#fanfic writers: director's cut

[ghosts-of-love]

hiyaa, how are you doing :>> can i- yanno- for the director's commentary, yanno, the hand? (from the quick and the dead) cause i know ppl bring it up a lot, but i had to walk around the room stimming so so, yes :>>

ahhhh hehehe yes the infamous hand. so important to me that I had to foreshadow it in the first chapter and then include both their perspectives on it.

I just really like the parallels and differences between chapter 1 where Pat cuts himself on the grater and doesn’t know about Cap’s vampirism, in comparison to later when he does know and specificically offers his own blood to Cap like it’s no big deal.

I think maybe he thinks the Captain won’t take him up on his offer – that he’ll flee like he did when he first moved in. He realises quickly, because of how Cap’s appearance changes, this it is a big deal though, and that his offer has properly stopped the Captain in his tracks.

They just know each other so well, Pat trusts him to be able to stop and that trust is the whole reason that the Captain’s control falters in the first place.

And then. the actual Act. Listen, okay. it’s about the homoeroticism first of all. It’s about Cap being on his kneeeeeees. It’s communion, it’s holy, it’s sacrilegious, it’s undeniably sexual.

Pat obviously doesn’t understand the extent to which it will be all of those things because Cap is standing up at first. But then he gets on his knees and goes first for the trail of blood down his wrist 😳😳 Pat’s like ‘oh shit, potentially a mistake’ but not for any other reason than he’s about to get really fucking turned on.

And Cap resting his head on Pat’s knee 🥺🥺 it actually makes me quite emotional, it's like he’s a loyal dog or something. and Cap is just feeling monstruous and out of control the whole time versus Pat is realising he’s okay with more okay with the vampire stuff than he probably ever realised.

both of them having different kinds of control over each other!! and both of them being turned on!! they're so silly for this i love them!!

fanfic writers: director's cut

#ask games!! #fanfic writers: director's cut #the quick and the dead #bbc ghosts fanfic #patcap

[ellethespaceunicorn]

Director's cut ask... 👉👈

Did you ever consider a different ending for 'make that kitty purr'?

I cut down Make That Kitty Purr extensively. It was originally much darker and very sinister.

But, if anyone is interested, I would love to revisit this story and present it longer, thicker, and uncut (😈). I do have to rewrite it though. So, maybe by the end of the weekend, we can have:

#ask reply #writer ask game #make that kitty purr #make that kitty purr: director's cut #august walker #august walker x reader #august walker fanfic #august walker fanfiction #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill fanfiction #august walker fic #henry cavill #mike (hellraiser) x reader #mikey hellraiser #mike hellraiser fanfiction #mike (hellraiser) #hellraiser mike #mike hellraiser #ellethespaceunicorn fanfic #ellethespaceunicorn fanfic teaser #henry cavill characters #mike hellraiser fic #hellraiser hellworld #mission: impossible fallout #mission impossible: fallout #mission: impossible fallout #mission impossible fallout #crossover au

[flowercrowngods]

Evening finds him on the living room couch again, staring up at the ceiling as he lies there, tired but too strung up to find sleep. Helpless to stop them, his thoughts wander to Robin, imagining the familiar weight beside him on the couch. How often they lay here together, staring at his ceiling and holding hands when they crossed a thought they didn’t like. He hasn’t been alone in this house in almost a year, it doesn’t feel right without her here — it never really felt right to begin with, but with Robin here it was a bit more of a home most days. It’s cold without her. It hurts. It hurts so much, but Steve can’t stop thinking about her, can’t stop feeling like she’s right here with him, about to turn the corner and throw a comment at his head and watch it bounce off. Like she’s about to tuck her head under his chin and ask what he’s doing. Ask, What’s with the long face, Dingus? Steve swallows and presses the heels of his palms into his eyes in an attempt not to cry again. He’s so tired of crying. Even for Robin. So instead of crying, he talks. “I miss you, Robs,” he whispers into the empty house. She should be here. Should come bursting out of the bathroom and say something stupid that will make him laugh, and then she would laugh, and her eyes would shine, and she would drop onto the couch, onto his chest, and be a nuisance. But she’s not here. And she won’t be. She can’t be, not until Steve figures it all out — which, fat chance without her and the superkids. “I miss you so much. I’m… ‘M gonna save you this time, okay? Promise that I’ll try.”

I hope that isn't too long of a selection. I am just, on a deep level, fascinated by situations that separate Steve and Robin.

⭐️fanfic writer director's cut⭐️ 🌷the fic: i'll try. ill try. (but i couldn't be better)🌷

first of all, hi! it's absolutely not too long of a section, don't you worry! :D and even if it were, you know i will always indulge you 🤍 but i'm gonna break this down into pieces, so uh. i have no idea how long this is going to be...

He hasn’t been alone in this house in almost a year, it doesn’t feel right without her here

so i love the fanon idea that everyone just always hangs out at steve's, but it's not quite realistic. what is realistic, though, and what i am absolutely convinced of, is that robin stays at steve's most of the time. they just hang out, he picks her up from school if he doesn't have a shift, he makes sure there's something for dinner, they watch movies together, she does her homework and her projects, steve comes home after a late shift and robin is there on his front steps, her bike on the curb, waiting for him to get home.

steve is not alone, and neither is robin. they're joined at the hip, they're codependent, and it's been almost a year of that. so he hasn't been home alone like this in almost a year – because even on the days when robin can't come over, he knows that tomorrow she will, and her presence is still everywhere, her stuff lying about, etc etc. so she's always there, even if she's not.

