Yuletide 2011: Dear Yulegoat...
My first Yuletide! So very excited.
Dear Yuletide Author,
So, you've agreed to write a story for me in one of these fandoms? That makes you awesome and I love you already. Apologies in advance if you're the type who prefers a short letter, cause I'm the type who tends to go on and on. And then on some more. I've tried to say a little about what I love about each fandom and its characters, and include a few prompt ideas, but if the prompts don't work for you, feel free to go with your own ideas!
My own fic can be found on my journal here, though I've only written for one of these fandoms. I'm also on ffn and AO3.
Things I like: Relationships (romantic, familial, friendships, working, inescapable life-bond, whatever sort), het, gen, femslash, chosen families, love stories, UST, first time stories, adventures, character-driven pieces, wit and humor, a bittersweet or melancholy mood/ending, happy endings, women saving men, people depending on each other. I'm okay with any rating; smut (explicit or otherwise) is fine but not in any way necessary.
Things I don't like: Main character death, harm to animals, suicide, torture, graphic violence, rape, whumpage, female characters written as weak or helpless, second-person pov, baby/kidfic, pregnancy fic, character bashing.
Black Ships - Jo Graham
What I love about Black Ships:
Everything. I know that isn't very helpful, but seriously, everything. I love the epic scope, the massive journey across the known world, with all the different cultures they encounter along the way, while trying to preserve their own. I love the doomed sense of nobility that these people have; a few shiploads of people being all that remains of a huge and proud city like Troy, determined to hang on to their own culture and find their own place in the world again. I love the way the mythic is made real - nobody exactly performs magic, because it's just sort of inherent to the world they live in. I love the sailing, the sense of freedom and adventure and seeking a home.
And I love the characters. I love that Aeneas, Gull, and Xandros are all in love with each other, more or less, and they all know it, and this doesn't cause jealous fits or passionate affairs, just...people managing with what they can give each other. They all repress their feelings, at certain times, to do what's best for someone else, or best for their people as a whole, and manage to move on rather than brooding. I like that sense of responsibility, and the faith they all have in each other, that no matter what their romantic relationships and feelings might be, they can each rely on the others to be there for them, always.
Specifics: Anything about Gull and Aeneas. Something about how their relationship changed and developed after Xandros died would be fantastic. Or a story about how they work together as both a leader and his adviser and friends as well during the journey. Romance is perfect, friendship is also great.
I'm also okay with a Xandros/Gull/Aeneas threesome relationship - if that's your dream story to write, go for it.
Life
What I love about Life:
The wit and cleverness. The characters, and how they're all so terribly damaged - by prison, drugs, bad relationships, and whatever else - and while they all carry these burdens with them constantly, they aren't defined by them. They just keep moving forward, because they know it's all there is to do, like Charlie, or because it's all they know how to do, like Dani. The little character touches are awesome too; Charlie and his zen and fruit, Dani always being the one to drive because she needs to be in control, Ted and his nervousness about everything from coyotes to women, Tidwell being hilariously awkward and inappropriate, yet also being a really good Captain when it comes down to it, Seever being totally put-together on the surface but with all these little insecurities underneath.
And, of course, the relationships. Charlie and Dani are two people who had absolutely no reason to ever trust or like each other, but before the end of the first ep, it's clear they are a team, and that bond only ever gets stronger, until Charlie knowingly walks into a deathtrap for her in One:
Dani: “What was his plan, getting in that SUV?”
Bodner: “His plan was getting you out of that SUV.”
And then I dissolve into a weepy puddle because this show didn't last longer. Though One is my favorite final episode of anything ever, so there is that.
Specifics: Anything about Charlie and Dani's relationship, whether romantic or just as partners and friends, would be great. Or I'd love to see what happened when Dani met Seever, and how the two of them plus Charlie would have gotten along. Casefic is fine if you've got one in mind, but character-driven stories are great too!
I'd love to see what Dani would have to say about Seever's assertion that male and female partners will always have sexual tension between them. I also love Tidwell hanging around sticking his nose into everything. In fact, I like all the characters in this fandom, so feel free to use any of them, as long as Charlie or Dani is the focus.
For this fandom in particular - I know it's a big part of the characters, but please, no huge angst-fests about prison time or drug abuse; I like them better when they're enjoying life.
Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
What I love about Neverwhere:
This one is a bit unusual for me in that I do love the characters, very much, but I love the world just as much. London Below is so mysterious, so epic and dark and full of oddities and unexplored corners. There's so much more that could be hiding down there! I like the sense of danger and adventure and exploration, the way it's like the real world but just a bit off - all the forgotten history of a city, all the stories and legends that might have gotten lost in time, but remain somewhere down below, living on.
