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blindmadness) wrote2021-10-17 02:33 pm
blindmadness) wrote2021-10-17 02:33 pm
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Dear Yuletide Author,
Hello hello!! Can you believe it's this time again?! I look forward to Yuletide with overwhelming impatience and joy every year, and this time it really both feels like it took forever to get here and absolutely sprang up on us (ah, the liminal nature of 2021!). But I'm so happy it's here, and I'm so happy you'll be writing for me! I like to start every year with the disclaimer that I love Yuletide a lot, and I hope that you love it too, and that if you wholeheartedly enjoy the story you write, I'm going to be sure to love it as well. I tend to write longer, slightly rambly-er letters, so I hope that doesn't put you off; what I want most is a fic that you love and had a great time writing. So if that takes you somewhat sideways to what I've written here, embrace it! I only have a couple of firm DNWs, but otherwise I'm always delighted to receive any fic at all for the tiny fandoms I've been excited about requesting for months, so please bring it on -- I can't wait to see what you come up with. ♥
In terms of more specific guidance, though: broadly speaking, the things usually I want out of Yuletide are character- rather than plot-driven stories (not that the two can't happily coexist, of course, but my favorite stories tend to follow an emotional arc or a relationship development rather than characters dealing with an external conflict or a really intricate plot) with happy or at least hopeful endings (I'm fine with a more bittersweet hinting-at-the-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel type ambiguity, but would strongly prefer more overt happiness, and I really and truly do not want any serious or lasting tragedy involved).
My major DNWs are needles (I have a huge phobia and would deeply rather no mention of them at all, but if it does come up, please please please keep it brief and be sure to clearly warn for me!) and significant involvement of serious issues beyond those explored in canon (e.g. racism, homophobia, character death, serious assault/injury, etc. etc.). By "beyond those explored in canon," I mean, for example, that Darius from Darius the Great faces racism and homophobia in the books, as well as the death of a family member, so while I would prefer a story in that fandom not focus on any of those experiences, passing mention/minor involvement of them/reflection on his experiences with them wouldn't feel out of place or be too upsetting to me. But I would really not want a story where, say, the hot goth in the woods is actively going through the death of a family member or Justin and the Elf from the Oreo commercial encounter homophobia. (Even typing that sentence out feels very weird, ha.)
More generally, here are some of my likes and dislikes:
Likes: banter, UST/pining/slow burn, first kisses/makeouts that don't immediately lead to sex (either by design or by accidental interruption), gross fluffy ridiculous romcom-y tropes, people being very competent at what they do (and other people, ahem, enjoying it), little canon easter eggs, found families, intricate tangles of relationships among large groups of people, cute animals, puns, and the general concept of hope and humanity's essential goodness triumphing over darkness and existential despair! (Especially this year, oh dear god.) (I left this note in last year, but it's still true, tbh!)
Dislikes: misogyny in m/m relationships/demonization of female characters for the sake of m/m, misogynistic dirty talk (e.g., "slut"/"whore"), noncon/dubcon, infidelity, excessive jealousy/possessiveness, excessive kinky elements, A/B/O, mpreg, daddy kink, first- or second-person POV, and contrived miscommunication conflicts that could be resolved with a single, simple statement of clarification!
I generally tend to be a fan of both AUs and explicit porn, but my preferences will differ based on fandom, so I'll include specific notes regarding my feelings re both in each fandom's prompt section.
Some additional references include my trope sorter and kink sorter results -- the rankings should be treated pretty flexibly, as the first half-dozen or so on each list are all pretty close together in terms of things I love! I am also blindmadness on AO3.
So now that we've covered all of that -- on to the fandoms!
Hot Goth in the Woods - JohannesTEvans (Tweet)
• Hot Goth, Witch
Tell me more about this odd couple! Who moved to the woods first? What's their relationship been like -- has it evolved slowly over time or does a sudden event bring them closer together? Has the hot goth ever just given up and pretended to be the witch, or considered learning some magic? I'm primarily interested in a shippy dynamic for the two of them -- who doesn't love a Grumpy One/Sunshine One pairing? -- but would love anything that explores the relationship they must have developed as neighbors, friends, potential coworkers, and/or lovers throughout this continuous series of wacky misunderstandings.
Ever since I first read this tweet, I've been so goddamn excited to nominate it for Yuletide. I mean... it tells so much of a story in such a short span of time! And still leaves so much room to springboard off into delightful new stories, and the prospect of any of them is simply delightful to me.
So -- tell me about these two! Maybe a backstory -- how did the hot goth and the witch end up being neighbors? Who moved to the woods first? Did they meet right away or did they take a while to get acquainted? HAVE they even really interacted before, or has it just been months of the hot goth tiredly redirecting travelers? Or a dive into their relationship -- did they start off disliking one another (or one of them disliking the other -- I love a good "enemies-to-lovers but one-sided" dynamic), or have they always sort of casually gotten along? How does the hot goth feel (other than exasperated) about the situation -- have they ever considered pretending to be the witch to try to help someone out, or thought about trying to learn some magic themselves? (CAN you learn magic in this universe, or was the witch born a witch?) I'd also be totally down for something more plotty here -- maybe the two of them have to go on a quest, or the witch enlists the hot goth's help with finding ingredients for a spell or figuring out how to solve someone's problems?
