#and i'm gonna use it to write the funniest fanfic of all time

[hershelwidget]

Hi I just completed Dual Destinies and I keep on getting SHOT with prophetic visions of a game where Phoenix fucking dies but he becomes a ghost that can only be seen by the light of a specific flashlight that Athena has and through the usual Ace Attorney shenanigans he b. did i just write ghost trick

[quotidian-oblivion]

Which of your Fics

Aaaaaaand another tag game which I found while binging through the writer tag game tag!

Which fic did you think would get a bigger reaction/audience than it got?

The most recent one - Greet Me With Open Arms cuz it was a requests fic where I asked people to give me dialogue prompts to use in a single fic. But then again, I posted it just yesterday. I'm just really excited about it and wanna know what people (especially those who put their dialogue prompts requests) think of it.

Which fic got a better reaction than you expected?

The Boy In The Cell, quite honestly. Cuz I thought people would ignore it due to how self-indulgent it was, but so many liked it! Thanks, you guys ^^

Which fic is your funniest?

Based on the comments, Phone Alarms. Quite proud of that one ^.^

Is your darkest/angstiest?

Ahh. Either The Boy In The Cell or There’s So Much Hurt (you can already tell by the title XD) These two cuz they cover darker topics like abuse and stuff. But if you count all the fics including the wips, then definitely this one wip i'm working on which is... pretty b a d. I mean, not the plot, the plot and characters and stuff is awesome! But in terms of rating the angst, its like- up there.

Is your absolute favourite?

Ahh. It depends on my mood, really. Sometimes I say My School’s Local Mafia Boss, sometimes Sometimes You Have To Find Your Own Genes, sometimes a couple of my wips (cuz fbhic i love the plots i've created for them like- bhfvifubhu). But right now? I'm saying I Feel More Than A Simple "Miss You" just cuz I put so much care into it, more than any other oneshot I've ever written.

Is your least favourite?

A Day In The Life Of Tim Drake. No hesitation. It's my first fic. Ok- sometimes, i am proud of it. But most times, nah. Cuz I wrote this on a whim bc i didnt like the thought of having an empty ao3 account and i did not think i would be actually writing fanfiction regularly. But here i am!

Which was the easiest to write?

I... don't know? I wouldn't be writing fanfic, or writing at all period. So I'm gonna say all of them.

The hardest?

As i said, I wouldn't be writing at all if it was hard so i'm gonna say non- NO. WAIT. THERE IS TWO.

Murder On The Stalker’s Turf and I Can See You. Cuz these were casefics and i was writing these while trying to get back into the flow of writing after a particularly hard and taxing writer's block.

Which fic has your favourite line/paragraph?

AHHHHHHHHHHHH WHY THIS QUESTION? DFHIUBF I'M SO INDECISIVE

OK. OK. SO I NARROWED IT DOWN TO THREE:

There’s So Much Hurt (both of them)

“You’re my son, Jason,” Bruce carried on. “Do you think that when you brought Tim over and started calling him your little brother, I wouldn’t start mentioning him as my son too?”

&

Alfred tightened the bandages that had loosened and continued wrapping. At some point, Tim whimpered loudly in pain and squeezed Dick's hand so hard that both their knuckles went white. Jason swept a strand sticking into his baby brother's eye. "I know. I know it hurts, Timbit. I'm sorry." "Jason," the little bird said weakly. "Ouch." Jason smiled smally. "Yeah, bud. Major ouch."

Let Them Be Siblings

Steph blinked twice again. Then she rubbed her eyes tiredly and muttered, "Lord, please bless me some fucks to deal with this bullshit."

which fic have you re-read the most?

My School’s Local Mafia Boss No hesitation. One, to refer back to it while writing the series. Two, cuz I write fics for me first and foremost and so i very much love this fic and reread it quite a lot. Three, i cant believe how much attention its getting! why- ohh that's why, yep. And four, I'm feeling nostalgic and I want to visit the place where I made most of my current friends.

Which one would i recommend to someone reading your work for the first time?

Phone Alarms ig? Cuz it's really chill and cracky and I'm really proud of it. But if we're including wips, then I would rec the Bruce Wayne Writes Fanfic AU first XD

the one you’re most proud of?

Isn't this sort of similar to the favorite one? At least it is to me. Still keeping this question if other people wanna do this question.

No pressure tags: @uncertainwallflower @sardonic-sprite @tristicorde @wakkoroni @blightwritesfic @pevensiechase @ah0yh0y @foursixtwonineoh-pieces-of-lego + anyone else who wants to join

[thegeminisage]

6, 20, 61, 67

6. Do you have your work beta'd? How important is this to your process?

yes for sure. @callowyn acts as editor/cowriter for @cambionverse and has helped me on a couple of other fics over the years, @slaygentford and @maulthots will pre-read my stuff and act as hype-men/sounding boards where needed, and @machidielontheway does all that but also has the sharpest typo-checking eyes i've ever seen. they also make memes:

this is extremely important to my Process (memes included) because i like to have another set of eyes on something before i post it, but i also don't like taking concrit from strangers who firstly may not get my Vision but also whose advice i may not trust bc i don't know them. everyone i take writing advice from IS a writer i admire, or has otherwise impeccable taste. otherwise i wouldn't take their advice.

