man lernt nie aus ...

Dear Yuletide Writer 2024...

this year I wish for world peace! If for some reason you can’t deliver, I’d be delighted about a sweet little story, too! ;)

Things I really like to read (about):

Happy endings. Period. It may be old-fashioned, I don’t care. It’s christmas, after all. J Name dropping, historical events dropping (is this even a word that exists?). Slash, especially femslash. Historical accuracy – or, at least not blatant inaccurancy. People who are good at heart. People who are interesting/special (in whatever way). People who manage to be good at heart and interesting/special (in whatever way) at the same time. (Why do so often the baddies end up being the only interesting people)? The sea. The seasons.  Wordplay and banter. Colours and clothing. Nature. Wittiness. Little moments. The weather. Characters that have deep respect for each other. Characters that are competent at things (but not to a nearly-impossible, „genius“ degree). Characters that are open-minded.

Things I don’t mind at all:

Religion in general and christianity in special. POV/ first person narrator. Consensual Sex (in whatever form). Rainbows.

Things I don’t like to read (about):

Sad endings. No, not even if they’re called „bittersweet“. Graphic violence. Injustice. Bashing of religion. Non-con. Characters dying. Slapstick. Parents who don’t love their children. Friendships or relationships that come apart.

It’s this time of the Year again...

Dear secret Santa,

this year I wish for world peace more than ever! If for some reason you can’t deliver, I’d be delighted about a sweet little story, too! ;)

Things I really like to read (about):

Happy endings. Period. It may be old-fashioned, I don’t care. It’s christmas, after all. J Name dropping, historical events dropping (is this even a word that exists?). Slash, especially femslash. Historical accuracy – or, at least not blatant inaccurancy. People who are good at heart. People who are interesting/special (in whatever way). People who manage to be good at heart and interesting/special (in whatever way) at the same time. (Why do so often the baddies end up being the only interesting people)? The sea. The seasons.  Wordplay and banter. Colours and clothing. Nature. Wittiness. Little moments. The weather. Characters that have deep respect for each other. Characters that are competent at things (but not to a nearly-impossible, „genius“ degree). Characters that are open-minded.

Things I don’t mind at all:

Religion in general and christianity in special. POV/ first person narrator. Consensual Sex (in whatever form). Rainbows.

Things I don’t like to read (about):

Sad endings. No, not even if they’re called „bittersweet“. Graphic violence. Injustice. Bashing of religion. Non-con. Characters dying. Slapstick. Parents who don’t love their children. Friendships or relationships that come apart.

Please. I mean it. Honestly. Even while mentioning all of the above, I had too many Yuletides getting stories about main characters dying (twice! because of time travel), mothers that despised her children, friends that took their farewells forever, characters seriously debating killing babies ... And no, however much some people would find this cool and edgy - I’m not one of them. I’m a hippie at heart! Please, please, love and peace and pancakes (in the end), even if only at Christmas. :)

---

Things I love about my fandoms - and some questions and plotbunnies to hopefully give you some ideas:

19 Century CE German writers:

Two years ago, while I was teaching about German Romanticism Writers I really became interested in them. They were such nerdy guys - all of them! And so much of their lives sound like they were taken from romantic novels themselves: dead parents, living at old castles or near a moor, being unhappily in love with each other, having dark secrets, dying of consumption ...

I absolutely like Annette von Droste-Hülshoff best! Because if you read about her in any literary history book (or even wikipedia), she seems like *the* most boring writer ever. Which couldn’t be further from the truth! Only that she very much valued her privacy... with burning letters, inventing tricks like little letters inside of letters, using ‘male’ speakers in her poems, self-censuring her writing to the point of being in danger of not getting across the message. Or, plaing demure Catholic noble lady, exploiting all the stereotypes - which, sadly, backfired into later generations taking them for truths.

So much about her is so worthy to be digged out: her being bilingual from childhood (since she was so small at birth, no one believed she would live, so she was given to a wet nurse who spoke French and called her Annette), her shortsightedness to the point of being legally blind (yet she wasn’t allowed to wear her glasses outside of the house because glasses are “ugly” and the sense of life, as we all know, for women is being pretty), her rap battle roast (well, isn’t “Stegreifreimen” more or less a kind of rap?) of the Brothers Grimm when she was only 15 (and, by the way, she may have been the one who told them Snow White and the Story of the Youth who went forth to learn what fear was), her being a badass natural scientist, trained singer and even composer (even if, to this day still, not a single note by her has ever been performed). Even if she suffered her whole life from bad migraines and other chronic illnesses (a food intolerance, maybe). Or that she was the only German writer who tried something like Catholic Enlightenment literature in her  - which mostly got ignored like so many other texts by her. And speaking of “the only one” - besides Heinrich Heine (who, as a jew, had a very personal interest in it) she was the only Romantic writer who, in “Die Judenbuche” wrote against Anti-Semitism.

And of course, all the major queer vibes she gives with her many lady friends (Amalie Hassenpflug even got buried beside her and Adele Schopenhauer fumed with jealousy over a possible blooming relationship between Annette and Adele’s girlfriend, Sibylle Meertens-Schaaffhausen) and rededicated poems (”What do you mean, this poem is about my ‘lady’ friend?! I’m sorry...?! Of course, it is dedicated to my publisher! I really do not know what you’re insinuating here and I don’t think that thing is appropriate to discuss with a decent unmarried Catholic lady like myself.”). It seems crazy to think that even today, this is nearly never mentioned at all in articles or books about her. Because of cause, famous writers have to be gold standard hetero, each and every one, don’t they - and anyway, being queer was not yet invented? And surely, her not marrying was because her heart was broken after her family destroyed her relationship with her boyfriend in the “Jugendkatastrophe” - and of course she never tried her luck in love e v e r again after this. Sigh...

There is so much more I could mention... like, for example, her early (for lack of a better word) environmental awareness... yet, for now, lets free some plot bunnies, shall we?

I’d like to read about her childhood and youth. Some episodes that foreshadow things that will be important in her later life, maybe? Or what really happened in all of those holidays at the Haxthausen house in Bökendorf, with the Brothers Grimm whom she hated? What about her first ball where she got to know that ‘feminist’ writer Katharina Sibylla Schücking that she instantly was so fascinated with (the diary of Annette’s sister Jenny complains that Annette “nearly did not dance at all and only talked with that woman all night”)? Or write about her hiking in the moors, about how a normal day would have been for her. Or how some of her works came into existence. Or some censored (and uncensored) correspondance - (most of which, of cause, got destroyed by her family)?

