do you know what the penalty is for an overdue book?
Because
anahita_devine very honestly just asked me how I manage to find fic these days and we subsequently embarked on a discussion of How There Is So Little Well-Written Fic, I decided to make a list of my favorites from most of my fandoms, chosen for the writing rather than just a good plot. Upon reflection, my favorites are mostly character studies of female characters kicking butt and finding love. That can only be a good thing, right? Right?
The Failure of Einstein’s Universe | Annakovsky
The Big Bang Theory | In an effort to show her friends that she is not a failure at life, Penny convinces Sheldon to become her fake boyfriend for a Christmas party.
One of the first Yuletide stories I read this year and it is still my favorite. It’s adorable, funny, and honestly attempts to show how Penny and Sheldon both work and don’t work in a relationship (fake or not). The reaction of the boys to a fancied-up Sheldon is hysterical.
Recoil and Whiplash | snappleducated / renaliner
Bleach | Sometimes the best way to grow up is to punch someone in the face.
Had to use Ren’s original summary because it just makes me happy. The writing is great, which is why it’s on here, but Orihime is so stellarly awesome that I couldn’t resist recommending it. Everyone should read this, because not only does Ren get the character, but she gets a lot of struggle between the characters of Bleach down too, and in a very short piece.
Buried Queens | shiegra
Chronicles of Narnia | After the death of her siblings, Susan finds herself back in Narnia; not, however, the Narnia that she remembers. And no one seems to remember her.
As this is a work in progress, I probably shouldn’t pimp it out and get more disappointed people hyped-up on shiegra’s beautiful prose listing around waiting for updates, but I couldn’t help it. Each time I reread this, I get chills-it’s just frankly gorgeous. The plot is wonderful, Caspian is sexy and mysterious, Susan is sophisticated and lost, and it is just honestly amazing.
Big Bright Green Pleasuring Machine | basicaquatics / attica
Harry Potter | After meeting Hermione at Blaise's Christmas party, Draco is plagued by her presence and the details of that night.
Every time I read this, I can’t help crying a bit. The author’s style of writing is so gorgeous-I recommend you check out anything by her; I’ve read it all, and it’s all amazing-that it literally grabs you at the chest. If you do read this, or anything else by the same author, be sure to keep a liberal amount of tissues nearby. And possibly a Sandra Bullock movie within reach, so as to save yourself from slashing your wrists. It’s still worth a read, though. Probably (from a literary standpoint) the best on this list.
We’re A Storm In Somebody Else’s Teacup | Lady Paperclip
Merlin | Modern AU | Merlin confesses to Gwen his abilities and she sends him to a support group. Morgana is snarky, Arthur is oblivious, and Nimueh is Evil. In other words, the show in modern-day London.
I was caught between giggling and crying for the majority of this epic, which Lady Paperclip insists continually got away from her, much to the delight of the fans. The characters are truly delightful, Merlin is infuriatingly idiotic, Gwen and Morgana are perfect, and when the going gets tough, the prose gets splintered and fractured and even more beautiful. I spent the entirety of a weekend working through this, and it was worth every meal I spent slouched over my laptop.
Before the Dawn | Lady Silvamord
Naruto | Danzo takes over Konoha, pushing Sakura to become a missing-nin to avoid being, you know, tortured and murdered, and she ends up reluctant partners with a resurrected and miserable Itachi.
My summary makes it sound campy, but it’s really a wonderful read. Itachi is twitchy and miserable and angsty, as to be expected, Sakura is torn between Naruto and Konoha’s expectations, and the author concocts a truly surprising twist with the infamous Uchiha Shisui that I still wish was canon. The characters are dealt with honestly, which doesn’t happen often with Sakura and Itachi, and it turns almost every cliché of the pairing on its ear. Their relationship is slow-moving, but the action more than makes up for it.
Reap the Whirlwind | dresses-without-sleeves
NCIS | Ziva David, from Israel to Tony DiNozzo. And back again.
I had a hard time to choosing between this, if so be it, yield, and jerusalem bells, but as the two I just listed are technically (well, not really with jerusalem bells, but we’ll lie) companions to Real the Whirlwind, I’ll simply say that they need to be read as well. Dresses-without-sleeves is one of my favorite authors of all fandoms, as she has a serious talent for taking characters and looking at them from perspectives that both surprise the reader and somehow make sense. I love her Ziva, and she is a truly powerful creature.
Curiosity and Correspondence | Mariafaith
Jane Austen | AU | Following Darcy’s disastrous proposal at Hunsford and his subsequent letter, Elizabeth sends him a letter of her own in an attempt to clear the air between them.
