Ficmas In July: Dear Author letters

[wordy]

In this thread you can write a note to your mysterious author and explain the items on your wishlist in more depth. When the allocations are sent out, you can then visit this thread and hopefully find some useful details that may help you decide which prompt to write for.

A Dear Author letter isn't compulsory for this exchange, but it doesn't hurt either.

[mistrali]

Dear author,

Odds are that I already know you and love your writing style, so I'm sure that you'll do justice to whatever you decide to go with. More importantly, I'm sure I'll love your fic. If I don't know you, of course, I know you have excellent taste in fandoms, so you can't go wrong.

Please see the sign-up sheet for full prompts.

I hope these prompts take you out of your comfort zone - but not too much! If you get stuck or are pressed for time, writing me fluffy, cute Circle friendship fic, or Discipline fic in general, is guaranteed to make me happy.

1. Frostpine/Kol/Matazi or any permutation thereof.

Ideas, as promised, dear author. First up, you can make it as smutty or innocent as you like, and gen or romance is fine with me. If you've read What I've Tasted of Desire you'll know I have a little bit of headcanon. This was written largely for Kris11's prompt, but if you want a bit of guidance that's a good place to start. Please do not feel compelled to take my characterisation or headcanon as gospel or even read it at all, because I'd love to see your take on the characters. I would, however, prefer it if you kept your fic as canon-compliant as possible.

We know that Kol and Frostpine studied together at university. How did they meet? You might write fic about Kol's reaction to teenage! or young adult!Frostpine: was Frostpine still as angry as at fifteen?

Where did Matazi come into the picture and when did Kol form a relationship with her, and if so, did it lead to strife with Frostpine? Was it Frostpine who introduced them, or did Matazi meet Kol somewhere else?

Epistolary fic or snippets of letters would be brilliant, whether it's letters to their families during university or to each other as adults - as long as it shows the relationship between two or all three characters rather than spending 800 words on Kol complaining about his pet hamster, or something.

Bancanor fic is always welcome. I would love to read about Kol and Matazi's married life and how their wedding was, or how they got along while raising four kids!

2. Midsummer or Midwinter...
Feel free to up the angst or darkness or make it a happy, light fic. The characters themselves don't need to be observing the festival, the fic only has to be set during it, enough that the reader can get a feel for the traditions and celebrations of the festival.

Feel free to write darker stuff, just not something that is too violent. I would, by the way, utterly adore a Yazmin/Vedris fic or a fic elaborating on how Winding Circle celebrates, but only if you're comfortable writing them and the muse cooperates!
More ideas if you're stuck: Aniki's on a mission and has to spend her Midwinter night creeping through the streets of Corus or Scanra. Beka is on Dog duty at the height of Midsummer and a riot breaks out. Raoul and Buri go to a dance on Midsummer night. There's a scandal at the Mithran cloisters or Winding Circle temple in the middle of service. The Discipline crowd host a giant party. A foreigner must get used to the celebrations in their adopted country or adjust to maintaining their own religious beliefs against the mainstream. The people (or nobles) of the Copper or Yamani Isles and their chief festivals, or those of the Traders or another non-Living Circle country. The monks in Battle Magic. Kel and her yearmates or the Circle kids have fun. Lalasa visits her family.

These are some ideas I had: if you come up with any of your own, go for it.



3. An Aly who did manage to wangle her way into fieldwork, i.e. an AU fic where Aly never ran away from home at the beginning of TC and became Kyprioth's chosen one.

This is pretty self-explanatory. On a reread after discussions here, I've realized how convenient I find Aly's coming to the CI at all. So this is about an Aly who's been allowed to take up the title of spy from the first, and thus who never leaves Tortall.

You could have Aly on her first mission, either on her own or with a fellow spy, or maybe working on something for Numair. How does she make use of her Sight, if you choose to keep it at all? Obviously, I am looking for an Aly-centric fic, but if you wanted to deal with the Copper Isles storyline, you might have her dealing with Kyprish agents when she's older and more experienced. Be aware that you'll need to write OCs for this if you set it during canon.

Royal Tortall!verse couple from different cultures. This could mean Roald/Shinko, Kaddar/Kalasin, Adigun jian Wilima/Kalasin I, Jon/Thayet or any other couples mentioned in canon that I've missed. I would prefer you didn't break up canon characters, because I love the existing ships, and I would prefer no threesomes.

I'm fine with an Emelan crossover as long as it's explained somehow, even with a simple, "Roger had struck a deal with a ship's captain to go to Emelan, where Jon would never find him." Crack pairings like Roger/Berenene are fine too.