I’d like for it to be at least a tiny little bit queer... would be such a waste if not! ;)

Das Fräulein von Rodenschild (Annette von Droste-Hülshoff)

Even if I have a lot to do with German literature professionally, I only came across this ballad relatively recently. And I love it!

It would lend itself nicely for a backup fandom, since it is only a ballad with not much (if any) context to it. You can read it here: https://www.droste-portal.lwl.org/de/werk/lyrik/ausgabe-1844/balladen/das-fraulein-von-rodenschild/

I have to say, however, that my headcanon derives from the self-censored earlier version in which she kisses the ghost. ;)  Because I very much got the vibe the Fräulein von Rodenschild is a lesbian female ghost huntress in the Middle Ages (or, alternatively, in the Early Modern Era or the early 19th century). And I’d absolutely love for a story about such a woman!

Some ideas:

What is the emotional distress our hero is in in the first few lines? “Schwül” and “siedend(es) Blut” sounds very much like an unfulfilled desire, does it not? ;) What does the ghost want? Why is it there? Is it even a “real” ghost - or some psychological phenomenon? Does our heroine have experience in handling ghosts? Where from? What do the peasants think of her? How does she come to the idea to kiss the ghost? What happened to her hand? What is so very “toll”/”crazy” about her?

Feel absolutely free to merge the heroine of the poem with Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, who wrote it to impress Adele Schopenhauer - only to have her judge that “the FRäulein von Rodenschild” got punished to little!

The Sea-Wolf (Jack London)

Maybe my love of the sea may have been arisen partly from watching the German/French/Romanian mini TV series (1971) as a very young child.

If it so happens that you know it, too – I’d be delighted if you write in that canon, where both men know each other (or, at least, Van Weyden does) from their youth. I loved the soundtrack and the wonderful sailing ship and how Van Weyden fells in love with the sea, harsh and beautiful beyond compare, and becomes his true self even under cruel circumstances.

They both make for wonderful slash, don't you think? ;) But please no violence (opposed to story as a whole) or non-con. I don't care much how far they would go (write as much as you feel comfortable or what seems right for you) - instead more for the mutual, grundgingly admitted respect and appreciation that blooms into something more or finds ways to be expressed.

Maud is a very interesting addition to the equation – she makes them all a real triangle, because there is genuine interest and respect and a shared love for literature and not to forget a whole lot of UST between all of them. And Maud is such a great character! She doesn’t need to be the “strong” female to be strong in her own right. She is much more emancipated and feminist than a lot of “wonder women” out there.

So, I absolutely can picture some kind of threesome polyarmory – but it doesn’t have to be one, could also be like a POV from each of them. Or a couple that tentatively explores their interest in the third party? So many possibilities!

And while I’m absolutely aware that the book (and the mini series) goes very deep into philosophilcal and ethical questions about what friendship is or the nature vs. nurture debate and so on… I’d be absolutely happy with good old porn, too! :P

Prince Ahmed and the fairy Pari Banu (Arabian Nights)

This fairy-tale was something special to me when I was a child. I completely identified with the sorceress. How cool to be so competent that they send you as a spy to complete a dangerous mission? And what exciting and amazing mission to spy on a mighty fairy! Also, I didn’t quite understand the tingly feeling when I pictured myself as the sorceress amazed by all the glory of Pari Banu… until much, much later in life. 😉 Pari Banu, who is everything fairy(-tale)- like: has powers and riches seemingly without end, a brother who is a djinni, a kingdom (queendom?) made entirely out of women, that puts even princes in awe, a queen that seemingly can read minds and do magic, the ruler of animals and weather phenomena. Just… wow.  

So please, give me a story about that sorceress and let’s just forget about her gruesome ending in the fairy-tale, will we? Surely that was some kind of mistake with the translation…  

If you’re comfortable with it, make it Sorceress/Pari Banu, I would love to hear a story that somehow has them both together. I’m relatively sure that not only has the Sorceress any cause of being in awe with the Pari Banu, Pari Banu herself may also be quite delighted in a woman that is clever and cunning and not afraid of danger and may or may not know herself some kind of magic? There’s such a great backstory slumbering within… - don’t you think?

Dear secret Santa,

this year I wish for world peace more than ever! If for some reason you can’t deliver, I’d be delighted about a sweet little story, too! ;)

Things I really like to read (about):

Happy endings. Period. It may be old-fashioned, I don’t care. It’s christmas, after all. J Name dropping, historical events dropping (is this even a word that exists?). Slash, especially femslash. Historical accuracy – or, at least not blatant inaccurancy. People who are good at heart. People who are interesting/special (in whatever way). People who manage to be good at heart and interesting/special (in whatever way) at the same time. (Why do so often the baddies end up being the only interesting people)? The sea. The seasons.  Wordplay and banter. Colours and clothing. Nature. Wittiness. Little moments. The weather. Characters that have deep respect for each other. Characters that are competent at things (but not to a nearly-impossible, „genius“ degree). Characters that are open-minded.

Things I don’t mind at all:

Religion in general and christianity in special. POV/ first person narrator. Consensual Sex (in whatever form). Rainbows.

Things I don’t like to read (about):

Sad endings. No, not even if they’re called „bittersweet“. Graphic violence. Injustice. Bashing of religion. Non-con. Characters dying. Slapstick. Parents who don’t love their children. Friendships or relationships that come apart.

Please. I mean it. Honestly. Even while mentioning all of the above, I had too many Yuletides getting stories about main characters dying (twice! because of time travel), mothers that despised her children, friends that took their farewells forever, characters seriously debating killing babies ... And no, however much some people would find this cool and edgy - I’m not one of them. I’m a hippie at heart! Please, please, love and peace and pancakes (in the end), even if only at Christmas. :)

---

Things I love about my fandoms - and some questions and plotbunnies to hopefully give you some ideas:

19 Century CE German writers:

Two years ago, while I was teaching about German Romanticism Writers I really became interested in them. They were such nerdy guys - all of them! And so much of their lives sound like they were taken from romantic novels themselves: dead parents, living at old castles or near a moor, being unhappily in love with each other, having dark secrets, dying of consumption ...

