#usually it takes 30k to get to The Scene for a fic

[alectoperdita]

WIP Wednesday

This may be the best part of sugar baby AU if I'm honest. Continuing from the "interview" snippet I posted forever ago.

---

Katsuya shrugged with a lazy roll of his shoulders. "You paid for the hour, Kaiba-san. How we spend it is up to you. 'Sides, I get the sense you don't care for the desperate and clingy ones. If you've already made up your mind about me, I doubt there's anything I can say to change your mind."

Seto's gaze dipped to Katsuya's chest again, focusing on the neatly knotted crimson-pattern tie that popped against the white of his form-fitting shirt. The color appeared to be his sole concession to his profession, because it was too garish for conventional office settings.

"Do you own a suit?" he asked.

"A few. They kinda run the gamut in style. I do try my best to dress to both the occasion and my client's tastes. My closet might be even bigger than yours. Occupational hazard." He laughed again. His body language was relaxed and open, signaling he had nothing to hide. Except for the fact that everything he did was purposefully calculated.

The tension bled from Seto's shoulder. Client; the verbiage reframed their conversation on more familiar grounds. Katsuya was offering a service, and Seto was considering purchasing. Neither harbored delusions as to why they were here. This meeting was due diligence.

"What about a tuxedo?" Seto locked eyes with the man once more.

"Hmm. Don't got one of those. But I can rent one if there's the need."

Seto clucked his tongue in disapproval. "No, it'll need to be bespoke. Otherwise, it'll look shoddy."

For the first time, Katsuya's forehead creased, but he papered over it with an overly bright grin. "Does that mean I got the job? If you have something specific in mind, you can lay it all on the table. I'm flexible in many ways."

The innuendo and double entendre should annoy Seto. But that was a host's job, right? To flatter and flirt? He should consider himself lucky that Katsuya didn't do so in a manner that grated on Seto's nerves.

Far from it.

He wouldn't go as far as to say he was charmed by the host. But Katsuya was unexpectedly sharp, both in his wits and looks. Seto could certainly find far worse company for an evening social. "Next month, I'll be attending a charity gala. At present, I lack a plus one for the evening."

Katsuya's expression turned coy. "I would love to help you with that, Kaiba-san. I'm a rage at parties, especially corporate gigs." He winked.

"This isn't any 'corporate gig.' It's a black-tie gala with a formal wear dress code," reminded Seto.

Katsuya jutted his chin stubbornly. "I can handle it. I talk to people from all walks of life, y'know."

"Including the prime minister?" asked Seto, arching an eyebrow in question.

Katsuya's mouth opened, then snapped shut again. It was gratifying to see him caught off-guard, even if for only a short while. "Okay, you got me there. Never rubbed elbows with the PM before," he acquiesced, then straightened his posture again. "You said I need a tux, right? I'll go check out some places as soon as you confirm the time and date. The reservation system is first-come, first-serve. Can't guarantee my availability otherwise." Then with the hint of a predatory smirk, he added, "Or I can block off the whole night for you."

There it was: the hard-sell paired with time pressure. Basic sales tactics, but Seto didn't begrudge him that. A bead of sweat trickled down the back of Seto's neck and into his collar.

"Why would I need the whole night?" he asked flatly.

For some reason, Katsuya's grin widened a fraction. His expression hung on the edge of leering, complete with hints of bedroom eyes. "I am full-service. If you catch my drift."

Something warm nudged his pinky. Seto jolted, wide eyes flying to the tabletop where Katsuya's fingertip brushed against his knuckle. The first fleeting instance of direct skin-on-skin contact. It was electric. He fully expected the other man to remove his hand, but the seconds dragged on and Katsuya's finger remained flush on Seto.

"Full-service," repeated Seto. His voice sounded distant, hundreds of kilometers away. "Good to know."

[darklitost]

welcome to my little corner of filth and depravity. yes, you read that right; l&ds is sorely lacking in darker content on the other side of the web (ao3), so i decided to open up requests here and write for the l&ds girlies who prefer darker content! i will write for every male lead (and some side characters as well), however i do have my preferences. keep reading below if you want to make a request! i'm a caleb girl, soooo, send me your super secret, dark! caleb ideas. please. i beg. check out my ao3 account for examples of my writing.

⌦ ONE. CHARACTERS + PREFERENCE. i am sorely, sorely lacking in writing experience with Zayne. he is far too similar to myself, which makes me dislike him as love interest-and therefore i don't really consume any content with him in it, cards included. however! if you can forgive my mischaracterization from time to time, then i will be happy to write him for you. ⌦ TWO. DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT, SQUICK, ETC.

if you've browsed my account and taken a peek at my pinned post, then you'll know that i have some pretty dark/unsavory/morally black ideas for l&ds stories, plots, and headcanons. i can't write fluff to save my life. do i like writing it? yes, but it isn't my niche, so to speak. obviously, if you're a minor, you do not belong here. at all. skedaddle, ye little children! you'll be blocked on-site. the same goes for those who can't seem to control themselves and read things they know they get triggered by (a.k.a caleb's psuedo-incest trope) and fly off the handle. be an adult, or at least act like the age you are, and just exit out of the post if you don't like it. i won't hold your hand and baby you through the dead dove scenes. ⌦ THREE. LENGTH & PROSE.

i have a very flowery, elaborate way of writing. unlike this post, i don't write in all lowercase unless it's for a) headcanons or b) food for thought. my fics can span anywhere from 1k words to 30k words. i have a caleb fic i'm working on that is going to be around 200k words when i'm finished with it, so, take that as you will. you can request a certain length, but generally it depends on how creative i am at the time and/or my mood. ⌦ FOUR. DO NOT REQUEST...

♡. kinks regarding certain (some) bodily fluids (depends on the kink/context) or biological human waste. ♡. vague requests regarding a specific plot. don't be vague, fill up my inbox! gush about what you want! ♡. furries. sorry, local tumblr furries, but i just can't do it. ♡. and expect a certain time for me to post. i'm slow, you all. like... i agonize over perfection.

and that's that! you can shoot a request into my inbox (labeled 'make a request') and i'll get back to you, usually with the request in question. <3

[cinderfeather]

Short Story Writing Tips for Fanfic Authors

While Edgar Allen Poe has many pretentious things to say on the merits of the Short Story (‘a work of art should be able to achieve its effect in one sitting’), I want to talk about them from a fanfiction perspective.

As fic writers, we are doing this hobby for fun, and frequently find ourselves hopping between shiny new idea, to shiny new idea, to shiny new idea…

...which is totally fine. However: to reduce this, I want to impress this upon you:

Keep your fic short enough to write within the span of dopamine it generates.

So while it’s still easy to generate long plots, I usually like to keep my stories small and focused wherever possible, so I can feel proud about ✨finishing✨ it and then have more energy to work on the next idea. In addition, if I have an idea tha t I think is cool, but not something I can fathom spending an entire year writing a novel-length-fic about, I can still write the idea if I think carefully about how I can work it into a short story.

Often writers way things like: 'I have 30k words to write just to get to the fun bit 😭😭😭'

Just write the fun bit.

It might be one thing for me to say that, but learning a bit of craft about short stories can make this easier.

So: one of the hardest things in a story is the ending, and short stories (especially origific) can be very challenging to create a satisfying ending with so little to work with.

In short story craft, there is a lot of talk about things like Hemingway’s ‘Iceberg Theory’:

Hemingway said that only the tip of the iceberg showed in fiction—your reader will see only what is above the water—but the knowledge that you have about your character that never makes it into the story acts as the bulk of the iceberg. And that is what gives your story weight and gravitas. — Jenna Blum in The Author at Work, 2013 (Wikipedia Link)

Fanfic is great for this! You already have a ton of character and plot fleshed out, so you can already have your iceberg while putting very little effort in. Short stories are already much easier as fic because they already have the 'iceberg of canon' beneath them, so make the most of it!

The next trick is ✨Authors Notes✨!

You can just say the background info plainly to the reader, without having to worry about crafting it nicely for the reader.

