Dear Yuletide Author
Dear Yuletide author,
I am so excited for yuletide this year! This is my fifth year participating (see still-relevant letters from 2012 and 2013 and 2014 and 2015) and I am always impressed by the quality of work with these exchanges.
I'm Diaphenia on AO3.
Let’s talk about things I like and dislike, generally.
Love: Getting together stories. Tropes, especially for comedy fandoms (think roadtrips, broken elevators, anything that requires characters to spend time together). Ensemble fic, even more than shippy stuff (with an exception or two). Related, but found families are my thing, and most fandoms I read reflect that love. Spy AUs: a total bulletproof fandom kink. Banter. Flirting. Friends setting up friends. Hijinx. Groundhog's Day AUs.
No: Baby/pregnancy fic, or spending much time with canon children. Major OCs- I nominate fandoms because I want to spend time with the characters I love. Kink fic, since I’m extraordinarily picky about kink!fic. Religion. Incest. Rape/Non-con. Character-bashing. Gross-out humor. Miracles.
Additional details: I’m fine with sexytimes, as long as it’s not PWP. Or fading to black is totally cool too. Action scenes make my eyes glaze over. And I’m not big on alternative POVs on canon scenes. I love fusions though I don't want crossovers for these fandoms.
If you want to see my fandom story recs, click here. If you want to see what fic I’ve written, click here. If you want to see my tumblr, click here, and if you want to see an occasionally-contradictory list of fic things I love, click here.
Since all my canons are live this year, please don’t worry about getting canonballed. I also may pop back in to throw more prompts down, but I’ll clearly label them as new.
Superstore
Amy
Jonah
I love this show way more than I ever thought I would. I remember hating the commercials before it aired, and I couldn’t believe it got renewed. Then I sat down, bored, and marathoned the whole thing (and I don’t marathon shows). I thought by the end of the season, with the walkout, they’d created some brilliant television. I love the dialogue, the strong characterization they have for the employees, and the very real retail environment they’ve created. And there’s a sense that all the characters are trying, at least, to be good people. Here’s a brilliant essay by my friend KA on why the show is great.
Ship-wise, I like Jonah and Amy, but I don’t know that I want them together. She’s married! I’m not one for infidelities, generally. But I like the sense of melancholy that exists there, where neither is going to make a move for a variety of reasons, but they still know something’s there, you know? They have moments, but nothing (thus far) has stuck. Of course, I also love gen, and am completely down for some completely platonic fic as well.
While I’m requesting Jonah and Amy because they’re my problematic faves, I like everyone in the store, so go with ensemble fic if that’s your jam. While I generally love AUs, I think the retail environment is so central to their plight that I’d only want an AU that would capture that sense of futility-- if you go AU, they have to still be minimum wage workers. Also, since this is a live canon, don’t worry about getting canonballed. We have all been there.
Prompts:
Jonah helps Amy study for her college classes
Black Friday madness
Spending the holidays in the store with or without customers, preparing for those big sales or returns
Halloween (or the full moon) is when the store has to prepare for an influx of weirdos
Amy and Jonah have a conversation about how everyone thinks they should bang out their problems
Amy gets the weekend to herself after all, and Jonah invites himself over
If you do want to go AU, I could see them as some sort of Downstairs staff
Here’s my tumblr tag and here’s the show on hulu.
The Good Place
Chidi
Eleanor
This show is such a delight! I love the concept and have found the execution utterly interesting. I can’t wait to see more worldbuilding (not something I generally say about sitcoms). I would be equally pleased with something character-driven as I would with something that explored The Good Place (/The Bad Place, The Other Good Places, etc). I have seen a lot of theories on what The Good Place really is-- is it purgatory? Is everyone paired up with someone who is their opposite, morality-wise, so that they can learn? Is some of this somehow a lesson for Michael? Is this the medium place? I also have enjoyed all the characters we’ve met thus far, and would be delighted to see any of them you want to put in there.
Prompts:
it’s easy to think Chidi is a good person because he taught ethics, but I’m not convinced he was ‘good’ since he seemed so focused on his book to the possible exclusion of helping real people. What happens if he realizes (through shenanigans, realizations about TGP, Janet, whatever) that he’s, at best, morally neutral?
Eleanor helps Chidi with his book using real life examples from her life
Eleanor realizes she has feelings for Chidi just as it’s revealed he’s the soulmate of the ‘real Eleanor’
Chidi, who speaks French, wishes he could express his feelings for Eleanor without the automatic translation-- he can’t even tell her what the original is supposed to be
Is sex in TGP different?
Flirting via ethics lessons
Attempts at faking coupledom
Here’s my tumblr tag, as well as the show on hulu
Political RPF - US 21st c.
Hillary Clinton
Listen, I’m all in for Hillary #ImWithHer. I think she’s a talented, amazing lady. Does she have flaws? Yes, but so does any lifelong politician. And while I almost never read RPF, I really want some on Hillary. I’m down with something serious as well as something complete crack. If you went with a Hillary that was more like this, I’d be satisfied.
I’m fine with gentle ribbing of her, but ultimately I want something that will celebrate her rather than tearing her down.
I’m pretty well versed in the other politicians nominated this year, as well as the major players in DC, so feel free to include anyone you want as long as they’re famous. However, I’d prefer to leave family members (such as the Obama girls, or Chelsea’s kids) out. Michelle, on the other hand, is perfectly alright, as she’s actively campaigning.
Prompts:
Hillary and Obama, secret strategizing meetings in the White House
Hillary and Bill are super cute together-- look at his DNC speech-- so I’d love a Southside with You style story about their first date.
Hillary and Elizabeth Warren, political hit list
Hillary is visited by the ghosts of presidents past, or first ladies past
Hillary and Michelle, eating ice cream together, discussing how bullshit the first lady position is
Anything, in any format, that explores this
High school AU, of course. Or a spy AU. Basically all AUs.
future!fic. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. November 9th or later, when we are all breathing a little easier.
Here’s my Hillary tumblr tag. For more on her, please check the entire internet.
Edit on November 9th: to my author, on the chance that you are writing the Hillary fic of my dreams, please don't despair. I've been ugly crying all day, but I still believe in an America where Hillary won the popular vote. I still love her, and I would still love fic about her, even if it's now an AU.
If, on the other hand, you are writing that Hillary fic and you no longer feel you can do so, I will understand if you default. Please put your mental health above Yuletide. Take care of yourself.
That should be everything! If you need additional clarification, please feel free to reach out to
throwingpens/iloveyouandilikeyou. She may write her answer in all caps, but she gets me, fandom-wise.
Thanks!
Diaphenia