Dear Yuletide Author
Hurrah, you got me as your assignment! Thank you so much for doing this! This is my very first Yuletide as a participant and I am ridiculously excited about it.
Please don't feel intimidated or worried on any level about writing for me. I know how dismal it can be to write under pressure and with a bucketload of anxiety about whether it will measure up to expectations, and I would hate to make you feel that way. Fic should be fun, even if it stretches us in new and unexpected directions. And you are giving me a gift just by writing a story about a fandom and characters I love.
I am on AO3 as RJ_Anderson and on FF.net as R.J. Anderson. (The FF.net archive is far more comprehensive, mostly because I am too lazy to edit and re-upload a bunch of old, mostly jossed fics to AO3.)
As a reader I love stories with witty dialogue and wordplay, characters who are practical and level-headed, romances based in mutual respect and understanding rather than mere physical attraction, and interesting, well-reasoned plots. I also like to feel that the fics I read could actually fit somewhere into canon, either past or in some plausible future - basically, I want to believe, and that's hard to do when it's a cracked-out AU or wildly unlikely crossover (though I'm not against crossovers or AUs either, when they're done well).Things I prefer to avoid in stories: explicit sex, incest, non-con, gobs of profanity / blasphemy, lengthy descriptions of gore, character assassination for the sake of plot convenience (i.e. killing Ron Weasley or making him evil so Harry and Hermione can get together), depressing stories without so much as a glimmer of hope.
The following fandom-specific info is on my AO3 signup form, but just in case it gets lost or scrambled or you'd like to see it all in one convenient place, I'll copy it here:
Incarceron Series - Catherine Fisher (Incarceron, Sapphique)
Claudia Arlexa, Jared Sapiens, Keiro, Attia
Jared and Claudia are my OTP of the past five years. I would absolutely adore a fic with that pairing - whether it's an overtly romantic story set after the end of SAPPHIQUE, or a quieter exploration of their mutual trust and devotion during the events of the Incarceron series (or beforehand). I'm not gonna lie, kissing would be awesome, but I would be delighted with anything that focuses on the two of them.
Failing that, I like Attia a lot and think that if anybody has the capacity to turn Keiro into an actual human being it would be her. Something sparky with the two of them butting heads and then coming to some kind of terms, whether it's a friendship or a romance, would be fun.
* * *
Dance Academy (Australian TV show)
Abigail Armstrong, Ethan Karamakov
(INCOMING SPOILERS for anyone who has not watched S3 of Dance Academy yet - sorry about that.)
I am super sad that Tim Pocock couldn't be part of DA Season 3, because I feel almost certain that the whole Wes/Abigail storyline would have been totally Ethan/Abigail otherwise. And Ethan/Abigail are my Dance Academy OTP. So I would love to see an AU S3 fic, or a fic set in Barcelona during the S2 - S3 gap in Barcelona, or a fic set after the events of S3, where Ethan and Abigail get together. But I would also be totally cool with a character study-type fic where they're apart and working on separate projects, and there's no particular romantic angle at all.
Basically, I just love the both of them. Especially Abigail.
BTW, there is nobody in the whole cast of Dance Academy that I hate (though Ben Tickle gets on my last nerve sometimes and Grace's behaviour is frequently appalling, I still see them as fully rounded human beings because THE SHOW IS THAT GOOD), so feel free to throw in any other characters you like. Especially Kat because Kat <3.
* * *
Monster Blood Tattoo Series - D. M. Cornish (Foundling, Lamplighter, Factotum)
Miss Europe, Sebastipole
Please tell me I'm not the only reader of this series who adores both Europe and Sebastipole and thinks they would make a fabulous pair? They never met in canon that I can recall, though IIRC Sebastipole was aware of Europe's reputation as both a monster-killer and an attractive, powerful woman (doesn't he tell Rossamünd about her at some point? I really need to re-read the books). But the two of them working together is definitely something I'd love to see in a fic, whether the story goes all the way to romance or merely hints at the beginning of a brilliant alliance. Bonus points for fighting action and anything else that indulges my competence kink!
