#carry on countdown 2024

[letraspal]

@carryon-countdown 2024 | Day 2 | Chosen

“I’m not the Chosen One,” he says. I meet his gaze and sneer. My arm is a steel band around his waist. “I choose you,” I say. “Simon Snow, I choose you.”

[stardustasincocaine]

Day 1 of @carryon-countdown

Something old

He’s up to something and the something is that the tea might have been decaf.

[rimeswithpurple]

Carry On Countdown

Day 10: Dinner

I like to think that they never learn to sit at a table to eat.

Also, a little homage to @thewholelemon and @cutestkilla’s fic, Your Love Writ Across Your Face, with the jarred curry sauce.

Also on AO3!

[monbons]

Carry On Countdown Day 27: Intertwined

A sequel to Day 4. Need I say more?

Today's pocket surprise: Spadey

@carryon-countdown

[alexalexinii]

COC Day 23: Goats I guess Im participating for one day! This was done by tattoosbychels on instagram, inspired by @krisrix's last year's inktober!

Not done by me, but just on me LOL

@carryon-countdown

[bazzledazzlepitches]

COCD Day 3: AU/Alternate Universe

Frankenstein x Dracula x Carry On

I’ve had this AU in my head for a while and have a couple pages written out but I have no idea if it’ll ever be anything more than a couple sketches. Basically: what if Simon was killed by some type of Jack the Ripper type person (*cough* named The Humdrum) and was brought back by the Mage as a Frankenstein-type monster 🫣🫣 AND what if Simon runs away from the Mage and ends up at a scary haunted mansion that just so happens to have Baz who happens to play the role of Dracula? Anyways, this is a result of reading both Dracula and Frankenstein this autumn so please enjoy 🤭

@carryon-countdown

[themagickalrecord]

Day 1: Something Old.

for @carryon-countdown ❄️ by @martsonmars and @onepintobean

play along here

[crankybeetle]

@carryon-countdown day 5: forest

I really like the part with the dryad in the wavering wood

[blackberrysummerblog]

Hi all! I’m just out here being three weeks late with my 2024 Writing Round-Up, and thank you so much to @monbons, @forabeatofadrum, @confused-bi-queer, @rimeswithpurple, @nausikaaa, @prettygoododds, @ileadacharmedlife, @artsyunderstudy, @best--dress, @j-nipper-95, @roomwithanopenfire, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @imagineacoolusername, @mooncello, and @thewholelemon for tagging me! I hope I didn’t miss anyone, and thank you as well to everyone who’s been tagging me for Six Sentence Sunday and WIP Wednesday this month. Without getting too much into it, I am BURNT. OUT, and it’s making me retreat from even the things I enjoy the most, like writing and catching up on everyone’s beautiful fandom works.

But, I’m determined to make this round-up post, even if it takes me a couple of days to put together. There’s a lot here! Almost all of it was from COC, which I was hellbent on finishing this year, and did! Here’s the list, in chronological order, of all published writing for 2024:

The Field Trap, 1/2 (5272, M) This has been sitting unfinished for a bit, but I do anticipate it being completed. I discovered a real love for Watford-era fics toward the end of the past year, but it probably all began for me two years ago when I wrote Field Trip of Dreams, the prequel to Field Trap. At any rate, I haven’t forgotten the fic, and Field Trap may end up with an E rating in the second chapter.

Time Will Lie Down and Be Still (26,201, M) This is the fic I’m most proud of this year. It’s the result of my COBB collab with @rimeswithpurple, and it’s been such an inspiration to work with Arianna! I highly recommend the experience :D This fic has 3/5 chapters published so far, and I’m getting there with the 4th. I’ll share that Arianna finished the art for Chapter 4 the other day and it is STUNNING, so I need to get my part done! For anyone who doesn’t know, the fic is a retelling of the movie Practical Magic (I’ve never been able to get very far in the book, for whatever reason, so I wouldn’t count on the fic lining up with it). This one is close to my heart for many reasons, but I’ve especially enjoyed building Dev’s character and his relationship with Baz.

Absolutely everything else I published was for COC, and I’ll put it below a cut due to length. Thanks to everyone who read my work this year! As always, the output of this fandom is just incredible, and I’ve enjoyed being able to take it in as well as contribute a little myself. Happy New Year, everyone!

Something Old (1146, T) Simon finds something unexpected while clearing out space in the wardrobe.

Chosen (880, G) Agatha and Simon have just begun dating and Philippa attempts to engage her in a little friendly roommate squee. Agatha isn’t quite so sure.

I Hate You, Never Leave Me (2339, M) Simon and Baz have found a new and better way to settle their differences, by getting each other off all over campus. Will it evolve into anything more, however? (I love this one, honestly. Might have to someday write a more extensive version)

Greek (1565, T) Simon has to keep a very close eye on Baz in Greek class, for reasons.

