Hopelessly Devoted...

The types of comments you get on fanfiction

So I put forth a challenge of sorts to our Voyager Book Club. I asked everyone to pick ONE Voyager fic that they consider to be their favorite. Now, you can imagine, this is pretty freaking hard! There are so many incredible fics out there. I didn’t say it had to be the best written, or the most in character. I gave examples such as: the one you read over and over or your go-to fic, however you want to phrase it. It was pointed out that a favorite fic can change every hour based on your frame of mind and what you are in the mood to read at any one moment. I get it. Even so….I challenged everyone to only pick ONE. And they did it! Or most of them! I got around 20 different favorites picked! So here is the list of our Favorite Voyager Fics, why they were chosen and by whom. Happy Reading!!

Note: Click on the name of the fic for a link to it! Also, this list is in no particular order.

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@curator-on-ao3: ‘Fragile Things’ by @mia-cooper

“Fanfic is about exploring possibilities. That’s what put this fic over the top to be my favorite. In Fragile Things, MiaCooper examines multiple versions of one relationship, pulling different threads to see how things unravel or knit together. It’s thoughtful, it’s meta, it’s realistic as hell, it’s damn good writing — it’s MiaCooper and it’s excellent.”

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@ariella884(yep, that’s me!): ‘2013′ by PCBW (@pcbw)

“I had a hard time choosing my favorite (like most people here), mostly because as i was gathering them all from everyone else I kept seeing ones and going, ‘Oh! I love that one!’.  I also didn’t want to have any duplicates so I had to change mine a couple times, that being said, 2013 is easily one of my top three (which of themselves is almost impossible to pick just one. I’m lucky that my other two were chosen already and I didn’t have to!). I love 2013 because it is a modern AU, without being a completely modern AU. No, that doesn’t make sense. But you get our Janeway and Chakotay, Starfleet officers and all, and you get them in the modern world. It’s incredible! We see the challenges they go through of being taken from everything they know and put into a world that is pretty much unknown to them. Add to that the personal differences they have to work out together. Splash in the normal challenges that we all go through when trying to live a life in this day and age (jobs, house, money, love, family, etc). This is just an incredibly beautiful story that I have read many times and will continue to read over and over. It’s also a long fic and those are my favorite because I like to get completely involved in stories!”

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@mia-cooper: ‘Deceiving’ by QuantumSilver

“Because it starts with a canon event that is absolutely devastating and shows just how devastated Janeway and Chakotay are by it (and Tuvok and Ayala as well, though they only make a brief appearance). It shows Janeway at her absolute best - every last inch the captain, going above and beyond for her crew not just physically but emotionally in spite of the absolutely gut-wrenching cost to her - and it really kicks off with one of my absolute favourite tropes: mutual pining to the Nth Fucking Degree.

It has Chakotay being every bit the commander, backing her up even though he’s dying inside, and REFUSING to let her shut herself away even though he KNOWS she’s going to want to murder him for pushing and pushing and pushing at her.

And then OH MY GOD, he’s deliberately getting on her every last nerve just so he can wrench honesty from her because he knows if she doesn’t tell him how badly he’s hurt her, how she’s absolutely bottomed out because of him, she will never open up to him or anyone else again.

AND THEY DRINK WHISKEY OMG GIVE ME KJ AND C UTTERLY MISERABLE AND DRINKING WHISKEY LIKE IT’S WATER AND PINING LIKE FUCK AND NOT SAYING A WORD BUT BLEEDING TO DEATH FROM THE HEART AND I WILL DIE HAPPY FOREVERRRRRRR

I’m sorry for yelling but this fic makes me want to rip off my clothes and run up and down the street screeching how everybody should read it and they are just BRUTAL with each other and they STILL do not understand, refuse to, CANNOT understand, that the other would not just die for them but MURDER WHOLE FUCKING ARMIES FOR THEM and it’s tragic and devastating but then oH MY GOoOoOODDDDD

So that is my favourite fic and the one i read approximately every two months or more if i really hate my writing that day and want to torture myself with How It Should Be Done.”

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@bizships: ‘Fealty’ by MsDisdain

“My favorite story. I honestly don’t have to think about it. It’s one I always go back to.

I love the way the crew pledges their loyalty to her and the way subtle way they tell her that it’s okay that she’s happy too in that they effectively give her Chakotay for her birthday, by way of him “fighting” Tuvok(Starfleet)  for her hand.”

