wawamouse

[wawamouse]

the shows actually a fashion runway, all the maximum security drama doesn't matter

[wawamouse]

trying to come up with ideas for an Emerald City hotel AU but my brain is mush today and all I can think is Chico as linen porter and Miguel on housekeeping staff and both of them are actually decently good at their jobs unless Chico happens to walk in on a room Miguel's already started and then they waste time for like 45 minutes (in...a number of ways....sometimes he has to bring a new set of linens) and then Miguel's next 3 rooms fucking suck because he has to speedclean and Morales (housekeeping manager) yells at him when he inspects the rooms and finds like 10 things wrong in each one (nobody yells at Chico) (linen porters get away with everything)

Ryan would also be on housekeeping staff and he'd specifically be the guy who never gets his own vacuum and just steals vacuums from the other housekeepers and doesn't put them back so everyone hates him. he's the fastest though. not the most thorough but by the time Morales is coming around to check the rooms he's already gone home so he doesn't get yelled at

Keller and Said would be daytime/afternoon receptionists, Keller would be flirting with all the guests and upselling and get great reviews meanwhile Kareem is the one dealing with all the actual problems with the rooms, it doesn't matter what times or days they work it always just ends up this way

Torquemada and Groves are the night receptionists nobody ever wants to talk to so people just wait until the morning if they have issues, meaning Toby and Augustus just get swamped as soon as they come in for their shifts in the morning

[wawamouse]

chico timeloop fic i said chico timeloop fic

[wawamouse]

Oz Halloween attraction AU

(Idk, Is that anything??)

It’s basically a haunted house attraction operating out of the old Oswald State Penitentiary, now retrofitted for scares 👻

A tour through the place would involve partially following a story of a new inmate and as you move through all the different rooms there’s various re-enactments of supposed prisoner deaths over the years (extremely tasteless stuff, as you do); hanging bodies, guy getting staked through the heart, dude eating glass and spraying blood, bloody guy in spooky laundry room etc.

The group gets herded through the narrow halls of Solitary and then chased back up the hall toward the next section by an insane guy—various tricks like that

A big scare at the end is the ‘riot’ where the tour is seemingly over after surviving the spooky sights on death row through to the execution chamber only for scarers to rush the larger floor at the end and force the haunted house guests to make a run for the actual exit, through a door under a big barricade looking stage piece :P

The Oz characters work at the haunted house as scarers (I’m addicted to Oz AUs that are essentially work place dramas, sue me)

Of course, like in the community pool AU, this is seasonal work, so after they have all their fun pursuing their passions for scaring the shit out of thousands of visitors during the season, they go back/on to other businesses/work/fucking around until the next year with McManus is calling around to see who is available to start rehearsing for the new scare season. He's got some people he's more eager to call for a return than others—some returning scarers are better than others

That guy Beecher who played a scared prisoner screaming his head off one year came back the next season to act totally insane and creepy; all the coworkers were really impressed (he would go on to star in the community theater production of Macbeth...)

Chris Keller and Ryan probably always pop out of nowhere under flickering lights to creep on guests

Shirley and Groves's executions in the Death Row area get a lot of screams

Miguel ends up covered in blood every year, whether his role is cutting up his own face, hanging himself, stabbing out a CO's eyes, etc, somehow he's always covered in fake blood

I think there would also be like a 'hall of memories' type corridor near the 'psych ward' that would essentially be a nightmarish run through various crime flashbacks from Oz, such as Mondo Brown's (McManus: here's how we get a meat freezer scene into our prison-themed haunted house)

I just think Oz characters working at a haunted house acting all scary and then clocking out is funny

(miguel/chico agenda: chico chasing miguel with a shank (also chasing guests) and then waiting for him at the back door after work :P) (he has to wait due to the amount of fake blood miguel is covered in that needs washing off)

[wawamouse]

Wip Wednesday!

Except it's just me sharing deleted snippets from fics because I have soooo many of them. Some below are straight up deleted segments because I didn't like the direction they were taking the fic... some are earlier drafts of moments/ideas that did make the cut... etc!

