2020 Dear Yuletide Author Letter
Oct. 22nd, 2020 09:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scribblinlenoreThank you for writing for me! I included specific notes about each fandom in my nomination, so here's a little bit about my general preferences.
I have a very broad range of enjoyment when it comes to stories. I like slash (both dudes and ladies), het and gen, and I will happily read any rating. I love relationship stories that show the deepening sense of intimacy between two people, whether it's a romance or a friendship. I also adore plotty stories, casefiles, action/adventure, future fic, backstory, and my great love for fan fiction cliches never dies! I appreciate angst in a story, especially if the source material really calls for it, but I also enjoy when a story ends on a hopeful note.
In these dark days, I do find myself turning to some recurring themes in what I'm watching and reading, if any of these spark inspiration: the comfort of friendship (especially female friendship), found families, magic and fairy tales, personal transformation, nature and spiritual rejuvenation, finding the unexpected in yourself.
A few things I'm not really into are: non-con and dub-con, as well as graphic violence and gore if they are out of keeping with the source material. I'd prefer not to receive a crossover or a totally non-canonical AU. However, I’m cool with canon-divergence AUs.
Ondine (2009)
Annie, Ondine, Syracuse
There are so many things I love about this movie: how Ondine and Syracuse are both so lost until they find each other, the charming and precocious Annie, the hopeful message that it's never too late to turn your life around and become a better version of yourself, the realistic portrayal of change as hard work, Syracuse, Ondine and Annie becoming a family, and of course the lovely fairytale quality of the story with the selkie lore threaded throughout.
I would love a story that focuses on the three of them as family. Maybe it's the first meal they take together or the day of Syracuse and Ondine's wedding or years in the future when they are sending Annie off to university or it's Annie's wedding day. It would be interesting to see how outsider Ondine fits into small-town life. Or it would be great to see an exploration of how all three lives change now that Annie has a second chance at health.
In these difficult days, I find myself turning to certain recurring themes in what I'm watching and reading, if any of these spark inspiration: the comfort of friendship (especially female friendship), found families, fairy tales and magic, personal transof
The one thing that wasn't completely satisfying to me about the film was the resolution to the delightful tension of, "could Ondine possibly actually be a selkie?" I would have loved that little niggle of doubt to remain. I would be thrilled beyond belief if you found a way to rethread selkie lore through their story.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)
Guinevere Pettigrew, Delysia Lafosse
In these difficult days, I’ve been leaning heavily on my favorite comfort movies and have watched Miss Pettigrew three times since March. I adore so many things about this film: the screwball-esque energy, the fairy-tale for adults style story, gorgeous costumes, and wonderful performances. But what brings me back again and again is the personal transformation that both Guinevere and Delysia undergo as a result of the friendship between them.
When we first meet Guinevere, she is dirty, drab, unloved, out of work and out of luck. In the course of her day with Delysia, she gets a makeover and a new wardrobe, sure, but the real transformation is moving beyond the narrowness of her prim upbringing as a vicar’s daughter, putting moralistic judgment aside, realizing just how much she and Delysia have in common despite initial appearances, engaging with a wider world, and in the process finding a new sense of self-assurance and understanding of the people around her.
When we first meet Delysia, she’s driving herself to distraction trying to balance all the men she’s juggling in an effort to keep herself on the stage and off the streets. Through the steadiness of Guinevere’s friendship and support, she comes to the realization that she doesn’t have to twist and contort herself trying to be all things to all people. She learns to draw on her own inner resources and comes away with the understanding that it’s okay to be herself while still pursuing her passion for performing.
I would love a story that further explores the power of the connection between these two amazing women. Maybe it’s a look ahead at how their friendship evolves. Does Delysia get her big break and Guinevere is there for opening night? Does Guinevere go through a difficult time and Delysia turns up to help her through it? Do they trade letters over the years? Do they end their days together, living in a cottage by the sea and running the village’s amateur theatrical troupe?
