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Thank you in advance for gifting me a story, and I hope this letter makes it easier and/or more enjoyable for you. Apologies for being late to unlock it!
First I'll get squicks and dislikes out of the way. Please no rape or torture, unless it’s just alluded to or mentioned - nothing explicit or the focus of the story, please. I'd also like a limit of "gross-out" elements like gory details and bodily fluids. Or completely grim stories, though these sources do have grim parts and that's part of the appeal. I'd rather the sadness not be relentless and total. Unless it's symbiotic with the story you want to tell! Gen, het, and femslash are all fine, but my preference is that m/m slash not be the focus of the story, since I’m not really interested in it. I'm good with AUs or crossovers, or holiday-fic for holidays that are canonical or could plausibly be canonical. Though if it's an AU there would be different rules as to canonical holidays. Any combination of the characters is cool, or even alone.
As for the fandom prompts! I've been immersed in some of these more recently than in others, and those are the ones that get me rambly because they haven't had as much time to settle in and I remember details better. I've also requested W.I.T.C.H., Spellsong Cycle, and Romeo x Juliet on several occasions (for Yuletide and Rarewomen), with the same characters except for the addition of Elyon to the W.I.T.C.H roster. So you can look to old letters if you wish. Lastly, the types of prompts turned out pretty similar, but they're only to provide a jumpstart if one is necessary. I'd be interested in stories different from the kind suggested here!
For W.I.T.C.H., any of these ladies being awesome, possibly in adventure! But not necessarily adventure. I’m good with either cartoonverse or comicverse. If you want to adapt Orube for the cartoonverse, go ahead!
Some things to throw out: Orube's time in college and on Earth in general, or her past with Luba; Cornelia's time with Elyon, or how she dealt afterwards when she essentially lost her best friend (and was in my opinion the only one not paired up with a special best friend, as Hay Lin and Irma and Taranee and Will were, though that doesn't have to mean much); Taranee's growing confidence and outgoing bold behavior. Elyon dealing with the trauma from her various ordeals in either verse, and/or struggling to be a just and effective ruler. Include the other nominated--and those that weren't nominated--to the degree you prefer!
In the Spellsong Cycle fandom, my thoughts head towards character studies and/or plot, particularly for the minor characters like Clayre and Veria. Clayre was described with that interesting comment from an enemy about her being a traditional sorceress and solitary. I'd like to learn about how, if true, she came to be that way. How did she get where she was both politically and mentally/emotionally? Or you could focus on her training as a sorceress and growing up in the timeskip. She’s a minor character, so there’s a lot to fill in: childhood, time in Falcor as a fosterling, her position in Neserea before and after the war started. How lonely was she, and how much of it was chosen? How did she react to not being valued by her family and later underestimated by her enemies? What did she think of Anna throughout her life? In Veria’s case, how did she become a leader and how did her opinions change? We know she went through a lot, but how did she get where she was both politically and mentally/emotionally?
For Anna and Secca, filling in the time between books 3 and 4 would be cool, or Secca’s future as ruler of Defalk. How was it for Anna when she returned to Brill’s keep after stepping down as regent? She also spent time training sorceresses, raising Secca, and developing spells with her knowledge of science to help, including ways to assassinate people in order to prevent the massive bloodshed of her initial rule and Defalkan history before that. We know she hated killing and became ruthless in order to avoid that; we know Secca became this way as well. How was all this worked out? Or what of her romantic relationship with Jecks before he died? The way she and Jimbob worked with, against, and around each other after he became ruler? There’s also her death. It happened suddenly and was a factor in the Sturinnese ramping up their efforts to conquer the continent. She had become old, and was found in the place where she contacted the daughter she had left on Earth, something she had kept doing throughout her life even though that shortened it. Secca didn’t think she had been murdered. But I remember a later scene in which one of her enemies spoke of her death and it seemed suspicious. What about Secca’s feelings for Anna, the first person who both loved her and effectively protected her from abuse? How exactly did her attachment and respect for Anna develop, and what did she feel when she first came to Falcor? How did her relationship to and understanding of power grow?
