Chocolate Box 2017 Letter!
General Likes:
Slice of life
Fluff
Pining (one-sided or requited)
Porn
Humor
General Dislikes:
AUs (canon divergance OK; not a fan of whole-setting switches, soulbonds, A/B/O, stuff like that)
Graphic violence/gore (Some violence is OK, just please don't dwell on the details)
Non-canon character death
If you want to write sex: I mostly like fairly vanilla sex scenes, with some exceptions. Light bondage is great (handcuffs, blindfolds, things like that), but I don't like anythign involving serious pain or BDSM elements.
Any body fluids not normally associated with sex kind of squick me, though I like cumplay a lot.
I'm cool with dubconny scenarios involving characters having a bit too much to drink, or possible power imbalances making things a little questionable. Please no outright noncon unless it's a Gravity Falls fic involving Bill.
...I do like sex pollen, but only if it's not calculated-use sex pollen. (IE, characters literally come across a weird plant whose pollen makes them unable to control their sexual urges = OK; someone deliberately using a chemical on someone else so that they can't control their sexual urges = not OK.)
Don't feel like you have to write sex -- fade to black is great, and sometimes a well-done kiss or declaration of love is even more satisfying than full-on smut.
I feel like browsing what I've written and bookmarked on AO3 is a pretty good indication of the kind of thing I like. But honestly, I'm REALLY not very picky. Optional details are ENTIRELY OPTIONAL - don't feel the need to use any of them if you don't want to. I'd rather have you enjoy yourself than stress over trying to write the perfect fill.
Silicon Valley
Erlich/Jared
The OTP of my heart. I really think these two have personalities that can balance each other beautifully, and I think canon has made it clear that Erlich's long since moved on from his (let's admit it, jealousy-induced) dislike he carried for Jared at first. I also love how they both support Richard in very different ways, and really like the idea of them bonding over that. I also like the idea of them both being in love with Richard, who's oblivious or just not interested. Although I also really like...
Erlich/Jared/Richard
I would love more porn of this, but also just any fic dealing with how this threesome comes about. Maybe two of them start off in a relationship and gradually add the third (I have to admit I like the idea of Richard getting kind of pouty when he realizes he's left out of the Erlich/Jared relationship; he can be a bit emotionally immature at times.) I also think there's a lot of potential for humor in how the other characters would react. I do lowkey ship Dinfoyle, but am also amused at them realizing they're the only ones in the house NOT fucking. ...well, them and Jian Yang. I always forget about Jian Yang.
Erlich/Bighead
I'm shocked there isn't more fic for this pairing. I really loved their entire season 3 arc and how Erlich is constantly overestimating Bighead's intelligence while Bighead just kind of... rolls with whatever. I ship this mostly as a friends-with-benefits pairing and less romantically, but if you want to put some emotions in there that's cool! I am actually a huge sucker for "casual sex ends up all complicated because of unexpected feelings" trope in any setting.
Richard/Monica
I sometimes think I might be literally the only person who ships this -- even the showrunners dropped it after season one. But that maybe made me ship it more? As the show's progressed Monica and Richard have come to respect each other enough to be totally honest with each other, and that's a great basis for a potential relationship. I like the idea of them awkwardly feeling things out after having a purely professional relationship for so long. I'd really like to see them having some issues -- butting heads over dissenting opinions, Richard's anxiety driving him to one of his little ragey tantrums -- and then figuring out that they can deal with it.
Monica/Gavin
One time ages ago I thought to myself, "What if Monica and Gavin had a grief-induced hookup right after Peter's death?" So I wrote it, and then adeleblairecassiedanser wrote an awesome follow-up. But I still like the idea, and just in general want to see them interacting a lot more than canon has given us. There's plenty of "secret relationship" fic for Gavin/Richard and Gavin/Bighead, but none for this one, and I think it's kind of weirdly hot. Monica is a lot more aware of Gavin's faults than Bighead is, and a lot more confident than Richard, so I think the relationship would be a lot more equal. (Not knocking either of those pairings; I just think she'd be unafraid to stand up to Gavin and I'm curious about how that would go.)
Gravity Falls
Just a quick overall note: I really prefer the young characters to be aged up to at least 16 if you're going to write them in sexual situations, thanks!
I didn't nominate Stan/Ford, but I do ship it, so if you want to include it as a side/background pairing, go for it.
