When @mia-cooper posted her fic questions, I read them over a few times and thought, “Yikes. That’s a lot to think through.”
But, I did.
1. Best fic(s) you read all year, and why?
The runawaymetaphor oeuvre is sharp-edged satin. I’ve also read most of missparker’s works multiple times (start from the early stuff and work your way forward). And, of course, MiaCooper, the one who is asking the questions though she has so many answers.
Oh, and I didn’t want to mention individual stories for fear of missing an important one, but old fics deserve love and Deeds Done in Darkness is probably old enough to get drunk off its own excellence.
2. Best fic(s) you published all year, and why?
I don’t know. I love them in different ways. I’ve deleted a few I decided I didn’t like and am tempted to delete others, but I haven’t yet.
3. Favourite opening line(s) in a fic you published in 2019:
(Gah. Next question.)
4. Favourite closing line(s):
Telling them would ruin both stories, but my favorites are from The Halo Effect and Feels like Flying: A Modern AU of Threshold.
5. The fic that was best received, and your favourite comment(s) on it:
By hits and kudos, my top fic was Bad Ensign, a credit to the wonderful writers who expanded the Bad Ensign universe. So, my favorite comment includes the fics that made the original better, and begins, “OMG! I am studying for a huge certification exam next week and this fic (the whole series really) made my week and really gave me the motivation to study so I could reward myself with reading the fics.”
By bookmarks, my top fics were a tie between The Halo Effect and The Dismissed Protocol.
I can’t choose a favorite comment on The Halo Effect. The story was so unexpectedly well-received that I wept numerous times reading the kind things people said (though much love to PoorQueequeg, who writes beautifully raw comments that I devour, and to @arcadia1995, who will try new things and tell me what she thinks).
My favorite comment on The Dismissed Protocol was: “I really enjoyed this story. It’s very intelligently written and well characterized. Crusher and Janeway together are a fabulous pair and you framed the ethical issues very well. I am still torn as to how I feel about the protocol but that’s because you framed the Dismissed Protocol in a very evenhanded way and that’s hard to do with such an emotional and private issue. Well done.”
Also, when @caladeniablue started her comment on Shepherded Through the Looking Glass with, “This is a Tom-worthy ride of a story,” I nearly cried.
6. The fic you wish had gotten more love:
I knew when I wrote War Torn that it wouldn’t be incredibly popular. A Kathryn Janeway and Miles O’Brien buddy story during the Cardassian War? But, such is life and tying together a lot of loose canon (get it?) was rewarding, as was bringing to life the man I believe Captain Benjamin Maxwell to be.
7. How many fandoms you wrote for in 2019, and which inspired you most:
I really only wrote for Star Trek Voyager, but pulled in other Trek shows to get characters I wanted (Beverly Crusher, Miles O’Brien, etc). Voyager inspires me because we think we know these characters but we don’t. We have only seen them in a unique situation and their lives were different before and after their seven years in the Delta Quadrant. So, who are they really? It’s hard to say.
8. Your favourite pairing(s) to write for:
Ummmm. I enjoy Janeway/Paris. I’m the only one who has written Janeway/Barclay (and my favorite comments on those tend toward “well, that was a ship I didn’t know I needed” and, “huh, whaddya know, I ship it”). Janeway/Johnson makes me sad, but it’s important. It was a fun one-shot to write Gretchen Janeway/Owen Paris and, surprisingly, there were no other fics for them on AO3. (Also something I did not expect -- my A Long Journey’s Night was one of only three Kathryn Janeway & Kathryn Janeway stories in the archive.) But, in my heart of hearts, I believe what would be most likely is Janeway/OC, which is why I tucked that into the otherwise Janeway/Chakotay-heavy Section 31 story, Secrets, Secrets are No Fun.
9. What you’re writing now/next:
I’m working on another Janeway/Paris but I would like to shift into something else.
10. Writing goals for 2020 (word count? new fandoms/pairings? anything?):
I don’t know. Just to keep improving the craft.