Dear Sufficiently Advanced Exchange Author/Artist,
Thanks for writing - I’m really excited for this exchange. I hope you’re excited as well! I’m FireBatVillain on Ao3 and Tumblr.
The stuff I’m including in this letter is optional, but I hope you consider them as you work. Whatever you make, I’ll appreciate it regardless, and I look forward to whatever comes. Prompts are just suggestions.
In addition to this letter, I also maintain an optional, general post about likes and dislikes if that's useful for you at all: https://firebatvillain.dreamwidth.org/3098.html
Things I like:
Happy stories, bittersweet stories, and stories that end with a spark of hope even if they are angry or sad. I like good communication, wordplay, honor, pointless heroism or love even if it won’t succeed. Probably one of my favorite ideas in fiction is the idea of heroism in the face of hopelessness, and love even if things seem sad.
I've often enjoyed canon-compliant off-screen fics that explore things! Some of my favorite stories of all time fit into the category of "AU - Canon Divergence" and I would say I am a common fan of "what if things were different in X way" type AUs. I do not usually enjoy modern or mundane AUs that much, but I've liked a few.
I like fics that have a lot of frantic energy about them, or with a focus on change. I am a fan of fics that are about characters being ruthless in pursuit of an ideal, and giving something up or even becoming worse as a result, because of how much they value their goal.
I am a big reader of fantasy and science fiction. I thought I'd include a bit about my history with them in this letter, though I don't know if it will be useful for you.
In terms of my history of science fiction and fantasy - I grew up on the classics. When I was a teenager, mom got her box of old sci fi novels out of the garage and gave them to me. I read a lot of science fiction published in the 60s, 70s, and 80s from this collection. I gobbled up Foundation, Ringworld, Startide Rising, Hyperion, The Forever War, and many other similar novels, as well as lots of pulp adventure. As an adult, I've started to read more contemporary science fiction, and am partial to tales like Ted Chiang's short stories, The Martian, A Fire Upon the Deep, Accelerando, Ancillary Justice, and many others. Exploring these worlds of speculation and imagination has always been awesome, particularly the way things can sometimes fit together or have a cool revelation.
In terms of fantasy, I'm a bit less well-read. I've read many classics like The Lord of the Rings, but I mostly read long-running series like Redwall, Xanth, and Discworld as a kid. As an adult, I've been branching into some more stand-alone novels, though I quite enjoyed ASOIAF (don't ask me about the show aaaaaaa). I'm not up to date on the newest cool fantasy novels... though I love The Masquerade Series! I think for me a lot of a fantasy novel is about exploring a whole new world, and so I've been always more interested in fantasy set in another world rather than urban fantasy. Though, since I've requested A Study in Emerald, I guess I can be tempted by this kind of thing as well. I think it still has the joy of discovery for me though.
Anyway - on to the important stuff!
Things I don’t like / DNWs:
In fics, my DNWs are mpreg, authorial monarchist apologia, vivid descriptions of needles, and extreme underage.
In art, my DNWS are mpreg, needles breaking skin, and extreme underage.
Regarding the monarchism thing: I’m okay with characters in a feudal or monarchist setting, and even protags who are monarchs, and even these characters triumphing as monarchs as long as the story itself isn’t apologia for monarchism. Characters who like monarchism, who think of themselves as good kings, who want to restore the throne, etc - all good by me. Strahd in Curse of Strahd, or Moriarty in A Study in Emerald, etc are excellent characters and enjoy works about them. I just would prefer not to read a work where the final moral of the story is that democracy is bad and we should all be ruled by a single person with absolute unchecked power, as presented by the author.
Some other notes:
The inclusion of unrequested characters, ships, and ideas are A-OK with me, as is explicit content. Please feel free to use whatever prompts you like and don’t feel constrained by my suggestions here - aside from the DNWs and the tags we mall of this is included to inspire, rather than constrain. I do not mind darkfic. I do not mind any of the archive warnings aside from what's listed in my DNWs.
Requested Fandoms:
Request 1: The Diamond Age - Fic - Relationships: Any
I recently read The Diamond Age, and my brain is still buzzing with the ideas that were introduced in it! I think that as usual, Stephenson did much better with the first half of the novel than he did with the second half, but wow did I love that first half! The conflict with the Celestial Kingdom and the Coastal Republic was interesting, and I also think it's the kind of thing that made a lot more sense to write about and seemed even reasonable in the 90s that would strain credulity now that china has so much more high tech industry and accounts for such a larger share of GDP. I'm still left feeling like we missed out on some fun times that I'd like to see explored Further. I didn't like how things played out with Miranda where she just wanders off screen then right after we learn that if she didn't, she'll have found Nell - and we don't get to see their reunion after things are over! I absolutely love Judge Fang, and am sad we don't really see him in the second half of the novel, and particularly I find him + his subordinates to be very entertaining and have great comedy and personality chemistry on screen. I also would have liked to see more of Elizabeth, Fiona, and Nell growing up together, or what they did after the events of the novel. I'm particularly interested Elizabeth and Fiona, who seemed to have interesting stories of their own going on. If you matched with me on this, I'm sure you have some interesting ideas
If you're looking for some prompts to inspire you, here are some optional prompts:
- What does Elizabeth get up to as part of the CryptNet phyle? They must be up to some other shenanigans and conspiracies. Perhaps something to do with cracking message encryption?
