#makesometime

Binding, cover design, and layout by me. Bound with hand-dyed variegated linen thread using a variation on a long stitch binding I designed myself. Here’s what’s inside:

At Your Convenience by @holoxam​​

A really lovely, intimate post-campaign fic in which Zolf and Wilde are in a QPR and don’t need to talk about it, thank you very much. I love this fic, it’s such a wonderful little slice of life and captures their dynamic so perfectly.

Would You Cast Me to the Wayside by lily_rainn

An incredibly thoughtful and humane depiction of Zolf and Wilde negotiating the beginning of their relationship. Neither of them have the vocabulary to fully understand what’s happening, but they’re trying so hard because they care so much about each other, and it’s just great.

The most dangerous thing is to love by @makesometime 

An ancient Greek gods AU that’s just unbelievably good. makesometime seamlessly weaves Greek mythology into the RQG world all while not just maintaining perfect characterization, but actually elevating these characters to match the beautiful world she created. 

Wake up by @makesometime​​

Zolf waiting for Wilde to wake up post-ep.177. This was the first RQG fic I ever read, and it’s very, very special to me. Zolf is so painfully tender and anxious, and it makes my heart ache every time.

Inevitable by Miri1984 / @icescrabblerjerky 

“Post 177 Zolf and Wilde have sex and feelings,” really the most succinct way of putting it. Such an intense distillation of all my feelings about Zoscar!

What We Worship by Miri1984 / @icescrabblerjerky​​

AU where Wilde dies in the airship crash and doesn’t get better. Really wonderful worldbuilding for the RQG-universe afterlife, and so beautifully written and poignant.  

The Right Questions by @newsbypostcard

Just two complicated and emotionally-repressed dudes negotiating their relationship after one of them rescues the other from death. Fuck, the characterization in this fic is so good. A prime example of why fic is so often better than canon. 

Small Intimacies by @newsbypostcard​​

Zolf and Wilde go to bed and have a conversation. That’s it, that’s the fic, and it’s the single greatest “mortifying ordeal of being known” fic I have ever read. It's the kind of story I dream about finding, one that teaches me more about characters I love and illustrates exactly why they mean so much to me. A perfect fic, easily one of my favorite fics of all time.

Until We Meet Again by @queercore-curriculum​

Zolf and Wilde cross paths after Zolf leaves Prague and while Wilde is still on the run from La Gourmand. Eh, I feel weird reccing my own fic, but I’m pretty proud of this one, actually.

Warm and Dry by @queercore-curriculum​

Caf​é AU where baker!Zolf teaches writer!Wilde how to bake bread. I had a lot of fun writing this, and if I can get my shit together I’ll finish writing the extended version, Coriander.

find your feet by @starstrung​

Zolf and Wilde hide their relationship from Earhart aboard the Vengeance. I. LOVE. THIS. FIC. starstrung writes one of my all-time favorite Wildes, and this is an absolute delight to read. Zolf and Wilde often live in dark, angsty places, but this is just so joyful and fun and hot while still staying so true to character. I promise this fic will make your day brighter.

love is a sacrament by @starstrung​

An 18-month time gap fic that’s just fucking perfect. Feat. an extra guarded Wilde (again, one of my all-time favorites) and an extra tender Zolf, and it’s so, so, so wonderful. 

Woven Up by tuesdaycoming

A deep dive into Zolf’s backstory and his layers upon layers of grief. This fic just blew me away, brilliant worldbuilding and an absolute masterclass in showing-not-telling. 

Absolutely Unlike Harrison Campbell by ZaliaChimera / @zalia​

Zolf is bored and propositions Wilde to pass the time. This fic is very hot, but I also found it incredibly moving. ZaliaChimera takes a really unflinching look at these two very emotionally-repressed dudes that don’t particularly like one another and shows a different kind of intimacy than we often see in fic, one that’s a little rough around the edges and brutally honest. 

Look, I may need to make a second Zoscar anthology, and another anthology of RQG mixed-bag ships--the RQG fandom is just so fucking talented. If you have any recs of your own, please send them my way!

