#So I'm writing this for myself about my favourites

[stardewfanficwriters]

Meet Our Writers

This week's spotlighted guild member is Friday!

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lily_alphonse/profile Tumblr: @lily-alphonse Age: 28 Pronouns: She/Her Guild Member since: November 2024

Fun Fact about yourself? I play the ukulele (badly)

How long have you been writing fanfiction? I only really started some time in 2022 when I wrote a Seb/OC longfic just for myself. The first fic I ever posted was a BG3 fic on Nov 14th 2023, so I've been posting for a bit over a year now! That being said I've always liked writing, and used to write all the time as a kid.

Favourite SDV character to write? Even though I always marry Seb, I think Elliott might be my favorite because I can get so artsy with him I love writing him poetry. Sam is probably a close second.

Favourite tropes/genre to write? I primarily write m/m and LOOOVE angst with a happy ending, enemies to lovers, best friends to lovers, mutual pining.

Your most popular SDV fanfic? Currently its Steamy, a SebAlex oneshot where Sebastian is having a terrible time quitting cigarettes, and goes to the gym to let off some steam. Alex is there and assumes Sebastian has come for a very different reason…

Your SDV underdog fic you wish more people would give a chance? Guardheart. It's a songfic for one of my favorite songs featuring Alex x Elliott in a medieval AU! It is beautiful and tragic and I reread it all the time, I'm very proud of it. But since it's a medieval AU and a rarepair, it doesn't get much attention.

Hear me out: Sebastian is in his mid-to-late 20s. People like to think he's younger because of his style and he lives in his mom's basement but that's normal into late 20s and he has a steady grownup job. His relationship with Demetrius doesn't really make sense if Demetrius came into his life when he was a baby

Lastly, any other fandoms you write for? Yes! I think at the moment I have 15 lol. I mostly write for SDV and Legend of Zelda, but some other big ones are BG3, Fields of Mistria, Disney, and Minecraft

We are so lucky to have such a talented and prolific writer amongst our ranks! If you check out her fics, please be sure to kudos and comment to show your support for small artists and writers.

If you write Stardew Valley fanfiction and would like to join our guild, please message this blog for an invite!

Credit to @lily-alphonse & @saradika for the banners

Please see AO3 for additional tags. Reader discretion is advised as always.

[baronessblixen]

get to know your moots

Thank you so much @randomfoggytiger!

What's the origin of your blog title? Blog title comes from Doctor Who. They were (part of) the parting words from the 12th Doctor. If you mean my URL: I made this blog when I was going through a Meryl Streep phase and Out of Africa has always been a fave.

OTP(s) + Shipname: Mulder and Scully (MSR)

Favourite colour: Blue

Favourite game: I'm old-school so maybe something like Mario Kart

Song stuck in your head: Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now by Starship

Weirdest habit/trait? I constantly feel the need to touch things - trees, walls and the like. Especially if the texture is interesting. Imagine me seeing a palm tree for the first time. I could not stop touching it.

Hobbies: Writing, reading, running, biking

If you work, what's your profession? I work in marketing

If you could have any job you wish, what would it be? I wish I knew cause my current job is making me unhappy and I'm ready for a new career. If only I knew what.

Something you're good at: Overthinking. I honestly don't think there's anything I'm particularly good at.

Something you're bad at: Lots of things. Communication. Sleeping. Sticking to schedules.

Something you love: my dog, nature, having a place to myself, the ocean, that feeling after a good, long run, the right music, sleeping in, having zero plans and responsibilities.

Something you could talk about for hours off the cuff: tv shows, movies, fandom, sports (the ones I follow anyway :D)

Something you hate: Lying, selfishness, arrogance

Something you collect: I collect snow globes (and other souvenirs) from places I've traveled to

Something you forget: Way too much. I've forgotten all the things that I've forgotten.

What's your love language? Quality time, for sure.

Favourite movie/show: Out of Africa, The Way We Were, Brief Encounter, Dirty Dancing, Look Who's Talking; shows: X-Files, Frasier, The Americans, Masters of Sex, Ted Lasso, Doctor Who, Evil

Favourite food: Steak? Pasta, pizza, burgers

Favourite animal: dogs and foxes, but also penguins and hedgehogs

What were you like as a child? Surprisingly talkative.

Favourite subject at school? Maths in elementary school and then English because of the language. I have a fondness for history and biology.