Below the cut:

"Low Life" deleted segment

"Collision Course" deleted segment (I think I shared it before but idr)

"Sore Spot" early draft

"Fugitive Life" early draft/deleted segment

"In the Course of Destiny" ch.2 deleted scene

"In the Course of Destiny" ch.6 deleted scenes 1-3

"In the Course of Destiny" earlier ch.6 outline

Low Life deleted segment:

Chico shows them around to the other rides and tells them little stories about working on them, or of one of the other shop mechanics. Tells them crazy customer stories, too, the three of them cackling about dumb, nightmare clients. Miguel’s got his own stories there, working at the boxing gym before going into El Norte full time, and okay, sure, it’s a chance to subtly boast about his athleticism, but he needs to bring something—assert some kind of expertise in something.  Turns out, Chico keeps up fairly closely with amateur circuit, too—may or may not partake in a little bit of sports betting, he says with a chagrined huff that says exactly how that’s been going for him recently. It eats up a while more of the conversation before shit finally turns over to talking about racing again. Rey finally gets his opportunity to really yap and he and Chico schedule a time for him to bring his ride in and get everything tuned up before the next drag race. Miguel wanders around when the two of them start getting into the hypothetical nuts and bolts of Reynaldo’s car. Going back over to the Firebird, he indulges once more in fantasy before heading inside and into the front of the garage where he bums a stick from Pedro and then loiters around to examine the walls of the shop.

Collision Course deleted scene (pretty sure I already shared this but idr)

Later, squeezed together arm to arm as they stand at the window counter of Daya’s Kitchen, Miguel laughs. “You drop something or what?” Miguel’s black Converses are half untied on his left foot, shoestring all trampled and dirty, hanging off the side of his shoe. He’s eating a motherfucking Drumstick ice cream cone, tongue dragging over vanilla and chocolate as Chico looks up. “Just thinking,” Chico says, mouth going dry. He picks up his own breakfast wrap and takes another big, determined bite, chewing fiercely and feeling himself continue to sober up, bit by bit. With the drop back to earth comes a deluge of extra thoughts he doesn’t care for—sappy reminiscing about poorer but maybe happier years, before their current bullshit. Probably just fixating on that time because they’re totally fucked now, Chico supposes. Beside him, Miguel makes a sound of disbelief. “Bro.” “What?” Chico swallows, feeling a little defensive toward that feeling of being singled out—accused of something. Miguel’s just kind of shaking his head, clicking his tongue like an old lady as he gestures to the corner of his mouth. “You have sauce, like…” Chico scrubs at his mouth. “Left.” “Did I get it?” “No, it’s—” Miguel sighs, switching his ice cream over to his other hand to free the one nearest to Chico. His thumb is a deliberately rough dig across Chico’s skin, hand curled under his chin. Chico jerks away, scowling because he can feel his face heat a little, imagination running away in an energetic burst, fantasies swirling in front his eyes—ones where Miguel's touch is soft on his face and he smiles softly in that way Chico's only ever really witnessed from the other side of a room, trying not too seem too focused on Miguel leaning over to kiss some bitch he'd just met that night. Stop it, he snaps at that part of him that seems to take masochistic pleasure in being fucking smitten. Ain't gonna happen.

Early draft of Sore Spot

The first time Miguel gets up from his bunk and looks back to see Chico sitting there looking like someone’s uncle, he lets out a snort. “Where the fuck did you find those?” Sitting up cross-legged on his bed with a book as they enter the third afternoon of lockdown, Chico is wearing a pair of browline glasses that Miguel’s never seen in his life—didn’t even know he wore glasses. “Whatever, man,” Chico mutters, not even glancing Miguel’s way. “They help me see better.” He shrugs, playing it off, like it’s no big deal even though if that was true, then he’d be wearing the fuckers all the time, wouldn’t he? The memory of all the times that Chico’s leaned right up by the edge of the TVs suddenly floats to the surface of Miguel’s thoughts. He snorts. “That eye of yours actually, like, make you see double or whatever?” he asks before he really thinks about it. Chico’s head snaps up and A: he looks dorky as hell, B: oh fuck. Miguel wonders if he’s inadvertently pushed a button in his idle lockdown restlessness. The last time the subject of Chico’s eye had come up, the dude had launched himself right at Miguel. Things aren’t like that between them anymore—not by a long shot—but that doesn’t mean he should just start poking sore spots for fun. The book in Chico’s lap closes and he raises his eyebrows. “Why would I see double, Miguel?” he says, sounding exasperated. “You kidding?” He’s already dug himself this grave, so he goes ahead and jumps in, striding up the edge of Chico’s bed and holding up a finger. “Look at that.” Miguel watches Chico’s eyes slowly focus on his new proximity, mouth twisted all unimpressed but understanding what he’s getting at. Glancing at Miguel’s finger, both of Chico’s eyes move on cue, his droopy eyelid not so pronounced when his gaze is angled downward Bad example. Chico reaches out as if to smack down Miguel’s hand, grabbing his wrist instead and shifting onto his side. “You think a pair of glasses would fix double vision?” he says, amusement written all over his expression. “I’m fucking nearsighted, Miguel.”  You must be stupid, is what his tone says. “Your crooked eye don’t change things?” Miguel presses.  Chico’s still got him by the wrist, but his grip is neither tight nor unwelcome, and their pod is in the blind spot just below the hack station. No chance of anyone running over thinking they’re about to fight. Based on Chico’s mirth, that’s definitely not set to be the case. He pushes out his lips in that smug little expression, shaking his head. “It ain't crooked. It's lazy. 'Cause of my eyelid. What's your excuse?" “What about me?” But he has an idea of what  Chico’s going to say even before he says it, pointing. “Your nose, man.” Irritation flickers. Broke it when he was sixteen. Miguel shrugs. “So?” "It's crooked."

