Yuletide meta
Jan. 13th, 2026 04:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustNotes on Safe Harbour (Alliance-Union - CJ Cherryh)
I've loved CJ Cherryh's books for many years, but was always too intimidated to write fic for them. Last year was the first time I felt brave enough to attempt a treat. This year was the first time I actually offered the fandom and got an assignment.
My recipient was interested in the feelings of attraction between Josh, Elene, and Damon - which, same! Their entwined storylines were some of my favourite parts of Downbelow Station. Good people (mostly) trying to do good things (mostly) in a dark time and place. I've enjoyed all the other fic about them, and have even requested and received it myself.
I wanted to explore territory that hadn't been covered yet, so I thought about them getting together right after the events of Downbelow Station. Which might pose a difficulty because Josh almost immediately joins Norway. But it turned out there was a gap in the timeline (three and a half hours between dinner and dockside) and a sparsely narrated point of view (Josh tells Mallory certain things, but all we know is what he says), that allowed for the possibility of something new that could be unfolded from inside it. Setting the story during this point in history, also allowed for dealing with something I felt wasn't completely resolved - Josh's part in the destruction of Mariner, and Damon and Elene's awareness of that. It seemed like the elephant in the room, that had to be confronted before their relationship could progress.
Downbelow Station contains one of the most masterful lacunae in fiction I know: between when Signy Mallory contemplates what Josh and his comrades planned to do, and when she starts giving orders for Norway to cut loose. To me that's the real climax of the book. I've admired it for years. I tried to leave some blank spaces in this fic, to see if I could do something similar. But it can be hard to know if you've pulled off subtle and allusive, or if you're just being unclear and confusing.
The title was a working title that ended up sticking. I feel like for the three of them, they see each other as a source of stability and a kind of sanctuary.
Notes on Ubiquitous You (Fallen London)
I've also loved playing Fallen London for many years, and have requested and received fic for it many times. I've never written any before this, also from being too intimidated. So much lore! The game is up to how many million words of content now? How is it even possible to do canon review?
But I guess a compelling prompt will convince me anytime. My recipient had among their many prompts "Player/The Masters", which caught my attention immediately. I'm pretty fascinated by these mysterious alien space bats, and how does the Player get involved with not just one but several?
It's kind of a running joke in the fandom, that the Player eventually becomes everyone important in every storyline, because you're the one playing through them all. This is highlighted by the railway statues, which you can build to commemorate various achievements, and it looks pretty wild to see them all lined up together.
Anyway, that suggested that maybe the different Masters know the Player through different identities. Then it was a matter of deciding which Masters and which identities to include, and which would match up well together. Originally I wanted to cover all the Masters and all the railway statue identities, but there wasn't enough time and I didn't have enough knowledge. Someone better than me could have written that fic. But I've started to realise, you've just got to write it, or it doesn't exist.
The title was one of the first things I came up with. If you finish building statues at all the railway stations, you get a special item as a reward. If all the statues are of yourself, you get an additional special item, called "The Inescapable Ubiquity of your Countenance".
I've loved CJ Cherryh's books for many years, but was always too intimidated to write fic for them. Last year was the first time I felt brave enough to attempt a treat. This year was the first time I actually offered the fandom and got an assignment.
My recipient was interested in the feelings of attraction between Josh, Elene, and Damon - which, same! Their entwined storylines were some of my favourite parts of Downbelow Station. Good people (mostly) trying to do good things (mostly) in a dark time and place. I've enjoyed all the other fic about them, and have even requested and received it myself.
I wanted to explore territory that hadn't been covered yet, so I thought about them getting together right after the events of Downbelow Station. Which might pose a difficulty because Josh almost immediately joins Norway. But it turned out there was a gap in the timeline (three and a half hours between dinner and dockside) and a sparsely narrated point of view (Josh tells Mallory certain things, but all we know is what he says), that allowed for the possibility of something new that could be unfolded from inside it. Setting the story during this point in history, also allowed for dealing with something I felt wasn't completely resolved - Josh's part in the destruction of Mariner, and Damon and Elene's awareness of that. It seemed like the elephant in the room, that had to be confronted before their relationship could progress.
Downbelow Station contains one of the most masterful lacunae in fiction I know: between when Signy Mallory contemplates what Josh and his comrades planned to do, and when she starts giving orders for Norway to cut loose. To me that's the real climax of the book. I've admired it for years. I tried to leave some blank spaces in this fic, to see if I could do something similar. But it can be hard to know if you've pulled off subtle and allusive, or if you're just being unclear and confusing.
The title was a working title that ended up sticking. I feel like for the three of them, they see each other as a source of stability and a kind of sanctuary.
Notes on Ubiquitous You (Fallen London)
I've also loved playing Fallen London for many years, and have requested and received fic for it many times. I've never written any before this, also from being too intimidated. So much lore! The game is up to how many million words of content now? How is it even possible to do canon review?
But I guess a compelling prompt will convince me anytime. My recipient had among their many prompts "Player/The Masters", which caught my attention immediately. I'm pretty fascinated by these mysterious alien space bats, and how does the Player get involved with not just one but several?
It's kind of a running joke in the fandom, that the Player eventually becomes everyone important in every storyline, because you're the one playing through them all. This is highlighted by the railway statues, which you can build to commemorate various achievements, and it looks pretty wild to see them all lined up together.
Anyway, that suggested that maybe the different Masters know the Player through different identities. Then it was a matter of deciding which Masters and which identities to include, and which would match up well together. Originally I wanted to cover all the Masters and all the railway statue identities, but there wasn't enough time and I didn't have enough knowledge. Someone better than me could have written that fic. But I've started to realise, you've just got to write it, or it doesn't exist.
The title was one of the first things I came up with. If you finish building statues at all the railway stations, you get a special item as a reward. If all the statues are of yourself, you get an additional special item, called "The Inescapable Ubiquity of your Countenance".
