rosie_rues

*is hopping in glee* Oh, I think I just fell in love with Remus/Sirius again, all on account of imochan's post of Remus/Sirius love which is pages and pages of gleeful nostalgia for the puppyfic of yesteryear.

And I even wrote a snippet. I haven't written this pairing in years (I was so pissed off with Remus after DH and then life happened and I was offline for months and just slipped away). I could feel the rust flaking off as I wrote, trying to get the voices and the setting and tone back, like I was an old motorbike taking to the air for the first time in years (which is not to say that I haven't written for 18 months because I write every damn day. I just haven't written these boys for so long).

^_________^

Hmm. I seem to have commented on 7.6% of the archive. I feel like I've barely scratched the surface - people, go forth and comment! There's a lot of good stories in there which are low on comments, including some of those below, even though some of them aren't in super-obscure fandoms. Be brave, good readers! There's treasure in them there hills!

Recs in fandoms M-A, in reverse alphabetical order. 31 Recs in 20 fandoms.

( Greek Mythology, Merlin, The Mariners Revenge Song, Eight Cousins, Lorna Hill, Homer, Georgette Heyer, Abhorsen, Fairytales, Malory Towers, Vicky Bliss, Diana Wynne Jones, Honor Harrington, David Eddings, Chaucer, Laputa, Arthurian Legend, Swallows and Amazons, Aladdin, Winnie the Pooh )

First off, I got Archer's Goon fic - The Problem With Being An Older Brother. I was really chuffed with this as the inclusion of this fandom was a very last minute thing because I happened to be reading the book the week that sign-ups happened and was seized by a desperate desire for more Erskine. And more Erskine is what I got - the story is an exploration of Erskine's changing attitudes towards Venturus from his birth to after the book. It's a spot on character piece and well worth a look :) Thank you, anonymous writer ^_^

I wrote five full-length stories and five stocking stuffers (and, yes, I did hide away with a sleep-deprived headache and sleep my way through part of Christmas afternoon). For the fun of it, I'm offering prizes to anyone who guesses any of them. Get one right and I'll write you a snippet for any fandom with any pairing (as long as I've actually read or seen it). Not restricted to Yuletide fandoms - I'll write Remus/Sirius if that's what the winner wants.

( Clues )

As is probably apparent, I'm not writing fics in chronological order. However, the majority of my fics do fit into a coherent universe which, for convenience, I'm referring to as the Rising Storm universe. Therefore, to aid the casual reader, please find a timeline below:

The Rising Storm stories are set in the MWPP era and many of them are Slytherin-centric. Many are gen but I'm not adverse to either het or slash. In this era I stick with Lily/James, Remus/Sirius and Lucius/Narcissa.

Rising Storm Universe

( 1970 )

( 1971 )

( 1972 )

( 1973 )

( 1975 )

( 1976 )

( 1977 )

( 1978 )

( 1979 )

( 1980 )

( 1981 )

( 1993 )

( 1995 )

( 1996 )

( 2001 )

If you read this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, (even if we don't speak often) please post a comment with a COMPLETELY MADE UP AND FICTIONAL memory of you and me. It can be anything you want - good or bad - BUT IT HAS TO BE FAKE. When you're finished, post this little paragraph in your journal and be surprised (or mortified) about what people DON'T ACTUALLY remember about you.

*is curious what people will 'remember'*

Firstly, thank you to Idella for my lovely Venetia snippet.

Secondly, time to confess ^_^ My six stories this year were, in alphabetical order by fandom:

Envying Angels (Arthurian Legend) Galahad tries to resist temptation. Percival is oblivious (or a very wicked ex-farmboy - I couldn't quite decide as I was writing it). This was a Yuletide Treat for Elerrina Rose, and I'm thrilled with the positive response to it. Thank you, everyone :)

Christopher's Elephant (Diana Wynne Jones, Chrestomanci) Short and very silly. This was a Yuletide Treat for Tari. I loved writing this ^_^

The Murder at Missel Hall (Diana Wynne Jones, Chrestomanci) This is the big one, written for Salome. I decided that the most fun I could have with Christopher and his generation was to drop them into the middle of a country house murder mystery. Mummers, mistletoe and Montanas come as extras ^_^

The Paths of the Undying (Diana Wynne Jones, Dalemark) Noticing a theme yet? This was a Yuletide Treat for Temaris. One of the reasons I adore these books so much is the way in which DWJ brings magic into the modern world, especially in the links between the railways and the Undying. I tend to see trains as magical anyway (I have a long, waffle on liminal spaces if anyone's interested), so I wrote about the green roads. And Maewen and Mitt and growing up, but basically it's about journeys.

Running Away (Diana Wynne Jones, Dogsbody) I have to admit that before I tackled this, my only thoughts on Dogsbody fanfic were focussed on a vague desire for Sirius/Sol, but once I started thinking about Kathleen and the way that she's cast adrift at the end of the book, this wrote itself. Brown_Betty wanted something which dealt with that ending, and the request gradually crept under my skin until I had to claim it. In the book, Kathleen seems to be someone who defines herself by her relationships with other people and I wanted to show her working her way towards independence and self-awareness, as much as she can. And writing an adult Robin was fun ^_^ This is my favourite of the six.

Impatience (Tamora Pierce, Tortall) Hee. I still can't believe I wrote this. George/Jonathan for Tracy. I was intending to make it fight!sex, but George was too mature. This was fun, in a omg-my-childhood! way.

Thank you to everyone who commented on these :) I'm so glad I got to play in Yuletide this year. I'm looking forward to the next one!

(Oh, and I also wrote The Reality Checkpoint for penhaligonblue for rs_small_gifts. It's a missing scene from Winter of Discontent, set in Cambridge).

...has anyone else out there read Ali Sparkes' Shapeshifter series? Because I've just finished the fifth one, and whilst the first four had slashy potential, this one was heaving with it. I'm just a little loath to start churning out fic that no one else is likely to read.

If not, take this as a recommendation. They're fun kids' adventure books about a boy with the power to turn into a fox. He gets taken off to a school full of other children with bizarre powers. There's sinister government conspiracies, long-lost twins, evil triplets, intrepid journalists, pyrokinetics, and a reluctant medium. And for the slash-minded, our hero has an increasingly intense relationship with his mentor, sulks when his best mate pays more attention to someone else and spends the school disco obsessing about the way his camper-than-fanon-Draco arch-rival is getting lots of attention from the girls (but, it's okay, they're huddling up for warmth a few chapters later). They're not great literature, but they're fun and all the characters, even minor ones, are well drawn.

And more! Including the best Neverwhere fic I've ever read.

( Runaways, Ballet Shoes, Neverwhere, Vorkosigan, Oz )

So, I've been busy pinch-hitting for rs_small_gifts. Is there anyone out there who has already received their gift who would be willing to read through 1500-ish words of light-hearted R/S as soon as possible?

*puppy-dog eyes* Please?

Oh, and the yuletide guessing game is still going.

I have a story!!

I wasn't sure if I would get anything, because pinch-hitters requests only went up yesterday, but I've got a small and perfect little piece of Georgette Heyer fic. The character voices are spot on, and it's just the right degree of naughty for the two involved.

Practical Considerations (Venetia/Damerel, PG-13).

Thank you, mystery author!

*dances*