Dear Yuletide Author
Oct. 17th, 2015 05:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
naushikaDear Yuletide Author,
You are the best. Thank you so much for writing me a story! I can not wait to read it!
The standard disclaimer I throw up at the beginning of any exchange letter is that I am rather easy to please. If you have a story idea in mind for the character(s) I've requested, then please feel free to run with it. All I ask is you take a look at my Dislikes but otherwise, if you've got an idea eating away at your brain, I'd love to read it.
What follows is a series of general likes as well as fandom-specific prompts, if you would like the guidance. Don't feel obligated to follow a specific prompt exactly, either. If a prompt inspires you in another direction, then go for it! :D
GENERAL
Likes:
- angst
- action/adventure
- hurt/comfort (emotional or physical)
- apocalypse/dystopia/zombies/survival situations
- time travel (normal flavor, time loops, butterfly effect stuff)
- dubcon (aliens made them do it, drunk!sex, sex pollen, etc, and all the ramifications that follow)
- friends-to-lovers
- friendships and found family feelings
- pretty much anything tropey (favorites are trapped/bonded together, bodyswapping, undercover relationship, amnesia, forced marriage, telepathy)
- crossovers and fusions
Dislikes:
- BDSM
- slave/master dynamics
- A/B/O, heat cycles
- knotting
- non-con (mentions of in-canon occurrences or background ok)
- genderswap
- incest
- polyamory
- excessive descriptions of non-canon-style violence or gore
- PWP (NC-17 is fine, but I would prefer more non-smutty bits to smutty bits, basically)
FANDOMS
Ant-Man
source
Requested characters: Hope Van Dyne
Pairings I enjoy: none
Platonic relationships I enjoy: Hope & Scott
I am very much an MCU fan but even I didn't expect to love Ant-Man as much as I did. Although my hopes were high from the beginning when I heard the movie would be primarily about Scott Lang as opposed to Hank Pym. I love Scott in the comics so I was eager to see his big-screen portrayal. Like all the other MCU movies, Ant-Man takes inspiration from the comics but is still its own entity, and I really really enjoyed what they did. I loved Scott in Ant-Man, but the biggest surprise for me was how much I LOVED Hope Van Dyne. The biggest area of the film I was skeptical about was Hope, because she was an entirely new character. I was also worried they might just take all of comic-Wasp (Janet Van Dyne)'s characteristics and paste them on a younger model. But I was so wrong. Hope is totally her own character, and she's a fantastic one. I love her dedication and drive, her (100% legit) anger at her father, her resentment of Scott (turning to grudging respect), and her validation at the end. Throughout the movie I was angry on her behalf for not getting to wear the suit and be the hero, and every thought I had Hope pretty much actually spoke the words. But then at the end - finally! She will be the Wasp! Although I'm disappointed to not actually get to see that outcome (hence one of my prompts below).
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- Hope is the Wasp!! I want to see so much about that. Mastering flying and her powers. Learning what it means to be a superhero. Finally following in her mother's footsteps. I love Hope as a character; she's goal-oriented, focused, driven, but I love the flaws that brings out in her too (emotionally distant, stoic). How does she adapt with her new life - the one she always wanted since she was a little girl?
- What does her partnership with Ant-Man/Scott look like? How effective are they as a team? (And how many missteps happen before they really gel?) Basically just superhero stuff. I'm kinda of the mind that Ant-Man ended right when the story got good. (I do not specifically ship Hope/Scott. However I know they're canon so I am fine with established romance for them. But I'd prefer if that was not the focus of the story.)
- I'm pretty enamored of the idea that Janet Van Dyne is lost in the microverse somewhere. This hidden imagery just serves to fuel my fanon. I'd love to see a story where Scott realizes/remembers/dreams he saw Janet in the microverse, and when he tells Hope that, it sends her on an obsessive tailspin similar to her father's. I want to see Hope determined to get back her mother - whether or not she actually does is immaterial. I just want to see her when she unintentionally mirrors her father and all the consequences and realizations that come from that obsession.
