This is a fanfiction and podfic exchange for fans of the Netflix series Sense8, organized by @sense8week on tumblr
Mod is reachable at @sense8week or via Dreamwidth PM @ maevedarcy
The schedule for this exchange is as follows. All deadlines are 8PM (GMT-3)
Signups: Dec 1st - Dec 7th
Assignments sent: Dec 7th
Default deadline: Dec 19th (What time is that for me?)
Posting Deadline: Dec 21st (What time is that for me?)
Work Reveals: Dec 24th (What time is that for me?)
Creator Reveals: Dec 31st
Everyone who creates for someone will be guaranteed a gift. If you default (meaning you drop out from the exchange) and your gifter drops out as well, you will not go out as a Pinch Hit.
If this is your first AO3-run exchange, please read the Rules section entirely before signing up.
RULES
This exchange is limited to FANFICTION and PODFIC. This means you can receive or create either for the event. This means you cannot opt out of/DNW getting podfic or fanfic.
Other mediums can be given as treats.
Fics do not have to be holiday themed but can be if you want to.
MINIMUMS
For fic: you must write 300 words original words (never posted before) for your assigned recipient. There is no maximum.
For Podfic: you must pod 300 words of fic for your assigned recipient. There's no minimum or maximum length as long as the fic you're podding meets this rule.
WHAT'S ALLOWED?
All Sense8 ships are allowed (romantic or sexual (/), platonic (&) and QPRs). We are a poly friendly exchange.
All ratings are allowed. Please choose the maximum rating you're willing to receive in your sign up, otherwise you will not be able to submit it.
Crossover and fusions are not allowed at this time.
Character bashing is not allowed.
RPF is not allowed at this time.
NO AI USE IS ALLOWED. USING AI WILL MEAN IMMEDIATE REMOVAL FROM THE EXCHANGE COLLECTION AND A PERMANENT BAN.
OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF
Commenting on your gift/treats is MANDATORY. Even if you just comment emojis, please take the time to thank your creator. Not commenting will mean a one year ban from this event.
Please check the AO3 email you have for your account is one you check frequently. The mod might have questions about your signup and may need to contact you.
CLICK BELOW FOR FAQs
Do I need an AO3 account to participate?
Yes, the exchange will be run through AO3. If you need an invite, please message the mod on tumblr.
What if I suddenly can't make my gift and need to drop out?
You can do so by going to My Assignments > Default This will drop your assignment and the person you were creating for will go out as a Pinch Hit
Is there a penalty for defaulting?
Not if you default before Dec 19th
What if I default after Dec 19 (the default deadline)?
Then you won't be allowed to participate next year if the exchange goes ahead for 2026
What are DNWs?
DNWs or Do Not Wants are things that will ruin the gift for you. You must have clearly stated Do Not Wants in your signup Optional Details (do NOT use any html code to hide them, such as the Details tag). If you do not state DNWs, your creator is free to create whatever they want.
DNWs must not be used to box your creator into making a specific gift for you. You do NOT need to explain your DNWs.
For example:
Acceptable DNW: DNW Will as a cop
Unacceptable DNW: DNW stories with Will as a cop, but you can write him saving a kid as a cop in this specific scenario I have for you
Works that hit a DNW that was clearly stated in the signup will not be accepted to the collection and the recipient will go out as a Pinch Hit.
If you receive a work that hits a DNW stated in your signup, please contact the mod immediately.
What is a Pinch Hit?
A Pinch Hit or PH is someone who does not have a creator from the start.
If you are an initial PH, DO NOT FEAR! Sometimes this happens because of making sure everyone has a good match to create for. The best part of being an initial pinch hit is knowing that whoever creates for you wanted you in specific! And don't worry, you will get a gift, even as an initial pinch hit, so long as you create your assigned work!
PHs will be advertised on DW and tumblr.
What if someone doesn't have a gift by Dec 24th?
The Exchange will not reveal until everyone who created has a gift. This might result in a one-week delay. As a mod, I will do my best to ensure everyone gets a gift on time.
What is a treat?
A treat is an extra gift that someone who was not matched to you makes out of the goodness of their heart. If you are open to receiving treats in a different medium, please say so in your optional details.
You are allowed to not want treats in a specific medium (for example, you might not want fanart or gifs, if so, please say it in your optional details!)
