Dear Yuletider 2020

[elegantstupidity]

Honestly, thank goodness Yuletide time has finally arrived! Since this year has been like five all at once, should we be doing five Yuletides? That sounds like a lot of work. Either way, I'm very happy to be participating again, and can't wait to see what you have in store!

If you're interested at all or just want more options, you can always go through my past letters—I'm more than happy with mixing and matching between fandoms/characters and prompts—or check out my tumblr, though I doubt I've posted about all of these fandoms there. Though don't take that as an indicator about my enthusiasm. I would be delighted to receive fic for any of these fandoms! I'd also be delighted with ship or gen, long or short, and G- through E-rated fic. Also, where I've requested more than one character, don't feel as though you need to focus equally on each. As long as they all show up somewhere, I'll be happy. Same goes for including any other canon characters, in the tag set and otherwise, or relationships in your fic.

Essentially, I'm not that picky; pretty much any fic for these canons and characters would be wonderful and will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance and see you in December!
elegantstupidity

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Navigation
Yes, Please! and No, Thanks!
Requests: Crown Duel - Sherwood Smith, The Invisible Library - Genevieve Cogman, A League of Their Own, Letterkenny, Pitch, Submissions Only

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Yes, Please!
genres and styles

• adventure, angst (though preferably with a bittersweet or happy ending), canon-typical plots, character studies, fantasy and sci-fi, fluff, humor/comedy, hurt/comfort, mysteries and casefic, romance, slice of life
• AUs
  • especially canon-divergences, canon+ (basically, the canon setting + some fantastical/magical element, ie: body swaps, unexpected telepathic connections, time loops, etc.), or fusions and genre shifts (ie: daemon AUs, Pacific Rim, Hogwarts, in space!, epic fantasy, etc.)
  • exceptions I'm not particularly into: A/B/O, de-aging, soulmate/soulmark AUs, or making the setting more ordinary/mundane than canon
• character- and relationship-driven plots
• epistolary elements
  • both letters and texts/emails/digital communication as well as in-universe texts/published materials
• missing scenes
• parallels and canon callbacks
• x + 1 times

details

• competence/characters in their element
  • alternatively, I do love a good fish out of water scenario
• food, baking, and/or cooking porn
• worldbuilding
  • Even for canons that ostensibly take place in the real world, I love getting a taste of all the little details that add color and texture to these character’s lives.
    • Stuff like: politics/local government, what's on their TBR list, what's in their fridge/closet/bag/car, what kind of celebrity gossip exists in their world, etc.
• Honestly, you can't go overboard on the descriptions and detail, no matter how minute or possibly off-topic. Tell me all about the setting or circumstances, the characters' emotions/sensations, bits of backstory, anything!

gen relationships

• loyalty and ride or die friendships
• complex friendship dynamics
  • I prefer when conflicts are resolved at least semi-happily, but angst on the way is excellent!
• found families and/or family feels and/or complex family situations
• team bonding/group dynamics
  • eg: road trips, pranks, inside jokes, friendship building, nights out, games/game nights, betting pools, roughhousing/physical affection, celebrations/parties, etc.
• mutual admiration societies/positive partnerships
  • I love snark and teasing and even outright antagonism, too, they just have to end up liking each other—even grudgingly.

romantic relationships

• anything from above
  • I really love romances that are built on friendships/trust/loyalty or at the very least some kind of shared history
• pre-relationship and/or getting together plots
  • slow burns, UST, mutual pining, denial, flirting, lingering touches, veiled confessions
  • [enemies/rivals to] friends to lovers
    • I'm all about snarky antagonism/belligerence/teasing as flirting
  • FWBs catching feelings
  • breaking the seal
    • i.e. “We just kissed/slept together/did something unmistakably romantic, but we’re definitely not gonna do it again for reasons,” and then they absolutely do it again.
  • basically, any kind of romcom trope that you can imagine
• enforced proximity
  • bed sharing, handcuffed together, locked in a closet, deserted together, curses/spells tethering them, sharing body heat, etc.
• secret and/or "forbidden" relationships
• HEAs or HFNs