I absolutely like Annette von Droste-Hülshoff best! Because if you read about her in any literary history book (or even wikipedia), she seems like *the* most boring writer ever. Which couldn’t be further from the truth! Only that she very much valued her privacy... with burning letters, inventing tricks like little letters inside of letters, using ‘male’ speakers in her poems, self-censuring her writing to the point of being in danger of not getting across the message. Or, plaing demure Catholic noble lady, exploiting all the stereotypes - which, sadly, backfired into later generations taking them for truths.

So much about her is so worthy to be digged out: her being bilingual from childhood (since she was so small at birth, no one believed she would live, so she was given to a wet nurse who spoke French and called her Annette), her shortsightedness to the point of being legally blind (yet she wasn’t allowed to wear her glasses outside of the house because glasses are “ugly” and the sense of life, as we all know, for women is being pretty), her rap battle roast (well, isn’t “Stegreifreimen” more or less a kind of rap?) of the Brothers Grimm when she was only 15 (and, by the way, she may have been the one who told them Snow White and the Story of the Youth who went forth to learn what fear was), her being a badass natural scientist, trained singer and even composer (even if, to this day still, not a single note by her has ever been performed). Even if she suffered her whole life from bad migraines and other chronic illnesses (a food intolerance, maybe). Or that she was the only German writer who tried something like Catholic Enlightenment literature in her  - which mostly got ignored like so many other texts by her. And speaking of “the only one” - besides Heinrich Heine (who, as a jew, had a very personal interest in it) she was the only Romantic writer who, in “Die Judenbuche” wrote against Anti-Semitism.

And of course, all the major queer vibes she gives with her many lady friends (Amalie Hassenpflug even got buried beside her and Adele Schopenhauer fumed with jealousy over a possible blooming relationship between Annette and Adele’s girlfriend, Sibylle Meertens-Schaaffhausen) and rededicated poems (”What do you mean, this poem is about my ‘lady’ friend?! I’m sorry...?! Of course, it is dedicated to my publisher! I really do not know what you’re insinuating here and I don’t think that thing is appropriate to discuss with a decent unmarried Catholic lady like myself.”). It seems crazy to think that even today, this is nearly never mentioned at all in articles or books about her. Because of cause, famous writers have to be gold standard hetero, each and every one, don’t they - and anyway, being queer was not yet invented? And surely, her not marrying was because her heart was broken after her family destroyed her relationship with her boyfriend in the “Jugendkatastrophe” - and of course she never tried her luck in love e v e r again after this. Sigh...

There is so much more I could mention... like, for example, her early (for lack of a better word) environmental awareness... yet, for now, lets free some plot bunnies, shall we?

I’d like to read about her childhood and youth. Some episodes that foreshadow things that will be important in her later life, maybe? Or what really happened in all of those holidays at the Haxthausen house in Bökendorf, with the Brothers Grimm whom she hated? What about her first ball where she got to know that ‘feminist’ writer Katharina Sibylla Schücking that she instantly was so fascinated with (the diary of Annette’s sister Jenny complains that Annette “nearly did not dance at all and only talked with that woman all night”)? Or write about her hiking in the moors, about how a normal day would have been for her. Or how some of her works came into existence. Or some censored (and uncensored) correspondance - (most of which, of cause, got destroyed by her family)?

I’d like for it to be at least a tiny little bit queer... would be such a waste if not! ;)

Das Fräulein von Rodenschild (Annette von Droste-Hülshoff)

Even if I have a lot to do with German literature professionally, I only came across this ballad relatively recently. And I love it!

It would lend itself nicely for a backup fandom, since it is only a ballad with not much (if any) context to it. You can read it here: https://www.droste-portal.lwl.org/de/werk/lyrik/ausgabe-1844/balladen/das-fraulein-von-rodenschild/

I have to say, however, that my headcanon derives from the self-censored earlier version in which she kisses the ghost. ;)  Because I very much got the vibe the Fräulein von Rodenschild is a lesbian female ghost huntress in the Middle Ages (or, alternatively, in the Early Modern Era or the early 19th century). And I’d absolutely love for a story about such a woman!

Some ideas:

What is the emotional distress our hero is in in the first few lines? “Schwül” and “siedend(es) Blut” sounds very much like an unfulfilled desire, does it not? ;) What does the ghost want? Why is it there? Is it even a “real” ghost - or some psychological phenomenon? Does our heroine have experience in handling ghosts? Where from? What do the peasants think of her? How does she come to the idea to kiss the ghost? What happened to her hand? What is so very “toll”/”crazy” about her?

Feel absolutely free to merge the heroine of the poem with Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, who wrote it to impress Adele Schopenhauer - only to have her judge that “the FRäulein von Rodenschild” got punished to little!

Dracula - Bram Stoker (Novel 1897)

When I first read Dracula only a few years ago, I was very surprised it was so different from the common ideas about it. I didn’t found it scary or “horror” at all - instead very much romantic... and I absolutely would never have thought it would be like this. So many of the characters grew so dear to my heart, especially (of course) Jonathan and Mina, which I feel, are, more or less, the main characters. And yet they don’t “act” as main characters at all, would never want to be heroes, yet have to - and are. I love their nerdyness, their fascination with nerdy things. I can absolutely imagine them sitting together and testing each other about timetables for trains and thoroughly enjoying this romantic way to spend the night. Or cooking together. (Has any book hero ever before collected recipes for trip souvenirs? This is brilliant!) And Mina who books tickets over telephone like it’s nothing! (And, every now and then slips in some comments about Lucy, which, to the modern reader, sound more than only a little bit gay... ;) ) Somehow, they both seem to me like modern nerdy hipsters who somehow got transferred into the late 19th century and now are absolutely delighted by all the steampunky-ness of it all! Please, please, let them be those adorable people!

(And, don’t get me wrong, it is not as if it was only their sweet, adorable nerdyness! I absolutely, deeply respect their complete and utter being good - to the point of joining the dark side, even if it contradicts everything in their lives, only to help the other. Without so much as a blinking of an eye.)

Since the 90ies, there was this idea in pop culture that only the “baddies” in a story can be interesting and that they are the real “heroes” - and while that was a fresh new view to a lot of stories, it wore thin over time. Because it went on the expense of the “good people”, which, in turn, were depicted as dull and boring - only for being “good”. But isn’t being good the much harder experience? Sticking to your values, being humble and generous and helping others no matter how high the costs for yourself?

