#new year new fic new goals

[turanga4]

2022 Roundup

Thanks for the open tag, @sliebman10--I like how this one has a mix of things one did, things one is doing, and things one WISHES to do next year.

Post the top 5 works you're most proud of that you released in 2022 (not necessarily your most popular),

your top 4 current WIPs that you're excited to release in the new year,

your top 3 biggest improvements in your writing over the past year,

your top 2 resolutions (ways you wish to improve your writing/blog) for the new year,

and your number 1 favorite line you've written this year!

Five pieces I am proud of feels like a lot: imma do three.

Accidental Magic This one came so seamlessly to me, once I scrapped all my initial plans to do a more conventional love story for the contest prompt, "pivot." I'm proud because it was a chance for me to trust my instincts, and also to reach out to other writers for advice and thought partnership--I leaned heavily on a brilliant meta from @ashesandhackles and I felt so very brash even asking for permission to do that, but she met me with such amazing kindness and sincere interest in my craft.

Mysteries This one kicked my arse. I drafted and struggled and despaired and tried again, and if @evesaintyves hadn't been there to talk me off the ledge seven different times, it would never have made it to publication. I am proud, because I didn't give up, and now, it's a thing I feel good about sharing.

Visit Proud of my last piece, because it shows I'm still creating stuff, and also because I used it to try a very new thing--second person pov. I'm proud of the fact that I am always learning and stretching: it's first and foremost a credit to the people who are so generous with their support, inspiration, and encouragement, but it is also a credit, I think, to me.

2. FOUR current WIPs? Nah.

I'm working on one thing for a festival, so must be Way Secret. I am also working on a story centering Neville after the War--my conceit is weaving together his relationship with himself and his parents with the Muggle concept of using principles of improv comedy to work with dementia patients. I only have the title (Yes And) and a couple hundred words, but I'm looking forward to crafting it fully next year.

3. Biggest Improvements this year? Everything? I just started fan fic writing this year, and I started out ROUGH. I think craft-wise, I've gained the most in my ability to use point of view, and in my use of actions and descriptions to gird my dialogue: I used to pretty much just drop the characters in the middle of a conversation and not do anything other than the 'script' to help the reader understand time, place, or mood. Metacognitively, I've gained confidence, although I still have further to go with this--a willingness to see what I'm doing as both worth doing for myself and worth sharing with others.

4. Two Resolutions I shall break the 3000 words mark, and I shall learn how to Plot, which is something that I genuinely have not needed to fuck with until now.

5. One Favorite Line: From Accidental Magic, a summary of sorts of Harry's arc as he moves from what he needed to be around the Dursleys towards who he is meant to be:

He hides cake under the floorboards and buries love in a place deep enough within himself that for years it sparks out hot and feral, beyond conscious volition, an accidental magic that he has to learn to tame.

It has been such a joy to have found fan fic and the lovely, lovely humans I am blessed to know within this special space. I wish you all a creative and wondrous new year!

[luxaofhesperides]

“You know, I’ve spent years looking at the stars and yet, you still manage to outshine them all.” + fluff, established relationship ; requested by @xysidhequeen!

The Signal didn’t often go out at night. He sticks to working during the day as often as he can, a visible figure of safety that the people of Gotham could rely on. He mostly works alone during the day, with only his husband’s voice in his ear (and sometimes flying by his side), and spends the night recovering so he can do it all over again.

But tonight, he’s grappling through the streets, working with Batgirl and Red Hood to bust a trafficking operation. The rest of the Bats are either working cases in other parts of the world, or too injured to go out despite their best efforts to say otherwise. He’s already feeling tired, not as young as he used to be and lacking the energy he had in high school to do so much each day. 

They need the help, which is why he agreed to help out, but Danny had managed to switch him from being one of the heavy hitters to being backup and rescue, so he can whisk away any victims he finds through shadows to deliver them to Gordon, who waits on standby a few streets away with emergency medical services with him. Not a perk he was expecting from marrying someone else in the hero business, but definitely one he appreciates. 

He wishes Danny were still in his ears, humming softly on comms as Duke fits himself into the shadow of the warehouse the traffickers are hiding in. Batgirl and Red Hood take to the roofs as Duke slips inside, stepping out of the shadows onto the catwalk, crouching down so no one spots him. The shadows drape over him, a comforting weight, as he reaches out and rips away the weak lights on in the warehouse.

