(no subject)
I bought groceries (salad! apples! mmmm!) and mopped the floor. I am a hero. I have done nothing else productive today. :)
Well, there's this:
All the stories I wrote and posted in 2009 (except Yuletide, of course) can be found here.
A breakdown of the fandoms:
The Dragonriders of Pern: 7
Lord of the Rings (movieverse): 1
The Prydain Chronicles: 2
Buffyverse: 1
Battlestar Galactica (Reboot): 2
Peanuts (yes, really): 1
Dollhouse: 1
Firefly: 1
Gundam Wing: 1
Voltron (Lion Team): 2
Star Trek (TOS): 4
Star Trek (AOS): 28 *facepalm*
This has really been a year about rediscovering old loves. Pern, Voltron, Star Trek. I really never thought I'd write a story (or another story) in any of those fandoms. Okay, last year, my fandom wish was for the new Trek movie to be awesome and revive the fandom, but I had no idea it would capture my imagination so entirely. (Well, I had no idea I'd fall in love with Chris Pine's beautiful blue eyes Kirk. I had faith in Karl Urban's Bones, but I had no idea.) I'm not complaining. It just took me by surprise is all.
The Questions
(copied from rubynye
Leitmotif of the year:
Old loves. :) Also: best friends who realize they're in love (Kirk/McCoy, Mirrim/T'gellan, Taran/Eilonwy, Keith/Allura) when they're hit with a clue-by-four.
My best story of this year:
In terms of writing, Faithful Friends, I think. Anyway, it's the one I don't second guess at all.
My favorite and/or truest story of this year:
The Next Time You Say Forever.
Even though I keep wanting to go back and change the second sex scene. But when I get there, I don't know what to do with it! On the one hand, considering all they've been through recently (Bones recovering from major surgery, Jim operating on very little sleep and a whole lot of worry) I kind of think it should have been more slow and tender. On the other hand, I made them wait seven years to have happy sex (and six for angsty goodbye sex). I can't blame them for being a little boisterous. Maybe if I write a morning after scene where they make love slowly, I'll feel better. Then again, since I barely described the sex at all, you can imagine it however you want.
IN ANY CASE.
I love this story like you wouldn't believe. It caused me to not get any sleep at all for almost the entire month of July, but I love it, I love it, I love. I'm so proud of it. I felt like the characters really grew over the 26,000+ words, and I wrote about fathers and daughters without getting caught up in my own angst, and Joanna and Spock sneaked in and stole the show, bless them. There was a plot, there was violence, there was sex, there were conversations that I thought flowed really nicely (particularly in Chapters Three and Five).
I do wish there'd been more Uhura. She got one line, and she should have had more. Though Spock said very nice things about her.
ANYWAY.
ETA: Okay, I rewrote the scene that was bothering me and now I'm happy. :)
Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
I was disappointed by the reactions to most of my Pern fics, though I realize it's kind of an old fandom and the canon isn't fresh for many people, so I'm not hugely bothered. I did think Once, and Nevermore was pretty brilliant, at least in terms of concept, and it only got three comments here. Though it did somewhat better when I posted it at the Anne McCaffrey message board. I don't know! It's been a good year!
Story with the single sexiest moment:
Hahahhaaa. Um. *thinks*
Maybe Kylara ordering Meron about while completely naked in Who Wills, Can.
Or maybe McCoy tracing Kirk's non-existent scars in The Next Time You Say Forever.
Most "Holy crap, that's wrong, even for you" story:
I was ... remarkably tame this year, even when you take Kylara of Pern and Jim Kirk into account. Oh, wait!
Heading Straight For A Fall: Bones has sex with Kirk's mom! Which is not wrong in and of itself, except that, in the heat of the moment, Bones makes a major faux pas. But it all ends well. Eventually.
Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters:
Huh. Well, By What Power I Am Made Bold was the first time I'd written from Allura's POV (except for incidental scenes in longer stories) and the first time I'd written her with Keith. (Most of the time, they kind of dance around each other.) I found ... I kinda like the ship. It doesn't get to my heart the way Sven/Romelle does, but I'm glad I wrote the story and I would write more.
Also, after writing the first chapter of The Next Time You Say Forever I realized I needed to stop saying I wasn't really a Kirk fan because ... it had stopped being true. :) (Well, Pine's Kirk, anyway.)
