alectorine (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
alectorine) wrote2015-10-21 09:13 am
alectorine) wrote2015-10-21 09:13 am
yuletide 2015
Dear Yuletide author,
First of all, thank you so much for participating! Rest assured that I'll love your fic no matter what you write, so please don't feel pressured :) I've written some prompts, and a list of tropes/narrative devices I enjoy, but by no means do you have to include all or any of them - if you have a particular idea you're burning to write, go for it! You can also find some of the fics I've liked here. If you're really stuck, a more comprehensive list of my fandoms and ships can be found here. The most important thing is that you have fun writing the rare fandoms we both adore!
Things I like in fic: unusual or experimental prose styles; worldbuilding, histories (whether canonical or not), and a strong sense of setting; inclusion of minor characters/ensemble casts; mentor-mentee dynamics; ideological clashes; the exploration of unorthodox relationships between characters, especially if they are not shown interacting much in canon; relationship dynamics that are difficult to define, especially if non-romantic; allusions to mythology; non-linear narration; subtle references to backstory events; stealthy cameos from other fandoms; physicality and nonverbal communication; polyamory negotiations
Other tropes/AUs I love, if you aren't feeling the prompts: MAGICAL REALISM/MUNDANE SUPERPOWER AUS; pacific rim aus (especially with unconventional jaeger teams!); fake dating; canon divergence aus; enemies to friends (to lovers optional) while still retaining some form of legitimate rivalry/resentment; espionage aus; subverted soulmate aus (ie multiple soulmates, soulmates who aren't necessarily romantic, not everyone having a soulmate and that being completely normal etc); pre-canon fic; futurefic; HDM fusions
Things I have no preference on: content rating; implied and background pairings (unless specifically mentioned); multishipping; genre; plot/lack thereof and endings
Things I would prefer you didn't include: pwp; excessive fluff; graphically described eye horror; excising other influential relationships the characters in the main ship have experienced; noncon, A/B/O, watersports, and other heavy kinks; kids, pregnancy or marriage as the main focus of the fic; bullying played for laughs; soulmate aus played straight (ie all soulmates are romantic, everyone has One True Soulmate, all the biologically imperative stuff, the implication that you need a romantic 'other half' to be complete etc)
1. Tower of God
Tower of God has a fantastic, sprawling ensemble cast, so anything gen, in particular something exploring the wider world of the Tower, would be amazing! The S1 team is my favourite so far, although I like the S2 team too (rather lukewarm on the S3 team but I'm willing to be convinced otherwise, especially with the Hell Train five). But above all, I love the Zahard Princesses and Wolhaiksong, and would dearly love a slightly bizarre slice-of-life fic focusing on their respective group dynamics. Regarding the Zahard Princesses, I would especially like something that discusses the weight of legacy, how they earn and deal with it, and why they take it on. Completely optional, but if you're really feeling up to it, I have a whole bunch of Zahard Princess headcanons that can be found here. I'm also a big fan of all the Tower of God ladies, so something focusing on them would be great, too!
Ships-wise, you can check out a very in-depth, ordered list of ships here, but pretty much I adore all of the mentorships and femslash ships. If you write these characters, I'd prefer if you didn't include Koon/Baam, Anak/Ran or Rachel/Baam (although Rachel + Baam mentorship-gone-wrong is very much welcome), and also that Koon isn't positioned as the most important person in Baam's life.
But honestly, I would be ecstatic to receive anything for my ultimate microfandom – if you have anything already in the works, then I fervently encourage you to write it!
2. Donten ni Warau
Tenka and Sousei's relationship follows one of my all-time favourite trajectories - from the closeness of brothers who sparred together and shared ideals, to the tired bitterness of a shattered friendship, to a tentative reconciliation. I'm particularly interested in an exploration of their dynamic from Sousei's perspective - he doesn't know the reason for Tenka suddenly turning his back on their dream, only that this boy he's respected and loved all his childhood has decided that everything they were going to achieve together, Tenka as Captain of the Yamainu and Sousei as his right-hand-man, is now worthless. Given how familiar they were with each other, I have no doubt that Sousei knew Tenka wasn't telling him the whole truth, but it must have rankled to know that his best friend didn't trust him enough to do so.
