Sometimes survival has to be enough. It still feels like the clock is ticking down on 2025. January never really starts until after that first week for my brain. Anyway, hurrah for surviving.
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did mulder really just say āyouāre my one in 5 billionā to scully? while strapped to a hospital bed?? after having a mental breakdown??? and now scully is trying to prove that his hallucinations are real???? and looking for evidence that a fly monster is eating peoplesā souls????? thatās love right there.
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Thanks to @ficwip for the questions. Thought Iād have a go to see where Iāve got up to / maybe motivate myself out of a writing slump.
Didnāt quite manage to get it done by end of year but I never do finish anything by NYE and consequently as a mid-January birthday girl I often decide to have my new year start a little later in the month anyway soā¦
Herewith waffle mostly written while trying not to nod off on a planeā¦
1. How many fics have you worked on since January?
Complicated questionā¦ I THINK - 29 in total?
In terms of what Iāve actually POSTED hereā¦
11 one-shots [ How to Infuriate Your Engineer , The Last of Them , Comb , Pressure , Push , Shine , Expert , Thread , Scott is Not Fine Catharsis , A Refrigeration Situation ] - 11,502 words total.
54 WIP Snippets which havenāt become finished chapters or one-shots yet covering 3 of the above and 8 other fics [ Blue (15) ; Estera (12) ; Burn it All (8) ; Snapshots (2) , Octopus House (4) ; Red (3) ; Fishtank-ed Up (3) ; In a Glass Darkly (1) ; Oort Cloud (3) ; Resurface (1) ; ?? (2) ] - 17,703 words total.
All that totals 101,468 tumblr-posted fic-words so I did hit my target of 100k although I didnāt actually FINISH as many stories as I intended to!
Then there is an additional 46,000 I have in draft for the Estera universeā¦ some of which might make in into publishable form at some stage, some just for my own amusement š¤£ plus another 4,000 or so for other fics including the end of Resurfaceā¦ and a couple of brand new ones which may or may not see the light of dayā¦
So objectively I really did do a fair bit of writing this year and shall endeavour to allow myself to be proud of this!
2. Whatās something new that you tried in a fic this year?
Errā¦ Finishing one? š¤£
Did I thoughā¦ umā¦
Ok scratch that.
I wrote a cheesy little song for one of them then threaded references to it through some chapters in a couple of fics. That was new. Whether successful? Well I like it but I can hear it in my head which probably makes it work better for me than anyone else. However I enjoyed myself soā¦
3. What piece of media inspired you the most? (This can be the fandom you wrote the most for, the one that spawned the most ideas, the one you thought about the most, etc.).
Well, my beloved Thunderbirds are Go, obviously! Hyperfixation much?
4. How many fandoms did you write for this year?
Just the one :)
5. What ships captured your heart?
Newly this year? I guess to interpret the word ācapturedā literally to mean āpossessed entirely against my willā then I guessā¦ Scott/Havoc (even though I still scream NOOOoOoOOoOOOOOO internally when I type that!). Itās not a natural fit for me as I do tend to favour some potential for a happy ending and itās harder to see how it is possible with this ship but some fabulous fics have emerged on it. I do love a redemption arc though and I like how various people have developed Havocās character in their stories. But also still noooooooo my little guy deserves better-happier-uncomplicated. But also also yeeeeeesssssssss.
6. What characters captured your heart?
Weirdly, because I did not intend this at all and most of the time I want to slap him with a really large fishā¦ Iāve written a fair bit of Jeff POV in the latter part of the year! Both pre-Lucy death and post-ZeroX. In between those times I still want to slap him with that fish.
7. Did you write for any new fandoms or ships this year?
A new ship, yes. And one that was completely unexpected and I donāt think anyone else has tried yet but Iām enjoying it. Not made a lot of progress yet so wonāt say any more than that!
8. What fic meant the most to you to write?
Resurface I think. It covers a heck of a lot of headcanons and yeahā¦ it turns out walloping Virgil is a fun way to prod at all of the bro relationships. And I have enjoyed the process of iteratively fixing Earth&Sky because (as I seem to have written it at least) their partnership is beautiful but kind of messed up and I have to believe they can get a better balance back. I hope the way Iāve done it works for people.
9. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?
I think 75. It was really fun to look forward and imagine a good love-and-family-filled future for them all, especially my boy who didnāt think heād get one.
