#so more on podfic technique:

[thelaithlyworm]

[ID Against a background of lush greenery, a ruddy fox looks at its reflection in still water. Angular art deco ornaments frame the corners of the picture. Title reads, ‘Fox-Faced, written by Senri, read by Thimblerig’. End ID]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Mugen no Juunin | Blade of the Immortal Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Asano Rin & Hyakurin, Asano Rin/Hyakurin Characters: Hyakurin, Asano Rin Additional Tags: Bathing/Washing, Hurt/Comfort, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Post Edo Castle Raid Summary:

Hyakurin and Rin, the night after Rin's trip through the underground prison.

[weirdthetag]

It is March 1st, 2024, and The Queen’s Thief fanworks challenge Weird the Tag is now live! The collection is open and will remain so until April 1st. There will be a one-week anonymous period to try to spot your friends, and authors will be revealed April 8th.

-

Weird the Tag is a writing and art challenge (not an exchange), with a 100 word minimum for fics, designed to motivate people to expand their creative horizons through Queen's Thief content. This includes fanfiction, fanart of all mediums, video and audio art, filk, podfics, and fan crafts.

What do I mean when I say "weird?" I mean that I started this event because I was inspired by MWT's encouragement to "make bad art," and I want to motivate the fandom to share things that are imperfect or unserious. Create for the joy of it, whether or not you think it's good, canon-compliant, something other people will get, or using techniques you're confident in. Try new things, get a rise out of your friends, share things you're psyching yourself out of posting or are afraid nobody else will be interested in, and embrace tropey fun. Experiment!

-

Ao3 collection, with full information: https://archiveofourown.org/collections/WTT_QT/profile

This blog, with handy links and Moderator contact: https://weirdthetag.tumblr.com/

This year's optional ideas document, if you want to play and need inspiration, with more than 220 suggestions from the fandom: It's a long ugly link to a published Google doc.

-

Happy creating, one and all! The mole god is cheering for you.

[lulu-recs]

a cure for nightmares [+podfic] by picascribit ♡

there's a mysterious new boy at St Godric's boarding school, and Sirius can't stop thinking about him, but the secret Remus is keeping might break Sirius's heart.

fire on fire by wolfstargarden

sirius’ frown deepened. after a moment he murmured in a low voice, “I don’t understand you at all, remus lupin. oh, but I would so very like to.”

a flush crawled boiling heat up remus’ neck as he fumbled for an answer. “goodness sirius ... I’m no one special.”

sirius’ gaze didn’t waver. he said simply, “I think you could be very special to me.”

sun in my eyes by orphan_account ♡

remus lupin struggles with a lot of things in life. bipolar disorder, being poor, and working as an artist. he has a strict routine and plans to keep it that way with the help of his best friends lily and james until one day james' best mate from school shows up and turns everything upside down. when art model sirius enters remus' life like a whirlwind, nothing will ever be the same.

forget-me-not by halictus

for someone who just woke up with amnesia and a bad concussion, remus lupin isn't too dispirited. he'll get through it with the help of his friends, taking it one day at a time, as sirius says. the only (other) problem? there's something important that he's forgetting.

everything circles back to you by gardenoflupins

remus nests for the first time using unusual items and is overwhelmed by the process. sirius supports him the best he can.

drenched in you, chanting your name by gardenoflupins ♡

remus and sirius live together peacefully as friends. when remus has his heats, sirius goes out of town until it’s over and vice versa. sirius returns home to find that remus’s heat has lasted longer than expected and needs to resist remus’s pleas along with his own urge to fuck him senselessly.

forever is a state of mind by orphan_account

deaf dance choreographer, remus lupin, has a simple life. working, taking care of his son, and running his youtube sign channel. when he unwittingly becomes involved with deaf pride activist, fleamont potter, he doesn't realise how much his life will change. especially after he meets youtube star and makeup artist, sirius black.

to reach the soul by orphan_account

when remus lupin is invited to attend a deaf dance academy for part of his bsl level, he doesn't expect to meet someone like sirius black. but the moment he does, his entire world is turned upside down.

we don't need orgasms to feel good by catpotato

it's discovered during a game of truth and dare that james, a trans man, has never had an orgasm. sirius and remus, his boyfriends, learn it's because he can't. they decide to find ways james can still feel good and get release.

m.a.t.e.[s] by diamondmeadows ♡

remus has been single for years, and his solitary heats are getting worse and worse with every passing year. his friends can't stand it anymore and, after a great amount of convincing, sign him up for a matchmaking agency. he never expects to get anything out of it, distrustful of the strangers' techniques to find him a partner. remus is determined to terminate the contract after a single date. but several dates later, he realises he might have been caught in a trap. he keeps coming back to meet more people.... well, to see james and sirius, really, a charming duo working at the agency itself. not that he can be matched with any of them. not that he can stop himself from dreaming about it.

here I am (come and take me) by indicamuse

the room is submerged in the soft guitar and gentle crooning of al green while sirius waits, an expectant look on his face as if he couldn't imagine remus not doing what he asked. remus crumbles. “don’t laugh-” “I would never-” “you certainly would-”

“marauder’s oath”, sirius places a hand over his chest, still clad in the magenta, satin robe. he appreciates the privacy of his flat with gusto, having forgone actual clothing since graduating. “I swear on prongs’ antlers and wormtail’s disgusting rat tail, not to laugh.” he adds in a more serious tone, “I won’t, not about this.”