In the case of RomeoxJuliet, I tend to favor character studies (angsty, fluff, etc.) but would still love a plotty fic and/or action adventure, especially with some character stuff. Femslash is good, gen is good, het is good. I know the canonical pairing is RomeoxJuliet, but it's really not my thing and there's quite a lot of that in the old fics. So if that's included, which is fair and would make sense depending on what you choose to write, I'd rather it not be important in the story, at least not as a focus. I’m fine with it as long as the story’s not about the pairing or about how much Juliet loves him. The same is true when it comes to Hermione’s one-sided love for Romeo.
For these women, backstory would work wonderfully. The relationships between Juliet and Cordelia and Emilia - and Cordelia and Emilia - are given enough attention to interest and give some emotional heft in the case of Juliet and Cordelia, but I would love to know about their time together before the main storyline, or their lives in general, along with filling in the time between when they settle in Mantua and when they go off to start the revolution.
Juliet’s story arc apart from Romeo has much to do with her acting and public speaking, her capacity to inspire and take a stand with more performance than killing, along with her lack of interest in vengeance or restoring the Capulets. Her narrative shows her failing when she tries to adjust to the weight on her by going down the path she’s exhorted to take, and becoming self-possessed and powerful when she decides what her approach will be. Her voice, her use of it, is one of her remarkable qualities. A story on that would be wonderful. Or an AU in which the tree situation didn’t require her sacrifice and she lived without the world ending? A crossover with Disney’s Little Mermaid in which Ursula wants her voice? An AU in which she’s taught her heritage and Capulet duty from the beginning?
What about Emilia’s life as an actress and the way she tries to use that position to connect with nobles or just have fun with men? What of her attraction to Juliet? Maybe she always knew Juliet was a girl, and being told unsettled her because now her supposed ignorance couldn’t hide her interest. How about Cordelia’s feelings as Juliet’s caretaker and closest friend, or something after the distance put between them by the main storyline? For Hermione, how aware is she of the situation for people outside the nobility, and how does she use her own ability to maneuver in high society? What was her life like, and how did she feel about those rumors that the Duke murdered Mercutio’s father? We get some focus on her listening to them, but not much insight as to how this affects her views and actions.
For Cinders, any of the endings are good with me. I didn't request any characters because I couldn't pick four, and all the dynamics are interesting to me.
It surprised me that that even when Cinders befriends Sophia and Gloria, if she marries the prince without winning over Carmosa she'll have alienated them forever. Then it made sense--Carmosa thinks they should all live in the shadows if they can't make the right marriage, and it takes a certain kind of self-prioritization for Cinders to choose to marry the prince when Carmosa will only allow her daughters the chance. So how exactly do the sisters reconcile their blooming friendships (or one blooming friendship, if you want Cinders to only have befriended one of them) with the consequences of Cinders' decision in that scenario? We know they have trouble resisting Carmosa on their own, but did they manage to find something to salvage in their situation? Bond in their solitude, or form relationships with others under the radar? Arrive at a less obviously conflicted relationship with their mother? Or how about an AU where they manage to escape? How long was it before Carmosa died anyway? How does their escape from her go in the happy ending where she comes to court with Cinders?
Document the rise and fall--or parts of it--of Carmosa, from her backstory to the situation when the game begins. Her relationship with Ghede, or with Cinders in the ending where she is brought to court as her mentor.
How long has Madam Ghede been going from town to town? What's the backstory on her involvement with Cinders' mother? In the end where she's Cinders' mentor at court, how does that work out for her? Does she find it any better than being the town witch?
It appears the Fairy is trying to strengthen her hold on the world. It's suggested that the price of her help in the contract with Cinders' mother was death. What price does she extract from Cinders? Does she get to preserve and spread fairy worship during Cinders' reign? What happens to her if she doesn't, or if Cinders doesn't choose her? Did she always see Cinders' mom as a tool to procure Cinders and get a worshiper on the throne?