My only real notp for the series is Robbie/Tambry. I think the idea could have been good, but Tambry is basically a nonentity as a character, and the way the actual episode set it up was so skeevy and never properly addressed as such by the characters. Even the Journal 3 entry's attempt at retconning it to be less so really doesn't work for me. Plus, after that episode, they literally never interact except to occasionally appear onscreen together; Robbie doesn't even seem a little bit concerned about her during Weirdmageddon. It's such a non-pairing with a horrible setup and I hate it. I THINK Mabel had stolen the "young love" potion (though it's hard to tell) so I headcanon that they dated for a few months to a year and then mutually broke up and decided to stay friends. Anyway, thank you for sitting through my Love God rant, you may now return to your regularly scheduled exchange letter.
Dipper/Robbie
Two angry emotionally immature young men with raging hormones and crippling machismo, what's not to love? I think they actually have a lot in common (besides being hopelessly hung up on Wendy) -- Dipper gets more of a chance to mature over the course of the series than Robbie does, but I think if Robbie mellows out a little bit they could end up being pretty good friends, and maybe even more. I really wanted Robbie to get a chance to actually do something heroic in the series; he always just has crazy stuff happen to him, and the closest he gets to a heroic act is managing to hold Gideon's hand for more than thirty seconds. Is he ever bummed that Stan's little tantrum messed up his big hero moment? It's very plausible that Mabel and Dipper could come back to Gravity Falls in future summers; I'd love to see a scenario where Robbie and Dipper end up having to work together against something weird. Give him his Northwest Mansion Mystery-esque redemption episode, I want it so much!
Dipper/Robbie/Wendy
One time in canon Wendy called Dipper and Robbie "my boys" and my M/M/F threesome-loving heart leapt for joy. They're both way more into her than she's into them, but maybe in the future they could work something out? Basically take all the above prompts and add Wendy into the mix and voila, instant threesome!
Wendy/Pacifica
I really, really love the idea of post-canon Pacifica cautiously taking some steps to explore her rebellious side, and hanging out with Wendy and her crew would be perfect. That little rebellion leading to a lesbian romance (which her parents DEFINITELY would not approve of), even better! Defying them out of love for a badass lumberjack girl -- so romantic. They don't really interact in canon; would Wendy and co. need some convincing that Pacifica is genuine, or embrace her instantly? The journal suggests that the lumberjack ghost who cursed the Northwests was an ancestor of Wendy's, which could add an interesting wrinkle.
Robbie/Multibear
In "The Love God", when Mabel is trying to figure out who to set Robbie up with, she puts Multibear in the "maybe" pile. What if she'd actually gone through with it? Maybe they would have gotten along? Does Robbie secretly like cheesy Icelandic pop too? (I wouldn't even be a little surprised.) How do you even go on a date with an odd-looking entity like Multibear? I mean, you can't exactly just take him to the diner... can you? Mabel didn't actually meet Multibear in "Dipper vs Manliness", either, so I'm a bit curious about whether she met him seperately or just heard about him from Dipper or what. Also, I am totally not afraid of weird xeno porn of this pairing, as long as it's consensual. (How many penises does Multibear have? The possibilities!)
Bill Cipher/Stanley Pines
There's plenty of messed-up Bill/Ford fic, and I love it. But I feel like Bill/Stan is criminally underexplored, at least outside of crackfic/AUs. Is Bill still lurking in Stan's mind somewhere? How's that possibly affecting him? Even if their only interaction is in Stan's head or dreams, there's a lot of opportunity for some trippy not-entirely-consensual weirdness. If you want to get some Stancest mixed in with it, Bill possessing Stan and trying to seduce Ford, or possessing Ford (metal plate or no, don't worry too much about the logistics) and trying to seduce Stan, are both scenarios I can totally get behind.
Office Christmas Party
Clay Vanstone/Josh Parker
I went to see this movie because I had won a free pass from the theater at pub quiz, I really wanted to turn my brain off and watch a dumb comedy for a couple of hours, and TJ Miller looks weirdly hot in a Santa suit. What I didn't expect was to have a bunch of Feelings about it. I expected Clay to be an arrogant asshole (more like Erlich, I guess) but he was so much nicer and more earnest than I expected, and I loved how close he was with Josh. By the time they were horsing around with Nerf guns in an expensive boutique I was going "Oh no, I ship it!" And even though I (also surprisingly) really liked Josh and Tracey, I never stopped shipping it. So, how about an easy prompt: That night in Vegas. If you saw the movie, you know which one I mean. Was it with Josh? Or some random other guy, and maybe Josh finds himself feeling something that couldn't possibly be envy...
On a somewhat serious note I really loved how self-aware Clay is about his issues with alcohol, but I imagine it took him a while to get there and I bet Josh had a hand in that.
