#yt2022: wrapping paper

[ten-ten31]

Dear Yuletide Writer 2022

Dear Yuletide Writer,

Thank you so much for agreeing to write for me! :) I can't tell you just how excited I am. This is my second Yuletide, and I’ll try to give you as much inspiration and fangirling as a point to jump off of as I can, so I hope you’ll find some useful bits and pieces here. I am very much looking forward to reading whatever you come up with. Don’t stress about writing for me - as long as you have fun with it, I’m sure I’ll like my gift. :)

Please feel free to browse my ao3 (KitKaos) and/or tumblr to get an idea of what I stan, like, read or write. I hope I can give you some broad ideas and inspirations in this letter to help you plan. The prompts below are nothing more than ideas, though - feel free to ignore them or to fall back on my general likes if you have a better idea. :)

Gifts are enabled in AO3, so treats are welcome! :)

Oh, and should you, esteemed Yuletide Writer, want to write in German instead of English, then I'm definitely okay with that. I'm fluent in both, so whichever you feel more comfortable with.

If there's something missing or if you have a question, you can reach out to me via the mods.

_______&_______

General likes (in no particular order):

friends-to-lovers or even enemies-to-lovers (with all the drama of grudginly admitting that the other party maybe isn't all that terrible and all)

found families

fake dating

pining

crossdressing

undercover missions

drunken shenanigans

reconciliation between estranged characters

second chance romance

characters torn between two sides (e.g. two different loyalties, or love versus duty)

gestures of affection and intimacy (such as forehead kisses, cuddling in bed, holding hands, massages)

casual intimacies

hurt/comfort (especially with an emphasis on the comfort)

seduction (especially seduction/corruption of someone who's less experienced and/or initially reluctant)

games: truth or dare, playing drinking games/strip games for fun, seduction games

Can't Stop Thinking About That Thing I Saw Completely By Accident (a.k.a. various flavours of accidental voyeurism)

competence porn

masquerades

tattoos

body details (freckles, moles, tan lines, goosebumps, acne, scars, burns, wrinkles, etc.)

redemption arcs

consent play/negotiation

firting/teasing/banter

temporary de-aging

Identity porn

unreliable narrators

snark/banter/wordplay

mysteries/investigative work

travel/exploration

any kind of scene you can sneak in there about cooking or eating food (also characters being picky about certain foods and other characters going to some lengths to accommodate that)

descriptions of food and especially impressions of taste (if you want to make it kinky: food play)

I also have a bit of a hand fetish - so descriptions of hands are always welcome

epistolary fic (letters, journal entries, passive-aggressive post-it notes are great and amazing and I love them; long conversations in tweet or chat fic form exhaust me a little)

bisexuality

I am happy to read about trans/genderfluid/genderqueer character interpretations, if that's what you want to write (though I would prefer them to be tagged rather than a surprise)

steampunk aesthetics

casefic

humour

worldbuilding

character development

fish-out-of-water situations

pop culture references

breaking the Fourth Wall

coffeeshop AUs

spy AUs

musical episode (AUs)

dystopian AUs

any kind of alternate history AU

crossovers of my fandoms

_______&_______

Do Not Want:

rape/dubcon/noncon

watersports

scat

humiliation

A/B/O

soulmates AU

vampire/werewolf AU

second-person pov

character bashing of any kind

racism/sexism/ableism/misogyny as the main focus

any form of bigotry, unless fighting against it is a plot point

PWP

excessive descriptions of blood/gore

Mpreg

_______&_______

Opted-in mini challenges

Crueltide (for Pieces - L’Arc~en~Ciel (Music Video))

Wrapping Paper (for all of my requested fandoms)

Chromatic Yuletide (for B:WFA, Dial H for Hero, and Sweetest Kulu)

...

_______&_______

FANDOMS

In alphabetical order - I do love all of them equally!

Batman: Wayne Family Adventures (Webcomic)

- Tim Drake, Duke Thomas, Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon

What can I say? This version of the Batfam is just so fun to read, wonderfully endearing and wholesome! I love the dynamics between all the characters and the slice-of-life concept of it all. No matter if other superheroes or villains or the GCPD are involved, it’s always character-driven and a clear focus on that. I love how they all get a snarky tag when they’re introduced, how it plays with visual quotes, how it can be light and funny, and at the same time deep and from the heart. With other comics or stories in general, I usually have a favourite character, but with B:WFA I just love them all together as a chaotic mess of a family! Of course you don’t have to write all of the requested focus characters, though; feel free to pick and choose as fits the story best.

Prompts:

More games on and off patrol between the siblings (B may or may not know about or approve of)

SO many stories behind the online pictures in Ep 53! So Duke is a Tarantino fan and writes online movie reviews? Give me some of that. So Tim has concert tickets for date night with Bernard? Give me some of that. So Nightwing has some dedicated online stans? I bet his siblings are teasing Dick about it endlessly and mercilessly. So Jason is trying to online date? There sure are some weird responses to that.