In addition, this meant that Sousei was now the captain of the Yamainu squad, the position that should always have been charming, charismatic Tenka's - Sousei wouldn't have shied away from the responsibility, but neither would he have taken it if given the choice. Of course, he would have been doubly furious at himself that Tenka was able to affect him so much. Thanks to Sousei's pride and Tenka's constant self-sacrifice, they remain separated by an ocean of perceived ideological differences, until they're older and circumstances force them to work together, all the while with the ghost of their history and former bond hanging over them. But of course, they do gain some measure of emotional maturity along the way, and start on the path to reconciliation, exploring the actual changes in their ideologies that have occurred and not just the ones they thought had happened.
I'd love something that depicts how their relationship changes over time, from Sousei's eyes, with all his myriad neuroses and little collected resentments, and his inability to articulate his emotions even to himself, instead transmuting and redirecting that anger towards Tenka. As she wasn't nominated this is totally optional, but I'd love if Kiiko could feature in the fic too! I consider her a pivotal figure in Tenka and Sousei's relationship, being the voice of reason and emotional maturity to round off the childhood friends trio. If you wanted to go the full ot3 route, I'm more than fine with that ;)
3. Chihayafuru
The weight of the history between Inokuma and Sakurazawa and how their famed rivalry transforms over time into mutual support, without losing any of its intensity, is something I'm very much interested in! I adore Sakurazawa's steady coolness belying a bone-deep love for karuta, not expressed as obviously as Inokuma or Chihaya or even Shinobu but there nonetheless, and how she channels that into teaching after she began to lose her speed as a competitive player. Her observational skills, her calm under pressure, and her ability to impart knowledge make her an excellent leader and teacher, which is one of my favourite things about her character. I'm also fascinated by her partially self-fulfilling prophecy… thing … regarding Inokuma and skill - Sakurazawa has accepted that she will never be able to match Inokuma's absolute faith in the cards or her 'innate' brilliance, and because she doesn't expect to be better than her, she will never be able to beat her, whether or not that's act ually true.
For Sakurazawa, what was the process of coming to accept her vice-queen station like? How does she articulate or even acknowledge the sheer impact Inokuma's presence had (and still has) on her, if at all? For Inokuma, what draws her to Sakurazawa? How do they reach their state of equilibrium, so many years afterwards?
One last thing - if you choose to set the fic/part of the fic in the present canon, please be mindful of Inokuma's marriage and family! I would prefer not to receive something with infidelity - their bond doesn't have to be sexual or even romantic in nature to be meaningful. If you conceptualise Inokuma/Sakurazawa as one-sidedly romantic from Sakurazawa's perspective, that's fine with me too.
4. Oofuri
Mihashi and Haruna are the quirky pitcher duo otp of my heart! I'm very much taken with their dual process of learning how to take care of themselves, especially given their histories with injury/bullying, and supporting each other through the process of healing and reclaiming agency. I love that Mihashi is the one to seek Haruna out and actively pursue a friendship/healthy rivalry based on mutual respect and admiration - I'm all for Mihashi starting to articulate his own desires and striving to improve because it's what he wants to do. Meanwhile, Haruna is mildly bemused, totally smitten, and even more blustery than usual in the face of Mihashi's determination.
I'd really love an exploration of their dynamic after canon, when they've both become professional players and don't see each other as often anymore. Periodical phone-calls to check up on each other with an unfailing politeness that acts as more of a barrier than anything else, scanning the sports news for any appearances the other makes, learning how to connect to each other beyond the initial gloss of pitcher idolisation and the comfortable context of baseball. I feel some kind of epistolary format would be really interesting with this, but it's up to you! Alternatively, I'd love to see something set during canon illustrating the offscreen moments where they bond and become friends and go on pitcher dates!