It’s cold without her. It hurts. It hurts so much, but Steve can’t stop thinking about her, can’t stop feeling like she’s right here with him, about to turn the corner and throw a comment at his head and watch it bounce off.

but here, now, back in the past, she isn't. and it makes the entire house feel even more alien to him. it doesn't feel right, and there's no reassurance in his chest that at least tomorrow she'll be here again. this absence of robin just heightens his alienation from his house, his home, and his person, and it highlights it, too, because he is so endlessly aware of it. he misses her, with everything he has and everything he is. but it's not just the i wish you were here kind of missing, but a deeper, darker sense of having lost something you can never get back, and living in the aftermath of it. in a world that doesn't even know about your loss.

Like she’s about to tuck her head under his chin and ask what he’s doing.

they're in platonic love, your honour. they're one. they touch and they ask and they know and they see.

and steve needs someone to see him, so he longs for robin, aches for her, thinks of the small things, the tiny gestures that mean the whole world to him like her tucking her head under his chin just because she can. just to be a little bit obnoxious and a large bit his soulmate.

but also

It's cold without her

i feel like one of the heaviest things about grief is the way you will feel like you'll never be warm again. like you'll always be cold. shivering.

(plus, warmth and cold is one of the motifs in this story. remember the way he made sure el was warm again in chapter 6? and then in chapter 9, wrapping her in all the blankets even though there were none left for himself? and then (spoiler) in chapter 10, when hopper makes him take a shower and puts him to bed. or when steve, panicked, tells him that she's cold, she's cold, she doesn't like the cold, please, she's going to be scared again.

being warm, and warmth, is a symbol for hope. a placeholder. a harbinger of comfort. being cold is the exact opposite. think of steve in the upside down, shivering, or him in the cabin when el has all the blankets. so steve's It's cold without her is really just a whole bunch of symbolism in one sentence that continues throughout the story.

She should be here. Should come bursting out of the bathroom and say something stupid that will make him laugh, and then she would laugh, and her eyes would shine, and she would drop onto the couch, onto his chest, and be a nuisance.

it's not even her death he's thinking of or obsessing over. he misses her. this isn't grief or mourning first and foremost, this is dwelling on the good things. and as much as it hurts, as much as it cuts him open, it's still a good thing. compare this to how in chapter 9, he was reminded of her cold, dead eyes, the moment she died, or her sickening cries and just. you know. the bad things.

the worse steve gets, mentally, the more his thoughts of robin morph into something horrible. it is almost tragically ironic, then, that he thought right after the scene you sent me, "I think I'm gonna have to stop thinking about you." – and he did, but in fact what he did stop thinking about were the good times. and it's breaking him further.

But she’s not here. And she won’t be. She can’t be, not until Steve figures it all out — which, fat chance without her and the superkids.

he doesn't think he can do this, doesn't think he can pull it off, saving all of them

“I miss you so much. I’m… ‘M gonna save you this time, okay? Promise that I’ll try.”

but he's gonna try anyway.

i'll try. i'll try. (but i couldn't be better)

#time travel au #steve harrington whump #platonic stobin #steve harrington #i actually started crying writing this and thinking about time travel steve and robin and el and just. yeah. uh. this is fine. #time travel steve #fanfic writer director's cut #ask game answered #i'll try i'll try

[bg-sparrow]

can I have ⭐⭐⭐ for 3 different things u wanna talk about?? 🥺👀

Yay! THREE stars for Fanfic Writers: Director's Cut?? Eeeee

November 16th will be the one-year anniversary of the completion of my Marty X OC trilogy rewrite, The Time Circuits Series. With five works and 274K words written over nine years, it will always be one of my greatest writing accomplishments. I thought I would write it and be done in the BttF fanfic fandom, but lo, since I finished this series last year, I graduated to writing canon fics and have since added 30 more BttF fics to Ao3!

So I want to use these three stars to highlight the first scenes I wrote for each of the three main trilogy stories. I wrote the series totally out of order, as the scenes came to me. I had three chapters of Part III before I started Part II!

So, without further ado, the first scenes!

(There will be spoilers, ye be warned!)

⭐️ Where You're Going (Time Circuits Series #1) ⭐️

The first scene I wrote for this series was in Spring 2006, and it was the scene at the end when Doc reveals his bulletproof vest and the letter. Because that's what this whole story builds up to when it's said and done. This is the end product:

Emma clambered on behind Marty, catching herself on his shoulder when he dropped to the ground. As Marty pulled Doc over onto his back, Emma sank to her knees, staring at the holes on her father's chest and his unblinking eyes. Her body seized up, a crippling numbness seeping through her resolve with gradual, irreversible panic. What does she do? What does she do now? Even as Marty had to turn away, she held vigil over her father as she tried to digest this reality. This is real. This is your reality. It's real. He's — Emma wouldn't think it, not until she knew. Not until she knew. Hand trembling, she slowly reached out over the entry holes in the radiation suit for the side of his neck to feel for a pulse – definitive, tangible evidence she could tether to her hypothesis. As her hand passed over his heart, her own nearly gave out, and she froze. He blinked. Emma's eyes grew, and before she could more than blink herself, her father was sitting up. In her dumbfounded silence, his chest met her paralyzed hand as he rose. A watery smile wrinkled Emma's lip when she flattened her palm and felt him breathe. Emmett smiled. As expected, life pieced together every question he had suppressed that week, and realizing some time after sending Emma Klein back to the future that she was indeed Emma Brown filled him with insatiable anticipation for the moment on the other end of that lightning strike. And through the continuity of time, confirmation of the success of his greatest invention finally arrived by means of Emma throwing her arms around him in a parking lot. He could feel her holding her breath to refuse the sobs trying to surface, but when he wrapped an arm around her, she exhaled audibly and clutched the back of his neck. "You're alive." Emmett let his daughter fall away at Marty's voice, seeing her eye something she couldn't quite place about his torso as Marty turned around. He revealed the vest, amused at their predictable awe. He watched their eyes dance over each spent round plastered harmlessly to his person, Marty steadying himself at Emma's low back as he leaned in. "How did you know?" he asked, a question Emma hadn't even considered until that moment. "We never got the chance to tell you." Marty felt Emma draw a sudden, silent breath, further peering around her as Doc retrieved their preserved, yellowed letter from between the bulletproof vest and the radiation suit. They had been his first defense against this horrible fate in more ways than one, and Emmett had waited a long time to deliver this apology. Part of him was relieved to finally have the freedom to acknowledge them as he had first known them: the kid in the life preserver and the girl who spouted brainwave stuff. As Marty folded the letter over in confusion, Emma had already beat him to the punch with a soft, wry smile, eyes locked on her father. With that look, Emmett plainly heard her berating him in his mind: you damned hypocrite, quickly followed by thank God. "What about all that talk?" Marty asked, still trying to work the adrenaline out of his voice and gulp air at the same time. "About screwing up future events? The spacetime continuum?" Emmett dared a smug grin. For these two kids, he was all in. "Well, I figured, what the hell?"