Clay Vanstone/Josh Parker/Tracey Hughes
Whether this threesome happens because of calculated planning by Clay to get in on it, or Josh to get the two people he cares about the most into each other, or Tracey just wanting two guys at once, or totally by accident in a "did we really do that last night" scenario, well, why not? ...if you've read all my prompts you can probably tell that I really, really like M/M/F threesomes. I don't care that much how they happen.
Clay and Tracey are actually a lot closer in age than either of them are to Josh (at least, if the ages of the actors is remotely close to the character ages -- Jason Bateman is about 10 years older than the other two.) I like the idea of him feeling old, either because they're specifically teasing him or because he's missing out on some childhood nostalgia thing that he was too old for (or maybe he remembers something they were both too young for). As long as it ends up mostly happy in the end -- this movie was so much nicer and sweeter than I was expecting!
Ghostbusters
Kevin Beckman/Garrett
Recycling my Trick or Treat prompt, as there is STILL only one fic on AO3 for this pairing.
Agh I know I KNOW this is such a great movie with Strong Female Heroes and here I am wanting to ship the two hot guys who never even meet onscreen I KNOW it’s terrible, okay, just terrible. But the heart wants what it wants and what mine wants is for Chris Hemsworth and Zach Woods to make out. How do they even meet? I don’t know! Maybe via a “my life was ruined by ghosts” support group Kevin doesn’t even think he needs to attend, but the Ghostbusters think might be good for him? Or maybe there are shenanigans involving possession? (Like, Garrett is into Kevin, assumes Kevin’s way out of his league, but then a possessed Kevin comes onto him and he isn’t sure how to react... or a possessed Garrett has way more confidence, Cyrano de Bergerac style?) Feel free to get weird with it, just try not to break anyone permanently.
I’m pretty curious about what Garrett does post-Gertrude Aldridge incident. Does he keep his job, or get another one somewhere else - that turns out to be just as haunted, and he has to call the Ghostbusters for help? Honestly I have a lot of sympathy for him, since I don’t even think I would have reacted as well as he did when confronted with an actual bona fide malevolent spirit.
Incidentally, I’m kind of sad that Garrett and Patty never meet in the movie. I like the idea of them getting excited about history together. Of the main characters I mostly ship Holtzmann/Patty and Erin/Abby, if you want to throw in any background pairings.
Slice of life
Fluff
Pining (one-sided or requited)
Porn
Humor
General Dislikes:
AUs (canon divergance OK; not a fan of whole-setting switches, soulbonds, A/B/O, stuff like that)
Graphic violence/gore (Some violence is OK, just please don't dwell on the details)
Non-canon character death
If you want to write sex: I mostly like fairly vanilla sex scenes, with some exceptions. Light bondage is great (handcuffs, blindfolds, things like that), but I don't like anythign involving serious pain or BDSM elements.
Any body fluids not normally associated with sex kind of squick me, though I like cumplay a lot.
I'm cool with dubconny scenarios involving characters having a bit too much to drink, or possible power imbalances making things a little questionable. Please no outright noncon unless it's a Gravity Falls fic involving Bill.
...I do like sex pollen, but only if it's not calculated-use sex pollen. (IE, characters literally come across a weird plant whose pollen makes them unable to control their sexual urges = OK; someone deliberately using a chemical on someone else so that they can't control their sexual urges = not OK.)
Don't feel like you have to write sex -- fade to black is great, and sometimes a well-done kiss or declaration of love is even more satisfying than full-on smut.
I feel like browsing what I've written and bookmarked on AO3 is a pretty good indication of the kind of thing I like. But honestly, I'm REALLY not very picky. Optional details are ENTIRELY OPTIONAL - don't feel the need to use any of them if you don't want to. I'd rather have you enjoy yourself than stress over trying to write the perfect fill.
Silicon Valley
Erlich/Jared
The OTP of my heart. I really think these two have personalities that can balance each other beautifully, and I think canon has made it clear that Erlich's long since moved on from his (let's admit it, jealousy-induced) dislike he carried for Jared at first. I also love how they both support Richard in very different ways, and really like the idea of them bonding over that. I also like the idea of them both being in love with Richard, who's oblivious or just not interested. Although I also really like...
Erlich/Jared/Richard
I would love more porn of this, but also just any fic dealing with how this threesome comes about. Maybe two of them start off in a relationship and gradually add the third (I have to admit I like the idea of Richard getting kind of pouty when he realizes he's left out of the Erlich/Jared relationship; he can be a bit emotionally immature at times.) I also think there's a lot of potential for humor in how the other characters would react. I do lowkey ship Dinfoyle, but am also amused at them realizing they're the only ones in the house NOT fucking. ...well, them and Jian Yang. I always forget about Jian Yang.
