#reminder to fanfic writers to at least Google a term before you write about it. this one is on Wikipedia. come on

[heroesriseandfall]

What did the poor monks and caretakers of Nanda Parbat do to deserve everybody thinking Ra’s al Ghul owns the place when they specifically banned him from it?

This is where all the good vigilantes go for spiritual training and healing or whatever. When Ra’s came he tried to steal their holy water and destroy it. Free Nanda Parbat from the assassin stronghold allegations!

[spnfanficpond]

Pond Diving - Imagineteamfreewill

Welcome to today’s Pond Diving Spotlight! We hope that you enjoy this little insight to our members and perhaps even find some useful tips for your own writing. Happy reading!

Want to volunteer, send us an ask! We’re looking forward to learning more about all of you! Not sure what PD is, you can learn more here.

“Don’t Be Koi About It” - All About You

Name: Meg

Age: 20s

Location: United States

URL: @imagineteamfreewill

Why did you choose your URL: I first started out structuring my stories as imagines, and the “Team Free Will” part was pretty obvious.

What inspired you to become a writer: Reading Supernatural fanfiction inspired me to get back into writing, but I’ve always enjoyed it. My mom likes to talk about how when I was in Kindergarten, I drew a picture about how I wanted to be an author and now I write in my free time.

How long have you been writing: According to tumblr, I’ve been writing fanfiction since 2014, but I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember.

What do you do when you are not writing i.e. Job/Hobbies etc? I’m a music teacher, so I sing and play piano, and I’ve played a bit of cello and tenor saxophone as well. I love movies, baking, sleeping, and a few video games.

How long have you been in the SPN Fandom? I joined sometime around Season 8 or 9, I think. I don’t really remember!

Are you in any other fandoms and do you write for them? I really enjoy Marvel and I’ve read a lot of Marvel fics, but I don’t write for them. I like a lot of TV shows (New Girl, Parks and Rec, The Good Place, Outlander, etc), but I wouldn’t consider myself part of the fandom.

Do you do any writing outside of fanfiction? If so, tell us about it? I love to write poetry. I had a poetry blog at truenorth-ink a while ago, but I haven’t updated it recently at all. Most of my poems aren’t published or posted anywhere.

Favorite published author: I love some of the early series by Rick Riordan and I also really enjoy poetry by Nikita Gill and Atticus. Lately, I've really been getting into Leigh Bardugo's books.

Have you ever read a book that made an impact on your life? Which one and why?: I think "East" by Edith Pattou really affected me! I read it when I was in 6th-8th grade and I think about it often. I think it's something that really stuck with me and got me interested in fantasy books so much. I read it at least once a year.

Favorite genre of fanfic (smut, angst, fluff, crack, rpf, etc): I love angsty stuff, and most of the time I prefer it when it has some fluff mixed in. Straight fluff is often hard for me to read because I need something that’s more realistic for my own life and point of view. I also really like whump, but that can be a lot sometimes so it depends on my mood.

Favorite piece of your own writing: I don’t know if I have a favorite, but I loved writing Back to the Start (my mermaid series) and The Switch (a canon-divergent apocalyptic Reader x Sam series). Right now, I'm really enjoying my Consort series (a Goddess!Reader x Dean series). Creating my own rules in my own little universes is one of my favorite things to do, especially since I can’t always do whatever I want in real life.

Most underrated fic you have written: Empire. I loved getting to write Boyking!Sam because it was so different from my normal Sam stories and I did a lot of research for it. I’m pretty proud that the story never got too bloody or gory, too, so if you want some Boyking!Sam that’s not drenched in blood (for lack of a better term), I’m your girl!

Story of yours that you’d most like to see turned into a movie/tv show: Probably Back to the Start or The Switch. I think those two series would be amazing to see with J2, the rest of the cast/characters I included, and special effects! There’s so much I’d want to explore with both of them that I didn’t put into the series.

Favorite Tumblr Writer(s): @luci-in-trenchcoats, @sunlightdances, @supernaturalfreewill, @lipstickandwhiskey, @smol-and-grumpy, @percywinchester27, and @kaz2y5-imagines

Favorite fic from another writer:  I don’t think I could pick just one, but I’ve read all of @sunlightdances Dean fics multiple times. Her works got me through some pretty sucky times in my life and I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of her writing! I’ve also been reading her Bucky fics recently and it’s made me love Marvel fics even more than before!​

Favorite character to write: Sam Winchester

Favorite Pairing to write: Reader x Sam (Reader x Dean is a close second)

Least favorite character to write (and why): I don’t like to write for Crowley or Gabriel. Gadreel is hard for me even though I can do it, but I don’t understand Crowley or Gabriel’s personalities at all because they’re literally so far away from mine.

Do you have anyone you consider a mentor? No, although @lipstickandwhiskey and @kaz2y5-imagines really encouraged me in my writing!​

Do you have any aspirations involving your writing? I would love to write a non-Supernatural work of fiction to publish, but that’s a long way off.

How many work-in-progress stories do you have: Oh Lord, I have so many! I have at least four series and two one shots in the works right now. I've also got over 100 one shots/series plotlines written out in the notes on my phone and various Google Docs.

What are you currently working on? I’m currently working on a Cinderella series, my Underworld series, my Puer Rex series, my Consort series, an Author!Sam fic, and an Author!Dean fic. I also write stories for my Words series now and again.

“Pond Diving” - All About The Writing

What/who has had the biggest influence on your writing? Reading other people’s work. The intense storylines of @luci-in-trenchcoats ’s fics have gotten me to be more bold with my writing and the emotions and description in @supernaturalfreewill’s works have inspired me to let my work have more feeling.

