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Yuletide letter 2024
Oct. 13th, 2024 05:55 pmAmended from past years:
Thank you for writing something for me. With the exception of the do-not-like stuff, please take any and all of this as optional suggestions only, and do what works for you.
Do not like: darkfic in general, incest, humiliation, graphic violence, PWP or graphic parts-and-fluids sexual descriptions (no moral objections, it's just not what I enjoy reading), blatant out-of-characterness, rape/dubcon, Christmas themes (not Christian myself), coronavirus/quarantine references etc.
Enjoy in particular: work (in all definitions) and people being competent at it, hurt/comfort, futurefic, ensemble pieces, playing with language(s), cuddling, scenes from everyday life.
Genfic is good, shipfic is good, although in the case of the latter I’d rather have a story that has something going on as well as pure romance, whether it’s a separate plot thread or a characterization arc.
I'm open to treats if anyone is so kind.
By fandom/characters (alphabetical):
Growing Up Weightless (John M. Ford) – worldbuilding
The society of the Moon (sorry, Luna) is described in so much loving detail that I’d just like to know more about it. Some random ideas: How about language? The language they use incorporates a lot of non-English words; what’s its history, are there different dialects by city/generation, was it deliberately adopted or just the result of a linguistic melting pot among settlers, how do non-Lunar people react to it, is it formally considered a language (taught in schools, etc.)? Or: Anything to do with music on the Moon would be great (Albin Ronay is my favorite character, you’re welcome to bring him directly, indirectly or not at all, as you prefer). Or: There’s something of an unspoken class system, with descendents of Names like Matt’s family at the top and new arrivals from Earth at the bottom; what kind of problems does this cause, and is it changing? Or: How does the Moon look by the time Matt is his father’s age, or what did it look like when Albin was Matt’s age? Or: A little Terkel-esque “working” anthology, a day in the life over various jobs on the Moon? Or: We see a couple of “new religions” that have developed post-off-Earth settlement, but how are the existing Earth religions followed on the Moon? Or: just a slice of life in general, anywhere, in any context.
I’d be glad to hear from any of the characters in the book, or from original characters; feel free to play with formats (epistolary, conferencing or other online systems like the ones in the book, official documents, radio, ???) as well.
The Interior Life (Katherine Blake) – Kathy, Mike, Mark
I adore this odd book, and one of the things I like about it is the way even the minor characters all have their own personalities and interests, including Sue’s kids. I’ve always wondered, what happens if sober Kathy and wry Mike and placid Mark find themselves with their own connection to Sue’s Demoura (or some place related) when they’re older? “Older” could mean anything from early teens to twenties or thirties, whatever you like. They could meet the Demourans Sue knows or their children or an entirely new cast of characters, whatever. Another thing I like is the way the two worlds are so intertwined in Sue’s head (she doesn’t go off questing and leave her own world behind, it’s all happening on multiple levels at once), and I’d want to keep that in the next generation (somehow…). You can have a plot or just a vignette or two, you can have them discovering Demoura etc. for the first time or taking it for granted as a thing they’ve grown up with, you name it. (Mostly unrelated, I’ve always thought that sometime after the book Fred/Sue/Siobhan should happen, so if that appeals to you too, feel free; if not please ignore!)
Juniper, Gentian and Rosemary (Pamela Dean) – Becky, Alma, Erin, Steph
I’m always about equally fascinated and frustrated by this book, and Gentian’s friends are what I like most about it—they have the most interesting takes on the themes of the novel, femininity and gender in general, religion, art and science, conventionality and unconventionality, romance and friendship, togetherness and solitude, what you have in common with people and what makes you different from them. I’d love a missing scene from the book, futurefic, or anything from their perspectives, especially if it provides a bit of comforting closure for the ending, or else a canon divergence where things go better in the first place. You can throw in romance in any combination among them if you’re interested or keep it to friendship, whatever works.
The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water (Zen Cho) - Guet Imm, Lau Fung Cheung, Tet Sang
I don’t even know where to start, except that I love these characters and the language they use and the multi-layered complexity of the world they live in, and would like to read more about them in pretty much any context. Post-canon, what do they get up to? maybe Tet Sang and Guet Imm get to rescue Lau Fung Cheung from whatever trouble he’s gotten himself into (or vice versa, I guess); maybe they all get mixed up in more magical/religious events, if that’s something you’re comfortable with; maybe…who knows. What kind of partnership do Tet Sang and Guet Imm work out together? Does Lau Fung Cheung get over his unrequited crush on Tet Sang? How do events in the larger world affect them? Serious or silly, I just want more.
Skyrider Series (Melisa Michaels) – Jamin
At eleven or so I was obsessed with this silly pulpy space opera series, and I still think it’s fun. One of the things that stands out to me now is that it spells out in so many words (“we are good in bed together, but we’re just not lifemates, or at least not that way”) that Melacha|the Skyrider and Jamin are for all intents and purposes life partners--by the end of the series they’re living together, raising a child together, working together, and very probably fucking, but still best friends rather than a romantic couple; how many canonical m/f pairings can you say that about? Jamin’s iron-woobie combination of vulnerability, competence, and utter stubbornness has always delighted me and I’d just like to read more about him, his point of view on something from the existing books, something post-canon, you name it. (Maybe not with a heavy focus on Collis—it’s fine if he appears, just not a story completely focused on him and his cuteness etc.; any other characters welcome too).