Let Me See You (1205, T) Simon is the one to find Baz draining a deer in the forest instead of Agatha. His reaction is not what either of them was expecting.

Truth or Dare (2608, T) Does what it says on the tin—the gang play a game of Truth or Dare, and the dares reveal a little more truth than anyone expected. (Definitely not a groundbreaking take on the prompt, but I never really tire of reading truth or dare fics, and hoped readers would feel the same :P)

Gently, Gently (668, M) Simon and Baz spend the morning in bed, skiving off class and not regretting it at all. (I came to realize that an embarrassing number of fics I write either start out with the boys waking up in bed or that is the entire premise of the fic. “Waking up” is a weird fetish to have, but OK me, I guess)

Looking for Knives, Looking for You (1181, T) Baz reflects on all the wounds he and Simon have given each other over the years. (Despite the vicious sounding title and depressing summary, this one was meant to be sort of cute and sweet)

Hold You Safe (1015, G) At the start of Eighth Year, Dev and Niall’s relationship is still very new as they get some bad news from home.

Dinner (Guess Who’s Coming) (3525, T) It’s half term, and Baz’s parents want to take him to dinner. They invite him to bring a friend, but unfortunately for Malcolm, he pisses Baz off first, and Baz decides his guest will be Simon—the Mage’s heir, his family’s mortal enemy, and Baz’s undying secret crush. (As with nearly all my COC offerings this year, this fic was knocked out during my lunch break the day of, and it shows. It really could have stood to be longer and more developed, so maybe I’ll revisit it one day, since I did like the premise)

Stay with Me (878, T) It’s Eighth Year and Simon gets home late and injured from a mission. Baz arrives at a resolution. (I was a little baffled to get a comment about the Mage already being dead, since this fic takes place during the school year and makes mention of a very much alive Mage in multiple places. It was more of a statement than a criticism though, I think.)

A Charmed Life (1449, E) Baz and Simon have an utterly normal morning getting frisky in bed. (Again. Huh.)

A Horse Named Jane (736, T) Simon has that song stuck in his head again. The one Baz can’t stand. They work out a (sort of) compromise.

Sour and Sweet (3060, G) It’s Baz’s birthday and Agatha has just given Simon his walking papers. Oh no :P However, the breakup does little to lift Baz’s spirits. (This one has two chapters and filled two prompts, sour and sweet, natch. Chapter two’s summary is: Simon decides he needs to make something sweet for Baz’s birthday, even though he’s two days late and doesn’t know how to bake. Well, he’s got magic at his disposal, so things are sure to turn out just fine. :P)

Punk (828, T) Baz is making Simon join him for lunch with Fiona again, but Simon figures he’ll debut a new look & attitude. Will they actually make it to the restaurant? (I really enjoyed writing this one. Simon being frustrated with Fiona’s behavior and still being silly with Baz about it was just a happy place for me)

Surprise (733, M) Simon and Baz are engaging in one of their classic Mummers’ House tiffs. What will happen? :P (I did write a little surprise into this one, but it was very much in keeping with some of my favorite themes)

Cast in Fire (791, G) Simon comes to Watford and learns about how his roommate will be chosen.

Fluff and Nonsense (1627, T) The prompt is ‘fluff’ and did I once again take the opportunity to write a light-on-plot secret relationship fic about Watford-era Simon and Baz being cozy and silly in bed? Yeah, I might have. Simon is going home with Baz over the Christmas break. Not a lot going on here, they’re just really comfy and in love.

Pieces of Me (1557, M) Baz has been having nightmares. Simon comforts him and encourages him to open up.

The World Was Open (956, T) Agatha and Niamh attend Simon and Baz’s wedding, and Agatha overhears another guest making a snide remark.

Find Me (2374, M) Eighth year at Watford was unremarkable, and Simon and Baz last saw each other when they graduated. Seven months later, Dev and Niall drag a pining and protesting Baz out to a club for a night of drinking and dancing, but there’s a familiar face behind the bar. Simon Snow is serving drinks, and worse, he’s flirting with a Baz lookalike. What will happen :P (This was yet another fic that could have been developed a little more, but I was still happy with the result overall)

Warm Spell (1795, M) Goatherd Simon has been almost-encountering a beautiful stranger for several weeks now, but one hot summer day, they finally meet.