20. Have you noticed any patterns in your fics? Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

we won't go into my fucking ao3 stories all using the same dozen or so tags in rotation but actually the funniest answer to this is that @maulthots once pointed out she'd never seen anyone use the phrase "shocked stupid" except me, and then @slaygentford backed her up and said they'd never read it before anywhere else either, so being someone whose prose is fair to middling at best, i've decided it's as close to a signature phrase as i'm gonna get and i try to work one into every longfic if the opportunity arises.

61. Why do you continue writing fics?

oh this one's easy if i didn't i would die 😇

ok ok sorry to answer seriously. because i love to. it's like asking why someone keeps eating ice cream or riding ferris wheels or cuddling kittens. because it fucking rules

67. Do you prefer prompts and challenges, or completely independent ideas?

depends on the length of the fic. i used to write a lot of shortfic and in that case i loved prompts (rip all my fanfic on the dragon age kink meme lost to the sands of time). when it's a longfic though i tend to get insecure if the idea is not unique enough to differentiate whatever i'm doing from all the other stuff already on ao3. i feel like i'm just rehashing other people's ideas otherwise, and whether or not i do a better job, it's not fun if it's not at least in part coming from ME. so a prompt is utterly useless in that case lol

[ASK MEME]

[thousand-winters]

(rolls in) how about 🦋, 🦈, 💌, 👻, 💥 and ❤️ !!!!!!!

Have I told you how dear you are to me, my friend? 🥺 Because I adore you. I'm sorry in advance for the huge amounts of TOH you will suffer through these questions, I have become a TOH fic writer. Stepping a bit carefully here because I don't know if you're up to date tho

🦋 Which character is your favorite to write?

I really enjoy Hunter! He's great for projection cof. I mean, what. Okay, but I think he's very fun to write because he's an interesting mix, you get to have him being all logical and practical because he was a soldier, but he also has a lot of issues going on that can take you in a very angsty direction AND at the same time he can be just so silly. Silly boy just smiling widely while wearing a bird onesie he picked himself. He has a lot of angles to work with and that's fun.

I have written him like twice, but outside of TOH, Alastair Carstairs is very fun to write because he's very snarky.

🦈 Which character is the toughest to write?

Darius Deamonne, I love you with all my heart, but why must you be so hard to write? I have gotten a little bit used to him because I write so much stuff with him, but I feel like sometimes I tend to forget that he might be kind, but he's not nice, he's very bitchy, and I have to go back and add that. Of course, he also absolutely freaks out over his loved ones, so he needs a balance of loving and bitchy and it can be hard to do.

Eda is also SO hard to write for me, but luckily she's around a lot less in my fanfics asjfhdsg

💌 Is there a favorite trope you like to write?

Mmmm, does hurt/comfort count? That's not a trope, is it? Adsfjkhgjkfh

Okay, I think it's been established in the Dadrius corner of the fandom that at this point, Darius covering Hunter with his cape counts as a fandom trope, so I'm gonna say that one. I have used it a few times and it will happen again because it's just sweet, fight me.

👻 What is your wildest headcanon?

I come up with headcanons very slowly, so I only have like a handful, but if I have to pick something for this, I'm gonna go with my "Eberwolf is a tech genius" headcanon because I just think it's funny. It's just slightly based on anything other than the Coven Heads being a bit opposite to what you would expect given their magic specialties, but other than that, it's just... I mean, I don't know how funny it is objectively, but I have fun with it askjfhjsdg

💥 What is one canon thing that you wish you could change?

Head in my hands. It's more like the absence of, but it will forever haunt me that we did not get to see Darius and Hunter seeing each other for the first time after Hollow Mind. What happened there? How did Darius get Hunter to not freak out and trust him? HOW DID THAT CONVERSATION GO? So many little moments implied with them, but not shown. I'll take the implied, but I wish we could have seen them.

❤️ What is your favorite line that you’ve written in a fic?

*Stares at fics for 15 minutes* Oh, boy.

I pick the cat line, I pick Hunter saying "Meow-meow" in one of my fics because it's the cringiest, funniest thing I've ever written and I have no regrets, I was laughing so much at the reactions that got.

Oh, but I quite liked this one too, actually: "It takes two decades and a world full of devastation for Darius Deamonne’s own mask to crack and for tears to start sliding down his face until each drop marks its shiny path over the Golden Guard’s dusty signature, forming watery tracks all over its surface. "

[dismalzelenka]

I didn't know how to articulate my thoughts the first time I saw this post come around, but these additions nailed it for me. Like I think I get what OP is getting at, sometimes you read a fic and go "hmm, that was not a pleasant experience" and sometimes it can be tempting to try and head that off at the pass, but the phrase "good enough" is such a trap.

for example: I've read fics with very tenuous grips on grammar that live rent free in my head forever because the plot was SUPERB. some people can't look past the grammatical issues, some can, and both are valid. And giving things I wouldn't normally read a chance has led to me stumbling on my favorite fics of all time. Like, I typically don't vibe with second person POV, but if the summary gets me, I'll click it anyway and give it a skim, and it led me to not one but TWO of my favorite fics of all time. I'd rather get halfway through a fic and go hmmm I gave this a chance but I don't think I'm invested enough to continue.

