amazing_e_ko | Recent Entries

Dear Writer

I am extremely excited this year, and I hope you are too. It’s most important to me that you have fun this year, so put that before everything else, and ignore anything that you’re struggling with.

I have some general DNWs and likes, and then a section for each fandom. I do love all my fandoms equally, so don’t worry about that.

Likes:

I like all kinds of stories - comedies, tragedies, plot heavy stories, character moments. All stories big and small are welcome. I am also open to any kind of experimentation. If you want to write poem fic, or IF, or a meta-story, or anything else outside the box, I welcome it. If you prefer to write more traditional stories, that’s fine too. I like gen and shipfic. I love my ships, but I also love all of these characters on their own, and I love the worlds they live in. I firmly believe that your fic should be the length you need it to be, whether that's 1000 words or 100,000. I will read and comment no matter what (and my Christmas is likely to be very chill this year, so I'll definitely have time for long comments, though maybe not until the evening).
Sex is great, but I’m not really a fan of PWP. Sex as part of a story is cool. If you do write sex scenes, I’d prefer that the characters be 17 or older.

DNW:

Mundane AUs
PWP
For sex scenes: watersports, scat, rimming, torture and mutilation as sexual acts, non-con or dub-con.
Mutilation of eyes or limbs.
Extreme descriptions of gore or violence.
Stories that are only ‘x character overcomes prejudice’. Mentions of prejudice and bigotry are fine though, as long as they’re character-plausible and period/universe appropriate.

Fandoms
(Pyre is by far the longest request, but I promise I don’t love it more than the others. It just has a way bigger cast!)

Little Witch Academia - Diana Cavendish, Atsuko ‘Akko’ Kagari

It actually took me a while to sit down and watch this anime, but I loved it to pieces when I did. It’s so creative and fun and exciting, and the characters are just so likeable.

Akko is great. One thing I really like about her is that although she can be kind of lazy and flaky and impatient, we actually see her putting in the work. She really fights for her skills, and I love every moment when her earnestness and hard-work and determination shine through. She’s so sincere and sweet. I’d love a story about her learning magic, and improving. The magic in the series is so fun and creative, and I really like the world, so just Akko studying could make for a brilliant fic.

Diana is interesting - I like her in the series a lot more than in the original OVA. I love her kindness, and her determination to do the right thing, and the walls she puts up to hide her generosity and compassion. She’s genuinely a really good person, underneath the arrogance and standoffishness. I’d be particularly interested in stories about her relationship to her family, and how she feels about her heritage. Or stories about her in the ‘normal’ world, where she can’t use her magic and has to rely on her other skills.

And of course, I adore Diana/Akko as a ship. Getting together fic would be great, or fic about them working out exactly what it is they feel for each other. The series has a lot of tropey fun with things like the love bee, and I would love a fic where maybe some magical mishaps forces them to confront feelings they might not otherwise acknowledge. I think Akko and Diana are two people who are really good for each other, and they push and challenge each other in ways that make them both better people - which I guess is the ideal.

Pyre - The Reader, The Moon-Touched Girl, Jodariel, Pamitha

I actually can’t believe how much I love Pyre. Each Supergiant game just feels better than the last, to me, but this one in particular is packed with so many loveable characters, who have such great interactions, that it totally overwhelms me. And the art and music are so incredibly beautiful, and give such a staggering sense of place. I’d love a story that takes these characters and explores the world through them - especially the Rites. How does it feel to be in a Rite? What relationship do they have to the Reader? Or you could write about the revolution, and the Commonwealth, and how these people change the world <3 Feel free to pick any mix of liberated people - whatever suits the story. I don’t have one particular solid headcanon for this game; part of what I like about it is that it feels like there are good things and bad things for any given ending for any given character.

Now for some character specific prompts. In no particular order:

Jodariel is the best, and I ship her like crazy with everyone. Her design is super appealing to me for one thing, with her buff arms and her horns and the way she moves in the Rites, both hulking and graceful. I love her mixture of kindness and reserve and frosty defensiveness - you can see how her history has shaped her, made her afraid and defensive, but also how incredibly kind she is. I’m up for any kind of story about her life in the Downside, but especially stories that focus on her place in the Nightwings, and how she feels about the other characters (I started to write out notes about individual relationships, realised how long it would be, and gave up. But I love all of them). Or how her life changes if she’s Liberated.

Pamitha is incredible. She’s beautiful, she’s snarky, she can fly. What’s not to love??? I really love her story with her sister, and how she begs you to lose the liberation rite against the Essence. A story about her and Tabitha would be incredible - whether they’re both liberated, only one of them is, or they both stay Downside.

The Moon-Touched Girl is great. I really like the way in which she’s odd - her perspective on reality might not be the same as other people, but it has its own internal logic. And she can be very sharp and intuitive. Her backstory hints at sadness, but it’s not the point of her character - her story is as much about her present and future as the experiences that led her to the Nightwings. I love her interactions with basically everyone - a fic about how she sees the other characters would be fantastic. Or a story about her experiences after the end of the game, especially if she is chosen in the Liberation Rite. (I called her Mae, as a nod to Night in the Woods, but give her whatever name you like for her.)

Given how much choice you have about the Reader, there’s a lot of different options. The only thing that I ask is that you make the Reader female - since I prefer my reader ships f/f. Otherwise, you can use whatever backstory you prefer. I chose the crippled scholar, and I do like the implications of the Reader being physically disadvantaged - the way that plays into their role in the Rites. But use whatever suits your feelings and story. As for story prompts: honestly, I think I’m mostly interested in fic about the Reader’s in story feelings. How do they feel about the role they were thrust into? How do they make their decisions about who to choose for Liberation? Or post-game fic about the consequences of their choices would also be fascinating.

Ship-wise, I adore Jodariel/Pamitha, as a fabulous enemies-to-lovers ship (and this is one that I would be totally up for porn with - between Jodariel’s horns and Pamitha’s wings there is some really good potential, plus I could see them having a lot of fun with bondage - though who’s tying up who is a serious question). I’d love stories that tackle how they might get together, whether it’s slow burn, or a physical relationship that awkwardly dredges up feelings. (If you’re writing slow burn, don’t feel obliged to include the whole relationship. A short fic that was entirely stumbling blushes and awkward touches and the promise of something more down the line would be incredible.)

I also really like Jodariel/Moon-Touched Girl. It’s protrayed more as a familial relationship in canon, but I could easily see it becoming romantic. Though I imagine the Moon-Touched Girl would have to initiate things (and in fic with age differences, I do usually prefer the younger person to take the lead).

Jodariel/Reader is also great - partly because I am weak and Jodariel is hot, and partially because I think she’s the one of the companions who takes the most work. Getting her to open up and trust you is tricky, and I always like a puzzle that’s hard to solve. I particularly enjoy this ship as one where Jodariel is much taller and stronger than the Reader, because I am shallow.

Since I’m requesting the Reader, I’ll mention that I also really like Reader/Sandra. Obviously, Sandra wasn’t nominated, so this is very, very optional, but I did find their relationship fascinating. The tensions that exist in a situation where the Reader has all the power, Sandra’s loneliness and sarcasm and longing for companionship, the complications of not being able to touch - it is all such good stuff.

Sound! Euphonium - Kousaka Reina, Kumiko

I got an absolutely wonderful gift for this fandom two years ago, but that was before season two came out, and I am weak and I want more. As much as I loved season two’s focus on family and sisterly relationships, I was a bit gutted that we didn’t get more of Reina and Kumiko. (That said, I really liked that Taki-sensei firmly rejected Reina. It was one of his best moments as a teacher, and I was so happy to see that subplot over and done with.)

I love both Reina and Kumiko separately, for different reasons. I love Reina for her overwhelming drive to succeed, and her passion, and how proud she is of her own talent. And I love Kumiko for her bluntness, and nosiness, and how she pays attention to people. And I love that she loves music, even though it takes her a bit longer to realise it. Fics that are about music - about how either or both of them relate to music, and about how it shapes and guides them through their lives would be amazing. I like to think that music is important to them for the rest of their lives.

If you’re writing shippy fic (and I ship the heck out of these two), I’d love a fic about them in college, or even later in their life. I like to imagine them both as professional musicians, eventually, and it would be really interesting to read a fic about how that plays into a romantic relationship between them. Something about them figuring out their feelings would be great - especially if there’s mutual pining. Or something about them in an established relationship, and how they juggle work and time commitments and all those other things. Reina is a genius, and while Kumiko has talent, she’s not quite at the same level, so that seems like something they might have to work around.

Mansfield Park - Fanny Price, Mary Crawford

(My prompts for this one are a lift from last year! Everything I said there stands true, and since it wasn’t one of my (many, beautiful) gifts, I thought I’d cast it out again, and see if anyone wants to bite.)

I don’t know that I could ever pick a favourite Jane Austen, but Mansfield Park is definitely at times my favourite. Though it’s a very complicated (dare I joke: problematic :p ) fave. I do actually really like Fanny and Edmund’s relationship, but I also often read it thinking of all the other possible directions the story could have gone. I like the intimacy of Mansfield Park - it’s one of the smallest casts, I think, of Austen’s novels, and there’s an almost claustrophobic element to it at points.

