#this is the most indulgent thing I've ever written no one wants this except me and that's okay

[tobias-hankel]

❤️2023 Quan-Tea-Co Fics Recs🖤

The wonderful members of our discord server, Quan-Tea-Co, have written a lot of fanfics this year - this is the rec list!

🖤 SFW No Ship Fics

the friendship we have is a rare find by cherubcurls, Gen, In and out. “I've got this.” she affirmed to herself breathily, looking down at her hands that held two cups of coffee rather than one, still steaming, still fresh. Her heart swelled with affection. She grinned, “We've got this.” OR; Penelope and Spencer agree to meet up to have a study session before finals. A couple of things change and they end up not studying at all.

and i saw my life in photographs of faded memories by whateverislovely, Gen, Morgan reminds him just a little too much of the football players who bullied him relentlessly all through high school and even college. He’s big and imposing, with bulging muscles and a look on his face that says, Are you kidding me? when Hotch informs him that Spencer is the newest member of the BAU team. Five times Spencer misinterprets Morgan's intentions, and one time he's finally able to straighten things out.

where do we begin to get clean again by whateverislovely, Teen, Spencer often participates in toasts with the group using water or tea or potato chips instead of alcohol. This fic explores the events that may have led him to stop drinking.

silence like a cancer grows by whateverislovely, Teen, Diana doesn’t forgive Spencer for having her institutionalized… at least, not right away.

❤️Mature No Ship Fics

Surrender by @starzzyeyed, Mature, He doesn't want this, not really. He never wanted it. But he's in too deep now, and getting out seems less and less possible as the days trickle on, like sand through an hourglass. Or: An in depth look at Reid's addiction, and what it might have been like for him.

what’s this, the consequences of my actions? by cherubcurls, Mature, Because Spencer wasn’t used to safe. He needed adrenaline to pump through his veins and soften the blow for him to have a good day. His family never really liked how violent he was. OR; Spencer comes back home from a particularly horrible fight and his Dad is less than amused.

Solved Game by Boots17, Mature, Solved game: a game whose outcome can be correctly predicted from any position, assuming that the game is played perfectly. A season 12 canon divergence in which Mr. Scratch dies a little too early, Reid accepts the plea deal, and Cat Adams plays a very long game. Years later, the two finally get their rematch.

Ships are under the cut

🖤SFW Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid

A Gentle Touch Hurts So Much by ProfessorWorm, Gen, Spencer has unaddressed childhood fears dredged up by Aaron’s attempt to help him recover from his knee injury.

Day 4 - FFC - Second Love by a1_kitkat, Teen, Spencer never much cared for anniversaries, neither does Aaron… this time there’s an exception.

There Are Secrets That We Still Have Left To Find by @starzzyeyed, Not Rated, Spencer Reid is seven years old the first time he comes out to anyone. Three times Spencer comes out, across three different points in his life, all with three very different outcomes.

❤️NSFW/Mature Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid

Subscribed by AestheticTek and @goobzoop, Explicit, After stressful cases, Hotch finds that camming in lingerie helps him to decompress, while Reid happens to stumble upon the most attractive man that greatly resembles his biggest crush, his boss.

The Absence of Sound by BluePenguinLightning, Mature, The sudden onslaught of sounds startled Spencer Reid awake, not that he ever slept well anyway. He hadn’t slept well in two hundred and seventy-four days. In all honesty, he wasn’t even sure how he managed to make it that far. In which Reid somehow manages to survive a sadistic psychopath but that's only the beginning.

kill your indulgences by cherubcurls, Explicit, Hotch was his; his to keep, his to possess, his to feed on. “No,” he tried to mumble. As best as he could with his canines still firmly lodged onto his throat. “Mine.” OR; Hotch lets Spencer feed on him.

The Boy by house_of_lantis, Explicit, Lord Aaron Hotchner is one of the most ruthless rulers of the City. But despite his fearsome reputation, Lord Hotchner is respected by his people and beloved by those closest to him. He strives to bring order and justice to the City and to protect it from anyone who dared threaten it. Spencer is the newest addition to Aaron’s private harem, stolen from his previous master. Affectionately nicknamed the Boy, he is the exclusive body slave to Lord Hotchner and he learns to navigate the politics of the harem.

Hide and Seek by Highway58, Explicit, An Unsub fixates on the BAU Team, determined to make them his passion project. Spencer Reid is his ultimate target but in order to get to him, he has to go through the people he holds most dear in his life.

Heathen by Highway58, Explicit, The dreams would not stop. Ever since the unexpected case in Las Vegas when he forced himself to confront his painful past, Spencer Reid had not been able to sleep. The visions haunted him relentlessly... he couldn't resist the need to forget it all. Something was happening to him. Something he'd been suppressing for most of his life, ever since that one moment in his childhood he couldn't--wouldn't--face. Soon, very soon... he wouldn't be able to resist his own biology. Even though he had no idea it was even part of him. He was just a Beta... right? Spencer Reid approaches a crossroads he never imagined he could face.

Ain't Always Gold by Highway58, Explicit, Omega Spencer gets knocked up by his Mate Aaron Hotchner in the wake of Emily's death and he doesn't know it until it's about to kill him.

Call Me Daddy by goobzoop, Explicit, Aaron teaches Spencer how to date, but it’s not women he’s making him better for. It’s himself.

Let Me Be Your Only Choice by TobiasHankel, Explicit, After Spencer is kidnapped by Hankel, the team expects to find the omega scared and possibly beaten. They didn’t expect to find Spencer next to a dead Alpha and dying from bond rejection. With limited options and a dying Spencer, Hotch is forced to make a decision that Spencer can’t even consent to in order to save his life.

Every Version of You by goobzoop, Explicit, Hotch's whole world comes crashing down the moment he witnesses his husband get injured right in front of him. Spencer makes it through, but the road to recovery is more difficult than he could have ever imagined. Or, amnesia fic!

A Fool There Was by reasonablerodents, Explicit, Hotch is using Spencer to take out his frustrations regarding his failing marriage. Spencer is so desperately in love with him that he’ll put up with anything- just as long as he can be close to Hotch.

Touch The Leather by reasonablerodents, Explicit, “Well, the problem with shoes is- um, they’re dirty, there’s a staggering amount of bacteria even on the cleanest ones, I don’t want…” He trails off again, swallowing hard. Or: Hotch wants Spencer to prove how much he loves him.

Room on the Third Floor by Matthew1972, Explicit, One minute Aaron Hotchner is walking free, contemplating a forever with Spencer… the next he gets snatched away. Locked up in a cage to the whims of an unsub unlike any other he's ever faced. A hunter and wildcat shifter trafficker. But then, his inner panther and human self alike refuse to be tamed and collared to live out his days as the wildcat alone. To be another victim sold. Will his defiance become his downfall? Or does Aaron get to return home to Spencer and see through on his proposal?

🖤SFW Derek Morgan/Spencer Reid

Maybe Someday Soon by @justjasper, Teen, "Derek talks about you." The Morgan women know that he's in love with Reid. They also know that he is absolutely clueless about it.

Washed Away by TobiasHankel, Teen, It had been over a year since Spencer Reid went missing after he was kidnapped by Tobias Hankel. He was presumed to be dead, but Morgan refused to believe it and move on. After a case takes the team back to the same state Spencer went missing in, Morgan might just get the answers he has been looking for.

❤️ NSFW/Mature Derek Morgan/Spencer Reid

Spun Hearts by JustJasper, Explicit, After a harrowing case Morgan needs control, and Reid needs a fix, and they wind up in bed. Reid sees this as a potential evolution of their relationship, but Morgan is adament that he's not gay. The path towards what they both want isn't a simple one, and a recurring case brings some painful things to bare as they both try to navigate what they are to each other.

When We're Together, Our Bodies They Start Fires by JustJasper, Explicit, 2x06, "The Boogey Man", Reid sits in a police station practicing trying to lockpick a pair of handcuffs with a paperclip. Some short time later, he misses a hangout with Morgan, who goes to check on him.

