Yuletide Letter 2025
Oct. 23rd, 2025 10:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
notonlytrueDear Yuletide Author,
I am pretty easy to make happy when it comes to gift fic for me. All I want is fic that you 1) enjoyed writing that 2) focuses on my requested characters and 3) avoids my DNWs. I have provided some prompts and a (non-exhaustive) list of likes in case that is helpful to you, and I will genuinely be thrilled if you make me something to those specs, but I will also probably enjoy your fic if you have another idea entirely and go for that instead!
Treats are enabled.
Likes: I like all kinds of relationships in fic: gen, het, dudeslash, and femslash. So if you're wondering if I'm interested in shipfic or gen, the answer is yes. Here's an unordered list of some things that I like, but I like lots of other things as well!:
- Stoic, repressed characters
- Denial
- Unreliable narrators
- Dramatic irony
- Competence porn
- Characters that are bad at figuring out their feelings or other characters' feelings
- Loyalty and betrayal. I am so interested in characters that are ride or die for each other beyond all reason as well as characters that think they're like that, but get pushed through circumstances into betraying each other.
- Fraught and bleak fic
- Fluff, especially fic with a lot of banter or jokes
- Hurt/comfort or whump fic, though I do prefer if there is a hint of comfort/recovery at the end, which does not need to be depicted on the page
- Time travel! Time loops, time travel fix its, time travel fuck it ups
- Ghosts! I would absolutely love a fic that involves ghosts. I don't mind major character death, even non-canonical major character death of my requested characters. So if you want one of them to haunt someone, go for it.
- Roadtrips or the equivalent that makes sense in canon
- Dreamsharing
- Bedsharing
- Characters being overcome by their feelings during sex, so like crying or laughing or unbearable earnestness, whatever makes sense for the characters and your fic
- Pining! I like requited pining very, very much, but to be honest, I can like unrequited pining too, as long as the pined after character doesn't find out and then is deliberately mean to the pining character about it. Accidentally mean is fine.
- Characters being desperate during sex
- Partially clothed or fully clothed sex
- Frottage, oral sex, fingering
- Kissing! I love when fic luxuriates in making out or focuses on first kiss (or thousandth kiss!) jitters.
- Hand kink
- Fake relationships
- On the run together
- Truth serums or magical compulsions that make them tell the truth. I especially love this for characters that are compulsive liars or are lying to themselves about something.
- Canon divergence AUs
- Space AUs, all flavors. Space opera AUs, more realistic space AUs, NASA AUs, for example.
DNWs: Underage sex (under age 18; non-explicit mentions of underage sex/abuse are fine) | Noncon/Dubcon (mentions of previous noncon are fine) | AUs that change the setting and premise, like high school AUs, mafia AUs, serial killer AUs, coffee shop AUs, etc. (I love canon divergence AUs! Space AUs are fine too!) | Crossovers (a crossover with Ea Nasir RPF is fine) | Age Regression/Age play/De-Aging | Belly Kink | Bestiality | Breathplay | Cannibalism (mentions are fine) | Castration | Daddy/Mommy kink | Enemas | Feederism | Incest | Necrophilia | Prolapse | Requested ships being depicted as in an abusive relationship (mentions of other relationships being abusive is fine) | Scat | Snuff | Sounding | Spit kink | Vomit in a sexual setting | Vore | Watersports | Christmas fic or fic focused on any actual religious holiday (New Year's Eve, for example is fine)
The Epic of Gilgamesh (Gilgamesh, Enkidu)
What I like best about this work is that, even though it's the earliest known work of literature, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are still incredibly recognizably human and grappling with the same kinds of themes, like how to accept mortality, that modern literature is still consumed with. So, along those lines, any fic about Gilgamesh struggling against death, both his and Enkidu's, would be excellent. In the last tablet, Enkidu goes down into the Netherworld only to be rescued by Shamash, but I would also be interested in reading a version where Gilgamesh has to go down there himself. If you want to write something lighter, I'm definitely down to read a fic where they go on an adventure before or after facing Humbaba, or celebrate a holiday in Uruk instead.
If you want to lean into tropes, then I would be very interested in reading a time loop fic or a fic where they're in space or fic where they're dreamsharing, before or after Enkidu dies. I was taught to subscribe to the belief that Gilgamesh and Enkidu were banging, and if you wanted to foreground that in any of these fic ideas, then please do go for it. I would be thrilled.