I’m happy with both the Fanny/Edmund and Fanny/Henry, and if you want to include either in your story, I’ll enjoy them, but I have to confess that I would kill for a Fanny/Mary story that does what so many Fanny/Henry stories do, and breaks away from canon to write a different ending. I’m always a sucker for femslash, and the dynamic between Fanny and Mary is one that fascinates me. It has a lot of the same appeal as Fanny/Henry - that in falling for one of the Crawfords, Fanny truly changes her perspective on someone, and it pushes her away from the traditional Bertrams towards a more modern group of people. I also think it creates interesting tensions in Mary and Henry's relationship, and Fanny and Edmund's. On top of that, I actually really enjoy stories that are about starting relationships against the pressures of society and working out a way to be happy while dealing with repression. As long as they have happy endings. And I would ask, if you write this, that you give them a happy ending. I don't need them to be universally accepted by everyone around them, out and proud, but I would like them to be happy with each other.

* One thing that would be very interesting is to see Mary and Fanny in a completely different setting: perhaps in Mary’s London circle. I don’t think Fanny would be at all comfortable, that’s what would be so interesting.

Fanny is a great character. She’s extremely insecure, but in an incredibly relatable way, and despite her insecurity she has a will of absolute iron. She’s got a lot of insight into people, but she can also be very blind, especially as it concerns herself. And all of this is bound up in her morality. Fanny is an extremely ethical person, though her standards of ethics and morality don’t totally align with a modern perspective. I think her consistent desire to do what is right, rather than what is easy, is part of what makes her such a great character, but she doesn’t always consider other people’s perspectives, and it would be cool to see a fic that challenge some of her presumptions of the world.
* I’d love a fic where Fanny is, for whatever reason, trapped in a room making conversation with someone she would normally never talk to. Again, that idea of pushing at her boundaries a little, and exploring what her limits are, but also maybe giving her a chance to reconsider an assumption, really appeals to me. The person she’s talking to could be someone like the Admiral, Mary and Henry’s uncle, or one of Mary’s friends, or even one of the Admiral’s mistresses.
Fanny’s refusal of Mr. Crawford is one of my favourite parts of the book, even though I like fic where they do get married. That enduring and tenacious refusal is such a powerful plot point. I’d love to see fic about other times in her life when she had to draw on that stubbornness. (If you wanted to make this a ‘five times’ fic you totally could - I’m always a fan of those, but just one time would be equally interesting.)

Mary fascinates me because of the many ways in which she serves as a foil to Fanny. They’re great mirror images of each other. She’s superficially much more decisive and strong-willed than Fanny, but underneath she’s actually much more reliant on what other people think of her. In an odd way, she’s also very insecure. She really needs to be liked by other people, I think, really wants the approval of those around her. Whereas Fanny, though she feels that she doesn’t really deserve love and affection, is very good at relying on her own inner resources.
* A fic about Mary’s past, and her childhood, would be delightful. It’s only touched on very briefly in the story, but she must have had an extremely challenging childhood, between the deaths of her parents and being raised in a house with an aunt she loved and an uncle she hated. There’s a line in the book where Fanny says that Mary shouldn’t speak ill of her uncle, even though he’s not a good person, and while it’s completely true by the mores of Jane Austen’s time, I kind of love Mary for refusing to bow to those standards and pretend that her uncle is a good person when he pretty clearly isn’t.
* There’s a comparison that’s often made between Austen and Mary Crawford - that although Mary is the antagonist, she’s a lot more similar to Austen than Fanny is. I don’t entirely know how fair that is, but it did give me the idea of Mary becoming a writer like her creator, and I think that could make for a great fic. Maybe, years later, she writes about a fictionalised version of the events of Mansfield Park? It would be really interesting to see how she might revisit that story in later years, and what, if anything, she would change.

Hello, Dear Writer <3

I’m very excited to read what you’re going to write for me - the fact that we share at least one fandom means we’ve already got something super cool in common, and I’m sure I’ll love whatever you produce.

This letter is a general guideline to my likes and dislikes. It’s here to help you, not to hinder you, so don’t take the prompts as anything more than guidelines, and if you have a burning desire to write a particular fic with the characters listed, go for it.

My AO3 name is Amazing_E_ko, you can find me here: http://archiveofourown.org/users/Amazing_E_ko

Likes/DNWs/General guidelines

* I like all kinds of stories - comedies, tragedies, plot heavy stories, character moments. All stories big and small are welcome. I am also open to any kind of experimentation. If you want to write poem fic, or IF, or a meta-story, or anything else outside the box, I welcome it. If you prefer to write more traditional stories, that’s fine too. I like gen and shipfic. I love my ships, but I also love all of these characters on their own, and I love the worlds they live in. I firmly believe that your fic should be the length you need it to be, whether that's 1000 words or 100,000. I will read and comment no matter what (and my Christmas is likely to be very chill this year, so I'll definitely have time for long comments, though maybe not until the evening).
*I like sex, and if you want to make it part of the story that’s cool, but please include it with plot or character development - as part of a story and not the whole. PWP does very little for me in any of the fandoms I’ve nominated.
* If you do decide to include sex, my strong DNWs are watersports, scat, rimming, torture and mutilation as sexual acts, and non-con between the characters I ship.
* Mutilation in general is a DNW, especially eyes and fingernails being removed, and especially self-mutilation. Obviously for some canons, like The Witcher, this is an in-universe thing that happens, and it’s fine for characters to mention it or have it as backstory, I’d just rather it wasn’t vividly described or focused on.
*AUs aren't exactly a DNW - I love canon-divergent AUs, so those are always welcome. I am not really a fan of mundane, modern AUs for Yuletide; the canons I request have so little fic that I'm always looking for something closer to the source material. And please, no A/B/O. It's just not my thing.
* It’s fine to include setting-appropriate mentions of homophobia/racism/misogyny/ect, if that’s part of the story you want to write. Most of the characters I have chosen don’t share those attitudes, so it might not even come up, but I won’t be offended if it does. I’d probably prefer if the entire story wasn’t “x character overcomes racist/homophobic attitudes towards character y”, but only because that’s a story I’ve read one too many times before.

(Note: I know my fandom length varies a bit in this, but rest assured, I love them all equally. The Witcher and Bokura no Kiseki both have four nominated characters, compared to Mansfield Park's two or The Eternal Sky's three, and then The Witcher has branching choices, and talking about those made it even longer. But I really do love every single one of these canons, and fic for any of them would make me happy.)

(Note 2: I’ve given prompts in each section for each character individually, and then for combinations of characters. I want you to have lots of choice! Please rest assured that you don’t have to include all my requested characters. As long as at least one is there, I will be perfectly happy :D)

The Witcher (Video Games):
Geralt of Rivia,
Yennefer of Vengeburg,
Ciri,
Vivienne de Tabris

I played The Witcher 3 this year, and I confess, I fell instantly in love. The world was so real, full of monsters and magic but also shit and beer and people complaining about their jobs. It reminded me a little of the Discworld series, in that all the locations felt like real places where real people lived, and also in that it never took itself too seriously. I loved the way the game twisted fairy tale stories, turning them upside down and inside out, and I loved its use of Polish and Eastern-European mythology. More than anything though, I loved the characters and their relationships.
(Note: I’m reading the books at the moment, and if you want to include details from them, that’s fine, but I specifically requested the game, so if you haven’t read the books no pressure. These prompts are all based on The Witcher 3 (plus expansions).)

Geralt is such an interesting main character, a man who pretends he doesn’t have emotions not because he doesn’t care, but because, as far as I can tell, he usually cares too much. I confess to playing Geralt as ‘nice’ as possible, but it rang very true to me. Whatever he was like as a younger man, Geralt is someone who has very much settled into his own skin. I think it’s interesting that this is a story where he allows himself to become more vulnerable, opening up his relationships with Yen, with Ciri, and with the other people he meets over the course of the story. Wherever possible, I chose non-violent story resolutions, and I tend to think of Geralt as a fighter who knows that fighting is always the last and worst choice, someone who tries for other solutions first.
* Geralt solves a mystery! I left Geralt very happily living on his vineyard in Toussaint, but I don’t think that’s the end of his witchering career, so a story about him solving a mystery or discovering a monster would be great. If Yen and/or Ciri want to come along, that’s great too. I particularly like the stories where Geralt is really able to help people, especially supernatural beings fallen on hard times. The quest that involved Sarah the Godling was one of my favourites, and another was the Blood and Wine quest where you free the wight who becomes Marlene.
* I would love a story about Geralt and Yen where she finds out about what happened in Hearts of Stone. I’m so curious as to her reaction to his encounter with Gaunter O’Dimm (Geralt saved Olgierd and won the mirror game but pissed of O’Dimm in my playthrough). Yen can be quite protective of Geralt - she definitely worries about him, and I’m so interested in what she thinks of O’Dimm. Whether or not O’Dimm actually turns up in the story is up to you.
* Geralt being Ciri’s dad always makes me happy. A story where she comes to him for help, and they work together in some way, would be fantastic. Whether her problem is a monster, or a mystery, or even romance, I think Geralt would try to help, though depending on the problem, his help might get her in even more trouble.