The other thing I wanted to address though as someone who writes pretty much all lengths of fic, is that kudos to hits ratio is also extremely unreliable (for many other reasons but here is one that's purely numbers based because I like math and I really take issue with the idea that this is 'basic math' too) because multichapter fics rack up a massive hits count but can only be kudosed once per person. If five people read a fic that has 70 chapters and hit each page once and all kudos, you'll get five kudos and 350 hits. Vs if that fic had a single chapter, you'd have five kudos and five hits. Numerically, that's 0.014 vs 1, and that's with the same readership and kudos. It's just numbers, and they really don't tell you anything at all about "quality" (which is, in and of itself very subjective) or how many other people liked it. Even if you were using that ratio as a way to measure how many people read it and walked vs how many people read it and kudosed, your math is STILL gonna be off because you're using the wrong numbers in the first place. And that isn't even accounting for rereads. Let's say out of those 5 people in the first example, three people reread the thing cover to cover. Now you have 5 kudos to 560 hits, which is a minuscule 0.009! But that means you had all five people read all 70 chapters, and three of those five people read that fic all the way through again.

It's so easy to get caught up in the stats. And this is coming from me, who LOVES looking at the numbers! For me, it's fascinating to see which ones fluctuate the most. (Visible bookmarks to total bookmarks ratio is the funniest to me, as someone who occasionally posts very weird smut 😂). But stats CANNOT be used as a metric for how good a piece of fiction is. Even if good were an objective label, which is patently false, there are still just too many variables for it to be even remotely reliable. You can't use them to gauge how good someone else's writing is, and you definitely can't use them to gauge how good your own writing is.

Tldr: don't math your fanfic unless you're looking for silly trivia like how much larger the total to visible bookmarks is for weird smut. It won't get you anything but misery.

Another AO3 thing I’m curious about, how do yall decide if something is good enough to read? Usually I follow a rule of 1 kudos for every 10 hits. One because it’s easy math and two it’s yet to fail me. Thoughts? Do you just go for it and pray it’s good?

[intergalacticaquarium]

OK OK OK ....quick rundown on smoking weed for writing fanfic bc yall are struggling

Terminology-

Joint- rolled up weed

Blunt- rolled up either with tobacco or paper that has tobacco

Pipe- the lil glass guys. Functions like a normal pipe like grandpas use

Bong- the tall one that has water in it to make the hit smoother

Sativa- the stuff in weed that makes u giggly and hyper

Indica- the weed that makes you sleepy

Other stuff

Nobody calls weed drugs unless they're being ironic

Only old people call it pot but they'll hear u say weed and think only really old ppl say it

Your unlikely to get really high until like the third time u smoke but that one doesn't really matter for fanfic

Ur gonna be fine when u do it. There's no like... preparations that need to be made

It's somewhere between a cigarette and a beer in terms of what it does to u so u can smoke a little and do p much anything functionally

There's a terminal point when u smoke where u can't really get much higher and you can't black out or anything

Ur not going to hallucinate omg

Coughing is the worst and it will happen if u go too fast or if u laugh and it keeps hurting for a couple minutes

It only lasts for like 45 minutes

In terms of sensation it's mostly like ur body is kinda slowing down, like your sleepy but in a fun way. Some of it will make you hyper and get all your chores done or write uh.....30 pages of Eddie munson fanfic, some will couchlock you for hours. Other feelings are usually exaggerated a lot for me usually like if I'm watching something scary it might get uncomfortable bc I'll feel my heart beating and start getting anxious, but then other stuff becomes the funniest thing you've ever heard.

Feel free to ask more questions? This might be the only time this knowledge might come in useful

[csishewolf]

my entrapdak fanfic master post

Research & Development (COMPLETE)

Hordak has a problem. His body is malfunctioning again, but it only happens when he is around Entrapta. If he is going to successfully open a portal and prove his worth to Horde Prime, he needs to fix this flaw. Immediately.

(It's smut, folks. Lotsa smut. Takes place during mid Season 2 - Season 3. Right before things went to shit.)

Research & Development: The Resiliency Trials (WIP - 20/29?)

resiliency (noun) - the ability to recover from, or adjust easily to, adversity or change.

With Horde Prime eliminated, and the Heart of Etheria neutralized, what fate awaits those who were on the losing side? And what does it mean for the one clone who instigated it all?

(This is Hordak's redemption arc, as well as a massive post-canon 'fix-it' fic. It's gonna be biiiig. But probably no smut. We'll see.)

Latest chapter can be found *HERE*.

All The Frailties That Besiege (COMPLETE)

After the defeat of Horde Prime, Hordak isn’t feeling like himself. But that’s okay. Entrapta’s got it covered. She’ll have her lab partner back to normal in no time.

This aligns with the Entrapdak Positi-Mini-Ty Month Prompt #6 - FRAGILE.

(This is smut, folks. Post-canon after my fic Research & Development. I recommend you review the tags.)

True North (COMPLETE)

My 2022 Entrapdak Secret Santa Gift for @obi-troll-kenobi

This is an Entrapdak rom-com trope-filled goofball fest. With smut in it. I basically put them through every trope you can imagine, so I can eventually Balto them. (Northern Lights bit)

Sackless in Salineas (COMPLETE)

This is a crack-fic for Bat_Burrito. It is insanity, profanity, and porn. I'm convinced it's the official stamp on my passport to Hell. It is also legit funny in places. By far the funniest thing I've ever written.

Metamorphosis (COMPLETE)

This is a writing exercise in allegory, alliteration, metaphor, as well as tense-switching and KAV. It covers the trope of following Entrapdak, specifically Hordak, from S2 through S5 and into post-canon.