However, if you feel that the background info might be served best by putting it into the story, then let me introduce you to the next trick: Telling!

Think about summary the you have in your AN, and expand it into slightly longer ‘pretty’ prose:

Months went by. Trees bloomed, and forsook their leaves. One day, Mina stepped outside again.

That covers a year of a character being stuck in their grief, without having to mire reader in being stuck like that too.

We’ve all had ‘Show, don’t tell’ beaten into us with a hammer. But if it’s not important or interesting for you or your story, then just Tell it, and move on to the next exciting thing! What you want to do is research ways to use prose to convey the passing of time, write summaries and transition sequences, and work out ways to cut down and remove ‘all that writing you have to do to get to the fun scene’.

So, let’s say you had an idea for an achingly beautiful Suparbat story that worked like a Shakespearean tragedy inspired by Othello. You start brainstorming and writing fragments of all these scenes where they meet, fall in love, then have all these gradual misunderstandings caused by Lex trying to meddle and break them apart.

They pile up super high, and then there is this devastating, heart-pounding finale where they fight, along with the tragic ending and denouement.

You take your notes and start trying to plan out what scenes you will need, and your face goes pale as you estimate the story will probably be about 80k words.

You can’t commit to that, and you sense another shiny idea might be lurking on the horizon soon (and besides, you have other fics to finish). You consider abandoning it, resigned to the beauty of the story haunting you forever.

Hold up.

The tragic fight scene. That’s the one that excites you the most. Start writing that.

Bam, bam bam.

Why are they fighting? The audience is now curious and hooked, sitting breathless on the edge of their seat.

Line of dialogue! Ultra specific accusation!

Now the reader is intellectually hooked. What event is this specific detail referring to?

Flashback to one of the scenes where they met and were tenderly in love, linked by the line of dialogue before.

Now the reader is emotionally hooked. What happened to make them hate each other so?

The fight scene continues! Dramatic moments of action interspersed with flashbacks of those snippets you wrote—

Now the reader has been enthralled by all this awesome action, and has a good grasp of emotional arc and events that brought them to this point, with the juxtaposition of the moments of love and hate creating a tremendous experience.

The fatal wound, juxtaposed by the fatal misunderstanding that set Batman on this path… Those painful words exchanged in the present, that have been stuck in your head for weeks: Why? I loved you! Lex (aka Iago) comes out, doing a slow clap, and revealing how he plotted and schemed to sow this discord between Batman and Superman, to make Batman kill Superman for him. The achingly haunting moment of looking into each others eyes and Superman forgiving and trying to absolve Batman of his guilt before he dies. Bruce swiftly disabling Lex’s failsafe (to stop him from taking revenge, but its useless because he’s Batman) and holding a batarang to Lex’s throat.

Now you’ve used 80% of your notes, and you have a decent first draft already!

So now, what will Batman do? Break his moral code about killing again (he already did with Superman) and kill Lex? Try to set Lex on a path of rehabilitation?

So then you get stuck. But Cinder, this doesn’t work for me! All I can think of is to end it the same way as Othello! Which I can’t bear to write.

Hold up.

Go back over your story and start tightening it up. The idea that Bruce is willing to kill someone is quite important. Go back and add flashbacks (or add context to the existing flashbacks) about Bruce developing, sticking to or explaining his no-kill rule.

Then you write an epilogue, where a reformed Lex starts making all kinds of structural changes in the world, alongside all the people who stepped up after being inspired by Superman’s life and determination to let everyone have a chance at forgiveness. After this, you realise that the last line Superman needs to say is to beg Bruce not to continue his murder-rampage and kill Lex.

Then you go back over your story again, fleshing out Lex’s character and some of the hints and lines of dialogue he drops to round out his arc as well. The story feels nice, but still a little off. The ending of Othello haunts you. Do you need to kill Batman after all?

You try writing the scene with the climax ending on: ‘Now, the only way: the Bat will die upon the light.’

Then, as you edit the last bit of the epilogue, you add at the end that Bruce is still alive, observing it all, having hung up his cape as Batman, (because how else could their love end after this but with ‘Batman’ dying with him?). With the transformation that happened for both Lex and Bruce when he honoured Clark’s last wish, this meant that world also grew into a place where Batman wasn’t needed anymore.

So there you have a beautiful short story about not just love and romance, but grief and betrayal and death and killing and absolution and forgiveness and a love that grows beyond a romantic entanglement into a love that changes the world— 🥰🥰🥰

And under 3000 words.

Now other people will be haunted by your story for the rest of their lives, instead of you.

You will have to edit harder if you try to write as concisely as this, but overall I think you’ll get more stories finished if you experiment with focusing on writing the exciting bits, then sprinkling just enough scene fragments to make it work.

I often write out an idea for a few thousand words, till I get stuck, then go back over it and start thinking about how I can reorder and tweak it to bring what I already have to a satisfying ending.

It requires fumbling and sitting and thinking and figuring it out as I’m revising (as you saw in the example) but if you keep focused on making things shorter you’ll be surprised at just how short you can make it.

And how many things you can finish!

[campbyler]

that thing about the chapters makes total sense yeah! i liked hearing you break down the themes and realisations etc, it's nice to hear meaty info about the creative process and undercurrents in the work alongside the jokier interactive posts you guys usually make!

and we are both aware that we could probably cut certain scenes or events out, but we also are very adamant about maintaining a pace that feels realistic and makes sense, which usually leads to those higher word counts 😙

the word count splitting absolutely makes sense then, too - two halves of a whole. i'm surprised people have complained about wanting you to cut down on actual scenes for word count purposes... i wouldnt want to lose action or scenes themselves! maybe they meant more brevity or succintness? not repeating things that don't add to the narrative as much, etc. because the dialogue between characters is the most exciting part, as it usually is in storytelling! its happening NOW, we're IN IT with these characters, its so compelling compared to description or that famous bane of writers' lives: long recountings of events that happened previously or 'offscreen'.

please don't cut out action scenes and dialogue - i'm thinking of how my heart picked up when mike was waiting for will to get the sparklers, that tension was so well played... and also the final scene of 10.2, how fast mike's realisations moved as he kissed will into the sand. a vast contrast to how long it took to get there - so perhaps your stylistic choice is to slow the pace and draw out that delicious tension by making characters very pedantic and introspective rather than by adding more external action, dialogue, or obstacles that prevent them getting where they want to go. mike and will ARE their own biggest obstacles, it seems. and perhaps this is the vibe you wanted to create; it makes for a story that really feeds into the cloyingness of being stuck in your head and being stuck in one place - camp - no matter how much the boys both love it. the camp itself becomes a crucible for the story, giving the reader themselves something of the same claustrophobic feeling mike and will must have. very meta!

i’m so glad that helped clear things up from our perspective! we like to largely let the fic speak for itself obviously, so we usually refrain from flat out saying what the intention behind certain decisions was, but in the context of asks like this and the og regarding chapter/overall fic structure, it did seem fitting to clarify the purposes of chapters 9 and 10 more specifically so i’m glad everything makes sense! sorry for the absolute beast of an answer that’s going to follow, except for i’m not. teehee

regarding the word count, i don’t think we’ve been told outright that we should cut down on certain scenes to keep the wc lower, aside from maybeeee a comment or two that i can remember remarking on us over-describing or over-narrating things? which is probably true at times but also honestly that’s just me n thea’s writing style, so if there is something really egregious we will likely catch it while editing and otherwise we’ll just let it slide 🤷🏽‍♀️ overall though, i feel like it’s more of an implied thing — since we talk often about chapters taking longer to get out due to our typical 20-30k count, i’m sure a few people have wondered why we choose to include all of the interactions and details that we do. thea did actually give me the push i needed to take out an almost 2k chunk that we both loved but agreed was a little clunky and unnecessary in the context of what was happening, and its removal wasn’t detracting from any characters or relationships or worldbuilding in the chapter. so there are definitely times that we do decide something isn’t important enough to tack on a couple thousand extra words, and we will rectify that when possible!