10. What fic was the most satisfying to finish writing?
Well I was hoping to say Resurface but given I havenāt yetā¦ hmmm. I might also have said Fatherās Day until I randomly started to write more of it š errā¦ what have I actually finished? Letās say 75 cos I actually finished that! (and pretend I donāt have an idea for a follow on)
11. What fic was the most difficult to write?
Estera. Which is a strange answer in some respects as Iāve compulsively written loads of it (as above!) but wellā¦ Iāve had a bit of a crisis of confidence and hit a silly, anxious wall about writing the actual chapter that comes next in the story and thus it has hung in limbo for months. My dearest co-writer is despairing of me perhaps only marginally less than I am despairing of myself!
12. What fic was the easiest to write?
The early parts of Resurface just rushed out as fast as I could type themā¦ it got harder as I tried to heal them from the mess I made though š More recently the Oort Jeff stuff has been the topic for the most readily flowing words.
13. What were your shortest and longest fics posted this year?
Ignoring WIP posts, shortest would be āScott is Not Fineā which is barely more than a Drabble at 202 words.
Longest? If it needs to be entirely within the year - Resurface (49,720 & counting) but I added a little to Estera which is longest overall (72,319 posted) but that word count is shared with some other wonderful writers and is mostly 2023.
14. What were your go-to writing songs
I have a few playlists for depending on what Iām writing :)
I do listen to the OST a lot when out and about but often not when actually writing as I guess each part of it is so strongly linked to what is happening in the episodes that it is distracting if Iām writing something different. Often I get ideas by listening to something totally random. I listen to a lot of classical and it may only be a few phrases that nudge something -any kind of soprano/tenor instructment interaction (e.g. cello/violin, trumpet/french horn, flute/bassoon) immediately conjures Earth&Sky for me. 99% of my writing is with music of some kind in the background (because I usually have an earbud in) although in retrospect I might not be able to tell what it was.
15. What was the hardest fic to title?
Resurface. Because I had another title in mind but it was already the title of one of my all-time favourite fics. But then this one came to mind and fitted perfectly!
16. What's your favorite title of the year
Haha, well I like what Iāve been doing with the chapter titles of Resurface. But āAn Eyebrow-Razing Incidentā is probably my favourite for the pun / spoiler combo.
17. Share your favorite opening line
Virgilās forehead sank onto the bar and squelched slightly.
18. Share your favorite ending line
A brand new score had been opened. But Virgil knew the notes now. Theyād compose this next version together.
19. Share your favorite piece of dialogue
This one because I worked on it for so long to get it right. Itās by no means the only important moment between Scott and Virgilā¦ but is the first of a few steps to sorting things out:
āAnd Iāmā¦ grey, then?ā
āNo! Not usually! Youāve always been blue, like the skyā¦ there are so many shades of it, with hints of yellow or goldā¦ā
āThereās a but coming, I can feel it.ā
Virgil grabbed Scottās hand again as if to reassure himself his brother wouldnāt float away before he managed to express this.
āSometimes itās like you fade a little.ā
āI fade?ā
āYou try to be a lot of things, Scotty and itās admirable, it really is, and you do it so well but sometimes I worry there isnāt enough of you left to be you.ā
āMe?ā
āYes, you. Youāre blue when you laugh at your own jokes, or smotherhen us and make a leaning tower of pancakeā¦ when you beat Gordy at his own prank game or act all melodramatic when youāre smuggling in the sweets Grandma doesnāt approve of. When someone says pie and your eyes gleam and when you randomly recite Shakespeare inaccurately and out of context or run up the stairs for no reason and surprise hug Allieā¦ those times youāre a rainbow of blues. In the field when youāre problem solving at the speed of light and oh! That time you flew Shadow just for fun you came back shining so brightlyā¦ā
Yet again at the mention of Shadow, Scott had startled but recovered quickly and deflected:
āMy Shakespeare is always in context.ā
āSure it is, Scott. And itās very YOU.ā
A flicker of resolve hardened his brotherās expression and Virgil was suddenly terrified as to how his clumsy explanation could have been interpreted by someone who was already chronically shackled to the ābrave faceā impulseā¦
āBut Scott, listen to me, this is important.ā
He waited until his brother dropped his eyes from the horizon and met his own.
