kormantic

Aloha, kids!

This year, I was the ghost behind two Yule stories:

a land of ice and snow, a little holiday fluff for Nimona. The best line is not mine, but directly lifted from last year's holiday special! If you have somehow never heard of Nimona, it is clever and funny and beautiful to look at - read it all instantly! Happy Holidays, volta_arovet!

Incunabula is a crossover of Lord Peter (Sayers)+ Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel (Clarke). I fear the footnotes perhaps got a little out of hand. I will say that I have never been so intimidated by a Yule request! Baby's first Yuletide + classical education + globe-trotting + mad skills = meep! I hope I did cantsleeptemplarswillgetme proud.

While browsing the stacks, I came across some true delights, many of which I'm sure you've seen elsewhere - I've hardly had time to scratch the surface of Yuletide this year!:

Hello Operator, Give Me Number Nine. Susie Derkins plays Calvinball with death. It's got that Yuletide magic: a story you'd never have imagined, but familiar and right, just the same.

Of Buttons and Bayonettes: A Small History of the Great War. Lord Peter (Sayers). Peter and Bunter in the trenches. This story is an absolute jewel; head and shoulders above mine in every way: the horrors of war, the loyalty of good men, bittersweet but lovely as to make tears stand in your eyes.

Damask Roses. Code Name Verity. Jesus, this fandom keeps punching me in the heart. But Maddie keeps flying.

Brooklyn Nine Nine brought the girl on girl this year, and these are the standouts: It's Ladies Night (And the Feeling's Right) superfun casefic with great Amy/Rosa chemistry and a distinct lack of tutus has sterling Amy and the sass of the show right down - ditto for Based on the Evidence - I can see Amy's dismissive/pouty little face during the car scene where Rosa reminds everyone she has a boyfriend. Ha!

A little bit of Betty from Dead Like Me: Leap Before You Look - nice to see a glimpse of blink-and-you'll-miss-her bubbly Betty.

This Scandal story *kills* it: it's got the banter and the subtle power plays in every conversation Cyrus and Olivia have. This is Only a Test.

Delete Selected Email? This is, so far, my hands down Yule favorite not written specifically for me this year. Oh my god. Based on Mallory Ortberg's blogpost "The Rage of Jonathan Franzen", so read that first to prime yourself, and then continue to weep tears of laughter as you soak in the follow-up. Believe me, this is an instant fandom that will bring you great joy.

Dear Yuletide Santa,

I already love everything about my story, because you will work hard to make me something for me and me alone. You are made of magic beans! Although I am also fond of stories so beautiful and sad that I have to rest my head and cry, I would prefer a hopeful, cheery story that leaves everyone in a cozy moment.

My yuletide leanings tend to be gen, but this year I’ve got a yen for some Raven Boys. Suggestive rather than explicit would be preferred, but go with your gut. And if you ARE feeling gen-y, backstory on the half-aunts ahoy!

If Maggie Stiefvater isn’t in your wheelhouse, perhaps a trip to Pawnee, Indiana would better suit you? That town is made of hugs and puppy parties, man. I would be excited out of my mind for anything from Leslie and the gang, but if you could focus on Donna and Tom friendship, that would be the bee’s knees.

If you’re feeling gritty this holiday season, maybe Tana French and her Dublin Murder Squad is your cuppa. Dig up an old case, or put them on the scent of a new one – I’m oddly fond of Scorcher, but Frank is always exhilarating, and Cassie has her own past and Lexie’s to revisit...

I enjoyed The Wolverine possibly more than it deserved, but Yukio is worth anyone’s time, and Yukio hanging out and fighting crime with Logan would be a blast.

If you want a fixer-upper, 49 Days jogged to the left just at the end, and I bawled my freakin’ eyes out. KISS IT BETTER, PLEASE.

Slings and Arrows is still a darling of my heart, and whenever I’m home sick I watch it again. Although I have suggested Parks and Rec/Drunk History, I imagine that Slings and Arrows/Drunk History would also be a worthy topic. Or, again, the cast of Slings and Arrows in a jaeger. Because. Come on. THE SPEECHES. The teams! Geoffrey and Darren? Anna and Richard? (Or better still, Anna and Nehum!) Kate and Jack? Ellen and Sloan? And Oliver tormenting Geoffrey in the drift! Ah ha ha ha ha!!

For a summary of my actual requests, see below:

Parks and Recreation

I love comedy and friendship and I would love to see Tom and Donna tearing it up in any location, but possibly:
In New York for Fashion Week
On a private jet going to some exotic locale
On a yacht!, motherfucker
... in a jaeger? SO DRIFT COMPATIBLE (WHAT IS THEIR JAEGER CALLED - also Leslie and Ann being drift compatible, to poor Ben's consternation and their jaeger is called Best Team Friendship Unicorn FOREVER - but it's totally Ben and Chris on Team Good Cop/Bad Cop, April and Andy as Sonic Death Mule… *ahem* obvs your suggestions would be paramount.)