Yen’s romance won me over a million times. Yen is an incredible character: clever, ambitious, cunning, ruthless, loyal to the people she loves and incredibly brave. She’s not always a nice person, but she is a good person, and she’s willing to make some very hard choices to do what she thinks is right. She can be savagely cutting and callous, but also immensely kind.
* I’m very curious about what Yen does with her life after the ending of Blood and Wine (where she comes to live with Geralt). I can understand her not wanting to be involved in politics any more, but I can’t imagine her spending the rest of her life sitting around quietly, either. I like to think she really leaves her mark on history, but I’m not sure how, so a story about that would be amazing. I could see her discovering a totally new form of magic, or developing some new tool or technology.
* Yen and Ciri’s relationship is so great, but we always see it in the game from Geralt’s perspective. A story that’s about them on their own would be fantastic. It could be about their history, and how Yen feels about what Ciri did to stop the White Frost (or about how Yen’s relationship with Ciri helped her to survive). It would also be great to see one of them help the other to solve a problem (maybe one they don’t want Geralt to know about.)
* I can’t imagine that living in Toussaint, Yen wouldn’t get to know Anna-Henrietta. (I know Anna’s not a character on my list, but I do love her anyway.) They’re both extremely opinionated and stubborn, and I’d love to see them play off each other.

Ciri is just great. She’s stubborn, tenacious, sometimes a little childish and spoiled, but full of courage and determination to do the right thing. I love that she’s really the protagonist of the Wild Hunt, the chosen hero who saves the world, and that she’s able to do so, by the end, because she knows she has a family who loves and accepts her. She became a witcher in my ending, which I honestly think is the best ending for her, though I’d love a story that was about how she feels about turning away from becoming queen - because she might have done a huge amount of good in that role. I follow the books and one of the game routes in considering Ciri to be a lesbian, and I would prefer if you kept to that interpretation of her character.
* Ciri’s magic lets her travel between worlds! A story about her visiting different places, and how that changes who she is, would be fantastic. She must have a completely unique perspective on the world. And maybe she brings back some technology along the way, incites a mini industrial revolution or sparks a renaissance.
* ((If you want to write crossover fic with any of my nominated fandoms, or with the Discworld books, you could totally cheat and use Ciri’s powers to do that. Ciri is a pretty fun addition to any canon, a little powerhouse of magic and strength, but not exactly subtle or tactful.))
* I would love a story about Ciri bringing a girl home to ‘meet her parents’, so to speak. The scene towards the end of the Wild Hunt when Ciri meets the sorceresses, and Geralt and Yen are listening at the door, hovering and trying not to look like they’re hovering, is one of my favourites. I adore them as mostly-inept, half cool and half embarrassing relatives, and the thought of them trying to be normal as they meet Ciri’s girlfriend is frankly hilarious. Plus, how would Ciri feel about the whole situation?

Vivienne was the centre of my favourite side-quest from Blood and Wine. In my version, Geralt lifted the curse without involving Guillame, which I honestly prefer. I know that he loves her, but she never seemed interested, and involving him goes against every one of her explicitly stated wishes. Plus, I think the tension of her ending - that she gets seven years of free life, but maybe only that, is a great tension. She’s someone who really seems to love life, to love living and exploring and everything that goes with it.
* A story about what Vivienne does with her new life. She was so happy to have her curse broken, and she’s so happy when you see her again in Novigrad. Where does she go? What does she see? I imagine her travelling to all sorts of different places. If you want to write worldbuilding fic, this might be a great way to accomplish that. Or you could focus on Vivienne, and how she grows and changes. If you have favourite canon characters, feel free to include them! I find everyone in this game interesting.
* If you have a desire to write recipe fic, this seems like a great fit. I imagine Vivienne is curious about everything on her travels, and I’m always a sucker for descriptions of food.
The end of the seven years also intrigues me. Does Vivienne die, or was Geralt wrong about that? (He does say he doesn’t know.) Or does she find another way to extend her life? I could see this being a sad story, or a happy one, or even just bittersweet, especially if she found love along the way. Vivienne/OC is totally fine (be they male or female), or you could have her meet a minor canon character, if there’s a dynamic that strikes you as interesting.
* My oddest prompt, but one close to my heart, is for a story where she meets Ciri and they fall in love. I think they’re characters who would actually work really well together, and it would be really interesting to see how Ciri deals with having a partner who’s destined to die pretty soon. Whether she dies, or whether Ciri finds some way to save her: both are great.

Bokura no Kiseki:
Rida Razarasare (Bokura no Kiseki),
Hiroki Yuu,
Maki Yuuna,
Minami Harusumi

I only read Bokura no Kiseki fully recently, after bouncing off the first couple of chapters a while back, but I’m so glad I did. This series may be the perfect combination of everything I like - complex characters, a tangled plot, lots of loyalty kink and tons of femslash text and subtext. The tensions between the characters as they are now and the people they used to be fascinates me. It’s such a ripe dynamic for feelings and romance.

I love what we’ve seen of Rida so far, but at the same time I want so much more. She’s my single favourite character type - the stoic, loyal knight who would follow and protect her mistress to the ends of the earth. She and Veronica have a great dynamic, and nothing will convince me that she wasn’t secretly in love with the princess.
* I’m interested in the whole dynamic of female knights in the canon. There don’t seem to be very many, and Rida’s role is as much about her family name as her innate talents, so if you don’t ship Rida/Veronica and you’d like to write me a story about her, I’d adore it if you delved into her backstory and her relationship to her job and her family line. What does being a knight mean to her? How does she feel about her family, who seem to have a special lineage in relation to the royal family? Which historical or mythical figure inspires her?
* If you do ship Rida/Veronica then pining sounds wonderful to me. Veronica was far too innocent to ever think of Rida as a potential lover, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t love her - I’d like to see the small moments of their relationship, the moments that elated Rida and the moments that made her wish for something more.
* Rida and Haruko have a fascinating dynamic. Of all the reincarnations, Haruka seems most comfortable with her past life, at least so far. She accepted Rida almost immediately, and has little to no conflict with who she used to be. I'd love a fic that was about who Rida is and who Haruko is, and the ways in which they're different and the same. What is her perspective on the reincarnation? I ship Haruko with Harusumi, so feel free to incorporate her relationship with him and Rida's with Veronica into this story, but honestly the part that fascinates me most is the one that has had hardly any page time in the manga, and that's Rida and Haruko.

Hiroki Yuu is such a good character, she made me like Glen (that's mostly a joke, though Glen wouldn't be my favourite character type on his own). She's brave, cunning, tactical, committed to a cause, and wiling to do what it takes to achieve her ends. She's also very kind and gentle, and her history as the only other person to independently remember that she's a reincarnation is fascinating.
* The idea of changing genders through reincarnation, and having the memories of being another gender, is really interesting, and I kind of wish the manga dug into it a bit more. In particular, a story about Hiroki's attraction to women would be really interesting. How much of it is Glen, and how much of it is just her? If you wanted to make this a story about her friendship with Harusumi, that would be great too. I don't ship them at all, but I do love their friendship, and not only are they the only two people (so far) to have changed genders upon reincarnation, they also have very different attitudes to this change. I'd love to see a story about the differences in their perspective.
* Hiroki and Maki are wonderful and eminently shippable, and if you wanted to write me a story about their relationship, that would be marvellous. I love that they meet each other on a very equal level. There's none of the back and forth control that Maki and Nanaura keep falling into. Hiroki completely respects Maki and supports her, while also admiring her. In return, Maki clearly sees Hiroki as someone she can rely on and trust. Any kind of story about their burgeoning relationship, whether it's something as simple as going on a date, or something more complex like them trying to recover Hiroki's missing magic. If you want to bring reincarnations into it, I like the idea that Sydney and Glen didn't really know each other, and that Hiroki and Maki's relationship is something new, something not bound to their past.
* It would be impossible to ship Hiroki with only one girl, and I confess I like Hiroki/Momoka as well, especially since we found out that Hiroki is actually Glen, rather than Bart. I love that tangle of feelings, how Lilly loved Bart, and then Momoka fell for Hiroki, and now she still loves Hiroki even though she knows that Bart is gone. The hows and whys of feelings carrying across reincarnations is so fascinating, and fic that digs into that tangle would be wonderful.

Maki is such a great character all on her own. That girl has a spine of steel, and she's so unsentimental, in the best way. Her willingness to exploit Nanaura's feelings really charmed me - it was so ruthless, but in a good way, and Maki is so willing to bury her real feelings to get what she wants.
* I'd love fic about who she was before she remembered Sydney. By the time we first meet Maki, she's already remembered, and so it's not at all clear how much remembering Syndey changed her. And to compound that, we know so little about Sydney herself. I'd love fic about the moment when Maki remembered who she was, or fic where she looks back on how's she's changed over the course of the story. Basically, who do you think she used to be, and why?

