#sbb 2017

Author Commentary:

So, like usual, I went into this fic with a pretty clear goal in mind: I really wanted to write a fic told from the point of view of a character who is only moderately likeable but still easy to relate to. It was important to me that the reader feel like they don’t necessarily agree with the decisions that Taemin was making, but be able to understand why he was making them. I also really liked the idea of a character who gets a superpower which could have been used for some good, but instead just makes their life more complicated because they use their power for selfish reasons. I was heavily inspired by the movie The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, so I really wanted to base Taemin’s character around the main character of that movie. Of course, a lot of Taemin’s selfishness/overall teenaged way of thinking appeared organically, but I started off thinking about Taemin in that way. I also wanted to focus on the idea of Taemin as an unreliable narrator because I’ve recently been really invested in this way of writing. Its challenging to write from the perspective of someone who is only giving the reader half of the information that they need, but its also really fun! I think this is what contributed to my overall decision to take a lighter/more comical approach with the tone of the story in the beginning before switching to a sudden darker theme. I wanted the reader to feel like they were getting information alongside Taemin, so I wanted the reader to feel as blindsided by everything that was happening as Taemin was. 

As far as the side characters go, I was really interested in crafting a world and relationships that are realistic and also feel like they have some substance to them. I rely pretty heavily on characterization, so I really wanted to explore how far I could take characterization in terms of overall character development. I really enjoy reading stories where the side characters are able to stand on their own and don’t seem to be just there to elevate the main character, so it was important to me that every character have their own unique identity and plotlines. 

As far as choosing Kibum for the primary antagonist (if you want to think about him that way since in a lot of ways, Taemin is his own antagonist) I just really like writing Kibum as an antagonist since I feel like the way I enjoy characterizing him, is as a character who sees things in very black and white ways. It just made natural sense of Kibum to be the character who would be putting all of this together in his head. And for the ending of the fic, I was very inspired by the movie Silence of the Lambs in that you think that you’re on the same page as the main character, only to find out that the narrator is very unreliable. 

And finally, as far as the mind reading ability goes, I really wanted it to just be something that was going on in the background. I didn’t want the story to become a story just about superpowers because I think that the main point of the story was all about how even though Taemin had this power, it didn’t make him consider the thoughts of others any more than he already had. So I wanted the superpowers to just be something happening in the background that the reader just had to accept. 

Songs I listened to while writing this (there are a lot more, but these are the most played):

A Day in the Life - The Beatles 

If I Fell - The Beatles

Someday - The Strokes

Paint it Black - The Rolling Stones

Obstacles - Syd Matters

The Point of No Return - Phantom of the Opera Soundtrack

Rose-Colored Boy - Paramore

Human - Rag’n’Bone Man

Such Great Heights - The Postal Service

Piano Concerto No.2 in C Minor Op 18 II -  Rachmaninoff

Week One

June 21st The Crush Zone metropolisjournal, steals_thyme Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 9k, Explicit

(set during Batman v. Superman) After the showdown at the Gotham Port and a hostile confrontation with the Bat vigilante, Clark tries to apologize for wrecking the Batmobile. Bruce is so angry, he can hardly keep his priorities straight. Will Bruce be able to hide what he thinks of the alien, or will everything end badly?

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | masterpost on tumblr --- June 22nd You Were Always on My Mind blue_jack, Marourin Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 17k, Explicit

It wasn’t that Clark loved Bruce less, or admired him less, or had stopped being able to see all the things that had made him fall in love with Bruce in the first place. He just … didn’t want to be around him at the moment, found himself wondering what else Bruce would say to get his point across, what else he’d do to make sure Clark kept his distance.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | masterpost on tumblr --- June 23rd I'll Show You a Silver Rose mithen, yamada Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 8k, Teen+

When Clark is trapped in the Phantom Zone, he can only watch in horror as Bruce interacts with the shapeshifter that has taken his place.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- June 24th I’d Learn To Float Meduseld, Selofain Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 19k, Teen+

Clark Kent is an up and coming gossip reporter, and a fledgling superhero, and he’s doing alright. Then Bruce Wayne adopts an orphan and everything goes to hell. In a good way.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr ---

Week Two

June 25th Ghastly Murders in the East End dippkip, Kingy Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 38k, Teen+

London, 1888. A vicious killer known as Jack the Ripper has begun haunting the district of Whitechapel. In light of Scotland Yard’s inability to solve the case, intrepid reporter Clark Kent has made it his mission to track down this fiend and bring them to justice, though he may find himself more deeply involved in the affair than he bargained for.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- June 26th The Other World Ginger, scumashslanderson Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 11k, Teen+

In this emotional story, Barry Allen goes missing on a mission fighting a new villain named DeathNote. Clark and Bruce must figure out where Barry disappear to. However, after a confrontation with DeathNote one will go to another Universe/World. Will the other save them in time? Or will DeathNote get to them?