🖤 Other Ships

Home by KatrioneSpecterRossi, Explicit, Emily Prentiss/David Rossi, Usually when there's a disturbance in the middle of the night, it involves Emily waking up from a PTSD-induced nightmare with her gun pointing at her bed partner's head. This time when she wakes up, it's for a very different reason...that turns out being a great deal more fun.

Level Pegging by Starzzy, Explicit, Elle Greenaway/Spencer Reid, “I don’t need, or frankly have the time to have sex,” he manages at last, somehow forcing his feet to move and take him forwards to the coffee maker. He almost forgoes the sugar entirely, wanting the bitter taste to wake him up from this walking nightmare he seems to be living in right now. “All I’m saying is, you wouldn’t be my first,” Elle says as she comes up to stand next to him.

❤️ Crossovers

I Used to Dread the Thought of Falling Quickly by Chaotic_Librarian, Explicit, Supernatural, Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester, Spencer Reid/Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester, Spencer Reid/Dean Winchester, Spencer Reid/Sam Winchester, Spencer Reid knows how to stumble into odd situations. But being kidnapped and then promptly flirted with? Seduced? by two of the FBI's Most Wanted? That has to take the cake. That, however, won't stop him from falling in love.

Entertained by Chaotic_Librarian, Explicit, Supernatural, Spencer Reid/Sam Winchester, Sam's sitting on his bar stool on the miniature stage again, his guitar in his lap.  Another stool serving as his table with a half-drunk glass of whiskey, he looks out across the mediocre crowd.  Typical Wednesday. That's his preferred crowd, anyway.  Joanne managing the bar, Pauline working the floor, and him on the stage as cheap entertainment.  Strumming his guitar and singing country songs he learned by heart years ago.  Sometimes he'll do requests.  But not often.  Not a lot of Kansans approach the stage when he's playing.  They just let him do his thing.

I Must Admit that I was Reeling by Chaotic_Librarian, Explicit, Supernatural, Spencer Reid/Sam Winchester, Aaron Hotchner/Dean Winchester, Spencer goes way too far to get closure on his fling with Sam Winchester. Because it was just a fling, right? It's not like they're meant to be, right?

To Love And To Be Loved In Return by reasonablerodents and Starzzy, Mature, Grease (1978), Aaron Hotchner/Spencer Reid, Penelope Garcia/Derek Morgan, Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss, Aaron Hotchner accepted a long time ago that he was never going to be able to be his true self. Not only was it illegal, it was highly unlikely that he’d ever find someone willing to be in hiding with him for the rest of their lives, unless America got a whole lot more open and accepting. That all changes when Spencer Reid transfers to Oakdale to finish his senior year.

Thank you everyone for making such great works this last year! The Quan-Tea-Co server is open to new members as long as you are over 18 years old. Invite Link.

[bluntblade]

Fanfic writer interview

Why thank you @sinvulkt for nudging this microphone towards me :D

what fandoms do you write in? The overwhelming majority is Star Wars (most of that Sequels, but a growing amount of High Republic), Horizon, Horus Heresy and a couple of Arcane fics too.

how many words have you published in 2024? I'm not quite sure I've got the total, but from what I'm sure I posted this year, 58265.

what is your greatest achievement this year? I think I managed to take my writing to some heavier places than I normally manage with the Arcane writing, so that might be it. That, or probably the best lightsaber duel I've penned.

what are your top three fics you've written this year? Well, speaking of Arcane writing and lightsaber duels:

🪽 If You Tell Me That You're Sure, and You Can't Wait Any More (Arcane) I dumped a lot of thoughts and feelings into the space between the show's finale and epilogue. I'm particularly touched that people have taken Caitlyn's Secret Diary to their hearts.

🪽 Bladework, Hubris and Hard-earned Wisdom (Star Wars Prequels) — Being reunited with AotC Anakin can often be, ah, a test for me, but I came away from the novelisation of Episode II with thoughts about how Anakin might come to embrace a new style of combat (as Matt Stover gets into in the Episode III novelisation). I wanted to humble him but not humiliate him (and certainly not to stray into "OC owns protagonist" territory, even if in context Anakin is stepping to a Knight who's got several years on him). This then turned into an exploration of him through lightsaber combat, and I genuinely think it's some of the best duelling I've ever written.

🪽 Warmth on a Cold Moon (Star Wars: The High Republic, Phase 2)— Matthea Cathley! Enya Keen! A chance to indulge in my history headcanons surrounding Jedha and help launch a new ship! Somewhere in between my revisits to Catalyst and Path of Vengeance, I decided that Matty and Enya would be adorable together, and this turned into a tour of Jedha City which also let me ramble on with some in-universe history ideas.

what was your biggest pit of despair moment? Fretting about whether I'll ever fashion my Horizon WIPs into something workable. But I will get there one day, I swear it.

what have you learned? I don't feel like I've learned any wholly new things, except maybe figuring out how to write a sex scene which can be a full scene whilst not being explicit, but I think my overall craft has kept coming along.

did you beta any fics? any faves you want to shout out? I haven't really managed to this year, unfortunately. It's been a busy year.

what three fics have you read this year that you love? Oooh...

wipe you clean with dirty hands (Arcane) by @foibles-fables

It's a genuinely quite frightening sense of comparison to realise that Foibs is writing the same base scenario as you (in this case, Cait and Vi in the aftermath of the Arcane finale's climax). This is typically insightful, touching and just a pleasure to read overall.

celebration of you (Arcane) by @meg-noel-art (Say_Anything)

Domestic CaitVi with two adorable little Kirramunchkins, which deftly balances wit, sweetness and melancholy.

Delineation (Horizon: Zero Dawn/The Frozen Wilds) by @tjerra14

I've been neglecting Ikrie shamefully, so thank goodness that Tjerra is fighting the good fight. This story carves out a fascinating chapter of past for Ikrie, and Tjerra remains the best in the business at making you feel the cold of Ban-Ur and the Cut.

what ideas are percolating for next year? Ryloth Besieged is getting completed, damnit. My project of a Kylo longfic set between The Last Jedi and my Episode IX continues to take form (I'm excited about the antagonist I'm building), and I've got some sad thoughts working away at me about Caitlyn losing Jayce.

who do you want to thank? @deusexvalerate for both gifting me an Enya/Matty fic and giving me the nudge to write them too, not to mention opening my eyes to how much fun writing Lyssa/Ru-Ru could be. And of course, my tireless beta-readers Nomus and Kelborn. Heroes.

tagging: well, the fine people I've tagged above, but also @mehoymalloy and @rileydrawesandwrites

[iamafictionfreak]

TIS THE SEASON TO BE MERTHUR!

Just... Look at them!

I miss everything about this show. Even the very bad CGI and the weak-ass plot points/armour/conveniences/contrivances.

One Christmas Eve, almost 11 years ago, the entire Merlin fandom was butchered into tiny little distraught pieces. It didn’t matter if your favourite character was Merlin or Morgana, Gaius or Gwen. The showrunners held no qualms in destroying your dreams for Gwaine or Perce. The writers did not hold back in their aim to crucify the smile on your face, to forever turn it upside down. No ship was spared. All hopes for the show to finally commit to their original intent, to bring peace between peoples, to save Albion, to allow Merlin his freedom and Arthur the truth, was brought to a bitter, fatalistic end.

Not that I need to repeat this to you, you know what happened, but it’s worth reiterating that this travesty occurred… on Christmas Eve.

CHRISTMAS. EVE.

Christmas Eve.

The night before Christmas, the night before the day where all rules are broken and we can frolic like children around a decorated tree filled with twinkling lights, our collective hearts were shredded.

This event (once we recovered a tiny bit from the shock) gave birth to a plethora of astonishingly well written, poignant, devastating, hilarious fanfictions that had helped nurse our wounds, for nothing could TRULY heal (except a follow-up season with the original characters, come ON BBC) us.