I’d like to see them in a story where they can be (mostly) unharmed by all the horrendous events happening in the novel  and be the wonderful, adorable, sweet people they are. (So, better before or some time after the events of “Dracula”. Or are there moments of freedom and happiness even within the storyline of the book?) Feel absolutely free to include as many people as you want to from the novel (or, even, not from the novel, say, Mina’s co-workers)!

Maybe a christmas themed story? How do our heroes spend the season? What gifts do they prepare for whom - and why (or why not)? Is this year different to all other years before? How (and why) so? What do all the people do? Bonus points for mentioning rare characters like Mr. Hawkins! I’d like for the story to be sweet and fluffy - a counterpoint to all the horror. And there should be no doubt about Jonathan’s and Mina’s love for each other. That does not automatically exclude other people from their love, of course. JUst saying. ;)

You can read what I think and feel about some DRacula things, also, in some of my earlier posts on this blog, or here: https://www.tumblr.com/edit/elektra121/173570619424

Oh! And one last point: I see TumBlr has decided for a fanon that has Mina as a PoC. Feel free to write in this fandom. Also, I always thought she must have some “German connection” with her given name so utterly Prussian and loyal to the emperor. Feel free to pursue this idea, if you like.

pheeewww... almost missed signing up this year! So glad that I managed to sign up literally at the last minute (well, one or two minutes after the last minute, even). So, sorry for the brusque “see my AO3 profile”! `:/ Anyway, here is my letter:

Thank you very much for writing for me! You’re such a nice person - and have taste for fandoms, too, for sure. Seems there is someone out there who is as nerdy as I am. ;) So, I hope you have a nice season and fun with writing.

Here are some thoughts from me, which maybe offer some inspiration:

General do not wants:

Violence, sadness, grief, pain, illness, death. It’s christmas, after all! Can be mentioned though, but absolutely shouldn’t be the focus of the story.

(This does not apply, however, to the Nibelungenlied. I don’t think it is possible to write in that fandom without any of the above. ;) )

Likes:

Happy endings (the only real endings)!

Sex is great, if it is consensual. Isn’t Christmas the feast of love? ;)

19th century German literature:

Basically, anything femslashy with Annette von Droste-Hülshoff in it.

Ever since I dived deeper into the sea that is German Romanticism Literature for my lessons last year - I have been fascinated by the hidden pearl that is the life of Annette von Droste-Hülshoff. Long time believed to be the most boring German female writer ever, she is everything but! It was so cool to discover her bad ass attitude to life (excrutiating migraines? a family that doesn’t accept my literary and musical ambitions? an intreague started by my own relatives? Being a woman in the 18th century? Nearly no-one recognizing my genius and accepting me for who I am? Won’t let that stop me - that’s for sure!)

Also her not-so-standard-relationships: with men, with women, with her religion. No wonder all her secretiveness - male lyrical identities, rededications of poems, extreme self-censorship, burning of letters, fake “Sie”-adressing in letters... you name it. ;)

And of course, her love of creepy ghost stories - “Von einem der auszog, das Gruseln zu lernen”, “Der Knabe im Moor”, “Das Fräulein von Rodenschild”. A cool ghost story would be absolutely to her taste (and mine, too)! ;)

Also, I’d love to hear more about her love triangle (or square?) with Adele Schopenhauer/Sibylle Mertens-Schaaffhausen/that Italian duchess or Annette’s encounter with Wilhelmine Thielemann, or her relationship with Amalie Hassenpflug or Elise Rüdiger. Feel free to namedrop any Romanticism writer you want - I’d be delighted. Or you could delve into Annette’s interest for composition and science. Anything religion related would be cool also.

Maybe you start from some of Annette’s poems that could be interpreted as hinting to something? I feel like “Das Fräulein von Rodenschild” would lend itself nicely to this. I always got the vibe of a lesbian female ghost huntress in the middle-ages - which would combine a lot of Annette’s interests.

Newly found letters could be a thing, too. There are sooo few letters by her that remained. Maybe you could make up some of the lost ones?

2. Das Nibelungenlied

This is one of my long term favorite fandoms, probably my oldest love...

I love so much about it! Personally, I have been “Team Kriemhild” since I first read it, so of course I would wish for Kriemhild to be depicted in a good light. I think fleshing out her relationships with the other women in the text would be interesting, perhaps? What does she think of Brünhild - the text never gives us hints, dropping Brünhild completely in the middle of it all. What becomes of her? What does Brünhild thinks of Kriemhild, when obviously, those two are so different? Or are they? And what of queen Ute (with whom I share my name)? She seems very respected, very wise, well versed in the interpretation of dreams and predicting the future. Is she wise by the experience of a long life? Or is it some “witchy” kind of futuretelling, hidden beneath a layer of relatively new christianity? What does she think of her daughter?

The author of the Lied, in my opinion, does tell that it is not a good idea to disregard the rights of women - financially or in any other respect. Because if you do it (women seem so meek and powerless, don’t they?), the revenge could be beyond imagination, like a force of nature. There is some strange satisfaction in this revenge beyond all measure - even if it is so senseless and gory. Rationally, everything about it is wrong and revolting, see Giselher, see Rüdiger, see the young prince of the Huns. And yet it is so carthatic and even beautiful to see everyone involved being carried with it into the abyss. (With the exception of the chaplain, who is carried back to life by the waters that were supposed to drown him.)

Your fic could be about a young Kriemhild: what is she like, as a child, as a teenager? What does she think of life? Is there this dark spark inside her, even then, benath the pretty face and well-behaved child? Or it could be about a Kriemhild in her last days: finally bringing it all to an end, reveling in her power and revenge, ending an aeon of the world.

Fun fact that may inspire you: there is this Middle High German word “gewaltenaere”. It can both mean “rapist” or “choir of angels” - the meaning is derived from “to overwhelm”. There is no distinction between overwhelming violence and pain or overwhelming bliss and beauty. I think, it says a lot about Kriemhild (and, the Nibelungenlied).

3. Kassandra (Christa Wolf)

This is such a touching retelling of the Illiad. One of the very few problem I have with it is that it is unbelievably sad. So much trauma, so much sadness...

I seriously wish for a solace fic! I think the time in which that little hippie commune (because, the story is as much about the 80ies of the 20th century as it is about the 12th century BC, maybe more so) forms at the margins of the city would be a good time and place for this. Anchisis, with his never-ending optimism, Arisbe, with her special approach to life, Myrine and Ainaias, whom Kassandra loves and is loved back, Kassandra herself with all her many weaknesses and man strengths; all those people, old and young who suck so much meaning and healing and learning out of that brief gap in time - even thinking of those brothers and sisters in spirit who will come after them, leaving messages to them.