The prose is pretty, the insights exactly the sort of things you were shouting at the characters while reading the post-Hunsford self-recriminations, and the love letters (while not smoldering), showcase an intelligence one would expect from both the characters. Lovely, and not that long a read.
Arrive | lala_lady_r
Smallville | Are we or aren’t we?
I know that I have lamented on many an occasion that there is no such thing as good Smallville fic, but she made me change my mind. I used her summary because I have no other viable way of compressing this bit of beautiful into a sentence. I hate Smallville fiction on principle and I hate Chlark because those shippers are the worst perpetrators, but she did something very smart and lovely and clever with this, so I’m willing to advertise: Yes, there is such a thing as a lovely, well-written, well-plotted Smallville story. The only other two I have ever found were both written by dresses-with-sleeves.
Lunch and Other Obscenities | rheanna27
Star Trek | The evolution of Gaila and Uhura’s relationship as roommates, with a bit of the dawn of the great Uhura/Spock off in a corner.
The author, far from deciding that Gaila being green is the only bit of her Orion heritage, honestly grabs the beast by the throat and shows how two very different people from incredibly separate cultures can co-exist. It’s a nice change from the Every Alien Is Secretly Human hypothesis that plagues a lot of the Star Trek fandom. It’s also very well-written and creates a Gaila that made me sorry she probably died duried the siege of Vulcan.
come out of books to people orchards | siriaeve
Stargate: Atlantis | Earth AU | Jennifer is lost at college, at least until she meets Ronon.
I’ll be honest: every time I feel depressed or horrified at the thought of never making any friends or just plain down, I reread this. It is wondrously happy, the prose is so light and pretty, and the characters warm like the lentil soup she talks about. This introduced me to the Ronon and Keller ship, and I’ve never looked back.
Still Fire In Your Tombs | Niz4
Supernatural | Gender-swap AU | Dean grows up loving one thing, and that’s his sister.
Normally I’m not a fan of Sam and Dean together romantically, but this is so lovely that it literally squeezed all the hatred for that ship out of my heart. And before you ask, no, it is not because Sam is a girl and therefore incest is Automatically Okay. The author just has a very beautiful way of presenting the pair of them as the only possible recourse for each other. John’s reaction is extremely typical, but most Sam/Dean stories don’t feature the Winchester patriarch’s response to their relationship. It’s painful at times, but in a good way.
anahita_devine very honestly just asked me how I manage to find fic these days and we subsequently embarked on a discussion of How There Is So Little Well-Written Fic, I decided to make a list of my favorites from most of my fandoms, chosen for the writing rather than just a good plot. Upon reflection, my favorites are mostly character studies of female characters kicking butt and finding love. That can only be a good thing, right? Right?
The Failure of Einstein’s Universe | Annakovsky
The Big Bang Theory | In an effort to show her friends that she is not a failure at life, Penny convinces Sheldon to become her fake boyfriend for a Christmas party.
One of the first Yuletide stories I read this year and it is still my favorite. It’s adorable, funny, and honestly attempts to show how Penny and Sheldon both work and don’t work in a relationship (fake or not). The reaction of the boys to a fancied-up Sheldon is hysterical.
Recoil and Whiplash | snappleducated / renaliner
Bleach | Sometimes the best way to grow up is to punch someone in the face.
Had to use Ren’s original summary because it just makes me happy. The writing is great, which is why it’s on here, but Orihime is so stellarly awesome that I couldn’t resist recommending it. Everyone should read this, because not only does Ren get the character, but she gets a lot of struggle between the characters of Bleach down too, and in a very short piece.
Buried Queens | shiegra
Chronicles of Narnia | After the death of her siblings, Susan finds herself back in Narnia; not, however, the Narnia that she remembers. And no one seems to remember her.
As this is a work in progress, I probably shouldn’t pimp it out and get more disappointed people hyped-up on shiegra’s beautiful prose listing around waiting for updates, but I couldn’t help it. Each time I reread this, I get chills-it’s just frankly gorgeous. The plot is wonderful, Caspian is sexy and mysterious, Susan is sophisticated and lost, and it is just honestly amazing.
Big Bright Green Pleasuring Machine | basicaquatics / attica
Harry Potter | After meeting Hermione at Blaise's Christmas party, Draco is plagued by her presence and the details of that night.
Every time I read this, I can’t help crying a bit. The author’s style of writing is so gorgeous-I recommend you check out anything by her; I’ve read it all, and it’s all amazing-that it literally grabs you at the chest. If you do read this, or anything else by the same author, be sure to keep a liberal amount of tissues nearby. And possibly a Sandra Bullock movie within reach, so as to save yourself from slashing your wrists. It’s still worth a read, though. Probably (from a literary standpoint) the best on this list.