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@arcadia1995: ‘The Space Between’ by lauawill ( @joyful-voyager)

“The Space Between is a story I return to time and time again when I’m feeling down.  I like that it realistically portrays what might have happened between Janeway and Chakotay right after the returned home in Endgame.  I like that no one in the J/C/7 triangle ends up being a bad guy.  I like the hopeful ending and imaging what might have happened after the fade to black (lots of sex!!!)“

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@wishful-thinker-87 : ‘if you came this way’ by tree

“It’s always a go to for me, even though I don’t usually like AUs. The sex is intense and emotional. The characterization is pot on. And we get Phoebe being an awesome sister and some Chakotay/Molly bonding too. What’s not to love?!”

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BlackVelvet: ‘Bluffing the Crowd’ by @ralkana

“Even after years since i read this, just thinking about this story brings a warm fuzzy feeling to my heart and a huge silly grin to my face. I simply love it.”

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@purpledog47: ‘The Future is Ours’ by Dawn

“My favorite is most definitely Dawn’s ‘The Future is Ours. This is my one fic. It’s super long and it tells us what happened after Endgame and it has a little bit of everything in it: angst, romance, hurt/comfort, Q, babyfic, romance.” 

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@amoderngirl: ‘Time and Distance’ by northernexposure

“If I am ever loosing the thread with J/C, I can always read this and I am immediately in love again.”

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@coffeeblack: ‘Soft Light’ by northernexposure

“There are so many reasons why I love it that I can’t even, haha. I’ll start with: it was the first piece of fanfic smut I read, so I love it for that reason - my first time haha. More importantly, it is just beautifully, beautifully written - it’s plotted beautifully, it flows beautifully and the pacing is spot on. The author has complete control over all of that & over the language, which is just used masterfully. There’s so much subtley going on in this story too - the author doesn’t spell everything out for us and instead draws us to the details that reveal what is important - the beginnings of these two getting to know each other. Gosh, it’s so hard to articulate haha! But lines like this just make me shiver in delight for their beauty and what they reveal: “he was kissing her, with a lot more sweetness than was wise. Ah god, I could go on and on but perhaps I’ll finish with my favourite bit, which is when C feels that first stab of lust & realises she might too & tests his theory by blowing softly on the back of her neck. This moment, omg, the moment is just so beautiful, so quiet, so pointed and private and intimate. You really feel that moment as if you are there. Ahhhhh :)

Also….there are two sequels to it that are equally as wonderful ;)  

Oh and one more thing I adore about this story is the way that the C thinks he is lusting after KJ but it is quite obvious he loves her - even before they come together - but he hasn’t realized it yet. The way the author does this is just incredible - so deft! Everything for C is about taking care of KJ … it’s just beautiful.”

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@caladeniablue: ‘Lifeline’ by helenagray ( @picking-daisies-in-the-outfield)

“Why do I like that fic? An unfinished WIP at that (Started in 2013; last update in Jan 2019. No indication how many chapters to go.) The perfect serial story and that’s part of the attraction for me.

The first chapter sets the scene: raw Janeway, alone, without the backup of her ship, her crew or Chakotay. Bare of essentials and with only her courage and intelligence and sheer determination to help her survive, and even she wonders how long those will last her.

And while we learn about Chakotay and how he seeks her while the crew has to move on, I am drawn to Janeway most of all.

The fic jumps back and forth across locations and in time from that first chapter to catch up with it again some 20 chapters later, but there is no jarring. The reader knows immediately what KJ is experiencing , but the past events that led to that situation are as important, and that’s one of the many attractions of this story. No overlong flashbacks, no tedious info dump. It’s all layered, making one wait for the next chapter and the next one, while knowing all the time where KJ has ended up.

The writing is gorgeous, which is a bonus. And it is pure J/C, distilled to its purest by separation.  Perfect.”

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@keiraniels: ‘Bad Ensign’ (Series) by @curator-on-ao3

“Ok so I chose Curator’s ‘Bad Ensign’ because I come back to it often - - it’s such a freaking brilliant idea that I can 100% imagine being canon, and it inspired so many Voyager Bookclubbers to write Bad Ensign stories”

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@cnrothtrek: ‘War Torn’ by @curator-on-ao3

“Why? I had the pleasure of beta reading this story, and I am so glad that I did. It has a great plot, is well-written and perfectly paced, and is hard to put down. The way it pulls together two pieces of canon backstories for Miles O’Brien and Kathryn Janeway is genius. The characters feel so real and their voices can be clearly heard in the text. And the supporting characters of Captain Benjamin Maxwell, Will “Stompie” Kayden, and Molly Walsh are incredible. The story is intense, absorbing, and emotional. I just can’t say enough good things about it.”