Fugitive Light earlier draft/deleted scene

He’s got this recurring dream. He's sitting in the Hole at Oz, and it’s oddly bright, white light bouncing off the walls and the metal bars like a sun glare against a mound of snow in winter. The sound of a low groan echoes through the corridor outside, and he thinks to himself Oh, great, Martinez is fucking Howell again, and steps up to the window to yell for them to be quiet. As he does, however, the door opens with the barest touch, and Miguel stumbles out into the washed out hallway, shielding his eyes from the light. The sound of the groans gets louder, mixing with the occasional soft whimper—the mixing of two panting breaths—and even though the gate out of Ad-Seg lies in the opposite direction, Miguel can’t help but drift curiously toward the sounds of pleasure, the noises not really sounding like Martinez’s grunts or Howell’s banshee screaming. At the window of the cell that the sounds seem to be coming from, Miguel stops, light glaring in his eyes when he tries to squint inside. He persists through the brightness, and when his eyes adjust, he realises that he’s not looking inside anywhere; he’s looking outside. Distantly, he recognises grassy knolls—a deep blue sky, but his eyes are drawn to skin, beautiful tan skin and dark hair. Chico’s back is to Miguel, his muscles clenching, body driving forward, and— The dream shifts. He’s heavy above Miguel, the blue cot creaking under their collective weight.  “The door,” Miguel whispers, because he can see past Chico to the storage room door, and it’s open, any passerby likely to look in and see what they’re doing. Miguel tightens his arms around Chico’s neck. “Chico,” he pants. “Close the door, baby.” Their bodies rock together, rhythmic, and he’s unaware of what exactly they’re doing—if they’re fucking, or if they’re only embracing, or if maybe the whole world is just turning. It feels good either way, cocooned in a sense of warmth and safety. He doesn’t want to stop—just wants them to be left alone. “The door,” he whispers again, leaning up to kiss Chico, or try to— He turns to look over his shoulder. “There’s no one there.” His body is trembling, hot against Miguel’s.  There’s no door. They’re outside, under the open sky, and Miguel looks around—thinks he’s been here before, in this meadow. Thinks he might’ve slept here when he was on the run… but they’re not running now. Chico’s glowing under the sun and he smirks, leaning in and kissing Miguel's neck, his collarbone, his chest. "Just us, baby,” he murmurs. Squeezing Miguel’s shoulder, he shakes—

---

In the Course of Destiny ch.2 deleted segment

Carmy blinks. “Whoa. Are you freaking out right now? ‘Cause you sound calm, man. But you also sound like you’re freaking out.” Miguel does feel calm—that’s the odd thing, he guesses. He feels very calm. Very grounded. “I wanna help you. Carmy. I think I’m supposed to, you know, ‘cause of like you said—‘cause God brought me in front of you, and it was your” (—No, he can’t say all that; Carmy doesn’t need to know all that) “—I mean, and everything happens for a reason, right?” He bites the inside of his cheek and shakes his head. “Whatever. Just don’t—don’t be surprised if things go south. I ain’t shit, okay? I’m less than shit. Remember that.” He reaches across the desk, gathering the floor plans together and folding them back into order, placing them into the folder with the other shit Carmy hadn’t bothered taking out earlier—copies of proof of sale and city paperwork, it looks like. When Carmy laughs, the sound breaking through the sour uncertainty filling up Miguel’s head again. He throws Carmy a frown—I’m fucking serious—but Carmy just shakes his head. “Yeah, you’re freaking out, compadre,” he says. He’s practically averse, it seems, to taking things seriously. Can’t see the consequences at all, or just—doesn’t believe in them. “You don’t think it’s weird? You’re in Oz, Hernandez is in Oz, Jose Torres? Yeah, that’s your old partner, right? He’s in Oz. Torquemada’s in Oz, too. He’s my fucking cellie!” Carmy blinks, only one piece of information seemingly getting through to him: “You know Alonzo?” he says faintly.