remus hesitates. takes a breath. “I've never… had sex before. you'd be the first.” sirius’ expression shifts minutely. “alright. and the other thing?” bloody sirius black, nigh impossible to fool. remus sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. “and… I've never managed to… knot before.”

goodbye nostalgia by makki0s

you started cruising again, down the road, this time the lowered windows let in the cool night air and sirius stuck his torso out, eventually deciding on sitting on the window, the only thing keeping him tethered to the car being his legs inside and the hand on the roof that helped balance him. james followed soon after, his foot tapping your thigh as he laughed with Sirius. their screams made you and remus laugh too,

”what are you waiting for?” remus’s deep brown eyes looked at yours through the review mirror and you felt your breath caught in your throat.

the lord of desperate longing by reytheghost

"(...) he had found himself wanting remus, moony, with his gentle voice, to not tell him that it would be okay, but that it was okay and fucked up, but okay still, and that was when he realised – in a daze, while frantic thoughts were racing through his mind, making everything he had unconsciously been hiding for so long known in the most brutal way – that no, remus lupin was not only a friend."

sirius has a lot feelings, remus has his own issues too, and james is a very good best friend.

wildest dreams by solmussa ♡

“how gorgeous?” mary asks. she’s leaning so far forward her chair is balanced on two legs only. remus lets out a dreamy sigh. “cover of a magazine gorgeous.” “damn.” “yeah,” remus says. “anyway. it was all very��� uhm… idyllic, I guess.” “you mean romantic,” lily chimes, smiling. “what happened?”

with a heartfelt sigh, remus drops his face on the desk and groans, “he ghosted me. said he’d text me. said he’d freaking visit me in wales,” here he looks up and clarifies, “I didn’t know I was going to stay in london. this was a last minute change.” he drops his head back down, forehead on the polished table. “he said all the right things and I got my hopes up and it’s been a week and he hasn’t responded to any of my texts.”

or wolfstar grease au

tattoos, leather jackets, and an attitude problem by solmussa

one shot with a little wolfstar angst <3 modern muggle au

reeled by lunchbucket

remus decides to finally spend a summer day with his childhood best friend, sirius, after not seeing him for three years. but when old feelings quickly start to resurface, remus is left feeling like no time has passed at all.

sweater weather by lumosinlove ���

remus works for the gryffindor lions as a physical trainer, and has been half in love with sirius black, the lions' heartthrob captain, for a while now, but he never expected sirius to return the feelings. read if you like cute nicknames, slow burn, and pining. yep. that's it.

disintegration by moonymoment (ongoing) ♡

remus stepped into sirius’ personal space, leaning down and taking out his holy water doused dagger from his pouch. he placed it flat underneath sirius’ chin, pushing his head up to look him in the eyes. he hissed as the silver burnt him, red and vicious.

“what,” he whispered, “are you doing here?” sirius looked pained for a second, and then he blinked, and that stupid, cocky smile lit up his face once more. “wouldn’t you like to know, pretty boy?”

or — sirius and remus have been trying to kill each other for eight years, but something always seems to be standing in the way.

[lordgrimwing]

[thought the colors and lighting looked kind of cool in the recording booth today]

I've decided to work on smaller, one shot podfics for the time being rather than starting another epic. This way, I've have more leeway for learning more editing and special effects on a variety of stories instead of feeling bound to a single technique for consistencies sake.

I say this because if anyone's written a shorter fic (let's say, 3000 words or less) and wouldn't mind having a podfic of it, I am actively searching for things to read! So, you know, hit me up. If it involves interesting voice editing opportunities (mind speak, the voices of divine powers, etc) all the better.

[hullomoon]

15 for the ask game!

15. Are there are other writers or artists who have inspired you?

oh golly no pressure 😅 it might be cheesy but the first person i think of is my sibling @hullosweetpea i'm just always in awe of their prose and craft.

for podficcing, i would say my friends! everyone is always so free with their knowledge and the more i listen the more i think about different ways i can pod. they always encourage me to try new techniques and i just feel so supported!

send me an end of year ask!

[cap-ironman]

2021 Cap-Iron Man Exchange Gifts unveiled on December 24

It’s the first day of reveals! Each day we will be revealing gifts created by 2021 Cap-Iron Man Holiday Exchange and Community Gifts event participants. The gifts will remain anonymous until January 5, giving everyone a chance to enjoy the works and guess the identities of creators. (Remember, if you've got a work in the collection, please remain anonymous until after creator reveals!)

Here are today’s gifts!

★ Annoyance is a Valid Wingman Technique for Not_Crazy_Just_a_Fangirl (MCU, 2645 Words)

Steve did not have a thing for Howard Stark, thank you very much. Tony Stark, on the other hand...

★ Coming for you for Lets_call_me_Lily (Noir, 5004 Words)

★ Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree for UisceOneLove (Avengers Assemble, 2712 Words)

"How is a skinny kid like you going to rescue the great adventurer Tony Stark?"

"Oh boy," Rhodes mutters.

"Excuse me?" Steve says, raising his tone and bristling even more.

"Now you've gone and made Steve mad," Pepper says, shaking her head with a desolate expression.