⭐️ Where You Are (Time Circuits Series #2) ⭐️

The first scene I sketched out for Part II was dated May 17, 2013 in my notes. It is a scene in 1955 where Marty has been trapped in Biff's garage, and Emma, while trying to free him, is caught by Biff. I didn't just want Emma to be that OC that was constantly attached to Marty's hip, and the likelihood of both of them being caught in Biff's back seat was too high. I liked using Emma to see what Marty didn't — and push her out of her comfort zone when put on the spot.

Emma quickly scanned the outskirts of the driveway for something to bludgeon the lock with. There was a metal watering can and a few flimsy lawn ornaments with the structural integrity of a coat hanger, but nothing substantial that would free Marty with one hit. Maybe something lay between the side of the garage and the hedges – "Hey!" Emma spun around at the vicious bark. A small jolt of terror hit her to see that it was Biff himself staring her down, and she quickly resorted to a nervous laugh and bright greeting. Her voice cracked. "Hi!" His mouth hung open in confusion, utterly dumbfounded at the presence of this somewhat familiar girl. He tossed the red ball that had rolled in front of the house at the same group of kids from earlier, sending them the other way with a glare that indicated this was a one-time kindness. He redirected his narrowing eyes to the intruder. "What do you think you're doing?" Emma plastered a smile on her face. "I came looking for you," she said quickly, keeping his attention on her. "I thought I'd check the garage first since I know how much you like your car." "Yeah, well, what do you want?" he asked tersely. What do I want? That's a fantastic question. And the answer her mind came up with made her grimace inwardly, but Biff wasn't a bottomless well of patience. […] "Well, I heard you didn't have a date for tonight," she said clasping her hands with a dainty shrug. "That Lorraine was stupid enough to turn you down. And while it might seem terrible of me, I don't want to miss out on the opportunity she passed up."

⭐️ Where You Were (Time Circuits Series #3) ⭐️

So, looking back at my notes, I was WRONG about what I remember being my first scene for this story (by one day; my first notes for Part 3 were dated March 18, 2013)! I thought it was the scene in the blacksmith shop where Marty shows Doc the tombstone photograph, but it turns out it was the one scene I always wished had played out a bit differently: Doc and Marty at the silver mine unloading the DeLorean the night before they go back to 1985. The issue with this scene if you're giving Doc Brown a daughter: he's not going to tell her and Marty that he's staying in 1885 with a woman he met two days ago. So this scene became a huge deal because I couldn't omit it and I needed it to have the same emotional impact as the original.

In this version, Doc knows he can't stay with Clara despite Emma encouraging him to find a way to be with her. She ultimately fails, storms off, and spurs Marty into action. I always wanted a more sympathetic Marty in this scene, too, so I took the opportunity.

Marty went after his mentor. "You should say goodbye to her." Emmett looked up from the wrinkles in his bedroll. An inkling of intrigue passed over his face as Marty sat down, grimacing with a hand pressed to his side. Seeing the tranquil rise and fall of Emma's back, Marty lowered his voice, motioning to the fire as he spoke. "You guys just disappeared, Doc. Right in front of me." The Lyon Estates pennants fell at his feet over and over in his mind's eye. "Right out of the middle of the sky. And for the two minutes I had to wonder if I would ever see Emma again, it was hell." Marty glanced at the lock of hair snaking out from Emma's cocoon. He took a deep breath and held it, refusing to let the knot in his chest become a lump in his throat. "I couldn't imagine having to live through eight months of that, let alone the rest of my life." Marty hunted for Doc's eyes until he found them under the brim of the Stetson, unhappy with the resistance. Marty took off his hat and ruffled his matted hair, gesturing to the DeLorean next. "I mean, come on, Doc," he said, arm dropping soundly. "Is it fair that you'll go home and look Clara up in the City Archives, and she'll just have to wonder?" Doc sighed through his nose. He twirled Clara's stem of lupine in thought. "None of it is fair, Marty." Doc leaned closer to the fire, orange flickers strobing on his sleeves and nose. "What am I going to say? 'I have to go back to the future'?" Marty shrugged, moving his gun belt to the far end of his bedroll. "I don't know, Doc. If you tell her the truth, she'll think you're lying. And if you lie to her…" Marty whipped a stick into the fire. "Hell, I'm in it with you, and I don't even understand it." Doc looked over his shoulder at the fuzzy moonlight pooled on the body of the DeLorean. He imagined Clara caressing it in awe, captivated by the possibilities and envisioning countless worlds waiting to be explored. Only he could put that enraptured smile on her face – and take it away. "Clara would understand it," Emmett murmured. He slipped Clara's favor into his pocket, a blip of vigor returning to his flat voice. "She loves Jules Verne, Marty. She has all his books! And she knows that through the pursuits of science, the incredible feats of man in those books could be a reality. She has the ability to believe, and so, too, I believe, to understand." Marty raised a skeptical eyebrow, but Doc lured a half-smile out of him when he finally stood. "What she won't understand," Doc said, shaking out his duster, "is why I can't take her with us. But I shall strive to find a way to do so before I get there." "You'll think of something, Doc. Just… go easy on the details, huh?"