Harusumi is honestly such a likeable and interesting protagonist. He's not at all bland - I feel like we get a really clear sense of his motivations, and I love his relationship to Veronica. Unlike everyone else, he's been her for his whole life. He's had time to think about who he is and who Veronica is, and he seems to think of her as a distinct person in a way that a lot of the others don't.
* I'd love a story about how having Veronica's memories influenced Harusumi growing up. We know it left him isolated, but I'm more interested in how it might have affected him internally. After all, even as a small child he would have had memories of being an adult and thinking like one, and I feel like that must have altered his development. How did his memories of Veronica affect his interests and hobbies? How about his outlook on history and politics? How about his impression of sexism and gender roles?
* I really do love his relationship with Haruko, so if you want to write me a shippy story about them it would be great. I love all the tangles in their relationship, and the ways in which they are like and unlike their past selves. In the manga, a lot of the focus is on the ways in which Haruko feels similar to Rida and Harusumi feels similar to Veronica, so a story about a situation where that was reversed would be very interesting.

Eternal Sky Trilogy -
Samarkar
Hrahima
Edene

What a world the Eternal Sky trilogy creates! It's so detailed and vivid, with loads of historical research poured into it. And I love the way that the fantastical elements mingle with the historical elements, each supporting the other. There are some great twists on cultures, too. The series never quite mirrors real world cultures, but uses them as inspiration and then alters them slightly. Like the veiled women of the Caliphate, who are veiled because they're representations of the Scholar-God, and who are encouraged to study science, literature and medicine even though they can't wield power. The series never takes the simple way out, it always pushes things into complexity, and I find that so exciting.
*If you want to ignore the characters and write me worldbuilding fic, I would adore it. The way that the sky changes from culture to culture and religion to religion is so cool, and I long to see other regions and their skies. My secret dream is that someday Elizabeth Bear will make an illustrated Atlas of the world, but in lieu of that I will gladly accept a fic that opens up a little more of this fascinating place. A fic set anywhere in the world could make me happy, though if it also interests you I confess to a certain curiosity around what the fantasy Celts are like. They presumably live in some kind of fantasy Ireland analogue, which means it rains a lot there. Does the heavy cloud cover change their perception of what a sky should be like?

Thew world of these books fascinates me, but I also love the characters. Samarkar, Hrahima and Edene are all wonderful in their own ways. Their personalities are great, but their physical descriptions make it even better. Edene is plump, Samarkar tall and broad, and Hrahima is a tiger person. I really like that none of them is stereotypically attractive, and that the narrative treats them as though they're all beautiful anyway. The physicality of these books in general is great - all the descriptions of the food and the places really built it up for me. A recipe fic or a fic that simply has a lot of loving descriptions of food could work wonderfully here, or a fic that's very sensual (if you want to write me Edene/Samarkar porn that focuses a lot on their bodies and senses I would be so down for that).

Edene is so direct and blunt. She's someone with wonderful self-confidence, and she grows into incredible strength over the course of the story. I always love characters who are willing to make hard choices, but who don't lose themselves in those choices, and I think Edene is a great example of that. Although she can be savage and ruthless, she's gentle and compassionate too. Samarkar is just brilliant - clever, strong, enduring, endlessly curious about the world around her, the kind of person who hears a blood vow and thinks 'yeah I want to see how this ends'. I'd love fic about what they do after the end of the books, either seperately or together.
* If it wasn't obvious already, I ship Samarkar and Edene pretty intensely, and I'd love a fic about their relationship. How does it develop after the novel ends? They have two babies to raise, and the memories and love of Temer that they share. I'd love to see how their relationships with him influences their relationship with each other, and how their relationship becomes its own new thing, seperate from their memories of him.
* If you don't ship them, then I would definitely be happy with fic of them as loyal and loving friends. Maybe Samarkar becomes a kind of ambassador, and travels around to different countries, negotiating trade routes and developing Edene's power? Maybe she could travel with Hrahima, since Hrahima is so well-travelled already.
* A fic about Samarkar's continuing studies of magic would also be great, and if you want to write fic about her and Hrahima being friends, this would be a great way to do it. They have these really intellectual conversations in the books, and I could totally see them as nerd friends, sharing ideas back and forth over the course of their lives.

Hrahima is so good! She was a character I never knew I wanted, but then this big tiger lady who's a non-believer despite knowing that her god exists fell into my lap, and I fell in love instantly. I adore her religious perspective. She knows that there's a god, knows that that god could give her great power and mastery, and still refuses it because she wants free will.
* I would love fic about her past, about the choices that led her to turn away from her religion and her society, or about her future. If you wrote a fic that was just her exploring the world I would read it over and over again forever. She has a very sad past, and we know her family died, but it seems by the end of the last book she has managed to confront and perhaps even let go of some of her grief. Given that Samarkar and Edene are also both grieving, a story about how each of them feels that grief, and how they comfort each other, could be really lovely. (If you want to make me cry, that's the fic to write :p )

There's lots of characters I didn't nominate for this canon, but there's none I don't like. If you want to include any of them, you're more than welcome. Temer, Hsuing, Ummuhan, Tsering, Hong-la, Yangchen... This really is a canon that has no uninteresting characters.

Mansfield Park
Fanny Price
Mary Crawford

I don’t know that I could ever pick a favourite Jane Austen, but Mansfield Park is definitely at times my favourite. Though it’s a very complicated (dare I joke: problematic :p ) fave. I do actually really like Fanny and Edmund’s relationship, but I also often read it thinking of all the other possible directions the story could have gone. I like the intimacy of Mansfield Park - it’s one of the smallest casts, I think, of Austen’s novels, and there’s an almost claustrophobic element to it at points.

* I'll start with the fic that is my secret heart's desire: I’m happy with both the Fanny/Edmund and Fanny/Henry, and if you want to include either in your story, I’ll enjoy them, but I have to confess that I would kill for a Fanny/Mary story that does what so many Fanny/Henry stories do, and breaks away from canon to write a different ending. I’m always a sucker for femslash, and the dynamic between Fanny and Mary is one that fascinates me. It has a lot of the same appeal as Fanny/Henry - that in falling for one of the Crawfords, Fanny truly changes her perspective on someone, and it pushes her away from the traditional Bertrams towards a more modern group of people. I also think it creates interesting tensions in Mary and Henry's relationship, and Fanny and Edmund's. On top of that, I actually really enjoy stories that are about starting relationships against the pressures of society and working out a way to be happy while dealing with repression. As long as they have happy endings. And I would ask, if you write this, that you give them a happy ending. I don't need them to be universally accepted by everyone around them, out and proud, but I would like them to be happy with each other.

If that doesn't suit your tastes, here are other prompts I'd also love to see.

* One thing that would be very interesting is to see Mary and Fanny in a completely different setting: perhaps in Mary’s London circle. I don’t think Fanny would be at all comfortable, that’s what would be so interesting.

Fanny is a great character. She’s extremely insecure, but in an incredibly relatable way, and despite her insecurity she has a will of absolute iron. She’s got a lot of insight into people, but she can also be very blind, especially as it concerns herself. And all of this is bound up in her morality. Fanny is an extremely ethical person, though her standards of ethics and morality don’t totally align with a modern perspective. I think her consistent desire to do what is right, rather than what is easy, is part of what makes her such a great character, but she doesn’t always consider other people’s perspectives, and it would be cool to see a fic that challenge some of her presumptions of the world.
* I’d love a fic where Fanny is, for whatever reason, trapped in a room making conversation with someone she would normally never talk to. Again, that idea of pushing at her boundaries a little, and exploring what her limits are, but also maybe giving her a chance to reconsider an assumption, really appeals to me. The person she’s talking to could be someone like the Admiral, Mary and Henry’s uncle, or one of Mary’s friends, or even one of the Admiral’s mistresses.
Fanny’s refusal of Mr. Crawford is one of my favourite parts of the book, even though I like fic where they do get married. That enduring and tenacious refusal is such a powerful plot point. I’d love to see fic about other times in her life when she had to draw on that stubbornness. (If you wanted to make this a ‘five times’ fic you totally could - I’m always a fan of those, but just one time would be equally interesting.)

Mary fascinates me because of the many ways in which she serves as a foil to Fanny. They’re great mirror images of each other. She’s superficially much more decisive and strong-willed than Fanny, but underneath she’s actually much more reliant on what other people think of her. In an odd way, she’s also very insecure. She really needs to be liked by other people, I think, really wants the approval of those around her. Whereas Fanny, though she feels that she doesn’t really deserve love and affection, is very good at relying on her own inner resources.
* A fic about Mary’s past, and her childhood, would be delightful. It’s only touched on very briefly in the story, but she must have had an extremely challenging childhood, between the deaths of her parents and being raised in a house with an aunt she loved and an uncle she hated. There’s a line in the book where Fanny says that Mary shouldn’t speak ill of her uncle, even though he’s not a good person, and while it’s completely true by the mores of Jane Austen’s time, I kind of love Mary for refusing to bow to those standards and pretend that her uncle is a good person when he pretty clearly isn’t.
* There’s a comparison that’s often made between Austen and Mary Crawford - that although Mary is the antagonist, she’s a lot more similar to Austen than Fanny is. I don’t entirely know how fair that is, but it did give me the idea of Mary becoming a writer like her creator, and I think that could make for a great fic. Maybe, years later, she writes about a fictionalised version of the events of Mansfield Park? It would be really interesting to see how she might revisit that story in later years, and what, if anything, she would change.

