular DCI Banks is in charge with Annie Cabbot initially starting off in Complaints but transferring to work under him.
What I said: Annie is my absolute favourite and I would love something that either dealt with her backstory or her relationships with the other officers, especially Alan.
Additional stuff: Some general ideas (and sorry for just throwing these at you, I'm not looking for anything specific here, just want to give you a good starting point). Given how ambitious she is, why did she join the Police in the first place? How did she feel working in Complaints? How did she feel about the transfer to the Major Crimes Unit?
Her relationship with Alan also fascinates me. They seem rather comfortable together despite how they first worked together and they often bump heads. She's also stated she hero worships him, how does their relationship evolve from her telling him that, especially after the events of Cold is the Grave? I am a little bit of an Annie/Alan shipper so I'm happy for the fic to veer in that direction, even if it is just subtly.
I also like the slow evolution of her relationships with both Win and Kevin. She and Win seem a lot closer in the opening episode of the second series and it would be fantastic to see some of that progression, or just the two of them being awesome.
If you want to deal with the events of the second series, how did she feel when she discovered she was pregnant? How did everyone react when she told them, or stated showing. It's shown to complicate her relationship with Alan even more, which I just find delicious.
Blue Murder (TV UK)
Blue Murder is a British crime drama set in Manchester. It ran for five series, all of which are available to stream with a little googling. The team is headed up by DCI Janine Lewis, with Richard Mayne as her DI, and a lot of the detail comes from Janine having to juggle being a divorced mum of four with being a senior ranking police officer.
What I said: I absolutely freaking adore the relationship between Janine and Richard and anything that deals with that would be awesome.
Additional stuff: One of the other main things I love about Blue Murder is the humour and the banter that goes on between all the characters.
As I said, the relationship between Janine and Richard is a big draw for me. Whether it's as BFF's with a bit of spark, or full out romance, I love the pair of them together. The banter, the tension, the being there for each other and the fact that they are friends first and foremost.
Some ideas if you want: what was their first meeting like, or what actually happened when they kissed for the first time all those years ago. Alternatively, what were their reactions after she gave birth to Charlotte, after they kissed in Steady Eddie? Or simply a slice of life fic, or a snippet of them at work, or getting nagged by colleagues and kids about what their relationship actually is (I have a huge softspot for the idea of one of the younger kids trying to set them up together and everyone's reactions to that). If you want to use a different POV than either Janine or Richard, that would be more than fine as well.
Tweed & Co - Colin Forbes
A series of novels by Colin Forbes based around the fictional Deputy Director of the British Secret Intelligence Service, Tweed. There are 24 books in all but my favourite character only makes proper appearances from the 5th book (Deadlock) onwards and the books are usually classed as thrillers. The last few books are not as good as the earlier ones but they still hold a special place in my heart. (An incomplete collection of the books can be found here. Alternatively, copies are still available on amazon etc.) The books are pretty similar so please don't let the number of books put you off if you fancy a look.
What I said: Basically, I would love Paula being awesome. However you decide to do that, with what ever rating you decide is perfectly fine by me, the only exception being that if there is going to be any ship, I would prefer it be Paula/Tweed. Really, there is next to no fic for this so anything with Paula would be awesome. Could be as simple as a day in the life, or how she felt when she joined the SIS, or reflections after any of their many escapades, or escaping from one of her many kidnapping attempts, or her thoughts on the assumptions people have about her relationship with Tweed.
Additional stuff: My favourite character is Paula Grey and Paula and Tweed's relationship is one of my favourite aspects of the series, even as just work colleagues. I am partial to the odd bit of domestic Paula/Tweed shipping though, and curtain fic would be hilarious. I'd be more than happy with gen fic though, or slightly shippy, really anything Paula-centric.
For a couple of other ideas, references are made about training with an SAS sergeant. That is ripe for a whole host of ideas - the actual training, the aftermath, the cursing out of her job and Tweed in her head as she's doing it, collapsing in a heap afterwards or the dread before hand, especially before her first session. There are some suggestions in the last book or two that Paula is headed for more responsibility - her feelings there would make a great fic, especially the first time she is active in the field and recognised as having that power, no longer seen as just Tweed's assistant.
Lastly, I rather quite adore the ridiculous cheesy aspect of some of the plans they have to foil so please don’t let that put you off anything at all.
I should be around at some point on the 25th but I'll typically leave a kudos or a brief comment first to let you know I've read it, then a proper comment later in the day when I have the spoons to think coherently.
Given we've matched up or you've offered for any of these fandoms, I already kind of love you. I'll try not to be too creepy about it though.
Please feel free to have a rummage around my LJ or DW or to check out my own fic (also at AO3) if you want to get a feel for what I like.
Now onto actual fic stuff.
First, general fic stuff.
I’m a huge, huge fan of banter and strong woman characters. Huge fan. I also like happy endings, dancing, schmoop, bittersweet fics, competent people fic, first times (not just sexual, could be first kiss, first time sleeping together, first time living together, first time on holiday together etc) and slightly angsty fics (though I usually prefer them to have a happy ending). I’m perfectly fine with any rating, shippy or gen fic, PWP’s or plotty, crimefighting fics (and anything in between really) and am pretty kink friendly.