I recently read Weavers, Scribes, and Kings: A New History of the Ancient Near East by Amanda Podany and it made me think about how much I love this epic. I am most familiar with the standard version, but I have read the five Sumerian poems a long time ago, so you can definitely incorporate aspects of that if you want. Feel free to ignore or include the last tablet. A large part of the appeal of this to me is the tragedy of Enkidu's death and Gilgamesh's ultimately unsuccessful quest to fix it, but, if you have a compelling idea for a fix-it, go for it. I also really like how Gilgamesh dreams of Enkidu before Enkidu shows up and that they fight once and basically immediately become bros. I also like how supportive they are of each other and how they keep having to psych each other up to face their fears. I know that Gilgamesh was pretty awful before Enkidu showed up, but I would prefer if fic didn't wallow in that aspect of the canon and focused more on the parts after they've met.
Fandom specific DNW exceptions: Space AUs, fic that focuses on actual religious holidays (must be a holiday that was celebrated in Sumerian, Akkad, etc. during the time period, please no Christmas fic), and a crossover with Ea Nasir RPF is totally fine!
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August - Claire North (Harry August, Vincent Rankis)
I reread this book this year, and I still like how fucked up as people both Harry and Vincent are separately and together. I want them to be stuck in many kinds of situations and so would be happy with basically anything. I didn't specifically request Akinleye, but I also find her fascinating and would be really interested in more about her and her relationship with Harry. Obviously, something about what's next after the book is over would be great. Does Harry go through with killing Vincent for real? Does Vincent try one more time to win Harry over to his side? Does Akinleye actually send Harry's last confession off to Vincent or does she double-cross him? Why does Vincent react so badly when Harry brings up the Cronus Club, did he have a bad experience? How did Vincent recruit Virginia? Why does Vincent want to build the quantum computer so badly?
In general, I love time travel tropes and would very much enjoy something that focuses on that aspect of canon, or put one or both of them in a different kind of time travel situation, like a time loop that lasts for only one day. I think Harry especially would hate that. I also love how unreliable Harry is as a narrator, so playing around with that aspect, like with some Vincent POV, or having Harry absolutely be lying through his teeth about them not fucking.
As I said in my sign up, I would be so happy with so many different fics for this fandom. I read this book originally because I saw someone mention that there was canon time loops and a good friends to enemies to lovers ship that's almost, but not quite canon, and it sold me immediately. I revisited it this year and it still does it for me. I didn't mention this in my sign up because I'm not 100% on if the math quite works, but I did do some back of the envelope calculating, and I do think that Harry must have had more lives than Vincent. I would love it if Harry did something that somehow lead to Vincent being born or going from being linear to a kalachakra. Was Harry's fourth life somehow Vincent's first and part of the reason why Vincent's like that is because he remembers the fucked up timeline generated by Franklin Phearson acting on Harry's foreknowledge and he wants to understand why?
Fandom specific DNWs: Harry or Vincent permanently Forgetting (temporary amnesia is fine as long as they remember everything by the end of the fic)
Ancillary Trilogy - Ann Leckie (Breq, Seivarden Vendaai)
I do ship Breq/Seivarden, but it's totally fine if you don't. I'm happy to read one or both of them interacting with any of the characters in the trilogy or how they are in canon. Anything post-canon, between canon, or in a canon divergent AU where Breq and Seivarden don't head to Athoek Station or head there under different circumstances is great. For some prompts, I would love a fic where one or both of them is a ghost, or Lieutenant Awn is quite literally haunting Breq. Along those lines, Seivarden not coming back quite right once she's gotten out of that escape pod would be fascinating to me, as would a reflection on how she feels different now than in the past. I adored Breq rescuing Seivarden in the first book, so I would love more fic where Breq rescues her from some threat, anywhere as serious as a kidnapping by Anaander Mianaai to minor social embarrassment. Or reverse it and let Seivarden save Breq! Also, more bedsharing! It's canonical.
I also quite like the non-human cultures in the book and I would love something where either of them interacts with Presger or the Rrrrrr or some other alien culture, either the characters in the trilogy or some original characters. I also love the potential for some meta aspects with the entertainments. How would Breq feel about someone writing a song about her or making an extremely inaccurate entertainment about her adventures?
The news about a new Ann Leckie book coming out reminded me of how much I love this trilogy and these characters, especially Breq, though I do love how Seivarden suffers. I have read Providence but not Translation State. Feel free to incorporate canon elements/characters/worldbuilding from any of the book or short story outside of the trilogy; spoilers won't bother me. For relationships outside of Breq/Seivarden, I don't really ship Breq/Mercy of Kalr or Breq/Seivarden/Mercy of Kalr but I am perfectly happy for any canonical pairings in the books to come up. Gen fic, fic that depicts something perfectly platonic between Breq and Seivarden, fic that goes with Seivarden pining for an indifferent Breq, or romantic or sexual fic with Breq and Seivarden together are all good in my books.