In the Course of Destiny ch.6 deleted scene #1

Coming out of the Hole, Miguel feels less than human, like he should be slithering on the ground as he approaches Torquemada, who leans against the entryway of the cell, an angry smirk on his face. “Well, don’t you just know how to stir up drama,” he says, though he steps aside to let Miguel pass. “You know, your little kerfuffle out there could have cost me.” There it is. Miguel’s head is pounding—not from the withdrawal no more—nah. It’s the dehydration. Back to the cell, he pulls off his shirt, skin itching. (Needs to take a shower, too—fucking reeks—) A hand curls around his shoulder, Torquemada coming up behind him, looming presence no longer unexpected. (Anticipated now, tension forced back down) “If you can’t handle your shit, Miguel…” Torquemada’s voice lowers—comes closer, breath blowing on Miguel’s ear. Nails dig into his flesh, vindictive. “You bring eyes on my business. I don’t want eyes on my business.” The prick of nails finally forces Miguel to shake his shoulder, whirling around to face Torquemada’s ire. Fucking bastard ain’t scary—fucking hilarious, guy like him acting all tough. “Hey,” Miguel snaps, and sees Torquemada take a half step back, eyes (eye) flicking up and down, sizing him up. He has the size advantage, sure, and the fucker lifts weights from time to time like any other bozo in Lardner, but he’s not a brawler. Miguel could get a lick in before Torquemada even remembered where his shank was. Except there’s a mean smile curving across Torquemada’s mouth, and his eyes are narrowing, too. Hissing at him doesn’t work for long. He backs off some but he doesn’t run.  Why would he? I know what you want. That fact stings like an open wound, keeping Miguel’s rebellion brief. Always. Unless he wants every day to be like a day in the Hole, sooner or later, he’s got to dance. Got to play Torquemada’s stupid little games. “Luckily,” Torquemada drawls now, “our friends here in Lardner aren’t the most thorough. No harm.” He smiles. “No foul.” Say thank you. (He’s three days clean; he could tell Torquemada to fuck off—he’ll survive, but— Three days is nothing) Miguel swallows against the sandpaper roughness of his throat. After a beat, Torquemada watching him—waiting—he gives a small nod.  “Wasn’t thinking,” Miguel says stiffly. “Wasn’t trying to lead no one to you or the shit.” “I know, sugar,” Torquemada says. He steps closer now, and Miguel steps back, bare skin of his back meeting the metal frame of the top bunk behind him. Still three hours till lockdown. He’d woken up that morning to the pure blinding light of Lardner’s white white ad-seg. The walls are still burned into his eyes, superimposed over the bars of this current cell. (Can’t fucking do this right now) “Alonzo,” Miguel rasps. “I need something first, man. You know? Take the edge off.”

---

Destiny ch.6 #2

“You changing tactics now, baby?” Miguel says. Chico scowls, pushing away from the fence. “Nah, tired of your bullshit,” he claims. “Fuck, Alvarez. There’s so many assholes in here trying to help you. Fucking me included,” he says, shaking his head as he takes a step back—rolls his shoulders back. The smile feels heavier on Miguel’s mouth as he watches Chico rub a hand over his hair, still giving him an exasperated look. (Beats pity) “Shit, you wanna suck Torquemada’s dick again? Ain’t gonna try to stop you anymore,” Chico decides, though he still glances over his shoulder as he says it, sweeping the area for any eavesdroppers. He’s about two paces back, and no one interested enough to hear their back and forth. “Tired, Chico,” Miguel tells him. He knows it sounds like a whine. He knows people are trying to help him. Have tried. But where’s that gotten him? “I just—” He pauses, scowling. “What?” “Hate being me—here—” Miguel says. “Dead on my feet, man. That’s all I see in this place.” “Yeah, man, it’s Oz,” Chico, incredulously. “You check out, it’s still gonna be Oz, except you’re not careful, and you won’t get that fucking chance to check back in.” He hovers outside the Cage, still at that distance. “You’re not dead yet, Miguel,” he says harshly.

--

Destiny ch.6 #3

Chico grimaces—this again—and sighs. “Buncha fucking coincidences, man,” he says impatiently, insistently. Miguel shakes his head, fiercely. “No.” He reaches through the fence, fingers hooking over Chico’s, seeing something flicker over his expression before he pulls his hand away. “It’s gotta mean something that part of it’s true. I went there for a reason.” The universe—God—whatever—hadn’t let him stay, but it had shown him…glimpses. Chico frowns and straightens up. “Most things don’t happen for any damn reason and you know it,” he retorts. “They just happen, Miguel. It’s us who’s supposed to give it purpose afterward. So say I do believe you, and it don’t change anything that you went to some other world or whatever, ‘cause now you’re back.” Miguel flinches. Chico glares down at him. “Way I see it, you’re out here, letting your mind turn to shit, asking why me when, if I was you, I’d be asking what the fuck now?”

