Yuletide letter
Oct. 21st, 2018 10:43 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
luzulaYay, we share a small fandom! My Yuletide letter is basically just my sign-up details so that they are visible to anyone else who wants to read them. Anyway, there are some story ideas below, but if you have some idea already that you want to write, go for it--I hope I've given you some sense of what I would enjoy. And I hope you have fun writing!
Aubrey/Maturin series - Patrick O'Brian (Diana Villiers)
I find Diana fascinating, and would love to read more about her. Some concrete ideas: Diana/Clarissa has always struck me as an interesting possibility. Clarissa canonically doesn't enjoy sex with men; could it be because she's a lesbian? I am sure Diana and Stephen could come to some sensible arrangement for the times when they are apart. I would also love further exploration of Diana's relationship with Stephen; I really ship them together, especially in the later parts of the series. I also like Diana and Sophie together, but usually not in a slashy sense. (Though feel free to go there if you really ship them--actually, it would be cool with a sedoretu-style group marriage.) You could also write Diana gen, that would also be very welcome: Diana being competent, flamboyant, independent, emotional, and occasionally selfish, but also occasionally great-hearted. Or however you see her.
Do-not-wants: Please don't have Diana die! Also, Diana and Stephen's relationship doesn't have to be front and center at all--you could write a story just about her. But please don't break up Diana and Stephen's relationship or kill off Stephen. Also, I would prefer a story where jealousy doesn't play a large role.
Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson (any characters)
I don't remember feeling fannish about these before, but on reread, I suddenly am! Ideas:
- An AU where Ann and Sax got together on Antarctica. How does this influence the terraforming debate?
- Arkady on Antarctica, pretending to be boring and hiding his revolutionary anarchist plans. His inner monologue is probably hilarious...
- Marina/Ursula/Vlad - what does that relationship look like? We don't get any of their POV:s, but it's made pretty clear that theirs is a poly relationship. Also it would be fun to see them working on their ecological economics.
- Frank/John/Maya. They are not actually my favorite characters, but Frank/John is a slash pairing that cries out for someone to write it.
- Nadia is one of my favorite characters, so maybe just tell me a story about her solving an engineering problem?
Or tell me whatever story interests you most! : ) I really like all the landscape description and technical detail in the books, so feel free to pastische that if you want, but you don't have to (I get that it could be daunting!). I also like all the people and communities and political debate in the Martian underground. I think character and setting is what I'm most interested in here.
Do-not-wants: I would prefer a story that isn't centered around someone's death. Sex is fine, but I would prefer if that wasn't the main point of the story. Also, maybe relevant is that my political opinions are to the left, so if you tell me a story dismissing everything about the Martian revolutions as wrong, I am probably not going to appreciate that. Although of course politics doesn't have to come into the story at all, if you're not interested in that.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
I left the character field empty here, because I would love to get worldbuilding fic. That said, if you have an idea for a fic based on one or more of the nominated characters, I am also entirely happy to get that, and I know that it's entirely reasonable (rule-wise) for you to write that for me! If you want to tell the story, I am sure I'll love it too. If I have a preference among the nominated characters, it's for Therem Harth and Genly Ai. Perhaps relevant here is that I like vivid setting and nature description, and I love the whole sequence when they're up on the ice. But I'm happy to get a story about the other nominated characters as well.
Anyway: I am intrigued by Gethen's relationship to technology, where they are very slow to adopt new things and yet they have very useful stuff such as the Chabe stove (I would love to have one). How does their conservative approach work in practice? Was Chabe an inventor, and what is their story? Or maybe Chabe wasn't a person but a hearth with an engineering collective that fine-tuned the stove for long generations? Or maybe have an observer from another planet contrast Gethen's approach with their own. If you don't want to write about technology: how did people on Gethen come up with the theory of evolution? (We know from a comment in the book that they have it.) I'd be happy to read a Gethenian treatise on natural history and biology. And finally, if you're not into science, I would also love to get more Gethenian mythology and folk tales. Or politics is also interesting: how does the Karhide-Orgoreyn situation evolve? On my last reread, I thought the book had a lot of interesting things to say about nationalism. Or worldbuilding about the gender system is also welcome. I like documentation-style fic, which can lend itself well to worldbuilding, but straight-up story is great too.
Do-not-wants: I would prefer something that is reasonably in the style of canon, but canon has death, and torture in prison. So don't feel you have to avoid that kind of thing if the story calls for it. But please don't write something unrelentingly dark. I'm also not particularly interested in something that is just about sex.
Always Coming Home by Ursula K. Le Guin
I recently re-read this book with a book club, and we had lots of interesting discussion. So what I want here is worldbuilding, which maybe seems redundant because that's what the whole book is about. But whatever, basically any exploration of the world that you want to write is welcome.
Ideas (though feel free to have your own idea instead):
- I really liked the story in the "life stories" section about the guy who breeds pear trees. Doing something well and making it your life's work, I find that very moving.
- What do childrens' schooling look like?
- One person in book club speculated that Kesh culture had been intentionally created in the past, could that be so?
- I find Le Guin's various self-inserts fascinating (Pandora, Little Bear Woman, the nameless editor), especially the conflicted Pandora. Maybe you could do the same kind of meta self-insert as a fanfic author writing in Le Guin's world?
- How much does Kesh culture change over time? If you write from the POV of someone who is Kesh in 200 years, what would it look like?
- Maybe write from the POV of someone from another culture who comes to live with the Kesh? What things are similar/different?
- Several people in my book club found the culture frustrating because of its lack of critical and rational thinking, maybe you could adress this?
- Do people do Yuletide over the Exchange, and ask for filthy within-House incest porn?