Erlich/Bighead
I'm shocked there isn't more fic for this pairing. I really loved their entire season 3 arc and how Erlich is constantly overestimating Bighead's intelligence while Bighead just kind of... rolls with whatever. I ship this mostly as a friends-with-benefits pairing and less romantically, but if you want to put some emotions in there that's cool! I am actually a huge sucker for "casual sex ends up all complicated because of unexpected feelings" trope in any setting.
Richard/Monica
I sometimes think I might be literally the only person who ships this -- even the showrunners dropped it after season one. But that maybe made me ship it more? As the show's progressed Monica and Richard have come to respect each other enough to be totally honest with each other, and that's a great basis for a potential relationship. I like the idea of them awkwardly feeling things out after having a purely professional relationship for so long. I'd really like to see them having some issues -- butting heads over dissenting opinions, Richard's anxiety driving him to one of his little ragey tantrums -- and then figuring out that they can deal with it.
Monica/Gavin
One time ages ago I thought to myself, "What if Monica and Gavin had a grief-induced hookup right after Peter's death?" So I wrote it, and then adeleblairecassiedanser wrote an awesome follow-up. But I still like the idea, and just in general want to see them interacting a lot more than canon has given us. There's plenty of "secret relationship" fic for Gavin/Richard and Gavin/Bighead, but none for this one, and I think it's kind of weirdly hot. Monica is a lot more aware of Gavin's faults than Bighead is, and a lot more confident than Richard, so I think the relationship would be a lot more equal. (Not knocking either of those pairings; I just think she'd be unafraid to stand up to Gavin and I'm curious about how that would go.)
Gravity Falls
Just a quick overall note: I really prefer the young characters to be aged up to at least 16 if you're going to write them in sexual situations, thanks!
I didn't nominate Stan/Ford, but I do ship it, so if you want to include it as a side/background pairing, go for it.
My only real notp for the series is Robbie/Tambry. I think the idea could have been good, but Tambry is basically a nonentity as a character, and the way the actual episode set it up was so skeevy and never properly addressed as such by the characters. Even the Journal 3 entry's attempt at retconning it to be less so really doesn't work for me. Plus, after that episode, they literally never interact except to occasionally appear onscreen together; Robbie doesn't even seem a little bit concerned about her during Weirdmageddon. It's such a non-pairing with a horrible setup and I hate it. I THINK Mabel had stolen the "young love" potion (though it's hard to tell) so I headcanon that they dated for a few months to a year and then mutually broke up and decided to stay friends. Anyway, thank you for sitting through my Love God rant, you may now return to your regularly scheduled exchange letter.
Dipper/Robbie
Two angry emotionally immature young men with raging hormones and crippling machismo, what's not to love? I think they actually have a lot in common (besides being hopelessly hung up on Wendy) -- Dipper gets more of a chance to mature over the course of the series than Robbie does, but I think if Robbie mellows out a little bit they could end up being pretty good friends, and maybe even more. I really wanted Robbie to get a chance to actually do something heroic in the series; he always just has crazy stuff happen to him, and the closest he gets to a heroic act is managing to hold Gideon's hand for more than thirty seconds. Is he ever bummed that Stan's little tantrum messed up his big hero moment? It's very plausible that Mabel and Dipper could come back to Gravity Falls in future summers; I'd love to see a scenario where Robbie and Dipper end up having to work together against something weird. Give him his Northwest Mansion Mystery-esque redemption episode, I want it so much!
Dipper/Robbie/Wendy
One time in canon Wendy called Dipper and Robbie "my boys" and my M/M/F threesome-loving heart leapt for joy. They're both way more into her than she's into them, but maybe in the future they could work something out? Basically take all the above prompts and add Wendy into the mix and voila, instant threesome!
Wendy/Pacifica
I really, really love the idea of post-canon Pacifica cautiously taking some steps to explore her rebellious side, and hanging out with Wendy and her crew would be perfect. That little rebellion leading to a lesbian romance (which her parents DEFINITELY would not approve of), even better! Defying them out of love for a badass lumberjack girl -- so romantic. They don't really interact in canon; would Wendy and co. need some convincing that Pacifica is genuine, or embrace her instantly? The journal suggests that the lumberjack ghost who cursed the Northwests was an ancestor of Wendy's, which could add an interesting wrinkle.