While Abe definitely plays a major role in both their lives (and I do adore the egg thief in all his ridiculousness) I would really appreciate it if the fic did not revolve around Haruna and Mihashi's respective attachments to Abe, and that their relationship wasn't framed as Haruna trying to make Abe jealous by getting to Mihashi or something along those lines.
5. Throne of Glass
Celaena and Lysandra have such a fascinating dynamic with so many parallels - they're both orphaned at a young age and taken in by Arobynn, and it just happens that Celaena goes into training to become an assassin, while Lysandra goes into training to become a courtesan; they both had the potential to become one another (class divide notwithstanding). Unfortunately, their relationship in the prequel wasn't really explored past basic jealousy, and I know this is partly because they were both much younger, but let's be real - the more nuanced female relationships, the better, so absolutely feel free to disregard canon on that aspect.
Basically, I'd like something canon-divergent where Lysandra and Celaena do strike up a prequel-era understanding, connecting on the basis of their similar characteristics, where they move from distrust and dislike, to wary, tentative friendship, to a strong (romantic!) bond.
(Also, I have an unfortunate weakness for Arobynn's particular brand of Bad Mentorship regarding both Celaena and Lysandra, with all of its hugely skewed power dynamics, questionable relationship roles, emotional manipulation and general skeeviness. I absolutely realise this isn't for everyone, but if you wanted to feature Arobynn/his influence, I have no objections, so long as it's treated as unhealthy!)
My dream AU is the one where Celaena becomes Queen of the Assassins (I'll leave how Arobynn dies up to you), with Lysandra (and Sam) as her second(s)-in-command - if you want to throw Sam in there to make it an ot3, that would be great! If not, that's fine too, but I'd like it if his bonds with Celaena and Lysandra could still be preserved without overshadowing their relationship. If you somehow managed to work Ansel in there too, romantically or not, that would be amazing as well.
I haven't read Queen of Shadows yet, but I definitely plan to by the time Yuletide comes around, so if you want to write Celaena/Lysandra during or post-QoS, that's fine too.
6. Wicked Lovely
I am eternally grateful for the fact that Leslie/Irial/Niall is a canon poly ship - I love Irial and Niall's depth of shared history, I love Niall and Leslie's unsettling bodyguard romance, I love Leslie and Irial's vaguely codependent empathetic soul-bond thing, I love the way the three arms of the ot3 all intersect. Even though Leslie has the least amount of power, their relationship is predicated entirely on her terms - she defends her agency and her self-awareness, and Niall and Irial both respect that. I love that Leslie becomes comfortable with who she is, whatever that entails, and returns to the Dark Court of her own free will.
What I'd like is a fic where the trio figure out how to cohabitate, set post-canon. I'm all for mood dissonance - ordinarily terrifying/horrifying things as a backdrop for fluff, a general dark atmosphere underscored with domesticity. Relationships as intricate as this one take a lot of work, despite (or because of) how much they all love each other. I'd love to see them sort out their ideological differences, and how the Dark Court changes under their rule.
Alternatively, I would also be happy with a fic set after Stopping Time, and how the trio navigates the beginnings of a relationship where Leslie still needs her space, Irial cannot touch her, and Niall is in the process of learning his crown. Think all the long-distance relationship tropes - meetings from a distance, late-night phone calls, a wistful sense of longing. How does Leslie integrate the person she could be in the Dark Court into the person she is now/wants to be? Does she ever resent Niall and Irial for her situation? What changes in her relationships with other people (like Aislinn!) occur? In a nutshell: polyamory negotiations!
One last thing! Please don't whitewash Irial's (or even Niall's) character, he's done many, many terrible things in general and also to Niall and Leslie. You don't have to address it directly in the fic, but do at least acknowledge it.
