#writing year in review | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gaycey-sketchit · 4 months

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It's rewind time: everything I wrote in 2023

I wrote and posted quite a bit this year!! According to my AO3 stats page, the total word count for all my completed works this year was 43,331 words! Very proud of that--I made a conscious effort to let go of perfectionism after it fucked me up last year and I had great success.

Anyway, here's everything I posted this year and a little snippet from each!

February

I want your dreary mondays (wrap your arms around me, baby boy)

Tracey was preparing a pot of coffee when he heard footsteps and felt a familiar warmth at his back. Gary’s arms quickly found their place around his waist, and lips brushed against the back of his neck. “Good morning, sleepyhead,” Tracey greeted him. “Morning, sunshine,” Gary replied, sounding a little more awake now, but still yawning into Tracey’s neck a second later. “Thanks for the coffee.” “I know how you are about caffeine.” Tracey turned to kiss Gary’s cheek, before Gary moved off to do something else. Their mornings together were almost like a dance, the way they moved easily around each other as they went about their routines, stealing kisses at every opportunity; steps they fell comfortably back into even after research trips had kept Gary miles away for weeks—weeks spent counting down the days until they could be in each other’s arms again, calling every night just to hear about each other’s days, falling asleep to the sound of each other’s voices. Tracey could get by just fine in Gary’s absence, but whenever Gary returned, it was like clouds over the moon had blown away and he was bathed in moonlight. And just like the moon, though Gary’s presence waned, he would always return, beautiful and radiant as ever.

March

we'll take our scars, and make 'em stars

Eevee had been traveling with Gary for a couple weeks and had gotten used to it. He slept curled up at the foot of his trainer’s bed, and it was usually very comfortable. Tonight, Eevee was woken by something striking him—Gary’s foot. He yipped in annoyance and thought about biting in retaliation, but then realized something was wrong. Gary was thrashing in his sleep as if trying to fight off an unseen enemy—or escape one’s grasp. He bolted awake with a sharp cry. He struggled for breath, a hand on his chest and eyes wild with fear. Eevee still wondered what humans had to be afraid of, but clearly something had scared Gary badly enough that it haunted him in his sleep. Eevee would ask the other pokémon about it another time, but that wasn’t important now. What was important was calming his trainer down. Eevee carefully moved to his side, close enough to hear the frantic pounding of his heart, and nosed him gently. He recoiled at the contact. But then he looked at Eevee and seemed to finally realize where he was, shoulders slumping as if suddenly exhausted. The fear in his eyes gave way to something else. He reached a trembling hand toward Eevee, like he had when they first met, but he wasn’t offering comfort this time. He was asking Eevee for it. Eevee gave the hand a gentle lick before brushing past it. Gary’s legs were drawn up, but there was space between them and his upper body that Eevee could fit into. He put his front paws on his trainer’s chest and met tear-filled eyes with his own. And then Gary’s arms were holding him, a little too tight in desperation, and tears fell onto his fur, but he found he didn’t mind either of those things. He licked Gary’s face, purring soothingly in response to his trainer’s choked sobs, like his mother had comforted him as a kit.

May

Something in the Way He Moves

“His loss, my win.” Gary grinned. “But enough about my exes. You’re a natural at this, see?” Tracey had to admit Gary was right. The steps were simple, and he’d probably have trouble with something more complicated, but he dismissed that self-deprecating thought. “Hey,” Gary said. “Have you ever been dipped?” Tracey shook his head. “Well, we can change that,” Gary said, excitement in his voice and his face. “Are you ready?” “Ready as I’ll ever be,” Tracey replied, a little nervous. “Relax, I’m not gonna drop you. Promise.” Gary moved the hand on Tracey’s hip to his back, a reassuring gesture. “I’m gonna lead you into a spin first. You’ve seen movies. Just relax and go with it, okay?” Tracey’s nervousness melted away—well, most of it, at least—and he nodded. “Got it.” Gary raised the hand that was holding Tracey’s above Tracey’s head, and he let Gary guide him into the spin—“Now you’ll wanna hold onto my shoulders,” Gary instructed when it ended—and Tracey’s heart fluttered as he was quite literally swept off his feet, Gary dropping his hand to support his back with both arms. He looked up at Gary for a change, feeling warm all over. Gary’s gorgeous green eyes were shining with affection, and he smiled softly before giving Tracey a quick kiss. Gary held the position a while longer—he was just showing off now, Tracey thought amusedly—before straightening and loosening his hold on Tracey a little. “Fun, right?” “Yeah, I’m gonna have to learn how to do that to you.” “Prince Charming wants to learn how to sweep me off my feet, huh?” Gary teased. “I’d love that. I can talk you through it now if you want.”

June

Falling for You (Literally)

Maybe Gary should’ve been paying closer attention to what he was doing. He heard a loud crack and suddenly he was falling. Tracey reached for his hand, but their fingers only brushed against each other and next thing he knew, Gary was on the ground. He lay there in a daze, too stunned from the impact to move. The breath had been knocked out of his body and he had to try to remember how to breathe. He heard Tracey’s voice. “Gary! Gary, are you okay? Can you hear me?” He groaned as his vision cleared. Tracey was knelt at his side, looking down at him with eyes brimming with worry. “I’m okay, Trace.” To prove it, he attempted to get up. A stab of pain shot through his foot and he stopped with a pained hiss, curling into himself. Tracey put a hand on his back. “Easy, you don’t have to get up now. What hurts?” “I think my ankle’s twisted,” he said. “Or broken. Fuck, that hurt.” “Let me see.” Tracey pressed a hand against Gary’s ankle and he winced, biting back a whimper. “Yeah, I think that’s a sprain. Must be a bad one if it’s that tender.” “Thanks for clearing that up,” Gary muttered. Tracey ignored the sarcastic remark. “Are you hurt anywhere else? Do you have a concussion?” “I don’t think so,” Gary answered. “Other than my pride. Probably gonna have some nasty bruises too, but I’ll live.” “Good.” Tracey gave a soft, relieved smile that made Gary’s heart flutter. “You better stay off it. Here, let me carry you.”

September

Take Care (of Each Other)

Gary closed his eyes and listened as Tracey puttered around the kitchen. He heard Tracey yawn and felt a pang of guilt. Tracey had worked hard so he could freely go out for the evening, and he’d come home late. No doubt he was exhausted. “You don’t have to do this, Trace.” “I want to,” Tracey replied without missing a beat. “I like taking care of you—even if I wish you’d take better care of yourself.” “Thanks,” Gary said, not knowing what else to say. “I’ll handle the morning lab stuff tomorrow.” “No, you won’t.” Tracey’s tone was stern, leaving no room for even Gary to argue. “Tomorrow, you rest, or I am pinning you in bed until noon.” “Is that a threat or a promise?” Tracey let out a startled laugh. “Get your mind out of the gutter! I’m trying to be serious!” “That must be hard when your boyfriend is so charming and funny,” Gary said with exaggerated sympathy. “He must make you wanna kiss him all the time.” Tracey sighed melodramatically. “Oh, you have no idea…” Gary watched Tracey pull his hair back, redoing his ponytail with skilled hands and tucking the braid behind his ear. “I think I do, actually.” Tracey turned to flash a smile at Gary. “Sweet talker.”

Stun Spore Detour: The Threequel

Tracey wanted to squirm into a comfortable position, but he wasn’t sure there was one, and every movement sent a stab of pain like pins and needles through his body. He felt unbearably hot despite the shade. Gary put a hand on Tracey’s cheek and he flinched instinctively, Gary’s usually comforting touch amplified. He heard Gary gasp. “You’re burning up.” “That roserade must’ve been powerful,” Tracey said. “It was beautiful… I wish I could’ve sketched it…” Gary stifled a laugh despite his obvious tension. “Honestly, Trace! You got stun spored in the face because you were too caught up in sketching to be careful and that’s what you’re thinking?” Tracey opened his mouth to retort against the playful banter, only for a series of painful coughs to escape him. “Shit,” Gary said, voice suddenly sharp with alarm. “Let’s put a pin in the banter for now, sunshine. You rest, I’m going to figure out what I can do to treat this.” Despite how painful movement was, Tracey managed to shakily lift his hand to give a thumbs-up. He heard Gary make an incredulous noise.

will the rain ever stop falling? (I've been cold for such a long time)

“What do you mean you don’t get sick this time of year?” Gary demanded. “You’re on a schedule? You think you’re immune to pneumonia? If you’re not careful you’re gonna catch your death out there.” Tracey was seldom annoyed by Gary, but that touched a nerve. He felt a twinge of irritation. “Listen,” he said, doing his best to keep his voice level. “My immune system is good. I might catch a cold during the winter, but that’s pretty much it.” Gary looked skeptical. He pressed the back of his hand against Tracey’s forehead. “You don’t feel hot, that’s for sure, but that might be ‘cause instead you’re fuckin’ freezing.” That wasn’t surprising to hear, but it still made him suppress a shiver. “It’s sweet of you to be worried, but I promise I’m fine. Just cold.” “I’m not sweet, and I’m not worried,” Gary said, sounding almost insulted. “Just go get dried off, okay? I’m telling Grandpa not to let you in the lab until you’re dry, and I know he’ll agree with me ‘cause I’m right.” “On it, boss,” Tracey said, amused despite himself at Gary’s audacity. He gave a joking salute, which Gary only frowned at, before passing Gary to go upstairs. He headed for the bathroom to grab a towel and was stopped in his tracks by a forceful sneeze, so loud he half expected Gary to hear it and shout I told you so! in response. He didn’t hear Gary, but at his side Marill squeaked worriedly. “It’s okay, Marill.” Tracey shook his head, scattering water droplets. He was just cold and wet. He’d be fine once he dried off.

