Could you share some of your favorite fanfics? I have read all of yours SEVERAK TIMEA AND NEED new recs from the queen!! Thank you 💘
Hi! 😁🤩
Ooo, have you already checked out all of these?
Here’s a list of some of my all time favs I posted last year.
I made this list back in January of my fav smuts with @bcdaily and @firefeufuego works. But I would definitely like to add Things that go bump in the night to that. It’s a short little one shot but so sexy 🤤
Here I list some cute coffee shop and celebrity stories by @moonawrites and @theroomofreq
And I got another list of all time favs here with stories by @smileyjily @elanev91
And I’m sure you know this, but you can never go wrong with a @scriibble-fics story! Truly. All of them. Masterpieces! ❤️
As for what I’m reading right now, I can’t stop thinking about @maraudersftw Tracing You — which is only one chapter in and already has me by the feels 🥰
Sorry I got some repeats on there. I really love yelling my love for my fav stories from the rooftops 😉😘 (and I hate knowing that I’m definitely forgetting a couple… 🙇♀️)
EDIT: STAGE LIGHTS by @chiechie97 (faaack, I knew I was forgetting ones) !!! The pining is so good, and it’s always got me on the edge of my seat!
JILY CHALLENGE | July 2022
@wearingaberetinparis + @maraudersftw + @relyingonoldships
Written for the July 2022 @jilychallenge
Title: Always Waiting For You To Be Waiting Below
Words: 12079
Theme: Summer
Prompt: “I've spent the summer climbing through your bedroom window, so no one can see us. Please won't you give us a chance?”
Lily’s friends have always known Lily to be an avid writer, so when letters go unanswered, they are justifiably worried and entitled to an explanation, wouldn’t you say?
Or: how Lily Evans ended up enjoying a Hot Witch Summer and definitely didn't want anyone else to know about it. Certainly not the people she held most dear.
I had fun writing this one. I hope you’ll enjoy it! Fingers crossed, as always, now that I’ve thrown this out for you to read.
Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💖
oh!!! thank you claudia, you sweetheart, you! okay, current faves because they do change:
tell me where your secrets lie, M, oneshot, 26k, in which i pile teen angst onto slytherin!lily
holy the air, the fire, and the water, T, oneshot, 8.5k, in which i say "hey why not" and fold avatar-style bending into a regency AU
if we never meet again, M, oneshot(ish), 42k, in which i got carried away by an actors AU
in pursuit of the study of magic, T, oneshot, 13k; sort of rediscovered this because i realised i'd made a grave historical error (not really) and you know, that error notwithstanding it's quite fun
come together, T, multi-chap, i am omitting the wordcount; she and i are beefing rn but yeah i'm pretty proud of her on the whole!
Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💖
Thank you Claudia 💖 I'm not sure they're favourites but they're what I've got!
Everlong (M) 250k+ words. A near-complete modern au second chance Jily, filled with pain and grief and a stellar support system.
Labyrinth (T) 3.1k words. Drabble collection. Jilytober 31 Prompts in 31 Days
Something So simple (M) 1.8k words. Provocative encounter in the Heads Office.
Laying Claim (T) 1k words. Beach time fun brings out Lily's jealous side. Summer prompt.
One hundred and sixteen minutes... (T) 940 words. The Marauders tease James about a deal they made with Lily, that it turns out is in his favour. Jilytober bittersweet prompts
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this, Claudia! And a huge thank you to all those who sent in the questions! You can find her on ao3 and ffnet !
1. What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Don’t know about interesting, but I can’t write with zero distractions. I constantly need to be shifting tabs, listening to music, checking Tumblr, talking to friends, or reading bits of someone else’s fic if I want to get a good amount of writing done in one day. If you switch off my WiFi and give me a blank document, it’s unlikely that I’ll get a lot written in one go, simply because my brain tires of being forced into one world, one scene, one situation for too long.
2. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your stories?
Oh man, too many. I think the most gradual learning over the years has been that I can actually write, and be good at it, despite English not being my first language. Even more than that, I’ve learned that I can always improve. Right now, I’ve come to a point where I can say that writing is easily a skill I’m confident about.
In terms of particularly learning something from my stories, the most recent and surprising discovery has been that my penchant for describing details and movements and expressing emotions allows me to write pain and angst well. Before I realized this, I’d always considered myself to be better at writing fluff, which is why you’ll find most (if not all) of my initial fics to be more on the fluffier side.