Alternately:
Crossover of Parks and Recreation with Drunk History? SO MANY POSSIBILITIES


Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater

Book Two opened the doors WIDE. Also, Kavinsky has Ronan's number. Also, 'Just the way you like it, fast and anonymous.' I mean. Dang.

Also Noah? Can Ronan dream him alive again? Can Ronon/Adam dream him alive again? Maybe there could be. Ghost Sex/Threesomes? Um. yes. Adam's 18 and technically, Noah's in his mid-twenties!
Ronan/Adam: both with ridiculous power, both angry and so broken, always fighting and making up off camera. After Kavinsky, and Adam and Blue are no longer a possibility, who moves first?

Alternately:
ANYTHING about any/all the half-aunts! How they met, roomed together, flashbacks to Puppy and/or all the women of the house and their pasts, romantic and otherwise.


Dublin Murder Squad Series - Tana French

I would like to see more of anyone from the French books, in any setting you would like. I'd like to see more of Scorcher, post-Broken Harbour, but I'm a bit intrigued by the idea of Cassie haunting 'Lexie's' life - visiting her other hides and being mistaken for Lexie again and again by the people she knew. Maybe telling them Lexie was dead, penance for her ghost, maybe just... slipping back into one of Lexie's other lives and starting fresh.


The Wolverine (2013)

Yukio and Logan fighting crime: Noir AU? Jaeger Pilots? Yukio setting Logan up on dates with women in their 40s? Yukio and Logan driving an ambulance? Yukio and Logan being pals and doing junk.

Alternately:
All Yukio All The Time; I anticipate this one would be heavier on People I Have Prophesied Death For angle. Try to make it hopeful somehow, if at all possible


49 Days

OMG just fixxxxxxxx thisssssss holy rhinestoned Elvis, where did my pastel Hits of the Adult Contemporary 80s romcom go? Bring Shin Ji Hyun back from the dead and make some people happy! Those last episode twists need to be combed back into a shiny ponytail. (Also: SCHEDULER IS SO DREAMY I LUFF HEEM.)


Slings & Arrows

Basically, I love Anna and Geoffrey as pals. Anything you like, along with anyone else in the cast (hee hee hee ELLEN). Early days hangouts or Post-series with bonus Nehum/Anna if you've got it in your pocket. Would also adore Darren Nichols anything (the corduroy jacket with PUFFED SLEEVES, 'dress it up in sequins and make it sing', oh, DARREN ::swoon::)

Happy Yuletide Writing, kids! (I'm going to be writing something ambitious this year, by crackey!)

The Duke's Daughters (or: Overture, King Lear)
Princess Tutu
Once upon a time there was a king who had three daughters. Which of the daughters really deserved his kingdom?

An excellent and atmospheric echo of the show, both its aesthetic and its themes. As ever, Duck's sweet nature and good heart save the day, inspiring a puppet to pull against her strings.

three drops of blood
Fairy Tales & Related Fandoms
slash of blood against snow and who would wish for a child
"red as blood"—pretty words,
but the daughter suffers.
--Lightsey Darst, "[Snow White]"

The Queen has her tale. The Court has another.

Bittersweet, strange and fascinating. Another feminist take on Snow White with an intriguing twist on the Evil Stepmother.

Keep Your Head Down
Michael Bublé Being Stalked By A Velociraptor (Tumblr)
Scenes from Michael Bublé's Crazy Love tour.

I don't know if anyone needs more reason to read this than the fandom existing at all. But Terry Gross kinds of steals the show.

For I Have Put Away Childish Things
Prometheus (2012)
"That's the real bitch of being alive."/ "You get to choose what you do with it."

While I have insisted in this very journal that Prometheus was both Spectacular and Spectacularly bad, Fassbender was amazing and this is an exceptional meditation on what it means to be human, and the people who make us who we are, both literally and figuratively.

Best Marks Go to Cheaters and Memorizers
Mad Men
Peggy, Ken, and how they got that pact they have in season 5.

Yuletide is made of these singular, glorious, small moments. This story does exactly what fanfic should: it uses the characters to turn a light on in a dark corner, and lets us catch the glimpse of them we missed.

starting out on a journey
Last Unicorn - Peter S. Beagle
Shmendrick the Magician makes amends.

As delicate and practical and joyous as the book could be. A story as incandescent, perfect and rare as a unicorn. I worry that this will be overlooked because the author somehow placed her notes in the summary section and the title's not much to go on, but sincerely, this is a classic.

Legacy
Slings & Arrows
Geoffrey and Jack's friendship over the years.