Hardest story to write:
Uh. The thing was, the fics flowed so easily this year. But... Well, Hold On gave me trouble. I'd actually written 600+ words, then decided to scrap the entire thing except for one line (He felt things break inside him - blood vessels, bones, and ultimately his heart as he clung, and stared pleadingly and hopelessly into the wild blue eyes and did not recognize the soul staring back at him), and rewrite it.
Also, the sex scene is totally tacked on. (I forgot kink meme stories needed kink!) Though I really like two lines. This one: Jim had been hurt too and he had to move at his own pace, find the point where he could take and not feel guilty, give and not be afraid of overwhelming and this one: And he held Jim even as he broke against him and reformed around him.
Also, I felt kind of bad about beating the crap out of McCoy again. (I have no qualms about beating the crap out of Jim, apparently.)
Biggest surprise:
Trek, of course. Even after making my wish, I wasn't expecting this. I suppose In a Moment Close to Now was the biggest surprise. For one thing, it turned out to be the first part of a story arc, which was unexpected. It also turned out very different from its original outline. (Initially, it was going to have been a bit reminiscent of A Separate Peace, particularly that scene where Finny drags Gene to the beach. But any resemblance the characters have to each other is superficial at best, and ... yeah. It wasn't working. Though the cuddling on the beach was in the outline.)
I like the story a lot. I think the kiss was well-written, and I like Jim analyzing Bones's character for him as a birthday present (wtf, Jimbo?) And a bunch of things introduced in that story popped up again in later stories. (Proposals on the beach, injured hands, "anything can happen," "Who am I?" and more!)
Most unintentionally telling story:
I want to say Bloom and Grow, since some of Joanna's observations about life and relationships come from my own experiences. But that wasn't unintentional.
Maybe Absence & the heart & blah blah blah, since it's about children learning to live with parents disappointing (and sometimes pleasantly surprising) them.
Possibly Say I Do And Kiss Me Quick, since I couldn't decide until I was nearly done with the story if I wanted them to get married after all. I wrote the last scene, thinking I wouldn't use it, but my beta reader said "No, use it." I have complicated thoughts about marriage, but, ultimately, I'm a romantic person and I like the idea of partnerships working out well.
Favorite opening line(s):
Jim Kirk grew up considering his father the more constant of his two parents. He was dead, after all, and the dead didn't go anywhere - except Heaven, his grandma told him, if they'd been good, and Jim knew that his dad had been very, very good. That was kind of why he was dead.
His mom, on the other hand. She was good too, though not dauntingly so. She wasn't so incredibly good that people - his grandma, his teachers, some of the Starfleet guys he and Sam met when they went to the Riverside Shipyards to watch a launch or landing - were going to talk about her in hushed voices, or tell him how lucky he'd be if he had half her nobility/bravery/what the fuck ever.
She wasn't so good that Jim lived in constant fear of losing her. She wasn't the stuff of legends, his mom. She was just this fun gal who swung down from the stars to light up his young life every now and then. (Absence & the Heart & blah blah blah)
Okay, so that's three paragraphs. But it's one complete thought.
If F'lar had known that Lessa's tenderness could be purchased with a flamethrower, he'd have gone to see Fandarel about constructing one long before. When he made the mistake of telling her that, she snatched up a pillow and clouted his shoulder with it.
"Tender, am I?" she demanded, gray eyes flashing in the glows' dim light. "I'll show you tender." (She Will Have Her Way)
Favorite closing line (s):
Gaila cupped his chin and tipped his head back. "Mister Scott," she purred, "please talk engineering to me." (Access Denied)
Of course he'd promised. Because she'd implored him, because she'd needed the words. He'd have done it anyway, he thought, bending to press the lightest of kisses to Jim's temple, rising abruptly when the blond lashes twitched. This love couldn't possibly lead to anything good - not for him - but he'd do it anyway. (Heading Straight For A Fall)
Favorite line(s) from anywhere:
Couldn't I just quote all of The Next Time You Say Forever?
Fine, this one's my favorite: (From Chapter Four) "Come on, do you think there's a universe where I wouldn't come to get you?"
