Fanfiction in Review: 2013
If it wasn’t for the wonderful castleland community, I may have ceased writing altogether in early 2013, but the supportive community of Castle fans kept the muses on task.
These are the five stories written (and posted) in 2013:
1. Secret Agent Man (Castle): The man who would become known as Jackson Hunt stood from his seat and approached the woman who would change his life. (Jackson Hunt, PG-13, SPOILERS: Target, Hunt , prequel to trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight)
2. trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight (Castle): (Martha Rogers, PG-13, SPOILERS: Target, Hunt , sequel to Secret Agent Man)
3. The Progression of a Relationship (Or, Kate and Rick, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G) (Castle): Today, of all days, is just window-dressing for the promise they’ve already made to each other: Always. (Castle/Becket, PG-13)
4. to the edge of all the light you have (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.): Throughout her childhood and most of her adolescence, Melinda’s parents, teachers, and role models told her: Ladies do not pick fights. In college, former SRR agent Margaret Carter told Melinda, “Ladies finish them.” (Melinda May, PG-13, written pre-series)
5. Shelter (Stargate: Atlantis): “Don’t finish that sentence, Colonel,” she said sternly, amusement sparkling in her eyes. “Or I will be forced to pelt you with a snowball.” (John/Elizabeth, PG)
Favorite Story This Year: Secret Agent Man was originally written was a response to a list of challenge prompts. I had been horribly stuck with writer’s block until I started listing to “Secret Agent Man” and everything clicked. The story of how an actual Cold War spy had a (presumably) one-night stand with a young actress is an intriguing and complicated one. It was also a lovely chance to do a bit of a character exploration about what kind of man would give up everything for his country, even his family, and the reasons behind his decisions.
Best Story This Year: For many reasons, to the edge of all the light you have is dear to my heart. I am an Asian-American daughter who hopes to become a U.S. diplomat one day, and I have struggled to explain my decision to my parents. What kind of childhood would have shaped a character like Melinda May into joining SHIELD as a terrifyingly, competent secret agent and how in the world would she have explained it to her parents? The answer was the semi-non sequitur that Melinda was a cellist instead of a violinist, and from there, the story wrote itself.
I posted the story mere hours before the series premiere…and then was promptly shocked by how well I had managed to capture Melinda May’s personality and her relationship dynamic with Phil Coulson. I didn’t plan it that way, I swear!
Most Fun Story This Year: The Progression of a Relationship (Or, Kate and Rick, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G) was my ‘thank you’ letter to castleland and the wonderful community I was a part of for too brief a time. I loved the challenge of each different writing medium, and then I thought, “Hey, why don’t I make them all related to each other (because this isn’t hard enough already for my prose-only brain)? XD” but I had a blast and I am so very happy with the result. I also continued the whole “Let’s have one-on-one family reunions with Grandpa Castle!” saga because one day, I will make that man show up to a dinner party with all family members present instead of lurking in the shadows, dangit.
Hardest Story to Write: trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight and Shelter share this not-so-coveted spot for 2013. For trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight, I had an incredibly difficult time trying to figure out what I wanted to write for the castleland challenge and when inspiration finally struck… I had about three hours to the deadline. Write, write like the wind! XD It was also hard to figure out Martha’s reaction to her one-night-lover/father-of-her-child showing up out of the blue - would the grande dame forgive him or slap him?
I struggled to find the right headspace to write Shelter as a warm, romantic holiday romp instead of… anything else. John Sheppard and Elizabeth Weir don’t have an easy time of it, to put it mildly, in canon and I wanted to write something that was cheerful and upbeat. It was a struggle, but I finally managed to get a story out on paper that I wasn’t tempted to immediately burn in a Bonfire of Shame.
Easiest Story to Write: While writing to the edge of all the light you have started off slow, once I was able to sit down and focus, the story wrote itself. It was a combination of probably identifying a bit too strong with my version of Melinda May and being incredibly excited for the Agents of SHIELD premiere. I was so happy to be able to post right before I settled down for the first episode (and incredibly grateful for my awesome beta who read the story in record time).
Future Plans for 2014: There are so many stories that I want to finish, many of them in the Stargate Atlantis and Sherlock folders. Of course, there is a strong likelihood that I will be writing Agents of SHIELD very soon…Too many plot tribbles and not enough time!