Endure (chance of failing rises if used in succession)

Biting back a curse, Gary shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He just needed to hang in there until this was over—if he couldn’t do the work himself, the least he could do was not interrupt Tracey’s. And he knew the second Tracey realized he wasn’t okay, his sweet boyfriend would drop everything to look after him. He and Tracey had done exactly that for each other more times than he could count. He could do this. He opened his eyes, blinking, and watched Tracey work. Tracey really was in his element—his usually soft eyes sharp and focused, his hand working quickly to draw what he was seeing, frowning slightly in concentration. That passionate intensity looked good on him. No matter how dreadful Gary was feeling, he’d never tire of seeing it. Unfortunately, he could only fight his biology for so long. A series of sneezes forced their way out of him, tiny but sharp and too quick to stifle. That got Tracey’s attention. “Gary!” He was at Gary’s side in an instant. Catching his breath, Gary slumped against Tracey with a weary sigh. Tracey was so warm. “I’m okay.” “No, you’re not.” Tracey held onto Gary, rubbing his back with gentle hands. “You’re shivering.” He was? He hadn’t noticed. He’d had no idea he was even cold until he was enveloped in Tracey’s blissful warmth. “I’ll be fine.” “I’m sure you will be,” Tracey said. “But right now you’re not, and you’re only going to get worse if you don’t rest. Can you walk?”

You Are My Sunshine

Her ears pricked and she whinnied a friendly greeting just as cold hands pressed against the back of Tracey’s neck. He yelped and dropped the hoof pick in surprise, whirling around to see a familiar face grinning mischievously at him. “You’re the worst, Gary!” “But you love me anyway,” Gary said, which was true. “Yeah,” Tracey conceded, pulling Gary into a hug. Then, knowing Gary couldn’t see the sly grin spreading across his face, he ran his hands down to Gary’s sides and started tickling in retaliation. Gary made a sound between a yelp and a laugh before swiftly giving into the fit of laughter, making a halfhearted attempt at pushing Tracey away. “Okay, I get it! Stop!” Tracey relented, giving Gary a kiss on the nose and then letting go. “I missed you. How was the research trip?” “It was great,” Gary said. “But are you okay? I know the cold’s tough on you.” Tracey nodded, kneeling to pick up the hoof pick he’d dropped and standing back up. “I’m okay. Just cold and tired.” Gary’s gaze lingered on him for a moment, eyebrows drawn together with concern. “You work hard, don’t push yourself too much.” “Of course,” Tracey said. Teasingly, he added, “You sound like your grandpa.” “Well, he’s right,” Gary replied. “Take breaks when you need ‘em, things will go faster now that I’m here.”

Choking On Love

With Tracey out of the room, Gary opened his fist and looked at what he’d coughed up. A flower, deep blue and bell-shaped—or at least , it looked like it had been before he’d crushed it. This was too weird. He needed an answer. With a resigned sigh, he opened an incognito browser tab and typed in a search for coughing up flowers. The search results loaded, and he took the deepest breath he could muster and looked. Hanahaki disease: the health condition where the victim coughs up flower petals Well, that checked out. He clicked the link. Oh. Oh no. Gary could handle a lot of things. He was Gary Oak, the brave and confident trainer-turned-researcher, competitor in two leagues, one of the rare few to see Mew in person and to earn praise from Professor Rowan. What he could not handle was what the flowers in his chest were apparently intent on making him do—confronting his feelings, and risking one of the closest friendships he’d ever had. He closed the tab and looked at the crushed flower in his hand. He couldn’t let his friendship with Tracey be destroyed like that. He couldn’t risk Tracey feeling pressured into being with him because he was Professor Oak’s grandson, or being uncomfortable enough with the situation to just leave. Tracey was smart, hardworking, and dedicated—he could easily find work elsewhere, and anyone he worked with would be lucky to have him. The thought added to the ever-present ache in Gary’s chest.

Period Piece

As tempting as it was to linger in the shower, the warm water soothing his aches, Professor Oak would need him. And he would need breakfast. So he stepped out, toweled himself off, and got dressed. A wave of dizziness crashed over him and he braced himself against the sink, closing his eyes and waiting for it to pass. He’d feel better once he could eat and get some fresh air, he told himself. At least, he hoped he would. Once he didn’t feel so lightheaded, he let go of the sink and stepped out. Marill was waiting at the door. He hopped into Tracey’s arms and Tracey caught him, relieved to feel his warmth. Marill always wanted to be close to him on these days. They headed downstairs. The smell of breakfast was wafting from the kitchen and, even as he felt a pang of guilt because he usually offered to cook, his mouth watered. He found Professor Oak at the stove. The professor was focused on the task at hand, and didn’t seem to notice Tracey’s presence. “Morning, Professor.” That got his attention. He looked over at Tracey and smiled. “Good morning, Tracey. Did you sleep well?” “Just fine,” Tracey answered. “D’you want any help?” “No need,” Professor Oak said warmly. “It’s just about ready. I’m glad you came down when you did, though. I was about to go check on you.” “I’m okay, no need to worry,” Tracey assured him. “Just… one of those days.” The professor gave an understanding nod. “Maybe you’ll feel better once you’ve eaten. But don’t hesitate to tell me if you need to lie down—I’d rather handle things than have you work yourself sick.”

Heal Bell

Umbreon was snapped out of his daze by the sound of his trainer in pain—a lot of pain. A moment later, he realized with horror that he’d caused it. Gary was trembling in front of him, shrinking away as if afraid of him. He nosed his trainer worriedly and licked their hand, trying to apologize. Gary hardly seemed to notice. Their eyes were unfocused, a haze of pain and fear. Gary struggled to their feet. “Umbreon, r-return.” Umbreon whimpered in protest when Gary shakily held out his poké ball, wanting to comfort and protect his wounded trainer, but accepted being recalled. He’d done the unthinkable. He’d really, seriously hurt his trainer. Gary probably wouldn’t want him out right now. He could only hope Gary would be okay.

this peppermint winter (is so sugar-sweet)

The park was, of course, beautiful. It was blanketed with fresh snow, snowflakes still gently drifting down. One landed on Gary’s nose and made him sneeze. Tracey gave him a soft, adoring look. Gary was thrilled to see Tracey having a good time. Winter was hard on him, being from the tropics, but he deserved to enjoy it. Gary wanted to show him everything fun and beautiful about it—they’d have to work their way up to snowboarding and ice skating, but for now, a walk in the park with a warm drink in hand was something. Gary finished his coffee and tossed the cup into the nearest trash can. There’d be plenty more coffee cups with doodlebug written on them. Tracey did the same soon after. Gary waited for him, watching a few spearow peck at the ground near a tree. Something cold struck Gary’s back and he jumped, letting out a startled yelp. He turned around and saw only Tracey catching up with him, whistling innocently. “Tracey?” Gary looked at him incredulously. “Did you just throw a snowball at me?” “Who, me?” Tracey was playing up the innocent act now. There was a glint of mischief in his coffee-dark eyes. Gary grinned. “Here I thought I was gonna have to talk you into a snowball fight. How much do you care about your car’s interior getting wet?” “I go to the beach with Marill almost every time I get a day off in the summer,” Tracey said. “So… not a lot. Why?” “Oh, no reason…” Gary knelt down to pick up some snow, deftly rolling it into a ball. Tracey bolted.

I Love You More

Tracey was quiet, sipping his green tea. Gary took a hand off the steering wheel to rest on Tracey’s thigh. He gave it a squeeze and Tracey playfully swatted his hand away. “Both hands on the wheel, love.” Gary feigned sulking, but then Tracey gave him that soft, gentle smile that melted his heart every time, and he couldn’t even pretend to be annoyed. The drive continued in comfortable quiet, the pokémon snoring softly. Then Tracey made a small noise. Gary looked over at him. He’d gone pale. “You okay?” Tracey nodded, then shook his head. “I’ll be okay, just—” he put a hand over his mouth “—can you pull over?” Gary did exactly that, opening the car door and rushing to the other side to let Tracey out. Tracey dropped onto the grass and Gary knelt beside him. He rubbed Tracey’s back. “Easy there, just breathe. You don’t usually get carsick even with my driving, what’s up?” “It’s nothing, I just—erp—need some air.” He dry-heaved, taking a deep and ragged breath. “I’ll be good to go in a minute.” “Hey, easy, easy,” Gary soothed. “You’re sick. The only place we’re going is the pharmacy.” “But we’ve got that dig,” Tracey said, giving Gary a miserable look. “Adventure, digging for fossils, seeing Professor Hale… you love that stuff.” “Sure I do,” Gary said. “But I love you more.”

Drunk On You (And Also Alcohol)

“Bye, guys!” Gary said cheerfully. “I’m goin’ home with this hot piece of ass!” “Gary, please,” Tracey said, mortified. With a wave, he led Gary out. Gary tripped on the way out the door, yelping loudly, and Tracey swiftly caught him. “Easy, I’ve got you.” Maybe Tracey should’ve driven there—walking home with Gary like this was going to be difficult. At least maybe the fresh air would do him some good. Gary stumbled ahead excitedly to look up at the night sky, promptly losing his balance and falling flat onto his back like a piplup. “Gary!” Tracey rushed to kneel at his side. “Are you okay?” “The moon’s so pretty, lookit.” Tracey looked up. Gary was right—clear nights in Pallet Town were always beautiful, especially when the moon was as full and bright as it was now. “Yeah, it is.” Then he looked down at Gary, flushed and smiling with dark green eyes full of stars, and couldn’t help thinking that his boyfriend’s beauty very nearly put the night sky to shame. “Y’know what else is pretty?” Gary asked. “You are,” Tracey replied affectionately. “Yeah, but I was talkin’ ‘bout you.” He reached up and poked Tracey’s chest for emphasis.

I'll Be There

Decades of parenting, first his son and then his grandson, had conditioned Sam to be a light sleeper—having an ear out for his sapling getting into trouble or simply needing him. He was thankful for it once again when he was woken by Marill squeaking urgently. He didn’t have to ask. He got out of bed and rushed for Tracey’s bedroom, Marill’s little voice urging him along. Tracey was curled into himself, whimpering. His bedding was bunched up at his feet like he’d pushed it off in feverish desperation. Samuel rushed to his side. “Tracey! I’m here, my boy.” Tracey’s jaw stayed clenched, but he opened his eyes. “Professor…” “I’m here, I’m here,” Samuel soothed as he stroked Tracey’s back. He was burning with fever. He let out another whimper. “Hurts… so much… help…” Sam’s heart broke at the sound of Tracey’s voice, tight with pain and desperation, but he willed himself to stay calm. He couldn’t comfort Tracey if he gave into his own emotions. “You’ll be okay,” he soothed. “Can I get you something for the pain?” Tracey grabbed Sam’s hand. “Please don’t leave.” He was delirious with pain and fever, and he was scared. Sam couldn’t leave him like that. He gathered Tracey up in his arms and held on. “I’m here, I’ve got you. Just breathe, deep breaths, can you do that?”