Maybe they have (or form) some kind of midwinter festival/rituals? Some days, even if brief and fleeting, in which they are happy, living life to the fullest, being theirselves, forming a new and better kind of society, leaving a message to us today.

thank you very much for diving into the adventure of Yuletide and writing for me! (And sorry fort he delay of the letter!) I very much hope you writing for me will be as wonderful an experience as I reading your story will be for me.

Now, first to some do’s and dont’s:

 Things I really like to read (about):

Happy endings. Period. It may be old-fashioned, I don’t care. It’s christmas, after all. J Name dropping, historical events dropping (is this even a word that exists?). Slash, especially femslash. Historical accuracy – or, at least not blatant inaccurancy. People who are good at heart. People who are interesting/special (in whatever way). People who manage to be good at heart and interesting/special (in whatever way) at the same time. (Why do so often the baddies end up being the only interesting people)? The sea. The seasons.  Wordplay and banter. Colours and clothing. Nature. Wittiness. Little moments. The weather. Characters that have deep respect for each other. Characters that are competent at things (but not to a nearly-impossible, „genius“ degree). Characters that are open-minded.

 Things I don’t mind at all:

Religion in general and christianity in special. POV/ first person narrator. Consensual Sex (in whatever form). Rainbows.

 Things I don’t like to read (about):

Sad endings. No, not even if they’re called „bittersweet“. Graphic violence. Injustice. Bashing of religion. Non-con. Characters dying. Slapstick. Parents who don’t love their children. Friendships or relationships that come apart.

 And now for the fandoms I picked (most of this was already in the signup) – if nothing from all of this inspire you, I’m sure you’ll come up with something even better! 

 German romanticism writers RPF:

When I taught about German romaticism writers in my A-levels course this year, I digged into the theme thoroughly for the first time. And lo and behold what I found! (Since apparently since 2007 it is okay to say out loud that maybe not *every* German writer and authoress has been gold standard hetero forever.) It seems that most German romanticism writers (plus Hans Christian Andersen who spent a great deal of the year with friends in Germany, so I count him, too) were bi at least - and all of them knew eac other and everybody was (secretly) in love with everybody! Unhappily, of course, because otherwise it wouldn't have been so romantic, now, had it? ;) Would love to hear from the same-sex love triangles (and squares and pentagons) of all the lovey-doveys. Can be sublimated in steaming secret letters that have to be hidden away from mother or lived out in dreams and half-dreams lying in bed with an illness or secretly consummated at hiking-tours at the Harz or somewhere else. Please, make it overall happy in tone! :) The poor people may not have gotten what they longed for in history (or maybe, yes) - give it to them in literature! Because that is what romanticism literature is all about, isn't it? If you can't have it - you are allowed to make it happen at least in your texts, in your dreams...

Feel free to include as many artists of the romantic era as you like (f.e. musicians), but I'm most interested in female writers, especially Annette von Droste-Hülshoff (who, contrary to popular belief, was'nt boring at all). People who - I think - would lend themselves nicely: Adele Schopenhauer/Sybille Mertens/Annette von-Droste-Hülshoff, Karoline von Günderode/ Bettina von Arnim/ Achim von Arnim/ Clemens Brentano, Clara Schumann/Robert Schuman/Goethe's grandson/Hans Christian Andersen

Bonus points if you use some of their texts/works. ;)

 Middle High German Minnesingers RPF:

I’d like pretty much a soap opera about minnesingers.

Love and hate, envy and respect, teacher/pupil and critics, and all at the same time. :) Feel absolutely free to include as many minnesingers, celebrities, texts and politics of those days as you want to I think especially Walther and Reinmar and their alleged „feud“ would lend themselves nicely to that. Would be cool if you could use some of their texts – and maybe how they were inspired.

The idea of minnesinger slash came about 15 years ago in an uni lecture when my friend pointed out how slashy it was that Walther wrote in his lamentation about Reinmar's death how he will "miss his talented tongue". Ahem. ;) (Also, bonus points for Heinrich of Morungen, since he was buried where I went to university – and bonus points for Walther’s stay in Magdeburg being mentioned, since it’s where I live now).

Please, absolutely feel free to be cheeky. I'm very sure especially Walther would have digged it! XD

 Kudrunlied (Poem)

(I had this as a prompt for several years now and have little hope much people know it… Should I be wrong in your case, you may read my letters from the last years, too.)

I'd very much like to see some femslashy vibes. Especially Gerlint and Kudrun, but feel absolutely free to make it about Hildburg/Kudrun or Ortrun/Kudrun.

I'd say that Gerlint would be my favourite, though. She is so interesting! And even if the medieval author would have every right to paint her as a she-devil he praises her as a clever queen, good wife and loving mother. But what is this fascination with her captive?

Also, I love Ortrun very much - who seems like the kindest, gentlest human being ever, even if she by right could very much be Kudrun's foe, she is not, quite the opposite. And what about Hildburg's unwavering true friendship and loyalty - or is it even more?

Would be interesting, I think, to see how Kudrun herself perceives all of this. Maybe she herself because just is not into women and doesn't even know about the possibility? Or does she know very well? So many ways to go... Have fun with them!

Feel absolutely free to add in as much characters from the lied (Hartmuot, Hilde, Ludwig, Hergart, …) as you like.  

 The Sea-Wolf – Jack London

This was something of a surprise. I had all but forgotten about the story, even if I was fascinated very very much by it as a child… and maybe my love of the sea may have been arisen partly from it. I watched the German/French/Romanian mini TV series (1971) as a very young child and i fit so happens that you know it, too – I’d be delighted if you write in that canon, where they know each other (or, at least, Van Weyden does) from childhood. I loved the soundtrack and the wonderful sailing ship and how Van Weyden fells in love with the sea, harsh and beautiful beyond compare, and becomes his true self even under cruel circumstances.

When I was older – yet still at a very young, innocent age – I would read the novel and remember myself wondering why Van Weyden would ponder about the eyes of another man for more than one page…

I think this would make for wonderful slash, don't you think? ;) But please no violence (opposed to story as a whole) or non-con. I don't care much how far they would go (write as much as you feel comfortable or what seems right for you) - instead more for the mutual, grundgingly admitted respect and appreciation that blooms into something more or finds ways to be expressed.