The added darkness allows Batgirl and Red Hood to slip inside, positioning themselves on the crossbeams, watching the people below them move about. 

They speak in hushed voices, eyes flickering nervously from the windows to the door. Guns are held in white-knuckled grips; they all know they shouldn’t step into Bat territory, but the call of powerful criminal families like the Falcones is too much for them to resist. 

“Victims should be held in freight boxes at the other end of the warehouse,” Red Hood says, voice low as he shifts his weight, ready to drop down and make the traffickers beg for mercy. 

“Try to draw everyone to this end, then, and I’ll get the victims out of here.”

“You got it. Ready, Batgirl?”

Batgirl lifts her cowl to tuck her blond bangs out of her face, then grins. “Ready.”

They drop from the ceiling at the same moment, landing on two traffickers and taking them out instantly. The warehouse is filled with shouts and gunfire as the vigilantes weave their way around the space, hitting hard and kicking away guns as soon as they can.

Duke grabs onto a shadow and follows it along the wall, letting it carry him down to the floor. No one guards the freight boxes, making it all the easier to wrench them open. The movement makes his left shoulder twinge, and Duke winces, knowing it’ll be a pain in the morning. 

The people huddled inside the freight box cry out, alarmed and frightened, when he steps inside. 

“Hey, it’s alright, I’m here to get you guys to safety,” he soothes, hands raised in front of him.

The youngest of them are the first to run to him, whispering fervent thanks as he pulls the shadows over them, hiding them from sight, then taking them to Gordon. He makes the trip multiple times, the other victims eager to be free from the hell they’ve experienced. 

There are tears and panic attacks and people clutching to each other, relieved that their nightmare is over. 

Thankfully, there weren’t that many victims. It’s the smallest silver lining, but after all these years, Duke knows to take what he can get. It’s all to easy to let despair take over. If he wants to save people, he has to keep fighting for the smallest hopes of a better future.

“All victims have been rescued,” he announces, standing outside the warehouse. “Need any help in there?”

“Nah, we’re good,” Batgirl says. Her words are followed by a grunt, a swear, and then her manic laughter. From the sound of it, someone got a lucky shot in and Batgirl repaid it with a particularly nasty nerve strike.

“We got it covered from here. Just need to interrogate a few guys, then we’ll let the pigs clean up this mess,” Red Hood adds. 

“Alright, I’m gonna head in, then.”

Batgirl sends him off with a cheerful “Sleep tight, don’t let the lovebugs bite too much!” It’s been years since he accidentally went on patrol with a fully visible hickey and she still refuses to let it go.

Duke sighs, then turns off his comm. He grapples up to the roof and begins making his way back towards the apartment, far too tired to bother with going to the Hatch. He’s got plenty of hidden storage space to hide away his suit for a day, and the Hatch doesn’t have Danny, so of course he’s not going to go there.

All he wants to do after such a long day is go home, where Danny should be.

Should be, because not even five minutes into crossing the city, Duke catches sight of the white star-glow of Danny up on a rooftop. 

He changes course immediately, turning towards Danny before he fully processes what he’s seeing, as if he’s being pulled into his orbit. 

Danny’s sitting on the edge of a building as Phantom, his gas mask hanging loose around his neck. 

He beams as Duke lands on the building, reaching up for him as Duke takes off his helmet and crouches down to kiss him. 

“You know,” Danny murmurs against his lips, “I’ve spent years looking at the stars, and yet you still manage to outshine them all.”

Six years of marriage and Danny still manages to fluster him. Duke laughs, dropping his head onto Danny’s shoulder. “Well, hello to you too, you flirt. What was that for?”

“I saw you saving those people tonight. They looked at you like you were the sun. I’m glad other people are seeing how wonderful you are.”

“You flatter me too much. What brought you out here so late? I thought you were sleeping.”

Danny shrugs, looking down at the street. “I tried, but a ghost insisted I follow them out here. I didn’t realize how close I was to you until I got here, and then I just couldn’t resist watching you in action.”

“And you wanted to make sure I was fine.”