Best writing advice you've been given: Not necessarily writing advice, but I was once told that anything worth doing is worth doing at least a little bit every day. Think about it—if you wrote even just five minutes a day, how much better will you get over the course of a month? A year?

Biggest obstacle you’ve faced in your writing: Repetition of words and commas. So many commas and so many uses of the same word over and over again. It’s a hard balance between using the word and using synonyms without sounding like I’m sitting there googling synonyms for “said”. I also tend to spend a lot of time on things that I think are super important but aren’t really important in the long run. I’m wordy as hell and my writing would be dull if I didn’t edit it as thoroughly as I do.

What aspects of writing do you find difficult when you write fanfiction? A lot of times I have these ideas that I think would make a great series but I don’t think through them, so planning out the plot of a series (or even a standalone fic) beforehand is something I struggle with.

Is there anything you want to write but are afraid to (and why): I would love to write more fics that have the characters dealing with severe mental disorders or that take place in a mental hospital, but I’m afraid that I’ll portray something wrong and solidify harmful stereotypes about what it’s like to deal with those things.

What inspires/motivates you to write: Honestly, just wanting to write things that I enjoy. Sometimes I get sick of reading other peoples’ stuff since it’s not exactly what I want, so I just write my own!

How do you deal with self doubt: Understand that sometimes it happens. You’ll doubt yourself—everybody does. If I’m doubting myself or my writing, I’ll take a break until I remember why I write. Then I’ll remember that yeah, writing for an audience is fun, but I write because I have cool ideas I want to explore, not because I need the attention or love of strangers. Lastly, I’ll reread my old fics, especially the ones I love, and then I’ll go back and edit old fics that I haven’t looked at in a while. That way I can see how I’ve improved and I don’t feel so terrible anymore! Reading my own fics is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine, and I’ll read through my masterlists every once a while just to remind myself of the things I’ve loved, where I’ve been, and where I’m going.

How do you deal with writer's block: Like I said, I reread old fics and edit old fics that I haven’t looked at in a while. Seeing the things I’ve done before always helps to focus me. I’ll also read other people’s stuff or talk about headcanons with some friends to try and find some inspiration.

Do you plan/outline your story before you start: Lately I have been, but only because my periods of intense inspiration and productivity are getting farther and farther apart because of my job. I’ve found planning it out to be more and more helpful, especially for my series. A lot of times if I get a great idea, I’ll outline the whole plot or any significant details I want to put in that one shot/series so that I can come back to it whenever I have the time or I’m inspired for it again.

Do you have any weird writing habits: I write best in places that are unfamiliar to me or in places/times where I shouldn’t be writing. Class? Writing. Airport terminal? Writing. 4am when I have to be up at 6? Writing.

Have you ever received hateful comments on your fic and how do you deal with it? Not that I remember! I feel like there’s probably been one or two over the years, but I probably just got upset about it with my friends for a while and then got over it.

Conversely: what’s been some of your favorite feedback on your fanfic? A long time ago, when I was writing Back to the Start, I had one person who sent me asks for every single series update. I screenshotted them and saved them on my laptop. There’s one particular one where they say that they’re happier because of my writing and honestly, isn’t that what we all strive for? That people’s lives are better because of our stories? I’ve also had some pretty great friends recently who’ve made it a point to reblog and send asks/messages on all my works, which has been so meaningful that I never replied to the asks. They’re sitting in my inbox and I go through and reread them sometimes when I’m feeling down.

If you could give one piece of advice to a new and/or struggling writer, what would it be?  ​Write down everything. If you come up with an amazing piece of dialogue, even if it’s just one sentence or one person talking, or if you come up with something you’d think would be a great title… WRITE IT DOWN. It doesn’t matter if it fits into whatever you’re currently writing or not, it’ll come in handy! I don’t know how many times I’ve gone through my idea list and found really obscure lines/titles/inspiration that didn’t make sense when I wrote them down, but are now exactly what I need to finish a fic. Even if you don’t end up using it, jotting down your ideas is still writing, and that’s good practice!

[intothestarkerverse]

RP anyone?

It's been years since I had a good, steady role-playing partner and I think it's high time I remedied that.  So, I'm in the market for a couple of Starker writing partners to help me keep my muse up for Starker fanfic and the like!  I'll include details under the jump because I want to be very specific about what I'm looking for and I don't want to force uninterested parties to scroll a mile.  

18 + partners only.  

Third person past tense only, unless we want to do something stylistic for a particular story.

I am comfortable playing both Peter and Tony, so I am very open regarding which member of the pairing I write.  I don’t mind if you prefer one over the other or if you, like me, don’t mind swapping out from time to time.

I am 100% okay with smut, but I prefer to have a lot of plot to make the smut hit a little harder.  I also don’t pretend to be the best smut writer so try to manage your expectations lol

I do not really care to rp water sports, characters in littlespace, or sexual assaults.  Parent/child incest is also not something I like to rp, though I can be convinced to delve into a sibling/step-sibling/cousin situation.

I love fluff and will happily engage in hours of writing it.  Slow burn is my jam.  Pining is a favorite of mine.  I love angst and putting characters through hell, but I do tend to require a happy ending to make my heart happy at the end of it.  I have no problem with feminization and can happily rp both Starker in a more canon-esque setting and something much more freestyle in scope.

I love most of the tropes.  Soulmate fics, non-powered AUs, A/B/O, enemies to lovers, etc.  I adore a good high school AU.  

I would prefer to RP through Google Docs, Discord, or even through a private forum.  I despise rping through Tumblr's messenger, I have tried it in the past and find that it's awkward and saps my muse.  I also don't particularly want to download a new messenger specifically for RP...though I will consider it if it's absolutely necessary.  I'm also not opposed to joining a Starker chat/discord etc. I know there are several of them around, but I tend to avoid joining things like that unless I already have a friend on the inside I can trust.  