Least favorite subject? Chemistry probably

What's your best character trait? Hmm, no idea. I think people who have to deal with me can answer that better.

What's your worst character trait? I have zero confidence in myself.

If you could change any detail of your day right now what would it be? I just want to be done with the work day.

If you could travel in time who would you like to meet? I would like to travel back to my childhood and spend another day with my mom. If that doesn't count, I'd like to travel back to early 50s Hollywood and spend some time with Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift.

Recommend one of your favourite fanfics (spread the love!): just a few - I have way more!

Brief Encounter of the Interdimensional Kind by @randomfoggytiger

Testament by @libbytxf

Dancing the Tandava by @numinousmysteries

The Long Road to Improbable by @mldrgrl

Baseball Metaphors by @leiascully

[boobersandstuff]

Just wanted to say, I 100% agree and also don't understand how it was homophobic. I think back then it would've been but over time & the context of how rick writes queer characters has changed so much that, you look back at that scene and you realise, damn, that's good rep right here. In my oppion anyway.

I'm happy that nico made you feel so seen because honestly I'm exactly the same! Not with the queer (I'm aroace but not a gay man) stuff, I grew up lucky that at a young age I learn what queerness was and fell in love with it! It my favourite thing, my hyperfixation for about 2 Years or so. So I never hated myself for it, but I did & do have really bad self-esteem.

Instead for a time, I had internalised abilism, wishing I wasn't autistic or adhd and instead normal. Hiding it and masking because I was so ashamed about who I was. So I can relate to nicos internalised stuff to a certain point.

I also grew up an outcast, ostrosaed, alone, lonely for my premative years. So I understand nicos trauma & stuff a lot more.

I feel so seen by him in so many ways, so while reading the sun & the star, to see that, not only does he heal & get a happy ending, he gets a boyfriend. Nico gets a special person who's always been around, it's just not until then that the universe allowed him to have him.

Honestly it just makes me so happy and seen because nicos struggles & my struggles are nearly 1-to-1. Even the ages of when our worst traumas are 1-to-1.

So to read a character who's been nothing but miserable for so long, not only heal, and get a happy ending, a special person (boyfriend in this case), makes me feel so seen because, as of Writing this, that's me. I'm in my own healing arch from the awful stuff that happened to me, I've found my special person, my friends, people who I love so much and treat me right.

It just feels so extra right for me, and I know if I had read nicos character arch back then it would've felt even better, like a hope I would get better one day and I would be happy. And I can say with full honestly, that... I did. I got better, I am better, I'm happy.

I have almost achieved all my dreams (almost), so I'm ok, and for once I mean it. So again, nico getting a happy ending while me myself having my own, feels so right and I just look back at mini me and just smile, proud of myself for sticking it through :,]

Saw this tiktok and it perfectly articulated what I've been thinking when I saw some posts on here nitpicking the comming out scene in tsats!

Like, YES!!! THANK YOU!! it was so upsetting to see that, and demigods are more atune to their mortal side rather than their godly side. They don't know wether its safe to come out to EVERYONE here. I'm sure demigods have come out to their friends in private, but definitely not the entire camp at once!

Can we celebrate character coming out scenes instead of nitpicking and getting angry because "it doesn't make any sense" or "is unrealistic" or even "not perfect". Especially with nico, when he did that, it shows just how far he's came and that he's healing and that, he's not afraid anymore, he doesn't hate himself anymore. He isn't ashamed.

After the shit-show with cupid this is a scene he more than deserved! I'll probably go more into depth in my video essay on him but yeah, he deserved that and it makes me really angry seeing people say that sort of bullshit.

Just wanted to share this :]

[fanaticsnail]

Elevating the water cup to your lips and slowly tipping back the contents into your mouth, their voice holds an extra bite to their tone while they chastise you.

"You will take care of yourself, or I swear: I will take care of you so hard you won't be able to focus on anything other than how hard I'm taking care of you," they threaten with absolute love laboured in their gruff exclaim, "You got that? Say 'Yes, I got that', sweetheart."

Gulping back the water, they remove the cup from your lips and gently thumb over your lip to catch the after fall spilling over the seam. You smile up at them and offer them a soft echo of their order.

"Yes I got that, sweetheart."

"Cheeky," they retort in response, cupping the back of your neck and drawing your forehead to their lips. "Just know I have you, alright? I'm here. Drink your water, and do your best. That's all I could ever ask of you."