this also brings me to your point about Long Recountings of Offscreen Events — that’s also something we try really hard to avoid, and when we do want to recount something that happened in the past or offscreen, as is natural for basically every story, we do try to make it feel natural and in the moment, like a character is simply remembering or thinking about something instead of trying to catch the reader up to present day. i LOVEE writing dialogue, maybe too much (i added almost all of the 1700ish words i deleted back again with dialogue. oops) but i completely agree with you in that the In The Moment-ness of it all is what’s most compelling to me as well — writing their reactions as they happen, or adding distinctive mannerisms and thoughts and motions while two or more characters speak.,, ougghh it makes my brain vibrate. but of course you need narration and descriptions to fill in those gaps, and i hope our efforts come off as at least somewhat successful! and for the most part, fleshing out the characters and the story and setting as much as possible is just as key to us as the Byler Moments are — if we wanted to focus on only every interaction mike and will had with each other while tabling those with the rest of the party, background/original characters, or the setting of camp as a whole, we would write a much different (and much shorter) fic instead :-)

finally, about 10.2 specifically: THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH WHDBHDHDGDJ <- me blubbering with happiness FRRR. thea can tell you firsthand that i spent many weeks banging my head against my desk trying to hammer out the entirety of the bonfire scene and its transitions — it was particularly tricky for me to try and balance general pacing with the inclusion of other characters And having everything lead up to the final moments, so i’m so so so glad it was a good read and that everything felt fitting and intentional because it was definitely meant to be! thea mentioned this in the last ask but will in ch09 gets kind of bowled over by his realization moment all at once, whereas mike kind of has two separate ones — one in 10.1, and one at the end of 10.2, both helping him come to terms with similar but different aspects of his romantic feelings and processing them and moving forward — and i didn’t want them to feel like the same moment happening twice (past a certain obvious degree).

they definitely are their own worst obstacles, especially in a modern au that takes away a good amount (but definitely not all!) of the canon universe pressure of comphet and sexuality and conformation. i know this is a big reason people tend to shy away from modern aus in this fandom, because it’s true that the source material is pretty heavy on these themes, and i have my thoughts on this that i’ll probably expand on soon, but to me, in doing so, it’s kind of a really fun exercise in fleshing out their internal struggles and playing off of those more, if that makes sense: their shared stubbornness, self-repression, reactivity and emotional tendencies, etc, but also the fact that they are very kind, generous, and loyal characters who, at least in the context of acswy, are more scared of being hurt by each other or themselves than they are actually invested in “hating” each other. and you bring up an excellent point as well, probably something that has been more of a subconscious but known goal for us than something we are On Purpose trying to get across: everything is happening in one location during one part of the year for a reason! they’ve had good memories here and bad, both in regards to each other and their friendship and otherwise, and are drawn to coming back every summer just as much as they are each other. with the brief exception of ch09 (although the context of it is a Rare Day Away From Camp, so the idea is still there lol), the emotional journey of the mainline fic very much plays out in the same place to try and convey that.

sorry for the essay long answer to your long ask in response to a long answer in response to a long ask — it’s just very very fulfilling to know that people are noticing our choices and the reasons behind them when we make so many of them intentionally! thank you again and i’m soooo so so glad you enjoyed 10.2 🥳🥳🥳

[violettavonviolet]

Cedric/Harry fic recs

This is what started my deep dive back into Harry Potter, there are some truly fantastic Cedric/Harry fics. Go show the authors some love!

All fics are completed and the word count goes up as you scroll! If you want to see some recs for a specific ship, just one due an ask or a DM.

whose here (is always worse than naught)

Ellory

Summary:

As Mister Cedric Diggory is spinning them in place to Disapparate, Heiress Harriet Potter can just make out a low, raspy voice saying, “Kill the—”

1k cedric/harry fem!harry

Courtship Rituals

ImpishTubist

Summary:

Cedric starts courting Harry.

Harry, of course, has no idea.

4k cedric/ harry

had you figured out

aroceu

Summary:

In which Professor Sprout definitely has a cannabis garden somewhere in the greenhouses.

This isn't about that, though. This is about how one day Cedric invites Harry Potter to smoke with him and some other Hufflepuffs, and they get through the Triwizard Tournament together.

5k cedric/harry

Nope, Nope, Absolutely Not.

ATiredAndDeadWriter

Summary:

Harry's name shoots out of the Goblet of Fire, but he is determined not to participate no matter what anyone says. If he finds himself a boyfriend along the way, what's the problem?

The Goblet of Fire told in a series of scenes where Harry refuses to participate and Cedric is very confused and very smitten.

5.7k cedric/harry

Why He Said Yes

nagi_blue

Summary:

Original request was: "Harry discovers that his fellow Champion is actually a neurotic ball of insecurities." Unbeta'd, since, well, it's for my usual beta 

rotaryphones. A belated Merry Christmas!

7k cedric/harry

(honey) there is no right way

sincere_lies

Summary:

‘Have you tried everything?’ Hermione asked insistently.

‘Yes! Every time I get to the cup and Cedric doesn’t take it with me I go immediately back to my bed in the morning. But all the times he is with me, he dies and after I fall asleep I return too.’

‘I guess it is obvious then, isn’t it?’ Both Harry and Hermione turned to stare at Ron, who looked at them defensively and shrugged ‘You have to go with Diggory and make sure he survives.’

Harry/Cedric - Groundhog day AU

25k

Paranoia and Puns

You_Light_The_Sky

Summary:

Harry makes three rules to survive fourth year: 1) watch the new DADA professor like a hawk, 2) suspect all animals of being animagi, and 3) avoid Cedric Diggory at all costs. Shame Diggory didn't get the memo. 

For a tumblr prompt by johnlocked-starkid: maybe a Harry/Cedric thing where the Triwizard Cup isn’t a portkey and Voldemort doesn’t happen, and instead they just win together and are happy and celebrate together. (bonus points for shy confessions of a crush from one or the other)

Harry/cedric 25k

 Two Can Play For Hogwarts

ChannelTheFlannel

Summary:

Both Harry and Cedric are chosen as the Hogwarts Champions, which is the first of many things that go awry. When the two become romantically interested in each other, they screw up the Tournament politics.

But that's not the only thing they mess up. Their actions in the Tournament end up spoiling the Dark Lord's plans, preventing his return to the Wizarding World.

Cedric/harry 30k

The Best

say_no_more

Summary:

Cedric demands only the best of himself, and for himself. The best marks in school, the best position on the quidditch team, and the best reputation. When it's time for him to begin dating, he won't settle for less than the best partner, as well.

80k Cedric/harry the best

The Medium Between Life and Death

 NinjaPandaScholar

Summary:

There were very few things in Harry Potter's life that he was certain of. There was one absolute certainty though; he'd felt it in his bones for as long as he could remember. He, Harry Potter, was dead. The living people around him might not believe, but the dead sure did. Oh well, it doesn't impact his life much. Besides, it's nice to get help with his schoolwork from his parents.

250k Cedric/Harry

[youhideastar]

Deastar’s 5 Most Re-Read Fics of Last Year

My New Year’s resolution was to rec more, so I’m starting with my 5 most re-read fics of the past year!

1 and 2: Blooded Crown and Misethere by Astolat (The Witcher)

Look, I don’t even go here. I’m not even in this fandom. I first read these before the TV show had come out, and let me tell you, it made said TV show very disappointing. But I have re-read these two fics (they’re not related to each other but they’re similar enough that I’ve grouped them together) probably 10 times each over the years. I absolutely fucking love their twisty-ass plots. I love the “what if Wolverine and Machiavelli fell in love” takes on the characters. I love the combination of humor and deadly serious political shit going down. I have a problem and it’s that I can’t stop reading these fics and probably never will.