Tony's plans for the Christmas tree keep getting thwarted. How can he pull off his holiday surprise?

★ [Podfic] No Such Thing As Normal for Cathalinaheart (616, 00:11:00 time)

“I understand if you want to break up,” Steve said, the words spilling out of his mouth like they were hot on his tongue. He hadn’t meant to say it quite like that and not so early in the conversation, but it’s out there now, loud and heavy between them and he can’t pretend he didn’t say it.

★ Pose (You've Gotta Save Your Reputation) for starvels (3490, 6275 words)

@/AP BREAKING: Stark Industries freight ship has discovered Captain Steven G. Rogers, decorated World War II hero and “Captain America”, in the midst of Arctic expedition.

★ Sky for the Cap Iron Man Community (616, 2497 Words)

For the prompt: “Hydra Cap/Tony non-con.”

To check out all of this year’s gifts (so far!), head over to the 2021 Captain America/Iron Man Holiday Exchange AO3 Collection.

When your gift is revealed, please be sure to comment and thank your gifter!

If you’re the creator of a gift that’s now been revealed, you can reply to any comments and stay anonymous — AO3 will automatically show you as "Anonymous Author" until the creator reveals.

Finally, you may want to change the publication date of your work to today’s date so that it shows up at the top of AO3's feeds. AO3’s guide is available here and we have a more detailed version here.

Happy holidays, and we hope you enjoy all of the revealed works!

♥ Your 2021 Cap-Iron Man Holiday Exchange and Community Gifts mods

[mayonnaisetoffees]

saw your tags about reading a textbook on old english for podfic reasons---please tell me more! 👀

We're doing a multivoice podfic of the Merlin fic And like the cycle of the year, we begin again and I'm Merlin. Part of the fic involves him casting spells which the author has done in Old English like the show did

Fun fact about me is that I have a BA in Linguistics and most of my optional modules in second and third year were around the history of English and a specific Old English module. In fact my dissertation was a translation of an OE poem, an analysis of my translation, and then an analysis of a bunch of other translations. I very nearly did an integrated masters/PhD on translation techniques in dead languages (looking at the effects new translation techniques had on how we translate works and whether the discovery of new works affects this) with a specific focus on Old English but just before I handed in the paperwork I asked myself what are you DOING?? and did not do that

Anyway so I'm rereading one of my textbooks (Introduction to Old English 3rd ed. Peter S. Baker) to refamiliarise myself with the pronunciation "rules" for OE (and going on MANY tangents because this stuff is INTERESTING and it's great to get a go at it now that I'm not a. being assessed on it and b. dealing with depression) to help figure out how the words should sound.

I'm also using the website associated with the textbook (Old English Aerobics) to find where the words are used in OE texts and if there is audio for them, listening to that. Then because even if there IS audio, it's not in the sentence structure of the lines, I'm putting my pronunciation notes together (and looking a bit at the section of my textbook on syllable length/accentuation) to figure out how the sentence should be said as a whole.

I'm then wandering around the house saying the line over and over until it sounds natural. I've actually realised as I'm typing this, that I've been putting the stress in the wrong place on the line I'm currently working on so back to the drawing board on that one!

This answer got away from me a bit but yes that's why I'm reading an OE textbook for podfic purposes 😂

[flamingwell]

2, 21 and 29 for the podfic meme?

Thanks for asking! (Oooh, I’m very excited!)

This is from the 30 Questions for Podficcers meme, which anyone is very much encouraged to ask me more about, I love gushing about podfic!

2. Is there a trope, style or technique you really want to try?

I would like to try soundscaping! I've done opening soundscapes a few times (I'm thinking about Loyalty and Three Months, but One Day Shy, beware the tags), but I've never done soundscaping through the entire fic. I have one that I am very very very slowly working on tho. Maybe I'll even finish it one day. Soundscaping is so freaking hard, y'all!

21. Is there a podfic of yours you’d like to remake from start to finish?

Honestly, not really. I don't post things that I'm not happy with, and even my earlier stuff (which isn't that long ago!) I'm still quite pleased with. Yeah, my equipment wasn't as good and I'm learning new editing skills every day, but I don't think it detracts for me and I hope it doesn't for my listeners. Besides, I'm not sure I would have the patience to redo something. I get really excited about applying new things I learned to future projects, but I wouldn't have the same excitement about redoing something I've already done.

29. Talk about your current wips.

Well, in terms of wips that I've already started recording, that's surprisingly thin on the ground atm. I usually am only actively working on a small number of projects at the same time, but I'll generally have at least 2 or 3 in progress at a given time. Right now, just after Voiceteam? I've only got one. That's the soundscaping project that I mentioned above! It's Night Bus by @suspiciouspopsicle , and the first time that I read the fic, I swear to God I heard an entire soundscape in my head and I desperately want to bring it to life. But holy hell y'all, did I mention that soundscaping is hard?? Like I have A Vision (what's the audio equivalent of a vision?) that I want to bring to life, but even finding the sound effects that sound exactly (or even somewhat) like what I have in my head is Very Very Difficult, much less actually adding them to the podfic. It's sure going to put all of my editing skills to the test, and require me to grow a bunch of new ones! Which is obviously part of the fun! Plus it's just such a good fic you guys, seriously, go read it!!