“That too,” Danny admits. They’ve long since settled any arguments about trust and believing each other to be able to handle the fights they throw themselves into. Danny’s need to protect and self sacrifice because he’s ‘already dead, what’s another thirty bullets going to do?’ and Duke’s determination to do things his way, working off visions of the future he doesn’t have time to communicate meant they fought often and loudly in the early stages of their relationship. Time has tempered those feelings, and now it’s clear to see that Danny simply wants him safe, and Duke doesn’t mind using his status as a hero or his powers to give Danny some special treatment.

Danny checking up on him in fights doesn’t make him think Danny sees him as weak and in need of help. It just makes him feel loved, grateful to know his husband would always be there for him, even if it’s in the sidelines, ready to fly them home.

“What did the ghost need?” he asks, lifting his head from Danny’s shoulder. 

“Well…” Danny trails off. “How do you feel about pets?”

“Sweetheart, did a ghost ask you to adopt their dog?”

Danny’s expression falls, and Duke’s heart twists. He pulls Danny into his arms without second thought, offering him what comfort he could. 

“Not a dog,” he says. “And it wasn’t a human ghost. It was a cat. A cat that had kittens and died because there wasn’t enough food for her on the streets.”

“Oh, sweetheart,” Duke says. Animal deaths have always hit Danny hard, and it’s this that made Damian accept Danny as part of the family, insisting on helping ghost animals with him.

“I’ve already texted Dami about the kittens. He’s going to swing by our place tomorrow to pick them up, but there are two that attached themselves to me and I don’t want to let them go.”

“Let’s go get them and take them home. And then we can start thinking of names for them.”

Danny peeks up at him shyly, then breaks out into a relieved smile. “Really? Thank you! I love you so much.” He jumps to his feet and kisses Duke quickly, then is flying down to get the kittens before Duke can do anything.

He flies back up with a cardboard box full of tiny little ‘meows’ that are already melting Duke’s heart from cuteness.

“I buried mama cat already, so I think we’re good to go.”

Duke aims his grapple again, and with Danny by his side, soars above the city. Neither of them are going as fast as they usually do, carefully aware of the kittens in the box. When they get to their apartment, Duke lands on the balcony and opens the door so Danny can fly in without risking intangible kittens escaping. He sets the box down gently on the floor of the living room, then grabs his wallet and flies out again, tossing a quick explanation of buying food for them over his shoulder.

Left alone with the kittens, Duke peeks into the box to coo at them before heading to the bedroom to change into sweatpants. His gear is left tucked into the back of the closet, hidden by some heavy winter coats. 

The kittens are crying when he gets back to the living room. Their little cries are too hard to resist, so Duke uses the shadows to create a small playpen for them, keeping them contained in a small area in front of the couch. He sits on the ground and carefully pulls each kitten out, freeing them from their cardboard confines. 

Within seconds, the kittens are toddling around unsteadily, so small and scraggly, with eyes that have only just opened peering around curiously. Duke pets them with a single finger, terrified of hurting their fragile bodies. 

He’s covered in kittens climbing over his lap when Danny returns.

His husband takes a moment by the door, in human form, to give him a sappy smile, so visibly in love it makes Duke blush. “You’re the best thing I’ve ever seen,” he says, breathlessly, and carelessly drops his bag of kitten supplies on the ground to cross the distance between them and kiss Duke sweetly. 

“Such a sweet talker today,” Duke comments as he pulls away.

“Can you really blame me? I have the best husband in the world who saves people and kittens and has the best smile and reminds me how much good is still left in the world.”

Duke’s mind short circuits at Danny’s words. Instead of saying how much he loves Danny, with his need to protect, his big heart, the way he always puts his cold hands on Duke’s temples before Duke himself realizes how bad his migraine is, what he says is, “Can we name one of the kittens Polaris?”

“Best husband in the world,” Danny says again, his voice soft. “I love that name. Yes, let’s name one Polaris.”

Sitting there at almost four in the morning, just coming in from saving victims of human trafficking, should be exhausting and painful and lead to a long night of wondering how long he can keep fighting when there’s no end to human cruelty. But his heart is light, leaning into his husband with kittens crawling over them.

There is good in the world. So much good.

The best is sitting besides him in their dark living room, and Duke knows that as long as Danny is by his side, he’ll keep fighting for all the good still out there. The world could be so much better, and he’s determined to make it better for Danny.

A world where kittens are safe even in the streets. 

