@wellamarke tagged me to name some favorite things I made! Thank you for thinking of me. :)
rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 favourite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you’ve brought into the world. tag as many writers/artists/etc as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!
I'm going to define the past year as May 2019 to May 2020. I took a break from fandom and creating for a while and only really came back in late 2019 so to pick five works I'm going to have to pull from all the fandoms I'm currently writing for. (All three of them. :D)
In no particular order, here are five of my favorite works from the past year:
1. Disruption (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3) - Cabin Pressure
This is a fun Mallory/Cat story set in a baseball AU in which Cat and Mallory play on the same baseball team, managed by Carolyn. I'm still hoping to write more of this because I have more outlined in my head but these were really fun to write.
2. Final Boarding Call - Cabin Pressure
This is a Charlie/Miles drabble that I wrote during the Five Years of Zurich event. (Five years!) I really like how the drabble turned out and I'm so glad that I started writing Cabin Pressure things again for the event.
3. The Smell of Fear (on LiveJournal) - Merlin
Switching fandoms, this is a Gwaine/Leon Hogwarts AU that I wrote for the Camelot Drabble community on LiveJournal. This prompt was in October so I decided to go a little darker than usual and I'm really happy with the result.
4. Death Will Set You Free (on AO3) - Merlin
This is another Gwaine/Leon story written for the Camelot Drabble community. (This community's weekly prompts have been a very helpful writing routine.) This is set in the canon era and, coincidentally, also a bit dire. I write happy Merlin fic too, I promise.
5. We'll Start a War Worth Fighting For (on AO3) - Daiya no Ace | Ace of Diamond
New fandom! Daiya no Ace is an anime about a high school baseball team which I've recently fallen for, and fallen hard. The first thing I wrote for this fandom is this Tetsu/Jun science fiction battle mecha AU. It sounds weird but I loved writing it and I really hope I'm able to write more.
I'll tag @tracionn, @sircarolyn, and @lunanimal, but only if you'd like to, of course. :)
P.S.
Shameless self-promotion: If you also happen to be into Merlin or Daiya, I keep separate blogs for those fandoms, because I still do that for some reason.
@unionjackpillow tagged me to share a picture of the last mug I used and the book I’m currently reading. Thanks for thinking of me!
The mug was made by my friends at Oahu Makerspace. The book is technically “the last book I started” since I haven’t actually read from it or any book in a while. Eep.
I’ll tag @madderty, @linguini17, @wellamarke, and @froggybangbang but only if you’d like to, of course. :)
Tagged by @c3mf. Thank you for thinking of me. :)
What’s your age?
31
What’s your current job?
Information system analyst
What are you talented at?
Oh, well, I like to think I’m good at writing. I can cook rice in a regular pot on the stove without burning it. I hope that my friends think I’m supportive and that they can count on me. I know all the words to Weird Al’s The Saga Begins.
What is a big goal you are working toward (or have already achieved)?
Personally, I’ve spent most of 2017 so far cleaning, organizing, and decluttering my space. I recently realized I have a lot more control over this than I’ve been exercising. I don’t love cleaning but so far I’m pretty happy with the result. I really feel the progress has been worth the effort.
What’s your aesthetic?
Blue skies, light clouds, trade winds. Dogs, dog hair-covered jeans and t-shirts, books I plan to read. Iced coffee, colorful TV shows, driving just for the pleasure of going.
Do you collect anything?
I allow myself a few Vinylmations when new sets come out that I like. A few I’ve bought recently came from the Rogue One set, The Force Awakens, and Zootopia.
What’s a topic you always talk about?
I am always happy to talk Cabin Pressure, other people’s art, and Rainbow Warrior football.
What’s a pet peeve of yours?
When people act or exhibit condescending behavior simply because someone doesn’t know something. Also, any time someone is rude to a person working in customer service.
Good advice to give?
You can’t fix everything all at once. Make a plan, take a step, do one thing.
What are three songs you’d recommend?