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@theshortywrites: ‘The Dragonfly Oath’ by Koneia

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@emmikamikatze: ‘All the Good Things We Never Did’ by northernexposure

“This story brings me to tears, makes me smile and shiver and fear and worry. It’s given me phrases that won’t leave me, that keep repeating itself in my head even months (years) after first reading it. There’s just the right amount of show trivia to make it a fanfiction, but little enough to make it a unique and original story. ne makes me fall in love with these characters all over again as if I didn’t know them beforehand.

This story is special and precious and it speaks to me on so many levels I can hardly comprehend how genius it is. It’s a literary masterpiece of fanfic if there ever was one.”

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@missmil: ‘Here I Stand’ by lauawill

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@manalyzer13: ‘Gravitation’ by northernexposure

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@grace-among-the-stars: ‘Filling the Void’ by Spiletta42

“Filling the Void is the one fic I always return to. It has my fave ships, JC, PT and D7. Minor characters play major parts and it is just funny. It makes me laugh every time. 

JC’s relationship is really explored from all angles, this is not just your average, ‘the crew get them together fics’, it is so much more. It has sexual tension, smut, humour, sadness and is pure JC BLISS. It always cheers me up and I was so happy when Spiletta42 added it to Ao3 because this meant so many more people would find it.”

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Anonymous: ‘Bent, Not Broken’ by @killermanatee

“This is an incredible hurt/comfort Janeway/Chakotay fic. The story is painfully written from both characters’ perspectives, showing how each is suffering in a different way from the traumatic event that has occurred. In the end, their love for each other will help them come together and they will both be able to heal with time, comfort, and support from one another. This is a beautifully told, emotionally heavy story of one couple’s love overcoming tragedy. It is my favorite Janeway/Chakotay fic, and I recommend it to anyone who wants to read a heartbreaking yet fulfilling story.”

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@minakotenjou: ‘Mysterious and Curious’ by @h4t08 

“It was so hard to choose - there are a lot of incredible fanfics out there. This was one of the first…shall we say spicier J/C fics I read and for some reason I still think of it often. It’s great smut for sure, but I think it stuck with me because of how it all gets tied together at the end.”

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@leisylaura: ‘The Bitter End’ by @mia-cooper

“We have post endgame books but not one about the original timeline, I remember reading “The bitter end” and thinking “this is it, this is what happened”.  I cried from beginning to end.”

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@killermanatee: ‘The Dying of the Light’ by @cnrothtrek

"This fic is such a gorgeous piece of art. I hadn’t seen the TNG episode before reading it and when I did watch it I was very disappointed because this fic is just on such a completely different level. The storytelling is so delicate and intriguing, that combined with the poignant and elegant writing style, so that it was impossible to put my phone down. I can’t recommend this fic highly enough.”

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@cheile: ‘Marooned’ by Soliquilii9 (aka Running Horse)

“I love how she makes the story unfold in slow steady measures.  Also, she filled in the gaps left by the writers in regards to his heritage by using information from her own Cherokee background and it is done naturally (not in an info dump type manner). “

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DEAD END by DEVOVERE

All Chakotay wanted was to love Kathryn. Now that he has her, though, he’s mourning what they can’t have.

A Star Trek Voyager fic (rated E), part 9 of the Intimacies series which explores the relationship between Chakotay and Kathryn Janeway in the Resolutions episode.

This is a fic about the harsh reality of two people stranded on a planet for the rest of their lives, and how one can only grieve what cannot be. But what else can you expect from @devoverest who digs deeper than most into the main character’s past and culture, reveals undercurrents which most of us never thought about, and shows us anything but an utopia. No rainbows here.

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Now for the comments by the distinguished members of the no-less-distinguished @voyager-book-club. 

That story punched me brutally in the face, ripped my still beating heart out through my larynx, threw it in the dirt, stomped on it with metal stilettos and drop kicked it down to the local pub and into a pavement pizza — @mia-cooper

This story beautifully, eloquently (HOMG your phrasing is a masterpiece unto itself), gut-wrenchingly [written] — @bizships

The intensity of emotion is breathtaking and the way those emotions expand and link to a wider whole just blows my mind — BlackVelvet42

A remarkable writer to use normal everyday words and squeeze a new meaning out of them, something that tugs at the heart and at the soul at the same time — @caladeniablue

You gave a voice to an agony that is rarely known and even more scarcely seen– and you did it elegantly — @trinfinity2001