Well, maybe the last one isn't entirely serious, though if you want to write it, be my guest. *g*
Do-not-wants: Not much, I guess? But would prefer something not unrelentingly dark, and reasonably in the style of canon.
Aubrey/Maturin series - Patrick O'Brian (Diana Villiers)
I find Diana fascinating, and would love to read more about her. Some concrete ideas: Diana/Clarissa has always struck me as an interesting possibility. Clarissa canonically doesn't enjoy sex with men; could it be because she's a lesbian? I am sure Diana and Stephen could come to some sensible arrangement for the times when they are apart. I would also love further exploration of Diana's relationship with Stephen; I really ship them together, especially in the later parts of the series. I also like Diana and Sophie together, but usually not in a slashy sense. (Though feel free to go there if you really ship them--actually, it would be cool with a sedoretu-style group marriage.) You could also write Diana gen, that would also be very welcome: Diana being competent, flamboyant, independent, emotional, and occasionally selfish, but also occasionally great-hearted. Or however you see her.
Do-not-wants: Please don't have Diana die! Also, Diana and Stephen's relationship doesn't have to be front and center at all--you could write a story just about her. But please don't break up Diana and Stephen's relationship or kill off Stephen. Also, I would prefer a story where jealousy doesn't play a large role.
Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson (any characters)
I don't remember feeling fannish about these before, but on reread, I suddenly am! Ideas:
- An AU where Ann and Sax got together on Antarctica. How does this influence the terraforming debate?
- Arkady on Antarctica, pretending to be boring and hiding his revolutionary anarchist plans. His inner monologue is probably hilarious...
- Marina/Ursula/Vlad - what does that relationship look like? We don't get any of their POV:s, but it's made pretty clear that theirs is a poly relationship. Also it would be fun to see them working on their ecological economics.
- Frank/John/Maya. They are not actually my favorite characters, but Frank/John is a slash pairing that cries out for someone to write it.
- Nadia is one of my favorite characters, so maybe just tell me a story about her solving an engineering problem?
Or tell me whatever story interests you most! : ) I really like all the landscape description and technical detail in the books, so feel free to pastische that if you want, but you don't have to (I get that it could be daunting!). I also like all the people and communities and political debate in the Martian underground. I think character and setting is what I'm most interested in here.
Do-not-wants: I would prefer a story that isn't centered around someone's death. Sex is fine, but I would prefer if that wasn't the main point of the story. Also, maybe relevant is that my political opinions are to the left, so if you tell me a story dismissing everything about the Martian revolutions as wrong, I am probably not going to appreciate that. Although of course politics doesn't have to come into the story at all, if you're not interested in that.
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
I left the character field empty here, because I would love to get worldbuilding fic. That said, if you have an idea for a fic based on one or more of the nominated characters, I am also entirely happy to get that, and I know that it's entirely reasonable (rule-wise) for you to write that for me! If you want to tell the story, I am sure I'll love it too. If I have a preference among the nominated characters, it's for Therem Harth and Genly Ai. Perhaps relevant here is that I like vivid setting and nature description, and I love the whole sequence when they're up on the ice. But I'm happy to get a story about the other nominated characters as well.
Anyway: I am intrigued by Gethen's relationship to technology, where they are very slow to adopt new things and yet they have very useful stuff such as the Chabe stove (I would love to have one). How does their conservative approach work in practice? Was Chabe an inventor, and what is their story? Or maybe Chabe wasn't a person but a hearth with an engineering collective that fine-tuned the stove for long generations? Or maybe have an observer from another planet contrast Gethen's approach with their own. If you don't want to write about technology: how did people on Gethen come up with the theory of evolution? (We know from a comment in the book that they have it.) I'd be happy to read a Gethenian treatise on natural history and biology. And finally, if you're not into science, I would also love to get more Gethenian mythology and folk tales. Or politics is also interesting: how does the Karhide-Orgoreyn situation evolve? On my last reread, I thought the book had a lot of interesting things to say about nationalism. Or worldbuilding about the gender system is also welcome. I like documentation-style fic, which can lend itself well to worldbuilding, but straight-up story is great too.
Do-not-wants: I would prefer something that is reasonably in the style of canon, but canon has death, and torture in prison. So don't feel you have to avoid that kind of thing if the story calls for it. But please don't write something unrelentingly dark. I'm also not particularly interested in something that is just about sex.
Always Coming Home by Ursula K. Le Guin
I recently re-read this book with a book club, and we had lots of interesting discussion. So what I want here is worldbuilding, which maybe seems redundant because that's what the whole book is about. But whatever, basically any exploration of the world that you want to write is welcome.
Ideas (though feel free to have your own idea instead):
- I really liked the story in the "life stories" section about the guy who breeds pear trees. Doing something well and making it your life's work, I find that very moving.
- What do childrens' schooling look like?
- One person in book club speculated that Kesh culture had been intentionally created in the past, could that be so?
- I find Le Guin's various self-inserts fascinating (Pandora, Little Bear Woman, the nameless editor), especially the conflicted Pandora. Maybe you could do the same kind of meta self-insert as a fanfic author writing in Le Guin's world?
- How much does Kesh culture change over time? If you write from the POV of someone who is Kesh in 200 years, what would it look like?
- Maybe write from the POV of someone from another culture who comes to live with the Kesh? What things are similar/different?
- Several people in my book club found the culture frustrating because of its lack of critical and rational thinking, maybe you could adress this?
- Do people do Yuletide over the Exchange, and ask for filthy within-House incest porn?
Well, maybe the last one isn't entirely serious, though if you want to write it, be my guest. *g*
Do-not-wants: Not much, I guess? But would prefer something not unrelentingly dark, and reasonably in the style of canon.