More pics below the cut!

2. What song(s) remind you of this character?

God I have an entire Zoscar play list but for Wilde specifically The Story by Brandi Carlile works for him in so many ways throughout the campaign. Also Walls by Tom Petty because of the lines

And all around your island There's a barricade It keeps out the danger It holds in the pain

I mean??????? *hands in the air emoji*

18- What’s something you associate this character with? E.g. a certain colour, object or scenery?

I joked yesterday about how I always seem to use teals and greens when I draw him. I always associate blue with him post resurrection. (Because of that angry Wilde Yerlik art by liv_doodle). Definitely associate peacocks with him 🦚 and fireworks. I can't use either emoji without thinking of him.

I was delighted this year to be able to participate in the Rusty Quill Big Bang creating art for @makesometime​ (Ao3) & Jomipay (@halfofmysoulistrees​, Ao3) with my co-artist @holoxam​ (Ao3). The absolutely brilliant fic can be found here: A Safe Place to Land

It’s been so much fun and here's a SFW preview of my work, the rest (which includes NSFW work) can be found (along with Holo’s) here: [Art] A Safe Place to Land

With thanks to @pilesofnonsense​ for making it all happen!

Description below the cut

thank you dear!!

15. What’s a headcanon you think about all the time but feel you’ve never had an opportunity to share?

kind of an odd one, but i really like the idea that azu can sense relationships between people--like a spidey sense, but for love.

im very much of the opinion that aphrodite in the rqg world is the goddess of all forms of love, not just romantic love. as they're trained, members of the cult of aphrodite begin to develop an ability to sense bonds between people--friendship, romantic relationships, familial love, any sort of deep connection.

i also think, for both the angst and comedy potential, that azu has a blind spot in this sense when it comes to her own relationships. she can say confidently that zolf and wilde love each other, that sassraa and cel have a deep bond of mutual admiration, and that hamid cares about zolf despite how poorly they get along. but she has no idea how kiko feels about her, or if eren fairhands secretly thinks she's a waste of space. it's why she reacts so well to direct declarations and gestures of affirmation. think about her relief when fairhands gives her the model heart of aphrodite, or when kiko directly states that she likes her and wants to date her, or even when wilde compliments her for the first time at barret's.

7. What story/headcanons do you feel the proudest of?

Honestly, I’m proud that I’ve written anything at all. However, I’m still really proud of Lonely in Conflict, Cast as a Convict, which I wrote for the Phandom Reverse Bang in 2020, because I was doing things with the characters that I knew was risky but I was excited to explore.

In terms of RQG, I would probably say Fade Out, which I wrote for the Line Is Erased event at the end of 2021. This was a little Zoscar fic set towards the end of Oscar’s life, and it’s very soft and quiet. But I’m very interested in Zolf as a caretaker, but also as someone who needs a lot of care himself, and I feel like I touched on that here.

24. Do you prefer AUs with the characters, or sticking to the original universe?

okay SO first of all, sorry this took so long to answer, i was out and wanted to get home to check my notes just in case my memory was wildly wrong but turns out – my notes tell me nothing

from what i can remember, the first like big clear idea i had for band au was that zolf had to leave at some point, and that wilde was going to come find him (though originally he was going to leave for a lot longer, not just a few days – i actually have a few early scenes of this written out if you ever want to read them), so i think the scene where wilde comes to find zolf at his parents' house is probably one of the ones that was there almost from the very beginning

oHHH i am so excited for you!! godspeed because Jonny Sims is going to make you suffer so much and you’re going to enjoy it but... there is so much suffering and i think jonny sims (the archivist character but also the writer) and alex j newman (who plays martin) said in an interview that jon and martin were supposed to be the antithesis of each other, martin was supposed to be the narrative foil with a hopeless crush on jon but jonny sims (the writer) saw the potential in that relationship and turned it into a full-on romance to rival greek tragedies of yore and I respect (and fear) him so much for that