I do like the characters as well, especially Door. Her powers are fascinating - what other ways of opening does she have? We know she can open locks and doors, passageways into time and space and between worlds, and, also, people's chests. Maybe she also opens things in a more metaphorical sense, and this is why Richard was able to believe her and become so emotionally invested in her. Richard himself is intriguing for that very reason - why was he, of all people, caught up in all this? Was it an open mind, an abundance of belief, a touch a destiny? And was it one of those things that made him go back, or the more personal connections that he realized he just didn't have in London Above?
Specifics: I'd love a story about Richard and Door exploring more of the strange and beautiful world of London Below. Who else would they run into? Would they ever find Door's sister, or Anaesthesia? Or, on a less adventurous angle, how would Richard fit into London Below when he goes back, what kind of life would he build there? Romance between Richard and Door is great, but gen is good too!
The Oracle Glass - Judith Merkle Riley
What I love about The Oracle Glass:
Genevieve. She's my favorite fictional heroine ever, mostly because of her wit and the way she tries so desperately to control her life through logic, even though her actions are more often driven by impulse and emotion. She wants so badly to see herself one way - as a cold, practical philosopher in control of everything - when in reality she's very passionate and emotional. I like the duality to her character, both in that way and in the more obvious disguise of the Marquise de Morville. I also like the way she makes bad choices, like her affair with Lamotte and her opium addiction, and then just does her best to solve them and move on. Her relationship with Florent is also very attractive, because of the way she's very reluctant to depend on anyone but herself, and the way he accepts this while proving to her over time that she can depend on him, in the end.
The very practical sort of magic practiced in the book is also something I love. Genevieve's ability to see the future in water is the only real 'magic' anyone ever does; the rest is just illusion, personality, and drugs. The theme of making people see what you want them to see, creating your own reality, is a very intriguing one.
The historical aspect is another of my favorite things. 17th century France is one of my favorite time periods, and I love the interaction between the royal court and the Parisian witches.
Specifics: Anything about Genevieve would be fantastic. What happens after the end of the book - does she go on to have adventures in England? Or anything that explores her relationships with the other characters. Or further insights into her predictive abilities. What other things might she have seen for the future?
I also love the comic touches in the story - the foul-mouthed parrot, Genevieve's eclectic household staff, her passion for the tabloids of the day - so including any of those is a bonus!
***
Yeah, I really wasn't lying when I said I liked to ramble. But I hope I've given you somewhere to start out from, and I can't wait to read!
Dear Yuletide Author,
So, you've agreed to write a story for me in one of these fandoms? That makes you awesome and I love you already. Apologies in advance if you're the type who prefers a short letter, cause I'm the type who tends to go on and on. And then on some more. I've tried to say a little about what I love about each fandom and its characters, and include a few prompt ideas, but if the prompts don't work for you, feel free to go with your own ideas!
My own fic can be found on my journal here, though I've only written for one of these fandoms. I'm also on ffn and AO3.
Things I like: Relationships (romantic, familial, friendships, working, inescapable life-bond, whatever sort), het, gen, femslash, chosen families, love stories, UST, first time stories, adventures, character-driven pieces, wit and humor, a bittersweet or melancholy mood/ending, happy endings, women saving men, people depending on each other. I'm okay with any rating; smut (explicit or otherwise) is fine but not in any way necessary.
Things I don't like: Main character death, harm to animals, suicide, torture, graphic violence, rape, whumpage, female characters written as weak or helpless, second-person pov, baby/kidfic, pregnancy fic, character bashing.
Black Ships - Jo Graham
What I love about Black Ships:
Everything. I know that isn't very helpful, but seriously, everything. I love the epic scope, the massive journey across the known world, with all the different cultures they encounter along the way, while trying to preserve their own. I love the doomed sense of nobility that these people have; a few shiploads of people being all that remains of a huge and proud city like Troy, determined to hang on to their own culture and find their own place in the world again. I love the way the mythic is made real - nobody exactly performs magic, because it's just sort of inherent to the world they live in. I love the sailing, the sense of freedom and adventure and seeking a home.
And I love the characters. I love that Aeneas, Gull, and Xandros are all in love with each other, more or less, and they all know it, and this doesn't cause jealous fits or passionate affairs, just...people managing with what they can give each other. They all repress their feelings, at certain times, to do what's best for someone else, or best for their people as a whole, and manage to move on rather than brooding. I like that sense of responsibility, and the faith they all have in each other, that no matter what their romantic relationships and feelings might be, they can each rely on the others to be there for them, always.
Specifics: Anything about Gull and Aeneas. Something about how their relationship changed and developed after Xandros died would be fantastic. Or a story about how they work together as both a leader and his adviser and friends as well during the journey. Romance is perfect, friendship is also great.
