With the end of the year, it's a good time to create a masterpost of my Sandman fics, especially since I have written more than 110k words in total in 2023 !
So, in chronological order:
Tales of the Sands, 1.6k Mature, variation on the Tales in the Sand comics issue.
A Happy Little Mistake, 15k Gen Dreamling fic, post fishbowl rescue and feel good.
My Dreamling week fics:
Barfight: The Wedding Gift, 1.8k wedding fluff fic.
Decay: Mosaic, 2.5k Hob waiting for Dream's return in the Dreaming
Curiosity: A dreamer like no other, 0.5k ficlet
Midnight Snack: the Time in Between, 1.5k Hob having a midnight snack
Confession: Born Yesterday, 2.5k Mature fic, Comic spoilers !
Touch-starved: The cat came back the very next day (the cat came back it wouldn't stay away) 5.2k, Hob is the cat fic !
Fake/pretend relationship: The King, the Fae and the Peasant, 3.5k WIP, Mediaeval Hob is Dream's fake date to make Titania jealous
and finally the big one:
Vortex-Street, 44.5k Mature Dreamling fic, physicist Hob studies the dream Vortex and saves his beloved in the process.
And more to come with my secret Dreamling Big Bang fic for which 32k are already written!
Update: my Big Bang fic is here, you can check it here on AO3, or here on Tumblr! It's called Don't Look Back, and is a GroundHob Day story where Hob is stuck in a time loop in the late 16th century. (Beware the tags, though)
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I need to explain this one, because most of you won't believe me.
Other : mostly, they didn't have to. France employed me to study.
Between 18 and 20, I was selected to prepare a competitive exam for two years. There was no tuition, I lived at my parents' and they only paid for some books I needed. At the end of it, my parents paid a bit so that I could go and pass the final steps of the exam.
At twenty, I passed a (very) competitive exam, and was recruited by the French Government to study. For 4 years, I had my own salary, my own health coverage, so I paid for my food, my rent, my taxes, everything. In exchange my only job was to study and I had to promise that I would work for the government for ten years.
I find it amazing that at one point, the state decided that investing in education meant paying people so that they could focus on studying. One of the idea is that the state prepares its own future workers, with an incentive to remain in civil service. It's too bad it's restricted to a very small number of students (less than a thousand a year). I think it should be more widespread, so I try to plant the idea every chance I get.
I’m not sure what’s the best part of this video: the fact that she’s in heels, the fact that she does the whole thing looking like she don’t give a fuck, that chick in the back just exercising and enjoying the show, or the fact that both men and women are observing this and the girls are laughing and the guys look concerned/pensive as fuck as they watch all their tactics get shut down like nothing is even happening.
Some of this looks similar to the self defense I learned in a course three or four years ago. It’s definitely got some judo in it (arm bars, throws, fighting to and from the ground).
I love this lady. She is rad. I feel like she, much like the rad lady I had as my self defense teacher, would also warn the women that if they don’t think they can gouge out someone’s eyes, don’t start trying because you’ll attack better with something you can follow through on.
Okay, I don't usually do that, but if anyone who is french and follow me, Go vote the 7th of July.
I don't want the extreme right to be in majority in the assembly.
For context for everyone who isn't French: Macron decided to dissolve the french assembly (they vote and suggest new laws) after the European elections (spoilers: This was a bad idea considering the rise of the extreme right everywhere in Europe), meaning we have to vote to elect some new deputies. And today was the first round... surprise, surprise: the RN (which is the extreme right) was first.
The left, as a response to the European elections, formed a coalition called Le Nouveau Front Populaire (the new popular front), very 1934 of us I have to say and they are second (I think).
Ce qui se passe est beaucoup trop grave pour rester les bras ballants. Le vote blanc ne sert à rien, l'abstention ne sert à rien. Allez voter.
Si vous voulez protester contre le fonctionnement des institutions républicaines on pourra faire ça quand vous voulez, mais UNIQUEMENT avec un premier ministre qui ne soit pas issu d'un parti fasciste fondé par les hériter du régime de Vichy et de l'Allemagne Nazi.
Que Macron ait fait un pari bouffi d'orgueil ne devrait pas condamner toutes les minorités en France et en Europe à ce que le RN veut leur faire. Allez voter.
Vérifier les résultats du premier tour dans votre circonscription : si c'est RN contre NFP, votez NFP; si c'est RN contre Ensemble, votez Ensemble; di c'est NFP contre Ensemble, votez NFP.