I love that line so. much. Because it's true, of course. And there'd been much talk in previous chapters about alternate universes. Originally, the line was supposed to have been uttered by Kirk in Chapter Five, which was supposed to be from his POV. But then I rewrote the chapter from Joanna's, and the line had to be scrapped, because he wouldn't say something like that in front of her. So I went back and had Bones imagining Kirk saying it in Chapter Four, and I think it works best that way. That's really the emotional high point of the story, IMO. It's the point where, after trying and trying to live on his own, McCoy finally expresses a profound, almost religious faith in Jim, which echoes the opening lines of the story. *happy sigh* And that's really the point. It wasn't enough for McCoy to acknowledge that he loves Kirk. I mean, he did that in "Fall." He had to acknowledge his need for him, and to acknowledge the fact that needing another person doesn't make you weak. It was also important that he acknowledge all that after being badly injured trying to protect a patient. He's certainly feeling sorry for himself at that point, but he never actually wishes he'd sought safety when he'd had the chance.
Also, apparently I made people cry with that chapter, which fills me with GLEE. (Hell, I cried while writing it. Poor Joanna.)
I'm also excessively fond of these lines, from the same story:
From Chapter Five: "No!" Joanna screamed, jerking away from the touch, digging her fingers into the captain's sleeve. Ignoring everyone but him, ignoring the hot tears that streamed down her cheeks, she said pleadingly, "Captain, you gotta go back an' get him. He's not dead, he can't be. He just needs help. Dammit, he's a doctor, not a hero!"
Kirk's muscles tensed and something changed in his eyes. Joanna thought it was like clouds disappearing. The look he gave her was piercing; it seemed to zing right past her face, into her soul, and she knew that he knew her.
He pulled her to him and held her against his side. Then he took his communicator out of his pocket, flipped it open and said, "Bridge, this is Kirk. Mister Sulu, take us back to Adhara III, warp eight. The K'uloaans can wait. Mister Spock, meet me in the transporter room."
"I'm goin' with you," Joanna insisted.
"Of course you are," said Kirk. She kind of loved him when he said that.
'Cause I kind of built the entire story around their initial encounter.
"It figures," she said quietly, sitting down in the chair and sliding it closer to the bed. "The most gorgeous guy I ever met would have a thing for you. Talk about unfair. It's okay, though. I approve. I get the next one, though. If he's not too much older than me." Her dad didn't wake, but a crease appeared between his eyebrows. Her book forgotten, she reached out and curled her fingers around his left hand. His skin was warm, and she felt the flutter of his pulse against her fingertips.
"I forgive you, by the way. I'm still mad as hell, and you're not hearing the end of it anytime soon, but I forgive you."
I ♥ Joanna so hard. I loved writing about her in Bloom and Grow.
And from Chapter Six, natch:
McCoy closed his eyes for a moment and ran a hand through his hair. When he opened his eyes again, they seemed more green than hazel. He smiled, bit his lip, and shook his head. "I'm trying, but… Jesus Christ, Jim. How the fuck do you tell your best friend you're in love with him?"
The universe seemed to pause and hold its breath.
"Obviously," Jim said, knowing he hadn't misheard, but not quite believing it at the same time, "I never did figure it out."
That was in the original outline too, though I think the lines were reversed. The last chapter was to have been from McCoy's POV, but by then I thought he'd said everything he needed to say - internally, anyway - and Jim hadn't. So, there they are. Happy ending for all!
Story I haven't yet written, but intend to:
- OMG the Mirrim story. (No, I didn't get to write it for Yuletide Madness. I started, then realized I didn't have time to write the story I really wanted to tell.) Mirrim is having trouble with her fellow green riders, not because she's a girl (though, for some, that's part of it) but because they think she's set herself up as better than them because of her relationships with T'gellan, Brekke, and the other Benden leaders. In fact, Mirrim's relationship with T'gellan is quite rocky at the moment (she's convinced he only let Monarth fly Path because he felt sorry for her). I want this to be about Mirrim finding her footing (and figuring out what T'gellan means to her) and about how green riders are generally treated by some of the other riders. (There is no such thing as "just a green," damnit.)
- Some Kirk/McCoy porn for km_anthology. I can't tell you about it, except that I want Bones to be as happy as he often seems in TOS. Because, damnit, he's not Mr. Gloom and Doom all the time! (And I have thoughts and theories about that, which I'll share when I finally do a commentary thing on "The Next Time You Say Forever.") I know what I want them to be doing (sexually) but I'm not sure of the logistics.