I can generally write anything from a few sentences to several paragraphs.  Quality will always be more important than quantity, though, so as long as you give me something to work with...I don't mind if you respond to my three paragraphs with two explosive sentences.  I will also try to post to you at least once every day, but I do have a full time job that requires my attention during the day five days a week (including weekends).  So, you will find me online in the early evenings (EST) and all day on a couple of weekdays.  (Usually Monday, Tuesday, and/or Wednesday.)

I would prefer a partner who is not afraid to plot out scenarios with a little detail before delving into writing them.  I always work better when I have a goal, even if it's a very vague one that we expand on as we move along.

I have no problem posting RPs in story form on Tumblr or AO3 if they're something we like and think other people might also enjoy.

I am a hardcore shipper and will likely accost you with many songs that remind me of things we've written or things we might write in the future.  I will also probably hit you with new plotlines when I'm inspired by movies, tv shows, or books.  I'm definitely not looking for a one-off partner and would love to find someone who wants a friend and long term rp buddy.

A few of my own potential ideas:  My Hero Academia AU, A/B/O with a little magical age regression because I'm a whore for Young Tony, and an Infinity War AU where Tony uses that gauntlet to do more than save the universe.....

If you've made it this far and are still interested in writing with me, feel free to drop me a line on Tumblr messenger (as much as I hate it, I'm willing to discuss potential writing relationships there before sharing further details.)  Be sure to let me know which member of Starker you prefer, your triggers, your kinks, and definitely any potential storylines you might want to explore!

[luthienebonyx]

Author interview

Tagged by: @seaspiritwrites

Name: Luthien. My real name also starts with L. I answer to L as well, so then I don’t have to think about which me I’m meant to be at any given moment.

Fandoms: At the moment, Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire, in the sense that I’m glancing at it sideways while the torrent of words continues. In the past, many others.

Where you post: AO3, these days.

Most popular oneshot: In this fandom, As Sunlight Drinketh Dew, which is probably the most explicit thing I’ve written for this pairing, and was also my first attempt at writing Jaime POV.

Across all the fandoms I’ve written in, and keeping in mind that a good chunk of my fanfic pre-dates the AO3 so this answer is really only in relation to the stories I’ve posted since around 2010, my most popular oneshot is, surprisingly, A Night to Remember. This is a Phryne/Jack Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries fic, which is also on the explicit side. (I think I’m sensing a pattern.) It’s one of those stories that just doesn’t die. I can never pick which ones those are going to be.

Most popular multi-chapter story: In this fandom, More Than a Memory. This was the first story I wrote for this fandom, apart from a couple of drabbles years and years ago, and it just came pouring out of me after the finale aired. I was very surprised that it had any real following at all, because I was a completely unknown writer in this fandom and the story is canon compliant right up to the end of Season 8, with everything that that means for this pairing.

In my fandoms on AO3 overall, the most popular multi-parter is A Fine Romance, which is an unfinished Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them newtina fic. I had to stop writing it for a while because my health crashed in mid-2017, and then the second movie pretty comprehensively jossed my plans for the rest of the story, but I think it captured the fandom vibe at the time it was being posted.

Favorite story you wrote: Right now, it’s probably Beloved, part of my After Everything fix-it universe (written partly to make up for writing More Than a Memory) because it’s a very ‘me’ story, and also because even though I finished it a few days ago, it’s still hanging around in my head. Once I get back to working on my Regency AU, You I Know, that will be the favourite, because that’s the story I’ve wanted to write for YEARS.

So far as past fandoms go, I’m still very fond of my Once Upon a Time rumbelle AU Plain Jane. That’s another one of those ‘me’ stories.

Story you were nervous to post: I feel as if I should say More Than a Memory, because I really honestly expected that hardly anyone would read it, but it was one of those stories that wouldn’t let me NOT write it, so it wasn’t like I had a choice about it. I just threw it out there.

I think probably As Sunlight Drinketh Dew was the one I was actually most nervous about, because it was my first time trying out Jaime POV, and that sort of thing is always nerve-racking.

As for stories from past fandoms... I can’t really remember? Except that I always HATE my stories right before I post them, so in that sense they all make me nervous.

How you choose your titles: On a wing and a prayer? Titles are the bane of my existence. Sometimes, if I’m really lucky, the title will come to me very early on, which is a huge relief. Other times, I’ll have a story finished and edited and ready to go - except that I don’t know what it’s called. Then I get out my big book of quotations, and google lyrics, and just hope to god that something jumps out at me. 

Weirdly, I haven’t had my usual titling trouble for most of the stories I’ve written in this fandom, but that might be more just my attitude. A vaguely appropriate title will cross my mind and I’ll just seize it and decide that “That’ll do!” It’s nice not to have to deal with these little title-related stress-outs.

Do you outline: Hahaha. I’ve TRIED to outline in the past. I just end up with scene drafts instead. 

My usual approach is to have a list of bullet points of the main plot beats, plus any other reminders to myself of details that I’m going to need further down the line. For my longer stories, I think of my list of bullet points as making up the skeleton, and then the flesh and blood of detail happens as I write. But no, I really wouldn’t dignify any of that with the description of ‘outline’. Outlining is something that happens to other people, I’m afraid.

Complete: In this fandom, 23. However, 18 of those complete stories belong to series that are still on-going, so their storylines are not yet complete even though the stories themselves are.

Overall? I have 122 complete works on the AO3, but that doesn’t include every fic I’ve ever written, so the actual answer is... I don’t know?