Dark Matter
source 1, source 2, source 3
Requested characters: any
Pairings I enjoy: none
Platonic relationships I enjoy: The Android & Two, The Android & Five, Six & Five, Two & Three, the entire Raza crew
Dark Matter is a show that I honestly had to power through for the first handful of episodes. It felt.. boring. But I LOVE space and spaceships and stories that take place IN SPAAAAAAACE so I stuck with it and I'm so glad I did. Once the show really starts delving into the story and expanding the universe a bit then it really opens up. And also, the characters start to shine. I have enjoyed learning about each character's background immensely. Honestly when it was time to pick which characters to request I could not choose just 1-4. I do love them all and would love to read more about any of them. And I love them together as teammates. They're kind of a stuck-together family of odd ducks which really scratches a narrative itch for me. I like when people are forced together and must learn to tolerate each other - which evolves into genuine caring before they even realize what's happening.
One thing that kind of amuses me about Dark Matter - and this is something I don't think the show is really self-aware about - is how much the characters really are kind of monsters. I mean, how many people do they kill on a weekly basis? (Not to mention all the indirect mass deaths.) And these people die not because our group of heroes are really heroes. They're mercenaries for hire. Not everybody who gets in their way deserves to die. And yet. So I think it's kind of funny but also interesting because the show doesn't really acknowledge this too much. But I like that twist.
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- I love Six's older brother-type role to Five's younger sister-type role. I would love to see more of their interactions together. Maybe Five finally convinces the crew to let her come along on a job, and Six is less than pleased - and he doesn't mind showing it, but she aims to prove herself to him. Or perhaps some slice-of-life stuff on the Raza. Or Five's reaction to Six's betrayal at the end of s1.
- The Android is a great character, and I just love anything to do with her expanding her programming and learning to be human, and especially learning what friendship and family means. I'd love something with her exploring that - either on her own, or I like when Five coaches and guides the Android. I also really love when the Android and Two team up to be two super badasses. With the revelations about Two's character towards the end of the season, I wouldn't mind seeing more bonding between the two, as it seems they have more in common than they could have guessed.
- Two and Three's head-butting is great. I don't really ship them per se, but I'm not anti-them either. I'm not interested in reading a sappy romance with them (which is why I didn't name them as a pairing I enjoy), but an in-canon style relationship in which they fight and bicker and annoy each other but end up in bed anyway is okay with me. I like that Three has his soft spots (deeply buried) and that Two is colder and more distant. I'd like anything that plays with these dynamics.
- bonus crossover prompt: Dark Matter and Killjoys are two shows that don't really disagree with each other when it comes to tone and mythology and I could easily see them getting along as canons. And a lot of people who are fans of one show are fans of the other also. So if you happen to be fans of both and you like crossovers too, I would super enjoy seeing how that plays out. What happens when the Raza crew and Dutch & co are hunting the same target? What if one of our killjoy trio knows one of the Raza folks and runs into them out in the wild? Could one of the Raza be a level 6 killjoy (my money's on Two)?
Killjoys
source 1, source 2
Requested characters: Dutch, Johnny Jaqobis
Pairings I enjoy: Dutch/Johnny
Platonic relationships I enjoy: Dutch & Johnny, Lucy & Johnny (&/or Dutch)
I feel so lucky that this show exists to entertain me. It has so many things I love. Spaceships and SPAAAAAAACE. A kickass lead lady with flaws and a troubled past. Adorable best friends. Butt-kicking on the regular. And lots of interesting worldbuilding and storytelling. But really, for me the show is all about Dutch and Johnny. I love their interactions, their fierce loyalty to one another, their dependency and reliance on each other. They are best friends through and through and I have a huge best friend kink. I want to know more of their history and I'm eager to see their future.
(I didn't request D'Avin specifically because I'm not really looking for a fic that features him heavily. But it's fine if D'Avin is included in the fic because he is obviously a major character. My only request really is no D'Avin/Dutch (besides the background of what happened in canon).)
