theobscurepotato

Dear Yuletide Writer:

First off, thank you! I hope you are as excited about your assignment as I am to receive it. Hopefully the lateness of my Yuletide letter didn’t panic you too much! I enjoy a wide variety of fic, and these are truly some of my favorite canons, so really you can’t go wrong...but if you are looking for a spark of inspiration, I hope this letter provides it.

General Likes/Dislikes:

Things I love in a Yuletide fic: M/M, UST, hurt/comfort, banter, happy endings. When I look at the canons I chose, one consistent theme is that they all end on a note of hope, yet the characters I chose within these canons don't always get to experience that. I think, more than anything, what I would love to see is a chance for these characters to catch a glimmer of it for themselves (or for each other, in the canons where I've selected a pairing).

Things I generally don’t like in a Yuletide fic: AU’s set outside of the canon setting (coffee shop, etc), MPREG, graphic gore, body horror, unhappy endings. That being said, if you have a wild idea that goes against these, these are definitely more loose guidelines than DNW’s.

___

Coldfire Trilogy

Damien Vryce/Gerald Tarrant

Not sure if there will ever be a Yuletide where I don't request CFT fic. I do write frequently for this fandom, but just because I write in a certain style, please don’t restrict yourself to my “usual” topics. For this canon especially, I’m excited to read what you want to write.

I’m starting my millionth re-read of the trilogy, so I am excited to read anything set either during canon, or a post-canon fix-it. Give me all the banter. Give me all the UST. Give me Gerald Tarrant doing something kind (while doing mental gymnastics to justify it to himself as FOR SELFISH REASONS ONLY). Give me Damien forgetting to agonize over what GT is and just enjoying a moment with him (bonus points for him Prophet!fanboying). Give me physical contact of some sort between them, give me the soul bond! I ship these two hard, but I am happy to read pre-slash/gen.

Dimension20: Escape from the Bloodkeep

Leiland (Kraz-Thun)

I watched Escape from the Bloodkeep 2 months ago(?) and once I was done, I immediately restarted it and watched the series again. Bloodkeep has some of my favorite Dropout cast characters, but of course it was Matt Mercer’s Leiland who stole the show for me. Someone on Reddit summed up Leiland as “All that dark power and regal lineage turned into a benny hill skit” and in response I can only say, that’s exactly why I’m here. I am happy with both pre and post-canon fic, gen or shippy (and not picky on ship). I’d really love to see Leiland navigate how to be Leiland, and not Kraz-Thun, and getting more comfortable in the “evil” found family he has created. Galfast Hamhead, while not requested, is of course 1000% welcome in any story.

Yoroiden Samurai Troopers (Ronin Warriors)

Shuten/Rajura

This was my first real fandom, well over two decades ago now, and Shuten/Rajura was my first ship. I definitely carried a binder plastered outside with the Masho chibi from Amanda Swiftgold’s page and stuffed to the brim with too much printed fic from Mink’s Yaoi Cake archive. This was a rare ship even then, and I am absolutely fine with gen, and fics that include all the Masho. I would of course love a fix-it fic, but I am open to exploring missing canon scenes also. I would enjoy a fic either from Rajura or Shuten’s perspective that grapples with their encounter out on the tracks, and that sprinkles in some of their shared complex history. Feel free to bend canon details in terms of what the armor enables.

Uprooted

Solya/Marek

These two have taken up residence in my brain and will not leave me alone. They truly enable each other in a way that is absolutely toxic, but I would love a fic that lets them attempt to do better by each other. I would prefer that Marek lives in your fic, whether that means exploring pre-canon events, or a missing scene during their story, and I would definitely enjoy a fix-it (just think of the hurt/comfort possibilities!) where they get to figure out their version of a happy ending. How do they navigate a world where they both wield less power? Would they be able to make their peace enough with that to carve out something new? Or would they chafe against that lack of power, and it would be that struggle that entwines them further?

Dear Yuletide Writer,

Yuletide...already! How?!

Let me start by saying that I am so excited to see what you write. It's my hope that my requests spark the desire to write something that you really love as well!

Coldfire Trilogy

I love the Coldfire Trilogy. I definitely ship Damien/Gerald, as my ao3 account proves, but please write the CFT fic that you want to write. My only request is that if its a post-canon fic, that Gerald somehow retains/returns to his normal looks.

Uprooted

Solya/Marek...I would love to see these two pull off a happy ending. Or to get a glimpse of some hidden tenderness between the two of them in a missing scene from canon.

The Enchanted Forest Chronicles
"Dealing with Dragons" was one of the first books that I truly loved. I remember reading it in second grade and spent subsequent birthdays asking for the remaining books of the series. While "Calling on Dragons" gets a lot of criticism (I'm looking at you, Killer), I really enjoyed that Morwen was the POV character. Plus I'm sure that scene in the fire swamp with her and Telemain stirred my first love of hurt/comfort.

Wizards and Warriors

It's such a shame this show was cancelled after only one season. It's campy and funny and far more clever than it should be. Dirk Blackpool is truly a Magnificent Bastard of the highest caliber. I'm interested in all stories exploring his and Eric's dynamic, whether during the show timeline or before/after. Layer on the banter!