I definitely do ship these two, so if you wanted to do any of the above with a romantic twist, I would very much love that! There are so many options for the two of them -- has one of them been pining from the start and the other is totally oblivious? Have they both been lowkey annoyed by/rivals with the other and slowly growing into mutual respect? Have they really not interacted much until circumstances force them together and then Suddenly, Feelings? You could fit so many fun tropes in here -- forced proximity! unexpected teaming up! sex pollen! breakup/makeup! hurt/comfort! even childhood friends (or rivals/enemies) to lovers -- what if they didn't recognize each other at first, or if one does and the other doesn't?? Like I said, simply SO many fun ways to go if you choose the shippy route, and I would love ANY OF THEM so very much.
This is a fandom for which I would prefer no AUs, since the appeal of it is so rooted in the premise, but porn is 100% more than fine with me (though I'd prefer no PWP, since the relationship development is also part of the appeal!). I've also been using "they/them" for the hot goth here just by default; I would probably have a very slight preference for them as male, but I'm completely fine with any gender you'd like to write them as!
Oreo "First Christmas" Commercial
• Justin, Elf
First Christmas? More like FIRST DATE. Please give me the explicitly romantic version of this commercial (I mean, even more so than it already is) -- show me Justin and the Elf falling in love! Show me what happens after -- does Justin abscond to the North Pole to live happily ever after, or does he come back to his normal life and pine for a while before the inevitable happily-after-ever? I really just want unabashed ridiculous fluff here, something as sweet and romantic as the commercial has always felt to me.
I've intended to nominate this commercial, depicting what is clearly a charming meet-cute between an elf and a convenience store clerk followed by them literally running away together, for a good couple of years, and this is the first time I've actually remembered to do so, and I'm so excited about it!! If you read the comments on the video, I'm clearly not the only person who immediately saw the ship potential here, and BOY would I love to read an even more explicitly romantic take on this interaction!
So -- that can go any number of ways here! Give me a more detailed, more overtly shippy take on the scene we actually see in the commercial -- a proper first date of sorts from either Justin's or the Elf's POV. I'd love to hear more about either of them -- what's Justin's life like? Do Oreos have any special meaning for him or is he just a person who enjoys them? Has he has feelings for men before -- and either way, how does he feel about having a crush on an actual for-real elf? Does he celebrate Christmas? How does he feel about Santa being real?? Or on the Elf's side -- he said it's his first day, so what was he doing before this? Do all elves eventually get a North Pole job or is this, like, a dream job scenario for him? Did he grow up there or are there elves in random places all around the world? How does HE feel about developing a crush on a human? There's a lot of fun potentials to explore even just within the one minute the commercial gives us!
OR I'd also love to see what comes next for them -- both immediately after (how does Justin feel about helping deliver presents! how does the Elf feel about getting to show off on his first day for his new boyfriend! or -- does the first interaction not go to a specifically romantic place, and the two of them are just Pining in front of Santa all night??) and in the longer term! Does Justin go back to the North Pole with the Elf -- if that's where they live? Maybe elves live somewhere else the rest of the year and just head up to the North Pole for Christmas, and so the two of them set up house there? OR maybe there's some kind of rule prohibiting humans from living at the North Pole, or -- whatever other reason for the two of them to part ways, so they do and they're both really disappointed and pining super hard until [whatever romantic contrivance occurs to bring them back together]?? One of the comments on the video is "That clerk and elf now own a B&B in Vermont," so -- what if that happens! Really, I'm super open to anything here -- really ridiculous plotless fluff, total ridiculousness in worldbuilding, or a super high-concept fantasy-style approach -- all I want is for something that gives me the warm fuzzy earnest heart that the commercial is full of, and however you get there, I'm going to love it.
For this fandom, I'd prefer no AUs, and I'd actually prefer nothing explicit, either -- anything up to, like, a PG-13 is totally fine, and I'm completely all right with any insinuation about or reference to the two of them having sex, I'd just rather not actually read about it for this particular couple!
Till We Meet Again - Dave Brosha (Photo Series)
• Woman, Man
True love across decades and very different lives is a theme that's always resonated in my heart, and this photo series captures it so perfectly, so I desperately want anything that fleshes it out more. What are these two like, and how -- and why -- do they keep coming together, again and again? A focus on one of the lives with allusions to the others, snippets from multiple versions, following them through one life with flashbacks to the others -- however you want to do it, I'm going to love it. I'm down for either a deeply purely romantic or a more bittersweet tone here, because even if things end badly in one life, we know they're going to get the chance to do it all over again.
Seeing these photographs hit me like a punch to the gut -- I am an absolute sucker for a reincarnation story (25 Lives, anyone??), and these pictures truly play out like the absolute ultimate. There's simply so much character in them, so much personality and longing, and SO many gaps that can be filled in -- it was practically begging to be a Yuletide prompt, and it's one of the things I've most looked forward to requesting here.