This has been such a long letter, but I hope it conveys just how much I love all of these canons, and how much I'd like fic for any one of them. Whatever you write, I'll be delighted. So please, have fun. <3

E-ko

Dear Writer,

Hi! Thank you so much for signing up to Yuletide. I’m super glad we matched, and I hope you have a great time writing this story.

I am very open to stories of all kinds. I like plotty fic, I like character-focused fic, I like worldbuilding fic. I like experimental stories and stories that stick close to canon and pretty much everything in-between. My prompts are ideas, but as long as you don’t hit any of my squicks, please feel free to ignore them if you have an idea you’ve been burning to write. If it’s something you’re excited about, I bet I’ll love it too.

Squicks/things to avoid:

AUs, unless they’re mentioned in the prompts. AUs are great, but for small fandoms I tend to prefer something closer to canon.
Characters under 16 having sex. Some of these fandoms do contain younger characters. If you want to write porn, please set it when they’re at least sixteen, maybe older.
Ships not listed as ones I like. Obviously this isn’t as serious as the previous item, but I have some NOTPs. I’ll try to mention everything individually, but if you’re in doubt maybe keep it gen?
Torture, mutilation, death, or violence in contrast with canon. Most of the canons I’m requesting this year are pretty light, without too much violence in them, and I’d prefer it if your fic kept to a similar tone. For the Inheritance Trilogy torture is a thing in canon, so obviously it’s fine to reference that, but if you could avoid graphic descriptions of physical torture I’d appreciate it.

A note on sex: I very much enjoy it, but I like a wider plot around it. If the characters are over 16, feel free to include it, but you don’t have to. I love all ratings equally. If you are writing porn, or fic that includes sex, then I mostly like vanilla. Bondage is cool, and maybe light D/s (especially for Kumiko/Reina), but I’m afraid I’m pretty boring kink-wise.

Sound Euphonium
Kousaka Reina
Kumiko Oumae

Ship-fic:
Reina/Kumiko is the ship of my heart. I love their intense devotion to each other, and I love the fact that they inspire each other. If you wanted to write a story about their developing relationship, that would be great.
*I'd love to see a fic set in their future, when they're both working (as musicians? maybe in the same orchestra? maybe not?). I have an idea that they might end up forming a small brass quartet/quintet when they finish school, and it could be an interesting way to explore their dynamic.
*Pining would be fun, and all the messy getting-together and figuring out emotions stuff is like catnip to me. Feel free to involve Shuichi as a foil. I quite like him when I'm not worrying about Kyo-Ano making him the official love interest, and he certainly makes for an interesting plot obstacle.
*If you'd rather do a more character/emotion focused piece, how about a fic that examines the kind of music Reina and Kumiko associate with each other?

Gen:
*I adore the fact that Sound! Euphonium is basically a sports anime for music, so anything in that vein would be great. Something about how either Reina or Kumiko relates to their instrument would be really interesting, or about the challenges of playing music competitively, and how that differs from playing in a regular orchestra could be very cool.
*As with the ship prompt, anything about their future lives would be awesome, the direction that they take after school and where they end up.

The Goblin Emperor

Csethiro Ceredin
Vedero Drazhin
Shaleän Sevraseched

Csethiro:
*I want to know how she learned to swordfight!
*I'd also love something about her political role after her marriage to Maia. It seems like she might be one of the few Empresses, at least in recent history, to legitimately wield power, so I'd love to know what she does with it.
*I'd be very interested in her relationship to the Goblin Kingdom and the Azar. How did she feel about Goblins before she met Maia? How does her opinion of them change after she gets to know Maia?
I'm not requesting Maia because I want this fic to be Csethiro focused, but I really like their relationship and please feel free to include it.

Vedero:
*I think it would be very interesting to read something that explores Vedero's opinion of Maia's reign over the years. How it changes as she gets to know him and sees the policies he implements. How she tries to influence him, perhaps.
*I'd love to know more about how she entered into the scientific and academic circle she moved in. Was there someone who introduced her to these circles? What were they like? What was it like for her, beginning to learn while having to conceal it from her father?
*I like to imagine that Maia eventually, somehow, makes it legal for women to enter universities and teach. I'd love a fic about Vedero's first class.
*I love the idea of both Ace!Vedero and Lesbian!Vedero, so feel free to include references to either of these.

Shalean:
*I am interested in literally anything about her life and her wife. Anything at all.
*But I'd love to see her meeting Maia for the first time, and shocking and dazzling the Elfish Court. With her wife in tow, no less.

Extra note: Please feel free also to write something about any or all of these characters interacting! Csethiro and Vedero are friends, so something about them having tea together and reminiscing (maybe like ten years after the events of the book) would be lovely. And Shalean has freedom in a way that they absolutely don't, so I'd love to know their feelings on meeting her, and what they end up talking about.

Chihayafuru
Ayase Chihaya
Wakamiya Shinobu

Ship-fic: I know that most of the fandom ships the OT3, but my heart belongs to Chihaya/Shinobu. They're such great rivals, and I think they have a lot in common. They perceive karuta in very similar ways, karuta is equally important to them, and they also have shared interests outside of karuta. I feel like they'd end up with a really strong partership.
*I'd really like something about their adult life together. I sort of imagine them becoming eternal rivals (and Eternal Masters) and fighting back and forth for the title of Queen every year. I think it would be very interesting to explore how that rival dynamic ties into a romantic relationship.
*Getting-together/confession fic would be amazing. When does it happen? After a match? Is there pining and build up, or is one of them surprised?
*Extra prompt So I finally read the manga and am all caught up. And if I'm reading correctly right now, it's implied that Shinobu and Chihaya are interested in studying the same things. So if you wanted to write a fic about them meeting at university, being in the same course, and having to get to know each other without the context of karuta to help them along, that would be glorious. (And then they smooch :p )

Gen fic:
*For Chihaya, I'd love something about her as an older woman, in her forties or fifties, mentoring a young karuta player. Maybe even a team. I see her becoming an advisor to a school karuta club, and it would be a great way to explore her feelings about karuta and her love of the game.
*For Shinobu, I think any kind of fic where her isolation slowly dissolves and she makes friends. Especially if it ends with her playing on a team. :p
*Optionally, since Kana wasn't nominated but I love her, I'd love to see a conversation between Shinobu and Kana about karuta and the meanings of the cards.

Over the Garden Wall
Lorna
Auntie Whispers
Beatrice
Sara

Lorna/Auntie Whispers:
*Auntie Whispers reminds me so much of Zenoba from Spirited Away, and I'd love a story about her that involved her helping someone to get home. She gives Wirt some advice but she's not very active in the series itself, so it would be cool to see her in a more central role. She feels like one of the most powerful good figures in the series, in some ways, and I imagine even the Beast is a little scared of her. Some kind of quiet adventure where she and Lorna solve a mystery or go a quest (a little one, the kind where scary things happen but you're home in time for tea) would be lovely.
*A story about her relationship with Lorna would also be awesome. How did she come to take Lorna in? How does their relationship change after the events of the series? I do honestly imagine them as aunt/niece, so nothing romantic - but it would be interesting to have Lorna fall in love with someone and to write a fic about how that third person, (be they man, woman, or any kind of non-binary person) changes the dynamic between them.

Sara:
*I think it's almost a fandom cliche, but a fic where Sara ends up in the Unknown would be marvelous. It would be a great way to explore her character, and perhaps to suggest some of the ways that the Unknown responds to/reflects those who enter it. If you feel like it, having her meet the other characters I requested would be fantastic.

Beatrice:
*More adventures! I'd love it if it turns out that helping Wirt and Greg was something that she enjoyed, and that as she gets older she becomes a kind of guide to those lost in the Unknown, helping them to return home. I'd like to see her grow into a powerful figure in that world, a person of great knowledge and wisdom.
*Orrrrr... somehow she ends up in our world? She'd have to return home eventually, and I wouldn't be interested in a romance between her and Wirt, but imagining Wirt and Greg trying to help her get back, and her confusion/skepticism of everything in our world would be great.

Whatever fandom we matched on, thank you so much again for writing for me! I promise I already love my gift.

xx
E-ko

Dear Yuletide Writer,

Thank you for signing up to be my writer. I am very excited about what you're going to write, I'm sure it will be great!

This letter is an expansion of my requests on the sign-up form - there's a list of general likes and dislikes, and the prompts are better structured and clearer. No surprises though, what I said on my request form goes.

As always, if you have a story you really want to tell, some spark of inspiration that's making your heart sing, then feel free to throw this out the window and write what you really want to write. And if, on the other hand, you're not feeling super inspired, don't worry. I'm sure I will love the story you create no matter what.

General Likes:

All kinds of stories, in all kinds of person and tense.
-No really, I'm down for anything. Be as weird and experimental as you want. I even like second person present tense. :p I like epistolary fic, I like pseudo-academic fic, I like fic that focuses on prose, fic that focuses on character, and fic that focuses on plot. Do whatever feels most comfortable, or whatever excites you most.

