Yuletide letter
Oct. 5th, 2018 10:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustDear Yuletide Writer,
Thank you so much for offering to write a story for me! I love all these fandoms, and I'm really keen to see what you do in them! I've provided some prompts in case you're looking for inspiration, but I'd also love to see whatever other ideas capture your imagination.
For me, it's about the characters and their relationships. I'm not a stickler for canon details, as long as the spirit of the characters and the flavour of their world is there. I want to see adventures that might have been, or missing moments from between scenes, or a slice of their daily lives, or where the future might take them.
LIKES: Some of the things I enjoy in stories are: undying loyalty, personal bravery, big damn hero moments, special everyday moments, confessions exposing emotional vulnerability, conversations loaded with unspoken meaning, tough people showing a soft side, and soft people showing a tough side. Some of my favorite tropes are: amnesia, animal transformation, arranged marriage, bodyswap, curtainfic, hurt/comfort, mutual pining, sex pollen, and time travel.
DISLIKES: I generally prefer optimistic stories for Yuletide, so I'm not keen on anything that is brutally violent or depressingly bleak. However, I don't mind darkness as long as there is a glimmer of light. Bittersweet endings are also fine.
RATING: I am open to gen or ships for these characters. For the latter, I'm fine with explicit sex, but it's usually not the most important part of the story for me.
STYLE: I'm fine with first, second, or third person. I'm fine with past or present tense. I'm fine with stories of any length, including stories that start in media res.
CROSSOVERS: I would prefer no crossovers with other canons.
AUS: I like seeing the characters in their own settings, so I would prefer no alternate universes like high school, coffee shop, or omegaverse. However, I like alternate universes where something happened differently in canon.
INTERACTIVE FICTION: I like interactive fiction and would welcome it.
I hope this helps. Have fun writing!
Yours sincerely,
meteordust
(AO3 name Serenade)
***
Request 1
Fandom: Falcon - Mark Smith and Jamie Thomson
Characters: Falcon, Agidy Yelov
Details: I've always been fascinated by Yelov and the complicated relationship Falcon has with him - once chief and subordinate, now renegade and enforcer. I'm fine reading them as gen or ship. I'd love to see any story where they cross paths, whether they're working together, or hunting each other, or having a doomed torrid affair. I also like the interactions between Falcon and the other Special Agents, so I'd be interested in anything from dramatic joint missions to the office Christmas party. I'm not that fussed about continuity, given it's a gamebook series, and I like alternate universes too. (Incidentally, in my head, I think of Falcon as male, but gender ambiguity is also cool!)
Resources: There are six books in this series. However, I would be perfectly happy with a story based only on the first book, The Renegade Lord. They are out of print, but they can be found secondhand on AbeBooks, eBay, and Amazon. Falcon at Demian's Gamebook Web Page contains brief information about the series. PDFs of the books used to be available for download at Home of the Underdogs, but not anymore, although copies of the archive seem to float around on filesharing sites. There is also a community playthrough of the entire series on the RPG.net forums, although I haven't read the whole thread.
***
Request 2
Fandom: The Golden Swan - Nancy Springer
Characters: Dair, Frain
Details: Destined soulbonds! Loyalty! Magic! Shapeshifting! I love that Dair is a wolf learning how to be a man, and that Frain is a healer who cannot heal his own wounds. I love that Dair feels immediate instinctive loyalty, and that Frain only gradually grows to care for him deeply. I ship them, but am equally happy to read about their friendship. I'd love to see missing scenes during their time in the palace of the king or during their perilous quest, or new adventures after the events of canon. I would prefer that any sex scenes only involve characters in human form, not animal form.
Note: This is the fifth and final book in a loosely connected series called The Book of Isle. This book refers to earlier events, but can be read as a standalone. It's been many years since I read the other books, so my memory is pretty hazy. You're welcome to reference them or not, as you like.
Resources: The Golden Swan is available new in ebook format, and can be found secondhand in paperback format.
***
Request 3
Fandom: Fortress Series - CJ Cherryh
Characters: Tristen, Barrakkêth
Even though I have requested both these characters, I would be happy with a story just about Tristen or just about Barrakkêth.
Tristen
- I love that Tristen is kind and trusting and loyal, learns to be brave and just, and chooses not to be ruthless like his predecessor.
- Exploring the relics of the past. What ancient ruins still exist in Amefel? What memories do they evoke in Tristen? Can any of them be rebuilt for use again, like how unwalled Althalen becomes a sanctuary for refugees?
- Enjoying leisure time with his friends and allies, which normally they get precious little chance to do, in between the demands of politics and war.
- Discovering new and marvellous things: traditions, foods, baby animals, etc.
- Shipping: I'm fine with or without it. If you would like to include it, I ship Tristen with Crissand, with Cefwyn, or with Ninévrisë. However, I prefer that the last two happen before Cefwyn and Ninévrisë get together, since I like their relationship in canon.
Barrakkêth
- There's so much mystery around the origins of the Sihhë! Were they born, made, or always existing? Was there friendship between the five of them who came down from the north? Why did they agree to help Mauryl overthrow the Galasieni?
- What was Barrakkêth like as a ruler? What did the fortresses and the cities look like in those days? What was his relationship like with the aetheling who was ancestor to Crissand?
- If all Place is one Place and all Time is one Time, did Barrakkêth know the future? Could he foresee Tristen? Is there anywhere in the gray space they can talk? What was his purpose in writing the Book?
- Shipping: I'm fine with or without it. If you would like to include it, I don't have any particular shipping preferences for Barrakkêth, so feel free to write whoever you want.
Note: There are five books in this series. However, I would be perfectly happy with a story based only on the first book, Fortress in the Eye of Time.