āIām not saying itās just when you are happy, you know? When youāre worried or angry or even sick or evenā¦ no, especially when you let yourself be vulnerable for one damn second, youāre you then too.ā
āThenā¦ā Scott sagged a little and an edge of indigo desperation coloured his voice āI donāt understand what the grey thing is meant to mean!ā
āThe grey thingā¦ I guess itās how my brain interprets the way I sometimes miss you when you are right in front of me. When you get hidden by everything else you think you are supposed to be. You lead so naturally, you do it without even trying but sometimesā¦ sometimes you put on that damn grey baldric and it smothers you.ā
āBut the baldric is silver. My baldric is silver to match One!ā
āIt used to be blue though. Blue to match you.ā
20. Share your funniest line
Ooh. I donāt know if I do ālinesā - most of my attempts at humour are situation or context-specificā¦
But Iāll go with this little section from toddler-Scotty because it still makes me chuckle:
āDada! āCotty duck in fidge. Oh no!ā
The tiny child lifted his apple sauce covered hands and looked at them as if suddenly realising they were attached to his arms. Bright blue eyes gazed down at him with an expression of extreme innocence:
āOh no! āCotty all messy! Ooopsiiiieee!ā
Clearly realising his father had no follow-up questions to his comprehensive situational update, Scott plunged his hand back into the dish and shoved a fistful of pie crust into his mouth.
21. What's something that surprised you while you were working on a fic? Did it change the story?
This is a tricky one because frankly everything I manage to create surprises me.
Resurface surprised me with its length. I am a sucker for detail and dialogue and combining that with the fact I had a lot to get the boys to work throughā¦ it shouldnāt have surprised me really. But it did.
22. What writing programs did you use? Did you write by hand?
By hand? Hahaha, Iād never know what Iād written!
Iām still playing the risky game and throwing things down in apple notes on iphone, although have been trying to tag them a bit now so I can actually find things. I tried google docs - it drove me crackers by messing with my punctuation although I tend to copy paste into that when Iām finished to get a word count. Tried a couple of online drafting tools but they felt over-complicated. So am still in market for a good app I guess.
23. If you had to choose one, what was THE most satisfying writing moment of your year?
In retrospect I think maybe the end of Composition. Which is funny because despite having planned it for AGES as a kind of bridge between Presence and Resurface, I rushed the last chapter out in a hurry as Iād hit the point in Resurface that refers back to it and needed to ensure all the parts of the circle were in place. But exploring how Virgil sees the world is one of my favourite things and setting that short fic in a musical context was very satisfying. And it may be cheesy but this line still makes me smile:
With a satisfied hum, Scott pressed his cheek into his head and the timid, hopeful note in Virgilās heart swelled into a triumphant chord of determination.
24. Did you do anything special to celebrate finishing a fic?
Yes. I commissioned a piece of fanart and it is beautiful and perfect and I desperately want to share it but I must not until I finish the darn story because the whole point was it was a reward for finishing (I just got it a touch earlyā¦)
SOOON THOUGH.
25. How did you recharge between fics?
What is this ābetweenā you speak of? š§
26. Did you create fanworks other than fic?
No, unless Tiny Tracys count š¤£
27. How many events did you take part in? (bangs, exchanges, ship weeks, zines, prompt memes, they all count!)
Iām not good at prompts with time limits, it seems. I did write a little for Fishtank Week and there was the Secret Santa of course.
28. If this were an awards show, who would you thank?
So many people, basically all of Thunderfam who have encouraged me to try something I never thought I could do. But if I start a list I know Iāll miss someone then feel bad so Iāll stick to just one shoutout to @sofasurf for constantly encouraging me in both writing and life in general and who is a most excellent co-conspirator.
29. What's left on your to-do list for 2024?
Well I WAS going to say āfinish Resurfaceā butā¦ *eyes calendar and sighs*
30. What would you like to write next year?
Obv finish Resurface, and then I want to find my confidence with Estera again. So many ideas for Scott & Jeff and Allie & Scott and some fish tank tooā¦ and Iād like to write more John and more Kayoā¦ not to mention the big mad apocalyptic fic which I really need to plot out properly before doing any more withā¦
But probably Iāll just end up writing about the boys playing on an airport travelator or stuck at the bottom of a hole or something because sometimes the pieces Iām most proud of are the ones that come out of nowhere šš š¤Ŗ
I'm gonna have to contest your claims of George not having a waist. He has a dip just above his hip bones, here's proofs/propaganda:
And i'm pretty sure I've seen Toto and multiple drivers hands gravitating towards his waist, he's definitly very grabbable
Apologies, this got stranded in my drafts so I could stare at George's hipbone because I am a disaster. As always I welcome robust debate on these important questions. George's grabbability is unquestioned - the problem he is simply grabbable all over, like a pool noodle. Hang on and swing him round your head. In these circumstances his efforts at a waist pale in comparison to a grabbable torso.
I also believe the best waists are visible from every angle, but especially front and back over a side view. George has a superb curve to his back and then out to an arse that surprises me with its existence every time, but that's not strictly "waist" to me. That's back. And I have on the record feelings about George's back.