* * *
Kat Series - Stephanie Burgis
Kat Stephenson, Alexander Ravenscroft
The Kat series was so delightful, I hated to see it end. Especially just as Kat appeared to have finally met her destined match in the embittered, misguided but redeemable Alexander. Where did they go from there, magically and romantically, after the final book? A story set anywhere in the subsequent years, involving both of them in some kind of magical escapade that brings them closer together (despite the inevitable bickering and exasperation with each other's faults), would be great fun. Something sweet but not saccharine, light-hearted but not silly - basically in a tone similar to the original series, so I can pretend it's a bit of canon I just happened to miss along the way.
* * *
Elementary (TV)
Joan Watson, Sherlock Holmes
I don't know if I ship them or not, I just know I want to see Sherlock and Joan being the bestest of best friends forever. Solving cases, negotiating domestic conflicts, finding out stuff about each other that they've never told anybody else, giving each other much-needed reality checks, and suchlike. (Not that the fic has to have ALL of those things at the same time. I'm just giving examples.)
If it turns out to be romantic or quasi-romantic that's great; if it doesn't and the focus is on their amazing friendship, that's great too. As Schmendrick said to the magic, do what you will.
Bonus points for including Alfredo Llamosa. Or Clyde.
* * *
Sleepy Hollow (TV)
Ichabod Crane, Abbie Mills
I tried to tell myself that I don't ship Ichabbie, but it's no use. I totally do. Except that I can only feel good about shipping them if Katrina is dead, because adultery. So I am good with either a story that's about the same speed as the show right now where Ichabbie is concerned (i.e. basically genfic with lashings of sassy banter and UST), or a story set some time in the future where it's clear that Katrina is lost to Crane forever. *wipes tear*
Ichabod Meets the 21st Century (And It's Hilarious) is one of my favorite things about this show, so bonus points for that. In all honesty I am really not fond of demons and ghosts and gore, and I can only handwave the dreadful theology and eschatology by telling myself that it takes place in some alternate universe where the Bible is different, so I'd be happiest with a story about Ichabod and Abbie going on a search for some Very Important Mystical-Historical Artifact or solving a mystery with a relatively low grossness / occult factor. Or even just hanging out doing nothing in particular except making great faces at each other, because obviously I do not watch this show for the plot.
* * *
And that's it! Thank you so very much again, and I hope these few comments have been of some help to you and are not too harrowing. I can't wait to see whatever story you come up with!
This entry was originally posted at http://rj-anderson.dreamwidth.org/4487.html. There are
comments on Dreamwidth.
Please don't feel intimidated or worried on any level about writing for me. I know how dismal it can be to write under pressure and with a bucketload of anxiety about whether it will measure up to expectations, and I would hate to make you feel that way. Fic should be fun, even if it stretches us in new and unexpected directions. And you are giving me a gift just by writing a story about a fandom and characters I love.
I am on AO3 as RJ_Anderson and on FF.net as R.J. Anderson. (The FF.net archive is far more comprehensive, mostly because I am too lazy to edit and re-upload a bunch of old, mostly jossed fics to AO3.)
As a reader I love stories with witty dialogue and wordplay, characters who are practical and level-headed, romances based in mutual respect and understanding rather than mere physical attraction, and interesting, well-reasoned plots. I also like to feel that the fics I read could actually fit somewhere into canon, either past or in some plausible future - basically, I want to believe, and that's hard to do when it's a cracked-out AU or wildly unlikely crossover (though I'm not against crossovers or AUs either, when they're done well).Things I prefer to avoid in stories: explicit sex, incest, non-con, gobs of profanity / blasphemy, lengthy descriptions of gore, character assassination for the sake of plot convenience (i.e. killing Ron Weasley or making him evil so Harry and Hermione can get together), depressing stories without so much as a glimmer of hope.
The following fandom-specific info is on my AO3 signup form, but just in case it gets lost or scrambled or you'd like to see it all in one convenient place, I'll copy it here:
Incarceron Series - Catherine Fisher (Incarceron, Sapphique)
Claudia Arlexa, Jared Sapiens, Keiro, Attia
Jared and Claudia are my OTP of the past five years. I would absolutely adore a fic with that pairing - whether it's an overtly romantic story set after the end of SAPPHIQUE, or a quieter exploration of their mutual trust and devotion during the events of the Incarceron series (or beforehand). I'm not gonna lie, kissing would be awesome, but I would be delighted with anything that focuses on the two of them.
Failing that, I like Attia a lot and think that if anybody has the capacity to turn Keiro into an actual human being it would be her. Something sparky with the two of them butting heads and then coming to some kind of terms, whether it's a friendship or a romance, would be fun.