Then I have a few that I am actively prepping scripts for (even when I'm not working with others, I make sure that all my pronunciation notes and tone markers are in a script, so I can count that as an active wip, right?). One I'm working with a partner on, so I won't say anything about that one since I'm not sure how secretive we are being, but the other is the devastating Drowning in the Sun by @overzelos , aka what if Jiang Cheng was aware but paralyzed during the core surgery? Suuuper up my angst and Yunmeng feels alleys, I'd been working up the courage to ask about that one for a while, and then fate threw me in Zelos' path and who was I to say no? And Zelos said yes, so I'm very excited to get that one started!

[fireandfolds]

not much left to do (even less to say)

anna finds elsa writing, and has a question about it.

read on ao3 or keep reading

note: this fic was written for a writing challenge hosted by a fun fanfic/podfic server, audiofrickbooks. the prompt was “feelings” and i had to write it between 200-1,000 words. join here if you want: https://discord.gg/jufpfE5vwx i hope you enjoy!

———

“Hey, Els?”

”Mhm?” The blonde looked up from the paperwork she was poring over. She’d finally convinced her advisors that her decision to abdicate was not a result of hysteria.

They were reluctant to heed such an order, but they could not refuse the Queen. Even as she was making her exit.

Elsa had previously enlisted Anna’s help in areas she had less expertise in, which is why she knew her younger sister would be the perfect successor. She was a quick study and had skills that Elsa did not. She was charismatic, sociable and empathetic. What she lacked in grace and poise she made up for with passion and drive. Her naïveté had matured into optimistic cheeriness that made her the perfect leader for a sleepy, pacifistic kingdom.

One thing that hadn’t changed from their younger years was the distinct lack of order about Anna. She always had her sleeves rolled up, unafraid to put some elbow grease into things. Currently, she had a dirt streak on her cheekbone and a tear in her trousers.

“Why’re you writing with your left hand?”

Elsa took off her reading glasses and set them on the desk, temple tips pointing up. “My goodness Anna, what did you get yourself into today?”

Anna waved off her concern. “Oh, not much. I helped Head of Construction Peter with a chicken coop, and then I heard from the Orphanage Director Janne. She said she wanted an audience with the Queen, so I took some notes so I could tackle her concerns when I have the throne. Oh, don’t worry,” Anna quickly assured her, “I didn't tell her about the abdication business. Janne’s a gossip and if word gets out before the official announcement I’d have a lot of fires to put out and a very annoyed council.”

Plopping herself in the seat next to Elsa, the redhead continued. “I just got back from swordfighting practice with General Mattias and Lieutenant Minji. He warned me that his right-hand woman wouldn’t go easy on me, and as usual he didn’t lie.”

“Do I need to scold anyone for maiming the Crown Princess?”

“Nope, she only got my pants. She apologised and offered to stitch it up after. I got her on the upper arm, but I don’t think she was very mad at all, more impressed. Oh! She offered to teach you some self-defence, in case you were ever without your powers. If you’re interested.”

The blonde inclined her head. “I’ll be sure to tell her I would be interested. It would be nice to mix Arendellian techniques with the Northuldran things Honeymaren’s been teaching me.” Reaching into a pocket hidden in the folds of her dress, she pulled out a handkerchief and gently coaxed her sister closer. Rubbing away the dirt, she felt her heart thumping in her ears. How many times had she done this when they were younger, before they had been forced apart? How many years had Elsa been afraid of her powers, afraid to get close to anyone?

It was only the love of her sister that thawed her overly-cautious heart. As she kissed Anna gently on the forehead, she was suddenly pushed backwards.

“Oh, hey, you never answered my question! But I just remembered it after seeing you pull your hankie with your left hand out of your left pocket. And even though the dirt was on this cheek,” Anna gestured to the left side of her face, “you still used your left hand. what’s up with that?”

Elsa shrugged helplessly. “Well, I'm left-handed. Or I was.”

“How can you be past-tense left-handed?”

The Snow Queen coughed as she felt the temperature dip. “I am… ambidextrous against my will.”

“What do you mean?” Anna’s tone wasn’t accusatory, rather gentle and inquisitive. It calmed her down as she thought of the best way to explain.

Chewing the inside of her cheek, she slowly spoke. “Anna, do you remember how you described Lieutenant Minji?”

The other woman blinked. “Nope, I forget most things the moment I say them.”

“Okay, fair. You called her the General’s right-hand woman. There's a reason for that: the right is associated with positive, good things.”

A blank stare looked back at Elsa. She smiled fondly.

“The left is associated with evil, immorality, weakness, bad luck, and uncleanliness. In a lot of languages, left is a synonym of ‘incorrect’ or ‘weird’. People used to be tortured or executed if they used their left hand. And for a Queen to use her left hand… it simply wouldn’t be a good omen.” She looked down at her hands, clenching them into fists. “From the age of 3, our tutor held my left hand down and made me complete tasks with my right. We focused on writing, eating, and public speaking mostly. General Mattias offered to teach me swordfighting right handed, but everyone else decided that wasn’t a good idea.”

Afraid to look up, Elsa shifted uncomfortably and felt the cold in the room leak into her chest. Her next words were directed to the floor. “After our parents died, I stopped caring. I was breaking new ground with my powers. I still hid it, however. But now that I know myself better, I’m trying to accept all my quirks. No more hiding.”