First chapter is honestly not bad, given how these types of tropes go. I've read better, and I've read worse.

THE HORDAK EXPOSITIONAL LOGFILES SERIES:

Hordak and the Gift of Gab (COMPLETE)

For the Entrapdak Positivity Month 2023 Prompt, ACTIVITY.

Hordak receives an unusual gift from Entrapta. One she hopes he'll use!

This is the first in a series of post-canon, domestic fluff fics. Honestly, they're super cute.

Hordak and the Furry Creatures (COMPLETE)

For the Entrapdak Positivity Month 2023 Prompt, PURRING.

Hordak's life is turned upside down one rainy night, when a small furry creature is found outside the Crypto Castle.

This is the 2nd in the series. Hordak and kittens.

[evilwickedme]

For the ship or no ship ask game...

murderdock and literally anybody at all lol

Ok I'm gonna be real with y'all I ship Murderdock/DA!foggy more than I ship any other version of mattfoggy. I'm going to be (hopefully) writing something for them soon but for now let's just answer these questions!

What made you ship it? I can literally trace it back to one fic which is the Rumspringa au. This was the first time I'd even heard of Murderdock and I was immediately obsessed. I think there's something so compelling about these two characters who we know so well going down a darker path in life and still finding each other. Also DA!Foggy being surprised that the actual kingpin would solve his problems by doing Violence™ was one of the funniest part of Spider-Gwen tbh

What are your favorite things about the ship? Listen at the end of the day I like breaking characters and then giving them a happy ending, and there is no version of Matt that is more broken than Murderdock, and no happy ending for him without a Foggy, romantic or no, fight me. So yeah that's why I ship it I live for angst with a happy ending sue me

Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship? Honestly there aren't that many people talking about this ship but I do tend to see people writing DA!Foggy as a pure wholesome character sometimes and I prefer it when he bends a little, honestly. Like DA!Foggy is a little corrupt! He's got power and an old college roommate for a kingpin and the temptation to use both of those things! Embrace it! Here's another fanfic rec for that although it still goes down the "Foggy as a good influence" route but it's literally one of the fics that made me want to pick up Spider-Gwen itself. It's by poisonivory so you know it's good

[riosnecktattoo]

tagged by my dear @foxmagpie for a 2021 Fic Thingy 😊❤️

total number of completed works: 10! 

total word count: 112K

fandoms i’ve written in: Good Girls

looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expected: more I think! I wrote so much while the show was airing it was so stressful trying to post something linked to an episode before the next ep aired 😂 I wrote 2 fics in 6 days at one point like???? Insane! Who was that madwoman

what’s your own favorite story of the year? Jawbreaker. I love yearning and Simp Rio so it pleases me greatly. I reread it all the time

did you take any writing risks this year? Annie POV for Campanula. I was sooo out of my comfort zone but I really liked how it turned out

do you have any fanfic or profic goals for the new year? Even though I don't really think of it as unfinished I would like to maybe wrap-up Only You Show Me What Warmth Is. Maybe do a Neighbors AU fic. The yoga teacher Rio fic I've had on the back burner for agesss. I also want to write a Beth pov of Jawbreaker and get started on all the fun sequal fics for that story!

most popular story of the year? Jawbreaker

story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: Invitation to a Beheading. It's one of my absolute fave fics I've written but it's one of my least popular fics overall, by all metrics. I think at the time people saw the title and thought I'd written an actual rio-kills-beth fic (I would never!😅) I dunno! It has probably my fave sex scenes in but I can't make people like blood-covered fucking next to a fresh corpse I guess😂

most fun story to write: They're all fun so I'm gonna say Invitation to a Beheading again cause I was so drunk

most unintentionally telling story: oo I really don't know. All of them have something that tells on me.

biggest disappointment: Tell 'Em I Was Knitting It. For a few reasons. And I guess I was a little disappointed that the final chapter of Jawbreaker had the least 'interaction' or whatever of all the chapters? It's silly but I remember being quite paranoid about that at the time

biggest surprise: I never ever thought I would write a High School or College AU so being inspired to write one by a 2 minute scene of Rio playing basketball was deffo a surprise

my favorite part of the fandom this year: I have such fuckin insane memories of watching 4x06 happen live with all of us screaming in DMs like that was the funniest night it was so unhinged. The 4am live-blogging in general was a hysterical experience I will miss dearly. Also my friendsssss 😩 I think you're all sexy and i luv u

tagging: @daydreamstew @querenaxx @bethsuglywigs @wakeupflawless @septiembrre if u wanna ❤️

[fvckyouimaprophet]

Fanfic asks! 😂🎶😭🏅☀️💡🤔

Assssh, thank you for sending me these. 🖤🖤🖤 Sorry it took a while! I'm putting it under a read more because it's long.

😂: What’s the funniest comment someone has left on a fic of yours?

Okay, so I don't remember the exact phrasing, but someone commented on an old Drarry fic VERY upset by who topped and who bottomed—something like "I was really enjoying this fic until you chose to do this. But now it's ruined!?!?" What made it funnier was that it was years after I'd finished it (like at least 5 but maybe even up to 10), so it felt so irrelevant. But also, who cares if that's not your preference? It was also fanfic.net, so tagging doesn't exist there. Lawless times.

🎶: What music do you listen to when you write?

I can almost never concentrate if I'm listening to lyrics and writing. The only exception is if I make a short playlist and play it enough that it becomes white noise in the background. Very specifically, I listen to my dreamy instrumental playlist.

