Dear Yuletide Author
Hello!
Basically, I will be excited by anything you write. I'm not a difficult person to please. I like my fanfiction in gen, het or slash varieties; it can be clean as a whistle or as smutty as you wanna get. I'm fond of humor, family affection, romance based on friendship, wacky adventures, sex in unexpected places, good-natured competition and even the occasional inevitable heartbreak. The only things I would ask you to avoid are humiliation and cruelty. I don't dig them, even in fanfiction. Also, I like happy endings. All my fandom-specific prompts below are intended as guidelines; if something else moves you, go for it.
If you want to have a look at a fandom you don't recognize, the movies and Gavin & Stacey are available on DVD or through netflix, etc. The Mary Russell series is currently a dozen novels, but the specific characters I’m asking for appear together in the novel Justice Hall. The Vorkosigan Saga is widely available, though a large canon to master if you’re not already versed in it. The Almighty Johnsons is a bit more difficult to put your hands on if you're not from a country where it has aired, but there are Ways, so that's up to you.
Fandom-specific guidelines, repeated from my signup form:
The Almighty Johnsons
I was introduced to this terrific show via Dean O'Gorman and The Hobbit, but I stuck around for the unique premise, the hilarious and frequently touching plot, and the great actors involved. I'm going to try to be vague since I know it hasn't fully aired here in the US, but I am up-to-date through the end of series three. Even though he’s a side character as well as a mortal, I absolutely love Zeb’s role in the show. From the beginning of the series to the end, he’s such a great best friend to Axl, and he represents both the clueless nature of the mortal world and this total openness to the God-world of the Johnson brothers. Any story featuring Zeb will interest me; I’d love to see the beginning of his friendship with Axl, any part of the show from his point of view (maybe the Gaia/Idunn incident or the Gar?), or what you think the aftermath for him might be.
Gavin & Stacey
Gavin & Stacey is one of my favorite go-to television shows; I’ll pull out my DVDs and watch an episode (or maybe a season?) just because. I am really fond of the snappy writing and the way the characters relate to each other in a very authentic way; the show feels lived-in from the very first minute. I decided to ask for a Mick and Pam story because I love their relationship so much, especially as an example of that lived-in, authentic family feeling. There’s so much unspoken history there. You could write me anything about them, but my suggestions would be maybe how they met/got together, or their life with Gavin pre-Stacey, or what they’re like as grandparents!
Mary Russell- Laurie R. King
I’m a big fan of Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell mysteries in general, and one of the novels I return to again and again is Justice Hall (especially the excellent Jenny Sterlin narrated audio version.) I’m always a sucker for the type of English Country House setting which is used so effectively here, and the storyline just hits me like a punch to the gut every time. The character of Iris Sutherland (Hughenfort) is one of my favorite in Laurie King’s canon, and I have always regretted that she never shows back up (note: I lost interest in the series after failing to finish The Pirate King.) I would love a story about the relationship between Russell and Iris, like something from within the Justice Hall timeline, or an imagined friendship afterwards, or (if it floats your boat) maybe something romantic? If you are keen on the last suggestion, I’d prefer something non-adulterous, like an understanding or open relationship kind of set-up.
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is a pretty good rom-com, but it has a typical failing for me that I rarely think the leads are as interesting as the background characters. I always want to know what their stories and motivations are. For Notting Hill, there’s a lot to mine in William’s cast of crazy friends, but the ones I’ve always wondered about are Max and Bella. William calls her one of the two women he’s ever loved, and yet she’s married to his friend; how did that happen? What’s their internal life like, or what do they think of the events of the movie? Anything like that, or just whatever head canon you feel for these characters would be fun to read.
Sliding Doors
I'm not usually a big fan of romantic comedies, but this is one that I absolutely love. The style is really well done and it's cool to follow the doubled storylines, and I really like the ambiguity of the ending in terms of playing with the idea of fate. I'd love a future story about end-of-movie Helen and James; do they get together, are they happy, what are their lives like? I also enjoy the Anna character a lot and would be interested in getting a fuller version of her take on the events of the movie, from either or both storylines.
Vorkosigan Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold
The Vorkosigan Saga is one of my very favorite book series of all time, and Bujold’s ability to create fully realized background characters is one of the main reasons why. Professora Helen Vorthys plays a pretty minor role in the books, but she’s always made a big impact on me, especially as compare/contrast with both Ekaterin Vorsoisson and Cordelia Vorkosigan. What led her to become a professor of women’s history in a society that has typically undervalued women’s contributions? What did she and the Professor think of the Vorkosigans and the tumultuous events that surround them? (I love her line in A Civil Campaign about locating street fights during the Pretendership so as to go around them.) What really was going on between Helen and Cordelia communication-wise during A Civil Campaign?
Anyway, I hope that's enough to be getting on with. I'm going to cross-post this to my tumblr as well.
http://lyricalnights.tumblr.com/post/100879799593/dear-yuletide-author
Thanks and have fun!