After nearly 11 years of watching these brilliant entries grow, I never thought I’d jump on this bandwagon and write my own fic.

But I've had a few very shit years, as have many people around the world, and I started to wonder as we do when we want to prove magic can still happen.

My brain decided that it wanted my hands to write the most indulgent, likely over done fic in existence for the fandom. This thought stuck with me throughout the year – I was being STALKED by myself – and wouldn’t leave me the hell alone. This hasn’t happened in a long while.

Still… you’ll eyeroll at the idea. It's so OBVIOUS, I'm embarrassed by myself.

What if Arthur discovered Merlin’s magic from the get-go, from episode 1?

WAIT. Hear me out…

So, Merlin saves Arthur for the first time and Arthur SEES. He sees his eyes glow.

He knows he should tell his father, but his instincts are screaming at him. Honour is at stake. This stranger saved his life. How could he reward it with an execution? So, a chance needs to be given, doesn’t it? A chance for Merlin to give up magic forever and live a life of goodness, to turn away from evil and serve Arthur…

Except Arthur can’t help but wonder. About Magic, about Merlin and magic, about the law and all the whys attached and his place within this chain.

But he also can’t trust this peasant who cavorts with the devil, practices wickedness but smiles like a child and offers compassion to everyone. Someone so duplicitous must be dangerous… except Merlin’s an actual idiot! And it’s getting really difficult to keep his guard up.

But isn’t that how sorcerers work? They twist the mind with pleasing ideas, they tempt and coerce, they manipulate.

And slowly, Arthur finds himself being manipulated too. For how could he ever want to trust this man- but he does. He does.

And we’ve never been allowed to see Merlin deal with a S1 Arthur who’s in the ‘know’. Who’s forcing him to keep it secret, who’s threatening him with trial by fire, a young Arthur who’s ignorant, arrogant and so desperate to understand what he cannot trust.

Then there's the layers, royalty versus peasantry, friendship versus alliances, goals versus ideals.

I want to write a fic where this trust is built from the ground up. One of the things about the show that made it impossible for me to let it go is that the ‘relationship’ between Arthur and Merlin fits exactly zero categories, yet all of them.

Master and servant.

Friends

Family

Allies

Enemies

Romantic ideals

Platonic soulmates

Absolute Soulmates

I could go on. And it's one of those rare shows where the writing would be given more oomph if the males leads had dared cross a line or two.

Realistically, they weren't even friends. They were master and servant who'd become a little co-dependant. Arthur could never admit to anything more because of his station, but would he have been able to being completely himself around Merlin if he'd known the truth? We never see Arthur truly be himself. He wasn't allowed to be, not even with his wife. There was always a wall - it was how he was raised and any attempt to develop was killed by plot.

We never saw Merlin completely free, not with a single person. He started happy and healthy and innocent. A liar. He ended up bitter and terrified and angry and alone. Still a liar.

What would he have become if there'd been one person he could truly trust- not Gaius. Not a man already broken and brainwashed by his own self. A victim of the system just as much as he perpetuated the hate and completely unaware of the trap he lived in.

Many of the characters in the show have the versatility and potential to be written a trillion different ways, is it any wonder that fics continue to be written?

Well, I wanted to explore a slow burn development of trust, with Arthur learning how wrong he was, how much he’s trampled on, and all about the seemingly normal peasant boy who meant more to the world than Arthur could possibly understand. What would they have become if they’d been given the time, hm?

When they were young - yes, I'm going there - wild and free.

What of Morgana, what if she could have trusted? What if she could have understood? Would it have turned out differently? Would she have still become the other side of Uther's coin?

Would Merlin still have ended up alone?

There’s lots more I wanted to touch upon, it’s a big what if, but that’ll have to wait for another post.

I’m writing a 5 part prologue that occurs between episode 1 and 2. I’m hoping to release it for Christmas and then take the time to write the rest of the season.

Unless… you guys think it’s a waste of time? Let me know.

In the meantime, I’m STILL SUFFERING (fucking show) and it's making me write, write, write!

(gifs not mine)

[colesabi]

20 Questions for Fic Authors

Thank you @silvercap for the tag!! :))

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

8

2. What is your AO3 wordcount?

49,895

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Resident Evil exclusively but do have a couple for Pokemon.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I don’t have a whole bunch and most of mine are relatively new (posted within the last year)

I. When Time Runs Out with 155

II. Fragment with 70

III. I’d Remember You Fondly If You Hadn’t Betrayed Me with 34

IV. The After with 25

V. Under The Skin with 25

5. Do you respond to comments?

Absolutely! I love and cherish each comment I receive.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Haha umm okay probably, ‘I Will Haunt You Forever’ - MC straight up is sacrificed so… I’d put Fragment here if I had posted it with the alternate ending…. 👀

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I’m an angst queen so happiness is a relative term lol but I guess ‘When Time Runs Out’

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I hope I don’t ever. Haven’t gotten any yet.

9. Do you write smut? If so, which kind?

Yep. Not a whole heck of a lot. I try to keep it plot relevant except for my prompt based one-shots, those just are self indulgent. lol.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest crossover you’ve ever written?

Nope.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

God I hope not…

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

So my very first is Serennedy but Chreon has overtaken that. I also enjoy Metaltango and Nivennedy. ClaireJill is awesome too. I’ll also scope out OT3’s in the form of Nivennedyfield and whatever the ship name is for Leon/Luis/Ada.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I don’t have too many WIPs because it stresses me out to be working on so many things at once but probably the Leon one-shot I have where he wakes up in a morgue. I keep thinking I’ll get back to it and will write a little every now and then but then lose interest.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I've gotten the most compliments/comments that my characterizations are good. I think my dialogue is pretty passable. Lol.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Probably just going for it and not fully fleshing the plot out. Sometimes I’ll find myself re-reading something after I’ve posted and think I should have done more there.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I’m mildly familiar with Spanish and can pass with French but I am too chicken to even attempt it in writing which is why I won’t write Luis… even though I would love to do a Serennedy fic. Also, his is more Castilian so that’s different than the Spanish I’m used too.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Very very first, probably Yu-Gi-Oh but I have no idea where those are on the internet. That was SO long ago.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

Fragment, no question. I put my heart and soul and a piece of me in that one.

Tagging- anyone else who wants to participate!

[fonulyn]

20 Questions for Fic Authors

thanks for the tag @thebrandywine 💖

answers under the cut.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

268 works.

2. What is your AO3 wordcount?

1,256,253 words.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

RE. and still have the urge to write Gears but lol if you thought nivannedy was a rare pair...

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

nobody's perfect (TOG, pretty gen)

now drunk on lust I drown in you (forever within I'm lost in you) (RE, Chreon)

and who's to find the way right through you (RE, Chreon)

scattered fragments of time (that's all we are) (RE, Chreon)

how to accidentally get adopted - a guide by Piers Nivans (RE, Piers-centric, also background Chreon)

5. Do you respond to comments?

always! i know i missed a couple, sometimes i take ages, but i do always try to respond bc i love and cherish nice comments.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

the bad endings on three words to last forever. i still like the angstiest one the most :'D

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

lmao like everything else idk i want them happy. i've written loads of fluff idk how to quantify which is the happiest.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

only ever got a few nasty comments thankfully, so no, not really.

9. Do you write smut? If so, which kind?

yeppp. idk what does 'which kind' mean? anything that feels inspiring lol.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest crossover you’ve ever written?

not really. i did start a few back in the day but i didn't really finish them. i am not really into crossovers tbh i don't even read them 99% of the time.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

yeah. someone was selling it on amazon pffth.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

a few. apparently five on ao3 lol but i think there was one or two back in the lj days too. might be wrong tho :'D

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

lol loads. at one point in life like... fifteen years ago, most things i wrote were co-written with a friend. and i've done it a couple of times after that too. i really like co-op stuff tbh but haven't found people to collab with lately.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

right now i would sell my soul for nivannedy. might already have.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

ehhhh at this moment i doubt i'll ever finish anything. maybe the lifeguard au? i was red-hot for the idea at first but then it kinda... fizzled out. kept changing. got ruined by pushy ppl lol. but maybe i'll get back to it one day bc i would love a nivannedy summer romance tbh.