😭: Have you ever made yourself cry writing a fic?

Uhh, maybe. It's been a long time if so! But I used to write almost exclusively angst, including character death, etc. I also used my dreams to inspire fanfics a lot when I was young, and I'd sometimes cry from the dreams, so does that count?

🏅: What is the fic you’re most proud of?

Ooh, this changes a lot. I also will go through waves of being like 🥳 this is pretty decent! 🥳 and then rereading it and deciding it's terrible. But for right now, I'm gonna go with three that all make me proud for different reasons, even if they're flawed.

1) some other town (your prompt!) took a lot of research, but it was so fun to write, and I was thrilled with how the dialogue came out. That took so much time and energy, and it's always cool when it feels like that pays off.

2) nobody loves me (like you do) was a labor of love. I feel like I really worked hard on capturing emotionality and unspoken tension, and I had fun subverting a trope in the process.

3) Colorblind was mostly written ages ago, and there are writing and plotting choices I wouldn't make now, but multichaps are SO hard for me, and I managed to finish that, even though it took me years. It's the only one I wrote in recent memory, so that's pretty fun.

☀️: Has anyone ever left you a comment that made your day? What did it say?

@krethes left a review on hold me until the rapture that I've gone back to read when I'm feeling down. It's such a long comment, it practically felt like its own standalone writing. 😂 But more than that, it's just a very kind, lovely thing to say.

💡: What’s the weirdest thing you’ve been inspired by?

In high school, I had a lot of dreams from the POV of a fictional character. There were at least two fics that were basically a direct copy-paste of my dream. But that's not too unusual, I feel. I know there are funky ones, but I've been so strapped for inspiration lately that it feels like everything I can remember recently has been taken from more traditional methods.

🤔: What’s one genre you’ve never written that you’d like to try?

I want to write a fable! I kind of tried to do that in a recent play I wrote (queer Baba Yaga retelling!), but fables are so specific, and that was more of a vague adaptation.

[twinkboimler]

I’ve got a lot of stuff to ask with that fanfic ask game lol

📚🤔💻💭🍰🖊📥👀😈

📚 Do you read your own fic? If it's been months since posting I do occasionally, but not often! I think I write so many drafts and do so many edits on my writing that I don't have much interest in reading them once they're published because I know exactly what happens.

🤔 What is the hardest part of writing fic? STARTING. Like, in a perfect world, I'd be writing 1000 words a day. But it's so hard to get myself to focus enough to start writing, even though I love it.

💻 Do you do research for your fics? What’s the deepest dive you’ve done? GOD. The funniest part is this scene got cut so I spent hours researching shit I didn't even use, but initially in Postscript, Postspace there was gonna be a scene in the first few chapters with Mike using a microfilm reader at the library to look at newspaper articles as the way he found out that Joel was on Earth. I've never used one, so I did a lot of reading up on how they work, and then I sorta. realized how unnecessary that scene was. SO, a lot of research I've had to do is on how to use technology that's just a little too old for me to have used it- stuff from the 70s-90s.

I do too much research. But at the same time, the research part is fun! I love planning fics, and that plays into it.

💭 What is a headcanon you have about your own work? Less of a headcanon and more a fact about my writing: these works (unless listed as a series) are all separate from each other. I emphasize this because, in the case of Mike's parents, I might have multiple fics that have them as characters, but they're not the same people to me (his mom in even a worm will turn is a completely different version of that person than the mom in Postscript, Postspace). Each work is a new, separate try at these characters as I work with new themes and play with new concepts.

🍰 Name one of your fave comfort fics (doesn’t have to be your all time fave). I assume this means my own work lol. I think Overjoyed is one of the most self-indulgent, "I am projecting so hard" fics I've ever written, but it was something I needed to get out. I don't think it's especially good if you aren't me but I'm still happy with it.

🖊 Post a snippet from a current WIP. From the college AU- a flashback to high school:

It is brutally hot and Mr. Stevenson refuses to let them take a break even though they’ve been learning drill for nearly an hour. Jonah’s throat is parched and his back is killing him, and he wonders which way he would fall if he were to pass out, wonders whether it would hurt less to fall on his back with the tenors still strapped to his chest or to fall onto them, his face planting into the dirt. Either option sounds endlessly appealing as the minutes tick by, the sun beating down on him and the rest of the poor bastards in the band.

📥 What is your fave fic to receive comments/messages on? even a worm will turn is one of my favorite things that I've ever written and I love hearing people's thoughts on it. like. I let my DAD read it. I'm so proud of that fic.

👀 Do you have any WIPs that you would never let see the light of day? If yes, what are they about? I mean, yeah- I've got some old fics that will never, ever get posted even though they may be nearly finished or long. I've got like 30k of a TERRIBLE ST:TNG Riker/Troi fic I wrote in 2016 that's going to the grave with me.

😈 Is there anything you enjoy doing that you think your readers hate? love angst, love hurting characters so much. having a lot of ideas for star trek fics right now that are just going to be the most painful, tragic stories- unfulfilled love stories, that type of shit. I LOVE a sad fic.