Explore any of Cinders' endings--other than her death. How well does she do married to Prince Basile, if you work with that ending? He was enchanted rather fast, and he seems well-intended, but how do they settle into ruling and love, if love happens? How close to equality can they get, considering she officially gets her power from him, and how does the aid she has from any of her mentors factor into that? What about Perrault? If he bonded with her, how does he treat her when she's his queen? Properly I'm sure, but how does he feel about it? If she isn't queen, how much is he guided by her if at all--or how much does he let himself think he's guided by her--when he's feeling displaced in life? (Whether she's a romantic prospect for him or just a friend. Can they manage either one well if they leave? How does Prince Basile handle Perrault leaving, even when concluding it's probably for the best? He wants and needs as many allies as possible.) On a backstory note, did Cinders and her stepfamily get on in the early years, after her mother's death but before that of her father?
With The Mummy, I enjoy each dynamic between these characters. I'm most familiar with the movies, but I did watch the cartoon; include as much of that canon as you wish.
Elaborate on Evelyn and Anck Su Namun's relationship, past or present. More on their backstory, an AU where they have to interact more in their reincarnated forms, or both. I liked the rivalry over Pharoah's attention--it was interesting that it was over a man's approval while being platonic (despite how Anck Su Namun's relationship with him was not, which adds another interesting dimension to it), and I feel I don't see that a lot.
How did the Carnahan siblings get to where they are in the first movie, how they settle into Evelyn's marriage? How did Evelyn become such an adventuress by the second movie? Even if she was still very much a scholar. Rick must have had a hand in it: they would have needed time to balance out their extremes before forming the dynamic we see in Returns. Does Ardeth Bay pop up again, now they know Evelyn is a reincarnation and the whole family has a place in the return of the old stories? What about his ties to those stories, before and/or after the things he lives to guard disappear? How do Imhotep and Anck Su Namun handle being in the underworld for good, whether they meet again or not? Do they stay there for good? What was the thought process that led Anck Su Namun's reincarnation to choose to bring back Imhotep and remember her past life/become her old self? Did the experience of her new life have decisive influence on her refusal to try to save Imhotep? How does that decision factor in with the rest of her story?
Each Magical Diary character is a treasure. Feel free to include ones that weren't requested as well! I haven't played all the routes; again, work with any you see fit. Friendship roots, romance routes, even the ones that don't center around the nominated potential love interests: you could work out their stories in the context another character's route. Play the main character off of them as much or as little as you'd like. How much does she do to get into the things they like, and match it to what she wants as she tries to reshape that question around the new life she's been introduced to?
I love the way this game plays with character stereotypes. Donald causes trouble, but he's anything but a bad boy in so many ways. He's good at school, likes engaging with the art crowd, and he's highly considerate. He's actually very low-key compared to his siblings, except within the context of those relationships. How does such a mix of traits play into his and Virginia's aggressive relationship? Would he fight with William more if it weren't for William's perfect image and effort to keep said image up?
Ellen is a good mix of contrasting types too. She's very obviously the Hermione, while being interested in both athletics and the arts on top of her academic ambition, and keen not to have that part of herself underestimated. How goes her mission to apply the scientific method to magic? Especially considering the culture clash and her severed family ties? She always wanted to be part of this world, and her family context led to her giving up the other one, but she is bringing in what she learned there. What she took seriously in the normal world--exploration, discovery, reason--is what she takes seriously in the magical one; that curiosity and desire for experimentation could have influenced her wishing to be a witch, but now she has to deal with how much that's discouraged in her new environment.
Lastly, Grabiner plays the nasty teacher and the genuinely well-intentioned one. He doesn't enjoy just being nasty. He cares enough about being just he'll redress things as soon as possible if he goes wrong. The game says why he discourages impulsiveness and going against tradition, but could there be more to it? Why does he go for intimidation so easily? How does he navigate meddling from Potsdam and his father, both of whom he can't intimidate as he does students?