I'm not a fan of incest, mpreg, scat, gore, too much angst, character bashing or anything too out of character (ie a relatively quiet character suddenly shouting things from the rooftops) without a good reason. Also, non-Britishisms have a tendency to throw me out of a fic set in a British fandom.
Second, the fandoms.
DCI Banks (tv)
DCI Banks is a series following the fictional Yorkshire Major Crimes Unit (the first series is out on DVD and the second is currently airing.) The titular DCI Banks is in charge with Annie Cabbot initially starting off in Complaints but transferring to work under him.
What I said: Annie is my absolute favourite and I would love something that either dealt with her backstory or her relationships with the other officers, especially Alan.
Additional stuff: Some general ideas (and sorry for just throwing these at you, I'm not looking for anything specific here, just want to give you a good starting point). Given how ambitious she is, why did she join the Police in the first place? How did she feel working in Complaints? How did she feel about the transfer to the Major Crimes Unit?
Her relationship with Alan also fascinates me. They seem rather comfortable together despite how they first worked together and they often bump heads. She's also stated she hero worships him, how does their relationship evolve from her telling him that, especially after the events of Cold is the Grave? I am a little bit of an Annie/Alan shipper so I'm happy for the fic to veer in that direction, even if it is just subtly.
I also like the slow evolution of her relationships with both Win and Kevin. She and Win seem a lot closer in the opening episode of the second series and it would be fantastic to see some of that progression, or just the two of them being awesome.
If you want to deal with the events of the second series, how did she feel when she discovered she was pregnant? How did everyone react when she told them, or stated showing. It's shown to complicate her relationship with Alan even more, which I just find delicious.
Blue Murder (TV UK)
Blue Murder is a British crime drama set in Manchester. It ran for five series, all of which are available to stream with a little googling. The team is headed up by DCI Janine Lewis, with Richard Mayne as her DI, and a lot of the detail comes from Janine having to juggle being a divorced mum of four with being a senior ranking police officer.
What I said: I absolutely freaking adore the relationship between Janine and Richard and anything that deals with that would be awesome.
Additional stuff: One of the other main things I love about Blue Murder is the humour and the banter that goes on between all the characters.
As I said, the relationship between Janine and Richard is a big draw for me. Whether it's as BFF's with a bit of spark, or full out romance, I love the pair of them together. The banter, the tension, the being there for each other and the fact that they are friends first and foremost.
Some ideas if you want: what was their first meeting like, or what actually happened when they kissed for the first time all those years ago. Alternatively, what were their reactions after she gave birth to Charlotte, after they kissed in Steady Eddie? Or simply a slice of life fic, or a snippet of them at work, or getting nagged by colleagues and kids about what their relationship actually is (I have a huge softspot for the idea of one of the younger kids trying to set them up together and everyone's reactions to that). If you want to use a different POV than either Janine or Richard, that would be more than fine as well.
Tweed & Co - Colin Forbes
A series of novels by Colin Forbes based around the fictional Deputy Director of the British Secret Intelligence Service, Tweed. There are 24 books in all but my favourite character only makes proper appearances from the 5th book (Deadlock) onwards and the books are usually classed as thrillers. The last few books are not as good as the earlier ones but they still hold a special place in my heart. (An incomplete collection of the books can be found here. Alternatively, copies are still available on amazon etc.) The books are pretty similar so please don't let the number of books put you off if you fancy a look.
What I said: Basically, I would love Paula being awesome. However you decide to do that, with what ever rating you decide is perfectly fine by me, the only exception being that if there is going to be any ship, I would prefer it be Paula/Tweed. Really, there is next to no fic for this so anything with Paula would be awesome. Could be as simple as a day in the life, or how she felt when she joined the SIS, or reflections after any of their many escapades, or escaping from one of her many kidnapping attempts, or her thoughts on the assumptions people have about her relationship with Tweed.
Additional stuff: My favourite character is Paula Grey and Paula and Tweed's relationship is one of my favourite aspects of the series, even as just work colleagues. I am partial to the odd bit of domestic Paula/Tweed shipping though, and curtain fic would be hilarious. I'd be more than happy with gen fic though, or slightly shippy, really anything Paula-centric.
For a couple of other ideas, references are made about training with an SAS sergeant. That is ripe for a whole host of ideas - the actual training, the aftermath, the cursing out of her job and Tweed in her head as she's doing it, collapsing in a heap afterwards or the dread before hand, especially before her first session. There are some suggestions in the last book or two that Paula is headed for more responsibility - her feelings there would make a great fic, especially the first time she is active in the field and recognised as having that power, no longer seen as just Tweed's assistant.
Lastly, I rather quite adore the ridiculous cheesy aspect of some of the plans they have to foil so please don’t let that put you off anything at all.
I should be around at some point on the 25th but I'll typically leave a kudos or a brief comment first to let you know I've read it, then a proper comment later in the day when I have the spoons to think coherently.