[mydemonsyourangels]

obviously top is exhibiting a lot of red flags. which was to be expected. but he's also got this air about him that i can't quite figure out.

it's like he's just letting shit happen to him. the shower scene was interesting because he said no to boston but he also made no move to push him away. and then again in the car with boston. obviously he is very much participating in the sex but boston is the one to initiate it. even mew pushes him into the elevator (unknowingly sending him boston's way). when an old fling approaches him he doesn't really say anything to deter the guy but he also doesn't encourage him.

he seems so out of it. and like he'll occasionally flit back into reality to make his claim on mew.

in conclusion top is confusing the fuck out of me and i an equal parts terrified and excited to learn more about his character.

[buckbuckbarnesstuff]

Girl, you can hit me with your rambles anytime you want. I make an effort to avoid comparing my writing or my word count to that of popular books. It places so much unwarranted pressure on you. Being a fanfic writer should never feel stressful or challenging. It’s something you choose to do in your freetime for your own enjoyment and that of others and I believe that to be so truly remarkable on its own. So I feel sorry that we often times tend to impose such high expectations on ourselves regarding writing. Do what feels right for your own writing style and pace.

I totally get that pre-writing thing and I probably should be doing that myself. But unfortunately, I can never seem to hold off on sharing my work lol. Though you are right, it allows you more time to consider everything and work out the plot completely. But truly, I would have loved all that you could create from "a dish served cold" because it just got me hooked right away.

Also, I let my younger sister read my work before sharing it to get her feedback. Maybe you have a family member or friend you can give your writing to for a preread. So you'll receive some feedback prior posting.

Personally, daughter of the rotsál sounds incredibly interesting and intriguing, especially due to the darker elements and Isolde's isolation, perhaps because it also somehow is a parallel to me. I'm so full of genuine anticipation and there is no doubt in my mind that you will turn this into a masterpiece. I know I can only speak for myself here and there may be people wishing things to be different, but I suppose that will always be a thing. Just yesterday I stumbled upon some comments criticizing my absolutely favourite book series. It will alwas be like that. So the best you can do is trying not to think about how others could respond. All I can tell you is that I am going to love it. And I won't be the only one.

I wish you the best for your further writing process and I'll be here patiently waiting. 40k is actually so impressive already, huge congrats on that!!

My love goes out to you!! 💕💕

daughter of the rotsál snippet

hi all, ive been hit with my usual seasonal depression yippe... my goal for this month was to write 50k words. i am currently at 37k on the first draft of the daughter of rotsál. this fic is turning out to be a lot longer than i first anticipated it would be so it's been a bit overwhelming to work on. per usual my imposter syndrome is telling me i'm a bad writer (as is the curse of a creative). thought i'd share a snippet with you all, so here is a full scene where isolde the oc meets bucky for the first time.

in the mean time while i suffer writing this first draft, would you guys be interested in seeing some more snippets or lore bits? i did contemplate writing a one-shot just so i would have something more to post than these ramblings haha. let me know!

Head held high, Isolde strode through the emerging path, ignoring the whispers and stares. 

“Ah, here she is.” Father Dreykov spoke, his hand finding the small of Isolde’s back as he guided her before the Naraki leadership. “Isolde. The bride.”

The Naraki leadership loomed before her, a half-circle of men clad in armour and furs, each radiating authority. The man in the seat was undeniably the Ealdorman Steve of House Rogers. He sat tall, his posture regal yet relaxed, his broad shoulders draped in a wolf fur cloak, his armour battle-worn, streaked with faint scratches and dents. His face was as commanding as the rest of him—a square jaw, strong cheekbones, and a mouth set in a line of quiet contemplation. His golden hair was tied back, though a few strands had escaped to frame his face. His blue eyes settled on Isolde with an unsettling intensity. His wife, Lady Peggy, stood tall and poised, a hand resting lightly on Steve’s shoulder. 

Isolde was sure that if Lord Steve wasn’t already married, she would have been offered as a bride to him instead. Isolde swallowed hard as Peggy’s gaze lingered, her expression unreadable. There was no malice in her eyes, but neither was there comfort. Isolde got the impression that this was not a woman who tolerated weakness—not in herself, not in her husband, and certainly not in anyone who might step into their world.

“She is Idamirian.” Lord Steve spoke, a hint of surprise in his words. 

“Well, yes. She was once before she became a daughter of the Rotsál.” Father Dreykov replied, and Isolde recognised a slight hesitancy in his words, as if he was carefully selecting each that passed his lips. “Do you take issue with this?”