So -- yeah, tell me their story! Is there a reason these two keep being resurrected and meeting one another? Is there a purpose to be fulfilled, after which it'll all end, or are they destined to repeat it again and again forever? Do both of them know about it -- are they born knowing, or do they have to discover it every time? Are there any other forces at play -- anyone else who always joins them in their lives, or guides them through it? (This obviously takes place in our world, but I'm fine with you going extremely mundane about it -- it just happens, and no one knows how or why -- or extremely high-concept -- gods! monsters! destiny! urban fantasy galore! -- or anything in between.) Are there lives in between the pictures that we didn't see depicted there?
And, of course, there are SO many directions you can take this love story, and I am here for ALL OF THEM. Maybe they find each other and fall in love in every life! Maybe there are some lives where it's unrequited, or feelings are conflicted in some way (maybe the woman is married but still feels a connection to the man! maybe they get married but one of them dies young! maybe they have some fundamental incompatibility but can't stop thinking about one another!), or lives where one of them pines while the other has no idea they exist! Do they only remember their past lives after they kiss, or does one of them know but the other doesn't? (Do they try to tell the other and meet resistance??) You might notice that I'm hitting on some more bittersweet themes here, and while that's usually not the route I want my Yuletide fics to go, with a premise like this -- knowing that no matter how this life ends, there's another one that could end better just around the corner -- I'm fine with any tone or any ending short of full-on Crueltide tragedy and would definitely be okay with more angst than fluff here; there's simply SO much potential for heartwrenching agony and I'm honestly quite here for it, as long as there's at least a TOUCH of hope by the very end.
I'm completely fine with however this is structured -- whether we see bits from all the lives, or a focus on one with allusion to others, or a deeper dive into one with flashbacks to the others, or even if you want to fill in the gaps with other lives in time periods not depicted! I'm honestly not even sure HOW an AU of this premise would work, ha, so let's stick with canon here; I'm also completely fine with porn, but would prefer no PWP -- a fic that's mostly porn with lots of feelings or incorporation of the reincarnation themes, though, would be totally fine. (Emotions can be plot too, okay!!)
(I'll also note here that while obviously our present day and COVID is a part of this canon, I'd prefer that direct experiences with the virus itself not be the singular focus of this fic, should you go with that life -- like, I don't want one of them to be a healthcare worker or be dealing with a family member/close friend's illness or death or refusal to get vaccinated or anything? But anything that speaks to isolation or being together for long periods of time or the inherent stress and sadness of living In These Times would be fine, and I think would be SUPER interesting to dive into given the potential perspective of past lives! Just... some distance from the more direct tragic impacts would be hugely preferred.)
Darius the Great Series - Adib Khorram
• Darius Kellner
I love Darius so, so much, and getting to see more of how his life is playing out in the sequel to the first book felt like such a gift -- so, of course, I'm greedy for far more! What happens next for him? Does he end up going to college after all, or if not, what alternate path does he take? What does his love life look like? (I'm totally open to any options here, be it Chip or Sohrab or getting back together with Landon or someone entirely new! Or no one at all, for now!) Maybe a classic "teenage crushes lose touch and reconnect at [important event] as adults" fic? Anything that further spins out the future for Darius and lets me spend more time with him (and the people who love him) is just going to absolutely delight me.
I read these books last year and absolutely adored them; they struck such a lovely note of honesty and earnestness about so many facets of the teenage experience -- depression, coming to terms with your sexuality, child-of-immigrants life -- and they simply made me feel SO many emotions. I just fell completely in love with Darius as a character; what a sweet lovely GOOD boy trying so hard!! The first book resonated with me more deeply, but I'm on the record as an enormous fan of Lighter And Softer sequels which have less plot but more emotions after the more tumultous actual plots of a first book, so I truly adored the sequel. And it turns out when I get more of something I love, I... end up wanting even more of it?? I'M TERRIBLY GREEDY, I KNOW, BUT I CAN'T HELP IT.
So -- that's exactly what I want! What comes next for Darius? What does he do after high school -- college after all, or a break, or trade school, or work, or something else entirely? How does it go for him? Does he also take a break from romance for a while, or does he date around to figure out what he wants, or does he find true love with someone already in his life? (I'm totally fine with him casually dating OCs, but would prefer them not be his endgame; on that front, I am completely fine with whether you have him end up with Sohrab or Chip or even getting back together with Landon, if you can pull it off!) How does his relationship with his family develop over time? Does he go back to Iran and how does he feel about it if it does? (If you can speak to the child-of-immigrants place from personal experience, I would deeply love that -- my family's from another region of the world, but a LOT of those feelings really resonate with me, so I'd love to have those explored more in fic.)
