swan, 30s, they/them/he/him. writer, curator of corvid-themed garbage girls, sometimes medievalist, black cat snuggler. i like the band Ghost a normal amount. somehow I became a dragon age blog. In a committed relationship with Lauren queenofeden and also the Middle Ages.
In general: I prefer to stick to canon over AUs, but I also take a lot of creative license with details in game canon and EA can't fucking stop me I am always happy to write NSFW 😌 Currently all my writing is Crows-centric/focuses primarily on Veilguard, but I'm comfortable writing for all of the games!
Bolded entries are what I'm currently most inspired to write, crossed out entries I am currently taking a break from, * are new!
prompt lists
gen
Sleeping
AUs
Drabbles
Association Prompt
Emotion Prompt
Reaction Prompt
Rare/Unusual Word Prompts
Forced Proximity Dialogue Prompts
Nonsexual Acts of Intimacy
Chaos Gremlin Prompts
Nostalgia
Winter is Coming
Winter Activities
romance
Kiss & Tell
Fluff
Cuddles & Snuggles
What are we? Prompts
Various Kiss Prompts
Pregnancy/Baby Prompts
First Touch Prompts
love sonnet xi*
nsfw
NSFW
Melt Into Me NSFW Prompts
subtle smut starters
more smutty memes
angst/whump
Non-verbal Angst
Patching up wounds
Hurt/comfort*
Angsty Romance Starters
da-specific
Rook Codex Prompts
De Riva Rook Storytime Prompts
Quotes/As Said by Lucanis
My Canon Worldstate OCs
Neassa Surana [mage, she/her]
Ruby Hawke [warrior, she/her]
Elgaris Lavellan [mage, he/him]
+Non-inquisitor sister Mina Lavellan [rogue, she/her]
Nova de Riva [city elf, mage, she/her] {nova's tag on my tumblr}
Rowan 'Ro' Thorne [human, mage, she/her] {my partner's Rook, who basically just always exists in Nova's canon}*
OC x Canon
Neassa x Leliana & Neassa x Zevran (Neassa has two hands)
Ruby x Merrill
Elgaris x Dorian
Mina x Solas
Nova x Lucanis
Ro x Neve*
Caprice x Illario
Lilian x Myrna*
Polycrows (Nova x Lucanis x Teia x Viago or any combination of the three)
Nova x Thana Ingellvar (@ guacamolee) x Emmrich Volkarin*
Viago x Nova x Vero (@ wishforhome)
Any OC + canon characters in terms of platonic relationships/friendships!
OC x OC
Nova de Riva x Caprice de Riva
Nova x Thana Ingellvar (@ guacamolee)
Nova x Vero de Riva (@ wishforhome)
Nova x Vero x Caprice
Canon x Canon
Leliana x Zevran
Cassandra Pentaghast x Varric Tethras
Cassndra Pentaghast x Sidony
Viago de Riva x Andarateia Cantori
Viago de Riva x Andarateia Cantori x Lucanis Dellamorte (or any combination of them)
Emmrich Volkarin x Lucanis Dellamorte
Davrin x Bellara Lutare
Pass:
× I don't feel confident enough in writing Solas at this point in time, so if he could be absent from any prompts I would appreciate it
× Fenders
It's your turn, artists! Sign-ups for The 2026 Dragon Age Big Bang are open NOW through EOD August 10th.
From light-hearted backstories, to daring adventures across Thedas, to epic, spicy smut, our writers have been hard at work on over eighty different fanfics - there is a story to suit every taste!
💡New This Year: The sign-up will ask for your top six (6) pitches!
Check out the Artist Participation Guide and review the info under the cut if you're interested in collaborating with a writer to create an illustration for a Dragon Age fanfic, then:
✨Click Here to View Pitches & Sign Up✨
Artist Participation Guidelines:
This is an abbreviated list. The full requirements are on the Artist Guide page.
You will produce a polished illustration tangibly inspired by the fanfiction you’re paired with.
What does tangibly inspired mean? You can choose to depict:
👉 the featured characters
👉 a specific scene from the fic
👉 a broader, more symbolic illustration, like might be used for a book cover
What route you take is up to you! You’re encouraged to talk to your writer for inspiration, but this is not a commission, so follow your imagination and inspiration.
Do I need to be a professional or experienced artist to join? What if I only like certain Dragon Age games or content?
We accept artists of all skill and experience levels! You do not need to be professional or experienced, and there is no application/jurying period for this type of event. Once you sign up, you’re in!
Our writers’ fics cover all four Dragon Age games, with themes ranging from modern AUs to canon retellings to NSFW & darkfic. Whatever part of Dragon Age is your favorite, we have a fic that will interest you!