---

Early Destiny ch.6 outline:

[basically, this was was I had outlined around the time I was writing ch.4 and had planned out generally how I thought ch.5 & 6 could go. At this point, I was still adapting from my original 3 chapters outline, but pretty early into writing ch.5 was when I rewrote my plans for ch6, because as you can see, the outline just kind of ends vaguely]

Ch6

he gets destiny from torquemada—shocks it out of him by kissing him right on the mouth, which torquemada hates, flinching away and looking at miguel with a betrayed expression, his fun ruined.

chico sees it happen—stands there with a wooden expression— but miguel doesn’t give a fuck, he races off to the laundry room, pops a few pills and kneels at the dryer as chico stands there, watching.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“I’ll see you,” he says. “I’m gonna see you real soon.”

He’s getting out of there - gonna find you somewhere else

tumbles out of the closet of his room at his parent’s house - panics - where??

.

stunned to come across chico driving his car; how long has he been gone??

and he tumbles right into a closed door, groaning as he find himself crammed into some kind of extremely shallow closet. (the closet of his own childhood bedroom.

He tumbles out, scrambles out in a panic. (no no no… why did the portal take him here?)

He narrowly avoids conversation with his younger sister, who doesn’t understand why he’s at home when he just came back to visit over the weekend. Miguel avoids looking at her, not sure how he’d explain his appearance. As he escapes outside, he starts jogging up a familiar street, not sure what to do. How’s he going to find Carmy now? Fuck

A car screeches to a halt, a dark green. — Seville that nearly running him over at the crosswalk, and it’s Carmy behind the wheel. He looks different—shaved off his facial hair, cut his hair. He gapes at Miguel for a moment and then realises. “Fuck, it’s you.”

Miguel scrambles around the side to get in the car.

“Thought you’d be long gone, man.”

“I was. I mean. I meant to, you know? No one’s lookin’ for me. The Sicilians went to war with Los Diablos. Alonzo says Torres is dead. Said to lay low a while. I went to give him his cut the other day, and…”

“What the fuck, you came looking for me?”

Carmy is silent. “Yeah, well. Might’ve found that boxing gym. You’re a real sweetheart, by the way.”

carmy is vague about it. finally: what to miguel was about 3 weeks has been 6 months

but it a day was a couple days when he got back!

carmy shrugs. "maybe there's no reason to it. maybe it's just…" he shrugs again. he doesn't know.

"are you fucking him?"

"who?"

"Me!"

carmy blinks hard

"This is my fucking car!"

.

Snort. “Jealous?”

...

Carmy is silent for a moment as they drive. “You’re not sticking around, are you?”

“Don’t think I can.” Fuck. He scrubs a hand over his face. “But I wanted to see you, you know?”

...

Carmy makes a sharp turn off the freeway.

“Yo, what the fuck?”

Carmy stops on the shoulder of the ramp, looks at Miguel and says, “Look, I think I'm in love with you."

"What?"

"Not you. The other you. Telling you this. Miguel, I'm telling you this, 'cause it's true. You're loveable."

they aren't seeing eye to eye as much this time around; carmy's found alt!miguel; he knows the other guy better now and miguel is the strange one now;

Miguel kisses carmy, who freely kisses him back, but it's…

but it feels a little like pity from carmy, who admits he likes miguel… he just… likes the other him more;

"I… know him."

pause.

"are you safe?"

yeah, nobody's come looking

(Tells Carmy he’s probably going to try and get sober. Get into the gang step down. It’ll look good on his record , and the level 3 will easier to deal with)

[wawamouse]

It made sense to draw a color pencils Dino. I really like the look of the blue cap on him, very boyish. He has a super strong jaw and some dark eyebrows that are really fun to draw. Also, what a cute nose!

Wish we had seen more of him, I love the character development the guy goes through in a mere one episode.

[wawamouse]

Something something Chico aggressively joking about Miguel bottoming as a form of projection . And the hope he’ll get fed up and do something about it, but Miguel is just Used to it so he’s like 🙄 right right right

[wawamouse]

(fault of this post which is also Wawa's fault)

M - are u high? Stop sending me sex memes when ur ass is high

C - sex?! it's about LOVE, miggy!