Isolde’s chest tightened.

“No. The opposite.” Lord Steve raised his hand to absentmindedly stroke the stubble across his jaw. “I wasn’t aware that any from Idamir survived.”

They didn’t. Hatred coiled in Isolde’s gut like a mighty serpent, and it took everything in her not to sneer at the Ealdorman. His words were so casual, so dismissive—the anger that roared in her veins was as hot as any molten rock that rained from the sky. Of course the Naraki hadn’t thought of the repercussions; of course, they had thought Idamir extinct except those already married into their bloodlines. 

“I expect most didn’t.” Father Dreykov chuckled in relief. “Isolde was one of the few we managed to save during The Black Dawn.”

“An Idamirian daughter of the Rotsál…” Lord Steve pondered aloud. His pronunciation of Rotsál rolled across his tongue with a rumble, his southern accent thick. “A good choice, priest. I will give you that. There is worth in such a bride. She speaks our language, I presume?”

Yes. Yes, she did. Isolde remembered quite vividly the number of times she had been scolded and beaten for her southern accent slipping through in etiquette classes. The Rotsál aimed to neutralise, ensuring a girl could fit in any and all situations. She had not spoken the language in nearly a decade, so she imagined she would be rusty and stiff in ability, but she had spent the first thirteen years of her life communicating in nearly strictly the southern tongue. 

“No, not that I am aware. The Southclaw is not exactly something we cultivate when raising these girls.”

Isolde held her tongue, but annoyance swept through her. Her knowledge of the language would have to be a surprise for her husband once they were wed. Her husband… she wondered which of the armed thegns positioned around and behind Steve would be him. They all had an equal bulkiness to their stature, pure muscle and strength, lined with scars. She did not dare squint too closely at them nor meet their eye. 

“A shame. She will have to learn.” Steve replied with a sigh, settling further into his seat. “What exactly do you cultivate in a bride, priest? I have only ever known your Rotsálian daughters to be assassins, or they meddle in politics that aren’t their own, dressed up in riches to disguise the fact that below it all, they are just simple whores.”

The casual way in which Steve spoke to Father Dreykov astonished Isolde; it was as if disrespect dripped from his every word. It was a carefully constructed vision of mutual respect between the two; that was for sure. All for the sake of alliances. Yet Steve seemed eager to push the boundaries, prodding at Father Dreykov in the hopes that he may pop. 

Isolde’s eyes shot over to look at Father Dreykov, equal parts shock and equal parts horror seeping through her neutral facade. Father Dreykov, to his credit, had not gone red in the face; rather he puffed out his chest and let out a strained chuckle. “That is why daughters of the Rotsál are so special, you see… they are trained to be anything you need them to be. I would not… doubt their prowess.”

Lord Steve’s curiosity peaked, and he leant forward in his seat. “So this one is a bride, but if required, she can be an assassin? A whore?” 

“If that is what you want from her, then yes.”

Steve leant back in his seat once more with a chuckle, looking over his shoulder at a warrior who stood half-drenched in the shadows. “You hear that, Bucky? An assassin in your mix. Is this to your liking?”

Steve’s words hung in the air, a strange blend of jest and command, and as the name was spoken, the figure in the shadows began to move. Slowly, deliberately, the man called Bucky stepped forward, peeling himself from the darkness like a predator emerging from its den. The flickering firelight from the torches cast sharp, angular shadows across his face, revealing a visage that seemed carved from ice.

The infamous Bucky of House Barnes, the White Wolf, the Vetur Soldat, Thegn and Warlord was every inch the Naraki warrior. His shoulders were broad, his frame tall and imposing, clad in dark leather armour. The left pauldron bore faint, jagged etchings in the Naraki style, designs that marked him as a warrior of high standing, though not overly ornate. Across his shoulders a mantle of white wolf fur, its edges worn and weathered by years of riding beneath ash-laden skies

His face was a harsh masterpiece, handsome in a way that unsettled more than it comforted. A strong jawline was covered with stubble, two days old, Isolde estimated. His cheekbones were sharp, his nose slightly crooked—broken at least once in his past. The most striking feature, however, were his eyes: cold, piercing, and unrelenting. Steel blue, they cut through the dim light. They were the eyes of a man who had seen too much and felt too little, who measured the world and its people with a calculated detachment.

