#nenya85

[ariasune]

Tagged by @isisishtar and tagging, but with no obligation @nenya85​ @sitabethel @rowingviolahere @phoenix-downer​ and @demenior​

1) How many fics do you have on Ao3?

Publicly? 72.

2) What’s your total Ao3 word count?

306, 137

3) What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Only Half-Bad

Akhet

Dusk

i wanted more from life, than it could give

Only Child

4) Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to, and even open all my unreplied comments up pretty routinely. I get some intense commenting anxiety for some absurd reason, so it often takes a few tries. It’s something I want to work on, in tandem with leaving comments.

5) What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Huh. Depends, I suppose. Truths to Tell or The Ring is Empty I think, but in different ways. Truths to Tell ends with a sense of defeat and listlessness that also leaves room for growth. The Ring is Empty however is the notion of being trapped, even with an inability to accept it.

6) What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

Oh gosh, I think probably... Head to Wind. There’s a frankly insistent and defiant sense of hope and brightness in it that is directly challenging cynicism. I don’t know. It feels bright.

7) Do you write crossovers? If so, what’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Oh, I love a Daemon AU. I’m also a bit weak on mixing up Doctor Who with other sci-fi such as Red Dwarf and Animorphs.

8) Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Oh yes, very much so. I wrote a number of controversial fics. One of them got an entire analysis post on how I used my writing skills for evil, I shit you not. 

9) Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Not enough, honestly. Most of my ships are MLM so there’s that, but no guarantee of dicks. It’s definitely more a private matter.

10) Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Some scrubbed by sites, but I don’t count it, just file my DMCA and go.

11) Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but I did get a podfic of Crown you now, with many crowns !

12) Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yep! Currently working on Breaking Light. 

13) What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Goddamn you ask a hard question. No all-time fave ships, but I’m feeling darkshipping, promptis, and destiel lately.

14) What’s a WIP that you want to finish, but don’t think you ever will?

Quite a few tbh. I wonder sometimes if I’ll ever finish City of the Dead or Chrysalis....

15 & 16) What are your writing strengths/ weaknesses?

Strengths, uh-- I think I can write some pretty solid prose, push comes to shove. And I’m partial to my verb choice when I’m on a roll.

Weaknesses are definitely action sequences, tense changing mid-scene and endings. I never know how to make a graceful exit.

17) What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Depends a lot stylistically. Sometimes it’s a good way to signal language shifts, or to highlight certain themes, sometimes it’s better to do an Asterix and Obelix style translation.

18) What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Beyblade, I believe. KaiTaka is still a great ship and I stand by it.

19) What’s your favorite fic you’ve ever written?

Well damn, another hard question. Antebellum or Head to Wind, maybe.

[dxmichelle]

#2 and #35 for the writer’s ask meme, please!

Because it took me so long to answer the asks, this was the meme.

2. Why do you write fanfiction? It's soothing and relaxing. And fun (and sometimes a lil scary!) to share with others. And it also helps to make friends and bring communities together, even if it's just online. I've met some of the best people through writing and sharing fic in my fandoms!

35. Ramble about any fic-related thing you want! I really enjoy fanfic fanart. It doesn't have to be for my own fic, but I always love seeing how someone else interpreted a story and felt inspired to create based on it. It also helps make a story catchy, so I try to commission a cover art for every long!fic I create. (Murder Most Foul has my current favorite cover art!)

[kaibacorpintern]

⭐ and ☀️ for Some Beast, please.

 ☀️: Was there symbolism/motifs you worked in?

It’s hard for me to say I intentionally work in symbolism and motifs BUT I do love writing about food and food as intimacy, so I like using sharing meals together as a way to benchmark the development of Kaiba’s relationship with Yuugi and Yami - from rejecting breakfast to avoiding Yuugi at mealtimes for a while to just kind of shoving his food at Yuugi (uneaten, untouched) to accepting Kit Kats to getting their chosen sandwiches up on the catwalk to eating breakfasts together and drinking together and probably more food stuff to come in future chapters. Food is friendship, food is love, you know how it is. 

Kaiba also does not like being compared to machines/Jaegers... he resents the implication of being likened to a well-designed, death-dealing blunt instrument...

⭐: What’s a scene/paragraph you’re proud of? 

I already talked about the Puzzlespace scene which is a top fave for me but I also have a special love for when Kaiba pulls Mokuba out of the wreckage at the end of chapter 2, because i am a SUCKER for scenes where someone cradles another, very injured person, and I also really love the scene in chapter 8 where Kaiba just lies awake in bed and thinks about feelings and how he feels alienated from love and dating and all of that nonsense, and he doesn’t really know what to do with his feelings for Yuugi & Yami (mentioned here). Like he’s a little smitten and that scares him!!

and this one in ch 9 because ROMANCE!!!!!