- A story about Sulu being awesome. Because he is. I'm thinking that there will be swords and gorgeous alien women. (Because if Kirk and McCoy are involved, and Spock and Uhura are involved, the Enterprise needs a player.) I would also like to write something with Sulu/Kirk, if I can get beyond the whole rank thing. The rank thing is bothering me and I don't want to set it right after the film because I want them to have some fun adventures together first.
- Yes, yes, the TOS Uhura/Chapel thingy that I keep starting and stopping. I don't think I know how to write Chapel.
- The rest of that big-ass Pern AU where Kylara tries to take over the world and Brekke grows a spine and there's time travel and more girls on greens and one heroic blue rider.
- Lance/Keith (Voltron) for midnitemaraud_r. I feel like there was a prompt besides the pairing, but I can't remember it. Uh, it might have involved Mexican food.
- A story about Constance of Brittany and Isabelle Hainault (sp?) meeting up and scheming together while they're husbands are plotting to take over England.
- The Nikki Wood story that's been sitting on my back burner for ... two, possibly three years now. I kind of love the climactic scene that I've envisioned, but I'm not sure I can write believably about New York City in the 70s, and I feel like Nikki's environment is a huge part of her character. At least, that's how I envision her.
- The Rebooted version of "For the World is Hollow" yadda yadda, possibly with Rachel Weisz as nu!Natira, making out with nu!McCoy. While Spock Prime tries to recreate the future, as it were, and it does not go according to plan.
- I'd also like to write something about Cupcake, in his capacity as Security Guy on the Enterprise. A gen piece, either performing admirably while on a mission with Kirk, and possibly Spock and some other guys, or sitting vigil in Sickbay while McCoy tries to repair one of his officers.
- Something about Winona gunning for Nero. Or reconciling with Jim later. Though I'd like to write a story about her that isn't really about her son. I'd like her to meet Mama Horta. I do not know why.
- The one where Uhura and McCoy get stuck on a planet during a coup d'etat and can't leave because 1) Bones is treating the child of the deposed leader and refuses to abandon him and 2) the rebels really hate the Federation, so Kirk and Spock can't extract their people diplomatically. And they can't beam them out because the rebels are smart and are jamming the transporters and communicators somehow.
Well, there's this:
All the stories I wrote and posted in 2009 (except Yuletide, of course) can be found here.
A breakdown of the fandoms:
The Dragonriders of Pern: 7
Lord of the Rings (movieverse): 1
The Prydain Chronicles: 2
Buffyverse: 1
Battlestar Galactica (Reboot): 2
Peanuts (yes, really): 1
Dollhouse: 1
Firefly: 1
Gundam Wing: 1
Voltron (Lion Team): 2
Star Trek (TOS): 4
Star Trek (AOS): 28 *facepalm*
This has really been a year about rediscovering old loves. Pern, Voltron, Star Trek. I really never thought I'd write a story (or another story) in any of those fandoms. Okay, last year, my fandom wish was for the new Trek movie to be awesome and revive the fandom, but I had no idea it would capture my imagination so entirely. (Well, I had no idea I'd fall in love with Chris Pine's beautiful blue eyes Kirk. I had faith in Karl Urban's Bones, but I had no idea.) I'm not complaining. It just took me by surprise is all.
The Questions
(copied from rubynye
Leitmotif of the year:
Old loves. :) Also: best friends who realize they're in love (Kirk/McCoy, Mirrim/T'gellan, Taran/Eilonwy, Keith/Allura) when they're hit with a clue-by-four.
My best story of this year:
In terms of writing, Faithful Friends, I think. Anyway, it's the one I don't second guess at all.
My favorite and/or truest story of this year:
The Next Time You Say Forever.
Even though I keep wanting to go back and change the second sex scene. But when I get there, I don't know what to do with it! On the one hand, considering all they've been through recently (Bones recovering from major surgery, Jim operating on very little sleep and a whole lot of worry) I kind of think it should have been more slow and tender. On the other hand, I made them wait seven years to have happy sex (and six for angsty goodbye sex). I can't blame them for being a little boisterous. Maybe if I write a morning after scene where they make love slowly, I'll feel better. Then again, since I barely described the sex at all, you can imagine it however you want.
IN ANY CASE.