M - so real high then

and dont fjcking call me that either

C - hehe f jacking it huh miguel?

M - blocking u

C - oh come on!! I'm not even high man! U don't got a sense of humor?

M - u sober with this shit? That's worse.

...go get high

[wawamouse]

Hello, for the Fanfic Writer Questions: 12, 23, and/or 25?

12, Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about. Ah….. the one I’m currently working on, I suppose! If I get it to even 40% of the original vision, I’ll be happy! Can’t really say much about it bc it’s not much, but the general idea is that it’s a canon divergence AU where Miguel meets Chico in Mexico while on the run post s4 escape. And Chico is some kind of creature (human in appearance tho—sorry, monsterfuckers).

23, Do you prefer prompts and challenges, or completely independent ideas?

I like my independent ideas, but I don't mind prompts or challenges from some ask memes and such (clearly). I still have some kiss prompts I'm slowly filling from a couple months ago LMAO but generally, I do like the challenge of an assignment aspect. Oz Magi and fandom events like that are fun to me for that reason!

25 Have you ever daydreamed about side adventures/spin-offs from your fic? Tell us about them!

ACTUALLY… Okay, I wouldn't say daydream, but there are TWO fics for which I could see follow up oneshots (as they're both multichapter fics). Although, warnings for In the Course of Destiny mild spoilers maybe? If you haven't read ch6 ...altho it's not a huge spoiler/probably won't make sense anyway if you didn't get there.

Saving Sympathy spin-off: there’s a background plot in this where Said and Beecher are soulmates but there’s some drama around Said having infamously removed his soulmark and being one who denounces the concept of soul bonds. I have inklings of a spin off idea that would be structured similarly to Saving Sympathy, with a precanon Beecher pov followed by a canon era Said…. But it’s still just a thought in the back of my mind bc I’ve yet to decide what their soulbond actually should mean. But! I think it would be neat to continue exploring the world building/politics of soulmarks/industry of blackmarket removal, etc, and the theological implications hinted at in the actual fic. I just think Said and Beecher would be a good dynamic (and already established) to do that through further.

In the Course of Destiny spin-off: Really, I'd just want to explore more of what Carmy and alt!Miguel get up to. I had a lot more stuff planned out for ch.5 that would've made it too long, as it extended into a weekend party and mentions of El Norte being formed in that world, plus Chico meeting Miguel's family and Miguel inspiring Chico to buy the Seville.

Another spin-off would probably be pretty loosely related (and here come the spoilers, if you can call it that): I'd maybe want to write a oneshot where Miguel and Chico meet at a music festival after Miguel pulls Chico out of a crush. And Chico is tripping on Destiny lol. Thought he saw something WEIRD for a second before Miguel grabbed him. And then they go off and bang in the forest, no doubt.

[wawamouse]

5, 6, 17, 35

5, What’s the fic you’re most proud of?

Heh, I feel like this answer changes constantly because there's something in basically all of my fics that I enjoy quite a bit so the answer often becomes the latest fic I've been rereading LOL. I'll choose Partially Found today, because I wrote it for Oz Magi just last year, and I'd always wanted to make a meta, socmed, multi-media type fic before then. It's certainly got its issues (the podcast bit is a bit dry—wish I'd spent more time in editing, although there was a deadline LOL), but I'm quite proud of the formatting with the reddit posts and whatnot, and the graphics I made (still chuckle over photoshopping McManus into that turtleneck).

6, What element of writing do you find comes easily?

Dialogue! And by extension, character expressions while they're speaking. (I kind of think of their nonverbal communication as an extension of their spoken conversations, anyway). These are also the elements that readers have pointed out most to me in the past :) I looooove writing banter and the little nose scrunchings and sneers and smirks and scoffs, etc. In case that's not obvious, lmao.

17, A trope you’ll never, ever write for.

Ohhh, tough Q… Bc I never reaaally say never, but that's mostly when it comes to tropes that seem kind of freaky/not my cup of tea on their face but maybe could be an interesting challenge to try to write and shape into something I'd find interesting, if that makes sense? Like Omegaverse or MPreg, not really my thing, but I could be convinced to read it in the hands of someone I trust, and with enough reason/an interesting enough angle, I might try my hand at it. [laughs in Omar immaculate conception (x, x <-- origin in replies)].

The real answer to this question is probably tropes I just personally find boring, like Royalty AUs . "Who gives a damn?" type tropes.

35, Ramble about any fic-related thing you want!