smut/porn

I'm really not very picky re: specific positions/acts but these are all A+:
• feelings
• basically anything that shows how into each other the characters are
• romance, trust, enthusiasm, intensity, tenderness, vulnerability, desperation, neediness [to please], intimacy, hand holding, eye contact, laughing/having fun with it
• Alternatively, I can definitely get behind some hate/grudge sex.
• firsts
• first time together or the first time trying something new or sexual awakenings/kink discovery, shy or desperate or a little awkward, etc. etc. and on and on and on
• resolving UST to "get it out of their systems" or other transparently thin reasons to bang it out
• physicality
• rough sex, hair pulling, holding each other down, losing control, marking, not making it to the bed, spanking, etc.
• use of athleticism/strength/endurance/stamina/flexibility/focus on character's physique
• general handsiness
• cuddling/close contact, from behind/bent over something, lap sex, riding, three-/moresomes, wall sex
• teasing
  • banter/dirty talk, body worship, grinding/frottage, hand/mouth stuff, solo action, lots of foreplay, etc.

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No, Thanks!

• established relationship for non-canon ships (unless prompted)
• explicit and/or extreme (14 or younger) underage
• graphic violence or gore
  • injuries, physical fights, etc. that have happened in canon or are canon-typical are fine to include
• humiliation
• embarrassment is fine to include, but I'd prefer no lingering/extended focus on it
• infidelity
• non-canonical character death (unless prompted)
• pregnancy and/or parenting non-canonical children (unless prompted)
  • babysitting, temporary accidental baby acquisition, or kids who exist in canon are fine
• rape or noncon

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Requests

Crown Duel - Sherwood Smith
characters: Any; Nimiar Argaliar, Meliara Astiar, Oria, Vidanric Renselaeus

I reread these books all the time, and every time that I do, I find new things to love about them. I love their flavor of fantasy—wizards who can travel between worlds, the Hill Folk's Covenant—thrumming along in the background to most of the action. Which is also great! Love me a young rebel going to war against a corrupt and oppressive leader no matter how the odds are stacked against her, and who then she gets thrown into the middle of the royal court, even less prepared to face the machinations of the courtiers than she was to lead an army. But I think that these characters, the way they grow and change, and their relationships with one another are really what make this series so special. There's the quintessential court lady who dreams of a quiet life and will eventually find it in the castle run by the village girl who befriended the barefoot daughter of a lord. And, of course, the hotheaded, idealistic young countess butting heads with the thoroughly opaque, though only to hide surprising depth, and vain marquis, who probably never really expected to become co-rulers.

There really isn't a combination of these four characters, or something focusing on just one of them, that I wouldn't love to read a fic about. As far as specific ships go, I like Mel/Vidanric, Nee/Oria (with or without Bran's participation, as long as he's not in the dark), pre-Court Duel Mel/Oria, and Bran/Nee. I haven't had a chance to read Remalna's Children or A Stranger to Command, but feel free to reference them if you have.

prompts

• I'd love to see something about Mel, Oria, and/or Nee’s learning curve with a new lady of the castle. When Mel visits Tlanth, what things have changed/remind her she doesn't have the run of the place anymore? Is it difficult for Oria to warm up to Nee, or do they start tackling projects right away?
• If you wanted to go pre-canon, maybe some Nee and Vidanric hurt/comfort or a moment of solidarity/understanding in Galdran’s court. Or Mel and Oria running wild in the mountains, befriending the Hill Folk.
• Vidanric strikes me as someone who'd always rather have more information given the opportunity, so him subtly—or maybe he just thinks he's being sly—trying to pump Oria and/or Nee for information on Mel would be great! Possibly including Mel getting suspicious when she notices these little conversations and pumping Nee and Oria for information right back.
• In between books, I'd love to see Oria and Mel setting the castle to rights, maybe in parallel to Vidanric trying to untangle the court and country. All the little details about governance and castle maintenance, please!
• Alternatively, there is pretty much no end to the number of canon divergence situations, especially from some point in Crown Duel, I'd be into. Some possibilities:
• For whatever reason, Vidanric has to go on the run with Mel when she escapes from Remalna City. Cue Mel swinging between outright suspicion and grudging acceptance that she has to rely on the guy who dragged her down to the capital in the first place.
• Somehow, the Tlanth rebels manage to capture Vidanric when he takes over for Debegri, which goes better and worse for everyone involved.
• Galdran decides to keep Mel as a hostage and she has to learn how to navigate an actively hostile court.
• Vidanric comes to Tlanth, nominally to secure Mel’s support but for less political reasons too, before the start of Court Duel. Does he come before the first snow and end up having to winter there? Does he arrive to give Mel just enough time to actually prepare for Nee and Bran’s visit?