Et si c'est une triangulaire, votez pour le candidat ou la candidate non RN arrivé.e en tête, même si l'autre ne s'est pas désisté.e (le déshonneur et la défaite).
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If, unlike the editors in the last panel, you ever want to read an aerospace-themed romance novel, I wrote Vortex Street, a 45k Dreamling fic about romance and fluid mechanics in the Sandman universe.
The Birth of Guilt (or Why Delight Became Delirium)
In which humanity changes, and Delight becomes Delirium.
Rated T | 401 Words | A03 | Masterpost | CW: Religious Guilt/Trauma
This story was inspired by Leonard Schlain’s The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The Conflict Between Word and Image, in which he theorizes that written language fundamentally changed how human minds work, allowing patriarchal ideas to flourish. In Chapter 6, “Cuneiform/Marduk” he states, “The Seven Tablets of Creation replaced previous creation myths around 1700 B.C. and was recited every spring in Babylon for the next thousand years as the most plausible explanation for how the physical world came into existence....
Dream's appearance in this ficlet is a callack to Delight's brief appearance in Sandman: Overture.
“Babylonians embracing this myth would forever be burdened by guilt; they owed their very existence to the martyrdom of a god.” This myth, along with the Code of Hammurabi, Schlain argues, caused Babylon’s cultural and mental shift towards patriarchal principles and biases.
The illustration is influenced by ancient Babylonian relief carvings & sculpture.
The people didn’t want to believe the story, but it could not be denied. It was clearly etched in stone tablets. That myth was now unchangeable, immoveable, same as Hammurabi’s laws that now ruled their daily lives. Every year, the story was read aloud, in case they had forgotten. The weight of those words seemed to press down on them, heavy as the stone on which it was written, causing a burdensome new emotion, for which they had no name. (But one was guilt, and the other shame.)
As Babylon’s empire spread, the myth was told and retold to more and more people, from Hittites to Aryans and beyond. As they accepted its authority,, they fell under its heavy psychological weight. And as their burden grew, their joy fled from them.
Wherever they may seem to be, the Endless are always bound to those they serve. Delight was walking in her garden, when suddenly she trembled and so did the ground beneath her. Something was shifting. And somehow it was her.
In the chaos of the moment, a familiar voice called out to her: “ Delight? ”
“I can’t come right now,” she rasped. “I’m changing. I’m sorry.”
“... changing? ” Dream’s voice echoed, and then she was alone again.
Delight cried out. She fell to her hands and knees on the soft moss. Beneath her, it began to dissolve. Blooms fell with petal-soft sounds. Something twisted and broke inside her. Pain screamed through her and she screamed, loud and wordless.
When the biting pain had passed, Delirium looked up with eyes that now were of two different colors beneath the sheen of her tears. She saw her garden falling into decay, everything dying, dropping, morphing into nonsense shapes and never-before-seen colors.
She stood and looked around. Her realm was no longer a garden of delight, and she was someone else.
As Delirium stood on wobbly legs, she sprouted wings to keep her balanced. She took a step and then another, wings fluttering, hurrying her along. She couldn’t think of what she’d just been doing. Or why she’d stopped. But she supposed it must not be important, if she couldn’t recall. Giggling, she leapt into the air, letting her wings carry her. Iridescent bubbles of all shapes and sizes rose with her into the maelstrom of color that was the sky.
She was Delirium. This was her Realm. She was herself and she was home.
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I can sing a solid number of songs in Hebrew (religious reasons) and some in German (took a class). I can sing a few Eurovision songs but they're in English.
"Do you imagine I did not already know?" Morph says with a smirk, as Hob leads him into the church and up the trancept.
Hob squeezes his hand three times - I love you.
But out loud he says, "Know-it-all."
"Stories are stories, my beloved." He gestures with one moon-pale hand at the way the sun shafts through the stained glass. "This story celebrates the birth of printed books on this island I now call home. And you were there twice. Once as the apprentice in truth. Once as the model for your own trade. Of course I knew."
"Aye, couldn't help it, could I?" Hob says, tugging his ear with gentle embarrassment, swinging their joined hands between them. "Didn't want anyone else's mug up there when I'm the one who did all the hard work. I'm the one who stayed up late, and burned the ends of my fingers, and reeked of rotting ink. So I thought, should be my face up there next to his. A man's allowed his pride, isn't he?"