I like fluff and sad fic and fics that are a mix of both, or of many emotions. If happy is your style, go for that, but if you'd rather write something more melancholy that's fine too. The canons I've nominated this year have more than enough room for both. I do like for fluffy fic to have a measure of effort on the characters' part, and for dark fic to have a pinch of hope.

For most of these canons, I really love the worlds that they're set in, so fic that focuses on worldbuilding is always, always welcome.

AUs are great! I'd prefer canon-divergent AUs, but if you come up with something really bizarre and you want to try it out, go ahead. Though please try to keep the magical/sf aspects intact, because those are things I deeply enjoy in all of these canons.

I enjoy gen, ship-fic and smut. If you're writing smut for one of the canons with underage characters, please make sure they're all sixteen, or eighteen if it's sex with someone older.

General Dislikes:

No rape please.

Character death is OK, if you feel it's really necessary or if it's part of canon, but I would prefer if you left it out.

Gore is a big no. Amputation is a big squick for me, and loss of eyes, so please avoid describing that in any detail.

I generally hate seeing any character as the butt of jokes, or stories that exist to humiliate or demean one character. I chose these fandoms because I love the characters in them, and I want to see that continue into the fic. That doesn't mean that bad things can't happen to the characters - I just don't want the story to play favourites.

A fic that focused only on male characters would make me a bit sad.

Fandoms

Princess Tutu

What I like about it: the ballet music (hard to include in a story but still true :p). The meta-narratives and the way that different stories intertwine. The fact that the ending is compassionate to everyone, and gives everyone a chance at happiness. The way that the series is about accepting who you really are.

Princess Tutu is such a compelling show for me. I'm actually watching it again right now, and I've just been reminded over and over of how much I love it. I love the tone, I love the characters, and I love the message. I love the way it explores fairy tales, and the way it creates new ones out of old. I love that in the end, being a duck is as meaningful as being a swan.

Prompts:

Meta-narrative, stories within stories. By all means try something unusual or experimental, something I haven’t thought of. Mix genres, mix styles. What if another story intrudes on their lives, and it’s noir or science fiction or mystery or whatever?

I like pretty much every possible combination and pairing for this: Ahiru/Fakir, Mytho/Rue, OT4, Ahiru and Rue friendship or gen. If you want to go the sedoretu route then by all means do, because that is adorable, but if you want to explore the way these characters relate to each other as a more tangled knot, that's fine too.

Mytho and Rue’s relationship after the series ends. These guys are so messed up, and they have so much to work out, but I love how much they love each other. I want to see their happy ending, but I want to see them work at it.

A story Fakir wrote. Fakir’s feelings towards Ahiru. If you want to make her a girl, go ahead. You’re also free to leave her a duck if you prefer that. Ahiru's status has always caused great conflict for me, because her being a duck is the perfect ending, but I also want her to have the freedom and expression of a human body.

How Ahiru and Rue’s friendship endured after the end of the series. Ahiru and Rue are the best. They fight, but the friendship is always there underneath. I think it would be good and important for Rue to have someone who wasn't Mytho but still loved her in her life, and I think Ahiru values and treasures Rue in a really beautiful way.

Character pieces are also totally cool for this canon. If you just want to sit down and get inside a character's head, that is perfectly ok by me. :)

The Riddle-Master Trilogy

Things I like about this series: the prose. The prose is so beautiful. I love the melancholy tone of the series, and the sense of great ages of time that have passed through the world. I love the imagery. I love the characters, and their complicated, tense, loving relationships with each other. I love the magic in the series, and how it works.

One of the lines from any book that has stayed with me most is the quote in The Heir of Sea and Fire "not compassion, but passion". I thought that was such a great summary of how a villain might see the world. It made the Earth Masters alien and relatable in the same stroke. And the Riddle-Master trilogy is just full of lines like that. It has this sense of beauty and power that I've rarely found in other fantasy, and I love that McKillip manages it with very little that is unfamiliar. I could imagine all the lands she describes so clearly.

Prompts:

Raederle’s life through the centuries. Her place in the world/her role as a figure of power after the end of the book. Raederle and Morgon’s marriage: how they negotiate having a relationship that lasts for centuries. Raederle exploring the sea and coming to terms with her heritage as an Earth Master. Raederle is just super interesting. I love her internal conflict. I love that her power frightens her, and at the same time she finds it beautiful. I love her determination. If anyone was suited to Morgon, it's her, since they're just as stubborn as each other. When I first read the book, I found the ending sad, because they were going to spend so much time apart, but now I think that if you had millenia to live, living apart from your spouse would be the only way to make it work. I'd love to know how Raederle defines herself post-series. She goes through so many transformations: who does she become?

Tristran and her relationship with Lyra. She seemed to really admire Lyra and look up to her, and whether you wanted to take that as a friendship or a romance it would be really interesting. She’s not directly the land-heir of Hed, so her being in a relationship with a woman wouldn’t be too much of a problem, but it might be a problem for Lyra. How would they negotiate that?

Lyra becoming the Morgul of Herun in the future – the Morgul is a very stationary figure, someone who is quite still and passive, seeing and learning much, but not a fighter. This would be a big transition for Lyra, how does she handle it? I think of that moment when her eyes turn gold, and I just shiver. It would be a moment of such grief, because her mother would be dead, and yet it would also be a moment of great power for her. How would she deal with that? Who would she become?

Steven Universe

What I like about this show: The world is so interesting. There’s so much room for world-building and development. The characters are great and interesting and so much of them is hinted at but never explored. The show has a great tone which can swing back and forth between goofy and tender and sad and sweet very quickly, and I think that’s awesome. Also the gems’ powers are really cool.

Steven Universe is a kids show I wish I'd had as a kid. It has a very deft tone, and it juggles funny/sad/serious/poignant/goofy with real skill. It's a show I always go to when I'm feeling down, and it always cheers me up.

Prompts:

An original flavor story about Steven and the gems dealing with some silly random problem. There are so many absurd gem powers in the canon, so I think you could totally have fun with this. Feel free to let your imagination run wild, and include as many characters as you like.

A story about Steven trying to fix one of the gems they recover. How does he feel about the idea that somewhere inside, these monsters are sentient creatures? The episode where he tries to rescue the monster really touched me, and when you combine that with the idea that there's a sentient person in there, it's really compelling. I'd love to see that developed in a story.

What did Lapis find in space? If you wanted to use her to worldbuild and develop the concept of the gems some more, that would be great. Lapis is a great character in general. She's so strong and angry and not perfect, but she tries so hard. I love her for that.

Character studies in general are a really, really good bet for this fandom.

If we’re talking pairings then my pairing of choice is Garnet/Pearl. I think Pearl’s admiration of Garnet is super cute, and I would love to see a story where they finally merge: what is their combined gem like, and how does it reflect their attitudes to each other? (Or you can write curtain fic. Or smut. I would lap it up with a spoon.)

I really like Pearl in general actually, so if you also have an interest in her then something about her backstory would be really exciting. Or a backstory for all of the gems: how did they come to earth? What was it like when they first arrived? Or how about their experiences of the development of human civilization? Nothing says it took exactly the same route as in our world, so feel free to play around with that.

If you want to write about something sad, then you could look at the first few weeks/months after Rose Quartz died.

The Old Kingdom

What I like about it: the magic system is so interesting. The characters feel real and detailed and really alive. The zombies are incredibly creepy. The ancient creatures like Mogget and Kibeth are so intriguing and mysterious. The character relationships are really well done, and have a lot of complexity to explore. The magic is soooooo awesome.

I recently read Clariel (and by recently I mean just before I wrote this). It revived all my love for this amazing series. The world is so interesting, Mogget is so compelling, the characters are always so well-developed, and even though they make mistakes they're really fascinating to watch. I find the Dead really creepy, but I love the series, and I love that it balances horror with drama and action.

Prompts:

Lirael and Mogget, after the end. Especially their relationship to the Disreputable Dog, and how Mogget is the closest creature to Kibeth, even though Lirael didn’t like him much while Kibeth was with her. The Dog is not a nominated character, so if you’d rather not include her that’s fine, you can absolutely write a story about Lirael and Mogget in some other way – maybe they have to go deal with an outbreak of the Dead together?

Sabriel and Lirael, and how they learned to be sisters. I can't imagine being forty and finding out I had a twenty year old sister. For Lirael it's great, it's the family she always wanted and needed, but for Sabriel it must be a much more mixed emotion. Her father never told her about this sister, after all. That would have been quite the shock. And Sabriel is so blunt, and straightforward. She might find Lirael a little difficult to negotiate at first. I can just imagine them going off to hunt the Dead, struggling to deal with something horrible and also with each other at the same time.

Ellimere learning to be queen, and how she felt about the events of Abhorson. For all my talk of well-developed characters, I never got much of an impression of Ellimere, though I think she's someone very bound to duty. I'd love to read a fic that explores her perspective more deeply.

Lirael and Nick, back in the Old Kingdom after the events of The Creature in the Case. (Nick is not one of my nominated characters, so this is very much optional.) If you don't want to write about Nick, then by all means ignore this, but I do like their relationship, so I'd be interested to see your take on it. Nick would probably find adjusting to the Old Kingdom pretty hard, but I think he'd enjoy it too. I'd be interested to see how his scientist mind merges with Charter Magic.