In-progress: In this fandom, two actual stories and two series. I need to get back to my Regency AU, You I Know, very soon. It’s currently at Chapter 8 of... many. I’m also partway through writing the second and last chapter of the latest Aussie Coffee ‘verse fic, On the first day of Christmas (my true love gave to me). In terms of series, obviously Aussie Coffee is still not finished - I still have another five (hopefully) short instalments to write once the Christmas fic is done - and After Everything still has at least one more story to go (which I’m currently working on).

In other fandoms... I think I’ll just sweep a few stories under the rug and pretend that they don’t exist.

Coming soon/not yet started: Coming soon: A Sansa bystander POV fic from right at the beginning of After Everything, when the ‘after’ bit hasn’t started yet - I’m not writing that series in chronological order. Also, the rest of the Christmas Day fic from Aussie Coffee, and FINALLY a new chapter of the Regency AU.

Not yet started: I have an idea for a musician AU kicking around in the back of my head, but it’s right at the bottom of the priority list, and probably will be for some time.

Do you accept prompts: I do sometimes, if I’m in the mood, or if I don’t have anything more pressing to write. (So yeah, not so much with the prompts right at the moment!) Usually only drabble prompts, though. I have two writing modes: drabbles of exactly 100 words, no more and no less, and “who the hell knows how long this thing will be?” I’d rather not get into anything in the second category by accident.

Upcoming story you are most excited to write: Regency, Regency, Regency!!!! I have SO MUCH planned for this story. I’m going to stuff every last Regency detail and plot point that I can think of into it - and I’ve been reading about and researching this period for decades, so I can think of A LOT. I’ve wanted to write a novel-length Regency AU through several fandoms, but I’ve never been well enough to commit to it before. But now, for some reason, I am well enough to just keep writing most days, and so I’m not losing writing momentum, and things like this are finally possible. AND I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT EVERYTHING ABOUT IT!!!!!

But the rest of the Aussie Coffee ‘verse is also going to be fun to write. The path it’s going to take isn’t the one that might seem most likely right now...

Tagging: @nire-the-mithridatist @woodelf68 @firesign23 @it-may-be-dull-but-im-determined @ladyem-fandom and anyone else who wants to do it.

[ladyfl4me]

A,E,F,G,I,J,K,L,M,N,O,P,Q,R,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,Z ;o

Okay *cracks knuckles* let’s go! F, M, and S have already been taken from this list, so feel free to send in... B, C, D, or H, I guess. Yeehaw. This is really fucking long.

A: How did you come up with the title to [TMWCIFTC]? -- It started, as many things do, as a bad pun. The novel The Spy who Came In from the Cold was a cold-war spy thriller, about a British spy who goes over to East Germany as an apparent defect, except he’s actually there to spread misinformation and fuck shit up. He falls in love, becomes disillusioned with his superiors, and is shot dead over the corpse of his lover after climbing over to the east side of the wall. Needless to say, this is nowhere close to what happens in TMWCIFTC. I chose it early on because of the literal meaning: there’s a moth(man), he’s coming in from the cold WV weather, boom shaka laka, we have a title. Over time, though, it’s evolved into another meaning. Indrid himself is coming in from an isolated, lonely existence: he’s rejoining the family that cut ties with him, he’s in love, he’s warm and safe. The moth sure did come in from the cold, and hopefully he stays that way.

E: If you wrote a sequel to [TMWCIFTC], what would it be about? -- Hm. Considering my entire TAZ fic career is a tangled hairball of sequels and prequels, I kind of have this base covered. At the moment, TCOS - aka The Children of Sylvain, the sequel to TMWCIFTC - is about three things: a Pine Guard road trip race against time and the feds, the Spanish Sylvan Inquisition That Nobody Expected (least of all Jake and Hollis, who have to set aside their differences and past conflicts to save Kepler - and who knows, maybe they’ll fall in love along the way), and Alexandra the Interpreter getting woke to Sylvan politics and doing what she can from the inside to change them. In other words, it’s going to be a massive sequel that is the finale of the Amnesty alternate universe I’ve created. It’s this series’ Endgame. (That reminds me, I need an actual title for this collection of stories I’m writing. The “Tin Cinematic Universe” doesn’t quite have the ring to it that I’d like.)

G: Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order? -- eh, it kind of depends. It’s like a buffering bar on Youtube videos. I outline what I can until I run out of ideas, then start writing, then add outlines to the end, until the outline is complete and I just have to keep writing.

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)? -- I don’t have one for reading, but for writing, I fucking love structuring chapters around songs. Classical or otherwise, I love music. All my stories play in my head like a movie screen, and I just do my best to describe what I’m seeing in my head with an accompanying score. It’s not so much a guilty pleasure as it is a writing process. Frankly, I don’t think I actually have a guilty pleasure; the act of writing itself is all the happiness I need.

J: Write or describe an alternative ending to [insert fic]. -- An alternate ending for The Devil Went Down To Georgia would be... interesting. It ended with Boyd-as-Jersey-Devil scaring the pants off some poor broke college kid, who stole his worthless fiddle; then he changed back, and he and Ned went on their merry way to go break into Aubrey’s house and send everything down the drain. If there was one thing that I could change in there, it would be how fast Ned ran. If he ran a little faster, he would have seen the alley; he would have witnessed Boyd turning into the Jersey Devil, or at least turning back into himself; and he’d get a very rude awakening as to what Sylvans are and that his partner (in crime, and everything that mattered) was a fucking cryptid. God, that’d be a fun AU to write. Who knows, I might go do that someday.

