Dear Yuletide Santa
Oct. 24th, 2012 05:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
brigdhHello!
I love you already. Thank you so much for offering one of my fandoms! You clearly have excellent taste. I am a firm believer of "optional details are optional", so feel free to use these comments as inspiration, or to write something entirely else. I'm pretty much guaranteed to like whatever you do, mainly because I've usually forgotten what I requested by the time Yuletide opens, and so it's all a happy surprise.
In general, I really admire any story that can do plot, action, and/or humor well, because I personally am bad at writing those things. On the other hand, I also like character studies, poetic language (which is my polite term for purple prose; it is hard to be too purple for my taste), angst, and introspection, which is why I write them. I like dark themes and happy endings (though probably not in the same story). I like fun stories, the sort that make you smile to read them, but am not so fond of fluff. I like nuances (hmm, that is probably the worst request ever. I like it when authors complicate things?). I really love stories that dig deep, exploring a world or a character's interior. Most of the characters I love are pretty fucked up on the inside, but are also capable of great strength. I like that balance, not a woobie but not a standard hero either. Most of my favorite characters can be encapsulated by the Hemingway quote, "The world breaks everyone and afterward many are stronger at the broken places". That's what really gets me: the refusal to give up, even when it's pointless.
I tend to like a lot of dysfunction in my fictional relationships. They can be happy, but I'm not terribly fond of lots of sap or schmoop, or really any sort of overt romance. I much prefer the unspoken to the outright-stated. Pretty much all of my requests revolve around a relationship (whether you chose to write that as gen or romantic), and I really love reading about how people work (or don't) together. How do they help one another? How do they hurt? How do they understand or misunderstand? What is easy between them, and what is complicated; what is spoken and what is not? Etc. In general, I like my couples to succeed together, but I like it to be hard to get there.
Do not feel obligated to include Christmas (or whatever fantasy-equivalent winter holiday is appropriate to the fandom), but if you want to, feel free. I absolutely adore AUs, whether completely different universes (everyone's in high school! everyone has daemons! everyone is a pirate! And also a vampire!), or the "what if this character had made a different choice?" sort. I think AUs are a fantastic way of exploring what is essential to a character's personality, and what is merely surface, and that's what I find most interesting about them. It's so interesting to explore how a different setting/upbringing/choice might or might not change a person.
Porn is always welcome, of any variety (m/m, f/m, f/f, poly, kinky, vanilla, monogamous or not), but don't feel obligated if you don't like to write it. I don't have any squicks or triggers, so write whatever appeals to you.
My dislikes include OOC, even for the sake of humor. I don't like songfic? Although it would be appropriate for Pitch Perfect, now that I think about it. Man, dislikes are hard. In short, I will be pleased with any story you write. Thank you in advance!
I've written several meta posts about the sort of things that I love in stories. You can use these for inspiration, if you like:
My Top 10 Story Kinks
My favorite 'cool bits'
What I look for in OTPs
If you're interested, my own stories are (mostly) on AO3, but the complete list of them is collected here. I've written for some of the fandoms I requested, though that doesn't mean you have to write the same sort of stories that I do! One of my favorite things is to see the way different people have different takes on the same story.
Yami no Matsuei
I am so excited YnM is a Yuletide fandom again! I have been waiting for this- no exaggeration- for years. I pretty much love every aspect of this canon and all of the characters, so if we matched on this fandom, you can write whatever you like. I'm familiar with both the anime and the manga, so go ahead and pick any minor character or tiny detail if that's what you want to focus on.
However, my favorite characters are Hisoka and Tsuzuki. I love them together, but I am also fine with it if you want to write a gen story focusing on both or either, or on another relationship. I am particularly interested in Tsuzuki/Tatsumi, Hisoka/Hijiri, Hisoka/Tsubaki, or either with Muraki (though I'd prefer not to have a story that's just a straight-up flashback to the rape scene. If you want to dig into that relationship, though, that's fine!). I love stories set within the canon time period, I love stories set in the past, I love stories in a guess at the future, and I love, love, love AUs.
Some suggestions on stories I'd love to see: what happened to cause Tsuzuki to kill himself? Who were some of Tsuzuki's early partners? What was Tsuzuki and Tatsumi's partnership like? What does Hisoka think about any of this history? How does the complicated Hisoka/Tatsumi/Tsuzuki triangle play out? What was Hisoka and Tsuzuki's first time like? What was their relationship like after it was established? How does Hisoka change from his early days as a shinigami? How would he feel if Muraki were to die (either naturally or due to some unrelated cause)? Give me a straight-up case story: I love horror and mysteries, so something with ghosts and demons and creepy haunted houses would be amazing. Really, though, I'm looking forward to anything about these characters and this world.
