Entry tags:
Dear Yule Goat
Hello, potential Yule creator!
I am @embraidery on both Dreamwidth and AO3.
I am open to treats! As well as to 2nd person POV, minor character death (and major character death as detailed below!), and interactive fiction (except The Court Magician).
Ji-Won, Alexis
(You may write about just Ji-Won, if you like!) I barely know where to start with this request. I loved Ji-Won’s anger and hunger and quest for revenge and getting what she so desired. I also loved her obvious crush on Alexis and the fun they had together. So, indulging in either (or a combination of both!) really appeals to me. More murder and cannibalism? Perhaps her father, as she planned to do? (Is it harder to take her revenge on him than she thought?) I think it could be fun (and heartwrenching) to have Alexis catch her, or for Ji-Won to decide to bring Alexis in on her secret. Is there a way Alexis could sympathise with her? Even join in? (Alexis joining in on the murder/cannibalism could be in a dream of Ji-Won’s, too. I loved the ambiguity of dream and waking life; anything in a dream would be fantastic!)
Alternately, something fluffy with Ji-Won and Alexis? Doesn’t have to be shippy on Alexis’ end if you don’t want, but I’d rather Ji-Won keep up the admiring, affectionate energy she has for Alexis in the book. If you do go shippy — how does Ji-Won confront her feelings? Is that something she has thought about before? (In a story without much focus on Ji-Won’s murderous activities, you’re welcome to include her sister as well!)
Everything that happens in the book is fine to include (eye trauma, murder, cannibalism, racism, stalking/harrassment). It’s also okay to mention the way George looked at and talked about Ji-Won and her sister, but I’d rather no more than the level of canon.
DNWs: sexual content (fine for Ji-Won and Alexis to kiss, and for more to be implied), genital trauma, Ji-Won being arrested, Ji-Won or Alexis dying in reality (fine for it to be a dream), non-con or dub-con, gender swaps, setting change AUs.
Worldbuilding
It’s also hard to organise my thoughts on this one! I love the worldbuilding, the Zona, the Delta, the odd creatures in the forest, the white spiralling structures the duendes create, the psychological effects of the forest and its creatures and the way it protects itself against intruders in planes. The musings on identity and memory and continuity of being. Worldbuilding must be the focus, of course, but there’s such a variety of interesting topics! How does the Delta exert its influence on people in the outside world so they forget it exists, even while they’re talking about it? Are the duendes and the birds and the harts and the rays all part of the same creature? If the Delta crashes planes that come into it, why not boats?
The other nominated characters are the Duendes, Ben, and Hyacinth, and I think you can do a worldbuilding focus while including any of them. What draws Duendes to humans? Are they really communicating with Rio? I loved the moment when Ben lowered himself below the floating root mass of the forest and sat in the water and thought about the forest; something like that with him and/or Hyacinth would be great. How does Hyacinth relate to the forest? What would happen if she let herself merge with it more as opposed to holding herself separate? What if Ben really let himself go and got absorbed into the forest like Rio? In writing about them, you can absolutely go a Ben/Hyacinth direction, whether that’s one-sided or ambiguous or them being together (temporarily or not). What if Ben had had duende-influenced sex with Hyacinth instead of Justine?
DNWs: E-rated sexual content, genital trauma, Ben or Hyacinth dying, violent non-con (fine for Duendes’ influence to draw people together), setting change AUs, outside forces succeeding in developing the Delta (fine for people to attempt it, but the forest should successfully defend itself), gender swaps.
no characters selected - nominated characters: The Narrator, The Court Magician, The Regent
You can read The Court Magician here.
I love the world in this one: the juxtaposition of fake magic against real magic and the implication that magic is a limited resource that many don’t know of—or is it unlimited, just kept very hush-hush for the people lowest on the ladder? I love what magic takes from them and the trick that after the Magician convinced himself he loved the pillow, it didn’t end up fooling the magic because he actually did love the pillow. It’s very interesting that the Narrator says that the magic won’t take his ability to hear the Regent’s requests, or his teeth or his tongue, so that he can keep saying the Word — but the Narrator is just a voice, and can still talk, so I suppose that’s more metaphorical than literal. Does the Regent know about what’s happening? The Magician “instinctively” didn’t tell the Regent the cost of the magic, but it could be that the Regent knows and doesn’t care. What did the Magician do after he left the palace? Why did the Narrator keep using the magic until they had nothing left to give?