His hair, dark and shoulder-length, was pulled back loosely, a few messy strands falling forward to frame his face. A scar ran from the corner of his jaw up to his cheekbone. His left hand rested on the pommel of his sword, the leather-wrapped hilt worn smooth from use. 

“She looks too weak… too small to do any real damage, don’t you think?” The man replied, his tone callous and cold, though edged with a cruel amusement. A rumble of laughter passed over the tent. His expression barely shifted as he scanned her from head to toe, his lips pressing into a thin line that spoke of disappointment—or disdain. Whatever he was looking for, he did not see it in her. Isolde recognised the undeniable sting of disappointment in his expression. His words, though directed at Steve, were aimed at Isolde, each one sinking into her like a barbed arrow.

“You want a different bride?” Steve queried. Isolde held her breath. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise, even if it felt like her cheeks burned in shame under the scrutiny of so many eyes. She would never hear the end of it when she returned to Rotsál Manor, denied and dismissed. Spoiled goods. The other Sisters would mock her relentlessly, not even good enough for a Naraki Savage. Would she ever be offered another mission? Or would she be cast away, ruined? How could she look Natasha in the face… how could she face Sister June—

“No. She will do.”

Despite the hatred and the disgust, Isolde found herself exhaling sharply in relief. She would do.

She would do.

Father Dreykov gave her a pleased look, the other Father’s bristling in approval.  

Isolde noticed how Lady Peggy subtly twitched, her nails digging into the shoulder of her husband. The blond man tipped his chin up, meeting the eye of his wife. Then, with a gentle elegance, the brunette woman leant over to whisper into her husband's ear.

“My wife wishes to ask a question.” Steve spoke up, the hint of a smile pulling at his lips. Bucky, who had begun his retreat back into the shadows, hesitated.

“Of course.” Father Dreykov offered with a slight bow of his head. Isolde wondered if the Father’s skin crawled every time he was forced to show respect to these Horselords. She wondered if rage boiled beneath the surface, knowing he had to treat these inferior men as equals. 

“Does your bride have no tongue?” Lady Peggy’s tone cut through the tent like a knife. The crowd shifted in agreement. “Does she not speak? I would like to hear her speak on this matter of marriage before any finalisation.”

Isolde’s eyes shifted to Father Dreykov. The Father, knowing how many eyes lay upon them, subtly nodded his head in permission. 

“I speak, my lady.” Isolde silently thanked Lord Velka that her voice held steady. 

Lady Peggy’s brow quirked in surprise, a delighted smirk pulling at her lips. Even Lord Bucky, in all his indifference, grew still at the sound of her voice. 

“Idamirian… your mother was a healer, I presume?”

“Yes.”

“And your father a blacksmith?”

“No. He was a hunter.”

Lady Peggy’s head quirked in surprise. 

“And you can ride a horse?” 

“Yes.”

“What about running a household, a village? The duties expected of a thegn's wife?”

“Yes.”

Peggy paused, a small hmph passing her lips. Her fingers trailed a pattern across her husband's shoulder, swirling in thought as she continued to assess Isolde with clever eyes. “And how old were you? The day of the Black Dawn?”

The memories flooded back to her. The earth rocked, the walls shaking so hard that dust fell from the roof. Dishes clattered, clay bowls and plates slipping off shelves and shattering by the hearth. The explosion, the boom of it so loud that she thought her head would be split in two…her mother, her face was blurry now, ushering her from the house as the walls caved in. You must go. You must run. Ash rained from the sky, coating every surface. In the distance, a plume of smoke so large, an indescribable mass—

Isolde swallowed back the bitter taste, relaxing her jaw to ensure the words she spoke did not sound through grit teeth. “Three and ten.”

“Which makes you…”

“Three and twenty.”

The question confused Isolde. What was the Lady looking for, evidence that she was unfit? That she was a child, unfitting of such a position? 

“And do you consent to this marriage?”

A quizzical expression slipped onto her face before she could catch it, her body twisting to glance at Father Dreykov as if asking what he made of the question. She found herself stumped momentarily, consent? Why would she need to consent when it was Lord Velka’s will?

“I do.” Isolde finally replied, spine straightening.

“No, do you truly consent to this marriage? You have not been forced or persuaded into this?”

