7. Which part of writing do you struggle with most?

Description is still pretty difficult for me to get right; I find dialogue much easier. (Smut is also still a struggle, but I'm working on it - and hopefully have begun to make Some Improvement lol.)

12. Is there a trope you haven’t written yet but really want to?

There are a few. Fake dating, childhood friends to lovers, and time loops immediately come to mind. I've begun writing an Icemav soulmates au, my first time with the trope, and it's been a lot of fun so far.

19. Who is the easiest/hardest character for you to write about? Why?

Depends on the fandom. For Top Gun, it's pretty easy for me to get into Ice's head, but a lot of work getting into Goose and Carole's - probably because they have such a specific Vibe in both action and dialogue that's tricky to nail down. For Star Wars, it's easy for me to write about Finn but pretty hard to write about Kylo Ren. Of every fandom I've ever written in, though, the hardest character I've ever written about would either be Tony Stark or Monica Rambeau.

29. Send me a word. If it’s in your WIPs, include the sentence and a short summary of the fic.

Regrettably, 'grasp' is not in any of my WIPs, but please enjoy a snippet from my Icemav soulmate AU as penance.

“Did you say Maverick?” Slider’s quick to catch on. Even in the dark, Ice can see his RIO’s eyes go as wide as quarters when they land on him. “Yeah,” he says, stunned. “Yeah, I — is that your—” “Yeah,” Ice breathes. He kind of wants to laugh, maybe even cry. Maybe both, if he’s got the time. His soulmate, his Maverick, is at TOPGUN. “That’s him.” Ice sprawls back on the bed, feeling weightless and breathless all at once, feeling the wet warmth of tears as he traces the letters on his wrist again. Wonders if Maverick, wherever he is right now, is doing the same. If Maverick somehow knows that tomorrow, they’ll meet each other at last. Maverick, Ice thinks, just before he drifts off to sleep. I can’t wait to meet you.

Tommy Kazansky is nine when his soulmate’s name appears, a long line of soft, silvery-gray letters on the inside of his left wrist. Tommy's delighted; he runs his fingers over the name and wonders what his MAVERICK is like. Somebody sensible, he decides after much consideration. Somebody like him. He can't imagine getting along with somebody who isn't like him.

The darker the letters, the stronger the bond. Just like the bond between his mom and dad, just like the bond between his babushka and dedushka; his grandmother let him trace the letters on her wrist once, still dark even though her husband had been dead for more than twenty years by then. According to one of the books at school, the cool, gentle grey of the name means a steady bond — not strong, not yet, but he figures that's okay. That'll probably change once he and his Maverick get to know each other better.

His delight fades a little when Taylor gives him a dictionary, and he learns 'maverick' means someone unorthodox, rebellious, dissident. An outsider, a free spirit. More of a bad boy like James Dean than somebody like him. Tommy plays by the rules: in soccer, in volleyball, in everything. A lot of people don’t like him because of that. What if that means he and Maverick won't get along?

"They're your soulmate, Tommy," Taylor says, smiling, and gives him a one-armed hug. She's confident about everything, positive that things will work out. Whoever the GABRIELLE on her wrist is, Tommy's sure they'll be perfect for each other. "I'm sure this Maverick of yours will love you no matter what."

Tommy traces the letters on his wrist again, and dares to let himself hope. "Yeah," he says. "I hope so."

I was tagged by @icemankazansky to answer some Qs about my fics - thanks for the tag, Carly! <33

Which of your fics…

…did you think would get a bigger reaction/audience than it got?

probably sometimes you hear the bullet, my kainora / korrasami / bopal mash au. not to say that it didn’t get a big reaction - as of now, it’s got about 3.3k hits on ao3 and more on ffn - but when i was writing it, i expected it to get a bigger audience, if only because i was also writing korrasami, which was and still is the biggest ship in the lok fandom.

…got a better reaction than you expected?

there’s a raging fire in my heart tonight, bar none. i wrote this mainly after co-conceptualizing the idea with @academicgangster, and i didn’t think anyone but her would read or enjoy it. i was very happy to be proven wrong; as of posting date, it’s still the most popular top gun fic i’ve written. honorable mention goes to when i see your face, ‘til all my sleeves are stained red, and Like Attracts Like.

... is your funniest?