That’s the world he’ll make for Danny.

[thedreamerstoryteller]

Li Bing has his own way to deal with his emotions and the daily issues. Since he was a child, he has always done one thing to not be overwhelmed by his thoughts and that is busying himself with reading and studying. In this way, he didn't think about his condintion, about his sickness, about his life that wouldn't be long. He does the same as an adult, he buries himself into work and solving cases.

So, what makes you think that the Vice-Minister didn't pay a visit to his most important person? What makes you think that he wasn't touched by what happened to the General when he saved him and ended up in a coma?

This fic answers to those questions because, unlike someone has thought, Li Bing wasn't indifferent, he wasn't at all.

[rebrandedbard]

Ooh for the most memorable thing, I think the moment in your Rumplestiltskin AU when he finds his name! I loved that twist

Oh man, I love that part! Here's a sketched visual of the scene for you. This is how I imagined the border (roughly) between the human world and the faerie world, with the buttercup right on the edge of the two.

[cuteniaarts]

Wine stains on porcelain

(Alternatively: @katkastrofa and I have created 5 OCs in 3 days and I suffer from chronic “I wanna draw the little guysssssss” disease)

[fuckinmemesman]

have no fear, I came back with a positive post to make up for yesterday's complaining!

[enchantedchocolatebars]

Philip: (before meeting Camila) “I just need to live long enough to see this plan through…”

Philip: (after meeting Camila) “I want to live for her…”

AWW, YES, YES, YES, YES!!! 🥹 💕 🥹 💕

Beardo Philip would SO be the type to throw away his old plan of living long enough to bring about witch genocide in exchange for his new plan of living long enough to see Camila genuinely happy, and he's going to make sure that mission is carried out until the end.

THE HUSBAND EVER 💕 <3.

[rriavian]

ooooo this ask game has a lot of good ones. How about:

🐌 What is one of your smallest writing goals?

👾 Do you have any "bad" writing habits you want to break?

💥Is there a chapter, scene, or WIP you're most excited to write? Share a snippet or tell us about it!

🐌 What is one of your smallest writing goals?

My aim is to finish a few smaller projects in the first six months of this year. I’ve got some prompts in my inbox that I’m finishing fics for (all smaller stories) and I'd like to keep to a goal of regularly filling prompts this year.

I’ve also got another Corintheus ficlet I want to finish, and Cursed is a shorter piece. So a rough goal is the get those two out for February and then do the rest in whatever time they need :)

 👾 Do you have any "bad" writing habits you want to break?

I think my bad habits are the other sides of my good habits, if that makes sense? The billions of ideas I’m always having can mean that unless I catch that wave when it happens, it feels like I’ve not done anything with that thought and just stalled instead. My own brain can quickly swamp me, and that can make me then struggle to finish. So I’m trying to pace myself better and be less stressed about ‘right now immediately’.

I also tend to write a little chaotically. Prose out of order, leaving rough sentences/ideas as place holders, but this doesn’t always work for longer projects. It can leave some tricky bits to clean up at the end. I can dip back in and be like aha! I know exactly what this needs, but it can also trip me up and stall me.

I’ve got a relatively flexible style, I’ve taken some different approaches in different fandoms and/or fics. Though Baiting the Trap and its specific tone/style was very much something I’d already practised in another series. Just not as explicit and not quite as poetic (the Corinthian’s POV naturally seems to be very lyrical, though not in the same way as Dream's). 

To keep flexibility I like to shake things up and do something completely new to keep myself from losing an edge and getting lazy. Not that I think I am a lazy writer, but I have ways to make sure I’m taking the same care and thought every time. Prompts from other people really help with this as I love considering new angles and tropes.

When something is hard/new I think we go more carefully, and are forced to be more novel, and I really really like improving my skills by doing that. It’s helped me write some of my favourite work.

💥Is there a chapter, scene, or WIP you're most excited to write? Share a snippet or tell us about it!

There are two secret Corintheus fics I wrote alongside those for Corintheus week that need a last edit before posting but I’m being very quiet about what they are :) should be a nice surprise! I’m also very proud of my Corintheus ‘divorce au’ that I still need do some work on before I post. I think the one I’m most excited about is probably role reversal au because when finished it’s going to be the longest fic I’ve yet posted that’s not split into a series. It'll also be the longest fic I’ve written in years.