What else has Oracle found (and had to scrap) online?

More of Aunt Kate’s queer relationship advice to Tim!

Where to find it: Webtoon.

Dial H for Hero (DC Comics)

- Miguel Montez, Summer Pickens

The 2019 12-issue run is just pure love! There is worldbuilding galore, relatable characters, a wonderful coming-of-age and initiation plot, interdimensional shenanigans, the question how Joe Average could get addicted to sudden superpowers, and so much fun with the concept of Superhero Secret Origins. Summer is a wonderfully strong and caring female lead and Miguel is a self-conscious little oddball.

Prompts: 

5+1 times Miguel ran into his meet-cute crush

5 times Summer was the perfect wingwoman + 1 time Miguel wasn’t self-involved enough to actually return the favour (I know I haven’t put Jinny Hex in my character list for my YJ 2019 request, but I would love to see her and Summer hit it off really well and, well, the rest is history?)

More about Miguel and Summer's adventures at the Daily Planet

Feel free to include any other ((teenage) superhero) cameos you feel like. Please do not pair up Summer and Miguel romantically - although I don't have any problems with a fake relationship fic for them. ;)

Where to find it: Your trusted comicbook supplier.

Pieces - L’Arc~en~Ciel (Music Video)

- any / worldbuilding

I’ve been a Laruku fan for a long time and “Pieces” has always been one of my favourite music videos of theirs. The mood of the song is beautiful and the story told just so haunting and intriguing. It starts right there with the (cursed? demonic? avenging?) dagger in the hands of a New York street vendor, who is not (or not that we know of) affected by its curse. He tells its story, in which it’s always the more powerful party getting killed by the blade. Now, apart from the interesting dynamics/symbolism that the lead singer killing his bassist/bandleader carries, it kind of redeems the blade a little, doesn’t it? Also the ones killing with it don’t seem to realize what they’re doing until it’s too late. The music video tells so many (human) stories with a common theme and a common (supernatural) protagonist (= the dagger) that I just want to see this universe expanded upon.

Prompts:

Sicily 1899 is the beginning of the story, but it can harldy be the beginning of the dagger. So how did it come to be and do what it is and does?

Warsaw 1940 is also a very intersting part because we don’t see the killing per se, just the result. So how did the boy end up killing the much larger soldier?

What (else) does the dagger see/perceive? How does it find or even choose its “victims”?

Where to find it: YouTube

Sweetest Kulu - Celina Kalluk

- any

I recently became a mom, and looking for things from as many different cultures as I could find that I could read to my daughter I discovered this wonderful lullaby/poem/song of wishes. I instantly fell in love with the beautiful imagery and the ebb and flow of the language and the beautiful relationship with nature within it. I would love to be able to read my daughter more stories within the same mythic space, so to speak.

Prompts:

Kulu grows up, and tries to always carry the Arctic world‘s gifts in their heart

How do the animals and spirits mentioned experience the day little Kulu was born? 

What kind of stories will Wise Wind tell of Kulu and other humans?

Where to find it: Your trusted bookstore; there is also a read-aloud version on YouTube.

Young Justice (2019 Comics)

- Kon-El | Conner Kent, Tim Drake

So I only requested two characters because I’d love to read something with them as focus - by no means should the other characters be left behind (e.g. the look in Bart’s eyes when he first meets Cissie again haunts me ever since I first read the comic; and for Jinny Hex see my Dial H prompt above), I do believe Young Justice is such an amazing group because of everyone pushing everyone else to be their best (stupid, bickering, snarky, teenage drama) selves!

I loved the 1990s/2000s series, and as such was over the moon when the 2019/2020 run came out, dealing with all the reboots and all the people and memories lost in between the cracks there. I love how Bart is the one to corral them all, and to remind them of what they are. Friends, first and foremost! BAMF superhero friends that go above and beyond for each other! I love how Kon returns that favour. I love the image of them crashing on Naomi’s couch that one night, just because. And since I’m a TimKon shipper (also a TimBernard stan, even if that hasn’t happened at the time of that particular run - but please don’t feel obliged to write any kind of ship fic/pairing, I love gen just as much!!!), I especially love the friendship and general dynamic between those two idiots.

Prompts:

Kon‘s time / adventures being lost in Gemworld, especially the more domestic kind, with a sudden wife and child thrown at him

5 times the others remember Kon‘s name + 1 time they don’t need to

5+1 of why Drake may or may not be a good superhero alias

Where to find it: Your trusted comicbook supplier.

_______&_______

Overall, I’m sure I’ll love what you have for me, and I'm looking forward to reading it! <3