And there you have it! The first scenes I wrote for each of the three main stories in my Time Circuits Series! Thanks so much for giving me the opportunity to spotlight these! :D

#back to the future #bttf #timecircuitsseries #fanfic #fanfiction #marty mcfly #doc brown #emma brown #mcbrown #marty mcfly x oc #back to the future oc #ask box #fanfic writers director's cut #thank you!!

[rayslittlekitten]

⭐⭐⭐

Thanks for your interest! Wow. I didn't know which one to pick when I saw your ask. I didn't have any particular fic I'm dying to talk about but since I had talked about this particular fic with a close friend last night, I'll talk about it again.

"Breathe Again" took a while to nail down because I was going for something very specific which I wasn't 100% sure what it was yet. I guess that's part of the process of writing, but particularly the beginning before the flashback, I wanted to really capture the sadness and heartache.

You’ve come to the slow realization that there is no one else out there like Ray. Date after date, prospect after prospect, you’ve tried to ask your potential partners for certain things and they couldn’t give you what you wanted - what you needed. It’s not their fault though. They just weren’t compatible with you. Honestly, it doesn't matter how compatible they could be with you. They’re simply not Ray. You thought they could help distract you from thinking about Ray, but everything reminds you of him. You can’t even indulge in marijuana anymore without thinking of him. You take a long pull of the joint held between your fingers and inhale deeply, letting your lungs fill up. Slowly exhaling, you fill the space around you. You take another drag or two before leaving it in an ashtray. You’re haunted by him; his ghost still lingers in your flat. Even after all this time, you still so desperately crave his touch, his discipline, his embrace, his praise, his command, his love and adoration. There was just something so intimate about leaving yourself so vulnerable to him and that was how you connected. Everything he did to you - for you, brought you peace. He quieted all the noise in your head, as you did for him. With your eyes closed, you bring your fingers to your throat, lighting caressing it, then moving to wrap them around your neck. You don’t put any pressure on it, just let it sit snugly. Your hand is not as big as Ray’s but it still brings you some comfort, imagining it’s his. Your skin memorized his every touch, every hold, every grip, every caress, every slap, every bite, every kiss, every hug. He knew how to manipulate your body and mind so well, they always reacted to him so gracefully and naturally. You caress the side of your neck with your thumb before bringing your fingers up to grip your jaw, just like the way Ray used to.

I probably wrote and rewrote this many many times because I wanted it to be perfect. In fact, the part with her touching her own neck and imagining Ray was kinda inspired by my own habit of constantly caressing and touching my own throat and neck just out of sheer comfort. (Yes, i'm a weirdo). And I was probably a bit high when I did it one time and instantly I tapped into the reader's mind and what she may be going through and all these words just threw up onto the computer screen. I can be a bit methodical when it comes to writing and getting into the psyches of the characters so I did cry and I was sad and my heart did hurt while writing this but I feel like it makes the writing all the better.

Then of course the next chapter was even more heart-wrenching and you know if you've read it. Lots of crying on my end as well. It was therapeutic to write. I've been struggling with the chapter that follows it because again, I want to nail it. It's very much like "Breathe Again" but in Ray's POV. I want to make sure I know what I want to show and then actually make sure it gets across effectively.

Also sometimes it takes me listening to a super sad playlist on repeat to really get in the mood and me helping these characters figure out what they're feeling and what they want.

Fanfic Writers Director's Cut ask

#inbox #fanfic writers directors cut

[wackus-bonkus-maximus]

⭐️

fuckinnn go I am ecstatic

send in a ⭐star⭐ to have the author select a section they’ve been dying to talk about!

hi wiggly! ty for the ask ❤️

today i will tell you about my favorite lines from my fic, one does not love breathing! to keep it short i will give you my top five (in no particular order bc i can't decide 😂).

"Adrien had lost a minute of his life. His Rolex ticked away on the bone of his wrist, unaware it was precisely sixty seconds behind the time on his phone." (chapter 4)

i was so proud of this one when i wrote it! it's a fun bit of personification i got to use to show something magical has transpired. something otherworldly and freaky just went down and this rich rolex-wearing guy has been affected by it. how do you react when you lose a minute of your life? hopefully as well as adrien (fun characterization too!)

"Shadows flickered on the adjacent roof—a man’s silhouette in lightning, cutting across her path like a blade, and Ladybug chased both as she tore through wind and water, following the darkest part of the sky up the side of Montparnasse Tower." (chapter 24)

i love this one bc it was a challenge for me to write anything but "it was a dark and stormy night." trying to see in a storm at night is crazy and freaky, and yet lb did it with laser focus. i remember writing this and being like "oh yeah, that imagery is perfect." cn is in the middle of so much darkness, yet he's the darkest thing within it too.