The hug came out of left field. Elsa, who’d been sitting on the edge of her seat, hit the backrest with a quiet oof.

“I’m so proud of you. You know I love you, right?” Anna leaned back and flicked tears out of her eyes. “E, I’ll write a decree that lefties shouldn’t be discriminated against or forced to use their right hand. I’ll pitch it right after the anti-homosexual discrimination decree I’ve drafted.”

The cold seeped away as her chest became comfortably warm. She chuckled, “And how about right now?”

“I’m hugging my favourite person.”

“Love you too, Anna.”

———

wc 981

read on ao3

thanks for reading <3

[extremelynormalblog]

Meme for podficcers - number 14, 1, and/or 2 as you desire to answer. 🙂

Describe your comfort zone—a typical you-podfic. 

I think for me, the first requirement is that I am familiar with the fandom. I am very uncomfortable podding "fandom-blind." Then, something that has a happy ending, and usually it's going to be something with humour and/or feelings and/or hot sex, preferably all three! Strong internal POV is also a recurring feature.

2. Is there a trope, style or technique you really want to try?

I don't know if there are many things I haven't tried at this point! I used to do mostly "straight readings" when I started podficcing, but over the last couple of years I've tried a lot of new things - including music, soundscaping, heavy sound effects, epistolary, no editing, dialogue-only, live multivoices... (Many of them thanks to the @voiceteam challenge!)

I guess one thing that I haven't done is like, work with a "podfic director?" Someone who would give me notes on my performance during the recording, so that's a thing for the future still :p

3. If you could only voice one character for the rest of your life, who would it be and why?

Oh man, this is HARD because I have many many faves at this point. I'm tempted to say Stede from OFMD at the moment because that's who I'm the most into right now -- it's a very distinctive voice, which is always a fun challenge, but it also has a lot of range if you do it well, so you can do crack but also more serious moments, from insecurity to tenderness etc. But it might be a bit *much* as a forever voice, so actually, I really don't know!!

[austerlitzborodinoleipzig]

Tolkien Secret Santa Advent Calendar Day 4: Ice Skating

For @officialtolkiensecretsanta​ ‘s Advent Calendar.

A/N : ideally this should have been a podfic. Unfortunately i don’t have anything to properly record it. If anybody wants to go ahead and do it, they are more than welcome to do so! :)

Men Short Program -  Elven Skating Union Grand Prix Final - Tol Eressëa 2020

Extracts from the commentary of the Men’s SP at the 2020 Grand Prix Final

Broadcaster : Winter Sports NBC (Noldorin Broadcast Company)

Commentators : Glorfindel and Ecthelion

- Six have made it through. The six best skaters in the world right now. This could be something special. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Men's event of the Grand Prix Final

- And here they are: Finrod, of the Teleri, Beleg from Doriath, Egalmoth of the Noldor, Fingon of the Noldor, Denethor of the Nandor and Maedhros of the Noldor.

- That's the line up and if you're a skating fan, you know you're in for something very special. For the first time in the season, Fingon and Maedhros will go head to head. This should be a great competition. Both have won this event in the past. Maedhros has won it no less than five times. Fingon is the defending champion.

- It's going to be interesting to see this battle enfold. Fingon is the favourite here. Reigning world champion. Won in Alqualondë and in Menegroth. In fact he's been undefeated for a season and a half. He is sensational and he is in great shape.

- Can he handle the pressure though? Because it's his first time going against Maedhros who skipped last season in order to recover from his ankle injury. As impressive as Fingon's track record is, he has yet to take down the sacred monsters of this sport, so to speak. As for Maedhros, well two weeks ago at the Cup of the Noldor, we saw...

- Well it was virtual perfection; you can't expect it to be any better than what he just did.

- But can he be anywhere near as good as he may have to be, with the talent that's around?

- That's what we are going to find out in a couple of minutes, meanwhile the four other skaters are all worthy opponents, starting with this guy, who is going to open the event. Finrod, of the Teleri. 

(...)

- For me this guy here has been the revelation of the Grand Prix, in all four disciplines. Second in Valmar, second in Tirion... He'll be eighteen next Thursday!

- There he goes. Young man from Alqualondë, always a joy to watch. We wish him all the best today.

- If you haven't seen this program already, you're gonna love it. Finrod of the Teleri. Skating to Danse Macabre, by Camille Saint-Saëns.

- Ohoh? What's happening?

- I think they may have put on the wrong track. We're looking for Saint-Saëns.

- Yes and this is very much not it.

- Crowd being really supportive.

- Oh this awful. So much unneeded pressure when you're competing at your first Grand Prix Final.

- Ah finally, here we go.

(...)

- Wow! Bring it on he said! Absolutely skated out of his skin. Unbelievable after all the drama with the music at the beginning.

- I love the way the music moves him, he's such a natural. Just great to watch.

- What a great way to start this event! Well done to the team around him! The score is going to be high, that's as good as I've seen him skate.

- They are showing the quad toe on the screen. Was it all the way around?

- Slightly under-rotated I think. In fact... Yes the technical panel has called it. But his second mark will be much better.

- Very good. I love that program, as you rightly said, he's one with the music all the way through.

- He's got a season's best of 94.76. In fact, it's his personal best.

- His choreographer, Indis, looking very pleased with that performance.