Thank you again for your interest and decision to write me a story!
First I'll get squicks and dislikes out of the way. Please no rape or torture, unless it’s just alluded to or mentioned - nothing explicit or the focus of the story, please. I'd also like a limit of "gross-out" elements like gory details and bodily fluids. Or completely grim stories, though these sources do have grim parts and that's part of the appeal. I'd rather the sadness not be relentless and total. Unless it's symbiotic with the story you want to tell! Gen, het, and femslash are all fine, but my preference is that m/m slash not be the focus of the story, since I’m not really interested in it. I'm good with AUs or crossovers, or holiday-fic for holidays that are canonical or could plausibly be canonical. Though if it's an AU there would be different rules as to canonical holidays. Any combination of the characters is cool, or even alone.
As for the fandom prompts! I've been immersed in some of these more recently than in others, and those are the ones that get me rambly because they haven't had as much time to settle in and I remember details better. I've also requested W.I.T.C.H., Spellsong Cycle, and Romeo x Juliet on several occasions (for Yuletide and Rarewomen), with the same characters except for the addition of Elyon to the W.I.T.C.H roster. So you can look to old letters if you wish. Lastly, the types of prompts turned out pretty similar, but they're only to provide a jumpstart if one is necessary. I'd be interested in stories different from the kind suggested here!
For W.I.T.C.H., any of these ladies being awesome, possibly in adventure! But not necessarily adventure. I’m good with either cartoonverse or comicverse. If you want to adapt Orube for the cartoonverse, go ahead!
Some things to throw out: Orube's time in college and on Earth in general, or her past with Luba; Cornelia's time with Elyon, or how she dealt afterwards when she essentially lost her best friend (and was in my opinion the only one not paired up with a special best friend, as Hay Lin and Irma and Taranee and Will were, though that doesn't have to mean much); Taranee's growing confidence and outgoing bold behavior. Elyon dealing with the trauma from her various ordeals in either verse, and/or struggling to be a just and effective ruler. Include the other nominated--and those that weren't nominated--to the degree you prefer!
In the Spellsong Cycle fandom, my thoughts head towards character studies and/or plot, particularly for the minor characters like Clayre and Veria. Clayre was described with that interesting comment from an enemy about her being a traditional sorceress and solitary. I'd like to learn about how, if true, she came to be that way. How did she get where she was both politically and mentally/emotionally? Or you could focus on her training as a sorceress and growing up in the timeskip. She’s a minor character, so there’s a lot to fill in: childhood, time in Falcor as a fosterling, her position in Neserea before and after the war started. How lonely was she, and how much of it was chosen? How did she react to not being valued by her family and later underestimated by her enemies? What did she think of Anna throughout her life? In Veria’s case, how did she become a leader and how did her opinions change? We know she went through a lot, but how did she get where she was both politically and mentally/emotionally?
For Anna and Secca, filling in the time between books 3 and 4 would be cool, or Secca’s future as ruler of Defalk. How was it for Anna when she returned to Brill’s keep after stepping down as regent? She also spent time training sorceresses, raising Secca, and developing spells with her knowledge of science to help, including ways to assassinate people in order to prevent the massive bloodshed of her initial rule and Defalkan history before that. We know she hated killing and became ruthless in order to avoid that; we know Secca became this way as well. How was all this worked out? Or what of her romantic relationship with Jecks before he died? The way she and Jimbob worked with, against, and around each other after he became ruler? There’s also her death. It happened suddenly and was a factor in the Sturinnese ramping up their efforts to conquer the continent. She had become old, and was found in the place where she contacted the daughter she had left on Earth, something she had kept doing throughout her life even though that shortened it. Secca didn’t think she had been murdered. But I remember a later scene in which one of her enemies spoke of her death and it seemed suspicious. What about Secca’s feelings for Anna, the first person who both loved her and effectively protected her from abuse? How exactly did her attachment and respect for Anna develop, and what did she feel when she first came to Falcor? How did her relationship to and understanding of power grow?