Maybe her confusion betrayed her, or perhaps her tone was not final enough. Her gaze shifted to Father Dreykov once more, brows knitting together before she spoke up once more, more forcefully this time. “I do—”

“Don’t look at the priest. Look at me.” Lady Peggy cut her off immediately, and Isolde snapped her eyes back to meet hers. There was a fierceness to her tone but an underlying worry Isolde could interpret. “Do you consent? You can say no. Tell me, truthfully.” 

The tent had fallen into a hush. Lord Bucky watched her carefully with narrowed eyes. She only now realised that the lid and waterline were marked with a smudged kohl, adding to the intimidation of his stare. Isolde was consenting, wasn’t she? She had trained her entire life for a mission as important as this—why would her opinion, her decision, ever come into question? She had no reason to question her autonomy; The Order of Rotsál knew what was best for her. This was her mission, her path.

“I consent to this marriage, my lady.” Isolde cut back, words final.

Peggy inhaled sharply, then with a tight nod, she turned to look at her husband. It seemed Isolde’s words had convinced her, or at least for the moment. 

Steve looked up at his wife with a smile, eyes wide with unmistakable love. “Wonderful. Tonight, we will celebrate. Come nightfall tomorrow, they will be wed, and our two clans will be bound by blood.”

[discjude]

it is literally 4 in the morning and I can't fully articulate this but like. I spent a whole lot of time trying to work out who the "third" in Rise + Fall is (given the 'two works well, three complicates things' rule in Fall) mostly because its the sort of thing that works really well for parallels (example: my insane Hook theory). Obviously there has to be a Third for the Prequels twins (since Soman wouldn't've made it that big of a deal if there wasn't), just as there is a third for the TSY and TCY twins: Tedros is the Third in TSY, and the Complicator Of Things himself - Aric - is the Third in TCY, but there's a lot more candidates for Prequels: you could make cases for Hook, the Pirate Captain, Pan, and Vulcan, from my memory. But none of them really stay around long enough for them to be the third, so I was struggling to pick one out that worked well.

Based on how the Rule Of Three is described, the Third has to be someone that gets in the way of two others, who are going to be the twins, and needs to do a significant amount of Complication. Aric is literally the blueprint for this (potentially also Evelyn, but also not Evelyn, for Reasons). So anyway looking back on it the Third in Rise and Fall is SO OBVIOUSLY the Storian itself and im mad I didn't clock this earlier

It's present through both prequels, where most of the other candidates aren't. It DEFINITELY gets in the way and DEFINITELY does some significant Complication, looking at the end of Fall. If I were to reach slightly, the first image we see in Rise and Fall is of the Storian physically between the brothers, mirroring how it ends up coming between them emotionally, and I like to think that's intentional (Book 2's cover does this as well).

More importantly, there's another part to the Rule Of Three pattern with the sets of twins that isn't explicitly stated, but is consistent between all three: the Third always replaces one twin to form the Two with the other. in TSY, this happens with Tedros and Agatha (predominantly). In TCY, this happens with Aric and Japeth - this is why Evelyn can't be the TCY third in my opinion, since she doesn't replace either twin, and breaks this pattern. in Rise and Fall, this happens with the Storian and Rafal. There isn't really a pattern to whether the Good/Evil twin gets replaced, unless you want to go into some very very very bit leaps ive thought about regarding the whole "was Rhian II evil or good before becoming Rafal, and does that also affect Japeth doing the same thing" thingy but I could not fully explain that stuff ever. There is probably so much more nuance I could add to this if only I reread TSY but that will happen Some Other Time

[sysig]

hhhhh oh my goodness, your art is so cute and soft- And I love your theories and rambles in the tags, it’s fun to read! Have a nice day! 💙

Thanks so much! 💕 Wishing you a nice day as well!

[jcforsapphics]

Ravi begins when

[pokimoko]

5, 10, 20, and 25 for fic in review ask thing!!!

5. What ships captured your heart?

I am a gen writer through and through, so it's a very rare thing to see me writing a ship-focused fic. That said, I really enjoyed the pairing of Karlach and Astarion this year, though I wouldn't say I shipped them necessarily in a romantic sense. The fic I wrote that had them together had their relationship tagged '(it's fairly ambigious; is it romantic? queerplatonic? platonic? yes), (the love and devotion is there regardless)' which I think basically sums up how I view them (and also how aromantic I am about shipping 😅).

I also liked Billford, but in a strictly 'oh yeah they're super divorced, they are never getting back together' kind of way. Not sure if that counts as shipping, but hey, it's definitely counts as something.