I'm also okay with a Xandros/Gull/Aeneas threesome relationship - if that's your dream story to write, go for it.
Life
What I love about Life:
The wit and cleverness. The characters, and how they're all so terribly damaged - by prison, drugs, bad relationships, and whatever else - and while they all carry these burdens with them constantly, they aren't defined by them. They just keep moving forward, because they know it's all there is to do, like Charlie, or because it's all they know how to do, like Dani. The little character touches are awesome too; Charlie and his zen and fruit, Dani always being the one to drive because she needs to be in control, Ted and his nervousness about everything from coyotes to women, Tidwell being hilariously awkward and inappropriate, yet also being a really good Captain when it comes down to it, Seever being totally put-together on the surface but with all these little insecurities underneath.
And, of course, the relationships. Charlie and Dani are two people who had absolutely no reason to ever trust or like each other, but before the end of the first ep, it's clear they are a team, and that bond only ever gets stronger, until Charlie knowingly walks into a deathtrap for her in One:
Dani: “What was his plan, getting in that SUV?”
Bodner: “His plan was getting you out of that SUV.”
And then I dissolve into a weepy puddle because this show didn't last longer. Though One is my favorite final episode of anything ever, so there is that.
Specifics: Anything about Charlie and Dani's relationship, whether romantic or just as partners and friends, would be great. Or I'd love to see what happened when Dani met Seever, and how the two of them plus Charlie would have gotten along. Casefic is fine if you've got one in mind, but character-driven stories are great too!
I'd love to see what Dani would have to say about Seever's assertion that male and female partners will always have sexual tension between them. I also love Tidwell hanging around sticking his nose into everything. In fact, I like all the characters in this fandom, so feel free to use any of them, as long as Charlie or Dani is the focus.
For this fandom in particular - I know it's a big part of the characters, but please, no huge angst-fests about prison time or drug abuse; I like them better when they're enjoying life.
Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
What I love about Neverwhere:
This one is a bit unusual for me in that I do love the characters, very much, but I love the world just as much. London Below is so mysterious, so epic and dark and full of oddities and unexplored corners. There's so much more that could be hiding down there! I like the sense of danger and adventure and exploration, the way it's like the real world but just a bit off - all the forgotten history of a city, all the stories and legends that might have gotten lost in time, but remain somewhere down below, living on.
I do like the characters as well, especially Door. Her powers are fascinating - what other ways of opening does she have? We know she can open locks and doors, passageways into time and space and between worlds, and, also, people's chests. Maybe she also opens things in a more metaphorical sense, and this is why Richard was able to believe her and become so emotionally invested in her. Richard himself is intriguing for that very reason - why was he, of all people, caught up in all this? Was it an open mind, an abundance of belief, a touch a destiny? And was it one of those things that made him go back, or the more personal connections that he realized he just didn't have in London Above?
Specifics: I'd love a story about Richard and Door exploring more of the strange and beautiful world of London Below. Who else would they run into? Would they ever find Door's sister, or Anaesthesia? Or, on a less adventurous angle, how would Richard fit into London Below when he goes back, what kind of life would he build there? Romance between Richard and Door is great, but gen is good too!
The Oracle Glass - Judith Merkle Riley
What I love about The Oracle Glass:
Genevieve. She's my favorite fictional heroine ever, mostly because of her wit and the way she tries so desperately to control her life through logic, even though her actions are more often driven by impulse and emotion. She wants so badly to see herself one way - as a cold, practical philosopher in control of everything - when in reality she's very passionate and emotional. I like the duality to her character, both in that way and in the more obvious disguise of the Marquise de Morville. I also like the way she makes bad choices, like her affair with Lamotte and her opium addiction, and then just does her best to solve them and move on. Her relationship with Florent is also very attractive, because of the way she's very reluctant to depend on anyone but herself, and the way he accepts this while proving to her over time that she can depend on him, in the end.
The very practical sort of magic practiced in the book is also something I love. Genevieve's ability to see the future in water is the only real 'magic' anyone ever does; the rest is just illusion, personality, and drugs. The theme of making people see what you want them to see, creating your own reality, is a very intriguing one.
The historical aspect is another of my favorite things. 17th century France is one of my favorite time periods, and I love the interaction between the royal court and the Parisian witches.
Specifics: Anything about Genevieve would be fantastic. What happens after the end of the book - does she go on to have adventures in England? Or anything that explores her relationships with the other characters. Or further insights into her predictive abilities. What other things might she have seen for the future?
I also love the comic touches in the story - the foul-mouthed parrot, Genevieve's eclectic household staff, her passion for the tabloids of the day - so including any of those is a bonus!
***
Yeah, I really wasn't lying when I said I liked to ramble. But I hope I've given you somewhere to start out from, and I can't wait to read!