"Indeed," Morph says. He releases Hob's hand only to cup his jaw between slender palms and bestow a cool, sweet kiss on his mouth. "And proud you should be."
"I'm glad this one survived the blitz," Hob says when Morph pulls away.
They both look at the window. Hob slides a hand into Morph's back pocket to hold him close.
"I do as well, " Morph says.
They bask in the syrupy golden light coming in through the window for a few minutes longer. Hob is just about to suggest lighting a candle for old Master Caxton when a bevy of tourists tumble in the back door and laugh their way up the church.
"Hey!" one of them shouts, face flushed with the British chill and the excitement of recognition. "Look guys! It's the Witch Knight!"
Hob braces himself for a mob of what sounds like American history nerds descending on them, but when he turns to face the crowd of love-struck college students are staring up at the stained glass.
"Jeeze, Megan, your hyperfixation is showing again," says one of them, shoving the girl who originally shouted playfully. "That is just stained glass. Sir Robert Gadlen the third has been dead for, like four hundred years."
"And Robert Gadlen the sixth is already married," Morph calls out to the tourists, flashing his left hand with proprietary smugness.
"You bastard!" Hob laughs, yanking Morph into an undignified run down the aisle, toward the door.
"The actual Witch Knight!" Megan shrills.
Hob skids to a halt at the door, just long enough to throw over his shoulder: "We are not calling me that!"
Not to be a Star Trek fan too loud in the Sandman fandom but I know I can't be the only one who screams a little inside when watching Dream talk to Calliope and he says those three very special words: "Let Me Help."
"City on the Edge of Forever" sends the boys back to 1930. Kirk says "in a hundred years or so," a man will write a famous novel on that theme, recommending those three words even over "I love you."
That novel will be inspired by Calliope, a few years after she is set free. Long enough for her to feel as though she can work with another writer. It helps heal her.
Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass it on to some other writers if you like. Let’s spread the self-love 💜 (i personally hate these sorts of chain-letter things, so no pressure, but i do like to know which of their works a given author particularly loves, so consider this an opportunity to celebrate your work!)
Man, my instinct was "but I haven't written enough to have five favorites" and then i looked at my works page and I was like. Huh. Ok, actually that's wrong somehow.
Anyway.
The Next Level - Sandman/Good Omens crossover.
Originated entirely from that post where Neil said that Aziraphale and Crowley like to hold hands. Wrote it during a work training conference instead of paying full attention. As you do.
Put that Thing Back Where it Came From or So Help Me - Sandman,
My gen Gault and Jed buddy adventure story that took me a while to write but I got there in the end. Unfortunately for me, the readers don't go for gen-fic, so it has a third the reads of my other stuff. QQ
Wash these Sins On Down the River - Dreamling AU, written to go with @teejaystumbles art.
Vampire Hob, mysterious supernatural entity Dream. Gosh this was fun to write have take over my entire brain for like two months.
The Vampire, Formerly of Surrey - for The Angel of the Crows by Katherine Addison.
I just really wanted more Crow and Doyle, and also there's only eight works in that fandom and I got to deal with my personal feelings about both vampires and chronic illness.
Lowdown and Dirty - for the Foreigner series by CJ Cherryh
Still really proud of this one, even though it's from 2017, before I took my five year fanfic writing hiatus. This was just me going "wouldn't it be fun if Ilisidi Filed Intent on Bren for sneaky political reasons? he would be so hurt and annoyed and inconvenienced."
Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass it on to some other writers if you like. Let’s spread the self-love 💜 (i personally hate these sorts of chain-letter things, so no pressure, but i do like to know which of their works a given author particularly loves, so consider this an opportunity to celebrate your work!)
Thank you for this tag, @tryan-a-bex and @zzoomacroom!
My favourite work that I've written is The King of Stone, which is not the Sandman fandom but it's the work I put the most work in, most love and most of myself. So, if you feel like reading an interesting AU fandom-blind, give it a chance. Fandom-blind it's basically the story of two men in a world where being hetero is a crime. This trope is not for everyone, but as I said, my favourite work.
To Hold and Dream - Omegaverse AU with professor!Hob and student!Dream, and an unexpected heat.
The Black Void I Cannot Fix - Dark!!! The aftermath of rape.
Marked by Death - Immortal soldier and doctor Hob meets god!Morpheus. Ft. rough sex.
Friend of the Sea - Mermaid!Hob and prince!Dream, a mermaid rescue mission and an exercise in trust.