Or maybe it’s a missing scene from their day together. Do they get manicures and exchange more confidences about their pasts? Does Guinevere show Delysia her favorite spots in the city? Or maybe Delysia finally figures out that it’s been a while since Guinevere had a solid meal and takes her out for an extravagant lunch on Nick’s dime. For me, there’s a romantic quality to their friendship. If you don’t share that, no problem! But if you do, maybe Delysia teaches Guinevere to dance. Maybe there’s a stolen kiss, a moment of intimacy, a sensual encounter.
Whatever your take on their relationship, whether platonic or romantic, I will be so happy to read more about these two awesome ladies!
Chocolat (2000)
Vianne Rocher, Josephine Muscat, Anouk Rocher
I also rewatched this recently, also one of my comfort movies, and you may be sensing some of those themes I mentioned emerging in my requests. My favorite part of this movie is Josephine ginning up the courage to leave her lout of a husband, turning to Vianne, the one person she can count on to help her, rediscovering what it means to be happy and, in the process, discovering who she is as an individual and what she really wants.
I adore all the domestic scenes in the movie of Josephine, Vianne, and Anouk. If you want to write more of these little moments, I’d love to read it! Maybe Vianne tries to teach Josephine how to see what kind of chocolate is a person’s favorite. Or the three of them linger over dinner/dessert one night, and Vianne and Anouk share stories about their travels and their adventures. Or maybe Josephine has distressing dreams, and Vianne helps her interpret them in a way that makes them less scary. Or tell me what it means to each of these three—Vianne, Josephine, and Anouk—to have found home at last.
If your imagination turns toward the future, then by all means tell me a story that happens after the movie ends! How do things change over the years? How do Vianne and Josephine feel watching as Anouk grows up, perhaps goes off to school or marries, or belatedly finds a sense of wanderlust in her soul and strikes out on her own? How does the friendship between Vianne and Josephine develop and deepen? How do they continue to support one another as independent women and business owners? How are their lives still intertwined? Are there more moments when it feels as if magic is at work?
I do find the tie between them romantic and sensual. If you wanted to write about their first kiss or one of them making an awkward confession of love or their life as partners in this small town where everyone knows everything about everybody, I would read it with pleasure! But I would also be thrilled with a story that examines their platonic friendship and the richness it brings to their lives. Just give me more of this wonderful found family!
Ready or Not (2019)
Grace Le Domas, Daniel Le Domas
I watched this movie for the first time this year during spooky season, and as soon as I finished it, I started hitting up AO3 for stories about these two. There is just something about them. I would read all the words!
If your inclination is for shippy fix-it fic, I’m right there with you. There are a lot of time-loop takes on fixing it in this fandom—I know, because I have read them all—and my official position on this sort of story is: there cannot be too many! So if this is where inspiration takes you, I will happily follow.
Other ideas…maybe Daniel woos Grace away from his brother before the timeframe of the film, and they run away together and, I don’t know, become supernatural hunters or something. Or maybe the two of them find a way to break the family’s deal with the devil and, in the process, also find that they love each other. Or what if it’s a Ghost-like story, and spirit-Daniel becomes Grace’s lifelong companion, watching over and protecting her? Or maybe there’s a A Good Place vibe to it, and they meet again following Grace’s death and make an afterlife together.
Of course, just because I ship it, doesn’t mean you do, and if that’s the case, it’s totally cool. There are SO many stories I’d love to read about these two as friends, family, or partners in doing the right thing. Maybe you’d like to tell me what Grace and Daniel think of each other when they first meet? Or more about Daniel’s decision to help Grace when he knows what he’s risking? What if Daniel told Grace the family secret before the wedding? Or what might have happened if Grace had drawn a different card? Would she and Daniel have teamed up to break the deal or perhaps they help some other unfortunate soul who marries into the family and draws the one bad card?