OC pairings are absolutely fine (either OC/OC or Canon Character/OC), as are minor characters only mentioned once, from any time period. Feel free to go as AU as you like or give it a fairytale/folklore spin. I would kind of prefer monarchs as opposed to Bazhir chieftains, but if you've got a Bazhir plotbunny you can't let go of, go ahead.

5.Zahir/Vania. I would like a little bit of character development for this - how Vania feels about being the youngest or never being able to rule/inherit the Conte wealth, and/or Zahir's issues (if any) with being Bazhir in a land of Tortallans. Don't feel you have to cram the story with issues or angst, but please do put in a little something about their situations or families/backgrounds/jobs/anything, as opposed to a scene with no real context that is just fluff.

I would also prefer something happy or at least bittersweet- something which shows the benefit in their relationship and what they see in each other. Friendship or romance is fine. Feel free to put a fairytale spin on it or have a 'magic made them do it' plot, modern AU, etc. Or keep it canon as canon can be.

[Rachy]

Dear Author,

Thank you for participating, and for writing me fic! I know that I'll love what you write, and feel free to interpret my prompts however you like, and that includes ignoring these potential and very vague ideas if you wish I am sorry in advance that they all boil down to basically characters interacting.

1. Alanna and George, post TIQ/early PotS.
Just something in this timeline. Doesn't have to include Kel drama, I don't mind either way.

2. Rosto/Beka
Anything, pre-Mastiff is fine too. Pre-relationship, post-relationship, in a relationship, friends etc. Just interactions.

3. Taybur and Winna.
IDEK. I was thinking of random pairings and then went ooh, what would happen with them? Hmm. So now I am curious as to how they would interact and advise Dove and stuff. Can be completely platonic.

4. No Namorn visit in WOTE.
Hopefully self-explanatory. Angst is good.

5. Circle + Glaki interactions.
Fluff? We don't see anyone but Tris? with children, and it has cute potential.

[wordy]

Dear Author,


These are just guidelines, so feel free to do your thing - I'm happy with whatever you decide to write for me! The only overall plea I'll make is no crack, if you can, or at least don't go heavy on the crack. Happy Ficmas!


1. Briar/Sandry
You can do no wrong with my OTP. Even if you think it's a plot that's been 'done', I'd seriously just be ecstatic to receive anything with this pairing. Whatever genre you fancy, AU, angst, unrequited love, fluff, set during canon, post-Wote or BM - anything goes.

There's heaps of fics on the board if you're looking for inspiration.


2. Emelan - surprise me!
For this prompt, I suppose I want a fic that really shows the vibrance and culture of the Emelan books. Any characters, major or minor. Can be set wherever you like. If you'd prefer to write something with my favourite characters or pairings, that's cool, but no pressure.


3. Aniki/Rosto or Aniki and Rosto, being badass in the court of the rogue.
I love Aniki and Rosto together, whether it's romantic or platonic. I'd like a fic of them doing rogue-y stuff, before or after Rosto becomes the Rogue. Violence and/or smut is fine, or fluff, or whatever. I'd prefer not to have an origin-fic, though, as we've already seen a few of them with these two.


4. Kel/older man
What it says on the tin? If you need suggestions as to who the older dude could be: Wyldon, Lindhall, Numair, Raoul (though not while she's his squire, preferably), Coram (someone - I want to say max or Seek, but can't recall - has done this pairing well before), Flyndan (ooh!), Baird, Jon, Douglass, etc. I'm open to pretty much any older man except perhaps Myles.

As for plot, maybe it's a quiet or intimate moment between them, or an angsty break-up, or hiding the relationship from family and friends. Feelings are good.


5. SotL-era page training/newly knighted, any characters
Sometimes I get nostalgic for 'Alan' and the gang, probably partly due to the fact that we see so much of Kel's page training in PotS but SotL focuses more on The Big Bad and Alanna going off on adventures etc. So, you could explore how one or some of the SotL characters react to their training or life as a green knight.

[max]

Dear Author,

You lovely, generous person. Thank you so much for taking time out of your life to write me something! It means the world to me, sincerely.

That being said, I'm sorry if you're woefully stuck because nothing's piecing together. Here are some suggestions or whatever to try and get those juices flowing. They're genuinely guidelines, though. Ignore this if you've already thought of something awesome. I'm sure I'll be blown away.

1. The Circle back in Emelan, after WotE.
We're presented with a fragmented Circle at the beginning of WotE, they go to Namorn and come back together, but I mean, when I go away anywhere, I never exist exactly the same way I do at home. So show me what they're like in the aftermath proper. I don't mind if you make this specifically from the point of view of one of the four, or all of them, or only a couple. Just let me see what reforging could entail, back in real life. A day in the life, a point of introspection, whatever you want, really.