[cyncity2000]

i'm gonna get philosophical and say 2 and then start throwing numbers at the wall bc i dont actually know how to read so idk what questions these are but 9, 13, 27, & 34? :}

haha works for me ! tysm :D

2. Why do you write fanfiction?

bc it's fun!! also it's great fiction writing practice, i'm in a LOVELY community of readers & writers that hype each other up (ily all), and it's a hobby i can do anytime & anywhere, whether on my laptop, phone, on paper or just in my head til i can get to one of those things :D also i'm gay and there aren't enough diverse gay stories so fuck it guess i'll do it myself-

9. Which character(s) do you find most difficult to write?

when i write bastille fic, i always find will & woody to be difficult to write simply bc we don't really know enough about them for me to have realistic characterization in a fic? but they're never the center of my fics so i just use them (mostly will) for comic relief bc if there's one thing i know about will it's that he is 1000% the funniest member of bastille

13. First fandom you ever wrote for?

the lunar chronicles series by marissa meyer ! i was in 8th grade lol. never posted it though, the first one i ever actually posted was a divergent fic 😅 in my defense i was 14 at the time

27 i just answered!

34. Copy and paste an excerpt you’re particularly fond of.

i also just answered but fuck it i'll answer it again 🤪

i'm still pretty proud of this one i call hoodie fic tbh, there's a couple parts i'm really fond of ! here's one:

And it feels good, for a moment, to relieve the burden of the daily reminder of his feelings. In a sick way, he almost likes walking away knowing that Charlie now knows how much of an ass he is, that he made a mistake in getting too close to Dan. That all Dan knows how to do is say the wrong thing and push people away.

And then he wakes up the next morning, goes to make coffee, and Charlie isn’t there, and the gaping pit inside him yawns wider once more.

(i should be doing homework but send me some fanfic asks instead <3)

[tchaikovskygay]

Pay attention to me.

1, 2, 7, 12, 15, 16, 29, 34, 35 (i know this one already but answer anyway), 37 (hint), 39

1. What’s your favorite character(s) to write for?

Catra with Scorpia as a close second. It's my question, so I'm going to add Adora and Gideon, too, fuck it. I don't write anyone I don't love writing for

2. What character(s) do you find most difficult to write for? Why?

It's not quite a single character, but switching between voices is the hardest part for me. Whether that's alternating chapter POV or going fandom to fandom, I've deleted hundreds or thousands of words at a time because I realize I'm writing in the wrong character's voice.

7. What story/headcanons are you proudest of?

I'm really excited about where Last Harrowday is going. I also have a few in the works that I'm prouder of, but they're still simmering. Namely a Emperor's New Groove au for Locked Tomb that's gonna slap, and a Little Mermaid au for [redacted] (Is it weird if one of the concepts I'm proudest of is a prompt I gave to Ash?)

For headcanons? Cam and Pal are both trans. I've thought a lot about this, I would love to talk about it. I simply haven't written enough for Locked Tomb to go into it yet, but assume, if they're in any of my writing, they're trans. I'm sure there are more, but I'm too on the spot

12. Who is your favorite author?

Tamsyn Muir. No one else can touch her anymore. My favorite fic writer is @kallian

15. What is the fanfic you’ve written that you’re most proud of?

Two Short Words for story. It's the first time I've ever taken anything all the way to the end—from fic to original, excepting like short story assignments. I'm really proud of that. I do not understand how this question is different from the first part of 7, and I did have to change my answer there

16. What fanfic tropes do you avoid writing for?

Look, there are so many, but let's stick to the ones that you see a lot but you'll never see from me: kidfics/pregnancy, first kiss/first time ever (with anyone), true canon/canon compliant, gender bending

29. What part of the writing process do you enjoy the most? (Brainstorming, outlining, writing, editing, etc)

Does it count as brainstorming if I have ideas all the fucking time? But that. I fucking love ideation and noodling new stories about. It's my favorite part of writing, and I have lists on lists of things that will be or might never

34. Have you felt emotional while writing a scene before? What scene was it?

Not really. I used to feel awkward over smut, but I've broken that barrier and am dead inside. I can write anything with a straight face, and I only cry twice a year, I'm not about to waste one on my own writing. Sometimes I do crack myself up, but that's because I'm the funniest bitch alive and I know it

35. Where is your favorite place to write?

Cafes or bust, baby. A good patio with an iced drink. Yeah, covid was rough on my creativity, why do you ask?

37. Would you ever collaborate with another writer for a story?

No.

39. What area of writing do you feel strongest in?

I guess my humor? Anything that lets the quick wit come out—whether it's dialogue or an internal monologue. Honestly, it's why Gideon is rapidly becoming so fun to write. She's funny inside and out

[rai-knightshade]

Damn y'all got all these kickass titles and I'm just over here like "what lovecore song lyrics haven't I used yet...." 😂😂😂

I'm not gonna post 20 cause I just did the last 20 fics thing and that was basically all of my current writing anyways soooo I'll just pick a few that I thought the lyrics fit particularly well + the ones that weren't highlighted in the other list (which is here btw).

1. come, my darling, homeward bound (when all is lost, then all is found) - an Ever After High fanfic about my kids dealing with what it means to have lost a parent on graduation day, it seemed particularly fitting to use these lyrics from All Is Found

2. The Birds and the Bees (And a Thing Called Love) - Macdalton Bradyverse fic in which Mac has to explain some of the Birds and the Bees to Brady and gets derailed into talking about love in general; you can see why this is so fitting 😂

3. Sarah Smiles Like Sarah Doesn't Care (Does He Know That My Destiny Lies With Him?) - Macdalton Jack-centric dream fic inspired by Sarah Smiles, of course I had to include lyrics from the song in the title! Adjusted juusssttt slightly since it's Mac that his destiny lies with

4. what's gonna be left of the world if you're not in it? (every stumble and each misfire I miss you more) - the Macdalton Good Grief AU in which I tore my own heart out and, hopefully, everyone else's, then put them all back again. Considering the inspo was the song itself, I had to use some of the lyrics for the title!