10. What fic was the most satisfying to write?

I would have to say either 'The Poetics of Space' (Gravity Falls) or 'On Waxen Wings We Soar, In Spite of Inevitable Ends' (Baldur's Gate 3). They were the two fics I was the most happiest with this year, not only regarding the quality of the writing itself and the themes they explored (the constance of change not only in the world but also ourselves, and finding joy in and making peace with the time you have left), but also how they tied everything together in their conclusions. Both of them equally made me feel a 'wow..I did that' feeling of accomplishment when I finished them, so yeah, they both were absolutely the most satisfying to write.

20. Share your funniest line.

Being more of angst-based writer kinda limits my collection of comedic lines (even my more comedic story this year was extremely angsty), but there was one line I wrote this year that got a couple comments about it making the reader laugh, so I'll go with that one (because if two people found it funny, surely it must be, right):

“You try fixing an interdimensional portal for thirty years without learning physics," (Stanley) said. "I know what quarks are now. Do you know how much I hate knowing what quarks are.”

25. How did you recharge between fics?

Usually I'd spend the first few days after finishing a fic trying to figure out the what the heck to do with the spare time I had previously allocated to writing said fic, and then once I figured that out (and had yet to be overcome with the urge to write something else), I'd probably watch a TV show, read a book, play video games, and do some art. I'm boring like that.

Send me a number!

[juliamccartney]

tragic news: up-and-coming local author realizes that their fanfiction original character has the exact same first name and similar middle & last names as one of the original work's creators, feels like the biggest clown in the circus

[wickershells]

Feeling very jittery + strange + dissociated it is notttt going to be a good day

[fruitsyrups]

Random yes but thank u for making that frusan art awhile ago it's adorable and i love seeing more art of this underappreciated ship :D!!!

ahhh thank you!!! frusan is so underrated FOR REAL, i guess it's probably because after Islands they all but disappeared (like i think they were only shown twice after that and that's including in Fionna & Cake (which i actually missed when i watched it bc its such a brief glimpse)) but like. still. I actually have a little idea for another frusan drawing (frieda and susan talking on a roof grown-up edition) but I have to break up the dialogue into parts & think of more Susan Reactions so it's not just Frieda monologuing at her lol

[advestager]

I feel like saying Josuke doesn't have any daddy issues whatsoever isn't entirely fair (I've seen some fic and comics go further into how he and his mom might have been treated due to the circumstances of his birth that were pretty compelling) but people who act like he grew up without any father figure are definitely off base imo. Every single adaptation and extra material have always had a focus on his close relationship with his grandpa for a reason!

see, that's precisely the thing. it is literally impossible to be a grown up human without having internalised some sort of illogical Feeling about oneself or the world – but fandom as a whole tends to just assign arbitrary ones to characters based on stereotypes rather than what they actually are like.

i do think josuke feels some sort of way about his lack of a father growing up, but that's as inevitable as joseph himself (or giorno, or jolyne, or even jonathan) having feelings about his own dad, and yet somehow jorge's absence does not get brought up despite joseph and josuke's fairly similar upbringings. the fact is that most of western fandom tends to view the JJBA characters through a (white, usa-centric) lens that simply does not lend itself to a fair or accurate reading when most of the cast is either POC or from an entirely different cultural background. that's why i'm so resistant to label josuke as having 'daddy issues'; the term means something entirely different to me than it seems to do to most of the fandom, based on all the fic, comics, and discussions i've seen (and had) about the topic. it's not exactly like the organised crime aspect of VA, but it fills me with a similar kind of frustration. i don't think one needs a degree in cultural studies or history or whatnot to enjoy a silly series about people punching each other with slutty soul-ghosts, but it's exhausting to see the same thoughtless, very specifically westernised takes being regurgitated over and over as Absolute Truth until the characters are so flanderised they seem nothing as much as a caricature of their original versions. i love transformative works as much as any other fan creator, but i also happen to like the source material. it is infinitely more interesting to me to think about what kind of relationship josuke might have to his heritage as a mixed-race person, or his identity as the son of a single mother or the obviously cherished and spoilt child of a family such as his own (especially in a place and period like canon's late-90s/early 00's japan), than to hear yet another iteration of 'haha, josuke has daddy issues' where the person saying it has no intention of analysing that premise beyond the puddle-depth obvious.