3: i’ll be your girl by plonk (The Untamed/MDZS, ~30K)

This fic is everything. It’s funny. It will make your heart sore and tender. It has smoking hot sex scene after smoking hot sex scene. It’s pining while fucking (top three trope for me!). It has the absolute most ridiculous premise, and then executes it beyond your wildest dreams, never losing sight of how ridiculous it is. Said premise: Wei Ying seduces Lan Zhan, who he thinks is straight, while dressed up as Britney Spears for Halloween. They continue to hook up, with Wei Ying in a series of themed seasonal drag outfits, while Wei Ying falls in doomed love with a straight guy (or so he thinks), and Lan Zhan tries to figure out what the hell is going on but is too gone on Wei Ying to stop. My all-time comfort object fic.

4: All Old Things Are New Again by The Feels Whale (miscellea) (@thefeelswhale) (The Untamed/MDZS, ~52K)

This fic is WAY too long to be a habitual re-read, but that never stops me. “Full-time necromancer and part-time cam boy, Wei Wuxian, finds himself unexpectedly homeless. An enthusiastic patron comes to his rescue. Conversely: Immortal Cultivator Lan Wangji has been waiting a long time for his deceased husband to be reincarnated again. In retrospect, he should have anticipated that this is how it would go.” It is SO satisfying to watch Wei Wuxian slowly lower his (very reasonably raised!) guard and let Lan Wangji take care of him; in many fics, that trope ends up stripping away Wei Wuxian’s inherent badassery, but not here: this Wei Wuxian is so smart and capable and tough as nails, oooh, I like him so much!!! And it does not hurt that the numerous, exquisite sex scenes feature a delightful blend of (a) my favorite all-time kinks and (b) stuff that is not on my usual menu but that magically rocks my world as applied to these characters in this story.

5. This Tornado Loves You by FeelsForBreakfast (@rabbitcrimes) (The Untamed/MDZS, ~9K)

Want to get way, way up close with Lan Zhan’s brain while he realizes that his ferality about Wei Ying does, in fact, go up to eleven? This is the fic for you. I can’t do better than the author’s own summary: “Hanguang-jun is dating a mild mannered, non-cultivator named Wei Wuxian. The Yiling Laozu rolls up to a nighthunt on a motorbike, no relation at all to the previous statement.” This author’s Lan Zhan/Lan Wangji voice is so fucking good, it makes me mad. And SO FUNNY – I have read these jokes probably a dozen times and they STILL make me laugh out loud. The awesome modern cultivation worldbuilding is so casually done that you sleep on how good it is. Finally, this fic is tagged “you will say ‘Yiling Laozu hot’ or your money back,” and let me tell you: you are NOT getting your money back.

[fayedartmouth]

Well since it’s okay please share some info about your upcoming projects sorry but im too curious and excited for my own good and i genuinely love your work read every single one in only a week

Well, in truth, I have like 20+ fics that are technically WIPs, all in various stages of development and completion.  I tend to get way more plot bunnies than I can write, and my WIPs range from rough concepts to like 30k words or more.  So it's just a wide range.

As per usual, I can't shut up, so the details are below.

For the record, some of those WIPs I really really love.  Like I have a whole series of Shoupe and preseries JJ that I'm super excited about (their first meeting, the first time Shoupe realizes JJ's getting beaten, JJ taking all of Luke's pills as a teenager, and a few more).  I have one very well developed with a preseries JJ getting kidnapped by one of Luke's associates and Luke blowing off the ransom (spoiler alert: it goes badly for JJ).  And I have a few now completely AU takes post S3, one with Rafe getting revenge on the Pogues by going after JJ (forcing him to take an overdose of drugs, and it's so convincing that almost everyone believes he did it himself) and a Sarah and JJ as siblings fic.  That's just a sampling.  There are so many more that I can't even remember them all.

One idea that just got hold of me this week is an AU with JJ and John B in the military.  There are a few other takes on this on AO3 that intrigued me, and the brothers in arms thing could be so fun to play out with those two.  And I mean, the whump. I may have wrote a few scenes....

However, the fics that I'm actively writing right now.  I'd say there are four (beyond the car accident fic I'm posting snippets of and the town council AU I did a snippet of last weekend).

1. Best of a Bad Deal part three.  This one is still in the works though technically kind of on my backburner.  I have completed quite a bit of this fic, which spans five-six years after JJ goes into remission.  I think I have a cohesive narrative at least through the third year with a lot of bits and pieces completed after that -- including the ending, which I really love.

2. My long fix-it.  I have been actively plotting this with woudsohfiv and currently have probably 70k done.  It starts around the mid point of S4 and maintains everything we see in canon -- but adds a secondary plot that manages to subvert it completely.  LOL, I don't want to spoil too much, but it heavily involves Luke.  The Pogues will still (mostly) think JJ is dead while JJ hits absolute rock bottom.  This fic is planned to be the first of a series.  We've been a little ambitious with our plotting and have sketched out plots for three additional fics.  The second one will really dig into JJ facing his trauma and dealing with his family heritage and Goat Island.  I'm really excited about this one!

3. I write fics for my friends for Christmas, and this year, I have two friends getting JJ fics.  The first one is for woudsohfiv, and she requested an AU of the S1 ep where Barry robs the Pogues.  IIn this take, JJ goes for the gun and gets shot for his trouble -- and the Pogues are faced with the reality of what they were willing to risk.  My goal is to make it eventually fit back into canon, however.  It's probably 15k in and is maybe half done.  It will (hopefully!) be done for Christmas.

4. For my other friend, I'm going on one of her favorite tropes:  seizures.  It's a fic set in that happy 18 months of Poguelandia 2.0 where the Pogues get sick -- and JJ ends up getting very, very ill.  This one is a pretty simple straight up sick fic where the Pogues have to confront that they're not quite as together as they thought they were, and wherein John B and Kiara have to face the reality that JJ isn't really as okay as he seems to be most of the time. Again, my goal is to finish this by Christmas, and I think I can pull it off. This should be relatively short hopefully in the 10k range.

Feel free to ask more questions or specifics! I'd even post snippets if you wanted. I only do completed fics on AO3 but I'm a lot looser here.

[irish-urn]

tagged: @2mad4plaid tagging: @venturismcdonald, @ironduke10, @cacophonous-noise

number of stories posted to ao3 for 2024: 7. I'm so disappointed in myself.

word counted posted for last year: 109,586, which is pretty decent... But I was hoping for 200k. Alas.

fandoms i wrote for: Teen Titans and Life with Derek

pairings: RobStar and Dasey. Also I think we could call McTuri Mercenaries gen-ish...

stories with the most

KUDOS: To Have and To Hold (122) BOOKMARKS: To Have and To Hold (52) COMMENT THREADS: To Have and To Hold (45)

work i’m most proud of (and why): "What a Good Boy, What a Smart Boy". I called it the 'therapy fic' while I was working on it, and it's almost 30k of Derek hurt/comfort. I spent a lot of time in my blorbo's mind and POV and I really think I did a good job showing his growth.

share or describe a favorite review you received: I actually am super lucky and get lovely reviews a lot???? BUT, there was one from "There Must be 50 Ways to Become Consort" where someone told me they usually didn't like established relationships because they found them boring, but they really loved how I wrote this couple and played with it, so that was VERY flattering.

a time when writing was really, really hard: I actually struggled a LOT this year with writing. Especially this summer -- work was a pain and very stressful and I was just too exhausted to write. I've tried a couple different ways to encourage myself to write consistently, but I still haven't figured it out. Alas.

a scene or character you wrote that surprised you: There's a small scene in To Have and To Hold where Casey calls Derek "baby" out of nowhere, and I was NOT expecting it. Neither was Derek. Neither was Casey. But we went with it.

a favorite excerpt of your writing: From "What a Good Boy, What a Smart Boy"