2. Lark and Crane having a moment.
Invitation to explore permutations of q-canon, or how Winding Circle impacted their respective lives, or a penchant for the same music or whatever. Rustle up some common ground, dress it in a slice of life (or whatever you'd like), serve according to taste. I popped this one in because the new q-canon got me thinking about it but that's no reason for you not to ignore that and take this one somewhere else.

3. A Sarai stays in the isles AU.
What could have happened, if. Honestly even just a scene in her alternate life would be fine -- all angsty and married to her kid cousin and caged, the Queen of Two Crowns, badass guerrilla warrior at the grass roots (jungle roots?) helm of the rebellion, fighting for her sister's right to the throne, having a moment with Kyprioth, a fabulously elaborate AU that parses out canon and all the likely what could have beens. Or anything, really.
I'd appreciate a reconciliation of her character but these are all just suggestions, so.

4. Sabine, after Mastiff.

SPOILER: Click to show

Spoiler
Because that was sad, right? And gets quite a lot glossed over by Beka, in the wake of becoming a hero and approaching nuptials and things. I want to see what it meant to people who weren't Beka's journal. And specifically Sabine, who seems a bit more emotionally together than Beka (or indeed Mattes :c ) and is such a wonderful character, besides. Make this as lovely and full of hope or despairing as you want. Really all I'm after is another point of view.

5. Kel/anyone she was in page or squire training with except for Vinson.
The only rule here is that this be a Kel and her fellow-page/squire pairing. Your choice of who that happens to be (apart from Vinson because I can't), and in what circumstances. Surprise me, or don't. Feel free to go to town and give your OTP the recognition it deserves, if it happens to be an OTP that fits the brief. Strike whatever mood you want to, too. Desperately unrequited on either side, forever (b)romance, belligerent sexual tension, everything is wonderful, et al. Also, don't feel you need to set this at any specific time in canon. Like you could make this post-LK and have Kel reconnect with someone, or go the other extreme and have Kel find her soul mate at the tender age of three at a party, who is, in fact, none other than Sir X. Either person's pov.

So... yeah.

I hope this helps xx

[Tamari]

Dear Author,
I am so happy that you're writing for me! Thanks very much in advance. Whatever you write, know that I will love it to pieces. I love drama, angst, comedy, fluff, anything you feel like writing. If you need a little help getting started or some clarification, here's my Dear Author letter.

Wish List:
1. Lerant/Kel or Lerant/Lianne
Two of my favorite pairings! (I'm not cut out for the OTP lifestyle.) Whichever of these you ship more, you can write. Or heck, make it a love triangle! Either pairing sets up wonderfully for reaction fics or some drama, but I love sweetness too. You could write this set in Squire (although Lianne would be awfully young), or post-Lady Knight timeline.

2. Briar/Evvy
I'm loving this pairing lately. To avoid some squick, I'd prefer this to be set when Evvy's older (so not Street Magic). But you can go nuts with this! It would be cool to see this from Briar's perspective, but you could even do this from the POV of the rest of the Circle, Evvy, or the teachers.

3. Gary, Raoul, Alanna, and Jon having grownup bonding time
Pretty self-explanatory. I want to see some interactions once they've assumed their adult roles in society. We see a lot of page-hood, but not much once they're adults, except for disagreements. Let's see how they're still friends! Maybe they could go see some Players, or spar in the practice courts.

4. A happy ending for Perin, Daine's former swain
Poor Perin. He never had a chance against Numair. Actually, is Perin a he? I just assumed. Either way, Perin deserves some love. I'd like this one to be fluffy.

5. Beka/Rosto, disregarding Mastiff canon
No Mastiff. You can just ignore it, or you can avoid mentioning it. This way, we avoid Mastiff spoilers and Tamari is happy, all at once. Something with the breakfast crew would be fun.

[indifferentred]

Dear Author,

Thanks so much in advance for my fic. These are just guidelines - if you're feeling any other pairing in particular, just run with it, I'm sure I'll love whatever you come up with.

1. Mequen/Winna - They're a favourite pairing of mine, and I'd particularly like to see how they first got together, how Bronau fitted into it all, how Winna dealt with becoming stepmother to Sarai and Dove.

2. Young Conte-fic - I'd love something about the younger Conte children, the ones we don't see much of in canon. How do they deal with finding their own paths in life, and balancing that with their parents' expectations.

3. Dove - Dove growing up, AUs where Sarai becomes Queen, how Dove gets used to becoming Queen of the Copper Isles.

4. Wyldon/Vivenne - Literally anything involving this couple will make me happy. Fluff as a young couple, family fic with their children, even angsty stuff.

5. Goodwin - Her relationship with Tunstall, the part of her life where she went slightly rogue, her involvement with the Temple of the Goddess, the dichotomy between her work and peaceful home life with Tomlan...

Thanks again,
Indifferentred.