16. What are your writing strengths?

uhm. characterization. dialogue. emotional shit? idk i think i do best when i have intimate moments with two people. tiny everyday moments and mundane shit. like that. if i get going writing sometimes flows super well and i think i can get consistently readable stuff done in one go. but that'd require getting going lol.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

action. i suck at action. i also suck at it in the way that i can't actually make myself start writing. i got way too co-dependent when i still had people excitedly participating in the process and now i sit here sad doing nothing :'D but anyway. writing action and having some self-discipline lol.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

depends very heavily on the context. in general i do think it should be all in one language for readability but there are exceptions. i've done it too lol but it was only like a line or two in finnish :'D

19. First fandom you wrote for?

diru, twenty years ago lmao, it's like a different lifetime. i only learned of the existence of fanfic at the ripe old age of nineteen lol but yeah it's still been so long now.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

asdjfngkn i can not choose between all of my children c'mon. uhm. am just gonna say the self-indulgent series bc it truly was so important to me for so long and i'm still devastated it ended. sigh. now i made myself sad again :'D

[primewritessmut]

1, 3, 22, 26, 29, 38, 51, and 72 (not sorry for the number, I could have done more)

The horror of having something you said in DMs taken to heart.

1. Do you daydream a lot before you write, or go for it as soon as the ideas strike?

I daydream (dissociate) a lot in general, which is probably why I write. There are just too many stories running around up there in my head, clogging up the works, and some of them have to come out.

Most of them don't make it out, but if there's a particular turn of phrase or scene that cycles in my brain for longer than a day, I usually end up writing it down and turning it into something.

However, once I've started a story, I have to restrain myself from daydreaming about it or it will run away from me and I'll never write it down. Which means I daydream more which means I have more things that might work as stories... it's a never-ending cycle, really.

3. Do you share your fic ideas, or do you keep them to yourself?

My gut reaction to this question is: WHO WOULD I SHARE MY IDEAS WITH?

But that shut-in intrusive thought aside, I usually keep my ideas to myself. I tend to be very... self-conscious about the fact that I literally make shit up in my head 24/7 and tend not to talk about it for that reason. I should probably join a writer's group or something but I just haven't yet. And I don't want to share this thing that I feel excited about with someone that's just going to nod and let their eyes glaze over (incredibly disheartening) so I just. don't.

(You're in the walls, though, so you're an exception.)

22. Do you title your fics before, during, or after the writing process?  How do you come up with titles?

Oh man, it totally depends.

Midori Sour started as a title and spite before it became anything else. she's not going to die today jumped off the page after I wrote it and became the title. A lot of my Eddie Brock, Sex Educator series titles came after the fic was completely done and are mostly pun-based.

I tend to pick titles based on vibes and honestly don't think to hard about it. Something almost always jumps out at me or appears when I need it (if I didn't start with one in mind). I do think the way I come up with titles impacts the work that comes out. For example, I picked Midori Sour as a title for the aesthetic of the name/idea. It's green and alcoholic and comes with a cherry on top (very important), and that aesthetic has carried over into things like the description of Loki's outfits and the general flavor of the fic.

26. What’s your least favorite part of the writing process?

Editing. It's editing.

I hate rereading things after I've written them, I take criticism (even constructive) very poorly, and it takes so. fucking. long. When I'm writing, I'm on the journey and once the journey is over, I'm not rehashing it with powerpoint presentations of all the places I went.

I know (I know!) editing is important and, if I ever wanted to write something that might be published or that people would buy, I would be less flippant about it. But it is literally like pulling my eyelids off with tweezers one chunk of skin at a time and I'm not about that life.

I write for fun. Editing is not fun (to me). Therefore, fuck editing.

29. What’s something about your writing that you’re proud of?

I already answered this once here. But, because it's probably good for me, I'm going to try to come up with another thing I'm proud of.

Just, you know, give me a minute.

...

...

Hmm...

Physical scenes! Specifically body language. I don't think I would have thought of this as something to be proud of unless people mentioned it frequently in the comments (thank you!) but I do like to think about where bodies are in space and how that tells its own story.

38. What is your most self-indulgent posted story?

Uh. It's probably a tie between In a Yellow Wood and bloody theatre. The sole reason for writing IAYW was to create a Monster John. (And set up a chance for an explicit monster hours one-shot later.) It is very cool that the fic found the Malevolent fandom and people read it, but that was strictly for me.

Then bloody theatre has recently taken the top spot for my blood/gore indulgence, knocking certain scenes from A Particular Set of Skills out of number one.

Not that I think monsterfuckery and blood/gore need to be separated, but that's a fic I haven't started yet.

51. Does what you like to write differ from what you like to read?

Haha. No. I primarily read romance and horror (and sometimes, if I'm really lucky, a combination of the two). I guess I like salacious things.

72. What’s your favorite writing compliment you’ve gotten?

This is strictly a fandom comment but I love it when people tell me that I captured the characters well, or that they can hear the dialogue in the character's voices. Plot is important and cool and great, but I like stories that are character driven and satisfying character arcs are satisfying so knowing that the characters are solid enough to draw out that reaction is awesome.

Also, any comment that is the equivalent of "I will inhale this fic into my body so it can be part of me forever" is pretty excellent, too.

x

[nostalgicatsea]

5-fic self-rec!

Thanks for tagging me for this, @oluka (and the last line thing too except I had to pass on that one because I haven't written anything in a while other than the last excerpt I posted on here 😅).

Except for "Apricity," which is near and dear to my heart despite how much I itch to edit it (a constant issue I have with things I write), I went with some of my favorites that have flown under the radar.

Hm...this ended up more of a "hey, good job, me" post than a "I'm trying to find what's compelling about these fics to rec them" post. Oh well.

In order of publication:

Apricity (616 Steve/Tony, T, 1.5k)

My first fic on AO3! My first Steve/Tony fic! And somehow it was 616 instead of MCU. I love dark Steve, but I'm particular with how exactly he's unhinged and this is how I like him. Even-keeled despite being off his rocker. Rational in his own head. Soured on the world, but in a way that pushes who he is to the extremes so his core is still visible even if it's mottled with rot. And, of course, obsessed with Tony. I also like the tempo of this; I used to have a good grasp on tempo, but I feel like I've lost that a bit over the years.

Unraveled (Warrior (2011) gen fic, G, 1k)

Since it's a movie that doesn't have a lot of fanworks for it and it's a gen fic to boot, barely anyone has read this, but I don't care because it was written for a friend, @luxover. I love writing little stories to gift friends. If you haven't watched Warrior, watch it! Brutal tearjerker about a broken family and broken men and one of the few good sports movies out there. No, you don't need to know anything about MMA to enjoy it. I don't.

Okay, I should talk about this ficlet. I'm fond of this one because it's so different from my usual writing. It's stream-of-consciousness and entirely voice-driven like someone sat you down in Brendan's head and he's talking and talking even if he naturally isn't saying of this out loud. Because he and his brother Tommy are emotionally constipated; even if they love each other a lot, they don't know how to reach out to each other. They don't know if they're wanted. This also has one of my favorite last lines I've ever written. GUT PUNCH, if I do say so myself. ONE-TWO HIT, K.O. Sums up every layer of their relationship.

Hidden Declaration (Brad/Ray (Generation Kill), T, 728 words)

Another gift for a friend (the same friend)! Brad/Ray and MCU Steve/Tony share some similarities despite being drastically different, so is it any surprise I liked these two unhinged idiots? I never open for fic prompts, but this was when I was on a roll and then I got scared because lux asked for this. I never wrote for Gen Kill, I read maybe 3 GK fics in my life, and Ray is one of those characters who are impossible to write well imo (to be honest, I also feel the same way about Brad though the difficulty is subtler). He's an unusual guy with a very particular way of speaking.

