Dear Yuletide Author
Hi, author! First of all, thanks so much for writing something for me. I'm sure I'll enjoy whatever you write me--just the idea that someone would write a story just for me is really exciting enough. Hopefully I can offer some helpful insight into my own preferences and whatnot here.
Generally speaking, I like all sorts of pairings or lack thereof--gen, slash, het, femslash, polyamorous relationships, so don't feel like you have to tread carefully there. I'm not big on incest or non-con, I am big on deep platonic friendship. Here's something I said in my letter last year: "I like all the characters, so while critiques of character's behavior are sometimes real boons in a story, I'm not a fan of bashing just for the sake of tearing characters down." I can't think of a better way to word that this year, so I'll just copy and paste from last year's letter. I like AUs and crossovers, and--I don't know, this seems like perhaps too specific a narrative kink to include here, but whatever, I'll say it anyway--I like plots where one character discovers something about another that changes their relationship.
Now for the specific fandoms--
Here's what I said for Alphas
"I...would kind of like to see Nina/Rachel. I feel like Nina would have some good ideas about how to work with Rachel's sensitivities and family issues, and I think Rachel would help Nina trust herself more. Plus, they live together! Plenty of opportunities for romance. Barring that, I would really like some Anna/Gary relationship, either romantic or platonic. How do they keep up their friendship while staying on different sides? If you want incorporate the canon of "Original Sin" or do an AU or just do a pre-season-finale story, either way I'm sure I'll love it."
So, looking at it, those...are two totally different stories in that prompt. /o\ Please don't feel like you have to cram both Nina/Rachel and Gary/Anna plotlines into one story. Really, any story at all featuring one of these characters would be fantastic. Nina backstory? Rachel introducing her family to her coworkers/explaining the whole fake-dating Gary thing? Anna being a badass Red Flag leader? Gary having bro bonding with Bill and Hicks? One of these characters having to save the day when everybody else is out of commission? Talking about the politics of alpha assimilation? I would love any and all of these things. I'm just throwing out ideas here. I am not opposed to Nina/Cameron, but if you go that route...can it maybe be heavy on the Nina? I just really like her.
For Captain America, I said:
"I'd really love to see something about Steve and Bucky and Peggy going on missions and taking down those Hydra weapons plants. Gen is awesome. I would love Steve/Peggy. I would love Steve/Bucky. I would love Steve/Bucky/Peggy. And I would really love to see the Howling Commandos fleshed out and interacting with each other."
So...yeah, I'd just love to see more of Captain America, the Strategic Scientific Reserve, and the Howling Commandos in action. How did Steve and Peggy make up after the whole "make-out with Private Lorraine" incident? How did Bucky deal with having his best friend suddenly huge and in charge of stuff? How did the Commandos get to know each other and work as a unit, and how did Colonel Phillips deal with the shenanigans they undoubtedly got into? All of these are questions worth investigating! If you wanted to take it a little earlier and talk about pre-Serum Steve interacting with Peggy and Dr. Erskine, that would be awesome, too, I'm not choosy.
For Cowboys & Aliens, I said:
"I'd really just like to see something about Nat--his past with Dolarhyde and Percy, or how he perceives and relates to Ella, or an AU where he lives. Anything, really."
That pretty much sums it up--I thought Nat was a fascinating character. He had to have been really intimately aware of all Dolarhyde's flaws, growing up with him, but he still obviously really admires him, and I'd really like to see a bit of their relationship, either pre-movie, during movie, post-movie, AU or not...or some combination thereof. I don't know why, but I came away from the movie with a bunch of Nat/Ella plot bunnies that I never ended up writing, so if you were able to make that work, I would do a little dance of joy. I just like strange alien girls and long-suffering right-hand men, I suppose.
For North and South, I said:
"I'd really like to see Margaret and John after the end of the miniseries bringing the factory back up to speed, working with Higgins to make sure the workers' conditions are safe and whatnot, and overcoming family issues with John's mother and sister. And, okay, I know this is a long shot, but it's Yuletide, so what the heck, might as well mention it--if you could have John and Margaret somehow meet Molly and Roger from Wives and Daughters, I would probably throw a party in your honor."
One of the things I really loved about Margaret and John's relationship was how tied up it was in their political and social beliefs, so any post-movie look at that, whether they're fighting about workers' rights or meeting with Higgins to get the factory running in a profitable-but-ethical manner or suffering through a dinner party with some of the more jerk-y factory owners in Milton, I'd just kind of like to see their relationship in that context. Also, re: random crossover request: I have no actual preferences about this, I just have a strange desire to see what John and Margaret would make of Roger and Molly, and vice versa. Don't feel like you have to wedge it in if you have a completely different idea, I just threw it in on the off-chance that you, too, have been hankering for Gaskell-verse crossovers but never had the opportunity to write one.
Anyway, I feel like this has been super rambly, but I hope it was at least a little helpful. If you have an idea for one or more of these fandoms that really doesn't have anything to do with what I've written here, go for it--I really hope that writing this ends up being as fun as anticipating it is already.