I suppose the best ‘strokin’ I could give though, is that I’m going to read the entire [series] now — @servalan

So well-written, so delicate, oh GOSH, basically you know how to write, what words to use and I love that so so much — @coffee-in-that-nebula

Just wonderful characterization — @cheile

I am a sucker for angst and the deep feels, and this fic hits you hard — @klugtiger

The emotional and the visual descriptions were so wonderfully done that my heart was breaking — @laney1728

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Moodboard by @coffee-in-that-nebula

James T. Kirk as “La liberté Guidant Le Peuple,” by Eugène Delacroix

Dr. McCoy as “The Scream,” by Edvard Munch

Spock as “Apollo and The Muses,” by Simon Vouet

Gentlebeings! I call you here today to announce the formal opening of a very special event: A charity fic exchange to raise money to support migrants and asylum seekers on the US southern border.

What is this thing?

As many of you will know, thousands of migrants arrive daily at the US-Mexico border seeking asylum in the US. They are fleeing political oppression, gang violence, domestic abuse, economic collapse caused by climate change, and innumerable other terrible situations. The Trump administration has decided, rather than fulfill our country’s obligation under international law to provide asylum to those who need it, to instead imprison migrants under inhumane conditions, separate them from their families, and deny them access to legal counsel.

Luckily, there are a bunch of great organizations working to provide legal services and humanitarian assistance to these migrants. And we are going to give them some fucking money.

Who are we donating to?

We will be supporting:

The International Rescue Committee, which provides humanitarian assistance to migrants released from border detention;

Border Angels, which provides water and supplies along migrant routes to prevent people from dying in the desert;

The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, which provides legal and social support for refugees as they settle in the US;

And RAICES, which provides free and low-cost legal services to those detained at the border.

How does this work?

About 200 wonderful fandom creators have offered to provide fic and/or art to those who donate to any of these groups. Detailed instructions about how to get your fic/art once you’ve donated can be found here.

What do I do if I’ve signed up as a creator?

Your instructions are right here!

Where will all this cool fandom content end up?

All of the creators working on this project are encouraged to post their stuff in this AO3 collection!

So what’s in this for me?

Other than, like, helping people? Well. If there’s one truly universal fandom experience, it’s wanting fan content that doesn’t exist. Now you can make it exist! Want a drabble about your favorite villain hugging a puppy? Just ask. Yearning for a painting of your OC as a pirate? An artist is standing by. Need a handholding fic? An absurd bit of crack? An a/b/o smutfest? Now is your chance, my friends. It’s not every day you get to indulge yourself and do good simultaneously. Go for it.

Ok but seriously though.

One of the absolutely amazing things about fandom as a community is the way we are able to organize ourselves. We organize cons, kinkmemes, communities, fucking AO3. We’re a goddamn powerhouse. So let’s organize ourselves to do some good in the world. My original post announcing this project currently has 2,822 notes. That means that, if everyone who interacted with that post donates a dollar to one of these organizations, we’ll raise over 2,000 dollars to support migrants, and add potentially over 100,000 words of fanfiction and dozens or hundreds of pieces of fanart to the universe. And that’s just if we keep this restricted to the people who already know about it.

“Sir, Starbase 12 reports a flock of space sharks cruising through the system.  They’re worried about them chewing on the antennae.”

“Can we get the Hood over there to monitor their path and shoo them off if need be?”

“No can do sir, Hood called in two days ago, says the Captain took his security detail down to the local surface to fight an army of evil komodo dragons.”

“Damn.  What about the Valiant?”

“Captain says she’s currently engaged in a duel of wits with a clone of Bismarck.”

“Like the battleship?”

“No sir, a clone of Otto von Bismarck, the German chancellor from the 1900s.”

“I’m scared to ask, but where’s the Potemkin?”

“Last reported in pursuit of a super-intelligent shade of blue.”

“God’s sake.  What about the Enterprise, are they available?”

“Something about a hole in space.”

Upon being welcomed to the Klingon House of Korath: I love what he’s done with the place.

Upon Captain Kim intercepting her shuttle: Harry! And people are always saying that space is so big.

Upon Captain Janeway expressing concern: Oh, I don’t blame you for being skeptical. But if you can’t trust yourself, who can you trust?

I hereby request a show with Endgame Admiral Janeway, her mother, and two other women living in a house in Miami. Call it Latinum Girls. I will watch it.

Hi, I’m new here :) I’m about to finish my first watch of Voyager and thought I’d poke my head into the fic side of this lovely fandom. 

Thank you @escapewithstories for being the most wonderful. 

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