And somehow this flowed out of me quickly. It's not without its flaws, but it was so different from what I usually write and how I do that it was really fun to write this! Very dialogue-heavy too which isn't what I'm known for. And the crassest (also...some language that's not okay as a warning, but if you know GK, it comes with the territory) and most sexual (it's still not very sexual lol) out of my fics. I think I captured how much they're best friends and they're so comfortable in each other's presence well. Plus I put a little wink for my friend at the end and it's one of the few times I like being indulgent with my writing. Also, tattoo fics are a trope and I guess this counts as my one tattoo fic though it's not an AU and there's no actual tattooing involved.

A Long, Final Rest Among the Stars (MCU Tony-centric/Nebula & Tony gen fic, G, 2.7k)

My tribute to best boy Tony, my first and ultimate love (along with Steve, of course) along with an expansion of the lovely bits of Nebula and Tony's tender friendship that we got to see in IW which I adored. They share a lot in common.

Writing this made me so sad because I felt like I was preparing to say goodbye to Tony. It made me reminisce about how it all started, and everything came full circle. His past is his present. Tony's trapped on a dark spaceship injured and far, far away from home. Tony's trapped in a dark cave injured and far, far away from home. There's a kind spirit with him, and even if they try to keep him alive, he's a dead man walking. But he's also come a long way from the man he used to be. I'M REALLY PROUD OF HIM, OKAY? I LOVE HIM.

The Burning of Flowers (616 Steve/Tony, G, 1.2k)

I secretly really, really wish more people read this fic. I wanted to write a Hanahaki AU for a while, but I couldn't figure out what I'd do that would feel fresh and then I came up with this subversion of sorts. Hanahaki AUs usually involve someone pining for their love and refusing to let go of it because it means so much to them. I thought I'd write about someone who doesn't have it—and simultaneously wants and doesn't want it—and wishes ill on the person he loves by hoping their love has it. And what better era to situate it than Hickmanvengers? You don't need to know Hickmanvengers to enjoy it, though.

I'm extremely proud of this one because it's one of the best fics I've written if I'm allowed to toot my own horn for a sec! Please let me because it's so rare for me to feel like I don't want to rip apart chunks of my fics and sew them back whole again, new and improved. I think this is one of my most complete fics in that way; I can probably tweak it, but I'm satisfied with nearly all of it if not all of it.

Anyway, I was in a slump and then suddenly the old magic returned and I slipped back into the writing style I used to have back in the mid-2010s except better. I could actually see that I've developed as a writer even if I'm still learning. But the atmosphere, the sensory lines, and the rhythm returned. I like the pace of this a lot and feel like it follows Steve's relentless rage, much like the unmoored, slower pace of "Apricity" reminds me of a colder Steve who never fully woke up from the ice.

Tagging @kiyaar, @meidui, @sineala, @whenas-in-silks, @sabrecmc, @magicasen, and two artists (rec your art!<3): @kappamairi & @massivespacewren

[doomednarrative]

My bestie @catgirladjacent tagged me in a little "20 questions for fic writers" ask game so :3

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

12 currently

2. What is your AO3 wordcount?

29,178. I mostly write one shots lol

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently I have on my ao3 published fics for FFXIV, Pathologic, Resident Evil, Borderlands and Gotham Rogues. I don't really actively write for any of those except FFXIV and Resident Evil these days however, along with various Kamen Rider shows and some BG3 stuff.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

God this is gonna make me cringe cause it's all older stuff I don't like as much anymore lol except for the RE ones

Help Me, Heal Me - 191 kudos

I Think She Knew Everything You Are - 196 kudos (nice)

He Always Held Him When He Cried - 98 kudos

No Sleep - 93 kudos

You Are Yourself - 77 kudos

5. Do you respond to comments?

Usually yeah. I rarely get them so it's nice to see when people do actually leave them

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Surprisingly as much as I Love writing angst, none of my published fics actually really end on an angsty note. The closest would have to be "Doing Your Best (And Still Failing)" because it was written about my WoL A'cera after losing his first fight with Zenos during Stormblood, so it's a bunch of his raw emotions from the encounter.

7. What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably "Just Exhale", which is my personal take on the end of the MSQ for Endwalker with my WoL Alyx after they land back in the Ragnarok following the encounter with Meteion.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Nope, never have

9. Do you write smut? If so, which kind?

Only in my rp's with Tibby lol, or Occasionally something that won't ever get published that's just for myself. Usually it's oc/canon stuff that's just self indulgent for the sake of it ~

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest crossover you’ve ever written?

No lol it takes a Lot for me to enjoy crossovers unless it concerns toku stuff since those actually happen in canon

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Nope

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not that I know of

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Hmm sort of? I hash out ideas with friends sometimes but I do all the actual writing for anything I publish myself

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

If we wanna go solely by what I've actually Published? Hades/Hythlodaeus/Azem or Wol, I really like writing my personally FFXIV stuff when I'm in the mood. If we wanna go off of unfinished wips by number tho? Hoffstrahm and Chreon by a fuckin mile, those two fucked my brain up for long spans of time

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

There's a few honestly:

"Kiss me baby with your hapsburg lip," one of my many Hoffstrahm wips in my au verse shared with Tibby about Peter having to sew up Mark's face after the bear trap incident, only in this au it's much more comedy than horror

I have at least 5 different Hellhopper fics in my drafts, I would like to finish ONE of them at least someday

My fuckin multichapter Hotline Miami BikerJacket fic aughhh. I havent given up hope with it for how much of it I actually do have plotted out but god it'd take so long to write

I have a whole little various connected one shot series I was working on as a fix it series to the OOO 10th vcine, would love to finish them but I would have to rewatch OOO to pick the character voice back up for it

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue, it's the thing everyone always points out to me that they enjoy in my writing and it's usually always the starting point for my fics

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Prose lol. I struggle so hard sometimes with connecting scenes and describing whats happening when people aren't actively speaking. I've gotten better at it but it took a lot of conscious effort to learn it

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I rarely do it, most things I write are in my native language media already, but whenever I do it I usually just italicize it, write it in English and make mention of the language switch in the paragraph somewhere so the reader knows it's happened

19. First fandom you wrote for?

DRAGON BALL Z BABEYYY I'm not ashamed of that I still love DBZ so much. I was so shameless and wrote my own oc to be Vegeta's cousin in one of my first fics and I had fun doing it. They've long since been deleted, not because I Wanted to do so but for other reasons I don't feel like going into rn.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

"Help Me, Heal Me" by far out of my published ones. It's my most solid out of them and I feel like I really nailed Chris and Leon's dynamic well in it, it's the one I'm most proud of ~

Hrmm let's see, I think I'll tag @silenthillmutual, @lunar-gl1tch, @skajador @adrianicsea and @stickers-on-a-laptop for this one ~

[grimeysociety]

20 questions for fic writers

technically my sideblog @youthereader was tagged by @indulgence-be-thy-name - thanks bb ❤️; and like Em I'll be answering for both accounts

How many works do you have on ao3? youthereader - 4 grimeysociety - 171

What's your total ao3 wordcount? youthereader - 17,245 grimeysociety - 2,299,669

What fandoms do you write for? MCU - almost exclusively Darcyland, a teeny bit of Stranger Things and RPF (Cillian Murphy characters mostly...I've barely begun though)

What are your top 5 fics by kudos? I can only answer this from grimey so... The Comeback Kid Among Wolves Damn, I'm In It I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm Heart to Break

Do you respond to comments? Why/why not? I always reply to comments unless they're the rare dickish one (I delete those, that's always fun). I reply to everything to thank people for interacting in the first place. I like it when I get a reply from authors, too. I'm very grateful.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? I think it was one with Shieldshock and hacking, post-Infinity War, so everyone was dusted except for Steve and Darcy. It was kind of Schrödinger's ending because it might have been happy? I left it open (and I won't ever tell the 'real' ending).