First of all, thank you so much for participating! Rest assured that I'll love your fic no matter what you write, so please don't feel pressured :) I've written some prompts, and a list of tropes/narrative devices I enjoy, but by no means do you have to include all or any of them - if you have a particular idea you're burning to write, go for it! You can also find some of the fics I've liked here. If you're really stuck, a more comprehensive list of my fandoms and ships can be found here. The most important thing is that you have fun writing the rare fandoms we both adore!
Things I like in fic: unusual or experimental prose styles; worldbuilding, histories (whether canonical or not), and a strong sense of setting; inclusion of minor characters/ensemble casts; mentor-mentee dynamics; ideological clashes; the exploration of unorthodox relationships between characters, especially if they are not shown interacting much in canon; relationship dynamics that are difficult to define, especially if non-romantic; allusions to mythology; non-linear narration; subtle references to backstory events; stealthy cameos from other fandoms; physicality and nonverbal communication; polyamory negotiations
Other tropes/AUs I love, if you aren't feeling the prompts: MAGICAL REALISM/MUNDANE SUPERPOWER AUS; pacific rim aus (especially with unconventional jaeger teams!); fake dating; canon divergence aus; enemies to friends (to lovers optional) while still retaining some form of legitimate rivalry/resentment; espionage aus; subverted soulmate aus (ie multiple soulmates, soulmates who aren't necessarily romantic, not everyone having a soulmate and that being completely normal etc); pre-canon fic; futurefic; HDM fusions
Things I have no preference on: content rating; implied and background pairings (unless specifically mentioned); multishipping; genre; plot/lack thereof and endings
Things I would prefer you didn't include: pwp; excessive fluff; graphically described eye horror; excising other influential relationships the characters in the main ship have experienced; noncon, A/B/O, watersports, and other heavy kinks; kids, pregnancy or marriage as the main focus of the fic; bullying played for laughs; soulmate aus played straight (ie all soulmates are romantic, everyone has One True Soulmate, all the biologically imperative stuff, the implication that you need a romantic 'other half' to be complete etc)
1. Tower of God
Any character/gen
Tower of God has a fantastic, sprawling ensemble cast, so anything gen, in particular something exploring the wider world of the Tower, would be amazing! The S1 team is my favourite so far, although I like the S2 team too (rather lukewarm on the S3 team but I'm willing to be convinced otherwise, especially with the Hell Train five). But above all, I love the Zahard Princesses and Wolhaiksong, and would dearly love a slightly bizarre slice-of-life fic focusing on their respective group dynamics. Regarding the Zahard Princesses, I would especially like something that discusses the weight of legacy, how they earn and deal with it, and why they take it on. Completely optional, but if you're really feeling up to it, I have a whole bunch of Zahard Princess headcanons that can be found here. I'm also a big fan of all the Tower of God ladies, so something focusing on them would be great, too!
Ships-wise, you can check out a very in-depth, ordered list of ships here, but pretty much I adore all of the mentorships and femslash ships. If you write these characters, I'd prefer if you didn't include Koon/Baam, Anak/Ran or Rachel/Baam (although Rachel + Baam mentorship-gone-wrong is very much welcome), and also that Koon isn't positioned as the most important person in Baam's life.
But honestly, I would be ecstatic to receive anything for my ultimate microfandom – if you have anything already in the works, then I fervently encourage you to write it!
2. Donten ni Warau
Kumo Tenka, Abeno Sousei
Tenka and Sousei's relationship follows one of my all-time favourite trajectories - from the closeness of brothers who sparred together and shared ideals, to the tired bitterness of a shattered friendship, to a tentative reconciliation. I'm particularly interested in an exploration of their dynamic from Sousei's perspective - he doesn't know the reason for Tenka suddenly turning his back on their dream, only that this boy he's respected and loved all his childhood has decided that everything they were going to achieve together, Tenka as Captain of the Yamainu and Sousei as his right-hand-man, is now worthless. Given how familiar they were with each other, I have no doubt that Sousei knew Tenka wasn't telling him the whole truth, but it must have rankled to know that his best friend didn't trust him enough to do so.