Oh boy. Hm. Well, something I always find interesting with how I approach fic writing versus how I've observed other people approach it (via what they say/ memes on the process) is that I'm not really a guy who is terribly overcome by plot bunnies? Don't get me wrong, I have several wips, but I also am not, like, constantly coming up with new ideas or daydreaming about Scenes and Scenarios the way I feel like some people talk about doing? It's actually a point of 😔 "aw man, I wish I could be like that, too!" lmao. Alas! The characters don't plague me and I'm not constantly having Character Thoughts (I generate them mostly when prompted by others lol).

I guess the trade off is that—at least lately—I've been able to translate my swirling head emptiness into a kind of concentrated beam attack on one wip at a time… (Writing/typing is really the only time when I actually have words floating to the surface of my brain) (otherwise it's just a misty abyss in there) Like, maybe I'm misunderstanding how much other people are actually thinking about their blorbos and imagining Scenarios, but their way seems more fun and creative/imaginative. Or perhaps cognizant of the process, if that makes sense.

[wawamouse]

You're also doing the Fanfic Writer Questions yay! 4 and 26 when/if you feel like it? ☺️

4, Are there any writers that inspire you? My fellow Oz writers ;3 Honestly! I love seeing what others are interested in/how they're interpreting the characters. For example, I'd never have pursued writing M/C or fic for Oz if I hadn't read Dose by @merelyafigment! There hadn't quite been any other Oz pairings that were calling to me as a writer (I'd also originally watched the show years before and was sort of just idly returning to see what was up while having nothing else to read at the time—idr exactly). But then I decided to see if there were any Chico fics and I was astonished to find that there actually were some (several from just that year, 2023)! As well was Dose from 2004 <3 It made me want to try to write M/C.

Outside of fandom circles, though, I've actually been really bad at reading books, although I used to be an avid reader basically up until high school (AHGHGH). Last year, I watched like 400+ movies and this year my goal has been to read more (I've already reached my goal of 9 books in 2025 lol), so a lot of what I've been reading has crept its way into my writing? For example, I wrote The Death of Jaime Velez in such a strange voice because I had been listening to M.T Anderson's "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation" vol 1&2 on audiobook and it influenced my headspace in terms of voice, lol. (Although the Octavian Nothing books are MUCH more consistent with the voice and include a lot of interesting philosophy and thematic explorations).

Prior, I've always taken inspo from poetry like that of Carl Phillips, whose poems inspired the Speak Low series and For Nothing Tender About it (and probably another I'm forgetting). Or Richard Siken, who inspired So You Want a Deathbed Scene and Maybe Now He'll Leave You Alone.

26, Is there anything you’ve wanted to write, but you’ve been too scared to try?

Hmmmm. I wouldn't say 'scared', but I would like to write more historical fiction AUs but in a way that would require much more research, because I'd want to get it right and make it an authentic adventure (or an attempt at one) rather than use the AU as an aesthetic… Like, I have an Oz Western AU that has been languishing in a gray area of somewhat abandonment for this reason. I'd also like to write a Pirate AU or something like it but I don't really know anything about the time period or setting I'd want to place it around, even if I were to make it vague. You know? It's not so much scared as… the idea is too ambitious based on my own standards/how much research I would want to do.

…But I am quite attached to the Western AU… Since I may never write it, tbh, the general premise is: (lifted direct from my "Oz Plots" notes app page lol):

Stagecoach robbers. Chico tracks Miguel north into the Americas to kill him after Miguel steals their posse’s gold, refuses to kill a rival (Rivera) and takes off into the night; almost catches up with Miguel in [historical territory]; finds his camp one night; Miguel gets the jump on him, and Carmen gets hard when they’re fighting; Miguel kisses him as distraction and then gets the upper hand. Ties him up and leaves him to die of exposure; he’s rescued by a caravan heading to a settlement in California; stiff church folk (include mousey Beecher family) who seem slightly put off to learn he’s catholic, although the padre seems to appease them; Chico doesn’t understand what the protestants are saying (english); he parts ways with caravan once they reach the next big town, a bustling settlement of fifteen thousand or so, with a relay station and a general store. Hears word of a Miguel ganging up with a mercenary by the name of Goodson Truman to defend some townsfolk (Mag7 plot reference); Carmen watches from afar as Miguel is shot. When the smoke clears, he rides into town and takes Miguel’s body, pointing his gun at the black cowboy when he tries to stop him; he rides away with Miguel, planning to nurse him back to health so they can face off for real. End with Miguel waking up (alive!) as Carmen tells him this.

...something like that.

[wawamouse]

35 Questions for Fanfiction Writers! ✨

[wawamouse]

2x01 "The Tip" → Kareem Said

[wawamouse]

2x01 "The Tip" → Miguel's Interview

[wawamouse]

Hello, for the "make me write" I would love to see a snippet of 🖨 or because I am weak, 🐈! But only if you feel like it! Thank you!