A story with enveloping charm, as rich as the show itself, and as kind. I can't say I ever had any thoughts about Jack and Geoffrey remaining in contact in any way, but this sort of "kid brother makes good and calls his big bro for advice" is pitch perfect, with thoughtful details right down to the removable thrust. Just fucking DAZZLING stuff, long and immersive with glorious voices. Read it this very moment!

remember this when you are queen
Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)
Snow White took the throne. But there are many ways of being a woman with power, and it takes more time to be recognized as a true ruler.

This fixed every single problem I had with the movie - and actually doesn't need the movie at all to work as a brilliantly realized feminist take on what it is to be a queen (and a role model!) and to use the tools available to you in every way you can. It gave me fucking ::chills!::

Time in a Klein Bottle Back to the Future (Movies)
Just as Marty was ready to head out the door, he stopped, thinking about that day five years ago. They had tripped through the future and the past, and he couldn't help but remember everything that could have-- no, everything that really did go wrong. He tore off a page of printer paper and scribbled a note to Jennifer. He left it on his desk, but with any luck, he'd be back before anyone knew he was gone. Unless something went wrong, of course, and then he wouldn't be back at all.

A rather charming little gen piece about sciency bro-times in 1945. For the record, when I read this it had 88 hits. (g)

A Perfect Sonnet
My So-Called Life
Five inopportune moments, plus one that's worth waiting for.

Thoughtful, hopeful, bittersweet and kind-hearted, just like the show.

A Touch of Frost
Black Books
In which Black Books gets festive, everyone gets drunk, and Manny gets Snowman's Nipple.

A perfect Black Books Christmas for anyone who was hoping for a karate sabre-wielding octopus
this year.

I'll Break My Staff, I'll Drown My Book
The Changeover - Margaret Mahy
Twelve years later it's Jacko's turn. Laura and Sorensen have carved out a nice little life for themselves, and baby brother Jacko's having nightmares that are true dreams. But Jacko wants no part of what Laura became.

Mahy died this year, but Yuletide holds a breath of her still in this very fine story.

let's collect our memories like diamonds in the dark
Dublin Murder Squad Series - Tana French, In the Woods - Tana French
It was inevitable, really, that they were going to meet again.

Pages from the book, I know it. What a scouring but strangely satisfying interlude - because there can never really be an ending for these two. Gorgeously done.

Three Kisses Bunter received - and one he gave right willingly
Lord Peter Wimsey - Dorothy L. Sayers
Bunter is a popular gentleman.

Lovely Bunter backstory with exquisite style and perfect tone.

The Affair of the Blanched Bibliomane
Lord Peter Wimsey - Dorothy L. Sayers
The auction room was crowded with the royalty of the book world, but no-one present claimed any knowledge of Mr. D. Bredon. His sale had appeared out of nowhere, a lightning strike to the bibliophilic heart of London. Most attendees there were eager to buy, all were ready to gossip, and a few were there because they found the timing nothing short of suspicious.

Elegant book mystery with top notch style! I feel as though this story will also establish a Miss da Costa Green fandom? Because she sounds like quite the firecracker.

You Make Me Feel Like Bobby Brown in the Early 90's
Parks and Recreation
Even though it’s snowing, Jean-Ralphio’s got on a ridiculous v-neck beneath a blazer and as she watches, a flurry of snow lights on a curly q of chest hair, melts and disappears into his skin.

It takes almost that long for Donna to realize she’s staring.

Donna/Jean-Ralphio? Donna/Jean-Ralphio! And it WORKS. A yuletide story from 2011.

new business idea: sushi shaped like mustaches
Parks and Recreation
Tom takes waking up in Ron's body much better than Ron takes waking up in Tom's (woman-smelling silk sheet encased) body.

Also from last year, but BODYSWAP and fun as heck.

The Last Magic
Dark Is Rising Sequence - Susan Cooper
Jane grows up.

Superb Jane story, evocative and fragile as memory.

In the Dark Hours of the Morning
Code Name Verity - Elizabeth Wein
What might have happened at the Moon Squadron Aerodrome, and what certainly happened after.
A missing passage from Verity's account. Spoilers for all of Code Name Verity.

Heart-twisting and lovely.

Every year I totally win ALL the Yuletides, and this year is no exception.

My present?

Oh, it's just an Adventure Time/Parks and Recreation crossover BODYSWAP with LSP and Donna Meagle. No big. EXCEPT IT IS IT IS THE GREATEST YOU GUYS IT IS SO SO GOOD YOU HAVE TO READ IT

Wish Orbs Are Serious Lumping Business; Or, Donna Meagle Gets a Concussion

LSP, natch. Donna, killing it. Tom, adorbs. Leslie, JJ's Diner All-Star Waffle Eater since 1997.

Everything about this story is the best. Read it and know it is so!!