Thanks again, and best wishes,
Tam Cranver
Generally speaking, I like all sorts of pairings or lack thereof--gen, slash, het, femslash, polyamorous relationships, so don't feel like you have to tread carefully there. I'm not big on incest or non-con, I am big on deep platonic friendship. Here's something I said in my letter last year: "I like all the characters, so while critiques of character's behavior are sometimes real boons in a story, I'm not a fan of bashing just for the sake of tearing characters down." I can't think of a better way to word that this year, so I'll just copy and paste from last year's letter. I like AUs and crossovers, and--I don't know, this seems like perhaps too specific a narrative kink to include here, but whatever, I'll say it anyway--I like plots where one character discovers something about another that changes their relationship.
Now for the specific fandoms--
Here's what I said for Alphas
"I...would kind of like to see Nina/Rachel. I feel like Nina would have some good ideas about how to work with Rachel's sensitivities and family issues, and I think Rachel would help Nina trust herself more. Plus, they live together! Plenty of opportunities for romance. Barring that, I would really like some Anna/Gary relationship, either romantic or platonic. How do they keep up their friendship while staying on different sides? If you want incorporate the canon of "Original Sin" or do an AU or just do a pre-season-finale story, either way I'm sure I'll love it."
So, looking at it, those...are two totally different stories in that prompt. /o\ Please don't feel like you have to cram both Nina/Rachel and Gary/Anna plotlines into one story. Really, any story at all featuring one of these characters would be fantastic. Nina backstory? Rachel introducing her family to her coworkers/explaining the whole fake-dating Gary thing? Anna being a badass Red Flag leader? Gary having bro bonding with Bill and Hicks? One of these characters having to save the day when everybody else is out of commission? Talking about the politics of alpha assimilation? I would love any and all of these things. I'm just throwing out ideas here. I am not opposed to Nina/Cameron, but if you go that route...can it maybe be heavy on the Nina? I just really like her.
For Captain America, I said:
"I'd really love to see something about Steve and Bucky and Peggy going on missions and taking down those Hydra weapons plants. Gen is awesome. I would love Steve/Peggy. I would love Steve/Bucky. I would love Steve/Bucky/Peggy. And I would really love to see the Howling Commandos fleshed out and interacting with each other."
So...yeah, I'd just love to see more of Captain America, the Strategic Scientific Reserve, and the Howling Commandos in action. How did Steve and Peggy make up after the whole "make-out with Private Lorraine" incident? How did Bucky deal with having his best friend suddenly huge and in charge of stuff? How did the Commandos get to know each other and work as a unit, and how did Colonel Phillips deal with the shenanigans they undoubtedly got into? All of these are questions worth investigating! If you wanted to take it a little earlier and talk about pre-Serum Steve interacting with Peggy and Dr. Erskine, that would be awesome, too, I'm not choosy.
For Cowboys & Aliens, I said:
"I'd really just like to see something about Nat--his past with Dolarhyde and Percy, or how he perceives and relates to Ella, or an AU where he lives. Anything, really."
That pretty much sums it up--I thought Nat was a fascinating character. He had to have been really intimately aware of all Dolarhyde's flaws, growing up with him, but he still obviously really admires him, and I'd really like to see a bit of their relationship, either pre-movie, during movie, post-movie, AU or not...or some combination thereof. I don't know why, but I came away from the movie with a bunch of Nat/Ella plot bunnies that I never ended up writing, so if you were able to make that work, I would do a little dance of joy. I just like strange alien girls and long-suffering right-hand men, I suppose.
For North and South, I said:
"I'd really like to see Margaret and John after the end of the miniseries bringing the factory back up to speed, working with Higgins to make sure the workers' conditions are safe and whatnot, and overcoming family issues with John's mother and sister. And, okay, I know this is a long shot, but it's Yuletide, so what the heck, might as well mention it--if you could have John and Margaret somehow meet Molly and Roger from Wives and Daughters, I would probably throw a party in your honor."
One of the things I really loved about Margaret and John's relationship was how tied up it was in their political and social beliefs, so any post-movie look at that, whether they're fighting about workers' rights or meeting with Higgins to get the factory running in a profitable-but-ethical manner or suffering through a dinner party with some of the more jerk-y factory owners in Milton, I'd just kind of like to see their relationship in that context. Also, re: random crossover request: I have no actual preferences about this, I just have a strange desire to see what John and Margaret would make of Roger and Molly, and vice versa. Don't feel like you have to wedge it in if you have a completely different idea, I just threw it in on the off-chance that you, too, have been hankering for Gaskell-verse crossovers but never had the opportunity to write one.
Anyway, I feel like this has been super rambly, but I hope it was at least a little helpful. If you have an idea for one or more of these fandoms that really doesn't have anything to do with what I've written here, go for it--I really hope that writing this ends up being as fun as anticipating it is already.
Thanks again, and best wishes,
Tam Cranver