Ursa Vorpalis

Why do you write Steddie?

There are many elements about Steddie that I enjoy – I adore Steve, his protective streak and his earnest desire to become better; I feel like Eddie’s a good balance for him, whimsy for practicality, and both of them standing up for their little cobbled-together families.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

I’m a sucker for long, involved AUs - make it Austen or vampires or whatever, I love what makes characters the same even when circumstances change.

Specifically for Steve I adore his platonic connection with Robin and writing them as queerplatonic partners.

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Looking at my fic it seems to be mpreg and/or omegaverse. Steve deserves those six nuggets, okay! If I’m looking at my broader catalog, generally I love writing relationship/kink negotiation, the weirder the relationship the better. Communication is fun :3

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

…How can I even decide that. Probably Weakened Like Achilles, with You Always at My Heels by HMSLusitania or a special privilege for the resurrected by theopteryx

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

I am usually not a time-travel fix-it person, but I’ve been entertaining the idea of. Well, more like time travel break-it-worse (and then fix it) AU where Eddie survived and Steve didn’t and then decided to go back in time and sacrifice himself instead. (They end up both alive okay)

Are there any memorable Steddie collaborations (art, writing, podfic, etc.) you've done or would like to do?

I haven’t done any in this fandom so far! I have blanket permission on creating transformative works of all my things and I am super excited whenever anyone does.

What is your writing process like?

Usually I’ll start with a particular hook that draws me to a story – a scene, an emotional dynamic, whatever – and then build from that, often by talking to friends on discord about it. I should get back in the habit of writing tumblr posts about fic ideas, too, but I’ve been feeling shy about that.

What writing tools do you use, if any? For example, do you participate in community writing events like sprints or prompts, or have a favorite writing program aid like Scrivener?

I use Ellipsus, I need to be able to write on my phone or computer interchangeably.

Do you have any writing quirks?

Good question! I definitely have themes I go back to a lot - so far with Steddie I’ve enjoyed a lot of playing around with relationship structures, as I mentioned before. There’s probably some stuff like occasionally forgetting “sky” or “face” are singular in English (they aren’t in my native language!).

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

I post what I have when I have it. I don’t finish everything I start, but that’s the only way I ever finish anything longer at all.

Which fic are you most proud of?

In my Steddie works, shutters open in the storm wins by being the only longer fic I actually finished so far ^^;

What's a funny or interesting or completely wild research topic you've dug into as a result of writing Steddie?

I did way more reading on intestinal endometriosis than any person should have to. For reasons.

How did you get the idea for well-water and hearthfire?

That series started from a feeling I wanted to convey – the joy of feeding people you love, primarily, or otherwise giving them anything sustaining and nourishing. The pride of one’s home being carefully crafted as a place to keep other people safe. I love playing with relationship structures, so I really enjoyed the idea of Steve and Robin being platonically married, and of Eddie refusing a soulbond but choosing Steve.

When writing static from a dying star (comes as far), what was something you didn’t expect?

I wrote it pretty much in one sitting, it didn’t have much of a chance to surprise me. I think I was surprised I wrote it at all, the way I frequently am in a new fandom, and that it got that much attention compared to my other fics.

What inspired static from a dying star (comes as far)?

….I’m pretty sure I was just in the mood for some H/C, and I’ve been enjoying omega heats as an H/C trope a lot in the last few years. Fuck it Steve’s an omega now. Get in heat, nerd.

What was your favorite part to write from well-water and hearthfire?

All the parts of Steve being happy and surrounded by loved ones, but also, the bit where he has a breakdown over forgetting his phone. Make him suffer!

Also, Eddie taking Steve to a sex LARP without telling him and stranding him to get laid with local autistic woman who’s too busy lore infodumping to have sex.

How do/did you feel writing shall crown you their one and lonely?

I tend to write body horror rarely but consistently, and it takes a particular state of mind for me. It’s very “the horrors persist so let’s inflict them on our blorbos”.

What was the most difficult part of writing well-water and hearthfire?

The last chapter took me a long time to write because I had kind of a rough time thinking about friends and receiving support; I’m really glad I found my way to a somewhat better state.

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

Honestly my Steddie pick is from remember field and home, a snippet I still want to continue but haven’t yet, and it’s pretty Dead Dove. But:

At that point, Steve realizes he'd already made a decision. It's simple enough math that he can grasp it: if someone needs to take the hit, it should be him, and he doesn't resent or begrudge that. He's the one in the best shape to take it, and the one with the fewest prospects for having something better to do for the world.

He'd never thought about it in a context different than getting beat up or killed. But this? It's not any different. It's just another thing his body can take for the people he loves.

So he looks the thing that isn't Eddie in the eye and says, real soft, "Okay." And he forces his body to relax.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

I’m currently working on some kind of miracle, in which Steve – for Reasons – decides he needs to get bitched and impregnated, with Eddie as his unsuspecting accomplice. Everyone’s backstory is messed up and sad! But it’s okay, they all have each other now.

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?