K: What’s the angstiest idea you’ve ever come up with? -- At the moment, the only angsty idea that I’m actually conceptualizing is a Hollis/Jake angsty breakup for TSG. (Spoilers, I guess.) I once wrote a very grimdark ending to TMWCIFTC where everyone fell through the ice and drowned. It wasn’t fun. I’ve also mentally killed off each Amnesty protagonist and NPC in various ways, but I never felt comfortable writing them down. I only write angst with a happy ending because those are the kinds of stories I need to hear.

L: How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting? -- 9 times out of 10, I just throw it into the void. I write as much as I can in big chunks, and then kind of hope for the best. TMWCIFTC, for example, is a completely unedited, unbetaed vomit draft. I usually do a quick reread of my oneshots to catch grammar and spelling errors, but other than that I just trust myself that it’s fine.

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you? -- Can I get some kind of resolution for To the Edge of Night? Can I please get some kind of resolution for To the Edge of Night??? I was 14 chapters into that bastard before I a) became a more casual MCU fan and b) discovered TAZ. It was such a niche fic with such a niche structure - LOTR as galactic Asgardian propaganda to cover up Odin’s mistakes - that at some point I lost interest in it. I just saw Endgame though, so now I might get some inspiration for stuff to bastardize.

O: How do you begin a story–with the plot, or the characters? -- Characters. When coming up with character backstories, I can usually find ways to slot their lives together that necessitate a plot. I love character-driven stories, where their actions actually do shit and their words actually mean something, in favor of getting dragged along behind the plot like tin cans behind a car.

P: Are you what George R. R. Martin would call an “architect” or a “gardener”? (How much do you plan in advance, versus letting the story unfold as you go?) -- I’m definitely an architect, but in a really messy way. My friends can attest that I do an insane amount of planning for each story - often in their DMs, sorry about that, Fae, Cro, Indy and Aline 😬 - and all that usually ends up in a stream-of-consciousness rant outline on Google Drive. Knowing where the story is going helps me a lot, but the planning I do is definitely just building flower beds in which to sow seeds. Or building a greenhouse. I plan the bare bones of a story, and things get really wild within it, but it does follow a logical plot structure.

Q: How do you feel about collaborations? -- I have a lot of respect for the people who can successfully pull it off, but idk if i’d ever want to do one myself. I get really possessive of my stories and ideas and like to be the one in charge of their execution. That being said, some collabs have produced amazing stories. I don’t mind reading collab fics, but actually being in a collab grates on me more than it should.

R: Are there any writers (fanfic or otherwise) you consider an influence? -- I’m definitely influenced heavily by Neil Gaiman. I read American Gods and Good Omens a lot while I was trying to write TMWCIFTC; not only was it a good brain break, but I was able to pick up a lot of tips on scene pacing, concise yet expressive language, and character interactions. My creative wriitng professors have always told us to read so we know what to steal - not in terms of content, but in execution. 

On the fanfic side, @miamaroo is a huge inspiration for me. I’ve been reading Northern Migration a lot recently, and I love how its canon divergence is so worldshaking and so complex, but is still familiar in nostalgic yet terrifying ways. I read it back in October, went, “Huh, I wanna do something that wild. And if miamaroo can do it then I sure as fuck can too,” and I started planning TMWCIFTC during that one month dead zone the McElroys took last year. Northern Migration is one of the best, most coherent, most stunning, and most incredibly written TAZ Balance AUs I’ve ever read, and if I hadn’t read it, I wouldn’t have been inspired to take the fuckall huge plunge into TMWCIFTC.

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist? -- Bed sharing and cuddling, hand kissing, wrist kissing, whump, sympathetic villains. Canon divergent AUs are my absolute favorite things to both read and write. Anything that would turn me into Charlie Kelly slamming his finger on a bulletin board screaming, “CAROL,” is a fic I would give my life for. 

T: Any fandom tropes you can’t stand? -- Not a fan of a) woobification and b) flat villain characterization, to the point where the story is riding on villain tropes instead of an actual person or plot. Character nuance is always something I look for when I read. I don’t usually get bitter about tropes, though; some stuff, when subverted, works really well. I fully subscribe to don’t like, don’t read, don’t write, which is why I don’t write anything that warrants AO3 content warning tags or an Explicit rating, in favor of focusing on plot. Every author has a reason for what they write and how - be it their level of experience, personal preference, or simply the joy of writing something and getting it out there - and I respect that. Within reason, of course.

U: Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much. -- 

@miamaroo, for reasons I’ve already discussed. My favorite TAZ Balance author hands down. Read Northern Migration and give it the love it deserves, or I’m replacing all the faucets in your house with silly straws.

@transagentstern. Fae has a bunch of absolutely incredible fics and an amazing grasp on characterization. We come from the same place with AUs, in that canon is but the bare planks on which we put the drywall of our plot an characterization. They structure AUs and character backstories from the ground up in believable and emotionally raw ways. Also they have great music taste. I especially like their interpretation of Indrid in Moth to the Flame; he, like all the other characters in the story, is far from perfect, and his character arc is explored in relatable ways that I love to read. 

@keplersheetz. Aline - theneonpineapple on AO3 - researches like a motherfucker and has a wealth of knowledge/experience/viewpoints to draw on, making author-author interactions with her an absolute delight. She’s also doing the lord’s work with rarepairs. Spin a wheel, find a ship, and she’s probably written for it or at least conceptualized it. Reading her character studies and stories of the old Pine Guard - aka Mama’s original crew, before the current PCs joined - is always a delight. I’ve also hashed out a lot of details for The Children of Sylvain, especially for Mr. Boyd Mosche, guilt-wracked Jersey Devil extraordinaire, with her help. 

V: If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose? -- Not gonna lie, I’m fine with a lot of stuff that’s out there right now. It’s been a hot few months since I’ve actually stopped to read fic, but from what I recall, most of the fics I’ve read have done a good job of keeping things intact.