- A story from the shared childhood of Elizabeth, Fiona, and Nell - maybe a time they were hanging out together prior to the detentions, and an adventure they had outside the usual bounds of school?
- A story about Judge Fang, Lieutenant Chang, and Miss Pao's adventures as part of the Celestial Kingdom after they defect. What kind of justice they serve, involvement in the civil wars, and so on.
- A story about Judge Fang and Dr. X's scheming and helping the orphaned girls who eventually join Nell. Aside from manufacturing the books, they must have provided many other things for them.
- The tearful and much-needed reunion between Nell and Miranda after the events of the story. What's it like when they finally can talk to each other?
Request 2: A Study in Emerald - Neil Gaiman - Fic or Art - Relationships: Solo: Sherlock Holmes, Solo: John Watson, Sherlock Holmes & John Watson, Sherlock Holmes & Jim Moriarty
I consider A Study in Emerald to have tremendous potential for fanworks (and it is, itself, a fanwork, as a crossover between the Cthulhu Mythos and Sherlock Holmes). I've enjoyed a lot of ASiE fics in the category of "a take on a classic story in this world" but I've also enjoyed when writers have gone their own route or tried to explore the aftermath of run-up to A Study in Emerald itself. The idea of a world haunted and ruled by the Great Old Ones, and the story of the Restorationists, fighting their power with only the tools of humanity in this dark alternate 1880s, is a lot of fun. So much is hinted at or referred to, but so little is revealed, in the original work. I'd love to see more, whether in the form of a fic or fanart of a scene.
If you're looking for some prompts to inspire you, here are some optional prompts:
- John Watson's history in Afghanistan, and how he came to be in the service of the Restorationist Cause. In art, perhaps a scene of peril befalling him.
- Holmes and Watson hunt for an eldritch treasure that could be crucial to the Restorationist cause, but are racing against royalist forces. In art, perhaps a scene of them unearthing a treasure or tome together, just ahead of horrible monsters.
- Sherlock Holmes gets locked in a battle of wits with James Moriarty as the consulting detective begins a concerted effort to hunt Restorationists in Loindon.
- Any adaptation of a Sherlock Holmes story with an appropriate twist to fit into this world!
Request 3: The Masquerade Series - Seth Dickinson - Fic - Relationships: Any
I'm leaving this one completely untagged character wise, just write or draw what you want! Here are some of my likes in case you need inspiration.
I love the Masquerade. The novels are dense with ideas and ideology and ways society might be structured. Power, control, betrayal, and thoughts - the idea of incrastic thinking, the qualms. I like the bits about power and how institutions work and I like the world that has been built and revealed to us over the course of the story. I spent these books wanting to see Tain Hu's name written across history and blood, and a thousand pages mourning her. I think I'd be happy with anything you wrote or drew in here, so I've got this tagged for anything. If you selected this as what you want to give, I'm guessing you had something in mind as well, so think of my thoughts here as just preferences and things I like, something that might inspire you or give you direction if you lack it, but otherwise, write something you'll love - I'm sure I'll love it too.
If you're looking for some prompts to inspire you, here are some optional prompts:
- Apparitor and Baru have a heart-to-heart about Tain Hu, and what they knew of her (this could be quite unfriendly! lol)
- Baru Cormorant and Shao Lune share a night together that is perhaps equally toxic as what we see in canon - and maybe quite fun for both
- Xate Yawa hears of Baru's betrayal at Sieroch, and fears for her brother's life. She tries to save him, and her own position. Once she's a Cryptarch, everything can be repaid.
- A scene from the Fools' Rebellion - Xata Yawa and Xate Olake consider the Traitor's Qualm and make their own moves to survive, and for Aurdwynn to survive.
Request 4: Mother of Learning by Nobody103 - Fic, or Art - Relationships: Kirielle & Nochka, Kirielle & Zorian, Solo: Kirielle
I know MoL is a real niche fandom, so I’m shooting in the dark here. My favorite character who I think needs more love is Kirelle. I really feel for her. There was so much in her life that she had to struggle against, and we only get a glimmer of the person she could be and the determination beneath the surface as she chafed beneath the oppressive expectations of the Kazinski parents. I’d love something about Kirielle making friends or finding a future, an AU where she's the looper brought in by accident somehow, or any little story about Kirielle. I also am interested in how her friendship with Nochka, or her sibling relationship with Zorian would be. Here are some optional prompts to consider if you're looking for inspiration:
- Some years after the story ends, Kirielle moves to Cyoria to start at Cyoria's Royal Academy of Magical Arts
- A story from within the loops: Kirielle and Nochka going on an adventure around town!
- Kirielle and Zorian chat after the finale and Kirielle gets to know her brother better.
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Thanks for reading this!
Hopefully this gives you some ideas. I am sure I will like whatever you create.
Thank you.