In addition, this meant that Sousei was now the captain of the Yamainu squad, the position that should always have been charming, charismatic Tenka's - Sousei wouldn't have shied away from the responsibility, but neither would he have taken it if given the choice. Of course, he would have been doubly furious at himself that Tenka was able to affect him so much. Thanks to Sousei's pride and Tenka's constant self-sacrifice, they remain separated by an ocean of perceived ideological differences, until they're older and circumstances force them to work together, all the while with the ghost of their history and former bond hanging over them. But of course, they do gain some measure of emotional maturity along the way, and start on the path to reconciliation, exploring the actual changes in their ideologies that have occurred and not just the ones they thought had happened.
I'd love something that depicts how their relationship changes over time, from Sousei's eyes, with all his myriad neuroses and little collected resentments, and his inability to articulate his emotions even to himself, instead transmuting and redirecting that anger towards Tenka. As she wasn't nominated this is totally optional, but I'd love if Kiiko could feature in the fic too! I consider her a pivotal figure in Tenka and Sousei's relationship, being the voice of reason and emotional maturity to round off the childhood friends trio. If you wanted to go the full ot3 route, I'm more than fine with that ;)
3. Chihayafuru
Inokuma Haruka, Sakurazawa Midori
The weight of the history between Inokuma and Sakurazawa and how their famed rivalry transforms over time into mutual support, without losing any of its intensity, is something I'm very much interested in! I adore Sakurazawa's steady coolness belying a bone-deep love for karuta, not expressed as obviously as Inokuma or Chihaya or even Shinobu but there nonetheless, and how she channels that into teaching after she began to lose her speed as a competitive player. Her observational skills, her calm under pressure, and her ability to impart knowledge make her an excellent leader and teacher, which is one of my favourite things about her character. I'm also fascinated by her partially self-fulfilling prophecy… thing … regarding Inokuma and skill - Sakurazawa has accepted that she will never be able to match Inokuma's absolute faith in the cards or her 'innate' brilliance, and because she doesn't expect to be better than her, she will never be able to beat her, whether or not that's act ually true.
For Sakurazawa, what was the process of coming to accept her vice-queen station like? How does she articulate or even acknowledge the sheer impact Inokuma's presence had (and still has) on her, if at all? For Inokuma, what draws her to Sakurazawa? How do they reach their state of equilibrium, so many years afterwards?
One last thing - if you choose to set the fic/part of the fic in the present canon, please be mindful of Inokuma's marriage and family! I would prefer not to receive something with infidelity - their bond doesn't have to be sexual or even romantic in nature to be meaningful. If you conceptualise Inokuma/Sakurazawa as one-sidedly romantic from Sakurazawa's perspective, that's fine with me too.
4. Oofuri
Haruna Motoki, Mihashi Ren
Mihashi and Haruna are the quirky pitcher duo otp of my heart! I'm very much taken with their dual process of learning how to take care of themselves, especially given their histories with injury/bullying, and supporting each other through the process of healing and reclaiming agency. I love that Mihashi is the one to seek Haruna out and actively pursue a friendship/healthy rivalry based on mutual respect and admiration - I'm all for Mihashi starting to articulate his own desires and striving to improve because it's what he wants to do. Meanwhile, Haruna is mildly bemused, totally smitten, and even more blustery than usual in the face of Mihashi's determination.
I'd really love an exploration of their dynamic after canon, when they've both become professional players and don't see each other as often anymore. Periodical phone-calls to check up on each other with an unfailing politeness that acts as more of a barrier than anything else, scanning the sports news for any appearances the other makes, learning how to connect to each other beyond the initial gloss of pitcher idolisation and the comfortable context of baseball. I feel some kind of epistolary format would be really interesting with this, but it's up to you! Alternatively, I'd love to see something set during canon illustrating the offscreen moments where they bond and become friends and go on pitcher dates!