W: Do you like more general prompts, or more specific ones? -- The vaguer, the better. With really specific prompts, it usually feels as if the story’s been written for me already; with vague, general prompts, I have more agency to explore my own ideas. Some accompanying detail is usually nice, though. For example, the coffee shop/college/flower shop AUs that @transagentstern​ wrote are my ideal prompt for drabbles: premise, a little bit of open-ended detail, clear explanation of what’s going to happen while leaving the rest up to the imagination. Good stuff. If it’s for a long-form piece, though, I prefer full agency, or even just some time to lie facedown in the dirt and wait for an idea to strike me.

X: A character you enjoy making suffer. -- Yes.

Y: A character you want to protect. -- Tim.

Z: Major character death–do you ever write/read it? Is there a character whose death you can’t tolerate? -- I do read lots of major character death, yeah, though not always for TAZ. There’s something cathartic about seeing a character die, but sometimes it sits wrong with me in ways that I don’t like. As for writing, I’d rather kill a character for a reason rather than for shock value/for the Feels, though said Feels can accompany the reason. 

[kelandry5]

Question tag for AO3 writers~~

Tagged by @herdustisverypretty and @justsimplyl

I found the original questions on AFF a while back, and I thought since I’ve been tagged in so many meme things lately, I’d also tag a bunch more people in this one XD Since the questions were designed for AFF, I’ve reworked some of them to fit for AO3 writers. I also removed two questions rather than trying to translate them to AO3 terms. So, I’ll fill out my answers first, and then put the blank questions again at the bottom for you to easily copy and paste!

1. How did you come up with your username and what does it mean?

It’s my writing name/the name I use for writing plus a number

2. Which fanfic of yours has the most feedback? (bookmarks/subscriptions/hits/kudos)

Uhhh Sold and Broken has the most hits, Unexpected has the most bookmarks and kudos and subscriptions (Whyyyyyyyy??????)

3. What is your AO3 profile icon, and why did you choose it?

It’s a picture of Akashi and Kuroko because I love them and mostly write for that pair anyway

4. Do you have any regular/favourite commenters?

Yes.

5. Is there a fanfic that you keep going back to read again and again? 

Yes.

6. How many stories are you subscribed to? How many do you have bookmarked?

118 bookmarks. Idk if it counts subscriptions anywhere but there are four pages

7. Which AU do you find yourself writing the most?

mental illness if you can call that an au. 

8. How many people are subscribed and bookmarked to you in total? (you can view this on the stats page)

Subscribed: 755

Bookmarks: 432

9. Is there something you’d like to write about but are afraid of people judging you for it? (Feeling brave? If so, share it!)

I mean...considering what I have already written about, no, not really. Though maybe I am a bit afraid of writing smut but it’s more a fear I’ll suck at it and be judged for sucking at it than for simply writing it.

10. Is there anything you would like to be better at? Writing certain scenes or genres, replying to comments, updating better, etc.

I would LOVE to be better at updating!!!!! (I am sooooo sorry I suck).

I would love to be better at writing in general though, too. And maybe better at fluff/romance in particular.

11. Do you write rarepairs or popular ships more often?

Popular...but I have a couple unpublished rarepare fics started...

12. How many stories have you posted on AO3 to this day (finished and unfinished)?

19

13. How many stories do you have saved in/with your writing program?

Uh...34 saved separately plus at least five documents with pieces of multiple stories I don’t feel like counting.

14. Do you write down story ideas, or just keep them in your head?

Ha. I write them down. Otherwise they would disappear

15. Have you ever co-authored a story?

No. But I’ve helped with the planning. I don’t think I would be any good at doing more than that.

16. How did you discover AO3?

Probably google. I honestly don’t remember. (It was like maybe a year ago but it’s not like I thought “oh I should remember finding this and how it happened because this site is going to mean something to me one day and someone will ask me how I found it!”)

17. Do you consider yourself to be a popular or famous author in your fandom(s) on AO3?

Hahaha not at all. 

18. Do you have a nickname or fandom name for your readers?

No???

19. Was there an author who inspired or encouraged you to write?

Yeah. I don’t remember off the top of my head all the ones who inspired me to write fanfiction and I’m too lazy to look right now, but there definitely were. And pretty much every writer inspires me.

20. What writing advice would you give to a beginning author?

Forget the rules. Forget the “do not’s.” Forget trying to be right or perfect. Forget trying to please others. Write what you want, what you feel, what you love, what you need to say, what you think. Everything else will come.

21. Do you plot out your stories, or do you just figure it out as you go?

Uhhhh....I pretty much figure it out as I go. Unless I’m rewriting. 

22. Have you ever gotten a bad comment on a story? If so, what did you do?

Idk if it was exactly bad. I had someone tell me something in a story was unrealistic and would never happen and couldn’t work like that etc etc and how they will read the story but they will be cringing. I generally just try to explain why I did what I did or what my thoughts were on the matter and then remind them they don’t have to read if they don’t like it. Maybe ignoring it altogether would be better but I’m not the best at that. I usually explain first then ignore. whoops

23. Is there a certain type of scene that you have a hard time writing? (action, smut, etc..)

I can’t write smut or physical affection really at all. It’s just.... bad. I struggle with anything light hearted/fluffy too unless there is some underlying angst.

24. What story(s) are you working on now?

I’m sort of in a rut rn to be honest. But I am still thinking about all my unfinished ones. There is one in particular I’ve been sort of working on more, but it’s not a published one. I hope to update Weightless, Unexpected, and Fragile by the end of December at the very least if I can get my life in order a bit.