- Well that short program is an absolute banger, she did a splendid job.

- Oh yes. 96.71, this is a dream start for Finrod.

 (...)

- Here is is, only twenty years of age. Already a two-time world champion. Defending champion of the Grand Prix Final. Fingon. Skating to Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, by Elton John. Two quadruple jumps scheduled in the short. What can he do?

 (...)

- Well that was just something special. You have to take your hat off to this guy. With all the pressure around him, coming unto this event as the favourite and throwing down such a skate. Technically perfect.

- Yes, textbook technique on all of his jumps.

- And so much progress in terms of artistry. He's not the most flexible skater, he can't pull off elaborate spins like Maedhros but he has chosen a really modern style of skating, with sharp, angular movements and it really fits him.

- They are showing the quad lutz here.

- It's ridiculous how easy he makes it look. That's the most difficult quad there is and he just casually lands it like he is at practice, doing a run-through.

- I've never seen his coach so relaxed.

- Well Fingolfin knows it's gonna go into the lead, no doubt about that, but by how much?

- He's gonna blow past the 100 points mark...

- 104.38! Way past his personal best.

- Remarkable. He's only six points away from the world record.

 - Speaking of world records...

- Here we go. The last competitor this evening, Maedhros. His achievements are incredible. Five time Grand Prix Final champion. Three times world champion. He has missed the past season due to an injury, and has come back in the most spectacular manner, setting up new world records for the short, the free program, and the total score two weeks ago at the Tirion Grand Prix.

- Just when you think he cannot possibly get better, he goes and proves you wrong. Ladies and gentlemen, Maedhros Feänorion, skating to Adios, by Benjamin Clementine.

 (...)

- Well... That was not the skate he wanted.

- He skated his heart out, but with this level of competition, you have to be perfect, and that fall on the quad salchow is...

- He knows he's handed Fingon a present tonight. He's the supreme competitor but tonight he made a crucial mistake. Just how expensive will it be?

- Well his artistry is superior to anybody else in the field at this moment, I should think his second mark will be quite high. The technical panel is reviewing the elements. Everything is perfect, highest levels so far, but of course he fell on his opening jump

- But that program, it really is something else. The transitions, the details, all the way through are just to die for. Spins brilliant, step sequence unparalleled. The focus never left him even after the mistake.

- They are not looking very happy in the kiss and cry tonight. It wasn't what they were looking for.

- And here we go...

- 98.43 for Maedhros, that is a very good score considering...

- Yes, he goes comfortably into second place.

- Coach Feänor is not very happy with that score.

- Well they know they will have to throw down the perfect skate tomorrow in the free event to catch up with Fingon

- Well that concludes the men's short program. Fingon wins the short program, with a perfect skate. In second place, despite a costly mistake sits Maedhros. The newcomer, Finrod is in third. Just below him, Beleg sits in fourth. Careful, this guy is known for his strong come backs in the free skate, he will be gunning for a podium spot tomorrow. In fifth we have Denethor, and last, after a not so great performance, there’s Egalmoth. Thank you very much for staying with us and we hope to see you all tomorrow for the free!

[atamascolily]

Fic meme

Thanks to @thebyrchentwigges for the tag and the excuse to ramble on about my fics!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 162, 12 of which are podfics under the lilypods pseud. Mostly shorter fics and one-shots, but some multichapter novellas and three novels!

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 928,500

3. How many fandoms have you written for and what are they? TOO MANY TO COUNT, LOL. Various Star Wars (mostly Legends, some OT, a smattering of ST), Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Adventures of Sinbad have the most fics at the moment.

I really love crossovers and small niche fandoms, so that ups the number considerably.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

-In the Reptile House, a Harry Potter/Good Omens short.

-Through A Glass Darkly, a Star Wars Sequel Trilogy fix-it by way of Legends (novel)

-Total Eclipse - short Star Wars crackfic inspired by the North American eclipse of August 2017.

-Moebius, a Bleach/Puella Magi Madoka Magica crossover (novel)

-Four Fathers, short Star Wars OT character study.

5. Do you respond to comments, why or why not? Generally yes, though I make exceptions for any comment that is rude, belittling, or trolling. I’ll try and give someone the benefit of the doubt if they’re on the edge, but if they repeat the behavior, then they lose their “communication with the author” privileges. and I do not engage with them. 

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending? if I could turn back time, a Clannad/Puella Magi Madoka Magica crossover, which, given the source material totally checks out.

7. Do you write crossovers? If so, what is the craziest one you’ve written? I LOVE CROSSOVERS SO MUCH! The most unlikely one is probably The Dry Land, which is a Star Wars/Earthsea crossover. But shoutout to Provocodictory, which is a Young Wizards/Princess Bride drabble.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic? Yes.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? Very little. I’m more of a fade to black kinda of person. My deepest respect for smut writers, though--it’s so hard and they do an amazing job of it!

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I know of, at least.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated? Yes! Words for the Dead, a Star Wars OT missing scene, in French as Quelques mots pour les morts by Perspicacia.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before? No, but I’m up for it with the right person.

13. What’s your all-time favourite ship? must you make me choose? Sigh. Maeve/Sinbad from Adventures of Sinbad, and Luke Skywalker/Mara Jade from Star Wars Legends will always have a special place in my heart.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will? *looks at folder and sighs*

15. What are your writing strengths? I know what I like, and I write a lot of it. Details, descriptions, creative and vivid imagery. Character studies and clever set-ups. Blending two diverse universes together into a coherent whole.