We’re A Storm In Somebody Else’s Teacup | Lady Paperclip
Merlin | Modern AU | Merlin confesses to Gwen his abilities and she sends him to a support group. Morgana is snarky, Arthur is oblivious, and Nimueh is Evil. In other words, the show in modern-day London.
I was caught between giggling and crying for the majority of this epic, which Lady Paperclip insists continually got away from her, much to the delight of the fans. The characters are truly delightful, Merlin is infuriatingly idiotic, Gwen and Morgana are perfect, and when the going gets tough, the prose gets splintered and fractured and even more beautiful. I spent the entirety of a weekend working through this, and it was worth every meal I spent slouched over my laptop.
Before the Dawn | Lady Silvamord
Naruto | Danzo takes over Konoha, pushing Sakura to become a missing-nin to avoid being, you know, tortured and murdered, and she ends up reluctant partners with a resurrected and miserable Itachi.
My summary makes it sound campy, but it’s really a wonderful read. Itachi is twitchy and miserable and angsty, as to be expected, Sakura is torn between Naruto and Konoha’s expectations, and the author concocts a truly surprising twist with the infamous Uchiha Shisui that I still wish was canon. The characters are dealt with honestly, which doesn’t happen often with Sakura and Itachi, and it turns almost every cliché of the pairing on its ear. Their relationship is slow-moving, but the action more than makes up for it.
Reap the Whirlwind | dresses-without-sleeves
NCIS | Ziva David, from Israel to Tony DiNozzo. And back again.
I had a hard time to choosing between this, if so be it, yield, and jerusalem bells, but as the two I just listed are technically (well, not really with jerusalem bells, but we’ll lie) companions to Real the Whirlwind, I’ll simply say that they need to be read as well. Dresses-without-sleeves is one of my favorite authors of all fandoms, as she has a serious talent for taking characters and looking at them from perspectives that both surprise the reader and somehow make sense. I love her Ziva, and she is a truly powerful creature.
Curiosity and Correspondence | Mariafaith
Jane Austen | AU | Following Darcy’s disastrous proposal at Hunsford and his subsequent letter, Elizabeth sends him a letter of her own in an attempt to clear the air between them.
The prose is pretty, the insights exactly the sort of things you were shouting at the characters while reading the post-Hunsford self-recriminations, and the love letters (while not smoldering), showcase an intelligence one would expect from both the characters. Lovely, and not that long a read.
Arrive | lala_lady_r
Smallville | Are we or aren’t we?
I know that I have lamented on many an occasion that there is no such thing as good Smallville fic, but she made me change my mind. I used her summary because I have no other viable way of compressing this bit of beautiful into a sentence. I hate Smallville fiction on principle and I hate Chlark because those shippers are the worst perpetrators, but she did something very smart and lovely and clever with this, so I’m willing to advertise: Yes, there is such a thing as a lovely, well-written, well-plotted Smallville story. The only other two I have ever found were both written by dresses-with-sleeves.
Lunch and Other Obscenities | rheanna27
Star Trek | The evolution of Gaila and Uhura’s relationship as roommates, with a bit of the dawn of the great Uhura/Spock off in a corner.
The author, far from deciding that Gaila being green is the only bit of her Orion heritage, honestly grabs the beast by the throat and shows how two very different people from incredibly separate cultures can co-exist. It’s a nice change from the Every Alien Is Secretly Human hypothesis that plagues a lot of the Star Trek fandom. It’s also very well-written and creates a Gaila that made me sorry she probably died duried the siege of Vulcan.
come out of books to people orchards | siriaeve
Stargate: Atlantis | Earth AU | Jennifer is lost at college, at least until she meets Ronon.
I’ll be honest: every time I feel depressed or horrified at the thought of never making any friends or just plain down, I reread this. It is wondrously happy, the prose is so light and pretty, and the characters warm like the lentil soup she talks about. This introduced me to the Ronon and Keller ship, and I’ve never looked back.
Still Fire In Your Tombs | Niz4
Supernatural | Gender-swap AU | Dean grows up loving one thing, and that’s his sister.
Normally I’m not a fan of Sam and Dean together romantically, but this is so lovely that it literally squeezed all the hatred for that ship out of my heart. And before you ask, no, it is not because Sam is a girl and therefore incest is Automatically Okay. The author just has a very beautiful way of presenting the pair of them as the only possible recourse for each other. John’s reaction is extremely typical, but most Sam/Dean stories don’t feature the Winchester patriarch’s response to their relationship. It’s painful at times, but in a good way.