Ataraxias Flame

You can find links to any of my creations below. There are only a couple to start with but I will be updating it as needed.

Elucien Fics

Turning Saints into the Seas - Elucien WIP

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Come Back to Me - Elucien Blood Duel One-Shot

When You Move, I’m Moved - Elucien One-Shot

When you look across her work, the women she seems most excited to write are characters like Aelin, Manon, Nesta, and Lidia . They are sharp-tongued, combative, emotionally volatile, powerful, and often dominate scenes through force of personality. Whether people love or hate those characters, they are very much in line with the kind of FMC SJM repeatedly gravitates toward. That doesn't mean quieter women are unimportant in her stories. Characters like Elide and Yrene are fantastic. My fave. But they never received the same page dominance, or authorial enthusiasm as some of Maas's louder, more confrontational heroines. To this day, I don't even hear her talk much about them, she always talks more about Manon then anything.

And I think that's where some of the fandom discourse gets complicated. People often talk about Elain as though she has secretly been SJM's favorite all along, and I just don't think the evidence supports that. If anything, SJM's public comments over the years suggest the opposite. When she talks about Nesta, there's often a noticeable level of excitement and personal connection. We know she has discussed how Nesta's story became something she felt compelled to tell. In many ways, Nesta's journey feels like one of the most personal stories Maas has written. In fact, the ACOTAR spin-offs grew out of Maas wanting to explore Nesta's story. Over time, that expanded into a broader framework that could include Elain, Mor, Azriel, and others. But the initial spark was Nesta. She said so herself, it was Nesta's fic she was writing. The same thing can be said for Lucien's role in the narrative. People sometimes forget that Maas has spoken about earlier plans and character dynamics that changed during the writing process. Her stories are full of revisions, altered pairings, and evolving character arcs. That's one reason I hesitate when fans speak with absolute certainty about what Elain's story must be. SJM herself has changed direction before.

And that's really my larger point.

We need to separate what we want from what the text and the author actually suggest.

Do I think Elain will get her story? Absolutely.

Do I think she has the potential to be a compelling protagonist? Fuck Yes.

Do I think her story could surprise a lot of people? Hell yes.

But I don't think it's accurate to act as though Elain has always been SJM's clear favorite, or that she has consistently displayed the same enthusiasm for Elain that she has for characters like Nesta. Looking at interviews, bonus content, and years of public comments, I simply don't see that pattern.

And honestly, that's okay.

A character doesn't have to be the author's favorite to receive a meaningful arc. Some of the strongest stories come from authors challenging themselves to write outside their comfort zones.

The bigger issue is that parts of the fandom have started writing an idealized version of Elain's future and then treating that version as inevitable. The reality is that SJM is a deeply imperfect writer. She has written incredible character arcs, and she has also made choices that many readers consider missteps. Elain's story could be excellent. It could be disappointing. It could land somewhere in between. The same is true for the Valkyries, Azriel, Mor, Lucien, and every other character still waiting for development.

At the end of the day, none of us are in SJM's head. We can analyze patterns, interviews, and narrative structure, but we're still making educated guesses. What I find strange is when people project their own attachment to a character onto the author and then treat that projection as fact.

Elain deserves to be judged by the story she actually gets, not by a version of her story that fandom has already written in advance.

Thank you for this in depth response, anon. I really appreciate your take on this and agree wholeheartedly that many in the fandom have their personal expectations (which can be somewhat unrealistic in most cases) and therefore are guaranteed disappointment.

I also agree with your statement that SJM gravitates to the snarky (see: rude) warrior archetype when there is a need for more characters like Elide and Yrene (two of my favourites as well) in the oversaturated Romantasy market.

From my own perspective — and from many who I have been discussing this with since my post — the apprehension does not come solely from having a unique perspective of a character that we are expecting SJM to bring to life. It is more based on her tendency to change the trajectory of a romance in very jarring or unpredictable ways. Possibly to the extent where a character becomes unrecognisable or even problematic, for the sake of SJMs self insertion of her current real-world experiences.

I can’t speak for everyone, but it’s a common criticism of many Nessian fans that the switch up between ACOWAR and ACOSF Nessian was jarring and disappointing (Cassian specifically). And this is the fear many have with how the Romance will play out once it finally becomes canon.

I think there are many readers who understand that the story is in SJMs hands, but based on her most recent relationships, that’s where the apprehension comes from. There is a level of toxicity in the relationships that many do not want to see play out in romance (especially the types of characters like Elain, Elide and Yrene), but it seems that this is SJMs bread and butter lately and I truly doubt whether she will avoid this same recipe with Elain and Lucien.

I think that’s a valid concern to have as a reader, and wouldn’t necessarily consider this apprehension to be projecting their own expectations on to the author.

This is exactly how I’m feeling. My excitement is more for the end of the ship wars and the constant fandom toxicity.

When it comes to the actual romance…I realised this weekend that I’m actually pretty apprehensive about what she will do to Elucien based on her most recent relationships.

Is anyone apprehensive about how Elucien will be written?

The past weekend, my partner asked me to catch him up on all the ACOTAR news leading up to the new book, and we ended up having a long conversation about my expectations, hopes etc for the new book, and he asked me “what would be the worst thing to happen in the new books?” Instead of saying E/riel, or my favourite character deaths, my response was that the worst thing that could happen is if SJM ruins Lucien and Elucien.

“Why would she do that?” He asked.

Then I explained my issues I had with Cassian in ACOSF. With Feysand. With how Bryce treated Hunt in HOFAS. How Ruhn and Lidia played out. Some of SJM’s relationships are underwhelming at best, and problematic at worst (my opinion).

And seeing so many consistencies in the way that SJM writes romance, I’m finally admitting that I don’t know if she will be able to deliver Elucien in a different way to how she has written her other couples.