16. What are your writing weaknesses? Action scenes. Smut. Original characters and the necessary mechanics to make original fiction work. Scenes with lots of characters interacting.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? Like any trope or technique, it depends on the circumstances and context! I've seen it done skillfully and I’ve seen it done poorly. For me, if the POV character isn’t meant to understand what’s being said, I’ll throw in snippets if relevant (and put the translation in the notes), otherwise I generally provide a translation in the text itself. There are lots of creative ways to do this that don’t disrupt the flow of the story. For me, it’s best used sparingly, like salt or spices in a recipe--a little goes a long way and too much can be overwhelming or just too distracting.

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for? Probably LOTR, but I have handwritten fanfics of the Adventures of Sinbad from the late ‘90s that I treasure.

19. What’s your favourite fic you’ve written? Must I choose? I love all my fics, but special shoutouts to Trompe-l'oeil and asynchronous--two PMMMs shorts--and Take My Breath Away, a Star Wars Legends Luke/Mara hanahaki fic, all three of which are dear to my heart.

[rhetoricalk]

2020 CREATOR WRAP

rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 (or so) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

Thank you to @alamborghini and @wild-aloof-rebel for tagging me to do this, and apologies in advance that this is going to be kinda long!

In this year of despair, distance, and staying at home, I tried to push myself creatively and experiment with digital art, illustrations, learned to make gifs the proper way, edit videos, tried podficcing, tried new techniques, and built on my software skills.

Here are some of the works and collaborations that showcase that, under the cut:

1. Something You Keep

Written and recorded for Pod_Together 2020, this was one of the best group projects I’ve ever worked on, and I could not have asked for a better and more collaborative team to do this with, who endlessly listened to me and my mad rambles and supported me tirelessly! I absolutely adore this Ted/Alexis story written by @doublel27 and enjoyed brainstorming on this so, so much.

Not only did I serve as the artist on this project, but this was also my first foray into podficcing and I learned so much from @sunlightsymphony, @amanitaceaeveil, and @ships-to-sail. Their voicework, soundscaping and editing is phenomenal on this, and I am just in awe of them! This was also my friend Elswhrefumbling’s first podfic and I’m thrilled that we were in this together.

I created multiple different sorts of artwork for this, including multimedia posts, and came up with an art installation concept. Below is the movie poster style cover art that I made for this fic/podfic, that also comes with an extra back cover with the entire "cast" list.

2. SC Sports Fest I created all of the graphics for this fest, including all of the ‘collectible sports cards’ that we posted as promotional graphics on Tumblr. They can all be found on the @scsportsfest page. I really enjoyed this challenge so much (incorporating all kinds of competitive games and sports, and having a broad variety of Schitt’s Creek Characters. I’m (mostly) pleased with how they turned out. This one, is probably my favourite of the lot.

3. [Filk]Oh, There Could Be No Other

My biggest undertaking perhaps, has been creating this Filk. I wrote, performed, illustrated, and animated this. And of all of those things, the writing was the biggest challenge and took ridiculously longer than I could’ve imagined (This is why I don’t write, haha). I have no idea why I chose to do this, but, I had the idea, I had pieces of the process of how it would all come together, and I’m very pleased that it’s almost exactly how I’d envisioned it.

Here’s a kind of non-spoilery screenshot from the filk, if you haven’t had a chance to see/listen to it yet.

4. I am stupidly happy with my take on the Cabaret poster that I created for @januarium, for the criminally underrated fic Home At Last

5. I went back to my childhood roots, to create the hand-drawn illustrations with colour pencils for the gorgeous fic Must Have Been Some Magic, written by for @sunlightsymphony. It was so fun to make these panels that were inspired by the original artwork from the book and movie, The Snowman, that can be found here. The front cover is my favourite panel of them all.

An honourable mention to my first ever gifset, that I’d made for the SC gif Advent (which I was unable to participate in because of other real life things that came up. But I hope that I am able to make more gifs in the coming year. I’m so grateful for all the wonderful opportunities I’ve had this year to collaborate with amazing creators, and friends. Thank you for making this year survivable!

—

I’m going to pay it forward by tagging a few folks, I’m unsure who’s done this already, but here goes: @high-seas-swan, @doublel27, @sunlightsymphony, @landofsonlali, @anniemurphys, @earnmysong, @januarium, @petrodobreva, @lisamc-21, @danieljradcliffe, @roguebebe, and whoever else wants to do this!!

[cap-ironman]

2022 Cap-Iron Man Remix Event Announcement

Our Cap-Iron Man Remix Event is here! The event will run from 5 December 2020 to the end of February 2022. 

Event Sign-Up Schedule

Remix Relay and Remix Exchange: December 5 - December 19 Remix Madness: December 5 - February 20

For the full event schedule and the guidelines for each challenge, please refer to our Remix Event Information Masterpost. Announcements for all Remix Event challenges will be posted on Dreamwidth, LiveJournal, Tumblr, and Twitter. Please keep an eye out on our usual channels for sign-ups opening!

More information under the cut

So what is a remix?