I Don’t Wanna Be Sad by Simple Plan
Battle Scars by Paradise Fears
The World Will Know from the musical Newsies
If you would like to meme too, I tag @madderty, @a-drab-lunacy, @prettybirdy979, @unionjackpillow, and @alotistwowords.
I was tagged by @elvendorkinfinity! Thanks for thinking of me!
Go to your AO3 works page, expand all the filters, and answer the following questions! How fun!
1. What’s your first and second most common work rating? Any surprises?
Teen And Up Audiences (29)
General Audiences (28)
This sounds about right. I deem anything that has a kiss in it as Teen and I wrote a lot of Gen-rated stuff when I first started writing Cabin Pressure fic. I’m always surprised when I look at my AO3 by how little Explicit-rated fic there is but then I remember that not everything I write on tumblr makes it to AO3.
2. What’s your most common archive warning? Least common? Do you consider yourself an adventurous writer?
No Archive Warnings Apply (64)
Creator Chose Not to Use Archive Warnings (1)
This seems right too. I barely ever write anything that needs an official AO3 Archive warning. The only other one listed on my works is Major Character Death and I’ve only used it twice. The one work that’s tagged Creator Chose Not to Use Archive Warnings is 5 Times Martin Failed to Have His First Shag and the 1 Time When He Did and I can’t even remember why I tagged it as that.
I don’t know if I’d say I’m adventurous. I am willing to try new things though, experiment a bit. The fandot is such a wonderful place to experiment because there’s always such an open response.
3. How many fics have you written in each relationship category? Is this more accidental, or do you have preferences?
M/M (41)
Gen (13)
F/M (10)
Multi (4)
I don’t think the overwhelming number of M/M fics is accidental. It’s a preference. For lack of better word, it’s easiest. So much of what I’ve encountered in fandom is M/M that it feels like the default but I do enjoy it. I wouldn’t write it if i didn’t enjoy it. Even the Multi category is mainly M/M/M at the moment. But then I have ships like LRAC which is F/M/M so at the very least my use of the Multi tag might grow more diverse.
I’m sad that I haven’t posted anything F/F. I have to fix that.
4. What are your top 4 fandoms by numbers? Are you still active in any of them, and do you tend to migrate a lot?
Cabin Pressure (52)
Merlin (TV) (15)
Sherlock (TV) (1)
The question says top 4 but these are my only fandoms on AO3. :D
I’m still active in the Cabin Pressure and Merlin fandoms. Those are the two fandoms that I write in regularly. I’m not sure I’d say I was ever really active in the Sherlock fandom; I was more of a spectator and the one Sherlock fic I have is a Cabin Pressure/Sherlock crossover.
Interest-wise I do move between fandoms sometimes but I don’t often take the next step and start creating in a new fandom. I still have lots to do in the fandoms I am active in. :)
5. What are your top 4 character tags? Does this match how you feel about the characters, or are you puzzled?
Martin Crieff (42)
Douglas Richardson (23)
Arthur Shappey (15)
Original Characters (13)
This is surprising. How did Carl not make the top 4? He just missed the mark, tied with Carolyn for fifth place. This must be related to how not every drabble and ficlet I write on tumblr makes it to AO3 because I feel like I write about Carl a lot. He got beat out by Original Characters! Most of those were original kid characters (Mallory, Cat Richardson, Ethan, etc.) and the students from Parkside Terrace and that makes a lot of sense.
6. What are your top 2 most used additional tags, and your bottom 2? What would happen if you combined all 4 of these into a fic?
Alternate Universe (16)
Alternate Universe - Modern Setting (8)
Post-Episode: s04e04 Wokingham (2)
Porn What Plot/Porn Without Plot (2)
Phobias (2)
Roommates (2)
The only downside with this list is that these aren’t really my least used additional tags. I know I’ve used tags that have only been used once but the list only included this four-way tie of tags that were used two times. The tie of tags that were used once is probably split more ways so this works for now.