Ava's Demon

What I like about this canon: they characters are all so cute. I love the kid/demon dynamics. I love the visual style – if you wanted to translate that into writing it would be amazing. I love the different personalities we get. I love the story itself, the whole conflict with and mystery around Titan. I’m really intrigued by the tension between the characters, their demon, the sin they represent (and perhaps also the virtue?).

I love webcomics in general, but Ava's Demon is one of my all-round favourites. I love the art, the music, and above all the story. This is a canon that's lush in every sense of the word, and above all it's lush with detail. No matter how much of the story is revealed in the comic, I think I'll always want more.

Prompts:

One very interesting option for this canon, I think, is a story quartet, where the personalities, childhoods, roles and development of the four kids is contrasted. How are they similar, how are they different? What moments of synchronicity were there in their early lives, what moments of difference?

In terms of pairings, I like Ava/Maggie, Ava/Odin and of course there’s always the fun OT4 option. Given that we currently have two boys and two girls a sedoretu AU could work excellently for them, with the added complication of demons. (You may have guessed from Princess Tutu and this that I love sedoretu fic. You are 100% correct.)

For Ava/Maggie I’d love something about their childhood, how they were close and grew apart, and how they might have felt about that shift. There's so much pain tangled and trapped between them, and though Maggie's anger and Ava's vulnerability prevent them from growing closer, it's obvious that they still need each other very much.

For Ava/Odin something cute and fluffy might be nice. Feel free to project into the future when they’re under slightly less pressure. Odin seems very sturdy and dependable, and yet he has his own vulnerabilities. I'd love to see a fic where he and Ava bring out the best in each other. Then there's the matter of Wrathia and Pedri. How interesting it is that they carry the souls of lovers. How would that change their relationship? Would it affect them for better or for worse?

The world of Ava’s Demon is intriguingly complex, so if you want to write a plotty story then by all means strand them on some remote planet and leave them to work out the flora and fauna for themselves. Feel free to tie it in to Titan as much or as little as you like.

None of the demons were nominated, and if you’d rather write an AU where they don’t exist then by all means go ahead, but if you want to include them then know that I am a huge fan of all the demons too.

Hello, dear writer!

If you've been assigned to me, I already know you have great taste, so I'm fully confident that whatever you write will be excellent. Here is some gushing and prompts to help you along. Ignore some or all of it if you need to, I have perfect trust in your abilities. :D

One general note: most of these canons feature young or underage characters (not 100% sure about Korra). If they are going to do anything more intense than kissing please age them up. I would feel weird otherwise. This is especially true for Mabel/Wendy.

Legend of Korra

Korra/Asami

I've been shipping this since season one. Season three made me very happy. Thing is, as fucked up as legend of korra sometimes got, narrative wise, the relationship between Korra and Asami was always pretty great. They're really good for each other, they share common interests, they balance each other out. And their life experiences and talents are just different enough to give them some conflict to work through. Which is the best.

Optional prompts

I would most love something set after the end of S3, I think. Feel free to take Korra's state however you want - you can read it as permenant disability, or something she has to recover from, however you like. But I'd love to see a fic about Asami and her growing closer as she deals with what happened. I think Asami is the perfect person to help her here - someone who can innovate and assist her, but who also knows how painful change and powerlessness can be. And if you wanted to include Asami working through some issues of her own at the same time (whatever you think those are) that could be super interesting.

If you'd rather write a fun adventure you're also welcome to skip ahead in time and send them on a rollicking adventure. There's no way that wouldn't be awesome. Whether it's dealing with spirits and the spirit world or exploring tombs Indiana Jones style, they'll be fabulous doing it.

Gunnerkrigg Court

Annie/Kat was my first Gunnerkrigg ship, and oh boy has it remained a thing I love. I love that they compliment each other so well. I love how they've grown closer and learned about each other. I love that they have to work at their relationship, and that it feels very human and normal and sweet but at the same time it's also a relationship with immense mythic significance, where they symbolise powers much greater than they are, all caught up in shadows and mystery and adventure.

And then there's Kat/Paz. I honestly didn't expect to love this ship as much as I do. It snuck up on me! I was all prepared to see it as getting in the way of Annie/Kat, but then they were cute and happy and having fun together, and Kat sat in her workshop and daydreamed of kissing Paz and I was lost. How can you not love something this adorable?

Optional prompts.

Annie/Kat: a myth is handed down through generations, of two equal and opposite figures who united the world. The mysteries Annie and Kat didn't solve because they were distracted by each other. An adventure story - one of them disappears and the other goes looking. Anything hurt/comforty - Annie missing her parents and Kat helping her, or Kat forgetting to eat when she's working and Annie reminding her.

Paz/Kat: Kat trying to be flash and smooth and failing (in a cute way). The robots decide to meddle in Kat's love life, and it goes horribly wrong. A mysterious accident involving love potions causes problems, A Midsummer Night's Dream style.

Homestuck

I have three different pairings here, which I love for wildly different reasons, so I'm gonna yammer on about them in turn.

Jade/Rose

Jade and Rose is the least developed relationship among the beta kids, and I hate that. They have such an interesting dynamic, and I think they offer each other a lot. Rose needs someone who is stable and kind and helpful and optimistic - but is also just as clever as her and won't take any shit. Jade is a pretty great person to do that. And I think Jade would get a lot out of it too. All her interactions make it obvious that no matter how much she protests, she enjoys hanging out with clever snarky people. Rose would make her life interesting, and there's no way Jade doesn't love an interesting life.

Jade/Vriska

My crack ship. :D

So this kind of doesn't exist? I mean there are about five stories on AO3, but that is approximately 500 too few. Jadevris has everything needed to be a great, sparky, dazzling antagonistic relationship. Jade is observant and direct. She would call Vriska out on all her shit. But she's also friendly and fun and she likes a challenge, so she probably wouldn't push Vriska away too quickly. I think they'd be explosive, but intriguingly so. I can see them black or red (I guess I prefer red as the endpoint, but I'm flexible and I don't really mind how they get there). I just want to watch them bounce off each other in the most fun and ridiculous ways.

Vriska/Terezi

If there's a more complex relationship in Homestuck I haven't seen it. The things these girls do for each other. They things they do because of each other. The things they choose while thinking about each other. It's messy and fucked up and unhealthy as hell and I love it. I love them.

Optional prompts.

General: Homestuck is an AU friendly place, so if you want to take that and run with it by all means do. Space pirates, coffee shop, space coffee shop, vampires, anything at all if you think it sounds fun, dramatic or suitable. And canon AUs are great too, be they non-sburb ones, alternate choice ones, doomed timelines or dreambubbles. As long as the characters are there, I'll be happy.

The only solid prompt I have is for JadeVris, and it's a doomed timeline where Vriska and Karkat swap patron troll roles, so Vriska is Jade's patron troll. I think that would be super interesting.

But as always, feel free to follow your instincts.

Gravity Falls

I ship Mabel/Wendy in a strange, half-awkward way. I basically just want them to be adventure pals who cuddle and hang out and sometimes smooch (when age appropriate). I want them to explore the weird world around them and have fun. And that would be great.

Optional prompts

Adventure story! For some reason Dipper can't investigate a weird thing, and it's up to Mabel and Wendy. Weird things run a huge gamut in GF, from funny to bizarre to dramatic, so drop your adventure wherever is best for you on that spectrum.

A fic where they commiserate about what tools their exes are would also be a fun option, if you don't feel up to a hugely plotty story.

But as always, use your own judgement, and ignore this if you need to.

Oh writer, I can't wait to see what you write. I'm already so excited. :D

Hello, my writer! Or other interested parties, I guess. :D

First off, thank you. If you're writing for me, then I already love you, and I'm definitely going to appreciate whatever you write for me. This letter is here to help you out as much as I can. If you want clarification on anything, please don't hesitate to get in contact with me through the mods.

Things I love:

Worldbuilding! All my chosen canons are canons I would like to see expanded. I would love to see these worlds explored and developed in some way.

Plot. Whether it's ship-fic or gen, I am always down for the twists and turns of a good plot.

I love characters, and I generally want the focus to be on them! If you only write dudes then my sign-up should have options for you, but honestly the more women the better really.

I like all ends of the fictional spectrum, from fluff to dark fic, but if it's fluff then I like there to be some effort on the character's part, and dark!fic should have a pinch of hope. If it's too sweet or too bleak I tend to get bored.

I am always down for creative experimentation with prose. If you want to write poetry or break the fourth wall or even just try a different style then I will cheer you on. Don't feel obliged, though. If you'd rather stick to a more comfortable style I will definitely enjoy that too.

I love characters with lots of internal tension, and I love moments that really reveal who a character is. Those are always so exciting.

Original flavour is great. While I am totally ok with a story that engages with canon and even challenges it, I want to be able to see a connection to what I watched or read in the story.

Things I don't want for this exchange:

I am ok with all levels, from G to M, but m/m porn doesn't turn me on, so please don't write it. Femslash and het are great at any rating, but if you really feel you need to write m/m, please keep it PGish.