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btw one of the key components of actually being in a healthy relationship is just asking for things that you want. i keep seeing posts on this website saying 'i really want to do/receive [X] but my partner has never done it'. just ask. 'nobody exchanges love letters anymore' ask. 'i want to have my partner's hair in a locket like the victorians' just ask. 'i want to be bought flowers regularly :((' literally just ask. your partner doesn't know they're being held to these expectations and that you're unhappy unless you tell them. it's so unfair to expect your partner to read your mind. 'it's less special if you have to ask :((' grow up and stop pretending you're the lead in a romcom. when people say communication is crucial they mean it !! just ask !!
This is one of the hardest but most crucial lessons to learn if you have previously been in an abusive relationship. If a previous partner made you feel like it wasn't safe to ask for the things you want or need, it is very easy to fall into a pattern of never articulating your desires. But that's not fair to your current partner or to yourself; in a healthy relationship, you should feel safe asking for the things you want. It takes reflection, and work, and it is sometimes hard as hell, but trust me, it's worth it.
It’s also something to unlearn from years of movies/books portraying love as some soul connection in which your lover can read your mind. I assure you, they can’t. Even the most attentive, loving, and thoughtful partners deserve clearly-communicated expectations.
It was reading fanfic and going “oh my god why don’t they just talk” that finally got me over that hump. And also my partner that I met because of healing through fanfic? He gets so excited about the things I ask for. Like “Hell, yes! You want that? I’ve never had a partner who wanted that before! Any time! All the time! I’m so lucky to have you in my life!” It’s kinda fun and still bowls me over sometimes, how much we want the same things.
There should be a fanfic writing game called the showrunners challenge where someone writes a story and partway through someone else can play things like "actor leaves after 4000 more words" or "topic now too politically sensitive due to unforeseen world events" or "lost rights to that reference"
I do not have the energy do do a full layout right now b/c it is kickstarter season and I am under water, but here's a prototype that can be solo-played (you can also have a friend just pick from the lists if you want that pvp feeling.)
Showrunner's Challenge
By Runawaymarbles
(also sorta by sprintingowl)
Begin writing a fanfic. It is a feature length television program being watched every week by thousands. There is no plan. The industry is in shambles. The writer's room is barely hanging on.
At the end of each chapter, roll a d12.
1 Everything at once. Roll twice, use both. If you get this again, keep rolling. Your only way out is to stop getting 1s.
2 Product placement! The next chapter must center (and subtly promote the features of) a product belonging to the most recent brand you've seen.
3 Fan favorite. Your most recently mentioned character (or named object) is now beloved by the audience. You must give it a bigger part in the story, a special destiny, or an important new romance or friendship. If you get this twice for the same character or object, the adoration cools and you must go back to treating the character or object normally.
4 Executive meddling. You must change to a different genre. You cannot go back to a genre until you have changed genres three times since then.
5 Audiences are craving more coziness. The next chapter must be completely low stakes and set you at ease.
6 Audiences are craving more suspense. The next chapter must take place entirely in a single location, ideally just a single room, and build tension with every exchange of dialog.
7 Audiences are craving more action. The next chapter needs to involve at least one extended fight scene, and the weapons must be the last three objects mentioned.
8 Audiences are craving more romance. The next chapter needs to involve a deep, sappy confession of either love or admiration between two characters that have not previously been romantically involved.
9 Go to the most recent line in your fic that references a brand. Due to ongoing legal action, that brand cannot be mentioned again, but you score 1 audience point every time you allude to it in a way that paints it in a negative light.
10 The two most recently mentioned characters' actors have, IRL, gone through a VERY messy divorce or friend breakup. You cannot put them in the same scene, but they must both remain relevant parts of the show. If you get this with the same two characters again, they reconcile.
11 The most recent negative event (stabbing, poisoning, banishment to jupiter) is now the center of a very real IRL news story. You must immediately pivot away from all plotlines involving it and, if possible, also find away to apologize for even thinking to include it without breaking character.
12 The most recently mentioned character's actor has decided to leave the show. You must write them out in the next chapter. If you are brave, also roll a d12. 1--6, they were well loved and their sendoff must be as flowery as possible. 7--12, they were despised by the cast and crew. Mulch them.
You win if you can complete the fic in a state of relative coherency.
Alternate Game Mode: TV Digest Version
Don't write full chapters, just summaries of what happens in each chapter.
Alternate Game Mode: Realism Edition
Start your fanfic with your own telling of the first episode of an existing show, then proceed from there.
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