“Uh, because she was a prissy little brat who was trying to take over my territory?” Duh. Wasn’t it obvious? “She just, like, barged into my life and tried to take over my space. As if it wasn’t my house and my school and my life.” Mae raised her eyebrows. “Truly, how unforgivable.” “And,” Derek stressed, leaning forward a little. “She was fucking cute about it all too! And, like, hot sometimes. She took dance classes — she would exercise in the backyard sometimes and get all snippy if you interrupted her like her stupid music wasn’t making my ears bleed. And she liked my best friend, and then the captain of the football team — she had no loyalty. Zero. And she kept, like, demanding equal treatment and wanted to make schedules for everything, and she’d just storm into my room and scold me for living my life, and then would give me those goddamn eyes whenever I did something nice.” He rolled his eyes and dropped his head against the back of the couch again. “It was exhausting.” There was nearly a minute of silence and then: “You’re the kind of person that feels things very strongly, aren’t you?” He raised a finger into the air, but closed his eyes, because he really was very tired. “She’s still a pain, let me be clear.”

how did you grow as a writer last year: Did I???? I don't think I did???? I mean, I'm probably 100k worth of words better than I was last year, but... Eh????

who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer, beta, cheerleader, etc.): @2mad4plaid and @rubberchknpurseee. The former was a truly EXCELLENT sounding board for the vast majority of my fics and always willing to listen; and the latter was a truly excellent prompter. Literally half of the words I wrote this year were fics for her.

anything from your real life show up in your writing last year: ...I don't think so? Except maybe that my friend was suffering from migraines, so I gave Derek a migraine in one fic...

any new wisdom you can share with other writers: If you can, find a friend who is really excited about your writing. They don't have to know the fandom or the characters, but find someone that you can talk to about your projects. Not only will they help you figure out plot holes and outlines, but they will encourage you and help you reach the finish line. It's so easy to say "Well, I know how this ends, so why bother writing it?"; but if you have ONE person who wants to read it... Then you have one person to write it for.

any projects you’re looking to starting (or finishing) this year: NOTHING IN 2024. I GIVE UP. But in 2025, I wanna finish my two LWL series, my Teen Titans story, and two other LWD fics -- a sequel to one of my other monsters, and hopefully an AU. If I could manage that? I'd be satisfied (especially since I'm pretty sure that's gonna be a LOT of words...)

[mengyao]

1, 3, 10, 12 for the questions for fic authors meme!

1. What fic of yours would you recommend to someone who had never read any of your work? (In other words, what do you think is the best introduction to your fics?)

ooo, good question. i think of myself as having basically three modes, and i imagine some people would gravitate more towards one than another... i'm going to provide a mxtx and non-mxtx option for each... a tasting menu........

"soupcon of vibes and/or porn" -- <5k, these might be FUCKED UP or maybe just subtly melancholy but either way these are usually my darker works. sometimes better in terms of prose quality (just less of it to have to deal with) but that is not always the case lol. try: bruising the velvet, my evil wolf hall execution blowjob fic, OR see you at the sun's collapse, my attempt to feel out the character dynamics amidst the three tumours, everyone's favourite heavenly dirtbags.

"mid-length character study" -- 5-20k, unrolling my scroll about some character i like. often i'm subtly being contrarian about fanon or characterization takes i disagree with and attempting to defeat them using facts and logic feels and lyricism. try: perfectly still in the dark, mashima taichi's homosexual catharsis via hooking up with his washout former mentor, OR a girl you can hold IRL, my first attempt to articulate then-nascent "he xuan gender tragedy" theory, which i wrote in 2022 out of irritation with other people's characterization of my fave/my ship. at the time i believed i'd said everything i had to say and it would be my only tgcf fic. ha ha ha.

"ambitious longfic with dark and edgy trappings belying the fact it is, deep down, a romance" -- if i go over the 30k mark you best believe it'll end on a note i think is kind of heartwarming, albeit in a possibly twisted way? i just don't have the stamina to wallow in pure misery if there's an actual plot and i'm going to be writing it for months to years of my life. the oldest of these is tender prey, for which i watched antique gun collector youtube videos in order to write convincing trench warfare sniping scenes, and the most recent (completed) example is panting like a dog at the edge of your bed, which is what happened when i realized i still had 64k left to say about how a vengeful water ghoul with an eating disorder is something that can be so personal

3. What are some tropes or details that you think are very characteristic of your fics?

dark comedy

how romantic you're supposed to find the ship is proportional to how much BDSM they're doing

it all smacks of gender

people are sad about dead people all the time

if there's a D/s dynamic it's probably written from the D-type's POV and if it's from the s-type's then the D-type is 100000% a femdom

lots of setting details

undertagged humiliation kink because i forget that's not just something everybody is into

someone will have an Emotionally Significant Bath

10. How do you decide what to write?

this is going to sound so annoying but i tend to just... know? a fun idea isn't a story and i'm worse than i used to be at just tinkering around on the page with a vibe until a story emerges.

plot has never been a major stumbling block for me; i think about stories in terms of shape, and i need a sense of motion in order to write something. deciding what to write isn't so much a deliberate process so much as something that happens when a cool image or vibe or kink etc that passes through my mind evokes a narrative that gets its hooks in me. (obviously spitballing with friends helps with this too, it's not some solo process of artistic genius.) this is particularly true of longer works, but even something short has some sense of, "things were like this, and now they're like this," or at least "the reader thought things were like x, and has come to understand they're like y."

there are fic ideas that i want to read it but don't want to write, and then there's ideas i feel compelled to write, and it's usually related to how appealing i find the prospect of doing the work of "making the argument." i have a very "high school english class" understanding of storytelling when it comes to writing my own stuff tbh; it's all about Theme in the sense of an open-ended thesis statement about some aspect of life or the world, refracted through the prism of these characters/events. i'm not a granular outliner but i need to know what a story is broadly "about" in order to get anywhere writing it... before that point it feels sort of like trying to sail without a compass. if an idea is far enough along for me to know those things, it's just a question of how much energy and time i have to spare...

12. Are there any tropes you used to dislike but have grown on you?

i discussed the development of my appreciation for romantic jealousy in shipping here!

[threerattsinatrenchcoat]

12, 14, 17 for fic writer asks! :)

12: trope I'm really into

I did a stupid laugh reading this question. I'm really into the "they asked for no pickles" trope. Heists, I've been trying to figure out how to write one forever and I keep getting paralyzed, but watching heist movies is my comfort. The one where you apply modern technological/programming ideas to fantasy worlds. The sunshine and storm cloud couple.

14. Where do I get inspiration?

1) Daydreaming. Whenever I do anything physical I daydream and a lot of that is "what if this character did this?" Most of them are silly but if I get a scene I like I'll write it and that might turn into something. I try to not dismiss any idea.

2) I get it a lot of inspiration from other people. Shadows of the Lost came from a post about imperialism and the Gerudos' relationship with death/zonai came from a post about lore theories. Flowers was based on a tumblr post about flower language. Arcanus Fisticuffus was from the MMMay posts, Wine, Iron and Other Damnables from a post about enchanted weapons. Stranger Flames have Burned was from a @naughtybg3confessions post. I always try to link my sources in fics!

3) Talking with people, especially joking about things. I feel like I'm always taking my jokes to absurd levels, but in Arcanus Fisticuffus the idea for Liam and Cal to be filling everyone's heads with stories about Rolan came from a bit where they were going to make sure he won (as well as the incoming cobra kai jokes). Honeypot came from a joking demand for a thirst fic. Hornoscopes from joking about horoscopes. Sometimes an individual inspires a fic and I usually gift that fic to them.

4) Going off that, writing absurd stuff and trying to make it work, like when Astarion and Minthara crash a patriar party to make sure Wyll is getting the respect he deserves in Dance, or when I explain the "fade to black" sex scenes at Sharess's Caress... and then involve shovel (Sharess's Mess).

5) Exchanges! I've written a lot for exchanges.

6) Fixing problems I have with the story or finding solutions to things that make me uncomfortable. Like, I don't want to write overly gendered language/insults. That led to my current fic-canon (which I don't remember if it made it into my published fics but if not, I'm going to fix that) where Ganondorf being male doesn't make him the leader; it's that he's Ganondorf, the same guy, reincarnated. And that led to Gerudo having a huge reincarnation culture that lined up nicely with the lore post I linked above.