‘cause a cat’s the only cat (who knows where it’s at). it’s complete and utter crack about mav and ice raising baby flerkens (set in my top gun captain marvel au series), but i think it’s definitely my all-around funniest fic. the scene where one of the cats coughs up a burglar still makes me giggle every time i think about it. 

…is your darkest or angstiest?

either on the red line overload or Talk To Me Of Lightning.

…is your absolute favorite?

...........god this is such a hard question, but i’m going to have to say Lead Me On (To The Other Side), with Word on the Street and The Stars Walk Backward as a very close second and third.

…is your least favorite?

Destination Unknown. i had the right idea when i was writing it, but the execution and the ending felt pretty weak to me in retrospect. i may do a redux sometime.

…was the easiest to write?

Brilliant Beyond Brilliant Idea, my top gun parent trap au. i wrote all sixteen chapters in just under two months, and had a lot of fun while doing it - though looking back, i’d probably change a few things about the fic’s plot so it isn’t so close to the movie. (i still love violet kazansky and joey mitchell with my entire heart.)

…was hardest to write?

the house that built me. this fic fought me kicking and screaming when i was writing, but i’m really happy with how it turned out. if we’re talking about fics that are still in the wip stage, made of stardust and moon, take thy flight are refusing to cooperate with me right now.

…has your favorite lines/exchange/paragraph? (share it!)

Lead Me On (To The Other Side)

“Mav, come on, you need to drink this.”

“Don’t want to.”

“I’m not asking you, Maverick, I’m telling you. Drink the water. Come on, it’ll make you feel better.”

Maverick eyed the water suspiciously, and then his gaze fell on Ice. His forehead creased. “Who’re you?”

“Your guardian fucking angel.” Ice’s patience was firmly at an end. “Now shut up and let me help you.”

…have you reread the most?

Lead Me On (To The Other Side), Word on the Street, out along the edges, and the entire Forged in the Stars trilogy.

…would you recommend to someone reading your work for the first time?

for each fandom: the Beyond trilogy (Top Gun), the Forged in the Stars trilogy (Star Wars), and sometimes you hear the bullet and/or keep a spur handy (The Legend of Korra).

…are you most proud of?

there’s a raging fire in my heart tonight. all the love and effort i poured in (and all the time i spent perusing the mcu wikia pages to ensure maximum accuracy, given endgame was still in theaters at the time) really paid off.

10. Do you enjoy writing dialogue, exposition, or plot the most?

Definitely dialogue, though plot is a close second. Writing exposition always takes a few tries and several edits before it stops feeling forced/clunky.

13. Is there a trope you wouldn’t write if it was the last trope on earth?

Does A/B/O count, because if so A/B/O. If not, then high school aus or coffee shop aus. I like reading them very very rarely, but you couldn’t pay me to write them for any of my ships.

23. If you had to remix one of your own fics, which would it be and how would you remix it?

Fun fact: when I was conceptualizing out along the edges, I was originally going to have Ice as Carol and Maria as Mav, mainly because I’d already written Mav disappearing / dying in Raging Fire and I was interested in trying it the other way around. (I ended up making Mav Carol and Ice Maria because Carol and Mav were more similar, and because I thought Chell was a better Kree name than Kaz - like, I couldn’t see Ice’s dog tags breaking in a specific enough way to make a cool Kree name lmao. Like Vers from Danvers, Chell from Mitchell was easier to believe.) I might do a reversed roles drabble/oneshot in this ‘verse for fun sometime - if I did, there would be more of an emphasis on Ice’s family, Mar-Vell would be canon’s Dr. Lawson and not Mike Metcalf, Minn-Erva would be Ice’s mentor instead of Yon-Rogg (and would be more of an anti-hero than an outright villain), and Ice would meet either veteran SHIELD Director Peggy Carter or rookie SHIELD Agent Maria Hill on Earth instead of Nick Fury. And of course there would still be plenty of Icemav feels.

3. what color are your eyes?

my eyes are hazel

14. if you can live anywhere in the world where would it be? why?

ooo, idk prolly Ireland or Scotland. i like the old buildings, history, and the atmosphere surrounding either of those places

26. how many pillows do you sleep with?

2 i used to sleep with none but the immense back and neck pain told me to use at least one

32. 3 favorite girl names

ooo okay a tricky one! Amelia, Jenna/Jena, Nina (Nee-na)