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- Dutch and Johnny hit one of my deep trope loves, which is friends-to-lovers. If you're up for ship fic, then anything that features the slow realization of feelings and move to a romantic relationship would be just lovely. Pulling from any of my 'likes' list above is a grand slam here, but especially anything that forces closeness and banter like being trapped or linked together, in a survival situation together, or undercover relationship.
- If you're not up for ship fic, I absolutely adore the two of them as teammates and friends. Dutch and Johnny are best friends, and I would love to see more of that. How they work together, or some of their early adventures. Late night conversations on Lucy when one or both of them can't sleep. In particular, anything that features how much they rely on and need each other. I'm kind of a sap for co-dependency sometimes, even when platonic.
- I also quite enjoy Lucy as a character and her interactions with the crew. Maybe some backstory on Lucy and why she is the way she is. Or Lucy gets damaged and Johnny goes crazy trying to fix her and Dutch thinks he's maybe a bit nuts but she finds herself missing Lucy too.
- bonus crossover prompt: Dark Matter and Killjoys are two shows that don't really disagree with each other when it comes to tone and mythology and I could easily see them getting along as canons. And a lot of people who are fans of one show are fans of the other also. So if you happen to be fans of both and you like crossovers too, I would super enjoy seeing how that plays out. What happens when the Raza crew and Dutch & co are hunting the same target? What if one of our killjoy trio knows one of the Raza folks and runs into them out in the wild? Could one of the Raza be a level 6 killjoy (my money's on Two)?
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you are looking for more potential material to work with, you can sift through all my old Dear Author fic exchange letters if you like. It is absolutely not necessary, but I offer the link here in case you are really itching for more. Though a lot of them are pretty similar as my tastes do not change all that much. There are lots more prompt ideas though, feel free to steal any from past letters if one speaks to you! And if you want to see my own fic, my AO3 account is kateandbarrel.
Again, thank you so much for writing me a fic!! I'm so excited! :)
edited 10/19 with some more thoughts/feelings of each of my chosen canons
edited 10/26 with new prompts, expanded prompts, re-wording of a few things
You are the best. Thank you so much for writing me a story! I can not wait to read it!
The standard disclaimer I throw up at the beginning of any exchange letter is that I am rather easy to please. If you have a story idea in mind for the character(s) I've requested, then please feel free to run with it. All I ask is you take a look at my Dislikes but otherwise, if you've got an idea eating away at your brain, I'd love to read it.
What follows is a series of general likes as well as fandom-specific prompts, if you would like the guidance. Don't feel obligated to follow a specific prompt exactly, either. If a prompt inspires you in another direction, then go for it! :D
GENERAL
Likes:
- angst
- action/adventure
- hurt/comfort (emotional or physical)
- apocalypse/dystopia/zombies/survival situations
- time travel (normal flavor, time loops, butterfly effect stuff)
- dubcon (aliens made them do it, drunk!sex, sex pollen, etc, and all the ramifications that follow)
- friends-to-lovers
- friendships and found family feelings
- pretty much anything tropey (favorites are trapped/bonded together, bodyswapping, undercover relationship, amnesia, forced marriage, telepathy)
- crossovers and fusions
Dislikes:
- BDSM
- slave/master dynamics
- A/B/O, heat cycles
- knotting
- non-con (mentions of in-canon occurrences or background ok)
- genderswap
- incest
- polyamory
- excessive descriptions of non-canon-style violence or gore
- PWP (NC-17 is fine, but I would prefer more non-smutty bits to smutty bits, basically)
FANDOMS
source
Requested characters: Hope Van Dyne
Pairings I enjoy: none
Platonic relationships I enjoy: Hope & Scott
I am very much an MCU fan but even I didn't expect to love Ant-Man as much as I did. Although my hopes were high from the beginning when I heard the movie would be primarily about Scott Lang as opposed to Hank Pym. I love Scott in the comics so I was eager to see his big-screen portrayal. Like all the other MCU movies, Ant-Man takes inspiration from the comics but is still its own entity, and I really really enjoyed what they did. I loved Scott in Ant-Man, but the biggest surprise for me was how much I LOVED Hope Van Dyne. The biggest area of the film I was skeptical about was Hope, because she was an entirely new character. I was also worried they might just take all of comic-Wasp (Janet Van Dyne)'s characteristics and paste them on a younger model. But I was so wrong. Hope is totally her own character, and she's a fantastic one. I love her dedication and drive, her (100% legit) anger at her father, her resentment of Scott (turning to grudging respect), and her validation at the end. Throughout the movie I was angry on her behalf for not getting to wear the suit and be the hero, and every thought I had Hope pretty much actually spoke the words. But then at the end - finally! She will be the Wasp! Although I'm disappointed to not actually get to see that outcome (hence one of my prompts below).