Additionally, you need to go on AO3 > Preferences >Collections, Challenges and Gifts and tick the box that says "Allow gift from anyone"
Treats are not guaranteed, but they're great surprises to get!
The minimum for treats is 100 words of fic or podfic.
If you wish to treat someone something different, like fanart or gifs, you are allowed to do so!
What's a 'Dear Creator Letter'?
It's an optional post where you can rave about Sense8 and your favorite characters if it did not fit into your signup. You can host it on Dreamwidth or Tumblr ON A PUBLIC POST and link it to your signup. DNWs stated in your Letter but not on your signup will not be enforced.
I want a ship that's not canonical in the Archive and does not appear when I look for it, what can I do?
First of all: yippee!
Second: please contact the mod at tumblr so they can add it to the tagset associated with the exchange and you can request it.
I hosted the Sense8 Holiday Gift Exchange at @sense8week this year and I wrote some fics that I want to share with everyone, so here they are.
birthday girl
Hernando/Lito/Dani | 1.2k words | Gen
This would be the first time her parents would not want anything to do with her. Her parents had cut her off the trust fund and cut all contact with her after she chose Lito and Hernando. They were her family now, and that was all that mattered really. Then why did she feel so sad about it?
real enough
Sun/Riley/Wolfgang/Kala/Will/Nomi/Capheus/Lito, Will/Lito, Wolfgang/Will | 1.1k words | Explicit
As Will comes down from a heroin hit meant to protect them all, his cluster is there to comfort him —and confuse him as well.
shrooms buddy
Riley/Amanita, Riley/Nomi | 500~ words | Teen
Amanita and Riley do shrooms together.
will I hold you when the night is over?
Wolfgang/Kala/Rajan | 2.3k words | Teen
Wolfgang was still getting accustomed to this new… situation with Rajan. It didn't have a name yet, but, as far as Felix was concerned, they were in a relationship.
Wolfgang, who had never lasted in a relationship more than a couple of nights, was in a relationship with two other people.
[Or: Wolfgang pines for a man that's head over heels about him. Both Kala and Felix are done with this bullshit]
Kala/Wolfgang/Rajan | Canon Divergent AU | 1,536 words | For the @sense8week week prompts morning + Rajan + Tell me the truth.
What if Kala had decided to tell Rajan about the cluster earlier?
"So can you visit Kala, just like she can visit you?" Rajan asks, curiosity evident in his tone.
"Yes. What do you want me to do to prove it?"
"Touch me or something," Rajan says, cavalier, as if he thinks there's no way Wolfgang can do it.
"My god! I didn't think such things were possible."
Post-finale. Wolfgang, Kala, and Rajan struggle to navigate a mixed-orientation relationship. Dani, Hernando, and Lito…do not. Amanita should be enjoying her honeymoon, but she helps anyway.
Many thanks to @sense8week for organizing this holiday exchange. I'm currently introducing my best friend to this incredible show, so this was perfect timing. My recipient is @heavensenthale who has a lot of extremely correct opinions about rajalagang that I had to capitalize on. I'm grateful to all for the opportunity to write about some of my favorite people. I recommend you check out the other fics that were posted to the collection as well, because they're fantastic!
After Wolfie accepts the deal to take over Berlin’s mob kingdom, he doesn’t seem to know what to do with himself. That's when the visitors start. / OR, felix meets the cluster, one by one, and learns that there are some things that you do, in fact, have to talk about.
in any life, in each place and forever
They wake up in a pile of limbs, Rajan with Kala’s hair in his mouth. / rajan and wolfgang have a short conversation, the morning after Nomi and Amanita's wedding. (also on tumblr)
what does it all come down to?
Felix once told Wolfgang that if Kala looked at him like that, he’d probably sleep with Rajan, too. That isn’t quite right.
OR: wolfgang looking at kala looking at rajan (who is and has been looking at both of them) in three parts
written for the Sense8 Holiday Exchange 2025 for MerricatB/universallypersonnickeloperator on tumblr
~1k, The August 8th Cluster/Sara Patrell, Riley Blue/Sara Patrell, Sun/Riley/Wolfgang/Kala/Will/Nomi/Capheus/Lito, E-rating, Post-Canon Rewrite
Summary: A 28-year-old woman who named herself Aras… she finds the long-lost connection to her Cluster.