"the darkness collapsed like pyroclast" (chapter 44)

this MIGHT be stolen from my original fiction wip. if you ever come across a book that uses this, you'll know it's me :))

"It had almost taken Adrien from him. It would have taken the air from the world with him, too. It ached in his lungs now, as though knowing how close it had come to escape. And every new breath he took felt like a tear in his seams." (chapter 34)

i really really wanted to title drop in this line but i couldn't find a way to make it work! still, it turned out great, i think. gabriel's love for adrien is the air he breathes, and without his son whose happiness and well-being he arrogantly took for granted, there is no point in living. or breathing.

"He flashed a smile with all the wicked beauty of a sharpened blade." (chapter 19)

hehe this is the first time felix gave kagami a real smile. she liked it because he looked dangerous, like he was going to take her down. and he DID. she thought that was really hot.

from the fanfic writer: director's cut ask game.

#ask game #fanfic writer: director's cut #odnlb #one does not love breathing #favorite lines

[curator-on-ao3]

For the directors cut thing: I would absolutely love to hear you talk about "Facets of Belonging". I love this story soo much and I read it like a million times because it makes me so happy and warms my heart. It kind of became my head canon for pikeuna ❤️

Hello, hi, I love you! I’m extremely honored by you rereading that story, @azalealunalight, and, hoo-boy, am I happy to talk about it. ❤️

This is going to start a little down but get better.

Facets of Belonging was actually my second pass at trying to unpack Among the Lotus Eaters, an absolute garbage pile of an episode with shipper glasses off and even worse with shipper glasses on. My first try, a one-shot called The Curse of Memory, I very much wrote with my head as an attempt to make sense of at least some aspects of the garbage pile. That story got interesting comments along the lines of, “This writing is good, but I don’t like seeing Pikeuna like this.” And I didn’t either. I had tried for canon-consistency and made myself — and my characters — unhappy.

So fuck that.

Fuck that on the bathroom floor, actually.

So I wrote Facets of Belonging from my heart as a way to let love breathe the way I think it should — freely, honestly, with two people trying their best because they owe that to each other. And I had an absolute blast writing repressed Chris, Una who would have made a pass at him years earlier if she had believed he had any game whatsoever, and both of them not understanding why Batel dumped Chris (I wanted everyone to be somewhat valid there and I hope I succeeded).

It was extra fun to include all the “they were already married, your honor” details like Chris using the secret knock on Una’s door for their shared fresher, Una flawlessly reading Chris’ body language, and Chris and Una having chosen the bathroom rug together years earlier. (The first part of the story goes on and on about how comfortable and fluffy and thick the rug is because I know me and, if the story hadn’t done that, I would have spent the later parts of the story wincing as they made love on that same rug. But it’s okay because the rug is comfortable! and fluffy! and thick!)

In terms of the technical stuff, I enjoyed the shifting third person limited point of view. Having Chris and Una mentally vibing but him more brave while she’s always a step ahead and more calm as he worries — that felt right. Part of Una being a step ahead, for me, is how her consistent adjective for Chris is “exquisite,” while he thinks she’s “beyond beautiful, beyond gorgeous. Something else. Something new.” because he hasn’t gotten to “exquisite” yet … but he will.

In terms of other things that happen after the story ends — if bathroom plumbing on the Enterprise works in any way similar to bathroom plumbing in multi-family homes today, you’d better believe other crewmembers on their same plumbing line heard Una’s ecstatic screaming in the middle of the night. I like to believe Spock is among those crewmembers. Vulcan hearing and all. Gonna be quite a morning on the bridge, amirite?

Oh, and I feel like when Chris lets himself look at Una and actually consider shifting their friendship to romance, the primal attraction he feels truly put the “id” in “idiots in love,” if you will. (And him being like “whaaaa?” she called him “sweetie” was great fun.)

For me, Facets of Belonging is a Marie Kondo story — it sparked joy to write, cleaning out the mess from before. I’m absolutely pleased and honored and delighted that the story makes you happy, too, and that you asked about it. Thank you, thank you, thank you, @azalealunalight, from the bottom of my heart … and the fluffiness of Chris and Una’s bathroom rug. ❤️

Want more information about a fic I wrote? Send me an ask.

#fanfic director’s cut #i love asks #when the episode immediately after this one was the ‘there was only one couch’ episode i screeched #the joyful screech of a fic writer whose ability to believe the lovingly crafted fuckery she posted could be canon for just a little longer #and when we also saw chris’ bathroom in that episode and it has the extra door? even more fic writer joyful screeching #(do i extra love ‘charades’ for these reasons? yes - yes i do) #pikeuna #pikeuna fanfic #pikeone #pikeone fanfic #christopher pike #una chin riley #this story makes me really really happy so it was extra great to revisit it #thank you again #azalealunalight

[bradshawsbaby]

⭐️!!!

Yay, thank you so much!!! 🥰

So, for those of you who have been reading Letters to My Love, you may have noticed that music plays a big part in setting the mood of the story. I was very intentional about putting together the playlist that pairs with the series. My goal is to be as historically accurate as possible, so I’ve attempted to only include songs that would have been released at the time the story takes place (1942-1945). There have been a few occasions where I’ve sadly had to cut songs I loved that weren’t released until the 1950s!

In keeping with the musical theme, you may have also noticed that the title of each chapter is either the title or lyric of a song from the time period. That was just a fun idea that came to me, and I love trying to piece together connections between what’s going on in that particular chapter and the song I choose for the title.

Many of the songs on the LtML playlist are songs that play during Sleep No More, an immersive theater production here in NYC that I absolutely adore. I owe a lot of my musical inspirations for this story to that show!

Fanfic Writers: Director’s Cut

#fanfic writers: director’s cut #letters to my love 💌 #writing stuff #ask game

[thesandsofelsweyr]

The Sus Boy From Next Door for the director's cut? Pretty please with cherries?