Worried Sick

It wasn’t hard to recognize what Gary’s choked profanity and sudden sprint for the bathroom meant. Gary liked to affectionately tease Tracey about having too sensitive a stomach for coffee or spicy food, and Tracey didn’t mind, but those were pretty bold words from a serial stress vomiter. He looked around for Gary’s poké balls—if there was ever a time Gary needed his service pokémon, it was now—and headed to the bathroom door. He knocked three times in quick succession, a wordless I love you, then announced, “Coming in!” Gary was wrapped around the toilet and retching painfully, and Tracey winced in sympathy. He went to Gary’s side and rubbed his boyfriend’s back. “That’s it, moonbeam. Get it out.” The retching soon gave way to dry-heaving, and then he slumped against Tracey with a groan. “I feel so gross, Trace.” “I know.” Tracey wrapped an arm around him and stroked his smooth stomach, feeling him flinch in surprise before relaxing. “Want an antacid? Even if it won’t help with the nerves, it might make you feel a little better.” Gary nodded. “Anything to keep from puking in front of a bunch of people.” “You’re still doing the battle?” Tracey gave him a concerned look. “You know being sick is the perfect reason to not do something you don’t want to do. You’ve used it before.” “Yeah, I know. I want to do this.” Gary met his gaze, unmistakable resolve in his viridian eyes. “It’s a matter of pride now. I owe it to my pokémon to try.”

Goodknight, Sweet Prince

He stumbled and found himself in his prince’s arms. As he met those big brown eyes, wide with surprise and concern, heat rose to his face like it had been set ablaze. “Gary? Are you okay?” “I’m fine,” Gary said, pulling back. “I might be hurt worse than I thought, but I can last long enough to get you home.” Tracey frowned, almost looking hurt. Then he put a hand on Gary’s forehead. “You’re hot!” “Took you long enough to notice,” Gary joked. Tracey blushed at that, then shook his head. “No, I mean you’re burning up! How long have you had a fever?” Gary put his hands up appeasingly. “I didn’t even realize I had one until now.” “What?” Tracey sounded utterly incredulous. Gary had never heard him so wound up. All Gary could do was shrug in response. “I’m a knight, pain tolerance kind of comes with the territory.” The movement did make his shoulder hurt, though. Tracey gave him an odd look, a mix of concern and fond exasperation. He took off the cloak, draping it gently over Gary’s shoulders, then reached for Gary’s hand. “Lean on me if you need to.” Gary knew he shouldn’t do that, knew he should pull away and continue following from three paces behind. But Tracey looked at him pleadingly and he had to relent. But he didn’t lean on Tracey. He carried himself with all the strength and dignity he could muster, head held high. He could endure it.

I'd like to make myself believe (please take me away from here)

Before he could think too much about how he was a traitor to WindClan, he saw warm amber eyes glowing in the darkness. Leafpool nuzzled him in greeting and he rested his chin on her head with a purr. Crowfeather could’ve stayed the way they were now forever, but Leafpool looked up at him with worry in her eyes. “Cinderpelt was asleep when I snuck out, but she might come looking for me if she wakes up and… I doubt she would approve of me seeing you.” Crowfeather gave her a mischievous look in return. “I suppose we’ll have to go somewhere she won’t look, then.” Leafpool’s ears pricked and she brightened as she returned the look. “I suppose we will. Not WindClan, though—we can’t have a late night patrol catching us.” Leafpool was right—as a medic, she might’ve been less restrained by borders, but Crowfeather’s clanmates already distrusted him for his connection with the other cats on the sun-drown patrol. Part of him wanted to question what the point was, why bother trying to earn his clanmates’ trust if they were so willing to turn on him for following the will of StarClan and his own heart, but he couldn’t bring himself to voice the thought. Those were the cats he’d known all his life, who had raised him, who had trained and hunted and lived alongside him for moons. Yet part of him wondered if Leafpool’s clan, Leafpool’s kin, would ever accept him. Everyone knew her father had been born a kittypet—Firestar wasn’t the type of cat who would turn away an outsider looking for a place to belong. Crowfeather shook his head to dismiss those thoughts. “Outside clan territory, then.”

November

Black Tie Affection

Gary wove his way expertly through groups of people, exchanging cheerful greetings and playful boasts about their latest accomplishments. There were a few instances of Gary proudly lifting Tracey’s hand and announcing, “I’m dating this guy!” that might’ve had something to do with the number of times their wine glasses had been refilled. Eventually, somebody took the glass out of Gary’s hand with a winking reminder of a “Lumiose incident” that made Gary blush. Tracey looked at him curiously. “What happened in Lumiose?” Gary looked away. “I don’t want to talk about it.” Tracey shrugged. He might’ve been curious, but he felt too pleasantly warm and relaxed to dwell on it. He and Gary had been getting closer to the dance floor, and Tracey handed his empty glass off to a passing server with a quick thank-you. Gary held out a hand. “May I have this dance?” Tracey accepted it. “Always.” They stepped onto the dance floor and fell into step. Tracey let Gary lead, resting his free hand on Gary’s back and following his movements easily. Gary had taught him how to dance some time ago, but he wasn’t quite as confident with leading. That was fine—Gary was willing to take the lead, and Tracey was content to let him. Gary led Tracey into a spin and then dipped him gracefully, the two of them nose to nose. That was often when Gary would take the opportunity to kiss Tracey, but this time Tracey moved his head to close the distance instead.

#writing year in review #andrew writes

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author-a-holmes · 4 months

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Preface

This year was a year where I learnt a lot about myself. As many of you know, I released my debut novel, Changeling, in March. This was a literal dream come true for me, and I spent the majority of January, February and the first half of March editing the final files, and organizing the release.

All while trying to continue writing Darkling.

And then I burnt out. Hard. I wouldn't call it a mistake, I've learnt a lot about myself and the publishing process, and what my limits are, but it took me quite a bit longer than I'd have liked to recover from that burnout, and so my stats for this year, once I take a look at this, probably aren't going to be a steady as I'd like.

And what I mean by that is there were several periods where I tried to push forward, but had to let it go and continue just recuperating.

It's only been in the tail end of 2023 I've begun writing semi-regularly again, but I digress. Let's dig into some statistics for 2023...

Projects Worked On

Darkling 77,136 words (This year! Total manuscript is almost 100k right now) - Bonus Scene; 1,109

Flash Fiction Pieces 1,264 words over 4 pieces of flash fiction

Fanfiction 825 words over 2 pieces of fanfiction Fandoms: @night-market-if's The Night Market Interactive Fiction

Total Words Written in 2023: 82,415 Total Time Spent Writing in 2023: 71 hours 40 minutes

First Quarter - January-February-March

Words: 19,428 Time Writing: 19 hours 30 minutes Time Editing: 11 hours 20 minutes

This period I was hyper-focussed on getting ARC's of Changeling out to readers, finalising formatting, particularly for the Hardcover, reviewing proof copies, setting up all the various sales channels, and most of the time I logged in January was Editing Time as I needed to review the notes left my by Editor before release.

Once the editing was finalised, I tried catching up with Darkling in between everything else and this is where I really began struggling. I'd thrown myself into my self-edits in December of 2022, and in hindsight I really needed a break but, with a deadline approaching, I just couldn't take one.

Second Quarter - April-May-June

Words: 5,224 Time Writing: 2 hours 20 minutes

April and May I wrote absolutely nothing. Not a single word. And while I never announced it publically, June was supposed to be the original release date for Darkling.

Which meant I had to cancel my editor slot, and re-evaluate where I stood on what I could reasonably accomplish. This is really where I began to recognise how hard I'd pushed myself into a burnout.

After writing nothing for two months, June was where I tried to do a complete reset, and start from scratch building up my daily wordcount and, well. I just wasn't ready yet. I managed 2 days in June, on the 3rd and 4th, and then crashed back into writing nothing.

Third Quarter - July-August-September

Words: 1,346 Time Writing: 1 hour 20 minutes

After crashing in my reset attempt in June, I knew I had to just ride the burnout to it's end. Pushing was only going to make it last longer. I also knew I had a long-awaited holiday set in September. It was my first holiday in about 15 years, so I decided to not set any goals for this quarter. If the mood to write struck me, I'd go with it, but otherwise I was concentrating on reading, on preparing for my holiday, and on outlining other ideas, worldbuilding, and anything to do with my books that wasn't actually putting new words down on the page.

One of those things was figuring out a bonus scene to give away for Darkling Preorders, and I did try working on that a little in August. That's where most of my words for this quarter landed, but most of my time was spent outlining.

And the thing is, the holiday actually really helped. Where I went on holiday happened to be a very similar landscape/enviroment to one of the location in Darkling, and I found around the middle of the holiday I was handwriting in a notebook. I'd not done that in a long time.

Fourth Quarter - October-November-December

October Words: 2,439 Time Writing: 2 hours 45 minutes

November Words: 51,841 Time Writing: 43 hours 45 minutes

December Words: 2,273 Time Writing: 1hour 40 minutes

I came back from my holiday re-energised and knew I wanted to dive straight back into Darkling while still riding that high. I spent some time writing in October, before I hit a few snags and realised I needed to get a birds eye view on the plot.

So I stepped back from writing again to rehash my outline. I now have a timeline of events stuck to the large cupboard in my living room, but it set me up for success in November's Nanowrimo.

My original goal for Nano was 75k, which would have completed the Darkling Manuscript, but November Nano's are always hard, and I've only just pulled myself out of a 6-month burnout, so I had no intention of pushing myself too hard. I did win Nano, but with 51k and change.

Which left me just December to finish the final 20-25k. I'm always a little slower in December. A reaction to a fast Nanowrimo/November, combined with family and holiday seasonal stuff pulling at my time, so I didn't get as much done as I'd have liked, before Christmas prep took up all my free time. I did still managed a few thousand words though, so I was happy enough with that considering how the rest of 2023 had gone.

Goals for 2024

I try and keep my goals vague and loose, because I know I can't always commit to things, especially long term, but in general I'm just going to try and make self care a priority this year, while still making progress and moving forward with my writing.