I am pretty easy to make happy when it comes to gift fic for me. All I want is fic that you 1) enjoyed writing that 2) focuses on my requested characters and 3) avoids my DNWs. I have provided some prompts and a (non-exhaustive) list of likes in case that is helpful to you, and I will genuinely be thrilled if you make me something to those specs, but I will also probably enjoy your fic if you have another idea entirely and go for that instead!
Treats are enabled.
Likes: I like all kinds of relationships in fic: gen, het, dudeslash, and femslash. So if you're wondering if I'm interested in shipfic or gen, the answer is yes. Here's an unordered list of some things that I like, but I like lots of other things as well!:
- Stoic, repressed characters
- Denial
- Unreliable narrators
- Dramatic irony
- Competence porn
- Characters that are bad at figuring out their feelings or other characters' feelings
- Loyalty and betrayal. I am so interested in characters that are ride or die for each other beyond all reason as well as characters that think they're like that, but get pushed through circumstances into betraying each other.
- Fraught and bleak fic
- Fluff, especially fic with a lot of banter or jokes
- Hurt/comfort or whump fic, though I do prefer if there is a hint of comfort/recovery at the end, which does not need to be depicted on the page
- Time travel! Time loops, time travel fix its, time travel fuck it ups
- Ghosts! I would absolutely love a fic that involves ghosts. I don't mind major character death, even non-canonical major character death of my requested characters. So if you want one of them to haunt someone, go for it.
- Roadtrips or the equivalent that makes sense in canon
- Dreamsharing
- Bedsharing
- Characters being overcome by their feelings during sex, so like crying or laughing or unbearable earnestness, whatever makes sense for the characters and your fic
- Pining! I like requited pining very, very much, but to be honest, I can like unrequited pining too, as long as the pined after character doesn't find out and then is deliberately mean to the pining character about it. Accidentally mean is fine.
- Characters being desperate during sex
- Partially clothed or fully clothed sex
- Frottage, oral sex, fingering
- Kissing! I love when fic luxuriates in making out or focuses on first kiss (or thousandth kiss!) jitters.
- Hand kink
- Fake relationships
- On the run together
- Truth serums or magical compulsions that make them tell the truth. I especially love this for characters that are compulsive liars or are lying to themselves about something.
- Canon divergence AUs
- Space AUs, all flavors. Space opera AUs, more realistic space AUs, NASA AUs, for example.
DNWs: Underage sex (under age 18; non-explicit mentions of underage sex/abuse are fine) | Noncon/Dubcon (mentions of previous noncon are fine) | AUs that change the setting and premise, like high school AUs, mafia AUs, serial killer AUs, coffee shop AUs, etc. (I love canon divergence AUs! Space AUs are fine too!) | Crossovers (a crossover with Ea Nasir RPF is fine) | Age Regression/Age play/De-Aging | Belly Kink | Bestiality | Breathplay | Cannibalism (mentions are fine) | Castration | Daddy/Mommy kink | Enemas | Feederism | Incest | Necrophilia | Prolapse | Requested ships being depicted as in an abusive relationship (mentions of other relationships being abusive is fine) | Scat | Snuff | Sounding | Spit kink | Vomit in a sexual setting | Vore | Watersports | Christmas fic or fic focused on any actual religious holiday (New Year's Eve, for example is fine)
The Epic of Gilgamesh (Gilgamesh, Enkidu)
What I like best about this work is that, even though it's the earliest known work of literature, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are still incredibly recognizably human and grappling with the same kinds of themes, like how to accept mortality, that modern literature is still consumed with. So, along those lines, any fic about Gilgamesh struggling against death, both his and Enkidu's, would be excellent. In the last tablet, Enkidu goes down into the Netherworld only to be rescued by Shamash, but I would also be interested in reading a version where Gilgamesh has to go down there himself. If you want to write something lighter, I'm definitely down to read a fic where they go on an adventure before or after facing Humbaba, or celebrate a holiday in Uruk instead.
If you want to lean into tropes, then I would be very interested in reading a time loop fic or a fic where they're in space or fic where they're dreamsharing, before or after Enkidu dies. I was taught to subscribe to the belief that Gilgamesh and Enkidu were banging, and if you wanted to foreground that in any of these fic ideas, then please do go for it. I would be thrilled.