It’s quite ambitious, and will probably have a sequel. I’ve planned the second arc out because I had to split the original fic in two. There’s lots of threads as well as other relationship dynamics and subplots. It’s about Dream and the Corinthian of course, but also very much about how they interact with other characters. Death shows up quite a lot, but I would say that Lucienne and Gault are the other really major characters in the fic.

I’m also branching out into other parings/writing some more gen fics. And, as an honourable mention, what was intended as the last two parts of Baiting the Trap have both been written for over a year and every single day I just want to share where it’s going. Unfortunately there’s at least two more in the middle, which I’m also excited about, but when I get to it I’m going to feel so relieved. 

Oh! And the Corintheus seduction au! Goodness I’m excited about everything aren’t I? Though I guess that sums me up! Thank you so much for your questions I hope you enjoyed my answers :)

[croszukis]

also just hit this word count in my ~catch all fic doc tonight, this is wild wtf!!

this is not all from this year alone (but only about 10k less from my current year word count) but every year i write more than i did before!

[journey-to-the-attic]

(Hello hi big fan love your work binged it in like 3 days) Do you think you'll be adapting Nightbringer, too, or will you be going over more of the original game's content first?

(glad you liked it!! i remember seeing your comment on the fic itself too, especially happy that you like my son mephisto too <33)

atm i don't have plans to do a formal adaptation of nightbringer - 'formal' here meaning a proper fic with, like, continuity. i'd be open to doing snapshots of certain events/stuff i've been making up in my head, though!

as for the rest of the og's content, i do at least want to do a mini-fic where ik gets to meet and befriend the s4 trio (so probably 4-5 chapters, one for each chara and then one or two just for some shenanigans together), and potentially more snapshots for the more interesting plot points - most likely the lucifer amnesia arc

that's about it for now! still no plans for any full-blown sequels, but i've got lots of idea snippets i'm excited to try out once jtta is complete! (and WOW, we're getting close...)

[violent138]

writer ask game questions:

🦷 Is there a chapter, scene, or WIP you're dreading to write (but is necessary to your plot)? Share a snippet or tell us about it!

✍️ Which stat matters most to you (if at all!): subscriptions, kudos/favorites, comments, bookmarks, word count, or hits?

🥸 Does anyone in IRL know you write fanfic or original fiction? If not, do you plan on telling anyone this year?

Went for the absolute hardest ones huh ;)

Yes, there is a chapter I am dreading to write in the work that gets the most requests for updates because it's very psychological torture/amityville horror and I'm losing my own mind figuring out how to write it. Very necessary to the plot.

Ugh. I hate this a little. Technically speaking I love comments (even though I always get anxious regardless of how happy they make me), however when looking for fics/mentally ranking my own I check the kudos.

The only two people IRL that know I write anything at all are the love of my life and my sister. I plan on telling no one ever.

[blub-blub-bish]

HAPPY NEW YEAR MOTHER FUCKERS✌️🥳🎉

[declawedwildcat]

I'm going to be ending this weekend with like 7 more projects than I started it with aaaaaa

I want to make everything and I want to make it RIGHT NOW or else it's never being made

[turnedinto-themoon]

Baby shoto, fresh from the womb: 👁-👁

Touya: *already on fire* you little shit. I’ll see you in hell bitch

[allylikethecat]

Happy First Birthday to Make Way for Ducklings 🎂

A year ago today (before I had even made this Tumblr) I started posting my first The 1975 fic on AO3 and was full heartedly convinced I was going to get chased out of the fandom. Instead everyone was so kind and lovely and supportive and welcoming and all around wonderful! So thank you all so very much to anyone who has taken the time to read Ducklings, send me an ask about it, or read any of my fics at all. I’m super grateful for your support! And also mind blown that you’re still here following along with me a year later 🥰

I had planned on having a new chapter up today to celebrate, then realized I am going to be traveling all day and I still need to make a few revisions- so maybe it will get posted today, maybe not. Regardless thank you so much again for reading and the support and welcoming in this little online community ❤️🥰

[starfolk7]

Cannot believe I got this done in time for New Years, but have a silly doodle of Charlotte and V2 celebrating the new year. No there isn't an archangel strung up to a ceiling fan what are you talking about-