DNW's:

Major Character Death, Angst, Unhappy Endings. It's been a rough year for me personally, so I while I often enjoy darker content, I would prefer that your story ends on an optimistic note.

Hello, Yuletide Writer!

I am so excited that you are writing for me. This year’s letter is both a little late and a little shorter than I’d like–there is a very good chance that I’ll add more to this throughout the next few weeks.

Please take the contents of this letter as pure suggestion–I would be delighted by any & all content for my listed fandoms. I think the characters I selected are all very, very shippable, but I also really enjoy gen, particularly when a fic feels like a very natural extension of canon.

Note: I read a wide variety of fic, but I especially love hurt/comfort fics.

Coldfire:

I requested Coldfire last year, so everything from my 2021 letter holds. Lately I’ve been really interested in missing scenes from canon (or, in what I think is the more difficult ask, canon scenes from Gerald’s perspective). But if you love Coldfire, this is definitely a canon where I would be insanely delighted by any fic you dream up -- I will never get over Damien/Gerald.

Golden Kamuy:

This is the fandom that I removed my usual “no AU’s outside of canon setting” DNW for. I am obsessed with thinking of what Ogata/Yuusaku's dynamic would have been had things been slightly (or wildly!) different for them. A question I often ask myself is how much of Yuusaku’s “goodness” is real vs Ogata’s perception vs the role he feels he has to play…would enjoy reading a fic where Ogata sees Yuusaku for who he really is.

Uprooted:

Fic introduced me to the wonder that is Solya/Marek, but I was also pleased to read the interview where Novik confirmed that the two of them had hooked up in Marek’s room before Agnieska showed up. I would love a fic that lets some vulnerability show, underneath them being, well, them, whether a missing canon scene or a fix-it (think of the hurt/comfort possibilities!) where they get to figure out their version of a happy ending.

If you want to do any other stalking, I can be found on tumblr and ao3 as theobscurepotato.

Thank you again! I am very excited to see your story.

Dear Yuletide Writer:

First, I want to just say thank you. I returned to fandom in 2020 after an extremely long hiatus, so this is my first time as a participant in Yuletide, despite consuming many Yuletide fics. Please take the rest of this letter (except for the do-not-writes below) as pure suggestion. I’m really excited...and I’m really, really grateful!

DNW’s: Mpreg, A/B/O, AU’s set outside of the canon setting, vore, humiliation, major character death

I particularly enjoy: third-person limited, character-driven stories, lots of dialogue, banter, hurt/comfort, first time, in-character sex scenes, reluctant teamwork, “maybe you’re not the worst thing ever” realization-type moments

While I personally find all my requested characters imminently shippable, I am also very open to gen fic. Do your thing!

I can be found on AO3 & tumblr as theobscurepotato if you feel like doing some extra stalking.

Coldfire Trilogy
Gerald Tarrant, Damien Vryce

What do I love about these two? Everything. I re-read these books every couple of years and for whatever reason my last re-read pushed me deep into a nostalgia trap that I still haven’t recovered from.

Give me all the banter. Give me all the UST. Give me Gerald doing something kind (while doing mental gymnastics to justify it to himself as FOR SELFISH REASONS ONLY). Give me Damien forgetting to agonize over what GT is and just enjoying a moment with him (bonus points for him Prophet!fanboying). Give me physical contact of some sort between them.

I would prefer something set during canon, but honestly...write me anything with these two and I will cry real tears of joy. (Note: if post-canon, please take the fix-it label to heart and let a boy who (although he doesn't deserve it) keeps his golden hair and his name. Also, I find the scar weirdly hot so it can stay if you'd like).

Uprooted
Sarkan, Solya

The snide comments. The cattiness. The petty rivalry.

They really do bring out the worst in each other, and I love it. It screams “jilted lovers” to me, but I’m fine with any take on this dynamic. I would love something either pre or post canon for these two, especially a scene where they are forced to work together. Bonus points if even when working together, someone else ends up saving the day. Additional bonus points if the solution to their problem was something actually very simple and they just mind-fucked it into something ridiculous.

If you’re going to go shippy, I promise you that you cannot overdo the sexy magic. I eat that with a spoon. Let them be their most creative/competitive selves here. Bonus points here if (someone) walks in on them and Sarkan & Solya are equally furious that (someone) is not surprised at all that they’re banging.

Thronebreaker
Gascon Brossard, Reynard Odo

Reynard & Gascon have some initial Bert & Ernie vibes going on for sure, but I’m really here for the depth/complexity under their surface-level interactions.

I would love to see something where Meve makes the choice post Red Lobinden to send both of them away and they reluctantly team up to follow her army. Bonus points for Tolkien-level meal description while they cook something over a campfire. Bonus points if Gascon gets to show off his archery skill. Bonus points if Gascon’s tragic backstory™ makes an early debut. Even more bonus points for subtle parallels drawn between Gascon and Reynard’s younger self.

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