I love this story like you wouldn't believe. It caused me to not get any sleep at all for almost the entire month of July, but I love it, I love it, I love. I'm so proud of it. I felt like the characters really grew over the 26,000+ words, and I wrote about fathers and daughters without getting caught up in my own angst, and Joanna and Spock sneaked in and stole the show, bless them. There was a plot, there was violence, there was sex, there were conversations that I thought flowed really nicely (particularly in Chapters Three and Five).
I do wish there'd been more Uhura. She got one line, and she should have had more. Though Spock said very nice things about her.
ANYWAY.
ETA: Okay, I rewrote the scene that was bothering me and now I'm happy. :)
Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
I was disappointed by the reactions to most of my Pern fics, though I realize it's kind of an old fandom and the canon isn't fresh for many people, so I'm not hugely bothered. I did think Once, and Nevermore was pretty brilliant, at least in terms of concept, and it only got three comments here. Though it did somewhat better when I posted it at the Anne McCaffrey message board. I don't know! It's been a good year!
Story with the single sexiest moment:
Hahahhaaa. Um. *thinks*
Maybe Kylara ordering Meron about while completely naked in Who Wills, Can.
Or maybe McCoy tracing Kirk's non-existent scars in The Next Time You Say Forever.
Most "Holy crap, that's wrong, even for you" story:
I was ... remarkably tame this year, even when you take Kylara of Pern and Jim Kirk into account. Oh, wait!
Heading Straight For A Fall: Bones has sex with Kirk's mom! Which is not wrong in and of itself, except that, in the heat of the moment, Bones makes a major faux pas. But it all ends well. Eventually.
Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters:
Huh. Well, By What Power I Am Made Bold was the first time I'd written from Allura's POV (except for incidental scenes in longer stories) and the first time I'd written her with Keith. (Most of the time, they kind of dance around each other.) I found ... I kinda like the ship. It doesn't get to my heart the way Sven/Romelle does, but I'm glad I wrote the story and I would write more.
Also, after writing the first chapter of The Next Time You Say Forever I realized I needed to stop saying I wasn't really a Kirk fan because ... it had stopped being true. :) (Well, Pine's Kirk, anyway.)
Hardest story to write:
Uh. The thing was, the fics flowed so easily this year. But... Well, Hold On gave me trouble. I'd actually written 600+ words, then decided to scrap the entire thing except for one line (He felt things break inside him - blood vessels, bones, and ultimately his heart as he clung, and stared pleadingly and hopelessly into the wild blue eyes and did not recognize the soul staring back at him), and rewrite it.
Also, the sex scene is totally tacked on. (I forgot kink meme stories needed kink!) Though I really like two lines. This one: Jim had been hurt too and he had to move at his own pace, find the point where he could take and not feel guilty, give and not be afraid of overwhelming and this one: And he held Jim even as he broke against him and reformed around him.
Also, I felt kind of bad about beating the crap out of McCoy again. (I have no qualms about beating the crap out of Jim, apparently.)
Biggest surprise:
Trek, of course. Even after making my wish, I wasn't expecting this. I suppose In a Moment Close to Now was the biggest surprise. For one thing, it turned out to be the first part of a story arc, which was unexpected. It also turned out very different from its original outline. (Initially, it was going to have been a bit reminiscent of A Separate Peace, particularly that scene where Finny drags Gene to the beach. But any resemblance the characters have to each other is superficial at best, and ... yeah. It wasn't working. Though the cuddling on the beach was in the outline.)
I like the story a lot. I think the kiss was well-written, and I like Jim analyzing Bones's character for him as a birthday present (wtf, Jimbo?) And a bunch of things introduced in that story popped up again in later stories. (Proposals on the beach, injured hands, "anything can happen," "Who am I?" and more!)
Most unintentionally telling story:
I want to say Bloom and Grow, since some of Joanna's observations about life and relationships come from my own experiences. But that wasn't unintentional.
Maybe Absence & the heart & blah blah blah, since it's about children learning to live with parents disappointing (and sometimes pleasantly surprising) them.
Possibly Say I Do And Kiss Me Quick, since I couldn't decide until I was nearly done with the story if I wanted them to get married after all. I wrote the last scene, thinking I wouldn't use it, but my beta reader said "No, use it." I have complicated thoughts about marriage, but, ultimately, I'm a romantic person and I like the idea of partnerships working out well.