Basically, I will be excited by anything you write. I'm not a difficult person to please. I like my fanfiction in gen, het or slash varieties; it can be clean as a whistle or as smutty as you wanna get. I'm fond of humor, family affection, romance based on friendship, wacky adventures, sex in unexpected places, good-natured competition and even the occasional inevitable heartbreak. The only things I would ask you to avoid are humiliation and cruelty. I don't dig them, even in fanfiction. Also, I like happy endings. All my fandom-specific prompts below are intended as guidelines; if something else moves you, go for it.
If you want to have a look at a fandom you don't recognize, the movies and Gavin & Stacey are available on DVD or through netflix, etc. The Mary Russell series is currently a dozen novels, but the specific characters I’m asking for appear together in the novel Justice Hall. The Vorkosigan Saga is widely available, though a large canon to master if you’re not already versed in it. The Almighty Johnsons is a bit more difficult to put your hands on if you're not from a country where it has aired, but there are Ways, so that's up to you.
Fandom-specific guidelines, repeated from my signup form:
The Almighty Johnsons
I was introduced to this terrific show via Dean O'Gorman and The Hobbit, but I stuck around for the unique premise, the hilarious and frequently touching plot, and the great actors involved. I'm going to try to be vague since I know it hasn't fully aired here in the US, but I am up-to-date through the end of series three. Even though he’s a side character as well as a mortal, I absolutely love Zeb’s role in the show. From the beginning of the series to the end, he’s such a great best friend to Axl, and he represents both the clueless nature of the mortal world and this total openness to the God-world of the Johnson brothers. Any story featuring Zeb will interest me; I’d love to see the beginning of his friendship with Axl, any part of the show from his point of view (maybe the Gaia/Idunn incident or the Gar?), or what you think the aftermath for him might be.
Gavin & Stacey
Gavin & Stacey is one of my favorite go-to television shows; I’ll pull out my DVDs and watch an episode (or maybe a season?) just because. I am really fond of the snappy writing and the way the characters relate to each other in a very authentic way; the show feels lived-in from the very first minute. I decided to ask for a Mick and Pam story because I love their relationship so much, especially as an example of that lived-in, authentic family feeling. There’s so much unspoken history there. You could write me anything about them, but my suggestions would be maybe how they met/got together, or their life with Gavin pre-Stacey, or what they’re like as grandparents!
Mary Russell- Laurie R. King
I’m a big fan of Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell mysteries in general, and one of the novels I return to again and again is Justice Hall (especially the excellent Jenny Sterlin narrated audio version.) I’m always a sucker for the type of English Country House setting which is used so effectively here, and the storyline just hits me like a punch to the gut every time. The character of Iris Sutherland (Hughenfort) is one of my favorite in Laurie King’s canon, and I have always regretted that she never shows back up (note: I lost interest in the series after failing to finish The Pirate King.) I would love a story about the relationship between Russell and Iris, like something from within the Justice Hall timeline, or an imagined friendship afterwards, or (if it floats your boat) maybe something romantic? If you are keen on the last suggestion, I’d prefer something non-adulterous, like an understanding or open relationship kind of set-up.
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is a pretty good rom-com, but it has a typical failing for me that I rarely think the leads are as interesting as the background characters. I always want to know what their stories and motivations are. For Notting Hill, there’s a lot to mine in William’s cast of crazy friends, but the ones I’ve always wondered about are Max and Bella. William calls her one of the two women he’s ever loved, and yet she’s married to his friend; how did that happen? What’s their internal life like, or what do they think of the events of the movie? Anything like that, or just whatever head canon you feel for these characters would be fun to read.
Sliding Doors
I'm not usually a big fan of romantic comedies, but this is one that I absolutely love. The style is really well done and it's cool to follow the doubled storylines, and I really like the ambiguity of the ending in terms of playing with the idea of fate. I'd love a future story about end-of-movie Helen and James; do they get together, are they happy, what are their lives like? I also enjoy the Anna character a lot and would be interested in getting a fuller version of her take on the events of the movie, from either or both storylines.
Vorkosigan Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold
The Vorkosigan Saga is one of my very favorite book series of all time, and Bujold’s ability to create fully realized background characters is one of the main reasons why. Professora Helen Vorthys plays a pretty minor role in the books, but she’s always made a big impact on me, especially as compare/contrast with both Ekaterin Vorsoisson and Cordelia Vorkosigan. What led her to become a professor of women’s history in a society that has typically undervalued women’s contributions? What did she and the Professor think of the Vorkosigans and the tumultuous events that surround them? (I love her line in A Civil Campaign about locating street fights during the Pretendership so as to go around them.) What really was going on between Helen and Cordelia communication-wise during A Civil Campaign?
Anyway, I hope that's enough to be getting on with. I'm going to cross-post this to my tumblr as well.
http://lyricalnights.tumblr.com/post/100879799593/dear-yuletide-author
Thanks and have fun!