Make my health a priority

Pace my writing and editing time to avoid burnout

Publish Darkling

Complete the Fey Touched manuscript

Send out my newsletter regularly

Books Read in 2023

I do consider the books I read part of my process. Something to refill the creative well, so here's a list of books I've read over the course of the year too...

Lux by Rae Else (My Review of 'Lux') .

Shut Up and Write The Book by Jenna Moreci (My Review of 'Shut Up & Write The Book') .

Fernweh Saga Book One (Interactive Fiction) (My Review of 'Fernweh Saga Book #1' on Steam) .

A Rival Most Vial by R.K. Ashwick (My Review of 'A Rival Most Vial') .

Changeling by Arista Holmes (Yes, I did reread my own book!) (Goodreads Reviews of Changeling; 4.58 Stars) .

The Enchantment Emporium by Tanya Huff (Tradpub) .

The Night Market Book One by Zinnia Demitasse (Interactive Fiction) (My Review of 'The Night Market Book #1' on Steam) .

Wrath and Wraiths, Chronicles of the Dawnblade Book Four by Andrew Claydon (My Review of 'Wrath and Wraiths') .

The Signature Move by Cassandra Diviak (My Review of 'The Signature Move') .

City of Souls by Mel Harding-Shaw (Reread!) (My Review of City of Souls) .

Shards of Stasis by Mel Harding-Shaw .

Shrine of Stars by Mel Hardin-Shaw . And my current read it;

The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski (Tradpub)

#2023 #2024 #January 2024 #Writer #Writer Community #Writing #Writing Community #Writeblr #Writeblr Community #Year In Review #Writing Year In Review #My Writing Year In Review #Ari Speaks #Arista Speaks

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feeisamarshmallow · 4 months

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✨ 2023 Writing Year In Review ✨

Dug up this format from last year because I love doing this every year.

1. Number of stories posted to AO3: 7 new fics, 1 updated fic, 1 playlist, and 1 updated collection of meta.

2. Word count posted for the year: 50,705, but that’s including the word count for my entire meta collection, which was actually written over almost 10 years. So more accurately it’s around 30,000.

3. Fandoms I wrote for: Brooklyn Nine Nine, Veronica Mars, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

4. Pairings: Most of the stuff I wrote is very genfic, but my b99 fic everything’s changed explore Jake Peralta’s relationships with the whole squad and focuses particularly on his relationship with his daughter, my OC Willa Peralta. I also wrote fics focusing on Charlie Kelly & Mac McDonald, Charlie Kelly & Dennis Reynolds, and a little bit of Charlie Kelly & Dee Reynolds. Oh and I wrote some Mac McDonald/Dennis Reynolds in my boyband episode fic!

5. Story with the most:

Kudos: into your lungs (the things you don’t trust) (B99) – 73 Kudos

Bookmarks: everything’s changed (but I feel the same inside) (B99) – 20 bookmarks

Comments: everything’s changed (but I feel the same inside) (B99) – 11 comment threads

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why):

I’m most proud of everything’s changed (but I feel the same inside). It’s the longest fic I wrote this year, but it’s also by far the broadest in scope. I’m proud of the way I handled the growth of Jake throughout the years. The structure of telling a story through vignettes over a long period of time is one I’ve used lots when writing b99 fic, and I feel like this fic is really the culmination of me honing this style. Although I may go back and write more b99 fic, this fic also feels like a farewell in many ways. It deals with Jake (and tangentially all the characters) moving on from the 99, and I’m really proud of the story I constructed for them all.

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why):

Out of My Depth (at a Public Beach). I like this fic, but I don’t love it. I feel like I didn’t totally get at what I wanted to about Dennis’ character. I like, but don’t love, the ‘waves’ metaphor. I wish I had more of a through-line of plot woven throughout the character study. But I still stand by all the character analysis in this piece, and it does have my favourite title from this year.

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received:

I got a lot of really lovely reviews on everything’s changed. I especially cherished the ones who told me they related to my fic in some way. A few people told me they saw their own experiences of having ADHD in my portrayal of Jake’s experiences. Those are about the most gratifying comments you can get. (I also always have to shout-out @impossiblyizzy, who always leaves really lovely comments).

I also got a comment from @musiclover2732 on Not Worth It, after he had listened to a song I said reminded me of the fic (Song in E by Julien Baker, particularly the line I wish you’d hurt me / it’s the mercy I can’t take). I was just so touched that not only did he go listen to the song I recommended, but also then read my fic AND commented about all of it. The best <3

9. A time when writing was really, really hard:

I’m so much busier nowadays! It’s much harder to find time to write in general. It just means that fics come a bit slower than they used to. And I’m not sure when I’ll write my next longfic. I do want to tackle something longer, but maybe not next year either.

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you:

I didn’t know I was going to get into Always Sunny this year, so writing my four IASIP fics was a surprise! Although I did know that I was gonna write angsty fanfic once I started watching the show. It just has all the things I love (sitcom that is funny on the surface but super angsty if you take it seriously). And then my first Always Sunny fic has some CharDee subtext to it, which was even more surprising because that’s not one of the ships I tend to be drawn to (although I am super multi-ship about this show).

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

From everything’s changed (but I feel the same inside). Spoiler warning this is the end scene:

"I've read your books, you know. I'll be excited to be able to own them in hard copy." It takes him a minute to properly process her words. Janine isn't here to see Willa. She's here for him. "You….I…I don't know what to say." "You don't have to say anything." "You're the reason…when you were so kind to Willa in second grade and then so kind to me when I came in for the parent teacher conference…you stopped me to talk after…I had quit the NYPD and I didn't know what I was doing and I…that was kinda the beginning of my writing…and I do have ADHD. And a MFA. Lots of letters now! But what I'm trying to say—" "Jake, you don't have to explain it all to me." She cuts off his rambling. "Let's just go in. Willa said there would be cake." Usually, it would drive Jake crazy not to be able to explain himself to someone. But Janine Baker seems to have a knack for just understanding. So instead he just holds the door open and follows her down the hall of the centre towards the multipurpose room. The community centre floor has been painted to look like a garden pathway, so that as they walk down the hall, they follow a painted cobblestone path with colourful flowers sprouting along the edges. It all reminds Jake of something that he thought years ago, back when the kids were young, before he was a writer, when he was first researching about ADHD. He had thought that maybe there was another path. At the time, it was a hypothetical thought, an imagining of a future that could have been, but wasn't. It wasn't hypothetical anymore. There were no maybes. There was a new path. And it had led him to publishing a novel, to finishing his college degree, to getting an ADHD diagnosis. It had led him to spinning legendary stories for Mac and Willa that they still reminisced about today, as adults. It had led him to discovering a love of the library. It had led him to learning more about himself. And this path was only one of many. If Jake Peralta, ex-cop and college dropout, could become Jake Peralta, MFA and published author, what other iterations of himself did he contain, all wrapped up in one another, waiting to be discovered?

From I’m Just Like You (A Little Messed Up and Blue). TW: brief mentions of childhood sexual assault:

“Well maybe…” Mac starts and then trails off. Maybe you’re all messed up because you were molested as a child seems too mean to say. “Maybe it’s because of like my childhood or whatever?” “Yeah,” Mac says softly. “Maybe,” Charlie says. He’s sounded near tears this whole conversation, but now they start flowing down his cheeks. Every one of Mac’s instincts is telling him to find something to get Charlie to stop crying. Charlie crying is one step away from Charlie flying out of control. Charlie crying means it’s easier for the schoolyard bullies to shove him into a locker or steal his prized new comic book or kick him in the stomach. He wishes he could reach out and hug Charlie. Tell him it’s okay and he’ll find the perfect girl one day. But those are words and gestures for normal people, not for the two of them. Not for two forty-year old men with a failing bar and not a single successful relationship between the two of them. Instead he says, “Maybe it’s just the way you are.” He hopes it sounds comforting, and not like he thinks there’s something wrong with Charlie. Because, honestly, there are a lot of things wrong with Charlie. And not just the molestation. Or the alcoholism. Charlie’s…not like most people. Charlie sniffs and wipes his face. “Yeah,” he says. But he sounds a bit calmer. Mac feels the tension in his chest lessen a bit too. “There’s nothing wrong with being who you are, you know,” he says again. The words feel wooden in his mouth. Like he doesn’t really believe them, and maybe he doesn’t. Like maybe, even though God’s love is unconditional and He doesn’t make mistakes, He made a mistake when He made Mac gay. “I’m glad you’re gay now,” Charlie says all of a sudden, completely sincerely. It catches Mac off-guard. Charlie is so oblivious most of the time, but right now it’s like he’s seeing right through Mac’s bulging muscles and black cut-off tee and right into his soul.

12. How did you grow as a writer this year:

Last year I felt like I grew a lot. This year I feel like my growth was less noticeable, but still there. I think I continued to work on how to tackle themes in a fic with subtlety. How to write around an idea. How to take a theme and just leave it there for the reader to find instead of leading them right to it. I’m still working on it. I can be a bit on-the-nose as a writer (and part of that is just my style!), but I’m going to continue on working to refine my writing.

13. How do you hope to grow next year:

I still want to work on editing more. I still haven’t really done that. I hope I can tackle something a bit longer for Always Sunny next year. Otherwise, I want to just keep writing and reading and letting the experience of doing it help me grow as it always does.

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

@impossiblyizzy as always, my sometimes-beta and always-friend <3

Also everyone I’ve met through Always Sunny in the latter half of this year who have commented on my fics or interacted with me here on tumblr, you all know who you are <3

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year:

Always. I can’t not write myself into my fics. I wrote about asexuality for the first time (shocking it’s taken this long) in Hey I’m Just Like You, because I have such a strong conviction in my ace!Charlie headcanon. There’s a lot of me in that fic.

Also, and this might be a little too revealing, but there’s a fair bit of me in the two Dennis fics I wrote. (Always a humbling experience to see yourself in Dennis Reynolds).

Finally, I think I was so drawn to writing everything’s changed because the themes of growing up and moving on and finding new routines and hobbies and interests. I think I was (and am) in a place of moving onto the next ‘stage’ of life, so-to-speak, and so even though I am much younger than Jake in that fic, the themes resonated a lot. (I’ve also spent a fair bit of this year reflecting on how my own brain works and how that impacts me, and that’s also a big theme in this fic with Jake figuring out he has ADHD and reflecting on his experiences).