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- Hope is the Wasp!! I want to see so much about that. Mastering flying and her powers. Learning what it means to be a superhero. Finally following in her mother's footsteps. I love Hope as a character; she's goal-oriented, focused, driven, but I love the flaws that brings out in her too (emotionally distant, stoic). How does she adapt with her new life - the one she always wanted since she was a little girl?
- What does her partnership with Ant-Man/Scott look like? How effective are they as a team? (And how many missteps happen before they really gel?) Basically just superhero stuff. I'm kinda of the mind that Ant-Man ended right when the story got good. (I do not specifically ship Hope/Scott. However I know they're canon so I am fine with established romance for them. But I'd prefer if that was not the focus of the story.)
- I'm pretty enamored of the idea that Janet Van Dyne is lost in the microverse somewhere. This hidden imagery just serves to fuel my fanon. I'd love to see a story where Scott realizes/remembers/dreams he saw Janet in the microverse, and when he tells Hope that, it sends her on an obsessive tailspin similar to her father's. I want to see Hope determined to get back her mother - whether or not she actually does is immaterial. I just want to see her when she unintentionally mirrors her father and all the consequences and realizations that come from that obsession.
Dark Matter
source 1, source 2, source 3
Requested characters: any
Pairings I enjoy: none
Platonic relationships I enjoy: The Android & Two, The Android & Five, Six & Five, Two & Three, the entire Raza crew
Dark Matter is a show that I honestly had to power through for the first handful of episodes. It felt.. boring. But I LOVE space and spaceships and stories that take place IN SPAAAAAAACE so I stuck with it and I'm so glad I did. Once the show really starts delving into the story and expanding the universe a bit then it really opens up. And also, the characters start to shine. I have enjoyed learning about each character's background immensely. Honestly when it was time to pick which characters to request I could not choose just 1-4. I do love them all and would love to read more about any of them. And I love them together as teammates. They're kind of a stuck-together family of odd ducks which really scratches a narrative itch for me. I like when people are forced together and must learn to tolerate each other - which evolves into genuine caring before they even realize what's happening.
One thing that kind of amuses me about Dark Matter - and this is something I don't think the show is really self-aware about - is how much the characters really are kind of monsters. I mean, how many people do they kill on a weekly basis? (Not to mention all the indirect mass deaths.) And these people die not because our group of heroes are really heroes. They're mercenaries for hire. Not everybody who gets in their way deserves to die. And yet. So I think it's kind of funny but also interesting because the show doesn't really acknowledge this too much. But I like that twist.
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- I love Six's older brother-type role to Five's younger sister-type role. I would love to see more of their interactions together. Maybe Five finally convinces the crew to let her come along on a job, and Six is less than pleased - and he doesn't mind showing it, but she aims to prove herself to him. Or perhaps some slice-of-life stuff on the Raza. Or Five's reaction to Six's betrayal at the end of s1.
- The Android is a great character, and I just love anything to do with her expanding her programming and learning to be human, and especially learning what friendship and family means. I'd love something with her exploring that - either on her own, or I like when Five coaches and guides the Android. I also really love when the Android and Two team up to be two super badasses. With the revelations about Two's character towards the end of the season, I wouldn't mind seeing more bonding between the two, as it seems they have more in common than they could have guessed.