In the case of RomeoxJuliet, I tend to favor character studies (angsty, fluff, etc.) but would still love a plotty fic and/or action adventure, especially with some character stuff. Femslash is good, gen is good, het is good. I know the canonical pairing is RomeoxJuliet, but it's really not my thing and there's quite a lot of that in the old fics. So if that's included, which is fair and would make sense depending on what you choose to write, I'd rather it not be important in the story, at least not as a focus. I’m fine with it as long as the story’s not about the pairing or about how much Juliet loves him. The same is true when it comes to Hermione’s one-sided love for Romeo.
For these women, backstory would work wonderfully. The relationships between Juliet and Cordelia and Emilia - and Cordelia and Emilia - are given enough attention to interest and give some emotional heft in the case of Juliet and Cordelia, but I would love to know about their time together before the main storyline, or their lives in general, along with filling in the time between when they settle in Mantua and when they go off to start the revolution.
Juliet’s story arc apart from Romeo has much to do with her acting and public speaking, her capacity to inspire and take a stand with more performance than killing, along with her lack of interest in vengeance or restoring the Capulets. Her narrative shows her failing when she tries to adjust to the weight on her by going down the path she’s exhorted to take, and becoming self-possessed and powerful when she decides what her approach will be. Her voice, her use of it, is one of her remarkable qualities. A story on that would be wonderful. Or an AU in which the tree situation didn’t require her sacrifice and she lived without the world ending? A crossover with Disney’s Little Mermaid in which Ursula wants her voice? An AU in which she’s taught her heritage and Capulet duty from the beginning?
What about Emilia’s life as an actress and the way she tries to use that position to connect with nobles or just have fun with men? What of her attraction to Juliet? Maybe she always knew Juliet was a girl, and being told unsettled her because now her supposed ignorance couldn’t hide her interest. How about Cordelia’s feelings as Juliet’s caretaker and closest friend, or something after the distance put between them by the main storyline? For Hermione, how aware is she of the situation for people outside the nobility, and how does she use her own ability to maneuver in high society? What was her life like, and how did she feel about those rumors that the Duke murdered Mercutio’s father? We get some focus on her listening to them, but not much insight as to how this affects her views and actions.
For Cinders, any of the endings are good with me. I didn't request any characters because I couldn't pick four, and all the dynamics are interesting to me.
It surprised me that that even when Cinders befriends Sophia and Gloria, if she marries the prince without winning over Carmosa she'll have alienated them forever. Then it made sense--Carmosa thinks they should all live in the shadows if they can't make the right marriage, and it takes a certain kind of self-prioritization for Cinders to choose to marry the prince when Carmosa will only allow her daughters the chance. So how exactly do the sisters reconcile their blooming friendships (or one blooming friendship, if you want Cinders to only have befriended one of them) with the consequences of Cinders' decision in that scenario? We know they have trouble resisting Carmosa on their own, but did they manage to find something to salvage in their situation? Bond in their solitude, or form relationships with others under the radar? Arrive at a less obviously conflicted relationship with their mother? Or how about an AU where they manage to escape? How long was it before Carmosa died anyway? How does their escape from her go in the happy ending where she comes to court with Cinders?
Document the rise and fall--or parts of it--of Carmosa, from her backstory to the situation when the game begins. Her relationship with Ghede, or with Cinders in the ending where she is brought to court as her mentor.
How long has Madam Ghede been going from town to town? What's the backstory on her involvement with Cinders' mother? In the end where she's Cinders' mentor at court, how does that work out for her? Does she find it any better than being the town witch?
It appears the Fairy is trying to strengthen her hold on the world. It's suggested that the price of her help in the contract with Cinders' mother was death. What price does she extract from Cinders? Does she get to preserve and spread fairy worship during Cinders' reign? What happens to her if she doesn't, or if Cinders doesn't choose her? Did she always see Cinders' mom as a tool to procure Cinders and get a worshiper on the throne?