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

Above all, writing should be fun! This is a hobby for us, and it should bring you joy! Write the same tropes over and over (just look at how many hurt/comfort elements are in the fics I wrote this year). Write short fics. Write obscure fics. Write non-shippy fics. Write whatever you want. The audience will find it, and even if they don’t, you’ll enjoy the process of creating it.

Also, don’t get sucked into any fandom drama. (And yes commenting as an outsider on said fandom drama is part of getting sucked in). It’s never worth it in my books.

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

I’ve been tossing around the idea of an Always Sunny fic I’ve been called The Gang Gets Better, which would be a look at what it would take for each of the characters to grow, learn, and/or heal. I think I would maybe do a different (hypothetical?) scenario for each character. But it’ll be a lot of work, I think, to do it justice. So we’ll see if I get to it. I may have to take many liberties with how social services and systems work in Pennsylvania if I don’t want to end up down a months-long research rabbit hole.

I’d also love to get around to writing another chapter of Under a Blood Red Sky this coming year.

And I still have a 1D hockey AU kicking around (and now plotted!), so maybe that will see some light this year?

Or who knows? I always tend to surprise myself with what I end up writing!

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

Tagging anyone who would like to do this!

(@quelsentiment you tagged me in this last year, do you wanna do it again this year?)

#writing year in review #my writing

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hitlikehammers · 4 months

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✨ Fic Writing Review 2023 ✨

coming in under the wire like WOOOOOW—

tagged by the lovely @hbyrde36, let's give this a slapdash go:

Words and Fics

388,905 words published on ao3 (wtf you guys, that's more in a year than I have written in WAY too many years at this game)

30 total works published

5 multi-chapter fics -completed

2 multi-chapter fics - wip's

23 one-shots

Top 5 Fics by Kudos

with no cross to bear (these words just come out)

je ne regrette rien

(not your average) Fireworks Display

Between The Lines

struck your name from the camouflage (we were imploding the mirage)

My fandom fic events in 2023

@steveharringtonbingo (blackout!)

@eddiemunsonbingo (blackout!)

@thefreakandthehair's Spicy Six Summer Challenge (complete)

@steddiebang (in progress)

@strangerthingsreversebigbang (in progress)

@steddieholidayexchange (complete)

Upcoming Events and Projects for 2024

@strangerthingsreversebigbang

Rewriting the casualties of my Big Bang at the hands of Google

Unhinged Companion/Sequel to je ne regrette rien

Finishing remaining giftfics that got too long and should just be restarted as the gifts with the loooong things set aside for another day

Hopefully finishing the 1-2 WIPs that remain incomplete

Rules + Tags Under The Cut—

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass but don’t feel like you have to do this either.

Tags: I feel like most people have been tagged particularly as I'm doing this with MINUTES to spare before midnight in my timezone so: please ANYONE and EVERYONE who wants to participate, before or after the new year, feel so welcome to do so and consider yourselves all tagged with enthusiasm!

#writing year in review #steddie fanfic #stranger things #st fanfic #steddie #steve harrington/eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson #ao3 #fanfic #steve x eddie #steddie fic #tag games #writing

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minim236 · 4 months

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Fic Writing Year in Review

Tagged by the lovely @penny-loaf!!

Your proudest accomplishment (that one scene; finally finishing that one fic; posting your first fic; etc):

Oh, I think perhaps other people can decide that - like tell me their favourite fic that I posted because I'm terribly self critical!

A Comment that Touched You:

All of the comments I receive really touch me - anyone who comments I adore. @phantomphaeton always leaves me a wonderfully annotated comment 🥺

A Line of Writing You’re Proud Of

A girl with no father or brothers who had run from an altar had claws.

Something that Inspired Your Writing

Feminine rage and love!

Do You Have Any Writing Goals for Next Year?

Getting better at settings, third person and longer chapters!

Tagging @phantomphaeton, @waterlilyrose, @lavellenchanted and @hysteries

#writing year in review #tag game #ask game

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kinomiakai · 4 months

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I spent some time reflecting on this past year of writing, so here's the breakdown and a bunch of my thoughts, haha. It's been a really busy year!! You can tell where my life got a little more chaotic, in both good and bad ways - I had to skip some pieces of some months, but I did all I could to anticipate or make up for those pieces as they came. I did some more rambling about my thoughts on the things I wrote (and there's links to everything there, too) -I'll put that under a read more, because it got pretty long. Regardless, I just want to say that if you've read anything of mine this year, thank you. A big, big thank you.

The big WIPs:

The Forest (original) - 49,200 words - Okay I'm just linking to my big list of writing so you can read the summaries without patreon telling you to go away, but this is my original fic featuring Braith, Fern, Fae & Lola, a human, an elf, a fairy and another human. It's wlw & mlm and it's full of warm and colourful things and maybe some healing trauma because let's face it. What else do I write. Full word count is currently at 161,688 so far!

Two is a Crowd (sns fanfic) - 53,965 - my big canonverse introspective healing trauma fun times fiasco. Full word count is currently at 91,209 so far and yes. Yes it is slow burn.

The One-offs:

Winter (Fake)ation (original) - 9,635 words - I'm linking to the list of fics again but it's just under The Forest. This one is nsfw & fun & involves an exhausted & overworked Felix being taken on the closest thing to a vacation he can go by his very sweet best friend. She builds a beach in his room. It doesn't work. They go out. They meet Arlo. It's all mlm from there!

Irreversible (sns fanfic) - 2,136 words - I wrote this one for the my one, my only zine and it was really fun!! I haven't been in a lot of zines so it felt like a really big moment for me :)

SNS Month: 38,383 words - I'm linking to the collection here! It has all of them.

tied up and fallen loose - 2505 words - did you expect me to pick the bondage prompt? I didn't, but here it was! nsfw, obviously. the heat after battle - 2,177 words - who said all my fantasy writing has to have 10k words of worldbuilding backstory before we get to the good stuff. who said that. Nsfw!!

Fear. - 4,841 words - Sasuke always has to go through it, poor guy. like he hasn't been psychologically messed with enough. (I still think this was one of my favourites but I think it's because I like exploring and messing with conciousness vs. subconciousness) keeping busy - 4,483 words - Sasuke's gone & Naruto needs a million things to get his mind off of that.

Meet Your Match! - 7,010 words - a modern au, roommate au, collage au!!! It feels like it's been so long! with a fun little Valentines twist.

beds and lack thereof - 3,542 words - Naruto decides they're living together and Sasuke cannot figure out what the hell that means or if the idiot even knows what he's doing or why

how not to fix your sleep schedule - 3,739 words - a cute little imagining of the boys' life on a cabin by the ocean.

I’ve been gone a week. - 2,147 words - letters!! fun letters back & forth between the boys that ask you to picture what happened in between them :) this was a fun writing challenge. to possess; to have; as belonging to one - 2,514 words - this one was fun. Sasuke's back & he isn't going to let Naruto dodge questions anymore.

in nightmare and in health - 5,425 words - another soulmate AU, a bit more sad though! Cathartic, maybe?? It's a sort of reincarnation AU & does involve description of major character death in a past life.

Aaaand that brings our total word count to: 153,319! Which is a lot more than I expected, if I'm honest. It really felt like a scramble to find the time at a lot of points of this year. But I'm relieved to see I still managed to write quite a lot. A few years back I would never think about hitting these kinds of numbers, haha. I don't want to take that for granted, so I'll ride it out as long as it lasts.

If you've read this much, you are so sweet, thank you for indulging me :) I appreciate you. I hope the new year treats you well, and I'll keep writing to try to be part of that for as long as I can.

#writing year in review #textpost #longpost #kinomitalks #fic year in review #year in review #2023 writing summary #mywriting

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monicawoe · 1 year

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2022: Writing Year in Review

In 2022, I wrote just over 260k words. For the second year in a row my original writing outweighed my fic writing in terms of wordcount.

Fic-wise it was another multi-fandom year for me. I wrote 5 fics total spanning 4 fandoms. The brand new ones for me this year included Our Flag Means Death and What We Do in the Shadows (movie).

All but one of these fics were written for fic events, one of which was a pinch hit and also ended up being my favorite fic I wrote this year:

NYC Health Code, Article 161.19 (Venom/MCU crossover): Sam, Bucky and Steve's movie night is interrupted by a nearby, terrifying alien attack. But when they go to investigate, the alien seems to be not so much attacking as...arguing with the landlord. And what's with the chickens?

My other fics from this year, grouped by fandom, under the cut:

Our Flag Means Death

The (After) Life of Stede Bonnet: Stede finds his way back to the Revenge. That’s the easy part. The hard part is apologizing to Ed.

A Gentleman Vampire: (OFMD/WWDITS crossover) Viago hitches a ride with the Revenge and finds the crew utterly delightful.

All You Need Is Love ( But a Little Chocolate Now and Then Doesn’t Hurt): It's Eddie and Venom's first Valentine's Day after being separated and Eddie thinks it's high time they celebrated properly.

and one more Symbrock fic which is still anonymous and is part of the Venom Holiday Exchange!

#venom #ofmd #wwdits #mcu #writing year in review

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jrow · 1 year

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Fic year in review

@calaisreno and @raina-at both tagged me (and Raina said some really nice stuff!) so I figure, why not do this? For the record, I’ve stolen Raina’s format ;):

I am pretty happy with my fic output this year. It’s been a busy, stressful one in the non-digital world, and I was very glad to have fandom to unwind in. Things are getting busier and far more stressful in my offline life (work, volunteering I’ve started, young kids, stuff) but keeping some time aside to write/edit is pretty important for my mental health. Sometimes it’s just a couple hundred words a week (with millions of imagined words in my mind) or betaing a few pages, but it’s still very needed.

Total number of completed stories: 5

Total word count: about 110k published, but I know I wrote about 20k of that in 2021. Plus there is probably 10k or so words in WIPs (that may or may not see the light of day)

Fandoms written in: BBC Sherlock

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d expected?: Probably about what I expected. If I had put money on it, I would have said 100k. I’d make the same guess for 2023...

What’s your own favorite story of the year? Depends on the day....potentially Jam, because I’m pretty proud of the epilogue. But I suspect that The Man in the Cartier Frames is the one I’ll reread the most.