Resources: The Fortress series is available in ebook and paperback formats.
Thank you so much for offering to write a story for me! I love all these fandoms, and I'm really keen to see what you do in them! I've provided some prompts in case you're looking for inspiration, but I'd also love to see whatever other ideas capture your imagination.
For me, it's about the characters and their relationships. I'm not a stickler for canon details, as long as the spirit of the characters and the flavour of their world is there. I want to see adventures that might have been, or missing moments from between scenes, or a slice of their daily lives, or where the future might take them.
LIKES: Some of the things I enjoy in stories are: undying loyalty, personal bravery, big damn hero moments, special everyday moments, confessions exposing emotional vulnerability, conversations loaded with unspoken meaning, tough people showing a soft side, and soft people showing a tough side. Some of my favorite tropes are: amnesia, animal transformation, arranged marriage, bodyswap, curtainfic, hurt/comfort, mutual pining, sex pollen, and time travel.
DISLIKES: I generally prefer optimistic stories for Yuletide, so I'm not keen on anything that is brutally violent or depressingly bleak. However, I don't mind darkness as long as there is a glimmer of light. Bittersweet endings are also fine.
RATING: I am open to gen or ships for these characters. For the latter, I'm fine with explicit sex, but it's usually not the most important part of the story for me.
STYLE: I'm fine with first, second, or third person. I'm fine with past or present tense. I'm fine with stories of any length, including stories that start in media res.
CROSSOVERS: I would prefer no crossovers with other canons.
AUS: I like seeing the characters in their own settings, so I would prefer no alternate universes like high school, coffee shop, or omegaverse. However, I like alternate universes where something happened differently in canon.
INTERACTIVE FICTION: I like interactive fiction and would welcome it.
I hope this helps. Have fun writing!
Yours sincerely,
meteordust(AO3 name Serenade)
***
Request 1
Fandom: Falcon - Mark Smith and Jamie Thomson
Characters: Falcon, Agidy Yelov
Details: I've always been fascinated by Yelov and the complicated relationship Falcon has with him - once chief and subordinate, now renegade and enforcer. I'm fine reading them as gen or ship. I'd love to see any story where they cross paths, whether they're working together, or hunting each other, or having a doomed torrid affair. I also like the interactions between Falcon and the other Special Agents, so I'd be interested in anything from dramatic joint missions to the office Christmas party. I'm not that fussed about continuity, given it's a gamebook series, and I like alternate universes too. (Incidentally, in my head, I think of Falcon as male, but gender ambiguity is also cool!)
Resources: There are six books in this series. However, I would be perfectly happy with a story based only on the first book, The Renegade Lord. They are out of print, but they can be found secondhand on AbeBooks, eBay, and Amazon. Falcon at Demian's Gamebook Web Page contains brief information about the series. PDFs of the books used to be available for download at Home of the Underdogs, but not anymore, although copies of the archive seem to float around on filesharing sites. There is also a community playthrough of the entire series on the RPG.net forums, although I haven't read the whole thread.
***
Request 2
Fandom: The Golden Swan - Nancy Springer
Characters: Dair, Frain
Details: Destined soulbonds! Loyalty! Magic! Shapeshifting! I love that Dair is a wolf learning how to be a man, and that Frain is a healer who cannot heal his own wounds. I love that Dair feels immediate instinctive loyalty, and that Frain only gradually grows to care for him deeply. I ship them, but am equally happy to read about their friendship. I'd love to see missing scenes during their time in the palace of the king or during their perilous quest, or new adventures after the events of canon. I would prefer that any sex scenes only involve characters in human form, not animal form.
Note: This is the fifth and final book in a loosely connected series called The Book of Isle. This book refers to earlier events, but can be read as a standalone. It's been many years since I read the other books, so my memory is pretty hazy. You're welcome to reference them or not, as you like.
Resources: The Golden Swan is available new in ebook format, and can be found secondhand in paperback format.
***
Request 3
Fandom: Fortress Series - CJ Cherryh
Characters: Tristen, Barrakkêth
Even though I have requested both these characters, I would be happy with a story just about Tristen or just about Barrakkêth.
Tristen
- I love that Tristen is kind and trusting and loyal, learns to be brave and just, and chooses not to be ruthless like his predecessor.
- Exploring the relics of the past. What ancient ruins still exist in Amefel? What memories do they evoke in Tristen? Can any of them be rebuilt for use again, like how unwalled Althalen becomes a sanctuary for refugees?
- Enjoying leisure time with his friends and allies, which normally they get precious little chance to do, in between the demands of politics and war.
- Discovering new and marvellous things: traditions, foods, baby animals, etc.
- Shipping: I'm fine with or without it. If you would like to include it, I ship Tristen with Crissand, with Cefwyn, or with Ninévrisë. However, I prefer that the last two happen before Cefwyn and Ninévrisë get together, since I like their relationship in canon.
Barrakkêth
- There's so much mystery around the origins of the Sihhë! Were they born, made, or always existing? Was there friendship between the five of them who came down from the north? Why did they agree to help Mauryl overthrow the Galasieni?
- What was Barrakkêth like as a ruler? What did the fortresses and the cities look like in those days? What was his relationship like with the aetheling who was ancestor to Crissand?
- If all Place is one Place and all Time is one Time, did Barrakkêth know the future? Could he foresee Tristen? Is there anywhere in the gray space they can talk? What was his purpose in writing the Book?
- Shipping: I'm fine with or without it. If you would like to include it, I don't have any particular shipping preferences for Barrakkêth, so feel free to write whoever you want.
Note: There are five books in this series. However, I would be perfectly happy with a story based only on the first book, Fortress in the Eye of Time.
Resources: The Fortress series is available in ebook and paperback formats.
