I feel like I blinked and half of January disappeared! It's been a very exciting time for me, writingwise.

 

I posted my Bangelus story. I put it on my secondary AO3 account, mostly because I know I have some followers on my main who would probably not be into it, and I don't want my friends to feel any obligation to read it. (This was my main concern about posting it during the IWRY Marathon and why I ultimately chickened out.)

 

I also got randomly inspired to write a little Punisher fic. I never thought I would want to write in another fandom, especially one I'm not even really *in* yet (though I'm working on that now!). I've only seen a tiny bit of The Punisher, but I fell in love with Frank and Karen through Tumblr, which is so incredibly weird. Anyway, writing for a more popular pairing is WILD.

 

I was feeling a little uninspired about my Buffy/Angel butcher shop AU, so I posted the first couple of scenes to Tumblr to see if there was interest. I got some good feedback, so now I'm feeling excited to keep writing it.

 

I'm really behind on fic reading (mostly because of non-fic reading and watching Daredevil Season 1), but I'm hoping to get back to my Marked for Later list soon.

 

Writing: Butcher shop AU

Prepping: Two B/A ficlets set in Season 3, which I will post in the next couple of weeks.

Dreaming about: More Kastle fic! But I'm going to finish watching the shows first, lol.

 

I've been thinking about this, and I've decided my main goal is just to publish my stuff! I am kind of tired of having these debates with myself about whether or not to post things, so as much as I can, my mantra is going to be: If I take the trouble to finish it, I'll post it. (Maybe not always to my main AO3 account, but somewhere.)

 

I think that's a big enough goal for me. I would like to write a longer story (say, 40K), but I don't want to put too much pressure on the ideas that I have. I'm just going to write them as long as they are. I think I'll eventually get there through experience.

 

 

 

I hope that fandom thrives because it's such a lovely thing and I enjoy my little piece of it so much. I don't know what's next, but I plan to be there.

 

I finished up the Vamp!Buffy/Angel piece, which ended up 2,001 words, because 2K has totally become my comfort zone. I think my beta is the only one who's going to get to read that one, at least for now. :D

 

Today's Snowflake Challenge is to create a challenge, and I think I'm going to be really boring and challenge myself to finish the first chapter of the butcher shop AU next week. If I had to describe it, I'd say it's kind of a mashup of the episodes Angel and City Of, with a side helping of Jenny Calendar.

 

Writing: Butcher shop AU; possibly my Buffy/Faith one-shot now that the holidays are over.

Outlining: NOT the butcher shop AU, on purpose, to see if pantsing serves me better.

Dreaming about: The fifth in my Season 3 B/A vignettes series. A post-Earshot one seems the most likely contender. The first two are here and I have two more written to post. But I want to have a nice round five (I know five is not round at all, but you know what I mean — fandom likes fives).

For all its faults as a fandom space, one thing that Tumblr has done for me is get me over my reluctance to self-rec. So! I'm actually going to do two lists, because the three I most want to rec are all Buffy/Angel and I don't get the sense that there are too many people here who are into that pairing. So I'll do a non-B/A list too, just for fun.

B/A Self-Recs

Psyche: This is a loose retelling of the myth of Cupid and Psyche that I wrote for the 2018 IWRY Marathon. It's set after both series (as well as After the Fall, but you don't have to have read it to get this — there are only a few references). This story is the one I'm the most insecure about, since it was my first attempt at a longer story (it's only 22K but that's long for me!), but I'd really love B/A fans to give it a try. (Rated teen & up)

Another Minute: This is a 2K one-shot that follows Buffy after the events of I Will Remember You, written for the 2017 IWRY Marathon. The response to this story was so amazing for me, since I really wasn't expecting much. It's my most popular in terms of hits and bookmarks. (Rated teen & up)

It's Only: I loved making this vid and I think it expresses a lot of why I love the Buffy/Angel pairing. It's not like what the popular vidders can do, but I still think it turned out pretty well. (Also, the experience of this gorgeous Odesza song is much better with headphones on, just FYI.)

Non-B/A Self-Recs

I totally forgot to write anything this week. (Translation: I got slightly obsessed with a new vid and blew it off. Whoops.)

 

I haven't read all that much fic, either. I did read two Buffy novels over the holidays. One, Sins of the Father by Christopher Golden, was pretty decent. I've been writing some Pike myself in recent months, so it was fun to see him show up in the officially licensed fic. The other, Child of the Hunt by Golden and Nancy Holder, was not as good. The second half especially. But the first half had some great Buffy/Angel moments, so it was well worth the price of admission for me.

 

I've got a lot of stories in my Marked for Later list on AO3, thanks to the Snowflake Challenge recs and the Which Willow ficathon.

 

But I still have some amazing stories to pass along to you!

 

 

I really love recs! So...

 

 

As Time Goes By: "In its own, unexpected ways, the Hyperion Hotel remains the last help for the hopeless in the vast wasteland once known as Los Angeles." 

 

If I had to choose just one Buffyverse story, it would be this Casablanca/AtS mashup. It's just. so. good. Half the fun is finding out which AtS characters Yahtzee placed into which Casablanca roles, so I won't do any spoiling. But some fun little tidbits include: 1) The story follows the Hays Code, 2) It's told entirely in black-and-white (no references to color), and 3) I'm given to understand that it made a whole lotta shippers really mad.

 

The Quality of Mercy: OK, yes, I'm including two Yahtzee stories. Not sorry. Yahtzee is just my favorite. This is a post-Epiphany story in which Riley shows up in LA, and it's so much more satisfying as a follow-up to both the Buffy/Riley relationship (though Buffy does not appear) and Epiphany than what either show actually did, in my opinion.

 

All Ways: I just re-read this Buffy/Angel/Spike story recently, and it blew me away again. Kita's use of language is so beautiful that it makes me ache.

 

 

Buffy, the Vampire Slayer vs "Buffy The Vampire Slayer": I rec'd this beer_good meta on Tumblr recently, but I'll do it again! This essay almost singlehandedly made me appreciate Season 7.

 

Prophecy Girl: Mark Field was pretty much the reason I got sucked into the Buffyverse fandom and I've remained a huge fan of his. His essay on Prophecy Girl is one of my favorites. 

 

I Will Remember You: Angel and the Oracles - What's Going On?: A great breakdown of IWRY by a2zmom, with a lot of good discussion in the comments.

 

 

Closer: This vid by lucystonersix is sooo fun! I love the song, and it makes me ship everyone! At least for the length of time they're on screen. :D

 

Plath-inspired B/A gifset: This just hit me in the gut. I love it so much.

 

The Scientist vid: This B/A vid by MrsESsmich is so cleverly done. A classic! (Warning for lots of flashes, though.)