Thank you again for writing for me. I’m looking forward to it!
Thank you for writing something for me. With the exception of the do-not-like stuff, please take any and all of this as optional suggestions only, and do what works for you.
Do not like: darkfic in general, incest, humiliation, graphic violence, PWP or graphic parts-and-fluids sexual descriptions (no moral objections, it's just not what I enjoy reading), blatant out-of-characterness, rape/dubcon, Christmas themes (not Christian myself), coronavirus/quarantine references etc.
Enjoy in particular: work (in all definitions) and people being competent at it, hurt/comfort, futurefic, ensemble pieces, playing with language(s), cuddling, scenes from everyday life.
Genfic is good, shipfic is good, although in the case of the latter I’d rather have a story that has something going on as well as pure romance, whether it’s a separate plot thread or a characterization arc.
I'm open to treats if anyone is so kind.
By fandom/characters (alphabetical):
Growing Up Weightless (John M. Ford) – worldbuilding
The society of the Moon (sorry, Luna) is described in so much loving detail that I’d just like to know more about it. Some random ideas: How about language? The language they use incorporates a lot of non-English words; what’s its history, are there different dialects by city/generation, was it deliberately adopted or just the result of a linguistic melting pot among settlers, how do non-Lunar people react to it, is it formally considered a language (taught in schools, etc.)? Or: Anything to do with music on the Moon would be great (Albin Ronay is my favorite character, you’re welcome to bring him directly, indirectly or not at all, as you prefer). Or: There’s something of an unspoken class system, with descendents of Names like Matt’s family at the top and new arrivals from Earth at the bottom; what kind of problems does this cause, and is it changing? Or: How does the Moon look by the time Matt is his father’s age, or what did it look like when Albin was Matt’s age? Or: A little Terkel-esque “working” anthology, a day in the life over various jobs on the Moon? Or: We see a couple of “new religions” that have developed post-off-Earth settlement, but how are the existing Earth religions followed on the Moon? Or: just a slice of life in general, anywhere, in any context.
I’d be glad to hear from any of the characters in the book, or from original characters; feel free to play with formats (epistolary, conferencing or other online systems like the ones in the book, official documents, radio, ???) as well.
The Interior Life (Katherine Blake) – Kathy, Mike, Mark
I adore this odd book, and one of the things I like about it is the way even the minor characters all have their own personalities and interests, including Sue’s kids. I’ve always wondered, what happens if sober Kathy and wry Mike and placid Mark find themselves with their own connection to Sue’s Demoura (or some place related) when they’re older? “Older” could mean anything from early teens to twenties or thirties, whatever you like. They could meet the Demourans Sue knows or their children or an entirely new cast of characters, whatever. Another thing I like is the way the two worlds are so intertwined in Sue’s head (she doesn’t go off questing and leave her own world behind, it’s all happening on multiple levels at once), and I’d want to keep that in the next generation (somehow…). You can have a plot or just a vignette or two, you can have them discovering Demoura etc. for the first time or taking it for granted as a thing they’ve grown up with, you name it. (Mostly unrelated, I’ve always thought that sometime after the book Fred/Sue/Siobhan should happen, so if that appeals to you too, feel free; if not please ignore!)
Juniper, Gentian and Rosemary (Pamela Dean) – Becky, Alma, Erin, Steph
I’m always about equally fascinated and frustrated by this book, and Gentian’s friends are what I like most about it—they have the most interesting takes on the themes of the novel, femininity and gender in general, religion, art and science, conventionality and unconventionality, romance and friendship, togetherness and solitude, what you have in common with people and what makes you different from them. I’d love a missing scene from the book, futurefic, or anything from their perspectives, especially if it provides a bit of comforting closure for the ending, or else a canon divergence where things go better in the first place. You can throw in romance in any combination among them if you’re interested or keep it to friendship, whatever works.
The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water (Zen Cho) - Guet Imm, Lau Fung Cheung, Tet Sang
I don’t even know where to start, except that I love these characters and the language they use and the multi-layered complexity of the world they live in, and would like to read more about them in pretty much any context. Post-canon, what do they get up to? maybe Tet Sang and Guet Imm get to rescue Lau Fung Cheung from whatever trouble he’s gotten himself into (or vice versa, I guess); maybe they all get mixed up in more magical/religious events, if that’s something you’re comfortable with; maybe…who knows. What kind of partnership do Tet Sang and Guet Imm work out together? Does Lau Fung Cheung get over his unrequited crush on Tet Sang? How do events in the larger world affect them? Serious or silly, I just want more.
Skyrider Series (Melisa Michaels) – Jamin
At eleven or so I was obsessed with this silly pulpy space opera series, and I still think it’s fun. One of the things that stands out to me now is that it spells out in so many words (“we are good in bed together, but we’re just not lifemates, or at least not that way”) that Melacha|the Skyrider and Jamin are for all intents and purposes life partners--by the end of the series they’re living together, raising a child together, working together, and very probably fucking, but still best friends rather than a romantic couple; how many canonical m/f pairings can you say that about? Jamin’s iron-woobie combination of vulnerability, competence, and utter stubbornness has always delighted me and I’d just like to read more about him, his point of view on something from the existing books, something post-canon, you name it. (Maybe not with a heavy focus on Collis—it’s fine if he appears, just not a story completely focused on him and his cuteness etc.; any other characters welcome too).
Thank you again for writing for me. I’m looking forward to it!