Did you take any writing risks this year?: I participated in FTH which was a little nerve-wracking, but it turned out really! I am not sure I would have overcome writer’s block if I didn’t have those pieces to work on. I like a bit of pressure sometimes. In terms of writing, I took fewer risks than I would have liked, but the alternating perspective in Jam certainly felt like a risk.

I also started beta’ing this year, which was a bit of a risk, I suppose. It also worked out really well though. It’s something I think I’m good at. It’s also easy when you are beta’ing for people whose stories you really, really like! And for the record, a co-worker of mine suggested earlier this year that I make an easy shortcut for em-dashes (I use them a lot in my work) and it’s honestly changed my life. It’s why I’m so quick to insert/correct them when beta’ing now! I do love an em-dash.

Do you have any fanfic or profic goals for the new year?: Post at least a part of an AU. So far, all of my posted works have been basically in canon. I have a handful of AUs sketched out or, in two cases, partly written. But, I have a lot more trouble sticking with them. I think it’s the world-building aspect (something both @calaisreno and @raina-at are amazing at!) and fear that what I develop won’t read true. I do a ton of research for all my fics, regardless of when/where they take place (I like to be accurate when I can), but world building is a step beyond researching. The reality is, that (at least some) of the AUs I want to write won’t be as popular as my regular stuff...I am fine with that most of the time, but sometimes there’s a worry you will be writing for no one but yourself (which shouldn’t matter, but some days does ;) )

Most popular story of the year?“ Hmmm...in terms of kudos and general love, it’s definitely The Man with the Cartier Frames. People love parentlock and I do think I write it well (it helps that my kids are good ages to model Rosie). But I got a lot of love and really amazing comments on Blue Plaques too.

Story of mine most under-appreciated by the universe, in my opinion: I’m not sure anything this year was under-appreciated. Possibly 5mm (a very short (and fluffy established relationship fic), but it’s the third in my That Time of Year series, so I expected small numbers.

Most fun story to write: Blue Plaques. Figuring out a ridiculous mystery that would give the ending I wanted (I knew the solution before I knew anything else), and researching about blue plaques and random spots in London was a ton of fun.

Most unintentionally telling story: Oooohhh. That’d probably be The Man With the Cartier Frames. There is lots of my daughter (M) in Rosie in this story. This includes a freak accident that made my partner (M’s father) an absolute mess at the hospital (that Sherlock sobbing scene was inspired by real life). M was totally fine (I still don’t know how but am so thankful) but that moment was the seed that led to this fic.

Biggest disappointment: Probably that I didn’t post an AU? But honestly, I am not really disappointed with this year’s writing or reception.

Biggest surprise: The engagement I got from some of my favourite authors (including art!!) this year. It’s a real honour when people whose writing you admire start commenting on your stuff. It’s worked the other way too, I have started reading people’s because they comment on my stuff and it ends up being amazing! I was going to tag people here, but I’m afraid of forgetting someone...if you’ve commented on my stuff and you write, I’m probably talking about you!

I’ll nominate anyone who wants to reflect on the past year :).

#writing year in review #2022 year in review #my writing

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koolkat9 · 1 year

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Fanfiction/Writing Summary 2022

Because I am more of a writer than artist, I decided to do something that showcases my favourite pieces of writing from over the year. If you'd like to do it yourself basically you're going to go through your writing each month, choose a piece you really like and put a sentence or section from said fic.

January

Arthur was sure this had to be a dream now, that or he was seeing his lover’s angel. Basked in the golden light of the sun filtering in, Feliciano was practically glowing with an even brighter smile to match. It was as if the accident had never happened.

“Amore Mio, why are you crying?” Feliciano asked, voice hoarse from not having used it for almost two months.

“Wha…” Arthur lifted a hand to his cheek only to find it wet with tears. “Please tell me this isn’t a dream…”

-I Must be Dreaming || AO3 || Tumblr

February

Tossing his bow to the side, the teen picked up the toddler, wiping away the boy’s tears with his cloak. “Shhh,” Dylan hushed as he began rocking the child back and forth, “It’s okay little one.” Dylan turned back towards his siblings. “It’s alright you two, he’s one of us.”

“He?” Niamh asked, being the first to come to Dylan’s side. Dylan turned towards his sister, giving her a better view of the young boy in his arms. Niamh’s eyes lit up at the sight. “Awww look at him! He’s so little.” She placed a hand on top of the toddler’s shaggy blond hair, smoothing it down. The young boy leaned into the touch, releasing a pleased hum. It made Niamh giggle.

“Indeed,” Dylan agreed.

Alastair cautiously came over as well, stiff as a board. Luckily, as soon as his eyes landed on the child, all the tension was alleviated. The toddler gave Alastair a wide smile when he noticed him, reaching out with his free hand. Unable to say no, Alastair took the small hand in his own.

“Looks like we have another brother,” Dylan beamed. But his words fell on deaf ears as his siblings stared in awe at the child in his arms. His smile widened at the endearing sight.

-Weeping in the Woods || AO3 || Tumblr

March

“Are you nervous?”

The young boy nodded.

Arthur gave him a tired smile before putting the luggage down and crouching to be at Matthew’s level. “Don’t be. Uncle Allie will be there, and I’m sure you’ll get along swimmingly with your Uncle Dylan. You remind me a lot of him, you know?”

Matthew peeked up from behind his stuffed animal’s head. “Really?”

“Mhm,” Arthur hummed. When he noticed Matthew was still hesitant, he scooped the boy into his arms. “But, if you’re still nervous, you can stay right here with me.”

“Okay,” Matthew whispered, a shy smile spreading across his face.

-Meet the Family || AO3 || Tumblr

April

"The tea is–” But Francis was cut off by Arthur swinging around, pressing his arm against the Frenchman’s neck. Francis looked up at him with genuine fear as Arthur’s acidic green eyes burned into him. For a moment, it was as if they were back to their old ways.

“Angl–gck–Angleterre it’s just me…mon lapin…”

Arthur’s gaze softened, and he lowered his arm as fear subsided. “Oh god…I-I…Francis I genuinely didn’t mean–” Francis silenced him with a kiss.

“It’s okay. I’m sorry to have startled you.” Francis let out a light laugh. “I probably would have done the same.”

“Francis…”

The Frenchman’s hand came to rest against Arthur’s face. “We’ll be okay mon amour. It’s all over now, and we can enjoy our time together.”

-A Very Awkward Anniversary || AO3 || Tumblr

May

Jan was tense as Matthew began to lead him in a slow waltz. Matthew himself was nervous, but either because of the alcohol or the quietness of the outdoors, he was much more at ease than Jan. “Relax,” he murmured, breath tickling Jan’s neck causing him to shiver. “No one’s watching.”

“And everyone says you’re the shy, awkward, little prince.”

“The alcohol probably has helped in this case,” Matthew laughed.

Jan let out an amused huff, and it melted Matthew’s heart. Jan didn’t seem to be someone who laughed a lot, and there he was, amused by Matthew. He unconsciously began leaning in.

-Royal Weddings and Slow Dances || AO3 || Tumblr

June

“Mhm.” Arthur turned his gaze wistfully at the sky. “It’s…It’s nice you know…Not to have to hide as much anymore. To have more public spaces to go to and be able to dance with the man you love. To kiss him and not have to be scared of getting arrested or…even worse…”

Ludwig wrapped a loving arm around his shoulder. “Hey…It’s okay now. Things are changing and I have a feeling it’s going to continue going uphill from here.”

Arthur gave him a sentimental smile. “I never coloured you to be such an optimist darling.”

-Things are Changing || AO3 || Tumblr

July

“Ah…” the man sighed, “So good…So good for me…Ludwig, Ludwig, Ludwig.”

That wasn't right. His master never used his name. Then someone was shaking him, but it wasn’t the man in front of him. It felt…distance almost. “Ludwig…Ludwig come on…you got to get up,” the voice called, though it felt farther than before.

Ludwig opened his eyes slowly, meeting a familiar flash of green. The actor? No. “Arthur?” he rasped.

-Got a Secret, Can You Keep it: Chapter 2 || AO3 || Tumblr

*Warning, this entry is nsft

August

“Shhhh. You’re okay. You’re alright. Shhhhhhh.”

Ludwig let out a choked sob. Now he could add confusion to his list of things being wrong. How could something as small as a loving touch strip him bare and break him like this? It was embarrassing and made the situation even more overwhelming.

“Oh, darling. It’s going to be okay. Shhh.”

“I-I’m sorry,” Ludwig blubbered, “I-I don’t know what’s came over me.”

“Never apologize for this kind of thing,” Arthur murmured against Ludwig’s forehead, “I’ve learned the hard way, it’s not good to push it all down.”

-An Indulgent GerEng Sick Fic || AO3 || Tumblr

September

“That’s good.” Francis let his hand linger in Arthur’s hair, his fingers becoming tangled in the strands.

“Francis?” Arthur spoke softly.

Francis immediately pulled his hand back. “Ah…Desole.”

But the Brit pulled his hand back. “N-No…It’s alright. Just…um…Thank you. For everything. For giving us a place to stay, for watching the boys, watching over me…” Arthur coughed awkwardly. “You’re very good with them. The boys I mean…”

“Oh now I really think you hit your head,” Francis teased.

Arthur shoved him though only half-heartedly. “Shut up!”

-To be Cared for || AO3 || Tumblr

October

“Arthur…”

“If you asked me two decades ago, I would have had a very different answer for you. But I don’t have any comforting words, Ludwig.”

“I’m sorry…” Arthur shook his head, giving Ludwig a lopsided grin.

“Don’t be. You’ve got a far better head on your shoulders than I did at your age. I was always itching for a fight, and I didn’t care who I hurt, but you…You’re…You’re full of surprises. It’s a good sign. It gives me hope. As does this.” He gestured to the football game in front of him.

“Humans are something,” Ludwig hummed.

“That they are.” Arthur smiled genuinely. “It’s beautiful.”

-Christmas with the "Enemy" || AO3 || Tumblr

November

Arthur let out a long sigh. “Even if you were the Holy Roman Empire, you’re Germany now. That hasn’t changed. You’ll always be Germany. You’ll always be Ludwig. Stubborn, strong, hard-working Ludwig who overworks himself. Who loves dogs, baking, vinyl records, and morning jogs at sunrise. You’re still you with just a little extra tacked on.” He squeezed Ludwig’s hand, guiding him by the chin to look at him. “Your supposed past shouldn’t dictate your future, and don’t let anyone else make you think it should.”