I recently read Weavers, Scribes, and Kings: A New History of the Ancient Near East by Amanda Podany and it made me think about how much I love this epic. I am most familiar with the standard version, but I have read the five Sumerian poems a long time ago, so you can definitely incorporate aspects of that if you want. Feel free to ignore or include the last tablet. A large part of the appeal of this to me is the tragedy of Enkidu's death and Gilgamesh's ultimately unsuccessful quest to fix it, but, if you have a compelling idea for a fix-it, go for it. I also really like how Gilgamesh dreams of Enkidu before Enkidu shows up and that they fight once and basically immediately become bros. I also like how supportive they are of each other and how they keep having to psych each other up to face their fears. I know that Gilgamesh was pretty awful before Enkidu showed up, but I would prefer if fic didn't wallow in that aspect of the canon and focused more on the parts after they've met.
Fandom specific DNW exceptions: Space AUs, fic that focuses on actual religious holidays (must be a holiday that was celebrated in Sumerian, Akkad, etc. during the time period, please no Christmas fic), and a crossover with Ea Nasir RPF is totally fine!
The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August - Claire North (Harry August, Vincent Rankis)
I reread this book this year, and I still like how fucked up as people both Harry and Vincent are separately and together. I want them to be stuck in many kinds of situations and so would be happy with basically anything. I didn't specifically request Akinleye, but I also find her fascinating and would be really interested in more about her and her relationship with Harry. Obviously, something about what's next after the book is over would be great. Does Harry go through with killing Vincent for real? Does Vincent try one more time to win Harry over to his side? Does Akinleye actually send Harry's last confession off to Vincent or does she double-cross him? Why does Vincent react so badly when Harry brings up the Cronus Club, did he have a bad experience? How did Vincent recruit Virginia? Why does Vincent want to build the quantum computer so badly?
In general, I love time travel tropes and would very much enjoy something that focuses on that aspect of canon, or put one or both of them in a different kind of time travel situation, like a time loop that lasts for only one day. I think Harry especially would hate that. I also love how unreliable Harry is as a narrator, so playing around with that aspect, like with some Vincent POV, or having Harry absolutely be lying through his teeth about them not fucking.
As I said in my sign up, I would be so happy with so many different fics for this fandom. I read this book originally because I saw someone mention that there was canon time loops and a good friends to enemies to lovers ship that's almost, but not quite canon, and it sold me immediately. I revisited it this year and it still does it for me. I didn't mention this in my sign up because I'm not 100% on if the math quite works, but I did do some back of the envelope calculating, and I do think that Harry must have had more lives than Vincent. I would love it if Harry did something that somehow lead to Vincent being born or going from being linear to a kalachakra. Was Harry's fourth life somehow Vincent's first and part of the reason why Vincent's like that is because he remembers the fucked up timeline generated by Franklin Phearson acting on Harry's foreknowledge and he wants to understand why?
Fandom specific DNWs: Harry or Vincent permanently Forgetting (temporary amnesia is fine as long as they remember everything by the end of the fic)
Ancillary Trilogy - Ann Leckie (Breq, Seivarden Vendaai)
I do ship Breq/Seivarden, but it's totally fine if you don't. I'm happy to read one or both of them interacting with any of the characters in the trilogy or how they are in canon. Anything post-canon, between canon, or in a canon divergent AU where Breq and Seivarden don't head to Athoek Station or head there under different circumstances is great. For some prompts, I would love a fic where one or both of them is a ghost, or Lieutenant Awn is quite literally haunting Breq. Along those lines, Seivarden not coming back quite right once she's gotten out of that escape pod would be fascinating to me, as would a reflection on how she feels different now than in the past. I adored Breq rescuing Seivarden in the first book, so I would love more fic where Breq rescues her from some threat, anywhere as serious as a kidnapping by Anaander Mianaai to minor social embarrassment. Or reverse it and let Seivarden save Breq! Also, more bedsharing! It's canonical.
I also quite like the non-human cultures in the book and I would love something where either of them interacts with Presger or the Rrrrrr or some other alien culture, either the characters in the trilogy or some original characters. I also love the potential for some meta aspects with the entertainments. How would Breq feel about someone writing a song about her or making an extremely inaccurate entertainment about her adventures?
The news about a new Ann Leckie book coming out reminded me of how much I love this trilogy and these characters, especially Breq, though I do love how Seivarden suffers. I have read Providence but not Translation State. Feel free to incorporate canon elements/characters/worldbuilding from any of the book or short story outside of the trilogy; spoilers won't bother me. For relationships outside of Breq/Seivarden, I don't really ship Breq/Mercy of Kalr or Breq/Seivarden/Mercy of Kalr but I am perfectly happy for any canonical pairings in the books to come up. Gen fic, fic that depicts something perfectly platonic between Breq and Seivarden, fic that goes with Seivarden pining for an indifferent Breq, or romantic or sexual fic with Breq and Seivarden together are all good in my books.