5. For My Darling, I Love You (And I Always Will) - the Macdalton Accidental Baby Acquisition fic; this one feels particularly fitting because for the longest time I've thought that Love Me Tender would actually make a perfect lullaby (it's also just a solid romantic song too soooo)

6. Please Don't Take My Sunshine Away (You Have Shattered All of My Dreams) - the Macgyver x Ever After High crossover that no one wanted but me but I wrote it anyways; the idea of Mac and Brady being Jack's Sunshine has stuck with me this whole time so to use this one for the first fic Brady appears in seemed fitting

7. I may be rushing things (but deck the halls again now) - the first Macdalton Bradyverse christmas fic! It's about decorating the christmas tree so how could I not?

8. It's Like Catching Lightning (The Chances of Finding Someone Like You) - an Ever After High fanfic in which two of my ocs have a swim date at the pool and it's all quite adorable and sweet 🥰 (and also includes some world building for the Sunshine fic coincidentally). Considering they're in high school and in love it seemed fitting to use a love song from High School Musical

9. He Didn't See Me Creep (Down the Stairs to Have a Peak) - the Macdalton Bradyverse fic that is exactly what it says on the tin, because the idea of Mac and Jack having to explain why Jack was dressed as Santa Claus to two very indignant children is the funniest shit and you cannot tell me otherwise 😂

Who still has to be tagged? Uh @thesorrowoflizards @telltaleclerk @lavendersblues @demonicsoulmates and anyone else who sees this: have at it!

your best story/chapter titles

[Rules: List your 20 favorite fic titles, whether they’re story titles or chapter titles!  They can be funny, creative, eye-catching, whatever makes them your best.  :)  If you don’t have 20 favorites, or don’t have 20 stories, just do however many you want!]

I was tagged by the lovely @emachinescat thank you! It’s a toss up between titles and summaries of which is actually the worst to write. This was super fun because it made me take a minute to go “you know what? a couple of these titles were pretty dang good.” So, in no particular order:

hair’s breadth

Not on Jack’s Watch

(oh take me back to the start)

Recrudescence

(recrudescence) + recovery - this is a sequel and I liked the idea of using parentheses to link it back to the first story

Panic - Plan - I use the macgyver style titles of “thing” + “thing” often and enjoyed tweaking it slightly

Project Gemini - a clue to the climax of the story

the best worst case scenario

Family + J.

Jack of Hearts

a long way forward

the best laid plants

 gather near to us once more

spliced

the end of the line

the theme of the titles for the Cold Open Challenge (the blank in the blank): the spy kids in the fridge, the truth in the serum, the free in the falling, the clot in the quicksand, the before in the after, the agent on the roof

Favorite title winner goes to:

Secure Your Own Oxygen Mask Before Assisting Others

This is an epilogue to Guts + Fuel + Hope. Given Mac’s propensity to sacrifice himself for the mission, his relationship with oxygen (canon and fanon) and his actions in this episode, I love that this title is both literal and metaphorical

tagging: @panchostokes @commanderbunnbunn @starryhc @erinsworld @telltaleclerk @orianess @appalachianapologies @kerkerian @waitingforthestarstofall @improvidus @saplesss-tree @indigo2831

and you, if you’re reading this, i want to see your favorite fic titles

[the-nerdy-stjarna]

Hi Sanna! I was just curious, since you were able to write so many fics for the advent calendar thing, how do you get inspiration for your works? I'm always impressed when people can turn an idea around so quickly.

Thankyou so much for your ask, @waitingforeleven. I was really excited about this, because it actuallyforced me to think a bit more about my writing process.

To be honest, sometimes I don’t even know myself where allmy stories are coming from. I didn’t start writing fanfic until May 2016. I had written two Gilmore Girlsfics about 10 years ago and can’t for the life of me remember how/why I startedwriting those, and then I got obsessed with really interested in AoS and felt like my husband wasvery slowly getting annoyed with me going on and on about my theories andworries about the show for days and days and days. And then I started bugging talking to my friend @mashiarasdream instead to give hubby a break and eventually she forced convinced me to start writing downall these theories that I had (she’s an avid fanfic writer herself, although not for AoS, and I made the mistake of ended up showing her my GG fics) … and BOY did she start something because all of asudden I couldn’t stop.

I’ve always had a very vivid imagination, playing stories inmy head (or… as an introvert: practicing conversations and phone calls ;) ),and that’s kinda what happens when I get an idea for a fanfic. It often startswith just one image (maybe from the show itself or something I imagine couldhappen) or with a line of dialogue. Then I just kinda let the story happen inmy head (makes for very long bathroom breaks and endless hours of lying awake in bed, let me tell ‘ya). Usually the dialogue just flows naturally. I can see and hear thecharacters in my head (sometimes, when nobody’s there, I even act and say things out loud–and for a brief moment in time think that my Scottish accent is really quite good ;) ).