Swordspoint series- Ellen Kushner
I LOVE SWORDSPOINT SO MUCH OMG. Which is a loud way of saying, if this is the fandom we were matched on, you already have made me so happy! This fandom is like my id, seriously. Some things I love in particular are: the madness and dangerousness of both Richard and Alec; the careful compromise of their relationship; the disintegrating, violent Riverside; the politics of it all; and the way everything is always taking place just below the surface, and nothing is ever quite obvious. Ugh, Kushner's writing style kills me, the way she almost never directly states what anyone is feeling or meaning, but rather hints at it through body language and misdirection.
Richard/Alec is the big pairing for me here, but I am also open to stories about either guy individually, or about either of them in another relationship. Some suggestions: Richard/Jessamyn, Alec/another student from the University. I'd love to read about a threesome with these two and someone else. I'm also really interested in the fact that Alec is sleeping around a lot in TPotS; how does Richard feel about that? Does Richard ever sleep with someone else, and if so, how does Alec react? Would it be different if Alec had slept around earlier in the relationship? Do they even think of it as 'cheating', and if not, what would they define as 'cheating'?
I particularly love stories set early in Alec and Richard's life, during the time they're still living in Riverside. At one point Richard mentions that he's been a highwayman; I WOULD LOVE A STORY ABOUT THAT YESSS. Either in his youth, or if for some reason he decides to go back to it after knowing Alec (or with Alec? So awesome!). However, I also love stories about Richard and Alec scandalizing high society after Alec becomes the Duke. Some other suggestions: something exploring daily life in Riverside, what the dangerous part of the city is *really* like to its inhabitants. Richard and Alec's first meeting stories are always interesting (I know there is now an official version! I still love other tellings, or a story weaving around "The Duke of Riverside"). Porn will be deeply appreciated, although is not required. Something that explores kink between these two would be very neat. Basically, if the story involves Alec and/or Richard, you will have given me a happy Yuletide.
Pitch Perfect (2012)
Man, this is such a great movie. I love how funny it is, I love the focus on women and their relationships, I love the music. What I would really, really love is some femslash (COME ON, IT IS SO OBVIOUS). I'm thinking Chloe/Beca (NAKED SHOWER SCENE), but if you're more struck by another pairing, go for it. I'm fine with either a romantic relationship or a drunken hookup, whichever seems more likely to you. Is someone gay until graduation? Does someone just want to experiment? Or have there been long-term Secret Longings(TM)? A story about people hanging out in New York before or after the performance at Lincoln Center would be great, as I live in NYC and am endlessly amused by reading about it.
So many of the characters in this movie have so much to explore- we don't learn a lot about Chloe, for instance (what is her major? how did she get into a capella? Where is she from?), but there are also great hints about the stories of Cynthia-Rose (what's the story with her ex-girlfriend?), Fat Amy (how many boyfriends does she have? Is she into Bumper or not?), and Aubrey (what does she do after graduation?). I am not very interested in the male characters, so I'd prefer the focus not to be on them, but feel free to include them as minor characters. This is a fandom where I'd particularly like something funny and/or light-spirited, but I'm open to other takes on the canon!
Japanese History RPF
If this is the fandom we were matched on, I am already so impressed with you! I requested Murasaki Shikibu and Sei Shonagon, but feel free to write about anyone of the Heian period, or even to make up some original characters. What I really love about this fandom is exploring the culture of the setting. I'm interested in so many details of the period- the court system, the elaborate color-coding of kimonos, the choosing of incense and perfumes, the etiquette of screens, the interconnecting of nuns and monks with the upper echelons of society, the elaborate courtship rules, the aesthetics of sending notes and letters, the poetry. A lot of what is set in this period is about the very upper part of the nobility, but don't feel confined to that; I would also be interested in a story about servants, or farmers, or people living far from the capital. I am, however, way more interested in the women of this period than the men; I'm not very compelled by stories about war or battles or generals. Though if you want to write a m/f romance, that would be fine, or maybe a male fan of Murasaki or Shonagon's writing.
I would love something dealing with a relationship between Murasaki and Sei Shonagon. Hate-sex: totally hot. Not-so-hatey sex: I love it. Friendship: yes, please. Even a single encounter between them, just one chance conversation, would make me squee. A series of snarky notes sent between the two of them, in the form of poetry, would be basically my favorite thing ever, though I know it would take some pretty impressive writing skills to pull off. But I believe in you, Yuletide Santa! In general, I'm very interested in what you might call the world-building, if this was a fictional fandom. I'd be happy with any story set in this period.