No modern AUs, please.

No rape, non-con, or explicit torture. (Note: I know this is a fine line with the Scar, which has a lot of gruesome things happening, and definitely has some torture of characters. Obviously if you are sticking close to the tone of the original, this will be hard to avoid, but please don't be graphic about it.)

No omegaverse.

No sexual contact for people under sixteen, please.

I am ok with characters dying if it reflects canon, or if it is essential to the story you're telling. So Will and Lyra dying when they're old and meeting in the world of the dead would be fine. A fic about Uther Doul thinking about possibilities when he's dying (of age or in a fight) and looking at the roads not taken would be fine. Characters dying just to tug the heartstrings, though, or to prove a point, is a big no-no. Please don't do that.

I generally hate seeing any character as the butt of jokes, or stories that exist to humiliate or demean one character. I chose these fandoms because I love the characters in them, and I want to see that continue into the fic. That doesn't mean that bad things can't happen to the characters - I just don't want the story to play favourites.

Kink is fine, and I love it in its place, but I don't think I want any for this exchange.

Fandoms!

The Scar - China Miéville

Bellis Coldwine, Uther Doul

Anything about Uther's history - his journey from High Cromlech to Armada and all the places he passed along the way. When did he first learn to play probabilities, and what did they mean to him?

Bellis after Armada - what did she do with herself? Was she ever able to fit comfortably into New Crobuzon again?

Uther and Bellis - the future is a different country, they do things differently there. Uther and Bellis meet in New Crobuzon, a number of years after the events of The Scar.

Uther and Bellis - if Uther really was playing the probabilities, he must have seen or thought of thousands of possible Bellises. Did he ever wish things had gone differently? Was he lured by what changed about her across different timelines, or by what stayed the same?

Or you could totally ignore Bellis and Uther and dive into the worldbuilding of Bas Lag. One thing I adore about the series is how much of the world is referenced - mentioned but never brought up again. You could write anything, about any character in any era, from one of the Malarial Queens to a normal person and their daily life on Armada, and I would love it. You could write a diary, a poem, an encyclopaedia, anything at all.

Why I love this fandom:

I love The Scar because it's such a rich world. I love how complete it is, and how weird it is. I love that there's so much space in it to have a very normal life, and I love how bizarre that normal life would be. I love Bellis, and how cold she is, and how self-committed, and under that how naive and kind she can be. I love Uther, and how self-contained he is, and how he seems to express so many possibilities without being any of them concretely. I love the simmering tension between them.

I love the language - that rich prose you can sink your teeth into. I love and hate with equal measure the ambiguity of the ending, the way it leaves you wanting more.

Darker Than BLACK

Hei (Darker Than BLACK), November 11, Kirihara Misaki, Yin (Darker Than BLACK)

Oh man there are so many stories that I would like for this fandom!

If you want to write fic where November 11 survives, then I would adore you. I never expected to love him so much, but he is my favourite character. And if you like him with Misaki, then I agree that they are a totally cute couple and no ship fic for them could be wrong.

Or you could write about November 11's backstory - who was he before he was a contractor? How did he change? What emotions were seething under his contractor facade?

Hei/Misaki is another favourite ship of mine, and if you wanted to think about their relationship post finale I would adore that. Maybe they're brought back into contact by a mutual desire to take down the Syndicate?

Hei and Yin as something like a brother and sister are adorable to me, though I don't ship them. I would love to see them working as a team, whether that's during the series or after, and watch them supporting each other.

Yin on her own is great too - I do love her friendship with Kiko, and how cute is it that she gets into anime? Character development for her would be much appreciated, whatever the form.

And whatever you do, by all means avoid using season 2, because I haven't seen it and am (mostly) content with season 1. :D

Why I love this fandom:

I love Darker than Black for being so many things at once. It has a brilliant plot that leaves you longing for more. It sets up a fascinating world and then moves through the layers of that world so gracefully, showing us how little we really knew at the beginning - I just adore the way you realise, through the series, that the contractors definitely aren't emotionless, and that something much stranger is going on.

I really love the characters in this. They might not be good people, but they're compelling people, and they develop and grow in such interesting ways. I love the structure of the show too - those wonderful two-parters that are so complete and yet leave you wanting more.

Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman

Marquis de Carabas (Neverwhere), Richard Mayhew, Door (Neverwhere)

I basically want future fic. I don't mind who the characters are - whether it's the Marquis, or Richard, or Door, or Richard/Door - but I'd love to see more of the redevelopment of London Below. How did Islington's death affect the city? Did Door reclaim her power? Did she find her sister? How did she and Richard make it work, if they did?

I would also love to read about other cities Below - Dublin Below would be my favourite, but Calcutta or Seoul or Tokyo or Madrid or Paris or Venice or really anywhere would be ok. It could involve a delegation from London Below, with our heroes grouching and grumbling but doing their best anyway, or it could be totally OC focused. I would be happy either way.

Why I love this fandom:

I love the intricacies of London Below. I love the life of the city, and the ways in which it contradicts and mirrors life above. I love how funny the characters can be. I love all the different kinds of people, and the way the mundane mixes with the magical. I love that sense of discovery I had reading it, as though I was exploring London Below too. I really love Door's arc, and Richard's arc. I love where they start and where they end up. I am a big fan of the Marquis and his coolness (and all of the ways that he's not really cool at all).

His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman

Lyra Belacqua, Serafina Pekkala, Mary Malone, Will Parry

Future fic is always a favourite with me for this fandom. You can get Will and Lyra back together if you want, or you can keep them apart if you prefer noble suffering, and I will be happy either way. What I mostly would like to read about is the the process of building the Republic of Heaven, and how all these different characters strive to do that in their own ways. A conversation between Serafina and Mary, perhaps many years later, would also be very sweet and touching.

Hahaha OK let's be real here, the potential for worldbuilding in HDM is so amazing. How can I pass up the opportunity to request fic of it. There's so much I want to know about Lyra's world! How do daemons affect the arts? Do some great stories have very different endings because the daemons are there? What would Pride and Prejudice be like with daemons? Or Jane Eyre? Or Shakespeare? Are plays different when the actors have daemons? Is there a standard daemon for the famous figures - does Macbeth always have a wolf, does King Lear always have a bear? What is Critical Theory like with daemons? What about historical figures? I would read the shit out of encyclopaedia entries about famous people and their daemons? You could all or any of this into a story about Lyra, or you could present it on its own - I would be ecstatic either way.

Why I love this fandom:

The characters in HDM are so great. They're all complicated and tangled, and full of good and bad aspects. They're so interesting, and they all play off each other so well.

I love how big the multiverse of HDM feels, how many worlds there are and how much potential there is contained within them. I love daemons. I love everything about daemons. Your fic could be a twenty page analysis of minute differences between the personalities of people with finch daemons and I would love it. There is nothing I don't love about finch daemons.

I hope I've left you with something to think over. What matters most to me is that you have fun writing this story, and that you get to tell a story that you wanted to tell. If you do that, I will be happy with the result.

E-ko <3

Ok let's do this for real!

To whoever is reading this:

Hello! If you are my gifter, I say thank you in advance, and I'm sure whatever you create will be amazing. I already know that I'll love it.

But that is not why you are here. You are here to read more about my likes and dislikes, and I am here to help.

( Read more... )

So yeah. I decided to write an Ichihime fic in the style of Jane Austen. No, I don't know what I was doing either. I hope to update this next week - I'll be away from the internet for a while, so I should be able to write a good deal. And with that, please enjoy Honour and Honesty.

( Any reasonable person looking at the eighteen years of Ms. Orihime Inoue’s life would have been forced to admit that she seemed destined for misfortune from an early age. )

Written for the

bad_shield prompt community between the hours of three and about half five in the morning. I had fun.

( Consider magic )

I signed up for

hs_bingo, so expect fic in the near future. I really don't have time to do this, but the prompts were just so very delicious. I'll probably do at least one from each of my main fandoms (though I'm not sure about FMA, becuase I have so much trouble with the characters).

( table )

Current Mood: busy

Just a short post about myself in case you find your way here.

This journal is mostly for commenting (Fandom Secrets and other such places), but if I ever become not lazy I'll post some fanfic here too.

I read fanfic and admire fanart for the following fandoms (in no particular order): Avatar: The Last Airbender, Teen Titans, Firefly, Buffy, Harry Potter, Twilight (anti-fic and pairings like Leah/Jacob), and a bunch of others that for some reason I can't think of right now. I read quickly, so I have time to dabble in lots of fandoms.

I lurk (read fanfic, look at fanart and pay attention to the forums) for: Negima, Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist.

I occasionally participate in Bleach fandom, when it's not being insane.

I do ship. These days, I try to do it quietly. Unless you believe that your ship is the one and only, or hate another ship with extreme prejudice, a difference in what we ship is unproblematic.

ETA: Meant to add that my icon is with thanks to baltics. Isn't it lovely?

Current Mood: awake

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amazing_e_ko

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Do you really know?

This is basically a journal for yuletide and comment fic

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Yuletide Letter 2017

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Fic: Honour and Honesty, Part 1

Fic: The minutae of magic

Because I don't have enough to do

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October 2017

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