25. Do you plan your next project(s) before you finish your current ongoing story(s)?

Of course!!! 

26. Do you have a daily writing goal set for yourself?

Nope. I doubt I could ever write every day and it would feel too much like work if I forced it.

27. Do you think you’ve improved as a writer since you first started?

Oh god I would certainly hope so!! But yes.

28. What is your favorite story that you’ve written?

Weightless Phantom

29. What is your least favorite story that you’ve written?

Haha... it’s actually my two most popular ones. Unexpected and Sold and Broken (though I think Sold and Broken is just popular because it has multiple fandoms so a larger possible audience)

I just think the writing and plots kinda fell apart for both. 

30. Where do you see yourself (as a writer) in 5 years?

I don’t know. Thinking about the future rn is more than I can really handle.

31. What is the easiest thing about writing?

Uhhhh is there supposed to be something easy about it?? I guess fixing spelling and grammar is the easiest thing.

32. What is the hardest thing about writing?

Writing...

Jk jk. Well yes, but I guess more specifically, getting started. Once I’m on a roll it’s not so hard but starting is hard. 

33. Why do you write?

To express myself, to cope, to spread a message, to live another life, there are lots of reasons. 

Anyways that’s all the questions, so I’ll put them here as well without the answers to easily c+p.

1. How did you come up with your username and what does it mean? 2. Which fanfic of yours has the most feedback? (bookmarks/subscriptions/hits/kudos) 3. What is your AO3 profile icon, and why did you choose it? 4. Do you have any regular/favourite commenters? 5. Is there a fanfic that you keep going back to read again and again? 6. How many stories are you subscribed to? How many do you have bookmarked? 7. Which AU do you find yourself writing the most? 8. How many people are subscribed and bookmarked to you in total? (you can view this on the stats page) 9. Is there something you’d like to write about but are afraid of people judging you for it? (Feeling brave? If so, share it!) 10. Is there anything you would like to be better at? Writing certain scenes or genres, replying to comments, updating better, etc. 11. Do you write rarepairs or popular ships more often? 12. How many stories have you posted on AO3 to this day (finished and unfinished)? 13. How many stories do you have saved in/with your writing program? 14. Do you write down story ideas, or just keep them in your head? 15. Have you ever co-authored a story? 16. How did you discover AO3? 17. Do you consider yourself to be a popular or famous author in your fandom(s) on AO3? 18. Do you have a nickname or fandom name for your readers? 19. Was there an author who inspired or encouraged you to write? 20. What writing advice would you give to a beginning author? 21. Do you plot out your stories, or do you just figure it out as you go? 22. Have you ever gotten a bad comment on a story? If so, what did you do? 23. Is there a certain type of scene that you have a hard time writing? (action, smut, etc..) 24. What story(s) are you working on now? 25. Do you plan your next project(s) before you finish your current ongoing story(s)? 26. Do you have a daily writing goal set for yourself? 27. Do you think you’ve improved as a writer since you first started? 28. What is your favorite story that you’ve written? 29. What is your least favorite story that you’ve written? 30. Where do you see yourself (as a writer) in 5 years? 31. What is the easiest thing about writing? 32. What is the hardest thing about writing? 33. Why do you write?

Tagging: @mymistakewriting @ragingdrumboner @appleciderr @agapantoblu

[kelasparmak]

001: Vorkosigan Saga. 002: Charles Gunn/Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.

OH MAN THIS GOT LONG

Vorkosigan Saga:

Favorite character: Hmmm, tough one. No, just kidding, everyone who’s ever met me knows Bel’s my favourite, hands down, no contest.

Least Favorite character: I mean, there are a lot of baddies to pick from. Ryoval, Ser Galen and Bruce Van Atta all rate highly.

5 Favorite ships (canon or non-canon): This one actually is tricky, since I really really like a lot of the canon relationship dynamics. Byerly and Ivan definitely, Aral and Cordelia (and Oliver Jole, though it’s Aral and Cordelia’s dynamic that I’m particularly fond of), Ethan and Terrence, Simon and Alys, and I think Miles and Bel. (Honourable mentions go to Bel and Nicol, Ivan and Tej, and Elli and Elena, which is a pairing I’d not actually really considered until I got desperate for Vorkosigan fic and ran the Russian works on AO3 through Google Translate and found some really interesting fic.)

Character I find most attractive: My mental images of book characters are generally super vague and I’m eh about attractiveness anyway, but thinking about it I’d probably say Rish, Taura or Dono Vorrutyer.

Character I would marry: I’d be quite happy marrying an awful lot of them, really. Bel, for preference, since I’m practically in actual bona fide love with it.

Character I would be best friends with: I’d like to say Bel, but I don’t think I’m exciting enough. My actual best friends through life have mostly been more like Tej or maybe the younger Kareen, so maybe one of them? Tej and I could definitely bond over language learning. (I would also love to be best friends with Byerly, but again, I don’t think we have the same idea of a good time.)

A random thought: The first thing that springs to mind is my fascination with the fact that Bel and Jole had a fling back in the day. When was this? How (hilariously) would Miles react? I would love for Bel, Nicol, Garnet Five and Corbeau (since he’s the Barrayaran Imperium’s ambassador or attache or whatever to Quaddiespace) to visit Sergyar and pop in on Miles, and have that awkward ‘yes, we’ve met’ conversation when Miles tried to introduce them to each other. Well, awkward for Miles and Jole, at least; Bel and Cordelia would no doubt find it hilarious.