Any solo character or combos of characters, platonic or shippy, ambiguous, one-sided, whatever — though I’d rather the story be character-focused than ship-focused. Also, MCD is totally fine for this one. (If the Narrator found a way to end their existence even without a body to kill, would they use it? Would the Magician ever try to kill the Regent?)
DNWs: on-page sexual content (can be implied), giving the Magician, the Regent, or the Narrator names, setting change AUs.
Grandma Ursula
I used this compilation of the ads, both live-action and animated, when I made this request. The whole thing is about 12 minutes long. Highlights: Pedro Pascal as the detective trying to figure out what’s going on with Grandma Ursula, Kathy Bates as Grandma, Grandma disappearing from the garden and immediately reappearing in the house, Grandma lowering herself into a well, Grandma picking poisonous mushrooms, the vault of piles of cash money and suits of armour underneath Grandma’s house, etc etc. You’re free to go as light-hearted as you like or to pile on the horror (I think someone said something about Grandma possibly making a human pie)? Also up to you: is there something supernatural going on? I’m less interested in finding out what’s actually happening there and more about playing with the mystery and the suspense — maybe her granddaughter (Maddie, I think, not Maggie) and/or Tim Rockford trying and failing to find the truth. Interactive fiction would be so much fun for this one!
Totally optional crossovers: Grandma Ursula is a member of the Addams family (whether this just inspires the direction you take and you maybe toss in a reference to another Addams, or whether you include other Addamses, is up to you!), or she is friends with Granny from Hoodwinked! I love the idea of them going on grandma adventures while keeping them secret from their grandkids; maybe Red and Maddie team up to try to figure them out.
DNWs: Grandma Ursula, Maddie, Tim dying; totally okay for Grandma to fake her death, though, if we get a hint that it was fake. Sexual content. Setting change AUs.
I am @embraidery on both Dreamwidth and AO3.
I am open to treats! As well as to 2nd person POV, minor character death (and major character death as detailed below!), and interactive fiction (except The Court Magician).
The Eyes Are the Best Part - Monika Kim
Ji-Won, Alexis
(You may write about just Ji-Won, if you like!) I barely know where to start with this request. I loved Ji-Won’s anger and hunger and quest for revenge and getting what she so desired. I also loved her obvious crush on Alexis and the fun they had together. So, indulging in either (or a combination of both!) really appeals to me. More murder and cannibalism? Perhaps her father, as she planned to do? (Is it harder to take her revenge on him than she thought?) I think it could be fun (and heartwrenching) to have Alexis catch her, or for Ji-Won to decide to bring Alexis in on her secret. Is there a way Alexis could sympathise with her? Even join in? (Alexis joining in on the murder/cannibalism could be in a dream of Ji-Won’s, too. I loved the ambiguity of dream and waking life; anything in a dream would be fantastic!)
Alternately, something fluffy with Ji-Won and Alexis? Doesn’t have to be shippy on Alexis’ end if you don’t want, but I’d rather Ji-Won keep up the admiring, affectionate energy she has for Alexis in the book. If you do go shippy — how does Ji-Won confront her feelings? Is that something she has thought about before? (In a story without much focus on Ji-Won’s murderous activities, you’re welcome to include her sister as well!)
Everything that happens in the book is fine to include (eye trauma, murder, cannibalism, racism, stalking/harrassment). It’s also okay to mention the way George looked at and talked about Ji-Won and her sister, but I’d rather no more than the level of canon.
DNWs: sexual content (fine for Ji-Won and Alexis to kiss, and for more to be implied), genital trauma, Ji-Won being arrested, Ji-Won or Alexis dying in reality (fine for it to be a dream), non-con or dub-con, gender swaps, setting change AUs.