When I start writing things down, I usually start with the dialogue, because that’s what’s the most prominent for me.Later I fill in the prose (and often struggle with it ;) ). I don’t know why, but most often when I start writing, the words just sort of flow out and I can barely stop myself until the main story is basically written down. [Which means I often curse myself when it’s once again 1 am and I’m still writing when I know my alarm is going to go off at 6:45 ;) ]

In almost all cases I already know the main arc (beginningto end) when I start writing, although sometimes I surprise myself and changethings later.

As for my inspirations:

It really depends. My very first AoS fic “Space” was written priorto the Season 3 finale. I was so convinced worried that the writers would kill of Fitzor Simmons and preemptively pissed at them and as a way of self-preservationand as a coping mechanism I wrote the most prominent theory in my head in thatregard down, because at least that way I could kill Fitz off on my own terms. (Thank God I was wrong… sorry, Lincoln, really, I’m sorry)

Some of my fics start out as coda fics in a sense. Somethingon the show gives me an idea of how the story might continue or maybe I wouldhave liked to see things differently. My second fic “Events on the Horizon” started out that way (post3x18).

Sometimes my own fics inspire me. My third fic “Beyond the Horizon” was inspiredby “Events on the Horizon” (a continuation). The fourth fic, “Decisions” was sort of sparked by how thethird fic ended. And there’s a bunch of shorter fics that kinda tie into the GhostsNo One Knew series (where part one inspired part two).

And since I’ve joined Tumblr (August 2016), I’ve written alot of fics based on prompts (either something people submit or something likechallenges posted by @thefitzsimmonsnetwork or @theclaravoyant‘s adventprompts). In those cases, I take the prompt and just kinda come up with a fewthings that the word/phrase reminds me of. Then I try to determine what kinda of fic Iwant to write (which characters to focus on, do I want it to be serious andangsty or humorous,…). Then I try to come up with the basic story idea, andthen I just kinda sit down and start writing. Sometimes I stick with the first thing that comes to my mind, especially when I’m struggling to come up with an idea, because then I tell myself “This was the first thing that came to your mind and maybe it’s weird, but there must be a reason why it was the first thing you thought of!”. Sometimes I think of a few things and then one just starts to jump out and give me an idea.

The advent prompts are a really good example and that was somuch fun to do! So, I’m gonna tell you a bit more about my process there sinceyou mentioned it in your ask. I won’t do all 24 prompts, but just a few (Ifthere is one that I’m not mentioning where you’re really curious about how Icame up with the story idea, feel free to ask!).

I knew I didn’t have to fill all prompts, but apparently Ilove a good challenge and so I really wanted to. I knew I would want to keepthe fics fairly short so I could post them quickly and each day (which wasactually a challenge for me, because, man, I sometimes just can’t keep thingsshort… see this reply as an example).

The second prompt was “smile” and who has a prettier smilethan Jemma? Sigh. And I thought of some of the moments when we’ve seen thatsmile and then I just rolled from there.

For the fourth prompt “wish” the first thing that came to mymind was “wish upon a star” and I couldn’t get that damn song out of my head, so I knew Iwould have to use it somehow and so I ended up with the meteor showers andthe idea that Fitzsimmons would take Daisy to see the meteor showers, and firstI was just going to focus on Daisy and her wishing for a family because let’sface it, Fitzsimmons would never wish upon a star because it’s so unscientific…and then I thought “What would makeFitzsimmons wish upon a star?” and that’s how the angsty bit got in there.

For the fifth prompt “sacrifice” my mind went “Awww, I don’twant to write something angsty this time. I want something happy. How can Ispin a sacrifice into something happy?” and somehow The Sushi Sacrifice wasborn.

My first reaction to the sixth prompt “star” was “Son of abitch! I just wrote a fic called “Wish upon a star” about meteor showers.PANIC!!!!” It took me a little bit longer to come up with an idea for that one,but I actually really love this Daisy fic. I had read a fic by someone else that suggests that Jemma made up her own constellations on Maveth and I really liked that (Who? Someone tell me what fic that was????), so I kinda picked up that idea as a memory for Daisy.

The prompt “bell” was probably one I struggled with themost. Nothing associated with bells (church bells, bell concerts, that rings abell) gave me any good inspiration. I think at some point I just started torandomly rhyme things with ‘bell’ and it I ended up with ‘hell’ and that mademe think of Fitz and his swearing and I was like “screw this, I’m just gonna roll with that” and TATA… I had an idea. [P.S. I also sometimesdraw heavily from my life, aka parenting experience. Toddlers do the weirdestand funniest shit stuff sometimes, so that’s great fanfic humor fodder]

“Journey” was another fun prompt, because–being completeFitzsimmons trash–I of course thought of Fitzsimmons’ journey first and wherethey would end up (Perthshire OF COURSE) and then I thought “But you alreadywrote a Perthshire/Fitzsimmons fic for the advent challenge” and all of asudden I had the idea of “What about Bobbi and Hunter? I miss Bobbi and Hunter!”

I’ve definitely had times when I’ve struggled to come upwith an idea, or where a story just won’t keep moving forward. I definitely alsohave some stories that are currently stuck in fanfic limbo on my computer, but more often than not the stories just keep happening (it’s also a fantastic way for me to keep my mind occupied, which otherwise wants to ponder all kinds of anxiety inducing, yet usually imaginary and far-fetched problems.)

So, I hope you enjoyed myfanfic writer rambles and that it answered your question (to some extent atleast ;) )