Fanfic Writers: Director's Cut // The Sus Boy Next Door (ao3)

Sure thing, anon! But be prepared for wayyyyy more than you probably wanted to know 😆

When I published His (ao3), it was pretty much a flop. It got SO MANY views and yet so few kudos 😭 And it didn't help my psyche that I was off my antidepressants because my latest Wellbutrin dose gave me a seizure 😵‍💫 I was feeling pretty down about my writing, and I considered giving up. Instead, I stepped away for a bit (and also started new meds 😁). I realized that I still had more stories I wanted to tell, and decided to try something a little different to get me out of my slump.

I've had a whumpy scene in my head for ages now where a guy returns to his apartment so beat up and traumatized that he can barely unlock his door so his neighbor helps him out. But I've made peace with the fact that I'll probably never publish any of my original stories so I often repurpose those ideas for my fic. Then, when listening to an episode of Casefile during a relaxing bath, a new idea was born!

Full disclosure: I've never really been into xReader fics 🫣 I'm more of a voyeur who likes to watch rather than participate 😄 However I do love to create original characters to interact with my faves. But I also know that fics featuring OCs aren't the most popular fics, and I needed a confidence boost, so I decided to give writing an xReader fic a shot! And boy am I glad I did because The Sus Boy Next Door (ao3) is by far my most popular fic 🤩 The overwhelmingly positive response that fic received made me realize that, just because His (ao3) didn't get a lot of love doesn't mean it's bad, or that I suck at writing; the audience for that sort of fic (my beloved manpain 😍 hehe) is just smaller! (My hubby tried to tell me this over and over again, that I was writing about torturing a character ["the middle Robin" as he calls Jay] from an 8 year old video game, but all my mentally ill brain wanted to believe was that I was a hack with zero talent.)

The positive response also inspired me to create this Tumblr account AND finally finish writing my manpain magnum opus fic: Hollowed Out (ao3) 💖

The last behind-the-scenes bit I want to share is that when I first brainstormed TSBND I planned to end it after Chapter 2, but my hubby (who I force to be my beta reader) made such a fuss about the sad ending so y'all can thank him for the upcoming Chapter 3 😂

#sands replies #fic: the sus boy next door #fanfic writers: director’s cut

[bmodiwrites]

⭐️

Oh, a dealer's choice one! This is exciting. I actually just got my ST Big Bang fic back from the beta & I'm pretty stoked to finally share it. Since I can't, not quite yet, at least, I'll give you guys a little sneak peak!

Eddie’s more than impressed by Steve’s skill long before he steps to the front of the stage for his solo. It’s easy to see that the band’s conductor went out of his way to pick songs that showed off the array of interesting tunes Steve can create with his fingers pressing down on the strings. While Eddie’s never been one for organized teams and clubs like band, he can clearly understand the music being produced is of good quality and worth listening to. He’s not dense enough to brush aside the beauty of everyone on stage coming together to create something that doesn’t immediately make Eddie want to gauge out his eyes.

He can’t stop himself from staring at Steve, though. Most of the time that he plays, Steve doesn’t actually look at the sheet music. His eyes are closed as he leans into the stem of his guitar and feels the music. Eddie’s convinced it’s as much of a visceral experience as it is a tangible one. Steve seems to be melding himself into the music that’s brought forth when he strikes the pick and squeezes the right strings. The sight is both overwhelming and entirely too sexy for its own good.

No one should look that good playing Christmas music at a high school concert.

Steve does, though.

He continues to look better and better with each passing song. Eddie finds himself liking the reckless abandon in which Steve plays the guitar. He always meant to pick up the habit himself, so Eddie is even more interested to watch the easy way that Steve moves and shifts with the instrument in his hands. He wonders briefly if Steve would be able to teach him to play so smoothly like that.

It’s a pipe dream that Eddie recognizes and quickly brushes off to the side.

When the stage clears and Steve steps up to a lone microphone at the center of the stage, Eddie’s brain is too jumbled and overwhelmed to think straight, anyway. Instead, he’s drawn to Steve like a homing beacon. It takes all the energy within him not to stand up and drift closer to the stage where Steve fumbles through an introduction to the solo he’s so lucky to be playing. Between the boy’s sheer talent and the adorable way Steve works the crowd, Eddie’s totally overcome.

Then, as Eddie reaches his point of no return, Steve starts to play.

At the time, Eddie was much too distracted to listen to what Steve actually had to say during his introduction. He caught the cute laugh and the nervous smile but failed to hear the name of the song. Of course, Eddie recognizes the opening notes of ‘O Holy Night’ right from the start. It’s his mother’s favorite Christmas carol, the only one that Eddie allows himself to listen to throughout the season. It touches his soul the way his mom no longer can. The fact that Steve is playing it says more than Eddie’s willing to digest right now.

Eddie forgets about the throbbing want that’s been growing since he first laid eyes on Steve up on the stage. It’s quickly replaced with sharp focus. He holds his breath and closes his eyes to let each of the notes cascade over him, listening closely. Every drag of Steve’s fingers brings forth another beautiful bar of a song that means so much to Eddie.

It’s silly to think that a song can bring people together but Eddie’s convinced – he can’t just let the opportunity to get to know Steve, to actually spend time with him, pass by without a fight anymore. As the song comes to an end, a plan begins to form in the back of Eddie’s mind. The idea he brushed aside earlier comes tumbling back to him with a lot more merit than before.

I find myself wanting to talk about this part more than ever because it's the foundational scene of this entire fic! When I first signed up for the big bang, I had no idea where I wanted to go. Then, I heard Carlo's Song by Noah Kahan and the scene above manifested in my brain. For some reason, I immediately thought of a verse where Eddie looks up with awe at Steve playing, instead of the opposite we usually get. It's kind of cool to have something like that happen, because I usually have to string my ideas together piece by piece. Not with this one, though - it dropped into my lap and I ran away with it as fast as I possibly could.