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- June 27th Everyone Knew Eventually vidavitavi, Roscuro Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 29k, Explicit

It took a little indirect help from a couple of embarrassing incidents, his ex, and his best friend’s son.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | tumblr masterpost --- June 28th The End of the Star Lopithecus, VaticanSaint Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 38k, Explicit

Bruce Wayne, is attacked and kidnapped on his way home from a charity event. Mysterious men whisk the billionaire away to a remote planet, light years away from Earth. A star system in peril needs his help. He must act to save the people of this strange new world. Things are not always as they seem, and what awaits on this alien odyssey will challenge even the Batman’s resolve.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- June 29th Practical Magic Pandamomochan, KatsuyaCrimson Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 22k, Explicit

From love spells, to body swaps, to gender switcheroos, Bruce and Clark have no luck with magic. Then again, maybe some magical mischief is just the trick these heroes need to finally admit their feelings.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- June 30th Shotgun Kiss KatsuyaCrimson, catgoboom Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 9k, Explicit

After being together over 25 years, age is getting to Bruce Wayne. Batman and Superman being the only things that drive Bruce to continue living, and for Clark to watch this, well most days feel like madness. They share a kiss to take away that madness.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 1st The Wrong Foot Kitty, orotea Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 16k, General Audiences

Krypton is under attack by an alien threat and the Justice League is called to assist. As thanks, Krypton offers young scientist Kal-el to travel to earth and update the Justice League's tech. But, as Kal will soon discover, it's pretty hard to do your job when you've got a bat breathing down your neck.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | tumblr masterpost ---

Week Three

July 2nd Hope BuckinghamAlice, Kingy Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 12k, Teen+

When Bruce goes to visit Martha Kent eighteen months after Clark is killed, he discovers that Clark is back from the dead... and is now raising a baby who looks suspiciously like a mix of the two of them. As the two of them learn to co-parent, they must ask themselves if what was between them is really all in the past.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 4th Make Your Mark (On My Heart) technopat3, ireallyshouldbedrawing Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 8k, Explicit

Clark always thought he was an Alpha, then he thought no Alpha would want him. Bruce wants to prove otherwise.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 5th This Side of the Stars architeuthis, TKodami Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 43k, Teen+

After Clark's death, Bruce finally gets to know him.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 6th Like a Steel Trap missigma, Batdad/mizgoat lark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 27k, Explicit

A young Bruce Wayne travels to Metropolis to try to gather more information about a mysterious new hero, Superman. After his first attempt—questioning reporter Clark Kent in his hotel room—proves fruitless, he returns to his original plan to meet the man himself. Long aware of a kidnapping plot, Bruce allows himself to be taken captive in hopes that Superman will rescue him. While Superman does make an appearance, nothing else goes according to plan.

fic on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr --- July 7th Pieces of Us ComposerofDiscord, scumashslanderson Hernan Guerra/Kirk Langstrom, 60k, Mature

“It’s human nature to want to live, and therefore Kirk shouldn’t be ashamed, but he was. He is. As soon as those otherworldly eyes met his, he knew this was not what he signed his life away to.” Kirk is recruited by the government to work on a confidential project. Desperate to find a cure for his cancer, he accepts only to find what he was testing was whom he was testing. By then, he couldn't turn back. What's done is done as he struggles to undo the mess he's made.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | tumblr masterpost --- July 8th Engraved In Our Souls Nixie DeAngel, Batdad/mizgoat Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 9k, Teen+

It started with pain, with warm blood and bold, black letters. How was he to know it'd lead to a pair of gorgeous eyes, shimmering with the promise of life long happiness and love? Or, after years of waiting, Bruce finds his soulmate in the least likely of places.

fic on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr ---

Week Four

July 9th I Pulled A Thorn From His Tiny Paw bisexualagentcooper, architeuthis Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 8k, Teen+

When there's a Superman imposter, Batman and Superman must work together to get to the bottom of it.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr ---

Amnesty Week

July 12th Saudade steals_thyme, architeuthis, TKodami Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 20k, Teen+

It's midsummer, 2006. In the wake of his son's death, Bruce Wayne tries to outrun his grief on a cross-country road trip. When his car breaks down on a dusty road in the heart of Kansas, a friendly stranger stops to lend a hand.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 13th The Pitter Patter... of the Shower BuckinghamAlice Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 3k, Explicit

Clark and Bruce try to have sex without waking the baby.

fic on Ao3 | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 13th Pole Dancing Hernan scumashslanderson Hernan Guerra/Kirk Langstrom, art, Mature

pole dancing Hernan for @superbatbigbang Amnesty week. A thought continued from this post because the uniform of Zod from Superman 2 looks like a dancer’s uniform.

art on Ao3 | art masterpost on tumblr --- July 15th Fortunate Accident BananaMuffinSpecial Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 13k, Teen+

Clark confessing his feelings to Bruce was never part of the plan, and now both of them have to face the consequences.

fic on Ao3 | fic masterpost on tumblr --- July 15th all each riddles, when unknown susiecarter, steals_thyme, TKodami Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, 51k, Mature

Post-MoS AU: Clark, struggling to deal with the events of Black Zero Day, is assigned a straightforward human-interest piece—on Wayne Enterprises. Then Batman catches Superman's attention, Clark Kent starts investigating Batman, Bruce Wayne spends a lot of time arguing with hitting on Clark Kent, and Bruce's best efforts to find a way to hurt Superman start to bear fruit. And then things get complicated.

fic on Ao3 | art on Ao3 | tumblr masterpost ---

Art Prompt Challenge

katsuyacrimson: Week Seventeen | Redraw a Panel Lial-Draws: Week Three | In the Rain, Week Four | Suit Porn, Liodain: Week One | Princess Carry, Week Two | Morning Coffee, Week Three | In the Rain, Week Nine | Cape Porn (NSFW), Week Ten | Disturbingly Hot Apocalypse Dreams (Gore, Body Horror) marourin: Week Thirteen | Chains scumashslanderson: Week One | Princess Carry, Week Three | In the Rain, Week Eleven | Flying Kiss, Week Seventeen | Redraw a Panel yamad-a: Week One | Princess Carry, Week Eight | On Your Knees, Week Eleven | Caught in the Act (NSFW)