17) talk about your writing and editing process

I write on my phone, in google drive. I'm not stoked about this set up but it means I can write while waiting in line or on a walk so I do it.

I make a new doc for each fic, put in the prompt or idea I have, and then let it sit until something hooks me. Rarely am I'm writing at this point, but I might be researching or brainstorming. All links, ideas, notes, etc, go into the doc. Everything stays in the doc until I'm finished.

For long fics, I have to break it out once the total work count is around 30k because drive gets wonky. For short fics I do not do all this prep haha

I often make a list of character beliefs, lore, vocab for me to reference. Examples (sorry for the photos of text):

Dialogue patterns:

And body language (or kinks, erogenous zones, etc):

I usually write a few scenes I like first, or a bunch of random lines. Those might not make it into the story, but I'm the kind of person who has to do something to figure it out? I can't think my way through it (or, at least, I haven't tried to build that skill).

I often pick a "voice" scene, which is the scene I read to remember the voice the rest of the story should be written in. If possible, I read that scene before I write new stuff.

I edit as I go, normally. I usually make notes of what I want to add at other points so I don't forget

I also make a timeline:

And I try to note any plot holes, any points where I can put hooks or foreshadowing in, etc.

Once a story is done I go back through the "to add" list and make sure it's in the story, try to patch holes, make sure it matches the timeline, make sure the characters match my notes, etc.

I also break it out into chapters that are about 3000-5000 words long (if it's not already there) and rewrite the endings of each to feel nice.

I write up my fic breakdown (for long fics) and link my resources.

Then I make my partner read it. They do it solely to amuse me/hype me up and they are amazing.

Then I post it! And the moment I post it I notice 5,000 errors.

[sorryimananti-romantic]

who knows, maybe i'm a glutton for lengthy written pieces of fiction but i can't imagine anything better than reading a thought-out, detailed and intriguing story.

20k-30k wc usually takes me around 2 hours to read (when i am not annotating on the side or running laps in my room to calm down from a scene) and even though i do love me some drabbles, imagines or scenarios - sometimes they're so great but oh so short that i end up feeling hungry for more lol.

idk. maybe there is some over-consumption or fast-media issue that's infiltrated even the fanfic community and readers feel less overwhelmed reading fics under 10k? apprehension giving bad/wrong feedback? author burn-out? somebody go ahead and open the field for research already.

there is an overwhelming amount of short fics daily on my dash and not so often bigger oneshots or even series but i've always assumed it's because they take so much more time and effort into creating - which then motivates me more to leave nice feedback when you authors work so hard on them :) vice versa it's a nice feeling when authors take time to acknowledge feedback

like you saying you look forward to my reblogs and i'm over here like.. i have been noticed 👁️👄👁️ and i am being relied on to lose my own mind over your amazing mind. i can't disappoint this co-dependant author-reader-ship 💪 /j

also, miss "yumi in her break era" only five days ago, once again offering to write a fic to my tastes?! you will be the death of me. hand in marriage right now 🤝 /j but also, new series.. ? ✍️👀

○ chron 🃏

lucky for you, i'm physically incapable of writing short fics and loren is an actual witness. whenever i start a fic and go 'yo this actually be short like under 20k) it usually ends up being 26k+ 🤡 and tbh for me personally nothing can top a well-planned detailed fic no matter the length of it!

you're right! there's only so much you can do in a short scenario/imagine/drabble they're like fun little treats, kind of like appetisers/snacks as opposed to lengthy oneshots which i feel like are a full multiple-course meal (and then we have series which are like a whole buffet banquet feast you name it)

yeah there are a lot of factors. even as a writer i know that i prefer reading sth short when i don't have much time to spare but want a little break. reading lengthier works require a lot of time (like you said, about 2 hrs) and you gotta be in the mood all cosy and relaxed to fully enjoy them!

there's def so many shorter works being produced in huge quantities and consumed very rapidly too. writing them takes less time, you don't gotta work out so many details and lose your mind in the process (from my experience writing the few hcs and drabbles i have) and it's... fun? gets a greater audience, more notes? definitely. there are literally so many factors as to why people prefer writing/reading scenarios/drabbles over the lengthier works and i could honestly list them all but i feel like not everyone wants to hear that 💀

personally, i've been pretty consistent with writing the lengthier works, inspired by ppl here who've written so much such excellent monster works AHAHA and since the lengthier fics culture is pretty much dying (let's face it on tumblr it is dying slowly but steadily) i'm devoted to continue contributing to that specific part of the atinyfic community. i could always cook up some short scenarios (i plan to when it's time to retire but i still have ideas that i wanted to write) but for now, we write and write. we write endlessly without a care for the word count :')

there's honestly nothing wrong with wanting to read or write shorter works. i just wish the people who work so hard to create such beautiful and lengthy masterpieces got the attention they deserve. and i wish they do not compare their works to drabbles/scenarios (which you might have observed get a lot of notes in a very short amount of time) and continue writing for themselves and for the readers who appreciate them :')) we're always so incredibly grateful for the feedback we get bc we get some great quality feedback which is our pride :D

you have been very much noticed! me and loren were actually talking not too long ago about how you are one of the few ppl whose reblog we anticipate eagerly ahaha you've spoilt us honestly :') and when i saw your reblog last night (i was feeling incredibly low) i just smiled with tears in my eyes LOL ngl (co-dependency atp fr fr)

miss yumi has always been a clown who goes back on her words esp when it's about taking a break (i actually will be taking a two week break soon like actual break bc i'll be travelling so i'll be back mid aug) but miss yumi also loves writing bc it's the only interesting thing going on in her life and she would love to write for you too (proposal accepted let's pick dresses now :D)

as for the new series... 👀 the current word count is about 70k and i'm not even halfway- this might be the most intricate worldbuilding i've ever done like with the characters and how they're connected to each other (on par with take me home series, might even surpass) and it's... mafia! but the different kind, uniquely yumi LOL and the pairing hmm will remain a secret (take your guess come on)

i look forward to posting it so much it's become my comfort fic. i'll try to start posting it before 2024 but no promises yet bc i wanna finish writing it (or at least nearly finish) before i post the masterlist or teasers.

[koqabear]

okay i wanted to ask, because i see you writing such long fics but i can barely pull myself together to write this bomb-ass 20k word fic, how do approach a fic you know is going to be a long one in a way that you don't feel intimidated by it, or do you still get intimidated by it and just try and push through it?

okay so first off, thank you so much for sending me this ask 😭 you literally forced me to go through my writing process and caused me to make a huge breakthrough with one of my stories alfkgh

anyways, i'll try to be as thorough and clear as i can be with my process, i hope this helps! (but also im so sorry once i started i couldn't stop)

i think my process can be best described with three fics; Only You, Darling (40k), Killer Instinct (37K), and Memories We Made (unfinished but estimated to be over 30k.). With each story, I knew that they were going to be long, but mostly because I went in with the approach that it has to be long in order for the story to be executed right; characters have to be written thoroughly, and there are certain scenes that need to be written for the plot/character to progress-- like, if it's not written in, the story could lose those small details that make the fic feel more... alive, if that makes sense?