Alternately, if you wanted to do fic set much further in the future rather than directly after the events of the books, I'd love that too -- maybe an important moment in Darius's life begetting a familial/platonic/romantic bonding moment, or a classic kind of "friends/significant others lose touch over the years but reunite at an important future event"? I'd love to see this included either way, but especially if we go further into the future, I really want to see the important relationships in Darius's life -- how his relationship with his parents (especially his dad) and grandparents and Laleh have evolved, and I ALWAYS want Sohrab to be a huge part of his life, whether platonic or romantic (I'm absolutely fine either way). If they lose touch for a few years and reconnect later on, that's totally fine, or if you just allude to them still being BFFs rather than make it a focus on the story, completely okay -- I just want them to end the fic still in one another's lives, in whatever capacity. Really, all I want is to see what comes next for Darius and for him to be as loved as he deserves, in whatever way you want to emphasize.
I'd prefer no AUs for this, unless you can think of a really interesting canon-divergent one -- I have no immediate suggestions in mind, but definitely welcome seeing how different choices on Darius's part might have played out for him! I'd also prefer no PWP, though porn is totally fine as long as Darius is above 18 (references to him being sexually active as a minor are also totally fine, I just don't need to see it in detail!). Also, while I'm usually not a huge fan of first-person POV in fic, since that's how the canon is written, I'd be okay with it for this fandom in particular, if that's what comes more easily to you.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland
• Alice, Cyrus, Knave of Hearts | Will Scarlet, Red Queen | Anastasia
I truly love the dynamic these four have, and really just want more of all of them interacting in whatever capacity -- be it canon friendships + romantic relationships, or any other combination of relationships (up to and including full ot4!). That can be backstory, missing scenes from the show, or post-canon moments -- I really just adore all four of these nerds, and my heart was so incredibly warmed by seeing them all slowly come together and form strong bonds. I'm a sucker for both friendship and romance, so any combination of the two you give me with this group is going to absolutely make my Yuletide.
I would also really love seeing how these four would have been like if they were cursed in Storybrooke, or any kind of canon-divergent or role-reversal AU for them that explores how differently the friendships/romances would be if one element of the story was changed, or if, say, Alice was the genie/Cyrus was the Victorian-era Wonderland transplant, and Anastasia was the thief/Will the ambitious Red King (or an Alice-Anastasia Cyrus-Will role reversal!).
After years of, unfortunately, loving Once Upon a Time with all my heart, I finally picked this show up earlier this year, and ended up absolutely loving IT with all my heart too. It's all the bonkers subversion and wildly interconnected stories and terrible CGI and genuine human emotion of the original, and I found myself so attached to everybody and really invested in the breakneck absurdity of the plot -- so of course I was delighted to remember that it's kind of a staple Yuletide fandom, and I knew I had to request it.
What I really love about this show -- which is also what I love about the original -- is just how much heart is behind it. The quest for true love and it being the drive behind all curse-breaking, sure, but there's also so much friendship, which I'm a true sucker for. Alice and Will's relationship was, for a long time, my absolute favorite in the show; Cyrus's trust and faith in Anastasia was absolutely heartwarming; and the slow growth of respect between Alice and Anastasia was well worth waiting for. I couldn't help but just adore the way that all of them are around one another, and how important and enduring those bonds ended up being (the last episode with all of them together at the wedding!! my heart!!!). It's simply everything to me, and I found myself wanting so, so much more.
So -- bring me more of these four nerds! More backstory with Alice and Cyrus's adventures, or Will and Alice's friendship, or how Will and Cyrus first met, or how Will and Anastasia first fell in love! Or missing scenes from the show -- travel scenes or quiet moments in between all of the high drama we see on screen, because there are plenty of gaps to fill in! Or post-canon scenes -- any moments between the four of them as they try to settle down, hilarious misadventures Will and Anastasia must have had in a non-magical world, the chaos of planning Alice and Cyrus's wedding, what comes next for all four of them! (I'll note here that while I do enjoy the canon ships and am perfectly happy with them and friendship between everyone else, I also welcome a ship shakeup; I'd be absolutely over the moon if you went full OT4, but any combination of the four of them in couples or throuples of whatever configuration -- Alice/Will and Cyrus/Anastasia have definite chemistry, and Will/Cyrus and Alice/Anastasia would be incredible -- is totally welcome. Basically follow your heart here; there are no bad choices as long as the four of them are sharing love of any kind.)
I'm totally fine with any level of explicit sex for this fandom, even PWP, though I would prefer anything more sex-focused to involve some sort of poly configuration (since the intricate tangle of relationships is what's so fascinating to me here!). And I would prefer any AUs for this be canon-based, but there are a few things I'd be really interested in on that front -- I love canon-divergent AUs, so taking any point in canon and making a small alternate decision and seeing how things play out would be really fun for me to read about. I also adore role-reversal AUs, which could go in a couple of different ways for this gang -- what if Alice was the genie, and Cyrus had grown up in Victorian England, and Anastasia was the Knave of Hearts and Will the ambitious Red King? OR what if Alice was the Red Queen and Anastasia the visitor from England, and Will the genie and Cyrus the Knave? How would those different backgrounds with their essential core personalities make things play out differently? OR what if this group had ended up in Storybrooke with the original curse -- what would their cursed selves be like? How would they come together and what would happen after they got their memories back? (I'd be totally fine with just Wonderland characters here, or cameos from original show characters as well!) Again, as long as we stay in the realm of canon and as long as relationships between all of the characters (be they romantic or platonic) are explored, I'm going to be thrilled.