Favorite opening line(s):
Jim Kirk grew up considering his father the more constant of his two parents. He was dead, after all, and the dead didn't go anywhere - except Heaven, his grandma told him, if they'd been good, and Jim knew that his dad had been very, very good. That was kind of why he was dead.
His mom, on the other hand. She was good too, though not dauntingly so. She wasn't so incredibly good that people - his grandma, his teachers, some of the Starfleet guys he and Sam met when they went to the Riverside Shipyards to watch a launch or landing - were going to talk about her in hushed voices, or tell him how lucky he'd be if he had half her nobility/bravery/what the fuck ever.
She wasn't so good that Jim lived in constant fear of losing her. She wasn't the stuff of legends, his mom. She was just this fun gal who swung down from the stars to light up his young life every now and then. (Absence & the Heart & blah blah blah)
Okay, so that's three paragraphs. But it's one complete thought.
If F'lar had known that Lessa's tenderness could be purchased with a flamethrower, he'd have gone to see Fandarel about constructing one long before. When he made the mistake of telling her that, she snatched up a pillow and clouted his shoulder with it.
"Tender, am I?" she demanded, gray eyes flashing in the glows' dim light. "I'll show you tender." (She Will Have Her Way)
Favorite closing line (s):
Gaila cupped his chin and tipped his head back. "Mister Scott," she purred, "please talk engineering to me." (Access Denied)
Of course he'd promised. Because she'd implored him, because she'd needed the words. He'd have done it anyway, he thought, bending to press the lightest of kisses to Jim's temple, rising abruptly when the blond lashes twitched. This love couldn't possibly lead to anything good - not for him - but he'd do it anyway. (Heading Straight For A Fall)
Favorite line(s) from anywhere:
Couldn't I just quote all of The Next Time You Say Forever?
Fine, this one's my favorite: (From Chapter Four) "Come on, do you think there's a universe where I wouldn't come to get you?"
I love that line so. much. Because it's true, of course. And there'd been much talk in previous chapters about alternate universes. Originally, the line was supposed to have been uttered by Kirk in Chapter Five, which was supposed to be from his POV. But then I rewrote the chapter from Joanna's, and the line had to be scrapped, because he wouldn't say something like that in front of her. So I went back and had Bones imagining Kirk saying it in Chapter Four, and I think it works best that way. That's really the emotional high point of the story, IMO. It's the point where, after trying and trying to live on his own, McCoy finally expresses a profound, almost religious faith in Jim, which echoes the opening lines of the story. *happy sigh* And that's really the point. It wasn't enough for McCoy to acknowledge that he loves Kirk. I mean, he did that in "Fall." He had to acknowledge his need for him, and to acknowledge the fact that needing another person doesn't make you weak. It was also important that he acknowledge all that after being badly injured trying to protect a patient. He's certainly feeling sorry for himself at that point, but he never actually wishes he'd sought safety when he'd had the chance.
Also, apparently I made people cry with that chapter, which fills me with GLEE. (Hell, I cried while writing it. Poor Joanna.)
I'm also excessively fond of these lines, from the same story:
From Chapter Five: "No!" Joanna screamed, jerking away from the touch, digging her fingers into the captain's sleeve. Ignoring everyone but him, ignoring the hot tears that streamed down her cheeks, she said pleadingly, "Captain, you gotta go back an' get him. He's not dead, he can't be. He just needs help. Dammit, he's a doctor, not a hero!"
Kirk's muscles tensed and something changed in his eyes. Joanna thought it was like clouds disappearing. The look he gave her was piercing; it seemed to zing right past her face, into her soul, and she knew that he knew her.
He pulled her to him and held her against his side. Then he took his communicator out of his pocket, flipped it open and said, "Bridge, this is Kirk. Mister Sulu, take us back to Adhara III, warp eight. The K'uloaans can wait. Mister Spock, meet me in the transporter room."
"I'm goin' with you," Joanna insisted.
"Of course you are," said Kirk. She kind of loved him when he said that.
'Cause I kind of built the entire story around their initial encounter.
"It figures," she said quietly, sitting down in the chair and sliding it closer to the bed. "The most gorgeous guy I ever met would have a thing for you. Talk about unfair. It's okay, though. I approve. I get the next one, though. If he's not too much older than me." Her dad didn't wake, but a crease appeared between his eyebrows. Her book forgotten, she reached out and curled her fingers around his left hand. His skin was warm, and she felt the flutter of his pulse against her fingertips.