I love you already. Thank you so much for offering one of my fandoms! You clearly have excellent taste. I am a firm believer of "optional details are optional", so feel free to use these comments as inspiration, or to write something entirely else. I'm pretty much guaranteed to like whatever you do, mainly because I've usually forgotten what I requested by the time Yuletide opens, and so it's all a happy surprise.
In general, I really admire any story that can do plot, action, and/or humor well, because I personally am bad at writing those things. On the other hand, I also like character studies, poetic language (which is my polite term for purple prose; it is hard to be too purple for my taste), angst, and introspection, which is why I write them. I like dark themes and happy endings (though probably not in the same story). I like fun stories, the sort that make you smile to read them, but am not so fond of fluff. I like nuances (hmm, that is probably the worst request ever. I like it when authors complicate things?). I really love stories that dig deep, exploring a world or a character's interior. Most of the characters I love are pretty fucked up on the inside, but are also capable of great strength. I like that balance, not a woobie but not a standard hero either. Most of my favorite characters can be encapsulated by the Hemingway quote, "The world breaks everyone and afterward many are stronger at the broken places". That's what really gets me: the refusal to give up, even when it's pointless.
I tend to like a lot of dysfunction in my fictional relationships. They can be happy, but I'm not terribly fond of lots of sap or schmoop, or really any sort of overt romance. I much prefer the unspoken to the outright-stated. Pretty much all of my requests revolve around a relationship (whether you chose to write that as gen or romantic), and I really love reading about how people work (or don't) together. How do they help one another? How do they hurt? How do they understand or misunderstand? What is easy between them, and what is complicated; what is spoken and what is not? Etc. In general, I like my couples to succeed together, but I like it to be hard to get there.
Do not feel obligated to include Christmas (or whatever fantasy-equivalent winter holiday is appropriate to the fandom), but if you want to, feel free. I absolutely adore AUs, whether completely different universes (everyone's in high school! everyone has daemons! everyone is a pirate! And also a vampire!), or the "what if this character had made a different choice?" sort. I think AUs are a fantastic way of exploring what is essential to a character's personality, and what is merely surface, and that's what I find most interesting about them. It's so interesting to explore how a different setting/upbringing/choice might or might not change a person.
Porn is always welcome, of any variety (m/m, f/m, f/f, poly, kinky, vanilla, monogamous or not), but don't feel obligated if you don't like to write it. I don't have any squicks or triggers, so write whatever appeals to you.
My dislikes include OOC, even for the sake of humor. I don't like songfic? Although it would be appropriate for Pitch Perfect, now that I think about it. Man, dislikes are hard. In short, I will be pleased with any story you write. Thank you in advance!
I've written several meta posts about the sort of things that I love in stories. You can use these for inspiration, if you like:
My Top 10 Story Kinks
My favorite 'cool bits'
What I look for in OTPs
If you're interested, my own stories are (mostly) on AO3, but the complete list of them is collected here. I've written for some of the fandoms I requested, though that doesn't mean you have to write the same sort of stories that I do! One of my favorite things is to see the way different people have different takes on the same story.
Yami no Matsuei
I am so excited YnM is a Yuletide fandom again! I have been waiting for this- no exaggeration- for years. I pretty much love every aspect of this canon and all of the characters, so if we matched on this fandom, you can write whatever you like. I'm familiar with both the anime and the manga, so go ahead and pick any minor character or tiny detail if that's what you want to focus on.
However, my favorite characters are Hisoka and Tsuzuki. I love them together, but I am also fine with it if you want to write a gen story focusing on both or either, or on another relationship. I am particularly interested in Tsuzuki/Tatsumi, Hisoka/Hijiri, Hisoka/Tsubaki, or either with Muraki (though I'd prefer not to have a story that's just a straight-up flashback to the rape scene. If you want to dig into that relationship, though, that's fine!). I love stories set within the canon time period, I love stories set in the past, I love stories in a guess at the future, and I love, love, love AUs.
Some suggestions on stories I'd love to see: what happened to cause Tsuzuki to kill himself? Who were some of Tsuzuki's early partners? What was Tsuzuki and Tatsumi's partnership like? What does Hisoka think about any of this history? How does the complicated Hisoka/Tatsumi/Tsuzuki triangle play out? What was Hisoka and Tsuzuki's first time like? What was their relationship like after it was established? How does Hisoka change from his early days as a shinigami? How would he feel if Muraki were to die (either naturally or due to some unrelated cause)? Give me a straight-up case story: I love horror and mysteries, so something with ghosts and demons and creepy haunted houses would be amazing. Really, though, I'm looking forward to anything about these characters and this world.