(NB: Silly request incoming -- I know that Anastasia is sometimes referred to as "Ana" on the show, but that's my sister's name, and I just know it would throw me wildly out if I encountered it in a fic. So I'd humbly request that you avoid using it, with my greatest appreciation! ♥)
In terms of more specific guidance, though: broadly speaking, the things usually I want out of Yuletide are character- rather than plot-driven stories (not that the two can't happily coexist, of course, but my favorite stories tend to follow an emotional arc or a relationship development rather than characters dealing with an external conflict or a really intricate plot) with happy or at least hopeful endings (I'm fine with a more bittersweet hinting-at-the-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel type ambiguity, but would strongly prefer more overt happiness, and I really and truly do not want any serious or lasting tragedy involved).
My major DNWs are needles (I have a huge phobia and would deeply rather no mention of them at all, but if it does come up, please please please keep it brief and be sure to clearly warn for me!) and significant involvement of serious issues beyond those explored in canon (e.g. racism, homophobia, character death, serious assault/injury, etc. etc.). By "beyond those explored in canon," I mean, for example, that Darius from Darius the Great faces racism and homophobia in the books, as well as the death of a family member, so while I would prefer a story in that fandom not focus on any of those experiences, passing mention/minor involvement of them/reflection on his experiences with them wouldn't feel out of place or be too upsetting to me. But I would really not want a story where, say, the hot goth in the woods is actively going through the death of a family member or Justin and the Elf from the Oreo commercial encounter homophobia. (Even typing that sentence out feels very weird, ha.)
More generally, here are some of my likes and dislikes:
Likes: banter, UST/pining/slow burn, first kisses/makeouts that don't immediately lead to sex (either by design or by accidental interruption), gross fluffy ridiculous romcom-y tropes, people being very competent at what they do (and other people, ahem, enjoying it), little canon easter eggs, found families, intricate tangles of relationships among large groups of people, cute animals, puns, and the general concept of hope and humanity's essential goodness triumphing over darkness and existential despair! (Especially this year, oh dear god.) (I left this note in last year, but it's still true, tbh!)
Dislikes: misogyny in m/m relationships/demonization of female characters for the sake of m/m, misogynistic dirty talk (e.g., "slut"/"whore"), noncon/dubcon, infidelity, excessive jealousy/possessiveness, excessive kinky elements, A/B/O, mpreg, daddy kink, first- or second-person POV, and contrived miscommunication conflicts that could be resolved with a single, simple statement of clarification!
I generally tend to be a fan of both AUs and explicit porn, but my preferences will differ based on fandom, so I'll include specific notes regarding my feelings re both in each fandom's prompt section.
Some additional references include my trope sorter and kink sorter results -- the rankings should be treated pretty flexibly, as the first half-dozen or so on each list are all pretty close together in terms of things I love! I am also blindmadness on AO3.
So now that we've covered all of that -- on to the fandoms!
Hot Goth in the Woods - JohannesTEvans (Tweet)
• Hot Goth, Witch
Tell me more about this odd couple! Who moved to the woods first? What's their relationship been like -- has it evolved slowly over time or does a sudden event bring them closer together? Has the hot goth ever just given up and pretended to be the witch, or considered learning some magic? I'm primarily interested in a shippy dynamic for the two of them -- who doesn't love a Grumpy One/Sunshine One pairing? -- but would love anything that explores the relationship they must have developed as neighbors, friends, potential coworkers, and/or lovers throughout this continuous series of wacky misunderstandings.
Ever since I first read this tweet, I've been so goddamn excited to nominate it for Yuletide. I mean... it tells so much of a story in such a short span of time! And still leaves so much room to springboard off into delightful new stories, and the prospect of any of them is simply delightful to me.
So -- tell me about these two! Maybe a backstory -- how did the hot goth and the witch end up being neighbors? Who moved to the woods first? Did they meet right away or did they take a while to get acquainted? HAVE they even really interacted before, or has it just been months of the hot goth tiredly redirecting travelers? Or a dive into their relationship -- did they start off disliking one another (or one of them disliking the other -- I love a good "enemies-to-lovers but one-sided" dynamic), or have they always sort of casually gotten along? How does the hot goth feel (other than exasperated) about the situation -- have they ever considered pretending to be the witch to try to help someone out, or thought about trying to learn some magic themselves? (CAN you learn magic in this universe, or was the witch born a witch?) I'd also be totally down for something more plotty here -- maybe the two of them have to go on a quest, or the witch enlists the hot goth's help with finding ingredients for a spell or figuring out how to solve someone's problems?