Feel absolutely free to include Maud, if in a sort of threesome polyamory or otherwise. I like her character very much. Only do not feel obligated to write her in.

I also adore the themes of moral and philosophy – and even if Van Weyden and Larsen are so at opposites they so much cherish their debates and the opinion of the other side. Larsen is right in the world he knows and Van Weyden also, but both are fascinated by this completely different world the other has to offer. I very much understand the feeling of gladness and awe to find another person with whom you are able to have such deep respectful discussions – without the need to „evangelise“ the other. It’s more like scrutinicing your owm points to yourself – to check if they hold true for you.

 So, I believe that was all I could come up with!

Dear Yuletide Writer!

It is this time of the year again and I’m very happy we both take part in Yuletide - and that I have you as my assigned author (or, as a pinch hitter)! You seem to be a talented writer and very giving person, and also to have quite good taste in fandoms - otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this, would you?

Now, here are some things about me: I am German (so feel absolutely free to write in German if you are able and want to!). I work as a teacher for biology and German literature and I love all things artsy and crafty. Which, of course, includes fanfiction, since it is both artsy and crafty. In order to help you find some inspiration and ideas for the story you’re about to write, I’d like to tell you some things about what I like and dislike and what I love about my fandoms. Here we go:

Likes: I like Happy Endings! :) Yay! Especially at Christmas. Really, I do. I honestly believe Happy Endings to be one of the things that made mankind tell stories in the first place. This world can be scary and mean and unfair and hard - so why not use our creative mind to create a different world that is peaceful and good and fair (in the end)? Don’t get me wrong, a Happy Ending need not be all sweet sunshine and sugary cupcakes and unicorns. From time to time, I enjoy a good darkfic, but especially at Christmas time I prefer something at least optimistic in tone. I hereby confess that I’m a hopeless idealist and romantic. (Although, I think, the Nibelungenlied may be a story that really is not made for a happy ending, so you absolutely can go darker with this fandom.)

While I appreciate some good humor, yet for some reason plain comedy isn’t really my cup of tea.

I like the characters in my fandoms! Very much. They are the cause I chose those fandoms for yuletide! And likely you like them, too. So show to me what makes them special, what they can do that no other person could, what drove their authors to tell us about them in the first place, and most of all, what you love about them! I’d love to read about the lesser known sides of characters - but that does not mean I won’t enjoy their established traits very much, too. It is both that makes them complex and life-like. I should add that I really am much more interested in the “good guys”, who - in my eyes, too often get disregarded in favour of “the interesting wicked guys”. It is my sincere opinion that the goodies can be at least as interesting.

What about porn? Yes, please - if you feel like it. Personally, I’m not so much into the technical details as in the feelings for the participants, the intimacy, the thrill, the thoughts, the small things, a touch of realism. And I much rather would have a story without any sexytimes than one with a scene that does not stick true to the overall vibe or has make you feel uncomfortable in writing. In case of kinkyness - if you can justify it in-character and in-story, this is absolutely fine! Maybe a little festish may work wonders to symbolize some deep-rooted feelings or wishes? (I believe, this could work quite well for the Kudrunlied…) Of course, if you do not like any of it, that’s completely fine, too! 

Speaking of which… Dislikes: As I’m sure you may have guessed from what I said already, I don’t like fics that include character death(s) and accurately described cruelty (physically or otherwise). I’d prefer the (main) characters to stay alive. At least at Christmas. Please  - do not let anyone die and please don’t make atrocities the point of your story. Otherwise I don’t think I’d be able to enjoy it.

What I like about the fandoms: Charité (TV, 2017) There is so much I like about this series - somehow it seemed to be a dream come true: all the loving research that went into the tiniest nerdiest details of medicine history (Virchow’s bureau, the notion that not everyone instantly bought the “illness is caused by little animals”-idea of Koch, injections being given into the shoulder, Behring using his own horse for research purposes etc. etc.), the charming aesthetics, the overall idea of a series about an important moment in medicine history, the nod to the crucial part deaconesses (women!) and Diakonie (the idea of Christian charity!) at whole played in the establishing of modern medicine! Being a biology teacher, I knew about most of the persons shown, yet had never had a chance to see and show them to my pupils this lifelike, even if of course the series is fictional! Also, it is great how so many diverse life styles of the Wilhelminian Era were shown… I’ve never seen anything the like before.

Here are some plot bunnies that you may or may not use: I'd love to have a "Chrismassy" fic - Advent and Christmas time at the Charité. How do the people we love from the series celebrate? How do they prepare for the season? Do the give or receive gifts? What do they love (or dread) about Christmas? Does it bring back memories or do they make new ones? Would like the mood to be light and warmhearted and festive in general, even if darker tones are inevitable, I think, given the time period and it being a hospital. Obviously, my greatest love is for Therese/Ida or Therese&Ida, but feel free to include as many people from the series as you like. I'm sure Matron Martha and Nurse Edith for example would lend themselves nicely to this. Or: Sister Therese is sent to a sanatorium - maybe there she comes to terms with herself, gets visited by Ida or meets another love interest – more or less a more optimistic, feminist version of the MagicMountain ;) Or solely some little getaway of her with Ida on a Sunday leave in Berlin.

Feel free to use as many characters from the series and make up as many OCs as you like! I would be especially delighted if Matron Martha makes an appearance.

Kudrunlied I really like the dynamics between the women of this epic. Especially Gerlint - Kudrun - Ortrun.

Gerlint  could have been shown so easily as simply the evil queen, but isn’t. The author calls her “she-wolf” and tells of her cruel deeds and plans on Kudrun, yet in the same instance, shows her as competent queen, dutiful wife and loving mother who may have deserved death, but not like this and not what happened to her body. I love the complexity in this! The relationship between Gerlint and Kudrun seems to have something of a hate-love, with not so little sexual undertones in the scene, where Gerlint plans to whip Kudrun by herself, with no one around. If you want to elaborate on this impression (not neccessarily this scene!),

And think of Ortrun, who seems to be the nicest person who ever lived! Caught between two stools, with her duty and love for her mother and brother - and on the other hand side her loyality and friendship (or is there even more?) for Kudrun. Comparing her to the other two women, she seems the weak one - but is she? She was the only one who dared to protest Kudrun’s ill treatment - even if only by crying in public.