Lost and Found (575, G) The boys go shopping together and Baz temporarily loses Simon, but it’s all pretty plot-free :P

Truce (1101, M) Simon pesters Baz while he’s trying to study, and needs to learn a lesson. Will they be able to call a truce? (This one was where the trouble began—I changed my settings to allow comments from unregistered users, because I like to fuck around and find out, I suppose. And find out I did! Luckily, the rude comment I received took aim at some writing element that didn’t even make sense for this particular fic, and I quickly realized it was a bot. Not long after, I started getting comments on other fics as well, all very nonspecific to the fandom, characters, and genre. I’m so sorry because I know it upset a few readers who were very kind to clap back and reassure me, and I changed my settings back so that it wouldn’t happen again.)

Savour (1189, T) Simon has been away on one of his missions for the Mage, and Baz has been awaiting his return by leaving out plates of food in their room every night. (Bot’s review: “the worst fic in the fandom”. It’s not even the worst fic in my own oeuvre, so joke’s on you, guy XD)

We Were Always Together (2239, T) During cotillion class, Simon is forced to dance with Baz. The horror! (I flipping loved writing this. Full on had a blast and Would Write Again)

Let It Snow (925, M) It’s almost time for Christmas break at Watford, and it may not turn out as the boys planned. However, thanks to a spell gone wrong (or very right) it may yet work out for the best :P

Always (551, G) It’s Christmas Eve and Baz has just finished putting the kids to bed. Simon is putting the finishing touches on the Christmas tree.

Something New (990, T) Simon and Baz have a little tiff near the end of eighth year, but it’s not fated to last long. I’ve written a lot of secret!relationship Watford era fics for COC this year, some that could go together and some that were in separate universes. It’s been so much fun to write about the boys sneaking around, but this is…something new. :P (In which I was very pleased with myself for how I wrapped things up in accordance with the prompt. I really, really enjoyed COC this year :D)

Thanks for reading! I’m sure most everyone has already made their own round-up posts, but consider these no-pressure tags and hellos: @valeffelees @stardustasincocaine @bookish-bogwitch @facewithoutheart @c0nsumemy5oul @jasonfunderberkerthefrogexists @tender-ministrations @basiltonbutliketheherb @ghostpepperworld @larkral @letraspal @cows4247 @fiend-for-culture @palimpsessed @hushed-chorus @shrekgogurt @raenestee @cutestkilla @drowninginships @youarenevertooold @iamamythologicalcreature @beastmonstertitan @ic3-que3n @supercutedinosaurs @stitchy-queerista @alexalexinii @asocialpessimist @shutup-andletme-go @prettygoododds @ivelovedhimthroughworse @j-nipper-95 @wellbelesbian @bookishbroadwayandblind @orange-peony @papierhaikuphoto @martsonmars

[skeedelvee]

Carry On Countdown Day 15 - Sweets

For this year's COC I've decided to put together daily fic rec lists! Let me know if you find any new favorite reads from these <3

For todays prompt I've gone with fics that prominently feature sweets/baking

The Boy Next Door by @monbons

Rated M, 46,862 words

Simon is a disaster. An utter disappointment. (Or at least, he feels that way.) Looking for a fresh start and some direction, he moves in with his Gran, who happens to live next door to the most mysterious boy Simon has ever met. A boy who never leaves his home. A boy no one ever visits. Determined to befriend his lonely neighbour, Simon ends up changing both of their lives in the process.

Camomile Sea by @sillyunicorn

Rated T, 6,274 words

Baz is content with life. He's got a cuddly cat, supportive friends and family, and plenty of GBBO to watch. What happens when he matches with someone with a sweet smile and puppy dog eyes on a dating app?

At the speed of light by @orange-peony

Rated E, 26,330 words

The bell goes ding, and I close my eyes. I hear the scraping sound of the chair in front of me. I inhale deeply as I try to mentally prepare for another five-minute-slot of pure agony as another imbecile tries and fails to seduce me. “I’m an arsonist,” I declare, my well-rehearsed opening line to discourage the next loser. “Nah, I reckon you’re just an arse,” the stranger in front of me replies. I finally open my eyes, and my vision is filled with a mass of bronze curls, freckles and moles. He’s sitting there with his legs spread wide, jutting his chin out and waiting for me to say something, a dare in his blue eyes. I try to ignore the fact that he’s a fucking wet dream come true and raise my left eyebrow at him. He’s not even wearing a pin to signal who he might be interested in. And he just called me an arse.

The Bother about Brownies by @aristocratic-otter and @hgari

Rated T, 4,845 words

Baz is tasked with creating a dessert for the triplets' school cake sale. Brownies are such an easy recipe. What could go wrong? Everything.

Large Black Coffee by @basic-banshee

Rated G, 19,280 words

“I glance at the cup before I raise it to my lips, and one eyebrow goes up when I see what ridiculous insult he’s written on the cup today.” Every day Baz comes in to get coffee, and every day he finds a new insult on his cup.

Pancakes and... CPR? by Takitalks

Rated M, 1,219 words

Baz wakes up to the sounds of Simon dancing around the kitchen, cooking pancakes with headphones on. But what exactly is he listening to?

