My Dear Yulegoat
It's been way too long since I updated this lj! I have been reading and commenting. This is my favorite time of year when all the great things happen: Fall, Sirens, Halloween and now Yuletide. This letter is for you, my assigned author.
http://archiveofourown.org/collections/yuletide2012/signups/8662
My biggest rule of thumb for this letter is: if something I say inspires you, use it; if it stifles you, don't use it. I'm trying to hit the right balance between giving you freedom to have fun and giving some direction for inspiration.
I’ve liked some awfully diverse stories in my time so I don’t really have a tone you have to go for. I feel the canon really sets the feel for some of these fandoms--I do like the fic to strike the same tone in a general way. But by that I don't mean you can't delve into emotions or situations that go outside the ones the canon usually covers. Let the story take you where it takes you. Depending on the characters I’ve liked gen, het and slash, not afraid of some angst either.
The fandoms:
Singin' in the Rain - Cosmo Brown and Lina Lamont
I've requested Cosmo and Lina here, because those two fascinate me and they don't get to interact that much. Not necessarily as a couple (either one or both of them could be gay canonically imo), but just thrown together and having to deal with each other. Lina sometimes seems to have this real hostility for Cosmo, despite the fact that he's just "you piano player!" Cosmo brushes her off, but what do they really think about each other? Is there insecurity there on either side? Tension? Do they have any uncomfortably similar feelings about sharing Don with Kathy now? I'm making this sound like I want a big character study, but not at all. I feel like if you put them in a strange situation where they're thrown together and have to deal with each other interesting character things will come out. For instance--caught in a raid together and tossed into the slammer? Chased by gangsters for some reason? Mistaken for European royalty? Whatever seems interesting to you. Yay!
The Office (UK) - Tim Canterbury
I love Tim, and I'm interested in what kinds of adventures (adventures by Office standards, I guess) he might have had in the years between the final ep and the Christmas special. Dawn's gone (taking with her that one bright spot in his life), but feel free to bring in other characters like Gareth or David or hell, even Chris Finch. You can decide what kind of thing you'd like to happen--it can be romantic, funny, sad, unbelievable, crazy--even scary if it goes that way. Whatever thing you think best suits Tim's state of mind during those Dawn-less years. Of course he can think about Dawn, but don't feel like she has to be the center of his thoughts at all times, especially since he's got no reason to think she'll come back. Yay!
Mad Men - Pete Campbell
This is my first year requesting Mad Men, after enjoying the fics for years. Pete Campbell is my favorite character, despite the fact that he can be totally despicable. He breaks my hear and yet I love it. I don't have any specific story in mind, except that it have some compassion for Pete. Maybe something exploring some of his unhappiness this year, or Trudy's reaction to that. I love their marriage even when they're not quite in sync, like this year, how on the surface it looked like it was a criticism of old-fashioned marriages, but it turned out to be what they wanted. I feel like Trudy intentionally chose a guy who needed her and while she didn't understand his depression there were hints she was dealing with his "doom and gloom" in 1966 ways. Or you could do something with Don and that craving for approval, like the two of them thrown into a situation together where they learn a few surprising things about the other despite their 60s male reticence. (I'm not thinking slash, but I wouldn't be offended by it or anything if the story took you that way.) Those are just examples I hope might give you ideas or show how I think about the character, but don't feel like you have to write either Don or Trudy. You can bring in any character you're inspired to, or an OC if that helps your story, or nobody if you have an idea that doesn't include anybody else. Yay!
p.s. I recently learned that some people read a preference into the order in which the requests are listed, like they assume that the first fandom listed is the one I want most etc.--no such preference implied here! The order is completely random.
http://archiveofourown.org/collections/yuletide2012/signups/8662
My biggest rule of thumb for this letter is: if something I say inspires you, use it; if it stifles you, don't use it. I'm trying to hit the right balance between giving you freedom to have fun and giving some direction for inspiration.
I’ve liked some awfully diverse stories in my time so I don’t really have a tone you have to go for. I feel the canon really sets the feel for some of these fandoms--I do like the fic to strike the same tone in a general way. But by that I don't mean you can't delve into emotions or situations that go outside the ones the canon usually covers. Let the story take you where it takes you. Depending on the characters I’ve liked gen, het and slash, not afraid of some angst either.
The fandoms:
Singin' in the Rain - Cosmo Brown and Lina Lamont
I've requested Cosmo and Lina here, because those two fascinate me and they don't get to interact that much. Not necessarily as a couple (either one or both of them could be gay canonically imo), but just thrown together and having to deal with each other. Lina sometimes seems to have this real hostility for Cosmo, despite the fact that he's just "you piano player!" Cosmo brushes her off, but what do they really think about each other? Is there insecurity there on either side? Tension? Do they have any uncomfortably similar feelings about sharing Don with Kathy now? I'm making this sound like I want a big character study, but not at all. I feel like if you put them in a strange situation where they're thrown together and have to deal with each other interesting character things will come out. For instance--caught in a raid together and tossed into the slammer? Chased by gangsters for some reason? Mistaken for European royalty? Whatever seems interesting to you. Yay!
The Office (UK) - Tim Canterbury
I love Tim, and I'm interested in what kinds of adventures (adventures by Office standards, I guess) he might have had in the years between the final ep and the Christmas special. Dawn's gone (taking with her that one bright spot in his life), but feel free to bring in other characters like Gareth or David or hell, even Chris Finch. You can decide what kind of thing you'd like to happen--it can be romantic, funny, sad, unbelievable, crazy--even scary if it goes that way. Whatever thing you think best suits Tim's state of mind during those Dawn-less years. Of course he can think about Dawn, but don't feel like she has to be the center of his thoughts at all times, especially since he's got no reason to think she'll come back. Yay!
Mad Men - Pete Campbell
This is my first year requesting Mad Men, after enjoying the fics for years. Pete Campbell is my favorite character, despite the fact that he can be totally despicable. He breaks my hear and yet I love it. I don't have any specific story in mind, except that it have some compassion for Pete. Maybe something exploring some of his unhappiness this year, or Trudy's reaction to that. I love their marriage even when they're not quite in sync, like this year, how on the surface it looked like it was a criticism of old-fashioned marriages, but it turned out to be what they wanted. I feel like Trudy intentionally chose a guy who needed her and while she didn't understand his depression there were hints she was dealing with his "doom and gloom" in 1966 ways. Or you could do something with Don and that craving for approval, like the two of them thrown into a situation together where they learn a few surprising things about the other despite their 60s male reticence. (I'm not thinking slash, but I wouldn't be offended by it or anything if the story took you that way.) Those are just examples I hope might give you ideas or show how I think about the character, but don't feel like you have to write either Don or Trudy. You can bring in any character you're inspired to, or an OC if that helps your story, or nobody if you have an idea that doesn't include anybody else. Yay!
p.s. I recently learned that some people read a preference into the order in which the requests are listed, like they assume that the first fandom listed is the one I want most etc.--no such preference implied here! The order is completely random.