All of that is to say that I'm super excited for my entry to drop and for you all to read it! Thanks for the ask, pal - I really appreciate it (and you <3)

Fanfic Writers: Director's Cut - send your asks here!

#itsfreakingbats #steddie #stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #bobbie writes #bobbie answers shit #fanfic writer directors cut #these are fun #i really like them a lot

[sokkas-first-fangirl]

Do you have any director's commentary about what happened with the cracks during the big blowup argument between Bruno and Alma?

Ooh man, it took ages to decide how far to take the cracks! I knew I wanted the mountains to open, but did I want Casita to fall too? All I knew for sure was that the courtyard still needed that dramatic crack in the centre and it still needed to stem from Alma. Eventually, I decided to keep poor Casita standing; after all the stress I've put that sentient house through in this story, I owed them a break

I knew I wanted the "final" argument to be between Alma and Bruno, but I also debated having Pepa or Julieta step in. In the end, it felt more fitting to let Bruno have his say by himself. It's one more misunderstanding, one more crack so to speak; Alma and Bruno once more not understanding each other. It's the moment Alma finally understands that she has to confront her own trauma, because she's hurting her loved ones by lashing out. Pepa and Julieta have both asked her for explanations that she wasn't ready to provide, but this? Nearly losing her home and the mountains opening? Bruno blaming himself and Mirabel blaming herself? It was the wake-up call that Alma needed.

The crack in the courtyard is still there! It is clumsily hidden under a rug while they try to patch it 😂 Currently, no one but the Madrigals are meant to be allowed into Casita, lest they comment on it (besides the Rojas's of course, because they wouldn't know to question it and the Madrigals are best suited to help them) The crack(s) will be discussed again in the next chapter! We're nearing the end of the story after all; the cracks have to heal somehow 👀👀

#answers #asks #writer's commentary #director's cut #ask game #how bright you burn (how brave you've been) #encanto fanfic #my writing #la familia madrigal

[ghosts-of-love]

Fanfic Writers: Director’s Cut

Adored and Adored 2: did you know you'd be writing 2 when you write 1? Did you know what Pat was thinking/doing when Cap wasn't with him? I'm in awe of the fact the 2 PoVs don't feel like a rehash of the same story, and instead feel so fresh!!

ahhh thank you so much!! that was something I was really worried about when writing 2 so thank you for saying that!!

I actually didn’t know that I’d be writing 2 when I first started. I think I got to the end, or near the end and realised I didn’t want it to be over and that there was still so much to explore on Pat’s side. I thought about just doing some small one shots about the paris trip or about the christmas party or about the first hook up in chapter 4 and then the more I thought about it the more I was like, ok so what you actually want to do is retell it from Pat’s perspective lol. sometimes i did know what Pat was thinking in scenes where Cap was with him, but most of the new stuff was made up once i started writing.

for example, i wanted to include things that Cap doesn’t know or doesn’t see – like the New Year’s party, where Pat is learning things about Cap without actually being around him, things that start to colour how he sees him a little bit. And the disasterous date. And some of his time with Daley, his backstory exploring why he went to Cap all those years ago in the first place. I also just wanted to show that neither of them are all bad or all perfect. They’ve both made mistakes, they’re both absolutely shite at communicating with each other.

In the same way as with the quick and the dead, I find it really interesting retelling certain parts and seeing what they’ll both find important or unimportant to note, or what they’ll understand or misunderstand about the other person ahhhh it’s just so much fun!! <3 <3

fanfic writers: director's cut

#ask games!! #fanfic writers: director's cut #adored #patcap #bbc ghosts fanfic

[girl-next-door-writes]

⭐

Oh wow, okay, one of my fics I want to talk about. I can do that. Let's see. Okay, I'm going to go with one of my Steve Rogers. Hello and Goodbye.

Any of you who know me, know that I am a 'pantser', which means I basically sit at my laptop and write and write until it's done with little or no plan at all. I let the muse take me, and because this is how I write I am often as surprised by how the story turns out as you guys are reading it. This was definitely one of those stories.

Now, I write fluff primarily. I feel the world can quite often be freaking stressful and so my ramblings provide a fluffy blanket to wrap around you for a while to protect you from that for a while, but sometimes my characters do something and I just can not give them a happy ever after.

So, from a young age, girls are often told that a boy is being mean to them because they like them, but why does a boys inability to deal with him emotions mean we have to put up with being treated poorly? When the team are talking about the issues between you and Steve there are several arguments there that I have heard over the years, solutions which are all pretty awful (except Nat, she is a superstar and quite right). Quite often in fanfic, our fave does something really terrible and after a heartfelt apology still gets the person they desire, as if 'sorry' makes up for it. Well, it didn't this time and I was so damned proud of reader at the end of this fic because anyone who make a 'them' problem a 'you' problem is not the kind of person you want a relationship with.

People who like you do not go out of their way to make you feel small or bad. They do not discount how you might feel and they certainly don't bully you because they 'like' you. Not even if they are Captain America.

So, yeah, a slight tangent to my usual 'happy ever after' style, but something I think a lot of people need to remember. Boys who pull your pigtails don't 'like' you, they cannot deal with their emotions and want to control you and YOU ARE WORTH MORE.

And just like my writing, that did not go in the direction I thought it would when I started, but there you go.

If you want me to do a 'director's commentary' on a particular story, section of a story, or a set of lines, then come hit my ask box.

Or, send in a ⭐star⭐  to have me select a section I’ve been dying to talk about!