Ludwig let out a shuttered breath, wiping at his eyes, trying to keep his tears at bay. He had felt so heavy, but at Arthur’s words, it was as if some of that weight had been taken from him, the Brit helping him shoulder it.

“Shhhh, it’s alright Lud. It’s going to be alright.”

Feliciano looked up at him with glassy eyes. “I should have seen this coming,” Feliciano said with a wet laugh, “I…I-I should have never accepted your confession. I was…He was finally home and I just…I had been waiting for you–him–for so long that I jumped on the chance not thinking you were different now.” The tears were streaming now and they punched Ludwig in the stomach. “I wasn’t thinking that maybe all of this had put you in a confused, vulnerable state, twisting what you really wanted. It’s complicated…Gilbert tried to explain that to me. But whatever this means for you…It’s clear your heart doesn’t belong to me and I’m sorry for feeling entitled to it because of the past.”

-Ludwig || AO3 || Tumblr

December

“Thank you,” Matthew rasped, “It gets lonely in the winter.”

“What?”

“The cold…Scares everyone away…Those who stay shut themselves in and hope they’ll all make it to spring.”

“Mattie…”

“Papa didn’t know how to deal with it. He tried to take me to France, but that made it worse, he left me with doctors, but…” Matthew sniffled. “But…”

“Now, now Matthew,” Father said gravely, striding into the room, “We needn’t get wrapped up in the past. We must embrace the present. Speaking of present…” He presented two neatly wrapped heaps to the boys. “An early Christmas present to liven all of our spirits.”

-A Little Christmas Magic || AO3 || Tumblr

This was a lot harder than I thought. Anyway, I wrote 137 fics this year woooo!

#writing year in review #writing year end summary #fanfiction writer #fanfiction #hetalia fanfiction #hetalia

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swimmingwolf59 · 1 year

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✨2022 Writing Year In Review✨

I was tagged by @lenievi! Thanks for the tag, I love doing stuff like this! 🥰

1. Number of stories posted to AO3: 17

2. Word count posted for the year: 122,912 (pretty sure this is close to my yearly average which is just like ?????? how tf do I write that much 😭)

3. Fandoms I wrote for: star trek (tos, aos), khr, and pokemon technically

4. Pairings: spones, sarek&spock, mccoy&amanda, 1859, 8018, and platonic 5933

5. Story with the most:

- Kudos: Reciprocal Averaging (373) (thanks so much y’all!! 😭😭🙏)

- Bookmarks: Reciprocal Averaging again lol (110)

- Comments: And, who could’ve guessed! Reciprocal Averaging (24)

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why):

Out of the light, my mirrorverse spones fic. I’m really proud of the worldbuilding I did for that fic, especially in terms of adapting tos episodes into their mirrorverse versions. I’m also pretty proud of the emotional journey spones have, I feel like it actually progressed well and I feel like I’m usually terrible at that kind of thing lol. Also figuring out how to fit in the rest of the crew, what their mirrorverse selves are like (including bones, who was SO FUN TO FIGURE OUT!!) was a great time!!

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why):

Uhhh I’m not sure actually? I feel like the ones I’m “not proud of” are because I remember how much it sucked to edit them lol, and I feel like editing always makes me hate my work. So I try not to actually think that way about anything I’ve published 😅

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received:

A lot of people leave sweet reviews, and I’m really thankful for all of them!! It makes me so happy to hear that people are enjoying my stories 🥺 A few of my favorites were by fellow transmasc people telling me how much they appreciated my fluffy trans!spock fic, but those felt too personal to share here so I thought I’d share this one instead:

I adore how this opens with Jim's POV, and with so many little asides and details that make my heart sing. From Jim's teasing, to 'arguing', to McCoy being too mad to even notice Jim entering the room, to the PDA discussion to... well, you get the idea. It makes the fic feel so deep and layered and an incredible addition to the BW series. And then the whole litany of failed first dates, lol. I don't think I could pick a favorite no matter how many times I reread this. But I love Spock being so determined to make this happen for Leonard's sake (even to inadvertently sabotaging one of the dates), and Leonard's ever-underlying insecurities rearing their ugly heads. Love how they work through it all, and the wonderfully romantic "final first date" at the end - even Kirk's determination that they will have a great one, and that's an order, dammit! Heart-warming and made me laugh out loud several times. I adore the relationship you've crafted between Spock and Leonard and always look forward to the next story in the series. Thank you for continuing to share these delightful interludes with us!

This person leaves a lot of kind reviews, but this one especially was SO nice to receive because I rewrote next time for sure SO MANY TIMES to figure out the failed date attempts and make the story feel fleshed out and real, so it was really nice to hear my efforts paid off~

9. A time when writing was really, really hard:

Honestly the last few weeks of 2022 were really tough, especially in terms of writing for 12dos and my 100th fic on ao3 celebration. Tbh I think I put too much on myself LOL right around holidays when I was really busy and had a few covid scares so I was just super stressed out and hating everything I was writing. But I’m getting back into some wips this year and things have calmed down so I’m feeling a lot better about things!

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you:

Tbh I was NOT expecting to get back into writing khr again LMAO and somehow I wrote like 4 fics this year??? XDD I think Customization especially was surprising because I had the vague idea for it and then sat down and wrote it in like an hour lol, it was a lot of fun tho!

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

I wanted to share something from out of the light but all of my favorite scenes are a little too steamy to just post on here I feel LOL so have this excerpt from Held Together:

“Do you even know where you are going, Leonard?” Spock asks, somewhat amused. It would entertain him to no end to watch McCoy try, and probably fail, to navigate the mountains Spock knows so well, but it would be more amusing if it wasn’t nearing midnight.

“Sure.” McCoy stops and points up at the night sky. “That’s Sehlat Kan-bu, over there is the Scholar.”

Spock stops just behind him. “…You are aware of our ancient constellations?”

“Constellations have always been an interest of mine,” McCoy says with a shy smile. “I’ve always thought that what people see in the night sky says a lot about their culture. Once I finished learning all of Earth’s, I started to learn those of alien cultures, too. It’s surprisingly common throughout the galaxy, though of course on Vulcan most constellations were devised before the time of Surak. I’d have a hard time imagining T’Pau pointing up at the sky and claiming that a certain star cluster looks like a sehlat.”

A small smile tugs at Spock’s lips. “Certainly not in public, anyway.”

McCoy laughs and turns to keep hiking. “It shouldn’t be much further.”

Spock’s curiosity is piqued now as he follows McCoy across the rocks. He has to admit he hadn’t been expecting much, particularly once he realized that McCoy was taking him into the mountains. Spock has quite literally seen everything on these mountains many times, so he had wondered what McCoy could possibly show him that he hadn’t seen before.

But now that McCoy seems to actually possess an intimate knowledge of the area, Spock is much more curious to find out what it is.

They walk for 10.6 more minutes before McCoy comes to a stop, staring up at the sky. He is standing in the middle of a clearing that Spock had once named Sehlat’s Bed, due to the unusual amount of times he had stumbled upon a wild sleeping sehlat in the area. Fortunately, there doesn’t seem to be one here now, but Spock stays on alert as he comes to a stop beside McCoy.

“A-ha! There it is.” McCoy points upwards. “That’s K’diwa.”

“Roughly translates to lovers,” Spock comments, staring up at it. “I too enjoyed learning the constellations when I was younger, and this is one of the only ones that I thought actually looked like its name. You can see the line of stars where the two beings become entwined, one being—”

He turns, only to find McCoy now holding out two of his fingers. Before Spock can even raise an eyebrow, he murmurs in Vulcan, “Spock, will you be parted from me and never parted? Never and always touching and touched?”

Spock’s breath catches. He had not expected this, and it probably shows on his face. Even though he should have known it was coming, it turns out that McCoy managed to surprise him after all.

12. How did you grow as a writer this year:

God these kinds of questions are so hard lol because I feel like I have no perception of how to judge my writing????I feel like I’ve improved in crafting stories with like actual plots in them lol, which I think was always a weakness of mine. I’ve also tried writing a lot of different kinds of stories this year, so that was cool!

13. How do you hope to grow next year:

I wanna get better at writing shorter things, since I think it takes a lot of skill to fit a fully fledged story into just a few thousand words. I also wanna continue improving at plot building and descriptions lol

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

well tbqh the answer seems to be sarek LOL. 1859 and spones ofc are also always my muses 😄

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year:

hmm other than my obsession with nature and wildlife LOL I don’t think so

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

Something I’ve been doing this year is editing fics on my phone (and by that I mean reading them on gdocs on my phone and doing the actual editing on my computer document), but the main thing that’s important about this I think is that it tricks my brain into thinking I’m reading something “new” because it LOOKS different. Like I think part of the reason editing is so hard for me is because I know what it’s SUPPOSED to say, so that’s how I read it even if there are typos/grammatical errors/better ways to phrase/etc. So I think it’s really helpful during editing to read your story on a different document, or with a different font, cause at least for me I’m a lot more likely to catch mistakes that way!

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

I am SO excited to work on the next fic in my pokemon spones series because I’m introducing sarek and amanda LOL. I also got newfound direction for my sarek & mccoy 5+1 meetings fic so I’m looking forward to working on that more! (I told you my muse was Sarek lololol). Otherwise I’m looking forward to working on new spones and 1859 stories, finishing this spock/scotty fic I have, and working on my original story idea as well! OH also my QPR fics that I’ve been working on and am excited to share hopefully this year!!

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

Idk who to tag, so if you want to do this, consider yourself tagged!