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The Invisible Library - Genevieve Cogman
characters: Irene, Kai, and Peregrine Vale

The whole concept of this series is serious catnip to me. I mean, what's not to love about a secret library tucked between dimensions dedicated to the preservation of all stories and the librarian-spies who work there? I tore through the first couple in a few days and have eagerly looked forward to each ensuing installment. Partly, that's because I really enjoy the balance between big, sweeping action and more contained moments of character development. Plus, the sheer scope of the worldbuilding potential (and not just because there's a multitude of worlds, either), is just so much fun to think about and play around in. Basically, anything—sci-fi! fantasy! thriller/noir! costume drama!—is possible! Which makes it all the more delightful when these characters, who are all so, so competent in such different ways, always seem to roll with the punches. Even when the punches are being thrown by a steam-powered centipede or would-be assassins.

I do like Irene/Kai/Vale as well as each component pairing of the threesome, but would be more than happy with something about their friendships, too. They work so well together for having such different sensibilities; anything that explores facets of their relationship will be wonderful! If you're interested in other ships, I also enjoy Bradamant/Irene or (mostly?) one-sided Lord Silver/Irene(/Kai/Vale too) and Alberich/Irene with some dark fascination on everyone's parts.

prompts

• So, how, exactly, would Irene and/or Kai go about wooing Vale? (Or even decide to woo him at all?) With a mystery? By slowly invading his house until, oh, well they might as well move in? Does he know exactly what they’re up to, but goes along with it anyway?
• I feel like they'd have very different approaches to the same issue—Kai's forthright admiration of Irene and Vale is one of my favorite things about him, but while Irene can be no nonsense on the job, I'm not sure she'd be so direct in romance—but that might make things even more fun!
• I’m not sure if this is anything, but: Pirates! I feel like all three of them could make very compelling swashbucklers given the opportunity.
• Are they posing as pirates or chasing them and the book they're after down? Are they on the high seas or jetting through space? Or has the world they've landed in found some new frontier for piracy?
• I'd love some straight up casefic! Irene and Kai tagging along on one of Vale’s mysteries, in London or out of town. Vale investigating missing manuscripts for the Library. All of them going undercover for a longer term retrieval in some new world. Just any chance for them to show off their wits and tricks of the trade.
• I feel like there are all kinds of opportunities for some unexpected juxtapositions—robots populating some fantasy/fairy tale world or magic rather than technology propelling space travel or cyber-punk details in the jungle or desert—with this series, and would love to see Irene, Kai, and Vale interacting with those kinds of worlds.
• They're not really people who seem to enjoy slowing down and relaxing, not when there's work to be done at least, but it must happen sometime, right? Who forces the issue and makes them all take a vacation? Do they actually get any downtime in, or does Library business, like life, find a way?