at barely sixteen years old, even as interested in high-end fashion (and as very much part of a working class family who could definitely use the nest egg) as he is, josuke's immediate reaction to being told his missing father is incredibly rich and wants to take care of him is to say that it's not necessary, and he's fine as he is. sixteen. i worked as a teacher with kids as young as a year old and people as old as mid-seventies; that kind of ease of mind is one-in-a-million and not something you'll find on someone who fits fandom's definition of 'daddy issues'. he's not angry at joseph, he's not grasping for money, he hardly even wants to find out more about the missing part of his origins. his only thought is to wish he wouldn't be the reason other people were hurt, and to protect his mother once there is a risk she might find out and be distressed about it. his entire morality system is (from what i remember of canon) mostly based around the question What Would Grandpa Do?, with some leeway allowed for the temper he clearly got from tomoko and for the fact that he is, again, a big and slightly spoilt sixteen year old.

so yeah. it might not sound fair to say he doesn't have daddy issues, but i don't think the terms fandom's operating under are fair to start with, so i'd rather recuse myself (and my interpretation of the character) from it all til we're playing the same game. the sandbox's wide and wild, and the block and mute buttons are there for a reason, so i'll just stay in my corner writing about higashikatas wielding their feelings like sledgehammers til my mum says it's time to go home.

[yououghtaknow]

they weren’t lying, that going outside, talking to people, going on a walk to get a little drink from the gas station really helps your mental health

[singsweetmelodies]

Who would say stay forever? pierre or charles? 👀

OMG ANON I AM SO GLAD THAT YOU ASKED because i have not thought about this further at all. but now i can!!

so this ask is in reference to this notting hill gifset which i reblogged - and listen. i physically cannot consume ANY media without trying to make it into some kind of a piarles fic. and this notting hill gifset is no different... i mean come on. it's only one of my favourite rom-coms ever! of COURSE i'm going to piarlify it.

NOW TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION: who says what? that is to say, who's who?

the easy approach - and indeed the first one that occured to me - is to make charles anna/julia roberts' character. i mean, come on. famous actor charles falls for bookstore owner pierre... it practically writes itself, doesn't it?

and do i see charles as julia roberts? YEAH i do. charles uttering the 'i'm just a girl... standing in front of a boy... asking him to love her' line is just... YEAH

but at the same time

i like to flip expectations sometimes, so i was also thinking about it the other way around? like, that could also be so fucking wholesome?

charles as the awkward, adorable and hopelessly endearing local bookshop owner who pierre can't help but be charmed by? i see it. pierre as the slightly cynical, jaded and dogged by the press actor (who's a secret romantic and longs for someone to spend the rest of his life with?) i can SO see it.

i think charles is also absolutely the type to fumble and stammer his way awkwardly through meeting the actor he's secretly had a crush on - and with charles' luck, of course he WOULD happen to run into that actor again and spill his orange juice all over pierre's shirt. of course he would.

then i also think pierre is absolutely the type to impulsively kiss someone after they've oh-so-generously leant him a shirt after the aforementioned orange juice incident, like

YUP. tell me you see it, anon. tell me you see it!!

(in my piarles vision, pierre would probably not only kiss charles but also fully push him up against the wall and snog him senseless. because yeah. they're Like That™).

and then all the shenanigans about charles going to pierre's fancy hotel and being mistaken for a reporter - instead of the iconic horse & hound, i would probably have charles pretend to be a reporter for motorsport.com or something similar, LMAO - but i think that scene would be absolutely hysterical and also sooooo fitting for the two of them.

and also. oh my god. ALSO. actor!pierre going to visit charles who -despite living in monaco - is just some normal guy with a normal (if slightly insane and chaotic) family. pierre having dinner with that family and fitting in with them like they've been friends for years. pierre joking with arthur and lorenzo and being gentlemanly with pascale, and thinking that this is the happiest he's felt in years (and hey, if i can sneak in a not-so-subtle "hollywood as an allusion for red bull racing & pierre's time there" thing, then i'll be even happier.)

and then of COURSE the iconic "can i stay a bit longer?" // "stay forever" moment... well. i think it's clear now. pierre, for once uncharacteristically hesitant, asking if he can stay with charles just a bit longer and deny his reality for just a few moments more? and charles, devasatingly earnest and sincere, telling him "stay forever." 🥹

and i'm going to stop myself there, before i accidentally talk about this for five thousand words more and make it a full-on fic plan, but... yeah. YEAH. i think this idea could be soooo so so beautiful, and i love it almost beyond words 💜