Robbie/Multibear
In "The Love God", when Mabel is trying to figure out who to set Robbie up with, she puts Multibear in the "maybe" pile. What if she'd actually gone through with it? Maybe they would have gotten along? Does Robbie secretly like cheesy Icelandic pop too? (I wouldn't even be a little surprised.) How do you even go on a date with an odd-looking entity like Multibear? I mean, you can't exactly just take him to the diner... can you? Mabel didn't actually meet Multibear in "Dipper vs Manliness", either, so I'm a bit curious about whether she met him seperately or just heard about him from Dipper or what. Also, I am totally not afraid of weird xeno porn of this pairing, as long as it's consensual. (How many penises does Multibear have? The possibilities!)
Bill Cipher/Stanley Pines
There's plenty of messed-up Bill/Ford fic, and I love it. But I feel like Bill/Stan is criminally underexplored, at least outside of crackfic/AUs. Is Bill still lurking in Stan's mind somewhere? How's that possibly affecting him? Even if their only interaction is in Stan's head or dreams, there's a lot of opportunity for some trippy not-entirely-consensual weirdness. If you want to get some Stancest mixed in with it, Bill possessing Stan and trying to seduce Ford, or possessing Ford (metal plate or no, don't worry too much about the logistics) and trying to seduce Stan, are both scenarios I can totally get behind.
Office Christmas Party
Clay Vanstone/Josh Parker
I went to see this movie because I had won a free pass from the theater at pub quiz, I really wanted to turn my brain off and watch a dumb comedy for a couple of hours, and TJ Miller looks weirdly hot in a Santa suit. What I didn't expect was to have a bunch of Feelings about it. I expected Clay to be an arrogant asshole (more like Erlich, I guess) but he was so much nicer and more earnest than I expected, and I loved how close he was with Josh. By the time they were horsing around with Nerf guns in an expensive boutique I was going "Oh no, I ship it!" And even though I (also surprisingly) really liked Josh and Tracey, I never stopped shipping it. So, how about an easy prompt: That night in Vegas. If you saw the movie, you know which one I mean. Was it with Josh? Or some random other guy, and maybe Josh finds himself feeling something that couldn't possibly be envy...
On a somewhat serious note I really loved how self-aware Clay is about his issues with alcohol, but I imagine it took him a while to get there and I bet Josh had a hand in that.
Clay Vanstone/Josh Parker/Tracey Hughes
Whether this threesome happens because of calculated planning by Clay to get in on it, or Josh to get the two people he cares about the most into each other, or Tracey just wanting two guys at once, or totally by accident in a "did we really do that last night" scenario, well, why not? ...if you've read all my prompts you can probably tell that I really, really like M/M/F threesomes. I don't care that much how they happen.
Clay and Tracey are actually a lot closer in age than either of them are to Josh (at least, if the ages of the actors is remotely close to the character ages -- Jason Bateman is about 10 years older than the other two.) I like the idea of him feeling old, either because they're specifically teasing him or because he's missing out on some childhood nostalgia thing that he was too old for (or maybe he remembers something they were both too young for). As long as it ends up mostly happy in the end -- this movie was so much nicer and sweeter than I was expecting!
Ghostbusters
Kevin Beckman/Garrett
Recycling my Trick or Treat prompt, as there is STILL only one fic on AO3 for this pairing.
Agh I know I KNOW this is such a great movie with Strong Female Heroes and here I am wanting to ship the two hot guys who never even meet onscreen I KNOW it’s terrible, okay, just terrible. But the heart wants what it wants and what mine wants is for Chris Hemsworth and Zach Woods to make out. How do they even meet? I don’t know! Maybe via a “my life was ruined by ghosts” support group Kevin doesn’t even think he needs to attend, but the Ghostbusters think might be good for him? Or maybe there are shenanigans involving possession? (Like, Garrett is into Kevin, assumes Kevin’s way out of his league, but then a possessed Kevin comes onto him and he isn’t sure how to react... or a possessed Garrett has way more confidence, Cyrano de Bergerac style?) Feel free to get weird with it, just try not to break anyone permanently.
I’m pretty curious about what Garrett does post-Gertrude Aldridge incident. Does he keep his job, or get another one somewhere else - that turns out to be just as haunted, and he has to call the Ghostbusters for help? Honestly I have a lot of sympathy for him, since I don’t even think I would have reacted as well as he did when confronted with an actual bona fide malevolent spirit.
Incidentally, I’m kind of sad that Garrett and Patty never meet in the movie. I like the idea of them getting excited about history together. Of the main characters I mostly ship Holtzmann/Patty and Erin/Abby, if you want to throw in any background pairings.