That was why Yami didn’t notice when Isis finally arrived. He was side by side with Seto, hip to hip, walking him through the steps of a basic salsa – right foot back, weight forward, right foot forward – their arms met and they folded together, like two halves of a book, keeping the story between them. But Pegasus and Anzu were not the only ones who’d noticed something. Everyone in the Shatterdome knew Seto, by sight, by name, by legend, and everyone in the warm, crowded little lounge, stealing hours back from their endless front, noticed him and Yami in the corner. Testing their footwork with the halting but resolute study of amateurs: mis-stepping, trying again, dignified in error, never once separating; smiling as they toed the edge of mastery, and finally slipping into the rhythm like otters into the river, with a fluid flourish of pleasure. Seto was Seto, yes, but he was also a Ranger, always one of two, and it felt intuitive – natural, even obvious – that even a Ranger as sullen and saturnine as theirs might reach for a hand, and pull himself into the orbit of some bright and laughing star.

[duelingdestiny]

#13, #14 and #16 for Prideshipping, please!

@nenya85

13) who gives the most compliments?

So here’s my thought on this. Atem at first did. He did it because he’s pretty certain Seto didn’t get a lot of compliments in his life. Not honest ones. Not about him as an actual person for just being Seto. But somehow Seto took this as a challenge and so then he would match Atem one for one. Until he realized that they genuinely made Atem squirm in delight and now Seto outmatches Atem simply because it makes him happy. 

14) who usually starts/causes arguments between them?

For little bickering they both do. It’s just part of who they are. But real arguments are Atem mainly because Seto doesn’t have a clue how to properly look after himself and pushes himself to the point of passing out, and Atem loses his shit over it. Sometimes Atem will duel him in order to get him to take off a weekend. But Atem also knows Seto isn’t the person to admit he HAS to stop, and it’s very clear when he’s finally curled up on the couch with Atem and Mokuba that he’s more than happy to rest once in a while. 

17) who fusses over takes care of the other when they get sick?

HAHAHAH. Amazingly enough Seto. Don’t get me wrong Atem takes care of Seto when he’s sick. He does all the things an amazing partner is supposed to do...but see Seto...Seto is terrified of losing Atem whether it be to the gods or a common cold. So he’s very pushy about Atem taking his medicine or Atem getting enough water. Or Atem eating his soup. 

[nolifepoints]

F, H and I from the Fanfic Ask Meme, please.

Sure, thank you!

F: Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.

Y'all know me. :v Thanks for giving me an opportunity about my favorite thing again.

I'll go with something from Occult, another fic I'm still pretty proud of.

Otogi was stranded, floating aimlessly through a conversation that had no clear beginning, middle, or end. He couldn’t just walk away. “He’s, um. He’s coming by later. Honda, I mean.”

“Of course he is.” Bakura shoved a tin box of cards back so hard it banged against the wall of the shelf.

“Excuse me?” Otogi stepped back and struggled to keep from raising his own voice. This was not the interaction he expected from one of Yuugi’s crew.

“… never mind,” said Bakura. “It’s nothing.”

“Are you sure? Because if there’s a problem...” Otogi frowned.

Maybe Bakura held a grudge over Yuugi and Jounouchi. He could wrap his head around that, but no one else seemed to care anymore – least of all Yuugi and Jounouchi themselves. Then again, those two would probably befriend the snake that bit them if it only apologized afterward. It was charming.

There was no time to ponder it further. Bakura began to laugh – softly, under his breath, but his body quivered with each burst of it. “Of course there’s a problem,” he said. “There are all kinds of problems.”

Otogi folded his arms. “Could you tell me what they are, then? I thought I’d say hi to a friend of a friend, and suddenly you’re pissed at me.”

“I-” Bakura’s hand flew to his head. He wasn’t laughing anymore. Neither was Otogi. “I’m sorry. I thought I’d try talking to you, but I guess I’m just not in the mood.”

“That much is obvious.” Otogi started for the counter. “I didn’t want to embarrass you before, but… maybe you’d like to know. Honda said he worries about you.”

“Oh.” Bakura pressed the hand into his forehead, digging the heel into his temple. “Sometimes I think he’s the only one that does.”

I really like the awkwardness of this exchange: one only seems to reach out when the other pulls back. They’re never quite in sync. Otogi offers information while Bakura tries to brush off the whole thing. Bakura can’t resist expressing amusement at Otogi suggesting there might be “a” problem, which draws Otogi back in, but Bakura won’t illuminate things any further. Otogi starts to leave, but he can’t quite do it without saying a little more.

Passionate arguments and spry banter are a lot of fun to write, but so is blunt, clumsy grasping.

H: How would you describe your style?

My style, huh...

Zoomed in moments, finite spaces, small pockets of time. Relatively spare prose, fluid dialogue, and the occasional extended metaphor, all interspersed with snatches of sensuality.