This canon is steeped in violence and gore, so if it makes sense to include it in your story, I’m totally fine with that. Just give me more of these two, and I will be very happy!
I have a very broad range of enjoyment when it comes to stories. I like slash (both dudes and ladies), het and gen, and I will happily read any rating. I love relationship stories that show the deepening sense of intimacy between two people, whether it's a romance or a friendship. I also adore plotty stories, casefiles, action/adventure, future fic, backstory, and my great love for fan fiction cliches never dies! I appreciate angst in a story, especially if the source material really calls for it, but I also enjoy when a story ends on a hopeful note.
In these dark days, I do find myself turning to some recurring themes in what I'm watching and reading, if any of these spark inspiration: the comfort of friendship (especially female friendship), found families, magic and fairy tales, personal transformation, nature and spiritual rejuvenation, finding the unexpected in yourself.
A few things I'm not really into are: non-con and dub-con, as well as graphic violence and gore if they are out of keeping with the source material. I'd prefer not to receive a crossover or a totally non-canonical AU. However, I’m cool with canon-divergence AUs.
Ondine (2009)
Annie, Ondine, Syracuse
There are so many things I love about this movie: how Ondine and Syracuse are both so lost until they find each other, the charming and precocious Annie, the hopeful message that it's never too late to turn your life around and become a better version of yourself, the realistic portrayal of change as hard work, Syracuse, Ondine and Annie becoming a family, and of course the lovely fairytale quality of the story with the selkie lore threaded throughout.
I would love a story that focuses on the three of them as family. Maybe it's the first meal they take together or the day of Syracuse and Ondine's wedding or years in the future when they are sending Annie off to university or it's Annie's wedding day. It would be interesting to see how outsider Ondine fits into small-town life. Or it would be great to see an exploration of how all three lives change now that Annie has a second chance at health.
In these difficult days, I find myself turning to certain recurring themes in what I'm watching and reading, if any of these spark inspiration: the comfort of friendship (especially female friendship), found families, fairy tales and magic, personal transof
The one thing that wasn't completely satisfying to me about the film was the resolution to the delightful tension of, "could Ondine possibly actually be a selkie?" I would have loved that little niggle of doubt to remain. I would be thrilled beyond belief if you found a way to rethread selkie lore through their story.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)
Guinevere Pettigrew, Delysia Lafosse
In these difficult days, I’ve been leaning heavily on my favorite comfort movies and have watched Miss Pettigrew three times since March. I adore so many things about this film: the screwball-esque energy, the fairy-tale for adults style story, gorgeous costumes, and wonderful performances. But what brings me back again and again is the personal transformation that both Guinevere and Delysia undergo as a result of the friendship between them.
When we first meet Guinevere, she is dirty, drab, unloved, out of work and out of luck. In the course of her day with Delysia, she gets a makeover and a new wardrobe, sure, but the real transformation is moving beyond the narrowness of her prim upbringing as a vicar’s daughter, putting moralistic judgment aside, realizing just how much she and Delysia have in common despite initial appearances, engaging with a wider world, and in the process finding a new sense of self-assurance and understanding of the people around her.
When we first meet Delysia, she’s driving herself to distraction trying to balance all the men she’s juggling in an effort to keep herself on the stage and off the streets. Through the steadiness of Guinevere’s friendship and support, she comes to the realization that she doesn’t have to twist and contort herself trying to be all things to all people. She learns to draw on her own inner resources and comes away with the understanding that it’s okay to be herself while still pursuing her passion for performing.
I would love a story that further explores the power of the connection between these two amazing women. Maybe it’s a look ahead at how their friendship evolves. Does Delysia get her big break and Guinevere is there for opening night? Does Guinevere go through a difficult time and Delysia turns up to help her through it? Do they trade letters over the years? Do they end their days together, living in a cottage by the sea and running the village’s amateur theatrical troupe?