3. Do you have any suggestions to help others become a better writer? If so, what are they?
This is not really a suggestion, but more of a truth: no one becomes amazing or perfect overnight. You have to keep writing over weeks and months and years to get where you want to. And even then, the growth never stops. The more you write, the better you’ll get. It’s really as simple as that. I’d suggest experimenting with different tropes, POVs, tenses and situations to really discover what works best for you. And the most important thing: don’t forget to have fun!
4. What do you think makes a good story?
Logic, consistency, and characterization. If any fic has all these three things, you know I’m sold on it. There’s nothing more satisfying to me than seeing pieces of a plot click into place, to see characters undergo development, but in a way that makes sense, that shows logical progression, that doesn’t make me go “what the hell?” when they do something. Good quality writing and fun dialogues are always a bonus, but if a story just mashes together a bunch of scenes without any of it leading anywhere, I’m likely to lose interest very quickly.
5. What is the first book that made you cry?
Not to be a total cliché, but The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
6. Does writing energize or exhaust you?
It energizes me until it exhausts me, which is when I know I need to take a step back and breathe, do something else, and return to it once it no longer makes me want to pull my hair out. I try to keep reminding myself that this is supposed to be fun for me, too, and generally that helps.
7. Have you ever gotten reader’s block? If so, what are your tips to overcome it?
Oh, loads of times. Best way to overcome reader’s block is to re-read a comfort book/fic. It allows you to return to a world you already know, a story you already love, and there’s no extra energy required to fall in love with the characters or the plot. At the same time, it allows you to reuse your reading muscles, so that by the time you’re done, you’re craving for more of that feeling!
8. Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t feel emotions strongly?
This is an extremely subjective question. What might be “strong emotions” for one, may not necessarily be so for another. That being said, I think it is still possible to write things without empathizing with the character in your story. I’ve seen some really good authors write antagonist/villain POVs brilliantly, but I know for a fact that they don’t condone or feel those things themselves. It’s not always about experiencing those emotions yourself when you’re writing, but more about presenting a flow of thoughts and feelings that the character is likely to go through in their journey. Beyond that, I believe anyone who loves writing can become a writer. There are no rules!
9. If you could tell your younger writer self anything, what would it be?
“Keep doing what you’re doing, lovely. You’ll learn and grow so much!” and “maybe chill out on the cliffhangers a bit.”
10. What was your hardest scene to write?
I’m taking ‘hardest’ here to mean the one that made me the most nervous, and not the one that took me the longest to write because I was undergoing a writer’s block.
The answer would be Chapter 7 of Retribution, basically everything from the moment the action scenes begin. There was so much pressure (that I put on myself) to get that whole sequence of events right. I didn’t want it to feel messy even though things were happening too fast. And of course, there was also that massive reveal which had to be the right amount of dramatic to be satisfactory. So yeah, lots of nerves with that one.
11. What is your favorite childhood book?
Alice in Wonderland. I read that picture book like a million times.
12. How long on average does it take you to write a one shot or a chapter of a fic?
This really depends on the length/genre of what I’m writing. Like, a chapter of Retribution takes me ages to finish because it tends to be relatively lengthy and dark. But a chapter of, say, Disgraceful can be done much quicker because the words range around ~4K-5K in length, and the tone is much lighter there. But, I think once I get in the flow of writing something, it takes me five days or so to finish a chapter. Getting into that flow initially is the issue XD
13. A fic that inspires you?
How does one answer this question with just one fic? Asking for a friend. I think Boyfriend by Molly Raesly and Commentarius by bcdaily have been fics that have impacted me the most in that they pushed me to start writing myself.
But then there are fics like The Last Enemy by CH_Darling, Earthquake Drills by efk_girldetective, and Football, Calculus, and Cappuccinos by xMagicalMystery that I know I’ll remember forever for their brilliance.
14. How do you edit your work?
Mostly I edit as I write. I’m not a very fast writer; I take a lot of pauses, I let my mind wander a lot, I dive deeply into the emotions and images in my mind, and so I also form my sentences carefully. Of course, when I’m done with the chapter, I go back and read through it once more before posting (and still somehow miss out on fixing some typos), but most of the editing happens during the actual writing.
15. Where does inspiration come from?
God, literally anywhere? Movies and TV shows are fairly common, as are other books and fics. But most of them are pulled from my mind, sometimes with the help of prompts or ideas I see floating around in different platforms. And when I’m stuck while writing, I shift to other fics to refresh my mind, and then let inspiration guide me where it will.