About Claims & Matching:
Anonymous pitches will be available from August 3rd - 10th. Artists will submit a sign up form ranking the six (6) fics they most want to work with. Then, the mods will match up writers and artists based on those rankings.
The fics on offer range from Teen to Explicit and have a variety of relationship types, including platonic and crossover ships. Some of our writers are focusing on canon characters, while others are including OCs.
You can find an example of the information provided in the pitches here.
If you’re an artist interested in creating an illustration based on a Dragon Age fanfic, visit our pitch website at the link above, submit your sign up, and follow us here on tumblr to stay in the loop!
You can also (optionally) join our Discord server to get on in the hype and stay on top of announcements.
Contact The Mods: ask | discord | email: [email protected]
Event Guidebook: rules, timeline, and more
Nearly 14,000 words later, and it's finally finished: My own take on a Dragon Age modification of DnD 5E! It is created with thought for those who are pre-existing fans of Dragon Age, but potentially new to Dungeons and Dragons.
In this handbook, you will find everything you need for a TTRPG in the Dragon Age setting:
4 lineages (human, dwarf, elf, qunari)
3 classes (warrior, rogue, mage)
5 specializations for each class
16 sample backgrounds
And more!
There are three main reasons I decided to put my lore knowledge to work and make this:
The official Dragon Age Tabletop game is just not that user friendly, in my experience with it; especially for anyone new to TTRPGs. This book I have put together is based on Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, which is a system that far more people are familiar with, and therefore is a) well known by many already, and b) easier to access further information on for those new to it.
While I was able to find a couple versions of similar modifications other people have made, those versions were out of date with the lore, and/or did not meet my personal taste/standards.
I love being a Dungeon Master, and I want to run more games set in Thedas in the future. But like I said, the official rules just aren't good for me, and I would prefer something like... well, this!
This handbook is free to use by anyone who wants it. (You are also, of course, free to make changes for your personal games as you like.)
My only ask is that you please reblog this post so more people can find it. I worked really hard on this, after all. Thank you!
As we look forward to another year, there’s no better time to celebrate our wonderful community of creators. This year, we’re shining a spotlight on our alumni: the talented writers and artists who successfully completed the Dragon Age Big Bang in previous years. All past DABB alumni were given the option of an interactive interview with our mod Alix, or an informal written survey. If you’re thinking about participating this year, check out the insights and advice from those who tread this path before!
On cave trauma
Alix and Joly talk first fandom events and scope creep
Alix: So, DABB retrospective time! Tell me a little bit about the fic you wrote last year and what drew you to your idea?
Joly: I wrote "The Scorpion and the Halla" which was about an Arlathan-era agent of Fen'Harel investigating the first instance of Ghilan’nain’s Blight Labs and the concept of the Blight as something that could infect people and cause problems. DAtV has those memories you can uncover, and I have complicated feelings about them, but they are a neat narrative device and I really wanted to look closer at the concept of the Blight as both an experiment gone wrong (or right, if you're Ghilly) and the repercussions of the war with the Titans.
Alix: What was your favourite thing (or thing(s), if you can't pick just one) about your fic? Is there anything you were particularly proud of?
Joly: I joke a lot about the Cave Trauma because it was really hard to write such an extended action-heavy sequence, but I am really pleased with the result! I think the rising action and climax of discovering the Blight experiments and trying to get that news back to the Rebellion reads well as an action-sequence, which has never been something I feel strong about in my writing.
Alix: I do remember all the talk of caves!
Joly: It went on so long. I think it ended up being like. Five chapters? Maybe six? It was supposed to be two.
I thought I was gonna die there.
Alix: It's wild how things can grow beyond our control like that. You think you have it all planned out, and then....
Joly: I feel like that happened to a lot of folks. We all got into some spot where it just kept going or we realized this one spot needed to be dialed in to focus.
Alix: There's a reason we all joke about scope creep!
What was it that made you sign up for DABB in the first place?
Joly: I hadn't really done a fandom event before, and I knew I had an idea I could stretch into the word count. Prior to last year's DABB I'd never really attempted a multi-chapter fic so it was super intimidating, but I wanted to see if I could hold a narrative that long. Turns out I can!
Alix: One of the things I've noticed doing these interviews is how many people signed up for DABB as their first significant fandom event, and that's just so delightful to me.
Joly: Yeah! It was a really nice experience to introduce me to fandom events, when I had worried it was going to be overwhelming.
Alix: Is there any advice you want to share with this year's writers?
Joly: I think for me it was really important to get the idea down before worrying about word count. You can always go back and pad places or cut back. What helped me stay on track was making sure the narrative was moving forward and then coming back to fix the paint.
Mostly I think being active in the chat and encouraging others and receiving that encouragement was the best part of the experience, so I would definitely recommend getting brave and making friends. It never felt like a burden to work on the project, because the chat was always active and ready to cheer whatever you manage for that day.