[pops up months and months later, after you've possibly forgotten even sending this] HI. :D Thanks for the ask, given how incredibly bad I am at answering them! 💚 I appreciate it and it did help! (I'm just slow.)

I actually wrote the KittyMiggy bit due to this poke ages ago, but was trying to write something for The Huntsman and the Wolf (that's what these were). And that didn't happen until today (hence being shorter and rougher). It actually was long enough since 🐈 that I maybe forgot which exact bit I'd written. I did write a bit! I think it was the part where I give Chico his own deeply stupid Harley Quinn and her egg sandwich moment from Birds of Prey.

✨️The Huntsman and the Wolf Ch. 3: The supply closet of weirdness after Beecher's wife passes away 🖨✨️

Should he feel bad about using his horrific loss to step away from his duties? Probably. But really, he had so many other things to feel bad about, much worse things he'd done. It was Genevieve who'd suffered horrific loss, really, when he'd destroyed their lives. It was barely a drop in the bucket, seeing Miguel's earlier whispered time approach on the clock and asking for some time alone to compose himself, offering to head to the supply closet and quietly assemble some more file boxes they'd need eventually. Sister Pete understood, believing in Tobias despite him being quite a shitty person.

(Miguel was probably aware he was a shitty person, and seemed to like Tobias's vicious parts as much as the rest of him, really. Kept spending time with him, worried about him, even knowing all that. Could be his entire, shitty, life-devastating self around Miguel. Tobias didn't have to lie that much around Miguel anymore… except for certain confusing thoughts lately about Miguel himself that the man would most likely not want to know.)

*

I swear I'm writing more than that, and this will improve.

✨️The AU where Miguel is turned into a cat, escapes Oz, and sticks to Chico 🐈✨️

Had an egg sandwich from his favorite bodega in one hand, digging in happily, grease on his chin, taking the steps quick and agile.

Until his ass slowed, stopped, fist closing around keys to silence their jangle. Could tell that loud ass television wasn't coming from its occasional location – his neighbor who kept losing her hearing aids, took ages to replace because insurance always fought her and those fuckers were expensive. (What? They talked at the mailboxes.)

This was coming from his place, where he most definitely had not left his shit blaring like that.

He crept along keeping tight to the wall, peering to see that his apartment door wasn't busted in. Got closer, trying to stay quiet, the equally slippery creep of his hot sauce dripping down his hand went mostly ignored like his clutched sandwich.

Look – after his lonely-ass night shift, coming home in the new day's asscrack light, his egg sandwich was a brighter light for him than the watery smogged one in the sky. Wasn't letting it go unless he had to pull a trigger or throw a punch. Even then – had the hand with his keys, could use that one.

No amateur scratches or signs of a break in.

Those were definitely some cartoon noises coming from behind his door, though.

Shiiit, Chico regarded his beautiful, greasy egg sandwich mournfully. “Sorry, baby,” whispered as he set it on the floor. Maybe if he kept the wrap protecting– nope, the egg and bread slumped and touched the dingy hall. Lost cause.

He was going to shoot whoever the fuck was in his place, yeah. Hand was fucking free now, though, to pull his piece.

Except when he swung in after being so damn careful with quieting his keys, clicking his locks so slow, dropping them and sweeping the room with his gun in his empty, hot-sauced hand, raised at chest height because fuck them egg sandwich ruiners –

– was nobody there.

Well, besides the cat on the couch, body tense and tail swishing angrily at… didn't like the loud cartoons, apparently. Was that– was it stepping on the remote, like trying to pounce–

–volume didn't change but damn, somehow even the clanging, cheering game show was quieter than the cartoons had been, at least.

Cat looked to him, murder in its little predator eyes.

“What the fuck you looking at me for? Not my fault you turned on the tv and sat your furry butthole on the volume or something.”

*

...Kitty Miguel got bored being stuck in the apartment while Chico was at work (Chico is unaware he's not just a cat) and tried to turn on the television.

[wawamouse]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Oz (TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Miguel Alvarez & Carmen "Chico" Guerra, Miguel Alvarez/Carmen "Chico" Guerra Characters: Miguel Alvarez (Oz), Carmen "Chico" Guerra, Sean Murphy (Oz), Oz (TV) Ensemble Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Pre-Slash, There Was Only One Bed, Light-Hearted Summary:

The bedframe cracks on a Thursday.

[wawamouse]

r/ozshow is worth visiting from time to time