A fanwork remix is a transformation of an existing fanwork. Much like with song remixes and remix tapes remixing a fanwork is your chance to create a different version of another person’s fanwork. This is your invitation to re-imagine another person's work by putting your own spin to it using different techniques (for example, changing the style, tone or narrative voice…) while maintaining some of its original elements like the general plot. Remixing a fanwork can mean switching POV or composition, changing the tone or mood of a story, writing a timestamp or drawing a missing scene, or even transplanting a fic or picture into a new universe. Still not sure what that entails? Be sure to read through our How To Remix post for guidelines and examples before you sign up! This event will consist of three challenges: Remix Exchange, Remix Relay, and Remix Madness.

Remix Exchange

The Remix Exchange is a fanwork exchange between artists, fanvidders, fic writers and podficcers, where everyone is assigned to another participant and expected to choose and remix at least one of the available works. Your remixer can remix any of your Stevetony works (aside from one "safe work" per format of your choosing). You must be 18+ to sign up for this challenge. For more information, check out the full Remix Exchange page and our Remix FAQ. Sign-ups open on 5 December.

Remix Relay

Relay Remix is a fast-paced remix chain for artists and writers. For those of you who like the idea of continued remixes and thinking up remix ideas on your feet this is the challenge for you! You must be 18+ to sign up for this challenge. For more information, check out the full Remix Relay page and our Remix FAQ. Sign-ups open on 5 December.

Remix Madness

Madness is a low-stress, no obligation event open to all creators of all work formats (drabbles, podfic, graphic edits, sketches, fanvids etc.). During Madness, you are welcome to create as many remixes as you want or feel comfortable with! There are no age restrictions for this challenge. For more information, check out the full Remix Madness page and our Remix FAQ. Remix Madness will open on 5 December. If you have any questions, check out this year's event guidelines, email cap.im.events@gmail.com or get in touch with the mods another way. We can't wait to get started!

[jackabelle73]

Fanfic asks: 11, 12, 13!

11. Would you like to try any new fanfic genres or tropes this year?

I keep telling myself that I should try writing smut... it seems to be popular with readers for some weird reason. :-P Furthermore, there are some stories and character development arcs I want to tell, that really do need sex scenes to tell them properly. So I need to stop shying away from that, but it’s a mental block for me. 

Aside from that, I’d like to get braver about writing angst. I shy away from that sometimes as well, and end up writing ‘angst lite’ if I include the angst at all. 

12. Will you change anything about the way you edit or rewrite this year?

Uh... do more of it? Or in some cases, any rewriting or editing at all? Ugh... the number of fics I’ve written and then posted immediately, with no more than a cursory proofread for typos. I’d like to find out what kind of writer I could be, if I actually wrote more than one draft of a fic. 

13. Aside from fanfic, are there any other fan works you’d like to try creating? Fanart, or fanvids, gifsets, or podfic?

I learned how to make gifs last year (or year before?), but I’m still not very good or very fast at it. I’d like to do more of it, so it becomes easier, and push myself into more advanced gif techniques. Fanart isn’t going to happen, b/c I can barely draw stick figures. I’ve made a couple fanvids for Rumbelle fandom, but they didn’t get the response I was hoping for (especially for the amount of time I spent on them), so I doubt I’ll ever make another. 

Thanks for sending an ask! 

FANFIC ASKS FOR THE NEW YEAR

[glassesandkim]

31, 41, 42

31. What’s the nicest thing someone has ever said about your writing?

My sixth grade teacher, Mr. Ray, asked me to read a short story/memoir that I wrote about running a relay race to my class. After reading it, he said he wanted to show the class what voice in writing sounds like. That moment was very special to me because it was the first time I was told my writing was good. It really sparked my love for writing and a lot of the times, when I am writing today, I always think, would Mr. Ray love this? Would he think I have voice in this piece? 

(I mean, I don’t think Mr. Ray would wanna read my stories about gay boys but look, I think he’d be a little bit proud at my technique at least????? rofl)

41. List and link to 5 fanfics you are currently reading:

Er… I’m not reading any fanfics right now (oops!). I do have a bunch of books I plan to read/am reading if anyone’s interested in knowing. All books about queer characters because that’s really all I read lately unless it’s a fantasy or sci-fi book. Reminds me of one semester where all 4 courses I took were related to queer lit or sexuality studies and my friends were like, “Wth, how did you even find these courses????” I mean, we looked at porn for one class so I’m having waaaay more fun than you guys LOL

42. List and link to 5 fanfiction authors who are amazing:

@inkandowl​ like fuck damn shit, you are so amazing and I know you know because I spam you with my reactions all the time.

@ivyblossom​ is like OG god of fanfiction. I used to be in the Johnlock fandom and “The Progress of Sherlock Holmes” is a masterpiece. The podfic of it was also so beautiful and moving. Also “Blue Vase” for drarry is probably my all time fave drarry fic. 

@schmicoismysunsword​ should just replace all the grey’s writers because their writing and ideas and predictions are always on point.

Closer wrote “The New Deal” which is a Suits fanfic and it’s not slash and it’s just about brothers and sigh, I think about this fic a lot. 

Another OG: Cinnamon who wrote “A Beautiful World”, which is a fic that tears my entire soul apart every time I read it. 

And of course, the lovely @orthoglasses​ who has a entire library’s worth of schmico goodness and lots of cool aus like damn