Without Complexities or Pride by @mandilorian

Rated E, 15,463 words

Baz and Simon are heading to a garden party organised by Daphne in Oxford. Baz's parents are trying, so what's the harm in showing up and spending the night. Nothing interesting ever happens at a country house party, right? (So many things can happen at a party, it turns out.)

If you have any recs that fit the prompt that I've missed, feel free to leave them in the comments! There's plenty of gaps in my reading so there's a good chance I may not have read it

Also I've had a hard time finding if some people are here on Tumblr, so if you know someone who hasn't been tagged, feel free to leave that in the comments as well <3

@carryon-countdown

[otherpeoplesheartachept-2]

Day 13: Lyrics

"I hope she plays hot-to-go!" "This is a NowNext seminar..."

The timeline wouldn't make sense but my mind Lamb was sobbing to Chappell Roan the first time Braden broke up with him.

stillshots below the cut

[letraspal]

@carryon-countdown 2024 | Day 1 | Something Old

[stardustasincocaine]

Day 10 of @carryon-countdown

Dinner

I’m still dying - have some chibi noms.

Do I know how to draw chibi? No

Will that stop me? Has it ever?

[rimeswithpurple]

Carry On Countdown

Day 28: Snowed In

How ever will they fill the time?

I was traveling yesterday and could only get so much drawing done on the plane. I really thought it was gonna be quick and easy, but in a move that should surprise no one, it got away from me. As I was working on the sweater, I thought it would be made to fit with magic but I wanted Simon to be independent. So then I started thinking of how that construction might work and suddenly steeking and fair isle got involved. And I’ve drawn so many wings during this event that as I looked at them more critically, I realized that I had gotten the growth plates for the bones wrong. Of course my high school anatomy class knowledge would pick now to show up.

Spadey even got his own little mitt. (I loved this idea, @facewithoutheart! And thank you for letting me run logistics by you and just generally egging me on, @thewholelemon)

This will be my last day for COC as I’m regrettably spending the holidays with the in laws. I’m honestly surprised that I was able to participate in as many days as I did! I’m so proud of what I’ve managed to create and thank you so much for everyone’s kind words! The holidays can be hard and this made them a little easier for me.

[monbons]

Carry On Countdown Day 31: Where are they now?

Dev and Niall have been banned from Target due to their inappropriate use of shopping trolleys. They are channeling their energy into sending each other smutty texts instead.

Fiona turned out to be an exceptional great aunt… until she gifted Lucy her first vape. Baz supervises all visits now. 

The merwolf fell madly in love with bunBaz. It was a tearful separation when this bun took off to his permanent home in @bookish-bogwitch's SnowBaz shrine. 

Winged Baz is on his way to the UK. It’s a long flight. He is extremely displeased about it, so @hushed-chorus better have some tea waiting for him when he arrives. 

And Making Tarts Simon is being held hostage inside a cake until @thewholelemon comes to rescue him. He can’t wait to bake many tiny treats for her and her family when she finally takes him home. 

As for the doll maker herself? She has a lot of feelings about COC being over --- primarily relief that her fingers can finally heal. She is also extremely proud of herself for completing this ridiculous undertaking.

In all seriousness, this project was truly ridiculous! I spent two whole weeks on the map alone. I rarely keep what I make, so each doll was made specifically for this challenge and took 8-12 hours to hand sew. In the end, I think it was worth it. COC brings me so much joy every year. I hope I could bring you a bit of joy this season too.

Many, many thanks to my collaborators:

@rimeswithpurple made all this possible with her enthusiastic yes when I asked if she could redraw the buildings for my advent calendar

@iamamythologicalcreature and @thewholelemon helped me brainstorm every possible angle into the prompts when I needed to fill all thirty days

@hushed-chorus wrote up a storm so Winged Baz's chapters could be done in time for his debut

Finally, a huge thank you to you. Your likes and shares here, on Instagram, or on the Discord kept me going on the days it felt like my fingers would fall off, which were many!

I am in need of a very long nap. Before I go, I have three presents. You can find the master post to all of my dolls and puppets here. If you are in need of a very eclectic playlist, you can find every song I used for my videos below.

Finally, here is a fun video of everything I made for the countdown.

@carryon-countdown

Until next year! <3 monbons

[talentpiper11]

Carry On Countdown

Was I planning on participating in this? No. Do I have a dozen other projects underway? Yep. Did I let that stop me when the urge to doodle crept up on me? Absolutely not!

Presenting my first (of an uncertain number) entry for the Carry On Countdown, themed for “Something Old.”

Baz is taking a dramatic windy moment up on the old ramparts.

Thanks to @larkral for the background idea and @monbons for the support!