The most important part is making an outline! I know that's probably obvious, but outlines can seriously vary; like with OYD and MWM, I have a whole doc dedicated to the fic. I'm gonna show you what a bit of my OYD planning looks like, please don't point out how genuinely unhinged it is 😭😭😭 (so.. spoilers for OYD + fun fact it was gonna be Sunghoon instead of Jaemin in the story originally hehe)

This is an example of what my outlines can look like; but, it only gets like this as i write-- the first pic is my outline filled with things i added as i wrote OYD such as characteristics/important notes/things i wanna edit, and the second pic is what i started out with.

the first thing i do is brainstorm the bare basics of the plot; what kind of story is it, and what do i want to happen in it? you can see that i separated the story into the key plot points/arcs; and within each one, i also put how i wanted them to begin and end. (the numbers are the wc for each arc alskhg)

the hard part comes in when you're filling these arcs/key points in. because now the big question is, how do you get there? for example, during the first act of OYD, i wanted to establish beomjun's relationship with the mc, and end it off by having the two work together. but in order to do that, i decided to include scenes that showed yeonjun's relationship with the mc, and then beomgyu's relationship with her. now that i had the foundation, i allowed the two to interact; that let me establish beomjun's relationship with each other, and let them realize they had a common goal.

last, you add a catalyst (a character, a situation, etc.) that can get you to your end goal; the catalyst being jaemin, which brought the two to work together out of jealousy-- and that's how i was able to fill in that key point.

then i just repeated that process for all arcs! add scenes that elaborate on key points, then add a catalyst that can take you to the end!

another thing i do when plotting for my stories is record myself brainstorming! i let myself ramble and talk about the plot out loud, and that's usually how i run into plot holes/issues. i kinda let myself figure it out in real time, and once i've figured the plot out, i listen back to it and write it down. (i have voice recordings for OYD and MWM. MWM is 48 mins, if that gives you a gist of what i mean by like... brainstorming. and half of it is straight up fucking nonsense. just let out ideas, details about the characters, scenes you'd like to write, anything. it lets you become more familiar and comfortable with your story, if that even makes sense.)

also! whenever i'm writing but get tired and decide to take a break, i add a quick want to add note at the bottom; that's what the weird little spiel up there in the second pic is. it's where i wrote down the ending scene because i had a super specific idea of what i wanted and how i wanted it to happen. if you get any scene ideas like that for your fic, write them down!! there's a chance that you might forget about it/write it differently if you don't; plus, it could even help you add things in that could make the transition into the scene super smooth.

OYD was honestly a bit intimidating for me when i wrote it, because i knew that it had to be extremely detailed and long. that's why i made sure to properly plan things out, that way so i didn't forget anything that could skew the execution. but one of the biggest tips is that you should brainstorm scenes you want to add in each key point, that way you don't feel as intimidated when writing-- because now you have a guide, yk? I'd love to show how my MWM outline looks like, but the fic isn't even out yet 😭 but it's literally a scene-by-scene outline of how i want the story to go! now all i have to do is flesh out the said scenes :)

then there's fics like killer instinct. i went into that with pure vibes, no outline, no planning; more of a mental outline, if anything. so if you find the idea of the whole written outline + scene & key points boring/not for you, i'd still suggest to get the bare basics down; but what i did with killer instinct was that i brainstormed as i went, and added small notes to keep track of important things so i wouldn't screw with continuity-- age and time is pretty important in that story, and i kid you not this is the only thing i had for killer instinct outline wise (bc im not counting my doc of mma notes.)

but for killer instinct, i kinda winged it; i knew what the general plot was, but allowed myself to have fun on how to get there. the only thing i will say though, is that with every scene, you should try to plan out the next one-- like, intro to killer instinct is introducing taegyu, then i'll introduce the mc. then i'll introduce the world and background. and now that i have a foundation, i'll add extra scenes, then a catalyst! this leads into the main conflict, then y'know the rest. but instead of planning it out bit by bit, i kinda let myself go with the flow...? it also let me be a lot less intimidated by the fact that I knew the story would have to be long.

as for the story i had a big breakthrough with, i'm definitely a bit intimidated by it! i know it has to be intricate and emotional and intense, so in order to help with that, i've made playlists to get me in the correct mood, watch shows, read other fics, anything to help me get comfortable with the genre and spark inspiration. I'm currently winging it as well.... but have three key points im sticking to-- it's gonna sound a bit confusing and vague but it's like... add foundation + the male lead is introduced -> background is given to let ppl know motivations and stuff -> final scene. and whenever i run into an issue, i brainstorm and try to get to the root of why im stuck. like, is it plot, the character, or the scene? in this case it was all three so. pray for me.

anyways. i hope this helped and im so sorry if it didn't 😭😭😭 because then that just means u read this painfully messy explanation for nothing. but when writing long fics, pleeeaseee make sure to take your time with it-- if nothing's working, give it time and don't force yourself to write whatever! (mwm has been in my wip for a solid like. year..? but this is a rare case plus im insane)

and if your word count ends up surpassing/being under than what you originally expected, don't panic! (killer instinct was estimated at 20-25k. so.) sometimes certain scenes just aren't necessary, and other times, you find that you may need to elaborate more in order to make things work.

im seriously wishing you luck on your project!! and if you found this somehow did help and have more questions, don't hesitate to ask! oh and if you found something i said confusing (bc i do have the tendency to not make sense) pls lmk and i'll try to clear it up asdglsh 😭

[desceros]

Just curious since you write alot of very long one shots. What do you consider a long fic because I remember reading Euclidean line for the first time without checking how long it was because I was looking for a bed time story and wanted to read a oneshot so I could get to sleep quickly. And I end up finishing the fic 2 hours later because I couldn't stop reading it. And I remember thinking, "THAT WAS A ONESHOT???" By the end because I'm used to oneshots being like 1k-10k words.

first of all, oh my god, i'm so sorry scream. this keeps happening to people

soooo. for me i have a couple of different categories of fics that i keep in mind when i go to work on something, and i have a different answer for each of them.

very short one shots - one scene i want to get out of my head. think this mikey fic or this idw donnie fic. these are usually between 1-5k, which for me feels very very short. i don't write a lot of them, because part of what i enjoy writing the most is the progression that happens over time and that's not really... possible at this length. properly, to me. these feel long to me when they start bleeding into... ->

short one shots - think the donnie sex pollen fic, the donnie camping fic, or the blurple villain au fic here. these are 5-20k, which still feels pretty short to me. it's enough for one "proper" scene, or a few short scenes. and these start feeling long when they bleed into... ->

proper one-shots - a la leo wants a baby and of course the aforementioned euclidean line. these are anything 20k+ that are contained in one single chapter. the sweet spot for me is around 30k; that's when things start feeling like i can put enough flavor without dragging an idea out beyond its utility, though sometimes, that idea does carry it further than that. a one-shot starts feeling "long" probably when i hit the 40k mark. that's when i reassess if it should actually be a proper chapter fic, or if it functions better as a one-shot. for euclidean line, because the theme of that fic was the contiguous floaty feeling you get when you're lost in something you love, it felt inappropriate to me to break that into chapters, which are very disruptive to the flow of reading. as you've noted, these are my favorite things to write!

chaptered fics - just symphony........ for now. these vary widely to me. (well. i guess technically we do it together is a chaptered fic... but really it was originally conceptualized as a one-shot; i wrote it as such, and split it up later. i was experimenting with breaking my one-shots into shorter chapters, and i really don't like it. so. yeah. desceros lore for you.) as for these... i think they feel "long" to me when i get about to the 130-150k mark. that's when i see how long it takes me to scroll through the document to find little details and i'm like jesus christ this is absurd. most of my chaptered fics finish out i think somewhere around the 150-200k mark, and the longest thing i've ever finished was right at 300k. just to put it into context i suppose!

[allwaswell16]

hi :) if you‘re in the mood (no pressure pls!), here‘s three fic categories and i‘d like to hear your answers for them. feel free to tag others or send them different categories, or let it die here. up to you!

1. your favourite no-smut work that you‘ve read recently?

2. the scene your most proud of writing?

3. your favourite fic length range and the last thing you‘ve read in that category?

ooooh! I love these kinds of questions and asks! (And I'll tag @kingsofeverything @nouies @neondiamond @parmahamlarrie if they want to share their answers to these, too! Or anyone who wants to do this just say I tagged you :)

1 - another dream but always you by you_explode / @nobodymoves

Harry is a Dreamwalker; he has the ability to visit people in their dreams and help put them on the right path. He's assigned to Louis, who's struggling after the break-up of his band. It's an unusual assignment from the beginning; Harry has a crush on Louis, and Louis's subconscious immediately decides Harry is the love of his life. When Dreamers cast Harry as their love interest, he can usually redirect them, but Louis is insistent on being Harry's boyfriend, and despite knowing they have no future, Harry wants to keep up the charade.