I definitely do ship these two, so if you wanted to do any of the above with a romantic twist, I would very much love that! There are so many options for the two of them -- has one of them been pining from the start and the other is totally oblivious? Have they both been lowkey annoyed by/rivals with the other and slowly growing into mutual respect? Have they really not interacted much until circumstances force them together and then Suddenly, Feelings? You could fit so many fun tropes in here -- forced proximity! unexpected teaming up! sex pollen! breakup/makeup! hurt/comfort! even childhood friends (or rivals/enemies) to lovers -- what if they didn't recognize each other at first, or if one does and the other doesn't?? Like I said, simply SO many fun ways to go if you choose the shippy route, and I would love ANY OF THEM so very much.
This is a fandom for which I would prefer no AUs, since the appeal of it is so rooted in the premise, but porn is 100% more than fine with me (though I'd prefer no PWP, since the relationship development is also part of the appeal!). I've also been using "they/them" for the hot goth here just by default; I would probably have a very slight preference for them as male, but I'm completely fine with any gender you'd like to write them as!
Oreo "First Christmas" Commercial
• Justin, Elf
First Christmas? More like FIRST DATE. Please give me the explicitly romantic version of this commercial (I mean, even more so than it already is) -- show me Justin and the Elf falling in love! Show me what happens after -- does Justin abscond to the North Pole to live happily ever after, or does he come back to his normal life and pine for a while before the inevitable happily-after-ever? I really just want unabashed ridiculous fluff here, something as sweet and romantic as the commercial has always felt to me.
I've intended to nominate this commercial, depicting what is clearly a charming meet-cute between an elf and a convenience store clerk followed by them literally running away together, for a good couple of years, and this is the first time I've actually remembered to do so, and I'm so excited about it!! If you read the comments on the video, I'm clearly not the only person who immediately saw the ship potential here, and BOY would I love to read an even more explicitly romantic take on this interaction!
So -- that can go any number of ways here! Give me a more detailed, more overtly shippy take on the scene we actually see in the commercial -- a proper first date of sorts from either Justin's or the Elf's POV. I'd love to hear more about either of them -- what's Justin's life like? Do Oreos have any special meaning for him or is he just a person who enjoys them? Has he has feelings for men before -- and either way, how does he feel about having a crush on an actual for-real elf? Does he celebrate Christmas? How does he feel about Santa being real?? Or on the Elf's side -- he said it's his first day, so what was he doing before this? Do all elves eventually get a North Pole job or is this, like, a dream job scenario for him? Did he grow up there or are there elves in random places all around the world? How does HE feel about developing a crush on a human? There's a lot of fun potentials to explore even just within the one minute the commercial gives us!
OR I'd also love to see what comes next for them -- both immediately after (how does Justin feel about helping deliver presents! how does the Elf feel about getting to show off on his first day for his new boyfriend! or -- does the first interaction not go to a specifically romantic place, and the two of them are just Pining in front of Santa all night??) and in the longer term! Does Justin go back to the North Pole with the Elf -- if that's where they live? Maybe elves live somewhere else the rest of the year and just head up to the North Pole for Christmas, and so the two of them set up house there? OR maybe there's some kind of rule prohibiting humans from living at the North Pole, or -- whatever other reason for the two of them to part ways, so they do and they're both really disappointed and pining super hard until [whatever romantic contrivance occurs to bring them back together]?? One of the comments on the video is "That clerk and elf now own a B&B in Vermont," so -- what if that happens! Really, I'm super open to anything here -- really ridiculous plotless fluff, total ridiculousness in worldbuilding, or a super high-concept fantasy-style approach -- all I want is for something that gives me the warm fuzzy earnest heart that the commercial is full of, and however you get there, I'm going to love it.
For this fandom, I'd prefer no AUs, and I'd actually prefer nothing explicit, either -- anything up to, like, a PG-13 is totally fine, and I'm completely all right with any insinuation about or reference to the two of them having sex, I'd just rather not actually read about it for this particular couple!
Till We Meet Again - Dave Brosha (Photo Series)
• Woman, Man
True love across decades and very different lives is a theme that's always resonated in my heart, and this photo series captures it so perfectly, so I desperately want anything that fleshes it out more. What are these two like, and how -- and why -- do they keep coming together, again and again? A focus on one of the lives with allusions to the others, snippets from multiple versions, following them through one life with flashbacks to the others -- however you want to do it, I'm going to love it. I'm down for either a deeply purely romantic or a more bittersweet tone here, because even if things end badly in one life, we know they're going to get the chance to do it all over again.
Seeing these photographs hit me like a punch to the gut -- I am an absolute sucker for a reincarnation story (25 Lives, anyone??), and these pictures truly play out like the absolute ultimate. There's simply so much character in them, so much personality and longing, and SO many gaps that can be filled in -- it was practically begging to be a Yuletide prompt, and it's one of the things I've most looked forward to requesting here.
So -- yeah, tell me their story! Is there a reason these two keep being resurrected and meeting one another? Is there a purpose to be fulfilled, after which it'll all end, or are they destined to repeat it again and again forever? Do both of them know about it -- are they born knowing, or do they have to discover it every time? Are there any other forces at play -- anyone else who always joins them in their lives, or guides them through it? (This obviously takes place in our world, but I'm fine with you going extremely mundane about it -- it just happens, and no one knows how or why -- or extremely high-concept -- gods! monsters! destiny! urban fantasy galore! -- or anything in between.) Are there lives in between the pictures that we didn't see depicted there?