16. Who has been helpful for you as you write for the fandom?
Very few people IRL know that I write, so I’ll talk about people in the fandom.
Obviously, my loveliest readers are the biggest motivators, without whom I wouldn’t want to keep writing as much as I do. But sometimes, you also need people to just rant to/bounce ideas off of/fangirl with. For me, I thankfully have a few of those: Nina (all-things-jily), Dylan (the-dream-team), and Lexi (shehatedhimnahshedidn’t) amongst others! I also bug Cer (cesays) a lot when I need to British-ify my fics.
17. What is your fav POV to write from?
Lily Lily Lily! I put a lot of my own thoughts, actions (and aspirations) into her when I write, so her voice comes the easiest to me. Also helps that I love thirsting after James through her.
18. What is a fic you would love to write but are worried you won’t be able to accomplish it/nervous it wouldn’t work out?
A canon-compliant multi-chapter. Apart from just the extremely unacceptable ending (which I’d definitely change if I ever got to writing this), I find the idea of writing an EpicTM very intimidating. I’ve seen and read so many versions of canon Jily that I’m afraid mine won’t be unique/new, or I’ll accidentally steal ideas from fics I’ve read before. I know there’s a LOT of planning I’ll have to do before I attempt to pull this off.
Another one is a Jily wedding fic, which just feels insanely difficult to do justice to.
19. Do you ever self insert in fics?
Not… a lot? I only self-insert in the sense that I often make Lily behave and think things in a way that quite resembles my own. So, there is a good amount of me in her, but I won’t say we’re exactly alike.
20. What is the story you are proudest of?
Retribution
21. Do you prefer writing canon jily or muggle au?
Muggle AUs for multichapters, Canon for one-shots. At least that’s been the preference so far. I don’t know if this needs an explanation, but it’s mostly because I have very strong feelings about canon (as discussed in q18). But since it’s a world that’s already established and needs very little background, it works perfectly for shorter stories.
22. What's your favourite line or paragraph from a story you've written and why?
I feel like I’ve quoted this over a hundred times already, but:
My hands shake as I lean forward to rest my palms on his knees. I don’t understand why I’ve done it until I feel the solid sturdiness push comfortingly against my skin. Even in my subconscious, I’m aware of this unsettling assessment: he is stability, I am disorder.
- Retribution, Chapter 3, Do You Know Me?
Beyond just the neat use of metaphors here, there is a lot that this comparison tells you about Lily’s relationship with James at this point (and for several more chapters) in the story. When she’s in such a vulnerable state, with barely any sense of who/what/why she is, her head literally scrambled into “disorder”, she leans on James more than just physically. She sees him as the stability that grounds her, keeps her from going insane. And I love that all of this comes across from this one panic attack scene.
Moona my love ❤️❤️ hope you are living your best life, and just wanted you to know that FCAC still remains one of my most cherished comfort reads!
Claudia 🥹 I am living my best life actually and I hope you are too!! Thank you for your continuous support even when I'm lazy and inactive, it means so much. Love you!! Hope you're having the best summer ever!!
There is something to be learned, Lily thinks, from first impressions.
She meets Marlene McKinnon and immediately knows from the curve of her smile and her welcoming words that there is a strength and kindness there. Mary Macdonald offers her a sugar quill and asks her almost a million excited questions, and Lily can tell it is indicative of her devoted and passionate heart. She knows Remus Lupin is kind-hearted and gentle when they first shake hands and he shares his notes with her, despite his questionable taste in mates. First impressions do mean something, Lily believes, and she is nothing if not stubborn in her beliefs.
And yet sometimes, on particularly strange days or after particularly noteworthy events, she can be seen questioning some of those strongly held convictions. For instance, that of first impressions. Because, Lily remembers, she was quite repulsed by Severus Snape and his behavior the first day she met him, and yet they grew to be best friends. However, if she had kept her first impression of him in mind, she might have foreseen his descent into the Dark Arts. But the Severus Snape of now is not the Severus Snape of then, and sometimes people are multitudinous. And James Potter, who from the age of eleven Lily would swear was a plague to the entire Earth, and yet loved to surprise her in the smallest ways. So Lily tweaks her hypothesis the slightest, and she thinks instead that perhaps people – or the ideas one has of people, rather – are made up of infinite impressions over many years, and maybe first impressions aren’t the most important. Maybe it is the second impression, or the eighteenth, or the fiftieth, or maybe even the last. Maybe Lily is not quite as astute as she believes herself to be, and maybe the most surprising of people are the most significant