2 - I won't put the exact scene here since it's a big spoiler if you haven't read it, but it's the scene from Consequences where the secrets finally get revealed. It kind of feels like I'll never think of anything that good ever again lmaooo

Consequences 

Two years ago Harry let his powerful family come between him and the love of his life, something he deeply regrets. Louis has tried to move on from their devastating break up. Sometimes, he even thinks he has. It only takes one moment to freeze them back in time.

An amnesia au

3 - If I had to choose I'd say my favorite fic range is anywhere around 30k. I'm not even sure why that's my sweet spot, but it's always been what I'd say is my favorite range.

The last thing I've read (and loved!) in this range was:

Get Out Of My Head (and I'll get out of yours) by Imogenlee / @imogenleewriter

“You really that desperate, are you?” Despite it being a shitty thing to say, Harry didn’t mind too much, as the bitterness in Louis’ tone sounded like music to Harry’s ears. Harry was winning tonight. “Can’t find anyone new to be interested in you, so you try to hit on Zayn.”

“I can’t find someone interested in me?” Harry asked, raising an eyebrow. “You’re having a laugh, mate.”

“Yeah, well, where are they, then? Because from what I’ve heard, you’re here alone.”

“As if I’d bring anyone to somewhere I knew you’d be. I wouldn’t wish your presence on my worst enemy.”

“Aw,” Louis cooed in a way that made Harry want to slap him. “You’re saying I’m not your worst enemy?”

“For someone to be an enemy, you have to give a shit about them. So, no. You’re not even on the list.”

“Oh–kay. Well, it’s been lovely as always, gents,” Zayn said before knocking back the rest of his drink.

Or the one for the Bottom Harry Fic Fest where Harry bottoming is more of a side plot, because angst got in the way--but it doesn't really matter because the fest stopped existing when I was halfthrough.

[campbyler]

ok. a genuine question. how do u guys write 20-30k *chapters* bc i will outline fics minutely or i will just let myself start writing based off a vibe & either way i will get 600 words out of maybe. two hours of work. on a good day with no distractions/interruptions, & i very much do not have an uninterrupted two hours to write very often, so you can imagine how slowly things get written T_T so i’m interested if there’s any aspect of any of your writing processes that really enables u guys to write so much or if it’s not really something you think about? anyways i really like ur guys’s work, & thank you for deciding to write for byler bc i know me and a lot of people enjoy it a lot. thanks!!

hello !! this is a super valid question and i’ll try my best to answer it for you 😗✌️

andi infamously writes a lot faster than thea and i do (she finished draft 1 of chapter 3 in like. two days. which was so scary. i’m in awe of her fr) but she has also spent a lot of time editing ch3 so it’s definitely not like these chapters are publish-ready in a short amount of time by any means! it took thea a couple of months total to fully write + edit ch1 and it took me about 3.5 weeks to write ch2 and another two weeks to edit it which is part of the reason we’ve spaced out our posting schedule like we have — we put a lot of effort and care into these updates and we want to give ourselves as much time as possible to get ahead before all 3 of us inevitably get so super busy with work and/or school in the fall!! so while we do write a lot, please don’t think we are so insanely speedy about it because unless we are having Really Good Writing Days, that’s definitely not the case. sometimes we do have days where we are really in the zone and write more than usual, but at least for me, this is so so so rare. whatever i write in this time gets heavily edited because so much of it was nonsensical brain vomit LOL

as far as writing process goes, i think one of the things that motivates us a lot is that we genuinely do just talk about this au constantlyyyyy like we’re always coming up with silly little hcs or drawing for it or adding to the Lore ™️so we’re always getting inspired to write! all three of us are definitely people who use writing as a way to relax or even reward ourselves after a long day; we would probably die if we had to go too long unable to :/ messages like “i can’t wait to get home and write after work today” or “i’m going to write a little bit of ___ before bed because i deserve it” are very commonly found in our gc because we really just look forward to it so much! as for our scary word counts, i feel like there is a lot of worldbuilding in this universe specifically, and pacing is really important to us — we want to make sure introductions and set-up to a scene and character interactions are meaningful and flow naturally, and building tension (which is a hallmark of this fic hehe) does take some time, which can definitely add up word count-wise.

for the most part, none of us usually have a solid few hours to sit and write either (unless it’s on our days off or after work if we’re not too tired) and we get a lot of writing done in chunks! we hold each other accountable for short check-ins (“ask me for a snip in 30 minutes”) which is super helpful when you’re stuck, because it kind of forces you to get Something down without worrying if it’s super polished and edited and perfect. if you’re writing on your own, something i’ve started doing lately is setting a 15 minute timer and just seeing how much i can get done in that time, and then setting another and doing it again (up until however much time you have to write that day). i’ve found that the artificial deadline helps break the monotony of sitting in front of your computer for Hours on end with nothing to show for it bc TRUST we’ve all been there and it sucks so bad 😔✊

this got super long so i apologize but i hope at least a little bit of it was helpful! it definitely helps that we are constantly feeding into each other (i.e: having brainrot) and offering inspiration and advice, which does wonders for creative flow tbh. we’re definitely not cranking these chapters out as quickly as people might seem to think — thea started chapter four, which won’t be posted for about a month, maybe a week or two ago. i just started chapter 5 — about 6 weeks away — yesterday lol so we do take our time! don’t be scared by the giant chapters, we just had a lot of content we wanted to include in each one and are in too deep to take anything out 🥳🥳 thank you for the question! good luck with your writing we believe in you 🫡

[novantinuum]

🤡 or 🛠, for the ask game?

Thank you very much for sending some in! :D

(Fanfic writer ask meme- I am still taking these!)

_

🤡 What’s a line, scene, or exchange you’ve written that made you laugh?

Oh, good question- let me poke into my works...

Admittedly, I don't often try to write humor into my stories as I don't feel I'm a naturally funny person in writing, but sometimes silly little character beats just pop up organically.

I still quite enjoy this exchange in Crack the Paragon chapter 12, between Steven and Peridot:

“So,” she begins, nodding towards his stomach. “Your gem.” With a tired sigh, he tugs his shirt back down. Boy, does he already know where this conversation is heading, and boy, is he sick of having to walk everyone through it. “Yup,” he replies, popping the ‘p’ and getting ready to deploy the exasperated eye roll. “All this time everyone thought you were a hybrid quartz, but now you’re telling me…” “…that I’m actually a dia—” “…that I, Peridot, certified Kindergartener, a skilled specialist on every variety of Gem to ever exist, was wrong??” “Hold on, what?”  She holds her hand over the diamond emblazoned on her chest as she passionately continues, wholly oblivious to Steven’s bemusement. “I was the brightest Gem of my cut back on Homeworld, and yet somehow I mistook a perfectly formed diamond for a quartz! Ah, hahahah!” Eyes glinting with what he can only describe as a borderline feral energy, she moves to clutch at the sides of her head, thick tufts of lemon yellow spilling out from between her fingers. “Oh, my stars. I’ve lost my touch!”

🛠What tools/programs/apps do you use to write?

I exclusively use mobile Scrivener! Basically every scrap of fic I post is written on the go on my phone, usually while I take a long walk at my local park on weekends, but also during my breaks from work. (Or, uh... while overtly on the clock in lab. Listen, boss gets a dollar, I get a dime-)

I've also made great use of the NaNoWriMo website this past year in keeping up a daily writing habit. I use it to track my word counts per month/every few months, and set personal goals for myself when there's not an official writing event happening on there otherwise. I don't always reach the goals I set because I'm a very busy person, but it gives me something to strive towards! In any case, I've written at least one word (AKA opened my WIPs just, at all) daily since last November. I hope to make this a habit that lasts a lifetime, writing is great fun to me.

Currently, my goal is to write 30K words by the end of August. (I started this goal back in June.) I'm decently on track right now, which I'm very pleased about!