#but like. actually explicitly writing a trans character is too raw for me I think. a sore spot.

[longhandsart]

Big bold letters in my WIP that just says

MORE TRANS SUBTEXT

[theclaravoyant]

12, 13, 20, 25, 29, 33 for the writer asks!

Thanks babes!

12) Who is your favourite character to write for? Why?

I love writing a lot of the AOS team for a lot of different reasons; for example, I find the way Jemma thinks, experiences, and responds to things very interesting. But for a favourite, it’s gotta be Fitz. I don’t really know why, I just get him (or at least ‘my’ version of him), and he’s precious to me in a way that a lot of other characters - even characters I love dearly - just aren’t. Plus he’s fun to torture bc Iain carries him off amazingly and I do love putting my characters through Some Shit (or more often than not, making them reflect on the shit they’ve already been through) so there’s an aesthetic element too if I’m being honest XD but mostly the soul thing

I also love writing Daisy for a lot of the same reasons.

13) Who is your least favourite character to write for? Why?

Ooh, this is a tough one. I mostly write the Bus Kids and I love them, but it’s not just a matter of who I like. I like all of them! but some are just a nightmare to write, especially since I don’t write them much. It can be a real challenge to get into their voices. My ‘least favourite’ in that sense at the moment is probably May. I just find it really hard to capture her effectively, and to get her depth without making her overly emotive and/or her stoicism without making her too cold or 2-dimensional. I love writing her but it can be a real challenge, especially when it comes to dialogue. I tried writing a 5x22 fic where she reacts to what happens and it’s just…. Bad™. I’m a very emotive/passionate person like Daisy or Fitz so trying to channel my reaction through her was really not the way to go. I will give it another go when it’s not so raw and I’ve catharted in other ways and I can use her voice more than my own, but wow it was really hard to be slapped in the face by that fic. It was real bad friends.

20) Are there any stories that you wished you’d ended differently?

Hmm, I don’t think so. There are many fics that I’ve struggled with the ending, a lot where I’ve kind of gone “it’s got to finish somewhere!”, but whatever different ending I wish I’d had for those has always been fairly nebulous. Just like “be a better ending!” So not really. I guess going back to Sparks (a Simmorse multichap) I do wish I’d had the guts to plot it out, continue it, and solve the crime basically, but at the same time I think I would have chickened out and let the story die and I’d rather end it short than like that (there is still resolution in terms of the relationship, but I’d set some other things up that are basically for a sequel that will in all likelihood never occur). Assuming in the magical universe of this answer I would have followed it through, that would be the one.

25) Have you ever cried whilst writing a story?

Oh hell yes. I’m very attached to my fic babies and I love exploring the depths and breadths of their traumas, fears, psyches and pain. That’s an emotional time!! fortunately I also get to cry with relief and resolution sometimes too though, as I give them a happy or at least hopeful ending more often than not.

29) Do you have a story that doesn’t get as much love as you’d like?

SO MANY. I’m a multiship author so a lot of my ships are super niche (hello FitzHunter) and/or clash with each other which can make some shippers (*cough skimmons cough*) reluctant to follow or interact with me. I also write a lot of fairly niche stuff (like aro!jemma, trans!fitz) so it can be a lonely life! I love doing what I do, and a lot of the love that I do get for what I write is very strong and meaningful, but a lot of my favourite and most emotionally complex works are amongst my least popular and I find that really sad.

Out of all my stuff I wish trans!fitz got more attention and/or didn’t put people off when tagged - I feel like things like mentioning a character is trans or autistic really puts people off, even if the fic is not actually ‘about’ that, like with Spearmint or How the Light Gets In (both FS, trans!fitz). It’s a huge part of the reason, I think, why a lot of “trans” stories end up being coming out stories and other stories in which the character ‘has to’ be trans to make it work/there has to be ‘a reason’ for the character being trans, because people just don’t tend to read or engage as much otherwise. It really bums me out. I’d love to write more trans!- and autistic!Fitz stories and be able to explicitly identify them as such without decimating my readership.

Another one that I really feel like waving the banner for right now is:

It’s alright (it’s just the end of the world) - Elena-centric, MackElena, set late S5 as she deals with the emotional ramifications of killing Ruby. I wrote it immediately after the episode in which it happens, so it doesn’t really follow her canon reaction, it’s much more solemn but I really loved it. I have a few Elena and Mackelena fics that are underrated, but this one I think is genuinely good and so underappreciated it breaks my heart a little 3

33) What’s the biggest compliment you’ve gotten?

As I said, a lot of the love that I do get on my niche stuff is very specific, personal and powerful. I’ve got compliments on (for example) my trans!fitz stuff, and on my aro!jemma stuff especially Love is Not an Eight Letter Word, that have really really warmed my heart, from people who have these identities and who really value the effort I put into representing them, and have taken the time to let me know. That’s so amazing to experience. On that note, I also consider it a great compliment when you help me out with my Spanish & Colombia-related stuff like you did with Sounds Like a Song. It’s really a pleasure to engage and be part of it, and putting the extra effort in to do it properly and show that love, and to have that be recognised and appreciated is such an honour

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ask me stuff: fic writer asks