Swordspoint series- Ellen Kushner
I LOVE SWORDSPOINT SO MUCH OMG. Which is a loud way of saying, if this is the fandom we were matched on, you already have made me so happy! This fandom is like my id, seriously. Some things I love in particular are: the madness and dangerousness of both Richard and Alec; the careful compromise of their relationship; the disintegrating, violent Riverside; the politics of it all; and the way everything is always taking place just below the surface, and nothing is ever quite obvious. Ugh, Kushner's writing style kills me, the way she almost never directly states what anyone is feeling or meaning, but rather hints at it through body language and misdirection.
Richard/Alec is the big pairing for me here, but I am also open to stories about either guy individually, or about either of them in another relationship. Some suggestions: Richard/Jessamyn, Alec/another student from the University. I'd love to read about a threesome with these two and someone else. I'm also really interested in the fact that Alec is sleeping around a lot in TPotS; how does Richard feel about that? Does Richard ever sleep with someone else, and if so, how does Alec react? Would it be different if Alec had slept around earlier in the relationship? Do they even think of it as 'cheating', and if not, what would they define as 'cheating'?
I particularly love stories set early in Alec and Richard's life, during the time they're still living in Riverside. At one point Richard mentions that he's been a highwayman; I WOULD LOVE A STORY ABOUT THAT YESSS. Either in his youth, or if for some reason he decides to go back to it after knowing Alec (or with Alec? So awesome!). However, I also love stories about Richard and Alec scandalizing high society after Alec becomes the Duke. Some other suggestions: something exploring daily life in Riverside, what the dangerous part of the city is *really* like to its inhabitants. Richard and Alec's first meeting stories are always interesting (I know there is now an official version! I still love other tellings, or a story weaving around "The Duke of Riverside"). Porn will be deeply appreciated, although is not required. Something that explores kink between these two would be very neat. Basically, if the story involves Alec and/or Richard, you will have given me a happy Yuletide.
Pitch Perfect (2012)
Man, this is such a great movie. I love how funny it is, I love the focus on women and their relationships, I love the music. What I would really, really love is some femslash (COME ON, IT IS SO OBVIOUS). I'm thinking Chloe/Beca (NAKED SHOWER SCENE), but if you're more struck by another pairing, go for it. I'm fine with either a romantic relationship or a drunken hookup, whichever seems more likely to you. Is someone gay until graduation? Does someone just want to experiment? Or have there been long-term Secret Longings(TM)? A story about people hanging out in New York before or after the performance at Lincoln Center would be great, as I live in NYC and am endlessly amused by reading about it.
So many of the characters in this movie have so much to explore- we don't learn a lot about Chloe, for instance (what is her major? how did she get into a capella? Where is she from?), but there are also great hints about the stories of Cynthia-Rose (what's the story with her ex-girlfriend?), Fat Amy (how many boyfriends does she have? Is she into Bumper or not?), and Aubrey (what does she do after graduation?). I am not very interested in the male characters, so I'd prefer the focus not to be on them, but feel free to include them as minor characters. This is a fandom where I'd particularly like something funny and/or light-spirited, but I'm open to other takes on the canon!
Japanese History RPF
If this is the fandom we were matched on, I am already so impressed with you! I requested Murasaki Shikibu and Sei Shonagon, but feel free to write about anyone of the Heian period, or even to make up some original characters. What I really love about this fandom is exploring the culture of the setting. I'm interested in so many details of the period- the court system, the elaborate color-coding of kimonos, the choosing of incense and perfumes, the etiquette of screens, the interconnecting of nuns and monks with the upper echelons of society, the elaborate courtship rules, the aesthetics of sending notes and letters, the poetry. A lot of what is set in this period is about the very upper part of the nobility, but don't feel confined to that; I would also be interested in a story about servants, or farmers, or people living far from the capital. I am, however, way more interested in the women of this period than the men; I'm not very compelled by stories about war or battles or generals. Though if you want to write a m/f romance, that would be fine, or maybe a male fan of Murasaki or Shonagon's writing.
I would love something dealing with a relationship between Murasaki and Sei Shonagon. Hate-sex: totally hot. Not-so-hatey sex: I love it. Friendship: yes, please. Even a single encounter between them, just one chance conversation, would make me squee. A series of snarky notes sent between the two of them, in the form of poetry, would be basically my favorite thing ever, though I know it would take some pretty impressive writing skills to pull off. But I believe in you, Yuletide Santa! In general, I'm very interested in what you might call the world-building, if this was a fictional fandom. I'd be happy with any story set in this period.
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