#Fanfic Writer: Directors Cut #em rambles from the dojo

[mxanigel]

🌟 for the director's cut game?

Thank you for the ask! <3

I'm going to take this opportunity to talk about the first fic I posted to AO3, it's always darkest before the dawn. In its posted form, the story follows Aryn Lavellan, a mage Inquisitor, who dumps Cullen over his attitudes toward mages and the journeys they each take in the wake of that break-up. It was unexpectedly soothing for me to realize Aryn in this shared version, but it took a while for me to figure out what the fic needed to become.

In the first iteration of the fic, Aryn's journey much more closely followed the events of the game, up to and including the infamous desk scene from Cullen's romance. While it was cute when I first played it years ago, that scene really didn't sit well with me for Aryn's character on a replay (as a mage, an elf, and a person who's demisexual). The version I wrote couldn't make up for that feeling. The scene had to go. Which led to a lot of other content getting tossed too.

In the second iteration of the fic, they never get back together. I ended up not finishing that version because it felt like Aryn was yelling at me for not staying true to her character. 😅 She seemed to insist that she'd give him another chance under the right circumstances, and thus the posted version ended up a sort of compromise between the two paths. To my surprise, I'm still pretty proud of it a year and a half later despite my fixations shifting to other Dragon Age games and Mass Effect. Mainly because I still love Aryn, despite all her flaws and Inquisition's many imperfections.

Since I haven't talked about her much on this blog, I'll share two shots of Aryn Lavellan -- the left is vanilla in-game (I play DAI on console), the right a modded version lovingly crafted by a wonderful friend:

#ask game #fanfic writers director's cut #Aryn Lavellan

[bg-sparrow]

⭐️⭐️ please do! :D

Two stars for Fanfic Writers: Director’s Cut! Woo!

I’ll use these two stars to talk about two projects I will be starting soon!

⭐️ Once Upon a Time in the North ⭐️

This will be the fourth and final installment in my Once Upon a Time in West series (in which I make Marty and Buford frenemies). I began it last November for a “stuck in 1885” challenge called “Cowboyvember”, and it snowballed. North is the final cardinal direction I have to write, and I plan to do so during Cowboyvember this year!

This story will take place in 1906. Marty has become a full-blown outlaw at this point alongside Buford, but the law — and their loved ones — are closing in on them.

Still lots of time to catch up! Each story in the series is only about 15K each (with East easily being my favorite)!

⭐️ The Naïveté of Marty McFly ⭐️

Writing an Author vs. Character meta parody where I boss around hang out with Marty & Co. in my infinite fan fiction office building is so fun. This would be the third! I wrote The Doom of Marty McFly for June of Doom and The Maladies of Marty McFly for Sicktember, and with Comfortember coming up, I am realizing what a comfort those two fics were for me this year when I needed to let off a little creative steam and want more.

It would once again be a parody where take these wonderful comfort prompts and put my best "funny whump" twists on them. Because physical comedy and dumb humor give me dopamine. And November is my favorite month of the year. I deserve dopamine. Marty will deserve none of the things I do to him (though there will be actual comfort, too, as can be observed in the other two installments from time-to-time).

I'm usually a stickler for updating daily with these monthly challenges, but I'm giving myself leniency with this one. So if it doesn't get updated daily in November, especially with holidays, it'll still get done.

Thanks for the stars!! I'm looking forward to working on these upcoming projects and enjoyed getting to talk about them a bit here! <3

#ask box #fanfic writers director's cut #once upon a time in the north #once upon a time in the west series #the meta of marty mcfly #thank you!!

[wackus-bonkus-maximus]

⭐

send in a ⭐star⭐ to have the author select a section they’ve been dying to talk about!

hello mila! thank you for the ask 💛

okay, this is great bc i can tell you about first lines and last lines! these are very important in stories and also very difficult for writers (including me lol). but they're very important for setting the scene/establishing character, and i do feel like i did a good job in this fic!

marinette's first line:

“He has every single Miraculous except mine,” Marinette said, her eyes fixed on the Eiffel Tower, illuminated green and black. “I thought he was dangerous before, but he’s proven he’s done holding back. I have to be better now, Alya. I can’t make any more mistakes.”

her focus on chat noir is a visual representation of her goal for the fic. she's talking big talk about being responsible, about atoning for her failures, about her enemy monarque. but her eyes are on chat noir, as they will be for the rest of the story. it shows the character arc she's going to go through: realizing her want (revenge) does not match her need (getting cn back).

marinette's last line:

“Hey!” Marinette yelled, scrambling after him as he bolted toward the waves. “Chat Noir! Get back here!”

speaks for itself, doesn't it? ❤️

adrien's first line:

Adrien cleared his throat, his brow furrowed as he looked at her. “What was she talking about?”

adrien is looking at his lady, even if he doesn't know it. she's literally his guiding light, and his goal, and when he doesn't know what to do or who to turn to, he turns to her. adrien's definitely the most static character in the fic (changes the least), but i think his growth is shown by him changing from his self-destructive ways to becoming self-sacrificing to becoming more self-perserving, if only for the sake of being with her.

adrien's last line:

He snatched her ice cream from her hand, ignoring her cry of protest as he threw it to Tikki. “Beat you to the water.”

his closing line shows how very much himself he is now. he still looks to ladybug, is still obsessed with her, but in a much healthier way for both of them <33 and he also keeps them both having fun and enjoying life, which is just what both of them need <333

from the fanfic writer: director's cut ask game.

#ask game #fanfic writer: director's cut ask game #first lines #last lines #fun times #thank you for the ask i hope this was fun insight <33 #odnlb #one does not love breathing