Beneath the World, A Sea - Chris Beckett
Worldbuilding
It’s also hard to organise my thoughts on this one! I love the worldbuilding, the Zona, the Delta, the odd creatures in the forest, the white spiralling structures the duendes create, the psychological effects of the forest and its creatures and the way it protects itself against intruders in planes. The musings on identity and memory and continuity of being. Worldbuilding must be the focus, of course, but there’s such a variety of interesting topics! How does the Delta exert its influence on people in the outside world so they forget it exists, even while they’re talking about it? Are the duendes and the birds and the harts and the rays all part of the same creature? If the Delta crashes planes that come into it, why not boats?
The other nominated characters are the Duendes, Ben, and Hyacinth, and I think you can do a worldbuilding focus while including any of them. What draws Duendes to humans? Are they really communicating with Rio? I loved the moment when Ben lowered himself below the floating root mass of the forest and sat in the water and thought about the forest; something like that with him and/or Hyacinth would be great. How does Hyacinth relate to the forest? What would happen if she let herself merge with it more as opposed to holding herself separate? What if Ben really let himself go and got absorbed into the forest like Rio? In writing about them, you can absolutely go a Ben/Hyacinth direction, whether that’s one-sided or ambiguous or them being together (temporarily or not). What if Ben had had duende-influenced sex with Hyacinth instead of Justine?
DNWs: E-rated sexual content, genital trauma, Ben or Hyacinth dying, violent non-con (fine for Duendes’ influence to draw people together), setting change AUs, outside forces succeeding in developing the Delta (fine for people to attempt it, but the forest should successfully defend itself), gender swaps.
The Court Magician - Sarah Pinsker
no characters selected - nominated characters: The Narrator, The Court Magician, The Regent
You can read The Court Magician here.
I love the world in this one: the juxtaposition of fake magic against real magic and the implication that magic is a limited resource that many don’t know of—or is it unlimited, just kept very hush-hush for the people lowest on the ladder? I love what magic takes from them and the trick that after the Magician convinced himself he loved the pillow, it didn’t end up fooling the magic because he actually did love the pillow. It’s very interesting that the Narrator says that the magic won’t take his ability to hear the Regent’s requests, or his teeth or his tongue, so that he can keep saying the Word — but the Narrator is just a voice, and can still talk, so I suppose that’s more metaphorical than literal. Does the Regent know about what’s happening? The Magician “instinctively” didn’t tell the Regent the cost of the magic, but it could be that the Regent knows and doesn’t care. What did the Magician do after he left the palace? Why did the Narrator keep using the magic until they had nothing left to give?
Any solo character or combos of characters, platonic or shippy, ambiguous, one-sided, whatever — though I’d rather the story be character-focused than ship-focused. Also, MCD is totally fine for this one. (If the Narrator found a way to end their existence even without a body to kill, would they use it? Would the Magician ever try to kill the Regent?)
DNWs: on-page sexual content (can be implied), giving the Magician, the Regent, or the Narrator names, setting change AUs.
Merge Mansion “What’s Grandma Hiding?” Ads
Grandma Ursula
I used this compilation of the ads, both live-action and animated, when I made this request. The whole thing is about 12 minutes long. Highlights: Pedro Pascal as the detective trying to figure out what’s going on with Grandma Ursula, Kathy Bates as Grandma, Grandma disappearing from the garden and immediately reappearing in the house, Grandma lowering herself into a well, Grandma picking poisonous mushrooms, the vault of piles of cash money and suits of armour underneath Grandma’s house, etc etc. You’re free to go as light-hearted as you like or to pile on the horror (I think someone said something about Grandma possibly making a human pie)? Also up to you: is there something supernatural going on? I’m less interested in finding out what’s actually happening there and more about playing with the mystery and the suspense — maybe her granddaughter (Maddie, I think, not Maggie) and/or Tim Rockford trying and failing to find the truth. Interactive fiction would be so much fun for this one!
Totally optional crossovers: Grandma Ursula is a member of the Addams family (whether this just inspires the direction you take and you maybe toss in a reference to another Addams, or whether you include other Addamses, is up to you!), or she is friends with Granny from Hoodwinked! I love the idea of them going on grandma adventures while keeping them secret from their grandkids; maybe Red and Maddie team up to try to figure them out.
DNWs: Grandma Ursula, Maddie, Tim dying; totally okay for Grandma to fake her death, though, if we get a hint that it was fake. Sexual content. Setting change AUs.