"I forgive you, by the way. I'm still mad as hell, and you're not hearing the end of it anytime soon, but I forgive you."
I ♥ Joanna so hard. I loved writing about her in Bloom and Grow.
And from Chapter Six, natch:
McCoy closed his eyes for a moment and ran a hand through his hair. When he opened his eyes again, they seemed more green than hazel. He smiled, bit his lip, and shook his head. "I'm trying, but… Jesus Christ, Jim. How the fuck do you tell your best friend you're in love with him?"
The universe seemed to pause and hold its breath.
"Obviously," Jim said, knowing he hadn't misheard, but not quite believing it at the same time, "I never did figure it out."
That was in the original outline too, though I think the lines were reversed. The last chapter was to have been from McCoy's POV, but by then I thought he'd said everything he needed to say - internally, anyway - and Jim hadn't. So, there they are. Happy ending for all!
Story I haven't yet written, but intend to:
- OMG the Mirrim story. (No, I didn't get to write it for Yuletide Madness. I started, then realized I didn't have time to write the story I really wanted to tell.) Mirrim is having trouble with her fellow green riders, not because she's a girl (though, for some, that's part of it) but because they think she's set herself up as better than them because of her relationships with T'gellan, Brekke, and the other Benden leaders. In fact, Mirrim's relationship with T'gellan is quite rocky at the moment (she's convinced he only let Monarth fly Path because he felt sorry for her). I want this to be about Mirrim finding her footing (and figuring out what T'gellan means to her) and about how green riders are generally treated by some of the other riders. (There is no such thing as "just a green," damnit.)
- Some Kirk/McCoy porn for km_anthology. I can't tell you about it, except that I want Bones to be as happy as he often seems in TOS. Because, damnit, he's not Mr. Gloom and Doom all the time! (And I have thoughts and theories about that, which I'll share when I finally do a commentary thing on "The Next Time You Say Forever.") I know what I want them to be doing (sexually) but I'm not sure of the logistics.
- A story about Sulu being awesome. Because he is. I'm thinking that there will be swords and gorgeous alien women. (Because if Kirk and McCoy are involved, and Spock and Uhura are involved, the Enterprise needs a player.) I would also like to write something with Sulu/Kirk, if I can get beyond the whole rank thing. The rank thing is bothering me and I don't want to set it right after the film because I want them to have some fun adventures together first.
- Yes, yes, the TOS Uhura/Chapel thingy that I keep starting and stopping. I don't think I know how to write Chapel.
- The rest of that big-ass Pern AU where Kylara tries to take over the world and Brekke grows a spine and there's time travel and more girls on greens and one heroic blue rider.
- Lance/Keith (Voltron) for midnitemaraud_r. I feel like there was a prompt besides the pairing, but I can't remember it. Uh, it might have involved Mexican food.
- A story about Constance of Brittany and Isabelle Hainault (sp?) meeting up and scheming together while they're husbands are plotting to take over England.
- The Nikki Wood story that's been sitting on my back burner for ... two, possibly three years now. I kind of love the climactic scene that I've envisioned, but I'm not sure I can write believably about New York City in the 70s, and I feel like Nikki's environment is a huge part of her character. At least, that's how I envision her.
- The Rebooted version of "For the World is Hollow" yadda yadda, possibly with Rachel Weisz as nu!Natira, making out with nu!McCoy. While Spock Prime tries to recreate the future, as it were, and it does not go according to plan.
- I'd also like to write something about Cupcake, in his capacity as Security Guy on the Enterprise. A gen piece, either performing admirably while on a mission with Kirk, and possibly Spock and some other guys, or sitting vigil in Sickbay while McCoy tries to repair one of his officers.
- Something about Winona gunning for Nero. Or reconciling with Jim later. Though I'd like to write a story about her that isn't really about her son. I'd like her to meet Mama Horta. I do not know why.
- The one where Uhura and McCoy get stuck on a planet during a coup d'etat and can't leave because 1) Bones is treating the child of the deposed leader and refuses to abandon him and 2) the rebels really hate the Federation, so Kirk and Spock can't extract their people diplomatically. And they can't beam them out because the rebels are smart and are jamming the transporters and communicators somehow.