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A League of Their Own
characters: Jimmy Dugan and Dottie Hinson

I have watched this movie more times than I can count, and I am always prepared to watch it again. I just love it that much. I'm always a sucker for a good (and bad to be perfectly honest) movie about female athletes, and this one has to be one of the best. There're lots of things to love about it, like the setting—I'm so here for all the homefront America details, especially stuff about small-town life in the Midwest—and the script—which can be equally hilarious and poignant. Plus, there's the baseball of it all. The camaraderie and the victory and the drama going along with the grind and the effort and the tough losses. The romance and the tragedy all wrapped up into one game. And, to be honest, the romance is 100% what I am here for, specifically between Jimmy and Dottie. Great individually, but even better together. Obviously, they're hugely different—fresh-faced farm girl vs washed-up drunk, but deep down, no matter how Dottie might deny it, they really are both just ballplayers at heart. The progression of their relationship—mutual skepticism and derision slowly turning to grudging respect to actual understanding and, yeah, love—is just so good!

Much as I love Jimmy/Dottie, the slow build of their friendship really is the basis of the romance for me. I would be equally happy with something that's all about their relationship as coach and player or just friends. As far as my infidelity DNW goes, you can deal with Bob in one of a few ways: not mention him/Dottie's marriage at all, go with an AU where either they never got married, or you can ignore my non-canonical character death and kill him off, though I'd rather not have his death then become the focus of the story.

prompts

• At some point in the season, someone—a reporter? one of the Peaches?—jokes about how Dottie's giving Jimmy's homer count a run for its money, which I also feel like he takes far too personally, and I'd love to know everything about the fallout of it all.
• Consider: Dottie ignoring him and blandly turning up her game, knowing it'll just egg him on. Jimmy grumbling as he slouches in the bus seat next to her, torn between pride and jealousy, when she's on a hot streak.
• Maybe Jimmy and Dottie stick around Rockford over the offseason. Does he stay too long at her boarding house, though her landlady keeps turning a blind eye? Are they fixtures at the ballpark, even as fall comes and they have to bundle up to take batting practice? Do they somehow end up getting snowed in somewhere, either because they’re coincidentally together or one of them braves the storm to make sure the other’s okay?
• I love flirting disguised as snarkiness, so: Dottie and Jimmy bickering over anything and everything at any time at ll. The lineup on an overnight ride to Kenosha. The best time to employ a hit and run on the porch of the boarding house as the sun goes down. Whether the Cubs will ever win another World Series more often than Jimmy would like. What feels better than hitting a home run. How to know when someone’s The One.
• Maybe they know some arguments are better left unhad, but I don’t really see that stopping them once they really get into it.
• Tell me all about the small-town festivals/drives/fairs/tractor shows where the Peaches are expected to make appearances as publicity in the early days of the league!
• Which parts are surprisingly fun? When does Jimmy finally agree to start coming along? How long does it take him to stop complaining about it?
• What if Dottie made an impromptu return to the league? Maybe the next season, maybe a few down the line? What impact does her return have on her former manager?

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Letterkenny
characters: Katy

I'm truly not sure how this show has gotten so many seasons—it's so weirdly specific yet somehow universal?—but I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth because I love it so much. Every time I do a rewatch, I find myself laughing just as hard as the first time I saw it. I love all the running gags and the rapid-fire banter and teasing—truly a sign of people who've known each other their whole lives and wouldn't trade each other for anything—and the way they keep finding comedy in a bunch of people not doing much at all. And then there's their impressive dedication to holiday episodes. Much as I love every Letterkennyite (Letterkennyan? Letterkennyer?), Katy has got to be, hands down, my favorite. She's so confident and comfortable in herself, but she's still versatile enough to fit in anywhere, with the hicks or the skids or the hockey players. (Katy demonstrating her fluency in hockey-ese was A+.) Then, the fact that despite her mostly blase attitude, she is just as capable of getting in deep with Letterkenny's nonsense makes her so much fun. She's got so many layers. Though not usually to her wardrobe. Which, to be fair, is just not her forte.