Or maybe it’s a missing scene from their day together. Do they get manicures and exchange more confidences about their pasts? Does Guinevere show Delysia her favorite spots in the city? Or maybe Delysia finally figures out that it’s been a while since Guinevere had a solid meal and takes her out for an extravagant lunch on Nick’s dime. For me, there’s a romantic quality to their friendship. If you don’t share that, no problem! But if you do, maybe Delysia teaches Guinevere to dance. Maybe there’s a stolen kiss, a moment of intimacy, a sensual encounter.
Whatever your take on their relationship, whether platonic or romantic, I will be so happy to read more about these two awesome ladies!
Chocolat (2000)
Vianne Rocher, Josephine Muscat, Anouk Rocher
I also rewatched this recently, also one of my comfort movies, and you may be sensing some of those themes I mentioned emerging in my requests. My favorite part of this movie is Josephine ginning up the courage to leave her lout of a husband, turning to Vianne, the one person she can count on to help her, rediscovering what it means to be happy and, in the process, discovering who she is as an individual and what she really wants.
I adore all the domestic scenes in the movie of Josephine, Vianne, and Anouk. If you want to write more of these little moments, I’d love to read it! Maybe Vianne tries to teach Josephine how to see what kind of chocolate is a person’s favorite. Or the three of them linger over dinner/dessert one night, and Vianne and Anouk share stories about their travels and their adventures. Or maybe Josephine has distressing dreams, and Vianne helps her interpret them in a way that makes them less scary. Or tell me what it means to each of these three—Vianne, Josephine, and Anouk—to have found home at last.
If your imagination turns toward the future, then by all means tell me a story that happens after the movie ends! How do things change over the years? How do Vianne and Josephine feel watching as Anouk grows up, perhaps goes off to school or marries, or belatedly finds a sense of wanderlust in her soul and strikes out on her own? How does the friendship between Vianne and Josephine develop and deepen? How do they continue to support one another as independent women and business owners? How are their lives still intertwined? Are there more moments when it feels as if magic is at work?
I do find the tie between them romantic and sensual. If you wanted to write about their first kiss or one of them making an awkward confession of love or their life as partners in this small town where everyone knows everything about everybody, I would read it with pleasure! But I would also be thrilled with a story that examines their platonic friendship and the richness it brings to their lives. Just give me more of this wonderful found family!
Ready or Not (2019)
Grace Le Domas, Daniel Le Domas
I watched this movie for the first time this year during spooky season, and as soon as I finished it, I started hitting up AO3 for stories about these two. There is just something about them. I would read all the words!
If your inclination is for shippy fix-it fic, I’m right there with you. There are a lot of time-loop takes on fixing it in this fandom—I know, because I have read them all—and my official position on this sort of story is: there cannot be too many! So if this is where inspiration takes you, I will happily follow.
Other ideas…maybe Daniel woos Grace away from his brother before the timeframe of the film, and they run away together and, I don’t know, become supernatural hunters or something. Or maybe the two of them find a way to break the family’s deal with the devil and, in the process, also find that they love each other. Or what if it’s a Ghost-like story, and spirit-Daniel becomes Grace’s lifelong companion, watching over and protecting her? Or maybe there’s a A Good Place vibe to it, and they meet again following Grace’s death and make an afterlife together.
Of course, just because I ship it, doesn’t mean you do, and if that’s the case, it’s totally cool. There are SO many stories I’d love to read about these two as friends, family, or partners in doing the right thing. Maybe you’d like to tell me what Grace and Daniel think of each other when they first meet? Or more about Daniel’s decision to help Grace when he knows what he’s risking? What if Daniel told Grace the family secret before the wedding? Or what might have happened if Grace had drawn a different card? Would she and Daniel have teamed up to break the deal or perhaps they help some other unfortunate soul who marries into the family and draws the one bad card?
This canon is steeped in violence and gore, so if it makes sense to include it in your story, I’m totally fine with that. Just give me more of these two, and I will be very happy!