6,732 words | rated m | viago/rook/rook (viago/vero/nova)
warnings: major character death
art by the incredible @magpiebee
There is a before and there is an after.
The line between them is fuzzy, because there are days between when it happens and when they know, ones that are spent in comfortable, joyful ignorance. The journey back to Treviso from Val Royeaux is a long one, made longer thanks to borders closed by Antaam blockades, and Vero will wonder later where exactly they were when it happened—the inn in Wycome, maybe, entwined with Nova in rough, homespun sheets.
But that is before.
That is hours spent in laughter and dreaming of home, of reunion, of sleeping in familiar beds with the lovers they left behind, of writing reports they imagine delivering to gloved hands. That is Nova’s head resting on their breast while Vero combs their fingers through her hair, smoothing tangles formed by their intimacies.
For Vero, the moment when it happens is days later, after they’ve slipped past the guards and arrived, breathless and pleased, with Nova at their side. They return to the nest triumphant, high after a contract completed successfully and giddy from evading the Antaam that roam the streets. They notice the other Crows that look at them, the somber faces, but then—this is a city under occupation, and the mood was grim when they left, too.
Grim, perhaps, but not like this.
READ ON AO3
This piece was written for the @me-envenena-viago Deadly Devotion viarook zine, and features my Rook Vero as well as @veil-song's two OCs, Nova and Caprice.
I owe enormous thanks to swan for letting me using his OCs, and to maggie who did such a stunning illustration of all of them.
the horrors persist but so do books, art, hot chocolate, winter nights, the moon, the sea, the stars, sunsets, literature, libraries, cats, flowers, stories, love and the wistful feeling you get when you finally return home
It's time, writers! Sign up now with your initial ideas to get in on the challenge, collaboration, and celebration of Dragon Age fan creativity.
Information given on this sign-up is preliminary and non-binding. You can change direction before pitches! The form will ask for:
contact information
a 1-5 sentence explanation of your fic idea
an estimated length
an estimated rating
(optionally) your discord handle to be added to the secret creator channels
✨ Complete the Sign-Up Here! ✨
Writer sign-ups close Tuesday, June 30th, EOD AoE
see when that is in your timezone here!
Confirmation emails come from [email protected]. If you do not receive one, please check your spam folder. If you still do not see your confirmation, contact the mods below to confirm your sign-up.
✨ Review the Event Rules and Writer Guide on our website, and save the Writer Guidelines and Timeline below!
✨ Share the Artist Interest Check with your followers and artist friends!
Writers will create a complete Dragon Age fanfiction within these guidelines:
25,000 words or more (but not less!)
Completed and posted to the correct AO3 collection.
All chapters published, with no new chapters or significant revisions.
Includes an embedded image of the Artist(s) work.
Includes linked credit to the Artist.
Adheres to the event content guidelines.
Adheres to the event rules regarding originality.
See the full writer requirements on our Guidebook Website!
Contact The Mods: ask | discord | email: [email protected]
Event Guidebook: rules, timeline, and more
Oh boy, a complex character who's a woman! I love messy characters who hurt everyone around them and continue the cycles that hurt them!! Can't wait to share this joy with fellow fans– why's everyone calling her a bitch
A trope that gets to me: 'guard dog' character and their partner who are both fully aware of it and honestly don't care/kind of like it. Someone says "call your guard dog off" and their partner does call them off. That person, their 'guard dog', is someone who is unreservedly, irrefutably loyal to them. Someone undoubtedly dangerous who is willing to kill, to maim, to obey, simply because of their love for one another. There's no manipulation involved— it is loyalty, brutal, dogged loyalty. And it goes both ways.
Gorgeous gifs of a beautiful, beautiful man! He's just so... 😍 These are definitely some of my favourite moments, as well. Ohh, his big, wet, sweet eyes. 🥰 Thank you for feeding us with this fantastic gifset and all your other contributions this week! 💜 Your gifs are always stunning and focus on my favourite subject. 😉 Hope you've had fun this week!
The makers of Kinktober 2025 are back again with a brand new list! The graphics are once again created by latte-cucumber. Check out our AO3 collection, or keep reading for more information.
More information
Kinktober is a kinky October prompt challenge that’s been running in one form or another since 2016. There are three prompts for each day in October, and the challenge is to use one (or more!) of the prompts to create something for that day. If you don’t want to use any of the three daily prompts, you can swap them out for the bonus prompts at the bottom of the prompt list.
If you have any questions, check our FAQs. Unfortunately, due to personal commitments, we won't be opening our askbox for questions this year. We've made it as rules-light as possible, though, so if your question is "Can I do this?", the answer is almost certainly yes!