If you would like to include ships, please feel free! I like Katy with pretty much everyone, especially but not at all limited to: Katy/Bonnie, Katy/Bonnie/Wayne, Katy/Jonesy/Reilly, Katy/Tanis, and Katy/Wayne. I also am more than fine if you want to include other characters in supporting roles, especially since I think so much of what makes Letterkenny fun is rooted in everyone's relationships with one another.

prompts

• We've already seen a Letterkenny Christmas (and I'd be more than happy to see more of those traditions or their repercussions; waking up the morning after the Three Wise Men can't be fun), so I'd love to know what New Year's Eve looks like for Katy (and possibly company).
• Do they watch the ball drop in New York or is there something more local to pay attention to? What song do they play as the clock strikes midnight? Are there specialty cocktails involved? WHo hosts the festivities?
• I feel like there's a non-zero chance that someone in town has tried to make the Great Letterkenny Bake Off happen, though even odds on whether anyone else actually participated. Does Katy join in or get roped into judging (or just willfully misinterpret the point and get baked herself)?
• When Gail goes on her annual vacation, Katy might not be the natural first choice to run Modean's (especially when Bonnie and Glenn actually work there), but I bet she would still do a great job and have some ideas to liven the place up. If the rest of the town, or just her brother and friends, would actually let her.
• If Katy and Wayne's family didn't believe in birthday parties, I feel like camping, really roughing it, was probably the extent of their experiences with family vacation (if they ever actually went). As an adult, I could see that going either of two ways—Katy the extreme survivalist expert or a Katy who categorically refuses to sleep in a tent ever again—and I want to hear about either of them and what they subject everyone to during a camping trip.
• I love that Katy's an open book, but I feel like she also has depths that have yet to be plumbed. What did she get up to in the city? What talents does Katy have that some of her friends might be surprised by?
• Is Katy a secret hockey stud? Does she have a nose for crime-solving (as much as crime actually needs solving in Letterkenny)? Or are her secrets decidedly less impressive (which is exactly why they're secrets)?

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Pitch
characters: Ginny Baker, Livan Duarte, and Mike Lawson

Truly, there's not enough that I could say about this show, and I have tried, that would adequately capture my whole-hearted love. It was pretty much everything I could want out of a TV show—complex, compelling characters playing out tightly crafted drama with joy, all while playing baseball and looking beautiful—aside from being far too short. I mean, this show gave me Ginny Baker, who's basically my platonic ideal of a main character. She'd be great just about anywhere, but she was perfect for Pitch. Strong and talented and dedicated, but also so aware of her place in history, which can make her doubt what she's earned and struggled for, Ginny was such a joy to watch. And so were Mike and Livan, who I feel are far more similar than either would ever admit—both competitive and talented and cocksure to cover up that semi-tragic past. The development of her rapport with Mike, going from disappointed expectations/pure skepticism to the intensity and intimacy of their bond, was a fun contrast to Livan, who wasn't afraid to be an asshole to pretty much everyone but Ginny. Especially considering the rivalry (AKA ridiculous chemistry) between Livan and Mike.

I love Ginny/Livan/Mike as well as each component side of the threesome, particularly when they all end up fond of each other (even if it's grudging on the Mike and Livan axis). I also am very into their bonds as ballplayers and friends/rivals/whatever you want to call them, and would love a fic from that angle.

prompts

• As highly competitive people, I have to assume none of them take to losing particularly well. How do they jog themselves/cajole someone else out of a slump? Do they eat their feelings? Take it out in the batting cages? Watch terrible movies? Whose first suggestion is always sex and/or how long is it before someone actually takes them up on their offer?
• I’d love something that addresses how weird—preferably leaning on the manufactured silliness rather than pandemic-related angst—the 2020 season has been: the curtailed spring training/going to summer camp, being stuck in hotels on the road, playing without fans in the stands, Zoom pressers, the Padres actually making it to the postseason, etc.
• Is Mike still playing even? Do Ginny and Mike (and Livan somehow) quarantine together? Who becomes conscious of how much they were touching the other(s)? How much more are they talking on the phone when they’re not supposed to hang out in person?
• I know Ginny's got her code and all, but I am a true sucker for a friends with benefits plot, especially with some mutual pining on top. Give me anything about Ginny and Mike or Livan or Mike and Livan or all of them together hooking up while trying to keep it a secret and trying to keep a lid on their feelings.
• I've said it before, but I'll stay it again: bodyswap.
• Was it some baseball jinx that got them in this predicament in the first place? Who's swapping bodies and who's trying to figure out what the hell happened or are they all simultaneously both? How do they get back to normal? I don't know, but I'd sure love to hear all about it!
• There's gotta be a lot of downtime, whether they're on the plane or back at the hotel or waiting around during team photoshoots, so what do they do to keep themselves, and everyone else, entertained? More late night phone calls going over strategy that shift into personal issues? Stupid bets that no one really keeps track of (except for when they do)? Long-standing debates that they pick up and drop between innings or at bats?