And, of course, there are SO many directions you can take this love story, and I am here for ALL OF THEM. Maybe they find each other and fall in love in every life! Maybe there are some lives where it's unrequited, or feelings are conflicted in some way (maybe the woman is married but still feels a connection to the man! maybe they get married but one of them dies young! maybe they have some fundamental incompatibility but can't stop thinking about one another!), or lives where one of them pines while the other has no idea they exist! Do they only remember their past lives after they kiss, or does one of them know but the other doesn't? (Do they try to tell the other and meet resistance??) You might notice that I'm hitting on some more bittersweet themes here, and while that's usually not the route I want my Yuletide fics to go, with a premise like this -- knowing that no matter how this life ends, there's another one that could end better just around the corner -- I'm fine with any tone or any ending short of full-on Crueltide tragedy and would definitely be okay with more angst than fluff here; there's simply SO much potential for heartwrenching agony and I'm honestly quite here for it, as long as there's at least a TOUCH of hope by the very end.
I'm completely fine with however this is structured -- whether we see bits from all the lives, or a focus on one with allusion to others, or a deeper dive into one with flashbacks to the others, or even if you want to fill in the gaps with other lives in time periods not depicted! I'm honestly not even sure HOW an AU of this premise would work, ha, so let's stick with canon here; I'm also completely fine with porn, but would prefer no PWP -- a fic that's mostly porn with lots of feelings or incorporation of the reincarnation themes, though, would be totally fine. (Emotions can be plot too, okay!!)
(I'll also note here that while obviously our present day and COVID is a part of this canon, I'd prefer that direct experiences with the virus itself not be the singular focus of this fic, should you go with that life -- like, I don't want one of them to be a healthcare worker or be dealing with a family member/close friend's illness or death or refusal to get vaccinated or anything? But anything that speaks to isolation or being together for long periods of time or the inherent stress and sadness of living In These Times would be fine, and I think would be SUPER interesting to dive into given the potential perspective of past lives! Just... some distance from the more direct tragic impacts would be hugely preferred.)
Darius the Great Series - Adib Khorram
• Darius Kellner
I love Darius so, so much, and getting to see more of how his life is playing out in the sequel to the first book felt like such a gift -- so, of course, I'm greedy for far more! What happens next for him? Does he end up going to college after all, or if not, what alternate path does he take? What does his love life look like? (I'm totally open to any options here, be it Chip or Sohrab or getting back together with Landon or someone entirely new! Or no one at all, for now!) Maybe a classic "teenage crushes lose touch and reconnect at [important event] as adults" fic? Anything that further spins out the future for Darius and lets me spend more time with him (and the people who love him) is just going to absolutely delight me.
I read these books last year and absolutely adored them; they struck such a lovely note of honesty and earnestness about so many facets of the teenage experience -- depression, coming to terms with your sexuality, child-of-immigrants life -- and they simply made me feel SO many emotions. I just fell completely in love with Darius as a character; what a sweet lovely GOOD boy trying so hard!! The first book resonated with me more deeply, but I'm on the record as an enormous fan of Lighter And Softer sequels which have less plot but more emotions after the more tumultous actual plots of a first book, so I truly adored the sequel. And it turns out when I get more of something I love, I... end up wanting even more of it?? I'M TERRIBLY GREEDY, I KNOW, BUT I CAN'T HELP IT.
So -- that's exactly what I want! What comes next for Darius? What does he do after high school -- college after all, or a break, or trade school, or work, or something else entirely? How does it go for him? Does he also take a break from romance for a while, or does he date around to figure out what he wants, or does he find true love with someone already in his life? (I'm totally fine with him casually dating OCs, but would prefer them not be his endgame; on that front, I am completely fine with whether you have him end up with Sohrab or Chip or even getting back together with Landon, if you can pull it off!) How does his relationship with his family develop over time? Does he go back to Iran and how does he feel about it if it does? (If you can speak to the child-of-immigrants place from personal experience, I would deeply love that -- my family's from another region of the world, but a LOT of those feelings really resonate with me, so I'd love to have those explored more in fic.)
Alternately, if you wanted to do fic set much further in the future rather than directly after the events of the books, I'd love that too -- maybe an important moment in Darius's life begetting a familial/platonic/romantic bonding moment, or a classic kind of "friends/significant others lose touch over the years but reunite at an important future event"? I'd love to see this included either way, but especially if we go further into the future, I really want to see the important relationships in Darius's life -- how his relationship with his parents (especially his dad) and grandparents and Laleh have evolved, and I ALWAYS want Sohrab to be a huge part of his life, whether platonic or romantic (I'm absolutely fine either way). If they lose touch for a few years and reconnect later on, that's totally fine, or if you just allude to them still being BFFs rather than make it a focus on the story, completely okay -- I just want them to end the fic still in one another's lives, in whatever capacity. Really, all I want is to see what comes next for Darius and for him to be as loved as he deserves, in whatever way you want to emphasize.