Explore any of Cinders' endings--other than her death. How well does she do married to Prince Basile, if you work with that ending? He was enchanted rather fast, and he seems well-intended, but how do they settle into ruling and love, if love happens? How close to equality can they get, considering she officially gets her power from him, and how does the aid she has from any of her mentors factor into that? What about Perrault? If he bonded with her, how does he treat her when she's his queen? Properly I'm sure, but how does he feel about it? If she isn't queen, how much is he guided by her if at all--or how much does he let himself think he's guided by her--when he's feeling displaced in life? (Whether she's a romantic prospect for him or just a friend. Can they manage either one well if they leave? How does Prince Basile handle Perrault leaving, even when concluding it's probably for the best? He wants and needs as many allies as possible.) On a backstory note, did Cinders and her stepfamily get on in the early years, after her mother's death but before that of her father?
With The Mummy, I enjoy each dynamic between these characters. I'm most familiar with the movies, but I did watch the cartoon; include as much of that canon as you wish.
Elaborate on Evelyn and Anck Su Namun's relationship, past or present. More on their backstory, an AU where they have to interact more in their reincarnated forms, or both. I liked the rivalry over Pharoah's attention--it was interesting that it was over a man's approval while being platonic (despite how Anck Su Namun's relationship with him was not, which adds another interesting dimension to it), and I feel I don't see that a lot.
How did the Carnahan siblings get to where they are in the first movie, how they settle into Evelyn's marriage? How did Evelyn become such an adventuress by the second movie? Even if she was still very much a scholar. Rick must have had a hand in it: they would have needed time to balance out their extremes before forming the dynamic we see in Returns. Does Ardeth Bay pop up again, now they know Evelyn is a reincarnation and the whole family has a place in the return of the old stories? What about his ties to those stories, before and/or after the things he lives to guard disappear? How do Imhotep and Anck Su Namun handle being in the underworld for good, whether they meet again or not? Do they stay there for good? What was the thought process that led Anck Su Namun's reincarnation to choose to bring back Imhotep and remember her past life/become her old self? Did the experience of her new life have decisive influence on her refusal to try to save Imhotep? How does that decision factor in with the rest of her story?
Each Magical Diary character is a treasure. Feel free to include ones that weren't requested as well! I haven't played all the routes; again, work with any you see fit. Friendship roots, romance routes, even the ones that don't center around the nominated potential love interests: you could work out their stories in the context another character's route. Play the main character off of them as much or as little as you'd like. How much does she do to get into the things they like, and match it to what she wants as she tries to reshape that question around the new life she's been introduced to?
I love the way this game plays with character stereotypes. Donald causes trouble, but he's anything but a bad boy in so many ways. He's good at school, likes engaging with the art crowd, and he's highly considerate. He's actually very low-key compared to his siblings, except within the context of those relationships. How does such a mix of traits play into his and Virginia's aggressive relationship? Would he fight with William more if it weren't for William's perfect image and effort to keep said image up?
Ellen is a good mix of contrasting types too. She's very obviously the Hermione, while being interested in both athletics and the arts on top of her academic ambition, and keen not to have that part of herself underestimated. How goes her mission to apply the scientific method to magic? Especially considering the culture clash and her severed family ties? She always wanted to be part of this world, and her family context led to her giving up the other one, but she is bringing in what she learned there. What she took seriously in the normal world--exploration, discovery, reason--is what she takes seriously in the magical one; that curiosity and desire for experimentation could have influenced her wishing to be a witch, but now she has to deal with how much that's discouraged in her new environment.
Lastly, Grabiner plays the nasty teacher and the genuinely well-intentioned one. He doesn't enjoy just being nasty. He cares enough about being just he'll redress things as soon as possible if he goes wrong. The game says why he discourages impulsiveness and going against tradition, but could there be more to it? Why does he go for intimidation so easily? How does he navigate meddling from Potsdam and his father, both of whom he can't intimidate as he does students?
Thank you again for your interest and decision to write me a story!