Combining all of these tags would result in the a very interesting fic. It would probably have something to do with Martin needing a place to stay OR Carl moving into Parkside Terrace (imagine the possibilities! :D), someone getting scared, and sexy times resulting after some comfort. Very interesting. :)
7. How many WIPs do you have currently running on AO3? Any you don’t plan on finishing?
I have three works on AO3 that aren’t marked as complete:
Gosling
Alpha Dogs and the Men They Know
Tactile
Gosling and Alpha Dogs and the Men They Know are more like collections than unfinished works. The plan there was just to add chapters to the work as I wrote more pieces on the same theme. Tactile on the other hand is meant to have more of a plot so it can be classified as a WIP. I’m not sure if I’m going to come back to that one.
This list is wonderfully free of the many WIPs I’ve started on tumblr on the prompt meme but we all know they’re there...
If you’re interested in doing this, I tag @c3mf and @wellamarke. Only if you like, of course.
@linguini17 tagged me to do the End of the Year Fic Meme!
Thank you for thinking of me. :) It was nice to look back at all the things I wrote in 2015. It was a nice reminder that I actually wrote in 2015; it really felt like I was struggling in the back half of the year. I only included fics I finished and posted on my blog or AO3 but even that list was longer than I expected so that was nice surprise. :D
(I also wrote some fics in the BBC Merlin fandom, so I might mention a few of those.)
If they would also like to play, I tag: @a-drab-lunacy, @prettybirdy979, @jay-eagle, @sircarolyn, and @iwanttotieyourshoe.
Favorite: I allowed myself to pick three fics and this was still a challenge but I’m going to say: I Just Want This, The Perils of Presents, and We Understand the Lights. For the latter two, I really enjoy the mood and setting of each fic and it makes me happy to think that I wrote them in ~15 minutes during Fandot Creativity Night. The first fic is just satisfying overall and turned out better than I originally imagined. :D
Funniest: I think that would have to go to Suspicious Shark or Many Little Interruptions.
Cutest: Pancakes in Our Hearts, just for drunk!Carl. (I didn’t write a lot of kid!fic in 2015. I have to work on that going forward.)
Kinkiest: The Bonds That Tie (Content warning: bondage.)
Saddest: The Siren Song of Hope with a special honorable mention for Big Promises for Little Pleas. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that both fics feature Douglas and his daughter. I always feel like writing Richardsons requires writing the biggest version of every emotion, including the sad ones.
Most Popular: This is a Merlin fic but without a doubt it has to be Stranger Things Than Strangers (AO3). I often forget how small the fandot is compared to other fandoms but AO3 statistics are always there to remind (and baffle) me. Cabin Pressure-wise, the most popular is A Pulling Problem followed very, very closely by Is that a ring box in your pocket, or are you happy to see me?
Least Popular: Exposure and The Estate of Affairs (Pt. 3). The latter is a Merlin fic and the third part of an unfinished WIP so I’m not really surprised.
Most Cringe-worthy Clunky: I think ‘clunky’ better describes how I feel about any of the drabbles I wrote late in the year: Forward, Gift Guide, Discerning Taste, and Flurry. They’re not bad but I don’t particularly like them either. I was struggling a lot at the end of the year and I often turn to drabbles to give myself little tasks that I feel like I can accomplish. I’m glad I wrote something but I still feel like they could be better.
Most Challenging: A Merlin fic but I go straight to Theirs Was Borrowed Time. I like the general idea of the fic but I had a lot of trouble with tone, mood, dialogue, and tone. I feel like it can still be fixed with a good edit but I’ve been over it so many times that I don’t know where to start.
I know the meme’s over but here are a few other things I noticed while looking back at what I wrote:
I started 2015 writing fills for this meme.
I thought I was branching out but I wrote mainly Martin/Carl fics followed by a tie between Martin/Douglas and Cat/Mallory.
I got to participate in 7 Fandot Creativity Nights! Including Jenni’s NaNoWriMo session! Brilliant!
All in all, not as bad as I’d thought the year had gone. :)
Edited to add: eastwssh tagged me first. I hope just 10 books is all right because I honestly can't think of any more.
Preliminaries:
In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just the ones that have touched you.