I'd prefer no AUs for this, unless you can think of a really interesting canon-divergent one -- I have no immediate suggestions in mind, but definitely welcome seeing how different choices on Darius's part might have played out for him! I'd also prefer no PWP, though porn is totally fine as long as Darius is above 18 (references to him being sexually active as a minor are also totally fine, I just don't need to see it in detail!). Also, while I'm usually not a huge fan of first-person POV in fic, since that's how the canon is written, I'd be okay with it for this fandom in particular, if that's what comes more easily to you.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland
• Alice, Cyrus, Knave of Hearts | Will Scarlet, Red Queen | Anastasia
I truly love the dynamic these four have, and really just want more of all of them interacting in whatever capacity -- be it canon friendships + romantic relationships, or any other combination of relationships (up to and including full ot4!). That can be backstory, missing scenes from the show, or post-canon moments -- I really just adore all four of these nerds, and my heart was so incredibly warmed by seeing them all slowly come together and form strong bonds. I'm a sucker for both friendship and romance, so any combination of the two you give me with this group is going to absolutely make my Yuletide.
I would also really love seeing how these four would have been like if they were cursed in Storybrooke, or any kind of canon-divergent or role-reversal AU for them that explores how differently the friendships/romances would be if one element of the story was changed, or if, say, Alice was the genie/Cyrus was the Victorian-era Wonderland transplant, and Anastasia was the thief/Will the ambitious Red King (or an Alice-Anastasia Cyrus-Will role reversal!).
After years of, unfortunately, loving Once Upon a Time with all my heart, I finally picked this show up earlier this year, and ended up absolutely loving IT with all my heart too. It's all the bonkers subversion and wildly interconnected stories and terrible CGI and genuine human emotion of the original, and I found myself so attached to everybody and really invested in the breakneck absurdity of the plot -- so of course I was delighted to remember that it's kind of a staple Yuletide fandom, and I knew I had to request it.
What I really love about this show -- which is also what I love about the original -- is just how much heart is behind it. The quest for true love and it being the drive behind all curse-breaking, sure, but there's also so much friendship, which I'm a true sucker for. Alice and Will's relationship was, for a long time, my absolute favorite in the show; Cyrus's trust and faith in Anastasia was absolutely heartwarming; and the slow growth of respect between Alice and Anastasia was well worth waiting for. I couldn't help but just adore the way that all of them are around one another, and how important and enduring those bonds ended up being (the last episode with all of them together at the wedding!! my heart!!!). It's simply everything to me, and I found myself wanting so, so much more.
So -- bring me more of these four nerds! More backstory with Alice and Cyrus's adventures, or Will and Alice's friendship, or how Will and Cyrus first met, or how Will and Anastasia first fell in love! Or missing scenes from the show -- travel scenes or quiet moments in between all of the high drama we see on screen, because there are plenty of gaps to fill in! Or post-canon scenes -- any moments between the four of them as they try to settle down, hilarious misadventures Will and Anastasia must have had in a non-magical world, the chaos of planning Alice and Cyrus's wedding, what comes next for all four of them! (I'll note here that while I do enjoy the canon ships and am perfectly happy with them and friendship between everyone else, I also welcome a ship shakeup; I'd be absolutely over the moon if you went full OT4, but any combination of the four of them in couples or throuples of whatever configuration -- Alice/Will and Cyrus/Anastasia have definite chemistry, and Will/Cyrus and Alice/Anastasia would be incredible -- is totally welcome. Basically follow your heart here; there are no bad choices as long as the four of them are sharing love of any kind.)
I'm totally fine with any level of explicit sex for this fandom, even PWP, though I would prefer anything more sex-focused to involve some sort of poly configuration (since the intricate tangle of relationships is what's so fascinating to me here!). And I would prefer any AUs for this be canon-based, but there are a few things I'd be really interested in on that front -- I love canon-divergent AUs, so taking any point in canon and making a small alternate decision and seeing how things play out would be really fun for me to read about. I also adore role-reversal AUs, which could go in a couple of different ways for this gang -- what if Alice was the genie, and Cyrus had grown up in Victorian England, and Anastasia was the Knave of Hearts and Will the ambitious Red King? OR what if Alice was the Red Queen and Anastasia the visitor from England, and Will the genie and Cyrus the Knave? How would those different backgrounds with their essential core personalities make things play out differently? OR what if this group had ended up in Storybrooke with the original curse -- what would their cursed selves be like? How would they come together and what would happen after they got their memories back? (I'd be totally fine with just Wonderland characters here, or cameos from original show characters as well!) Again, as long as we stay in the realm of canon and as long as relationships between all of the characters (be they romantic or platonic) are explored, I'm going to be thrilled.
(NB: Silly request incoming -- I know that Anastasia is sometimes referred to as "Ana" on the show, but that's my sister's name, and I just know it would throw me wildly out if I encountered it in a fic. So I'd humbly request that you avoid using it, with my greatest appreciation! ♥)