(Also, Hildburg, the quiet, yet totally loyal friend – why is so so steady and persistent when everybody around her is not? From where does she takes her resources – in a situation as bad as hers is?   And how did Hartmuot perceive all this? He seems a knight in shining armour, a good man through and through - and yet he did not gain the one he loved.) Feel free to use as many people from the epic as you like. My favourite, I think, would be Gerlint, though. And I really would enjoy some femslash – although absolutely, this isn’t necessary, especially if it isn’t your coup of tea.

Not a person in the story (or maybe, in some way, it is): I really love how much this story is about the sea! Ships and crashing waves, castles that have windows that look out to the ocean, whole battles on sandbanks, longing for your loved ones on the other side of the great water, standing in the foam with naked feet, freezing and washing and living and loving by the banks of that wonderful, enigmatic, overwhelming, epic force of nature.

DSA – Das Schwarze Auge (The Black Eye – Pen&Paper Roleplaying Game)

If you are not familiar with this fandom (which is highly likely), it is something like „the“ German Dungeons&Dragons. And, sadly, because of its overwhelming mass of fantasy world folklore and history would not make for a good substitute fandom, I’m afraid.

In this world, I always felt most „at home“ in Nostria, one of the two „warring kindoms“. People from the Empire may look down upon that small swathe of land in the North, with its mostly unlettered people, prone to superstition and fatalistic resignation, doomed to war against their neighbor country forever. Yet it is the land of helpful, hard-working, resourceful people at the same time, persevering all strokes of fate.

And the story of „our beloved Queen“ quite touched me. Just imagine being a student learning for exams, then the news of an epidemic in the city – and the next thing you know is the information that everyone of your relatives is dead and – congratulations! you are queen! (And bound forever to this jerkwater country and shark pool of nobility, shattering all dreams of seeing the world and becoming a great magician.) I really liked her depiction in Carolina Möbis‘ „Mehrer der Macht“. And despite me normally not being a big fan of romance (sub)plots in novels, found the one of Yolande and Eilert highly believable… and highly sweet. There is no fiery passion, no brimming-with-desire-underneath, no epic declaration of undying love, no princessy behaviour, no shining armour. They are two adults that happen to share a lot of the same problems and ideals, understanding each other only too well, and their mutual love and fondness for each other stems from deepest respect for the other person. Even if, on the surface, they have so little in common, even if they disagree about a lot of things (or maybe, because of this) their love story was one of the most convincing ones I’ve read in my lifetime. So sad their fate will be some state of constant arguing, since this is Nostria and they are bound to the magic of the land.

I would love to have some happy little refuge for them both – some short time, somewhere, little getaways from the oppressing dutys of everyday politics for a queen and prince consort.  I’d like to see their fondness for each other (and, growing love) fleshed out a little more, sneak a little into how they settle into their private lives as newlyweds or how they stand their ground against the higher nobility and, Rondriane von Sappenstiel? How they negotiate their relationship, in private and in public? What do they love about each other? How do they tackle their quarrels?

Hm… and I think that’s pretty much all I can think of. :)

  May the Muses be grateful! Have fun writing!

It is this time of the year again and I’m very happy we both take part in Yuletide - and that I have you as my assigned author (or, as a pinch hitter)! You seem to be a talented writer and very giving person, and also to have quite good taste in fandoms - otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this, would you?

Now, here are some things about me: I am German (so feel absolutely free to write in German if you are able and want to!). I work as a teacher for biology and German literature and I love all things artsy and crafty. Which, of course, includes fanfiction, since it is both artsy and crafty.

In order to help you find some inspiration and ideas for the story you’re about to write, I’d like to tell you some things about what I like and dislike and what I love about my fandoms. Here we go:

Likes: I like Happy Endings! :) Yay!

Especially at Christmas. Really, I do. I honestly believe Happy Endings to be one of the things that made mankind tell stories in the first place. This world can be scary and mean and unfair and hard - so why not use our creative mind to create a different world that is peaceful and good and fair (in the end)?

Don’t get me wrong, a Happy Ending need not be all sweet sunshine and sugary cupcakes and unicorns. From time to time, I enjoy a good darkfic, but especially at Christmas time I prefer something at least optimistic in tone. I hereby confess that I’m a hopeless idealist and romantic.

I appreciate some good humor, yet for some reason plain comedy isn’t really my cup of tea.

I like the characters in my fandoms! Very much. They are the cause I chose those fandoms for yuletide! And likely you like them, too. So show to me what makes them special, what they can do that no other person could, what drove their authors to tell us about them in the first place, and most of all, what you love about them! I’d love to read about the lesser known sides of characters - but that does not mean I won’t enjoy their established traits very much, too. It is both that makes them complex and life-like. I should add that I really am much more interested in the “good guys” that in my eyes, too often get disregarded in favour of “interesting wicked guys”. It is my opinion that the goodies can be at least as interesting.

What about porn? Yes, please - if you like. Personally, I’m not so much into the technical details as in the feelings for the participants, the intimacy, the thrill, the thoughts, the small things, a touch of realism. And I much rather would have a story without any sexytimes than one with a scene that does not stick true to the overall vibe.

In case of kinkyness - if you can justify it in-character and in-story, this is absolutely fine! Maybe a little festish may work wonders to symbolize some deep-rooted feelings or wishes? Of course, if you do not like any of it, that’s completely fine, too!  

Speaking of which…

Dislikes: As I’m sure you may have guessed from what I said already, I don’t like fics that include character death(s) and accurately described cruelty. I’d prefer the (main) characters to stay alive. At least at Christmas. Please  - do not let anyone die and please don’t make atrocities the main point of your story. Otherwise I don’t think I’d be able to enjoy it.

What I like about the fandoms:

Warning! This part is not yet ready and will be updated in the next few days.

Charité (TV)

There is so much I like about this series - somehow it seemed to be a dream come true: all the loving research that went into the tiniest nerdiest details of medicine history (Virchow’s bureau, the notion that not everyone instantly bought the “illness is caused by little animals”-idea of Koch, injections being given into the shoulder, Behring using his own horse for research purposes etc. etc.), the charming aesthetics, the overall idea of a series about an important moment in medicine history, the nod to the crucial part deaconesses (women!) and Diakonie (the idea of Christian charity!) at whole played in the establishing of modern medicine! Being a biology teacher, I knew about most of the persons shown, yet had never had a chance to see and show them to my pupils this lifelike, even if of course the series is fictional! Also, it is great how so many diverse life styles of the Wilhelminian Era were shown... I’ve never seen anything the like before. I really *want* to love “Charité” with all my heart and mind. Yet, alas...