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Submissions Only
characters: Any; Gail Liner, Aaron Miller, Penny Reilly, Tim Trull

Everything about this little web series was such a delight to me when I first watched it, and it remains that way to this day. It's a bummer it's not available for free anymore (it's on a streaming service called Stage; though the first episode is still up on youtube), but if you watched it when it was, then you also know what a joy it was. As a former (reformed?) theater kid I absolutely couldn't get enough of the insider, if definitely more humorous than cutthroat, view on the auditioning and casting process in the New York theater scene and getting to see what big names they got to cameo. Now, I really have to admire their dedication to not paying royalties; all of those plays and musicals we'll never get to watch! Sidenote: I would 100% pay money to see their version of Mean Girls the Musical and Light Me Up, as well as the Tesla show that would no doubt follow and probably be panned as derivative. But no matter what, I've always loved these characters—Penny's relentlessness in the face of a truly staggering number of (often hilarious) hurdles, Tim's tolerance of her antics not getting in the way of the fact that he's really good at his job, Gail's determination not to be helpful shifting into actual ambition, Aaron's innate talent and charm being undermined by his indecisiveness—and would love for fic of any or all of them to exist.

I enjoy the canon pairings, Penny/Aaron and Tim/Nolan, but I’d also be very into something with Penny/Gail or Gail/whatever weirdo ends up making her embarrassingly happy. Mostly, though, a fic about any one of these characters, either alone or in pretty much any group because even the unexpected ones could make for a good time, would be wonderful!

prompts

• Somewhere down the line—or in the past (Summerstock, anyone?) or as a divergence maybe?—Penny and Aaron get cast in a show together. Is it stunt casting after they've been together a while or had they never gotten together in the first place? Do they stick with the show from workshops all the way to Broadway? Is Penny surprisingly chill about it, or does she get a little neurotic?
• Tell me about any of them running lines together. Does Penny get annoyed with Tim whenever he hams it up too much? What does Gail require in payment to even consider agreeing in the first place? How distracted do Aaron on Penny get when rehearsing a romantic scene?
• Honestly, even though we've seen so many of them, I'm always down to hear more about Gail and Tim’s adventures in casting sessions.
• Does anyone ever top Nolan re: sheer weirdness? Do they take turns or have some other system for deciding who has to talk neurotic actors through their sides? Which songs would they pay never to hear again? How often do they have to break in new (or familiar) readers?
• While I absolutely appreciate these characters as we first see them, the scrappy underdogs of the New York theater scene, I'd also love to see them finding lasting success.
• Do they ever make it to the Drama Desk or Tony Awards as more than seat fillers? Is it a passion project that hits it big or a job they mostly took for the paycheck? Do they ever decide to branch out and try out a new challenge? (Penny as a playwright or Gail getting into directing or Aaron branching into musical theater or Tim taking the stage himself or any number of other possibilities!)
• Who takes their theater superstitions veryseriously? Perhaps too seriously. Or, who's just superstitious—or just insistent on a very specific routine for the hours before an audition or on opening night, thank you—in general? To the point where it's a little too easy to mess with them, not that their friends or loved ones ever would. Is it even one of the actors?

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Last updated on October 25, 2020