While Abe definitely plays a major role in both their lives (and I do adore the egg thief in all his ridiculousness) I would really appreciate it if the fic did not revolve around Haruna and Mihashi's respective attachments to Abe, and that their relationship wasn't framed as Haruna trying to make Abe jealous by getting to Mihashi or something along those lines.
5. Throne of Glass
Celaena Sardothien, Lysandra
Celaena and Lysandra have such a fascinating dynamic with so many parallels - they're both orphaned at a young age and taken in by Arobynn, and it just happens that Celaena goes into training to become an assassin, while Lysandra goes into training to become a courtesan; they both had the potential to become one another (class divide notwithstanding). Unfortunately, their relationship in the prequel wasn't really explored past basic jealousy, and I know this is partly because they were both much younger, but let's be real - the more nuanced female relationships, the better, so absolutely feel free to disregard canon on that aspect.
Basically, I'd like something canon-divergent where Lysandra and Celaena do strike up a prequel-era understanding, connecting on the basis of their similar characteristics, where they move from distrust and dislike, to wary, tentative friendship, to a strong (romantic!) bond.
(Also, I have an unfortunate weakness for Arobynn's particular brand of Bad Mentorship regarding both Celaena and Lysandra, with all of its hugely skewed power dynamics, questionable relationship roles, emotional manipulation and general skeeviness. I absolutely realise this isn't for everyone, but if you wanted to feature Arobynn/his influence, I have no objections, so long as it's treated as unhealthy!)
My dream AU is the one where Celaena becomes Queen of the Assassins (I'll leave how Arobynn dies up to you), with Lysandra (and Sam) as her second(s)-in-command - if you want to throw Sam in there to make it an ot3, that would be great! If not, that's fine too, but I'd like it if his bonds with Celaena and Lysandra could still be preserved without overshadowing their relationship. If you somehow managed to work Ansel in there too, romantically or not, that would be amazing as well.
I haven't read Queen of Shadows yet, but I definitely plan to by the time Yuletide comes around, so if you want to write Celaena/Lysandra during or post-QoS, that's fine too.
6. Wicked Lovely
Leslie, Niall, Irial
I am eternally grateful for the fact that Leslie/Irial/Niall is a canon poly ship - I love Irial and Niall's depth of shared history, I love Niall and Leslie's unsettling bodyguard romance, I love Leslie and Irial's vaguely codependent empathetic soul-bond thing, I love the way the three arms of the ot3 all intersect. Even though Leslie has the least amount of power, their relationship is predicated entirely on her terms - she defends her agency and her self-awareness, and Niall and Irial both respect that. I love that Leslie becomes comfortable with who she is, whatever that entails, and returns to the Dark Court of her own free will.
What I'd like is a fic where the trio figure out how to cohabitate, set post-canon. I'm all for mood dissonance - ordinarily terrifying/horrifying things as a backdrop for fluff, a general dark atmosphere underscored with domesticity. Relationships as intricate as this one take a lot of work, despite (or because of) how much they all love each other. I'd love to see them sort out their ideological differences, and how the Dark Court changes under their rule.
Alternatively, I would also be happy with a fic set after Stopping Time, and how the trio navigates the beginnings of a relationship where Leslie still needs her space, Irial cannot touch her, and Niall is in the process of learning his crown. Think all the long-distance relationship tropes - meetings from a distance, late-night phone calls, a wistful sense of longing. How does Leslie integrate the person she could be in the Dark Court into the person she is now/wants to be? Does she ever resent Niall and Irial for her situation? What changes in her relationships with other people (like Aislinn!) occur? In a nutshell: polyamory negotiations!
One last thing! Please don't whitewash Irial's (or even Niall's) character, he's done many, many terrible things in general and also to Niall and Leslie. You don't have to address it directly in the fic, but do at least acknowledge it.