What is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Most of mine do. I can't help it. Especially since the 'happy ending' tends to be because of sex. I mean...

Do you get hate on fics? A couple times but it was really insignificant and swiftly deleted.

Do you write smut? If so, what kinds? I write it all. Kinktober was kind of my 'thing' for a few years, as in, some followers looked forward to it each October. I rarely don't have some form of smut in a fic. The filth is fun, and so is the intimate erotica type of stuff. The fluff is great, but I have actually written one that had no response whatsoever and I think it went a little too far for my regular readers.

Do you write crossovers? I think some of my Darcy fic count so I'm going to say yes. I've written her with most Chris Evans characters, like Ransom Drysdale to name one. It counts, right?

Have you ever had a fic stolen? Yes and it's still up lol

Have you ever had a fic translated? I've had a couple translated into Russian but can't recall which, it's been a few years.

Have you ever co-written a fic before? I had someone ask me to ghostwrite their fic ending and then when they weren't happy with what I'd written they said 'no thanks' and haven't spoken to me since, does that count?

What’s your all time favorite ship? I will never be able to decide this, sorry. It's been years and I can never pinpoint it. Literally hundreds of thousands of words written over the three particular ships I'm thinking of and there's no way. There's just no way.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish, but doubt you ever will? The Americans. It's been nearly 2 years since I updated and I think it's been forgotten about anyway, so that's me off the hook.

What are your writing strengths? I can't answer that. I have no idea.

What are your writing weaknesses? My pacing is the worst. I repeat myself. I don't think I'm consistent in any way. I get impatient and hardly edit sometimes, which bites me in the ass later. I am bad at a lot of things.

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I've done it and it's fine. It's my average high school level French, but it's passable. Literally I passed high school French.

First fandom you wrote for? Kingdom Hearts

Favorite fic you’ve written? The Comeback Kid because it seems to be everyone else's favourite, too.

I will tag @sarahbeniel & @aimmyarrowshigh

[leofrith]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💗 (No pressure, of course!)

omg hiiiiiiiiii thank you for thinking of me!! I've only published 4 fics so these are my favourites by default I guess:

Out of the Cold (AC: Valhalla, Eivor/Leofrith) - probably the most self-indulgent thing I've ever written to date (with the exception of my wip longfic about them, which I obviously haven't started posting yet. Someday...) and also the only piece of writing of mine that I've reread a few times simply because there are so few Eivor/Leofrith fics out there, and even fewer with canon Eivor. It has everything I crave! Hurt/comfort! Emotional constipation! Yearning! And I am aware there are like 123427837 references to things I haven't even written yet in this thing that therefore only make sense to me and one other person, but you're just gonna have to trust me on this. Trust the vision. They're everything to me, actually.

Press On, Move Along (Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Ahsoka & Rex) - one-shot that takes place not long after the end of the series, in which Ahsoka and Rex stick together post Order 66 (now confirmed to be canon, thanks Tales of the Jedi!) and are on the run. This is literally "Ahsoka and Rex have a quiet breakdown on public transit: the fic". It's based off of this art, which I saw and was immediately forced to write about and it still makes me want to chew drywall almost 2 years later. I would love to write more about these two at some point if the urge to write Star Wars fic ever returns to me. Gotta be one of my favourite found families of all time.

Bright Skies (The Mandalorian, Din & Grogu) - one-shot that takes place in between meeting Ahsoka and travelling to Tython, where Din is expecting to have to give Grogu away to a jedi. Grogu can sense Din's inner turmoil about the whole thing and is making his displeasure known by having a tantrum, as babies do. They make a pit stop on some unoccupied moon and end up both finding calm while watching a meteor shower. Which is very relatable. I think watching a meteor shower would fix me too.

Hideaway (The Mandalorian, Din & Grogu & Winta with some bonus Din/Omera) - one-shot that takes place somewhere in the middle of The Mandalorian Chapter 4: Sanctuary, which wasn't a long enough episode and I'm still annoyed about it <3. Din gets roped into playing hide and seek with the village kids and has a mild panic attack when he thinks he's lost his child, who at this point he doesn't actually consider to be his child but I mean. Let's be real. Rereading this one now induces so much cringe in me to be honest. 🥴

[fleetingdesires]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💛

Danni ❤️ It's taken me way too long to do this, but I have some time now so let's get to it. In vaguely descending order:

Marching On | E | 10k | Snarry (and various background relationships)

Fifteen years into Severus and Harry's relationship, the status quo becomes untenable. Harry grapples with no longer being able to turn a blind eye towards Severus' bit on the side, while Severus finally realises that his best might not have been good enough for Harry. And Teddy? Well, he's just the catalyst that brought home the hard truths.

Why I love it: It's love in all its messy reality. Sometimes we make choices we come to regret. Sometimes we make choices we don't regret until someone makes us regret it. Sometimes that regret doesn't feel real or genuine except to the person who feels it. And sometimes, the thing that is sacrificed for love is a piece of your soul. Is that a valid tradeoff? Don't know. Ask yourself. I still am.

The Lover and the Boytoy | E | 10k | Snucius, Drucius, Draco/Lucius/Severus

Draco has been thirsty for his Daddy’s best friend, Severus Snape - and Lucius knows it. Of course he'll indulge his boy, even (or maybe, especially) if it means sharing his lover.

Why I love it: Yet another messy situation. I love them. Sudden emotional intrigue in the middle of a PWP? I didn't see it coming and neither will anyone else. Thanks for spawning brain rot, fic, I *appreciate* it. I guess.

All out of Sorts | E | 1.8k | Snarry

The Sorting Ceremony is for children. When adults attempt it, the results can be rather unexpected as Headmaster Snape, the most Slytherin of Slytherins, finds out. Bad-tempered huffing and puffing ensues.

Why I love it: I made Severus a Hufflepuff. It's fucking hilarious. That's all. 😂

Playing Games | E | 9k | Albus Severus Potter/James Sirius Potter

James thinks they’re just playing Truth or Dare. Al is playing a different game altogether.

Why I love it: Feels like the hottest thing I've ever written. May be influenced by @phenomenalasterisk's amazing podfic of it, which made me blush so hard while driving (my first mistake, really) I had to stop listening halfway through for fear of crashing. Just thinking about it makes me a little hot, ngl.

Settling/Unsettling | E | 29k | Mycroft Holmes/Sherlock Holmes

Mycroft loves the one man he cannot have - his brother. It doesn’t help that their relationship is tattered beyond recognition. When Gregory Lestrade enters his life, he is pleasantly surprised to find that the man is satisfactory, both in and out of bed. If he can't have the one man he wants, he may as well settle for second best. But what happens when events draw the brothers closer together, and the impossible becomes probable?

Why I love it: It is not my finest piece of work. A diamond in the rough is a more accurate description of it. But damn, I still love the plot and want to rewrite it someday.