An unpopular opinion: Iiiii don’t really like that more or less everyone ended up paired off to an Appropriately Gendered Spouse, with a bureaucratic position and babies ever after. I mean, that’s an oversimplification and there are exceptions (like Elli, or Ethan and Terrence, though that’s implied rather than explicit and since Athos is men-only it feels a little ‘for lack of alternative Terrence might end up with a guy and if he does it’ll probably be Ethan’) but that’s how it feels to me. I don’t know how unpopular that opinion is, though.

My canon OTP: Aral/Cordelia

Non-canon OTP: Byerly/Ivan (I mean, we’ve essentially had this question already)

Most badass character: I think Taura or Elli, probably? Miles is definitely a contender too, but I suppose because you see him wallowing in self-pity or making it up as he goes or doing extremely silly things pretty often the overall effect is perhaps diminished a little. Though I think overall the sheer amount of obstacles, self-imposed as well as external, that he manages to overcome, might put him at the top of the list.

Pairing I am not a fan of: Leo/Silver, probably. I don’t think it was very ethical for Leo to get involved, at least not at that point - I’m not sure if she was canonically a great deal younger than him or if I’ve just imagined that, but there’s a huge gap in terms of life experience, and I think that given the way Van Atta had exploited her very very recently, Leo should have given her some space and time and the tools to figure out what she wanted before he got involved with her.

Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another): Bothari’s portrayal made me pretty uncomfortable at times. Not sure if it was necessarily a screwup because she writes other mental illnesses pretty well, at least as far as my understanding of them goes, but I felt like with Bothari there was a very fine line being tread between a very complex depiction of schizophrenia (specifically traumagenic schizophrenia) & cyclical abuse on the one hand, and the ‘dangerous and barely-human crazy person’ stereotype on the other.

Favourite friendship: So many. In the interests of not just repeating myself from the shipping questions, though, I really like the development of Miles and Ivan’s relationship from not really Getting each other at all in the first book (and Miles in particular being pretty contemptuous of Ivan), to a close (if constantly mutually exasperating) friendship once they’re a little older.

Gunn/Wesley

when or if I started shipping it: Gosh, it’s been absolutely years since I watched Angel and I only watched it the once, so any of these answers may be completely wrong, but honestly I think it was from the first time they argued.

my thoughts: I really liked their 'odd couple’ dynamic - it reminds me a little of a much more extreme version of Eliot and Hardison’s initial impressions of each other, in that they each have a lot of preconceptions about the type of person the other is and about their worth, but pretty quickly get over it and come to respect each other and (shockingly enough) realised that it was actually really useful that they’d had such different experiences and that they worked much better together than separately. I’d have liked more episodes dealing with their very different backgrounds and attitudes in a more casual setting - I don’t remember how often that came up but I don’t feel like it was very often, or at least not often enough for my liking :P I just wish that phase

What makes me happy about them: I guess I’ve just said it. Got a bit carried away there I guess. 

What makes me sad about them: The goddamn unnecessary love triangle! And everything getting fucked up! Why did this happen! I prefer to pretend that storyline, and the Illyria storyline, and the Grimdark Wesley storyline, didn’t happen, because they were silly and unnecessary. Whedon, you didn’t even have to let my kids be happy, but making them miserable because of internal conflict that wasn’t even in-character for them wasn’t even lazy writing, it would have been lazy writing with different characters, but this required effort! To be bad! Why! (Caveat: possibly the Grimdark Wesley storyline isn’t so much objectively bad as I just didn’t like it. I don’t mind him being emo, that’s a-ok, but his behaviour toward Gunn and Fred was straight-up gross, and while I quite liked Wesley dealing with the consequences of his mistakes, I’d have been happier if he’d learned from them instead of getting worse, lol.)

Things done in fanfic that annoys me: Iiii actually have never read any fic of this series, I don’t think, so I guess I don’t know. I can imagine some things that would and that I wouldn’t be surprised to see done.

Things I look for in fanfic: Well, nothing, but I guess it would be the dynamic that I liked between them in the Good Times. Preferably a ridiculous shenanigans, some near-death experiences, actually talking about their feelings, and a healthy dose of fluff (or h/c). And Gunn being smart as hell, because he is and arguably is better at applying that in practice than Wesley.

My kinks: I am a pure and innocent soul and I don’t even know what a kink is. (Okay, but leaving out the sexual element, I guess even though I was talking about how much I hate Grimdark Wes, I’d probably be interested in hatesex fic set during that period if it was concerned with working out their frustration and betrayal rather than just uncomplicated angry sex) (Also, I can see Wesley being super into Gunn being smart as fuck generally, and specifically into his Lawyer Talk after he got essentially the entire corpus of law and G&S downloaded into his brain. In my head this is not a very sexy thing, it’s very ‘Ooh Mr Darcy’, Wesley is hopelessly enamoured and Gunn is initially bemused but flattered and very quickly gets tired of Wes swooning every time he says something smart, which is way too often for it not to have lost its effect AND YET. And especially if they’re working for Wolfram & Hart together in this scenario, in which case Gunn uses advanced legal terminology often on account of it being his job, which makes it hugely impractical for Wesley to try and jump his bones every time it happens. He’s probably just into the legal jargon and not the Gilbert and Sullivan because that would be a very weird kink and not one I can imagine being sexy at all, but now that I say it, if someone wrote that fic I would read it just out of morbid curiosity.)

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Fred! As well as each other! Guys, polyamory, it’s a thing! (If it had to be other people, I’d probably go for Gunn with Fred and Wes with either Angel or Spike. Probably not Lilah.)

My happily ever after for them: No one dies and Gunn has high self-esteem and Wesley stops fucking up everything he touches. Nothing bad happens and The Gang never have to deal with apocalypses or implausibly huge conspiracies or anything, they just hang out being supernatural detectives and doing Season 1-2 type stuff forever. Possibly they are in a triad with Fred but this is not necessary.