- Two and Three's head-butting is great. I don't really ship them per se, but I'm not anti-them either. I'm not interested in reading a sappy romance with them (which is why I didn't name them as a pairing I enjoy), but an in-canon style relationship in which they fight and bicker and annoy each other but end up in bed anyway is okay with me. I like that Three has his soft spots (deeply buried) and that Two is colder and more distant. I'd like anything that plays with these dynamics.
- bonus crossover prompt: Dark Matter and Killjoys are two shows that don't really disagree with each other when it comes to tone and mythology and I could easily see them getting along as canons. And a lot of people who are fans of one show are fans of the other also. So if you happen to be fans of both and you like crossovers too, I would super enjoy seeing how that plays out. What happens when the Raza crew and Dutch & co are hunting the same target? What if one of our killjoy trio knows one of the Raza folks and runs into them out in the wild? Could one of the Raza be a level 6 killjoy (my money's on Two)?
Killjoys
source 1, source 2
Requested characters: Dutch, Johnny Jaqobis
Pairings I enjoy: Dutch/Johnny
Platonic relationships I enjoy: Dutch & Johnny, Lucy & Johnny (&/or Dutch)
I feel so lucky that this show exists to entertain me. It has so many things I love. Spaceships and SPAAAAAAACE. A kickass lead lady with flaws and a troubled past. Adorable best friends. Butt-kicking on the regular. And lots of interesting worldbuilding and storytelling. But really, for me the show is all about Dutch and Johnny. I love their interactions, their fierce loyalty to one another, their dependency and reliance on each other. They are best friends through and through and I have a huge best friend kink. I want to know more of their history and I'm eager to see their future.
(I didn't request D'Avin specifically because I'm not really looking for a fic that features him heavily. But it's fine if D'Avin is included in the fic because he is obviously a major character. My only request really is no D'Avin/Dutch (besides the background of what happened in canon).)
A few specific prompts/ideas:
- Dutch and Johnny hit one of my deep trope loves, which is friends-to-lovers. If you're up for ship fic, then anything that features the slow realization of feelings and move to a romantic relationship would be just lovely. Pulling from any of my 'likes' list above is a grand slam here, but especially anything that forces closeness and banter like being trapped or linked together, in a survival situation together, or undercover relationship.
- If you're not up for ship fic, I absolutely adore the two of them as teammates and friends. Dutch and Johnny are best friends, and I would love to see more of that. How they work together, or some of their early adventures. Late night conversations on Lucy when one or both of them can't sleep. In particular, anything that features how much they rely on and need each other. I'm kind of a sap for co-dependency sometimes, even when platonic.
- I also quite enjoy Lucy as a character and her interactions with the crew. Maybe some backstory on Lucy and why she is the way she is. Or Lucy gets damaged and Johnny goes crazy trying to fix her and Dutch thinks he's maybe a bit nuts but she finds herself missing Lucy too.
- bonus crossover prompt: Dark Matter and Killjoys are two shows that don't really disagree with each other when it comes to tone and mythology and I could easily see them getting along as canons. And a lot of people who are fans of one show are fans of the other also. So if you happen to be fans of both and you like crossovers too, I would super enjoy seeing how that plays out. What happens when the Raza crew and Dutch & co are hunting the same target? What if one of our killjoy trio knows one of the Raza folks and runs into them out in the wild? Could one of the Raza be a level 6 killjoy (my money's on Two)?
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you are looking for more potential material to work with, you can sift through all my old Dear Author fic exchange letters if you like. It is absolutely not necessary, but I offer the link here in case you are really itching for more. Though a lot of them are pretty similar as my tastes do not change all that much. There are lots more prompt ideas though, feel free to steal any from past letters if one speaks to you! And if you want to see my own fic, my AO3 account is kateandbarrel.
Again, thank you so much for writing me a fic!! I'm so excited! :)
edited 10/19 with some more thoughts/feelings of each of my chosen canons
edited 10/26 with new prompts, expanded prompts, re-wording of a few things