These are the five stories written (and posted) in 2013:
1. Secret Agent Man (Castle): The man who would become known as Jackson Hunt stood from his seat and approached the woman who would change his life. (Jackson Hunt, PG-13, SPOILERS: Target, Hunt , prequel to trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight)
2. trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight (Castle): (Martha Rogers, PG-13, SPOILERS: Target, Hunt , sequel to Secret Agent Man)
3. The Progression of a Relationship (Or, Kate and Rick, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G) (Castle): Today, of all days, is just window-dressing for the promise they’ve already made to each other: Always. (Castle/Becket, PG-13)
4. to the edge of all the light you have (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.): Throughout her childhood and most of her adolescence, Melinda’s parents, teachers, and role models told her: Ladies do not pick fights. In college, former SRR agent Margaret Carter told Melinda, “Ladies finish them.” (Melinda May, PG-13, written pre-series)
5. Shelter (Stargate: Atlantis): “Don’t finish that sentence, Colonel,” she said sternly, amusement sparkling in her eyes. “Or I will be forced to pelt you with a snowball.” (John/Elizabeth, PG)
Favorite Story This Year: Secret Agent Man was originally written was a response to a list of challenge prompts. I had been horribly stuck with writer’s block until I started listing to “Secret Agent Man” and everything clicked. The story of how an actual Cold War spy had a (presumably) one-night stand with a young actress is an intriguing and complicated one. It was also a lovely chance to do a bit of a character exploration about what kind of man would give up everything for his country, even his family, and the reasons behind his decisions.
Best Story This Year: For many reasons, to the edge of all the light you have is dear to my heart. I am an Asian-American daughter who hopes to become a U.S. diplomat one day, and I have struggled to explain my decision to my parents. What kind of childhood would have shaped a character like Melinda May into joining SHIELD as a terrifyingly, competent secret agent and how in the world would she have explained it to her parents? The answer was the semi-non sequitur that Melinda was a cellist instead of a violinist, and from there, the story wrote itself.
I posted the story mere hours before the series premiere…and then was promptly shocked by how well I had managed to capture Melinda May’s personality and her relationship dynamic with Phil Coulson. I didn’t plan it that way, I swear!
Most Fun Story This Year: The Progression of a Relationship (Or, Kate and Rick, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G) was my ‘thank you’ letter to castleland and the wonderful community I was a part of for too brief a time. I loved the challenge of each different writing medium, and then I thought, “Hey, why don’t I make them all related to each other (because this isn’t hard enough already for my prose-only brain)? XD” but I had a blast and I am so very happy with the result. I also continued the whole “Let’s have one-on-one family reunions with Grandpa Castle!” saga because one day, I will make that man show up to a dinner party with all family members present instead of lurking in the shadows, dangit.
Hardest Story to Write: trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight and Shelter share this not-so-coveted spot for 2013. For trumpets are sounding in the distance tonight, I had an incredibly difficult time trying to figure out what I wanted to write for the castleland challenge and when inspiration finally struck… I had about three hours to the deadline. Write, write like the wind! XD It was also hard to figure out Martha’s reaction to her one-night-lover/father-of-her-child showing up out of the blue - would the grande dame forgive him or slap him?
I struggled to find the right headspace to write Shelter as a warm, romantic holiday romp instead of… anything else. John Sheppard and Elizabeth Weir don’t have an easy time of it, to put it mildly, in canon and I wanted to write something that was cheerful and upbeat. It was a struggle, but I finally managed to get a story out on paper that I wasn’t tempted to immediately burn in a Bonfire of Shame.
Easiest Story to Write: While writing to the edge of all the light you have started off slow, once I was able to sit down and focus, the story wrote itself. It was a combination of probably identifying a bit too strong with my version of Melinda May and being incredibly excited for the Agents of SHIELD premiere. I was so happy to be able to post right before I settled down for the first episode (and incredibly grateful for my awesome beta who read the story in record time).
Future Plans for 2014: There are so many stories that I want to finish, many of them in the Stargate Atlantis and Sherlock folders. Of course, there is a strong likelihood that I will be writing Agents of SHIELD very soon…Too many plot tribbles and not enough time!