Between all the really great stuff they pulled a lot of surprisingly big boners.

The first is that the writer very obviously had no clue whatsoever (and was to lazy to ask, too!) what Protestantism and being a deaconness was all about: the whole idea of Sister Therese’s great fear of not going to heaven - has no point. The whole point of Protestantism is that *every* believer is going to heaven. Period. There is no sin imaginable that could not be atoned with Christ’s death. The whole story arc is a crass misunderstanding. Obviously the writer thought deaconnesses to simply be “Protestant flavour nuns”.

That is not to say that absolutely, it would have been possible to show Sister Therese as a person feeling sinful and guilty and not being in terms with herself or having a crisis of faith or the idea of being punished with her desease. But from a Protestant POV literally all the sin she ever committed was kissing someone she was not married to (and, maybe, expose this someone to the danger of getting infected with a serious desease). Because having sexual fantasies and desires is considered a natural thing, not a sin.

The second real big boner is that Therese - being the nicest person imaginable - did not get the slightest consolidation! Not by Sister Martha who ex officio is obligated to give her solace, nor by any other deaconness or clerical person or nurse or doctor or reading or lecture. Even at her deathbed, she still gets kicked in the face - the last thing she witnesses on earth is Ida telling her she is giving up all her plans of becoming a doctor and marrying herself off to some guy that proposed while seriously drunk. WTF. And Therese’s body hardly being cold, the story nearly alltogether forgets about her, Ida having fun at a wedding party. :(

So - long rant short - I would wish for a story that fixes it (or, at least, partly or for a moment fixes it) for Sister Therese. This could take many forms: some of which I suggested here:

http://elektra121.tumblr.com/post/159506389239/what-do-you-think-about-them-basically-portraying

http://elektra121.tumblr.com/post/159652268064/ard-charit%C3%A9-2017-episode-4-and-5

More plot bunnies:

- Sister Therese is sent to a sanatorium (I know, I know, the first ones were founded some years after her death in the series, but let’s call it artistic licence) - maybe there she comes to terms with herself, gets visited by Ida or meets another love interest - some more optimistic, feminist version of the MagicMountain ;)

- What about her childhood and youth in an orphanage? How did she come to choose the life of a deaconness? Did she swoon over some teacher or classmate or deaconness? Why does she cut herself? How did she discover this helps her for a short time?

- What does she love about her profession? What does she love about Ida?

- Some little getaway with Ida on a Sunday leave in Berlin/ How did she spent her Sunday leaves before Ida?

- a Christmas Eve in the Charité

Feel free to use as many characters from the series and make up as many OCs as you like! I especially would be delighted if Matron Martha makes an appearance.

Falls du Deutsch kannst: schreib natürlich gerne auf Deutsch! Ich glaube, es würde sich ein bisschen komisch anfühlen, eine Charité-Fanfiction auf English zu lesen, wenn wir die Serie beide auf Deutsch gesehen haben! 

Hamlet (Shakespeare)

I’m so sorry I forgot!!!

If you have anything in mind by now - please feel free to write it!

I don’t particularly have plotbunnies for this one, but my fasciation with Shakespeare is to a large point that his charcters are so complex and enigmatic - you can read them in so different ways, always finding another layer to them. I must say that my interest in and opinion about most of the charasters in “Hamlet” changed not so little over the years. Maybe you will get some inspiration if I tell you about various ideas I’ve had:

- Hamlet: is he the misunderstood teenager, mourning his father, feeling left alone by his mother, a child of divorce? Or an self-absorbed emo wallying so much in self-pity that he simply doesn’t get everyone around him has their own serious problems, too? Or maybe even a clever sociopathic asshole, manipulating all the people around him just for fun - the possibility of death of his victims absolutely taken into account. Or a mixture of all that?

- the Queen: Is she the relatively young woman who always had been a pawn of state matters, now realising that for the first time in her life there is a man that sincerely loves her so much that you would kill? Does she love Claudius with all her heart? Or is she the one puppet master in the background who really is to blame for her husband’s death?

- Claudius: Cruel murderer of his brother and machiavellist? Ignorant and driven by base motives? Or wise statesman, caring husband and believing Christian, deeply moved by his own guilt and Ophelia’s decline?

- Ophelia: The meek, mild, obedient girl who even dies lovely? Or an angry young woman who - when they take everything and everyone she loves away from her -  doesn’t feel tied anymore to decency and modesty, using the same way as Hamlet to tell everyone just how she thinks about them? Did she really kill herself? Or did the queen knew a little too much details about how it happened?

- Laertes: I didn’t find too many layers in Laertes so far. He seems a sweet, innocent young man who likes to go see the world. He loves his family dearly,  respects and obeys his father and wants revenge. Somehow a foil of what Hamlet could have been if he just wasn’t... well, Hamlet.

- Polonius: Ridiculous old man, jabbering stuff of no importance? Or a strict but caring father, faithful statesman and servant to the royal house? Why is he called “Polonius” when the story takes place in Denmark?

- Horatio: Oh, Horatio. I must say he is my favourite. I read a sadness into him that I don’t know the reason for. I think it would work fine if he was secretly in love with Hamlet, knowing this love never stands a chance and so keeping quiet about it, subliming it into the most deep and loyal friendship. Why is he called with a classical name like Polonius, Laertes and Ophelia? What, actually, does he *do* at court in Denmark (he seems to know everyone!)? What where his studies in Wittenberg? Theology, maybe? How come he doesn’t believe in ghosts, yet is able to give a lecture about them out of thin air? And never blinking an eye speaking to one?

I’d love to see all of them as basically good people who sadly got tangled in this mess that is the Shakespeare tragedy. Prequels are fine, too! And I’d be especially glad if they had at least one bright moment in between all the terrible things that will happen to them.

Again, I hope you can apologize the delay... :/

Dracula (Bram Stoker)

There is a blogpost that says it all. :)

https://assimbya.livejournal.com/2007/10/14/

Feel free to use any of the “pairing” plot bunnies - or think of your own! :)

I deeply apologize for this veeeeery long letter and want to remind you that “optional details are optional”. ;)

May the Muses be gracious! Have fun!