Not sensuality as in sex, though (I rarely write explicit fanfic... I save that for my OCs :P). Imo, my skills and instincts for poetry are far more developed than for prose. I write them pretty differently, but this is the one quality I feel crosses over a lot. I tend to connect one sense to another and use language that invokes multiple senses at once. I'd also make a vague guess that I describe sight the least and touch the most.

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)?

Hmm, I don't know if I'd call it guilty, since I more or less lack shame, but one is definitely characters falling asleep on each other. I will write and read untold amounts of this.

I guess that also relates to the more general guilty pleasure of furious, self-indulgent projection. :v I have a particularly intimate and complicated relationship with sleep. It’s immensely gratifying, if slightly embarrassing, to pour some of that part of myself into familiar characters. The same could be said for a lot of other topics, like depression, trauma, gender and sexuality struggles, etc.

[nenya85]

Find me information

I’ll be staying on tumblr until the next fandom jumps sorts itself out. I’ve seen how this scenario plays out though, so I’m preparing for my third fandom migration.  I’m hoping we all can keep in touch and wind up in the same place. 

I’m on the following sites:

Nenya85 on Dreamwidth: https://nenya85.dreamwidth.org/

Nenya85 on Pillowfort.io; https://www.pillowfort.io/Nenya85

Nenya85 on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nenya85/works

Nenya85 on FFNet: https://www.fanfiction.net/~Nenya85

Discord: Nenya85#0520 - tbh I’m still not sure exactly how Discord works.

@find-me-at-x

[evexe-n]

Hi! #4, #7 and #8 for the writer's meme, please!

[40 questions - meme for fic writers]

Thank you for the questions!! This sure got long haha, I’m going to have to put most of it under a cut :’)

4. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Care to share one of them?

Oh boy, I think I mostly just need to focus on the ones I already have… But in case the last replies didn’t make it super obvious, I’d love to do a fantasy AU oneshot or something (bc long fics stress me out too much atm) or a haunted house bit haha.

Though, not gonna lie, if I could ever make a viable YGO superhero AU I would do so in a heartbeat.

7. Share a snippet from one of your favorite pieces of prose you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.

Welcome to Dissect That Fic, with your host, Eve! Today, we have this little ‘nightmare’ tidbit from Hypnagogia:

[Atem] was standing on polished tile, he was buried in sand.

Referring to both the tile of Kaiba’s research lab and the desert respectively, to reflect the two parts of his soul/connection to Earth: Kaiba making his likeness with the AI, and the Puzzle(’s pieces).

It would pass, it always did.

That fact didn’t calm him down when he felt a presence other than himself draw near. Exhaled air rushing from lungs, a snarled reply, an unexpectedly gentle warmth on his cheek.

Again, this is Atem’s warped dream-perception of Kaiba’s interactions with the AI. Yes, I’m 100% implying Kaiba caressed AI Atem’s cheek.

Something crawled along his scalp.

Yes, Kaiba ran his fingers through AI Atem’s hair (this one, I think I mentioned before)

Pure sensation gave way to still images of places both familiar and not. One day he saw stone and sand, another he looked at stained glass. There was no set pattern between image and sound.

Stone and sand: the excavation site/puzzle pieces location + Stained glass: the church virtual reality construct

Cold - cards - drilling

Stars - birdsong - falling

He jerked back awake.

I’m proud of this part of prose because I like how it’s vague but (hopefully) still makes some sense. It’s meant to invoke the unease from Atem’s POV, while it’s probably pretty mundane from Kaiba’s.

8. Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you’ve written and explain why you’re proud of it.

Atem heard himself ask, “How long are you staying?”

Kaiba’s eyes narrowed. Suspicion, possibly confusion at the change in topic.

(…)

“I improved the system,” The other spoke up at last, “So I should have a another hour before I need to return.” He had moved to cradle his chin in the palm of his hand, elbow leaning on his knee. It did nothing to hide his smirk. “Why? Want a rematch already?”

Atem ignored the obvious provocation.

“No, it’s because you still look like you’re slowly falling apart.”

- from What Dreams May Come!

Atem is asking about the black particles that seemingly break off of Kaiba while he’s in Aaru, but it can also be taken as Kaiba’s current condition in the fic: he has finally reached Atem, but he’s not doing much better when it comes to dealing with loss etc. -shrugs- I just enjoy writing things that carry double meanings, so I’m pretty proud of this one.

[hiramiyugioh]

#20 and #25 for the YGO Ask, please!

ygo ask

20: Did you watch YGO as a kid? Yess, I did :D I had a childhood crush on Yami, hahaha... The German voice actor may have played a role in this, whoops. I probably was ~12 at that time. I had a big poster with Yami on it. I used to give him good night kisses. 😂😂😂 *buries self*

25: Headcanons you have? Oh god... whenever I get asked, nothing comes to mind :’D *keeps for later*