[reiverreturns]

[20 Question Fic Writer Tag]

Tagged by my darling @milfeivor. I may not have written consistently in months but BOY do I like talking about it.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Twelve

2. What is your AO3 word count?

122,303

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Well I'm not writing much at all at the moment (bad menty health innit) but over the last year it's been pretty much entirely Top Gun Maverick, with some Assassin's Creed in the background just for funsies

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Quiet Promises (TGM) - 418

For Those We Left Behind  (ACV) - 383

Calefaction (TGM) - 292

Attrition (ACV) - 225

When We Collide (We Come Together) (TGM) - 184

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to respond to every comment I get because I think it's common courtesy when someone's taken the time and effort to leave one. I'm a little bit out of practice though (kiss kiss kiss grovel grovel grovel @ those left on read in my inbox)

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Blessed Are The Meek (FC5) maybe? A canon-compliant character study of Jacob Seed and his fucked up cult family has no iteration where things turn out well in the end.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I don't know actually - maybe Quiet Promises because I just really enjoy that ending and it's one of the only bits of published fic I've written I can reread and not want to edit more. If I ever finished writing the last chapter of Swim Until You Can't See Land it would probably be that but I'm just so very very lazy.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I had a tumblr anon one give me shit for not putting icemav in a fic but it was so fuckin weird to get I just deleted the ask. My brother/sister/comrade in christ I am the most niche rarepair stay-in-my-lane kind of fic writer. I am not a popular author in any fandom I write in. Why on earth would you think I care.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I try to write smut once a year when Eurovision sends me into my annual bisexual frenzy. It's not very good (my smut, not Eurovision)

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

Short answer is no. Long answer is no with the exception of a Pacific Rim/Assassin's Creed crossover which I keep as a never-to-publish deliriously self-indulgent writing exercise to dip into when I don't feel like being perceived through words. I've got a whole Hytham/Jacob thing going that I'm fucking feral for which is soooooooo big brained of me imo.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of. I've read fics before where I can pick up a clear influence from my work on theirs but nothing like a straight up copy + paste.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nah. I've considered translating my own fics into Scots but it feels like a lot of effort for the sprinkle of folks who might read it.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No but I wouldn't be against it. I did a lot of rp writing back in the day with OCs and I really liked the collaborative aspect of it.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

I don't pick favourites I love all my insane children equally. I will say most ships I gravitate towards have a doomed by the narrative / love doesn't conquer all but it's enough in the moment kind of dynamic and I can trace that back to some of my early favourites (Ten/Rose, Merthur) to now (Kassidas, Eivor/Vili, RebelCaptain, so on)

15. What's a WIP you'd like to finish but doubt you ever will?

For Those We Left Behind. I have a lot of love for that fic but it is very reflective of the time in my life when I started writing it (bouncing off the walls bored out my tits under lockdown.) Lots of enthusiasm and energy to pour into it but little patience or planning. I look back on it as an unwieldy, rambly thing. I still do pick at it (and want to keep updating) but if we're honest I don't think I'll ever quite reach the finish line beyond the pieces that are already firmed up in my head.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I can turn a tasty metaphor on occasion. I tend to think I have a strong handle on the characters I write the perspective of and put a lot of effort into making them feel true and honest to the source material.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Plot - there's a reason why I tend to write canon compliant/canon adjacent and it's because it gives me the bones of the canon to work from. Pacing is a perpetual struggle. My attempts at smut are laughable.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

If it's done to serve a narrative purpose and/or show something about a character, sure why not. Absolutely abhor written out accents though (unless, again, for a very specific narrative/character purpose.)

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Harry Potter and Stargate. There's probably still some 12/13 year-old Reiver fic floating around in the internet ether that I hope no one is ever subjected to again.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

I honestly don't have one - everything I've published I've loved at one point or another for a variety of reasons. Gun to my head I'll say Quiet Promises because I think it's one of the highest quality fics in my catalogue from an editing, pacing, and character perspective. Writing isn't about the technical skill to me though, it's about how it makes me feel and the audience feel, so no favourites here.

Tagging is still dogshit on desktop so consider this an open tag to anyone who wants to do it (but @ me I'm so nosy and want to read the responses)

[gascon-en-exil]

Happy Octopath Day! Have any fun headcanons for your favorite characters?

I was unaware of the Octopath Day thing until I checked Twitter this morning. But it's cute, 8/8 and all.

I'll stick to Osvald and Partitio here since those are the two I've been working with the most. I would do Papp and Roque as well, but I'm in the middle of writing a fic centering around them and don't want to spoil anything. I'll also try not to spoil any future plans I might have for my main two here...or rehash stuff I've already written in my published fics, for that matter. That said, most of this is still going to be in the context of my own fic continuity rather than strictly adhering to canon. I imagine no one reading this will mind.

Osvald knows how to dress and act in fashionable urban society purely from careful observation, although he has no actual care for social rules and will generally do only the bare minimum required of him. This does at least help him when he's on dates with a crossdressing Partitio.

Partitio, like his father, subscribes to a kind of loose folk worship of Bifelgan although neither have ever participated in organized religion. Partitio however is a bit more inclined to believe in the gods after hearing the story Osvald told during his proposal (rather ironically, since Osvald himself remains a devoted skeptic even after having literally conjured a piece of the Sacred Flame with his lover).

Osvald bottomed once during his university days, but found the sensation uncomfortable and has never wanted to since. At most he might allow Partitio to rim him, though more as an indulgence than as something he'd genuinely enjoy. However, seeing as I've made Osvald extremely hairy all over...Partitio would either be really into that or really not into that. I do have an idea for how I can get Partitio to top in one of my stories, but he won't be topping Osvald.

Tornadoes are common in the Wildlands, with Oresrush being approximately analogous to parts of the US that get them often. Because of experiences with them during his youth, Partitio isn't fond of wind magic which half explains his element switch compared to the OT merchant job.

Osvald knows that Roque is attracted to him, and also that Papp is psychosexually threatened by him in a "your son calls me daddy too" sense. I intend to use the former for a comic scene in my upcoming fic, but the latter would so complicated for anyone to entangle that they're all just going to have to live with Papp being quicker to think badly of Osvald than he otherwise would.

Despite the above, Partitio hasn't been quick to jump on the daddy kink angle with Osvald. I had him trying to minimize the age gap early on in my first fic, and at this point he'd probably be too embarrassed to bring it up unless Osvald nudged him in that direction. I'm not planning to write that...but if I do I'm going to have to get weird with it to fit in with all the other stuff I pile on these two. Like, Osvald seriously buying into Solistian!Freudian theory and believing that Partitio is attracted to his own father and needs to work out those feelings through him levels of weird.

In line with his struggles with empathizing with the perspectives of others, I could see a hypothetically heterosexual Osvald recommending, as what he considers friendly advice, that Partitio get his homosexuality "cured" through any number of 19th century pseudoscientific treatments, ex. electroshock. Mercifully I made Osvald bi right from the start, so Partitio never had to deal with any of that.

I believe I've made Partitio cry about half a dozen times across two fics, which seems excessive except that I think he's the only one of the OT2 travelers who ever cries in canon so it does kind of fit him. As with his incredibly hesitant use of the word "love," I'm saving up Osvald crying for an appropriately big moment.

Someone (probably Roque) will make a joke at some point about how ironic/appropriate it would be if, in a family composed entirely of queer men, Elena grew up to be a lesbian. Partitio is wholly supportive of this idea, but Osvald is weirdly indignant and will have to be told to get over himself.

Osvald will eventually come up with the magical equivalent of batteries, which may or may not expand into Partitio & Roque eventually bringing widespread electrical power to the world.

After both of his fathers have died - Papp dying when his age is a multiple of eight, because that's his backstory gimmick - Partitio will be faced with Osvald trying to talk to him about the very likely possibility that he'll survive his older lover by a number of years. This will upset Partitio considerably and possibly throw him into a state of denial, but he'll eventually come around to accepting it with Osvald and Elena's help.

Regardless of the proposed plan at the end of my second fic, I don't seriously see Osvald and Partitio adopting additional children. Both of them would be very happy with just Elena, and Partitio prefers to look at the bigger picture. He'd probably pour funding into whatever orphanages he can find and help out that way. That still doesn't stop him from fantasizing about getting bred and knocked up though.

Somewhat related, but while I have no plans currently to ever get Osvald and Partitio over to Toto'haha...if they ever do get there they're going to have kinky beastling sex because everyone loves the hunter job turning the characters into furries so they can have kinky beastling sex. It's like a canonical build your own Omegaverse!

[multiimistakes]

Hi !!! ARACHNO they/them. 25+

⭐ This is a (mostly) private and very low effort multi-muse.

⭐ Not interacting with any muses or muns under 23. Exceptions can be made but no one below 18+ period. This means muns and muses and extends to physical appearances ( as in idc if you're vampire is 1000+ if they only physically look 17, stay away from me). Gonna be RPing some pretty heavy stuff here theme wise.