* * *
Dance Academy (Australian TV show)
Abigail Armstrong, Ethan Karamakov
(INCOMING SPOILERS for anyone who has not watched S3 of Dance Academy yet - sorry about that.)
I am super sad that Tim Pocock couldn't be part of DA Season 3, because I feel almost certain that the whole Wes/Abigail storyline would have been totally Ethan/Abigail otherwise. And Ethan/Abigail are my Dance Academy OTP. So I would love to see an AU S3 fic, or a fic set in Barcelona during the S2 - S3 gap in Barcelona, or a fic set after the events of S3, where Ethan and Abigail get together. But I would also be totally cool with a character study-type fic where they're apart and working on separate projects, and there's no particular romantic angle at all.
Basically, I just love the both of them. Especially Abigail.
BTW, there is nobody in the whole cast of Dance Academy that I hate (though Ben Tickle gets on my last nerve sometimes and Grace's behaviour is frequently appalling, I still see them as fully rounded human beings because THE SHOW IS THAT GOOD), so feel free to throw in any other characters you like. Especially Kat because Kat <3.
* * *
Monster Blood Tattoo Series - D. M. Cornish (Foundling, Lamplighter, Factotum)
Miss Europe, Sebastipole
Please tell me I'm not the only reader of this series who adores both Europe and Sebastipole and thinks they would make a fabulous pair? They never met in canon that I can recall, though IIRC Sebastipole was aware of Europe's reputation as both a monster-killer and an attractive, powerful woman (doesn't he tell Rossamünd about her at some point? I really need to re-read the books). But the two of them working together is definitely something I'd love to see in a fic, whether the story goes all the way to romance or merely hints at the beginning of a brilliant alliance. Bonus points for fighting action and anything else that indulges my competence kink!
* * *
Kat Series - Stephanie Burgis
Kat Stephenson, Alexander Ravenscroft
The Kat series was so delightful, I hated to see it end. Especially just as Kat appeared to have finally met her destined match in the embittered, misguided but redeemable Alexander. Where did they go from there, magically and romantically, after the final book? A story set anywhere in the subsequent years, involving both of them in some kind of magical escapade that brings them closer together (despite the inevitable bickering and exasperation with each other's faults), would be great fun. Something sweet but not saccharine, light-hearted but not silly - basically in a tone similar to the original series, so I can pretend it's a bit of canon I just happened to miss along the way.
* * *
Elementary (TV)
Joan Watson, Sherlock Holmes
I don't know if I ship them or not, I just know I want to see Sherlock and Joan being the bestest of best friends forever. Solving cases, negotiating domestic conflicts, finding out stuff about each other that they've never told anybody else, giving each other much-needed reality checks, and suchlike. (Not that the fic has to have ALL of those things at the same time. I'm just giving examples.)
If it turns out to be romantic or quasi-romantic that's great; if it doesn't and the focus is on their amazing friendship, that's great too. As Schmendrick said to the magic, do what you will.
Bonus points for including Alfredo Llamosa. Or Clyde.
* * *
Sleepy Hollow (TV)
Ichabod Crane, Abbie Mills
I tried to tell myself that I don't ship Ichabbie, but it's no use. I totally do. Except that I can only feel good about shipping them if Katrina is dead, because adultery. So I am good with either a story that's about the same speed as the show right now where Ichabbie is concerned (i.e. basically genfic with lashings of sassy banter and UST), or a story set some time in the future where it's clear that Katrina is lost to Crane forever. *wipes tear*
Ichabod Meets the 21st Century (And It's Hilarious) is one of my favorite things about this show, so bonus points for that. In all honesty I am really not fond of demons and ghosts and gore, and I can only handwave the dreadful theology and eschatology by telling myself that it takes place in some alternate universe where the Bible is different, so I'd be happiest with a story about Ichabod and Abbie going on a search for some Very Important Mystical-Historical Artifact or solving a mystery with a relatively low grossness / occult factor. Or even just hanging out doing nothing in particular except making great faces at each other, because obviously I do not watch this show for the plot.
* * *
And that's it! Thank you so very much again, and I hope these few comments have been of some help to you and are not too harrowing. I can't wait to see whatever story you come up with!
This entry was originally posted at http://rj-anderson.dreamwidth.org/4487.html. There are
comments on Dreamwidth.