⭐ I will be screaming about muses a lot. Gonna post lots of fc posts and edits and hcs, etc. If you get annoyed easily, this ain't the blog to follow. I've got lots of self-indulgent muses. Idc if they're bad, they make me kick my legs and teehee.

⭐ Read all my info and stuff, please!

⭐ Even I don't have a muse listed as active/loud, they're still all up for grabs you just gotta poke me about it.

⭐ Memes are tagged under #(blog); memes

( RULES ) ( MUSES ) ( LIST VIEW OF MUSES*) ( TAG DROPS )

LOUDEST MUSES RN: -- SOMEWHAT LOUD: --

*= my list view of muses is gonna be less detailed but more up to date than my google site page, fyi.

Rules under cut for mobile.

– Keep the basics in mind. I shouldn't have to type them all out. Don't be fucking WEIRD. I'm liberal with my hard block.

– This is a MOSTLY private blog as I won't really be advertising it. I am open to writing with people besides mutuals on my other blog. Just know I am likely not going to be the first to follow in most instances. But if I do follow first, know that I read all info and rules before doing so. c:

– My graphics are going to be at a minimum. I have basic headers for all muses but otherwise I'll be without. Some muses will have their own icons. Sometimes I'll use GIFs. There won't be a uniform theme here so expect a lot of Frankenstein bullshit.

– Expect info pages to be the same. This is a low effort blog and I just want to write and yell about these bastards. Some muse pages will have pictures, others not. Some will be more detailed, etc. Some won't have any at all and will have a normal info post written about them. If you ever have any questions about any of the idiots, hmu. For the most up to date list of muses, please refer to my LIST VIEW OF MUSES instead of just my MUSE page.

– I tend to fixate on different muses at different times so don't expect me to talk about or write all of them at once.

– When sending memes, please specify for WHO it is. All muses will have an emoji assigned to them that I'll be using for various things, feel free to also use this method. If you can't decide on a muse, I always encourage the good ole' RNG method. Unlabeled memes may take longer to answer or may not even be answered at all as I struggle a lot with choice paralysis.

– I won't be RPing with muses and muns under 23. This can be case by case but will typically be adhered to. Shipping wise, I'm not going to be doing more than 10 year age gaps between muses for any muse under like 35. As in I may be open for a 35 yr old with a 50 yr old. But I will not be down for a 25 yr old with a 50 yr old.

For immortal muses, same applies but with their physical appearance (as in idc if your vampire is 500, if they look 18 I will not be writing or shipping with them with my mid 40s looking muse)

– Some muses are closed to romantic shipping. (Liluthe & Seoyeon rn) Please respect that. :) A lot of these muses are connected and know each other as well so I may have them mention one another from time to time. A lot are also heavily connected to my main muse, Clark, over on kxllerblond. I have some that are super self-indulgent ocs with ties to canons. Always willing to write that out though

– I have some unwritten DNI's and won't list them all but atm I will not be writing with any TVD muses period unless I've got an established mun relationship with you outside of writing those characters.

[memelovescaps]

🕯️🌻🧿 For the writer's ask! 🥰

Heyyyyy Lizzy! Thanks for asking me, it's always a pleasure!!! Let's gooo!!

🌻what makes you want to give up on writing? what makes you keep going?

There are many reasons to keep writing, but one of the main ones is that I have stories that I want to tell. Sometimes these stories are just for me, totally self-indulgent self-inserts with this or that character that will never leave my laptop, or some scenes I want to write because I can't take them off my head and *need* to be written. Other times, I want to share my stories with the world, which are the works I post. But I've always written stuff, even when I wasn't posting anything for years, I was always writing. It's therapeutic for me, during that time it's just me and the words I'm typing, I'm not even aware of time elapsing. That's the best feeling. A drink, a candle, and my fingers typing. That and reading a story you wrote a while ago and realising that, even though it needs work, you're getting better at it.

And what makes me want to give up? I suppose not having a lot of readers to start with (except if I post a story to an already very active fandom) makes me understand my writing as something I do for myself, for the most part. So, I would want to give up writing if I didn't have anything to say; if I didn't think I couldn't add anything to the characters, or tell some truths I want to shout from the rooftops. But I've been writing for the past twenty years of my life, and it's very likely I'll continue to write, even if I never post anything at all. It's just a part of me. 🕯️was there a fic that was really hard on you to write, or took you to a place you didn’t think it would take you?

Mmmm I guess my longest fic to date is "In Need", a 189K-word age regression fic I wrote over a year (September 2021 - December 2022).

First, it's an age regression fic, of which I had only written one other fic for another fandom and had to read a lot because I wasn't that informed about the topic prior to writing.

Two, the characters took the story upon themselves, it started as being friendship between Harry and Severus Snape and it developed into a romantic story that I hadn't planned for.

And three, it began being a two or three-chapter story, and it ended up having 27 chapters.

It's the fic that's taken me the longest to write, it's also the longest story I've ever written (published or not), and even though it's quite niche and not a lot of people are into non-sexual age play, it's also the story I'm most proud of.

Here's the link.

🧿what steps do you take to not take things personally if a fic doesn’t do well, or if your writing/posting/sharing experience isn’t going how you’d like it to?

I suppose not having a lot of readers helps. I'm very aware of every kudo I receive and every comment I get, and I'm very thankful for it. I have received some hate comments, but they are mostly trolls or people who don't read past the first chapter, and I don't care about those. But I'm very thankful to each and every one who leaves kudos or comments, especially those who ask things about the story and engage with it, those who ask me to clarify, those who give me suggestions or ideas to put in the next chapter, those who just slap the keyboard because they were so excited, those who tell me the cried with this or that scene... I'm thankful for each person that dedicates a minute of their life to leaving a comment, and I make a point of responding to every one of the comments I get.

Taking things personally is inevitable, after all, when we write and post stuff we are putting a piece of ourselves out there for everyone to see and judge. But I mostly think that if I'm happy with the result, if I think that was the best I could do, or if I accomplished what I set out to do when writing the story... the rest is a bonus. It's great when I receive an email from AO3 telling me I've got comments, and it can be quite disheartening putting something out to the world and not getting a response or not enough response.

But I try to take it with a pinch of salt. Not everyone will be as invested as I am in my own story, and that's okay. As long as I'm happy with it, and the readers who do read it are happy with it, then that's it.

THANKS!!!!!

[pattithebard]

Pairing: Essek Thelyss/Caleb Widogast Chapters: 6/8 Word Count:  21,757 Characters: Caleb Widogast, Jester Lavorre, Shaun Gilmore, Allura Vysoren, Essek Thelyss, Yussa Errenis, Marion Lavorre, Reani, Sherri, Caduceus Clay Summary: Essek gets a mysterious message from a stranger asking if he wants to join him for brunch.

Essek felt the tingle of an incoming message crawl across his scalp and braced for Jester’s excited voice to ring through his head. Her messages had become more frequent since he decided to venture off on his own, something he was thankful for in the quiet moments between destinations. She regaled him with tales of her adventures on the high seas with Fjord and Kingsley, or at least as much as she could fit of them in twenty-five words. The words that came through were of a different accent and cadence than the one he was used to, however, and his brow raised at the warm, deep tone. Hello from Shaun Gilmore of Gilmore’s Glorious Goods! You are invited to brunch at The Hungry Fox this Sunday, 11 AM. See you there! Essek froze, black moss cupcake clutched in his fingers as he stood outside the small bakery he’d just purchased from. The bizarre message left him so stunned that all Essek could utter in response was, “Excuse me?” There was only the briefest pause before a cheery reply came through. We haven’t met, but I’ve heard about you! Come to brunch, I know you’re the curious type. A map will be sent shortly! I know you’re the curious type? What else did he know? Essek grimaced, suspicious of the intentions behind the message. He had already dodged an arrow from the darkness more than once, and every mysterious stranger sitting in the corner of a tavern could be a potential assassin. He lowered his head, muttering, “I will...consider it.”