#text post #writing year in review

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northerngoshawk · 1 year

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2022 Writing Year in Review

thank you @flameohotwife and @chocomd for the tag! great way to start a new year of writing is to look back

1. Number of stories posted to Ao3: 15! most oneshots and drabbles, 1 that is a multichap still in the works

2. Word count this year: 75,791

3. Fandoms I wrote for: Avatar: The Last Airbender

4. Pairings: Aang/Katara

5. Stories with the most:

Kudos: i lost it all again (can you help me find it once more?), the second fic in my Katara-centric series

Bookmarks: dreamless dreams

Comment threads: see the sky and sea (and remember me)

Word count: see the sky and sea (and remember me)

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why): there’s a lot, but i guess i will have to say dreamless dreams, my platonic zukaang fic, since i really don’t like Zuko that much lol. he’s definitely not my fav, esp because of fandom, so it was a surprise to write this, and i’ll admit i was a tad worried i would write him ooc because of my own bias. but surprisingly enough, i’ve been told the way i portrayed Zuko in this fic is very very in-character for him and serves as exploration that most fandom would avoid, and the platonic zukaang was also something i never thought i would write but seemed to execute well haha. overall, i guess i’m proud of this fic because it’s a concept that’s out of my comfort zone that i think i’ve executed pretty well, haha

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why): protecting you, which is a prequel to where we're meant to be. i had a kind of hard time writing this, and if i look back on it now, it just seems... cheesy, almost? idk it’s just Aang whump so maybe i just feel it’s a little senseless lol.

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received: i think my favorite review this year was actually from @chocomd and pertained to dreamless dreams! choco managed to understand all the underlying parallels i wrote into the fic and gushed how much she loved the way i wrote the platonic zukaang 🥺 before her review, almost no one was kudos’ing the fic, so i was wracked with so much doubt that i wrote it well, and with her review, it really helped ease my worries of oocness for Zuko & Aang.

9. A time when writing was really, really hard: while i was in school as a STEM major lol. that should be self-explanatory.

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you: i already mentioned Zuko, but there’s actually two more characters i was surprised to write. one of them was Iroh from my Iroh & Lu Ten fic leaves let go (to fall from the vine). i never ever ever thought i would ever write Iroh, and he kind of intimidated me because he’s such a wise, complex character--there was no fathomable way i could write him well, or so i thought. i seemed to manage okay for this fic tho haha

the other character is Hakoda from my Hakoda Adopts Aang fic these sleepless nights we spend (waiting to come home). also a surprise because in canon, we don’t really see much of him on-screen, not to mention there’s a lack of interaction between him and Aang. again, never really thought i would ever write him, but here we are.

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

i have quite a few (and i’ve used them for other asks), so i’ll choose something a little different this time!

this excerpt is the ending section of going back, moving forward:

When Gyatso releases him and Aang finds himself at the doorstep of shadows, he only glances back one final time to see Gyatso nodding with approval, pride shining in his gray eyes.

(i will always wait for you)

When he finds himself walking down the dark hallway, he hears his friends, his family, all calling his name, all pleading with him to come back, come back, and he picks up the pace, rushing towards them.

(i'm coming, i'm coming)

When he sees the differently colored threads (green red navy cerulean) weaving their way towards him as the world falls away into darkness and shadows, he reaches for them, knowing that they're reaching out for him.

(i'm coming back for you)

When he wakes up in his friends' embrace, he lets himself melt into their love and worry and berating because they care, they care, and he almost can't believe he ever doubted it was the right thing to do.

(i'm here)

And when he grows and makes mistakes and matures and builds his own family and learns to live and laugh and love again, Aang finally understands what Gyatso meant all those years ago.

And it feels like coming home.

12. How did you grow as a writer this year: i definitely stepped out of my comfort zone a bit and wrote for characters i never thought i would write for haha. i’m also improving on describing scenery, especially as needed for my multichap lol

13. How do you hope to grow next year: to keep improving on describing scenery. i’m improving right now, but i still have ways to go. also to keep writing characters i never thought i’d write, step out of my comfort zone even more.

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc): @chocomd. we found out we have very similar tastes in the kind of stories we want to read & write, and so she’s been a huge encouragement, especially in a fandom where our specfic tastes aren’t exactly common. her comments especially on see the sky and sea (and remember me) and her eagerness to see its conclusion is really the only reason why i’m still writing this fic.

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year: not really? i mean i lost it all again (can you help me find it once more?) stems from my own feelings of assimilation and not knowing my own culture. other than that, there aren’t any i can think that are truly from my core self; every other fic is just my exploration of canon content or mirroring of things i never have personally experienced. all of my fics have some form of myself in them anyways tho, so

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers: don’t be afraid to experiment and break rules of syntax, so long as it makes sense for the themes of the fic. i find the fics i love reading/writing the most are the ones that experiment to reflect the themes of the fic, the state of the character’s mind, etc. (also you can use that as an excuse in case someone gets mad at you 😉)

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year: definitely hoping to finish see the sky and sea (and remember me) this new year, but with the way the climax is playing out and the limited time i have, it could take a while lol. depending on if i get that done, i’m also looking into my 5+1 Aang fic about loneliness, a Katara MCD fic, a Sokka-centric fic that deals with masculinity, and a 5+1 Zuko-centric fic that deals with Zuko beginning to understand the effects of imperialism on the little people.

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read: @itsmoonpeaches @thinkingisadangerouspastime @justoceanmyth @shameaboutthedilettantism @kataangisforlovers and anyone else!

#northern's fanfiction #northern gets tagged #tag game #tag game answer #writing year in review #2022 writing year in review

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darlakane · 1 year

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Writing Year in Review 2022

Just like for 2021, I meant to do another writing review for last year. However, things got in the way so this is a few days late. Due to personal issues, I didn't get as much writing done and not even get everything finished that I'd planned on, but alas... Here's to hope for 2023.

Number of stories posted: 1 revision, 1 WIP (cont.), 3 one shots, 4 ficlets for a writing challenge

Words written: approx. 10,300 (published)

Pairings written: Shawn/Hunter (WWE)

Currently in the works: 2 WIPs (cont.), 1 revision, 1 multi-chapter story, 2 one shots, 1 writing challenge (cont.)

Looking back:

- My favorite story that I published was probably "More Than I Deserve" because I liked how Shawn was being, well, 90s Shawn, and at the same time vulnerable. And I'm a sucker for clueless Hunter. :-D

- The biggest experiment definitely was "Catch The Rain" as it follows the whole set of lyrics of a song, just my own take on them. So that was different to write but at the same time a nice challenge.

- My proudest moment was indeed finishing a longer story that I'd mapped out the year before and that I hold very dear to my heart. Which leads me to...

Outlook 2023:

- I cannot wait to finally share above mentioned story. Due to life happening, it's still with my betas as it means so much to me that I want to it be as perfect as possible. The working title is "Sever" and it's a Shawn/Hunter story with a twist.

- I plan on continuing with the 30 days writing challenge sometime soon.

- I wrote more chapters to my really old WIP "Somewhere In The Fallout" last year and would really like to wrap that one up.

Fanfics posted in 2022

"C'est la vie" - Shawn/Hunter (friendship) (December 2020 – October 2021) - WIP (cont.)

After being forced to retire in 1998, Shawn continues on his path to self-destruction.

"More Than I Deserve" - Shawn/Hunter (slash) (November 2021/February 2022)

If Shawn was being honest with himself, there might be more than just friendly feelings towards the latest addition to their group on his part.

"To Happiness" - Shawn/Hunter (slash) (revised in February 2022, originally written in April 2011)

It’s Hunter’s wedding day – and for Shawn it’s still hard to let go.

"Enough" - Shawn/Hunter (slash) (February 2022)

A peaceful night on tour in Europe…

"Catch The Rain" - Shawn/Hunter (slash) (April 2022)

On a stormy night, Shawn has to deal with the reality of Hunter leaving him.

30 Days Writing Challenge - Shawn/Hunter (slash & friendship) (November/December 2022)

Prompt # 1 - First kiss (slash)

Prompt # 2 - No dialogue (slash)

Prompt # 3 - Use certain words (slash)

Prompt # 4 - Personal style (friendship)

(Writing Year in Review 2021)

#writing year in review #triple h #shawn michaels #wwe #wrestling fanfiction #writing progress #writing #shawnter #shawter #shawn/hunter #outlook 2023 #writers of tumblr

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feeisamarshmallow · 1 year

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✨ 2022 Writing Year In Review ✨

Thanks to @quelsentiment for tagging me <3 I love doing these so I was so happy to get your tag!

1. Number of stories posted to AO3: 12 (plus an extra author’s commentary for one fics)

2. Word count posted for the year: 53 736 if you include the commentary, 50 482 if not! (The most I’ve ever posted!)

3. Fandoms I wrote for: Brooklyn Nine Nine, Arrested Development, Gilmore Girls, One Direction

4. Pairings: Gina Linetti & Jake Peralta, Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago, Rosa Diaz/OFC, Kevin Cozner/Raymond Holt, Rosa Diaz & Jake Peralta, Charles Boyle & Jake Peralta, Charles Boyle/Jake Peralta, George Michael Bluth & Michael Bluth, Luke Danes/Rachel, OT5

5. Story with the most:

Kudos: Dinner Plans (B99, Jake & Charles) (56 kudos, although I seem to remember that I got a lot of guest kudos on one day and I’m pretty sure it’s some kind of glitch lol).

Bookmarks: Don’t Forget Where You Belong (1D, OT5) & Of Cookies and Catholicism (B99, Jake/Amy) (8 Bookmarks)

Comments: Don’t Forget Where You Belong (10 comment threads)

6. Work I’m most proud of (and why):

This year I’m definitely most proud of Don’t Forget Where You Belong. I think it’s the most ambitious thing I’ve ever written. It was over a year from conceptualization to completion and I’m proud I stuck with it and brought my idea to life. I’m proud of the way I pulled all the threads of this fic together.

7. Work I’m least proud of (and why):

A Study in Slang. I just didn’t have much inspiration for this B99 Reunion prompt as I was finding I was less and less interested in writing peraltiago fic. While it was fun to write about Toronto slang, it’s pretty easy for me to write a couple hundred words of B99 dialogue, so I felt a little like I just whipped it off and didn’t give it much thought.

8. Share or describe a favorite review you received:

I have to give a giant, grateful shoutout to my three commenters on Don’t Forget Where You Belong: @impossiblyizzy, OneLastTime_93 and lqvingchilwell. I wasn’t sure if anyone would read my fic, and it gave me so much encouragement and support to have a few regular readers. An extra shoutout to @impossiblyizzy, who read the whole fic despite knowing nothing about 1D!

9. A time when writing was really, really hard:

I’m a little weird in that I rarely struggle with writer’s block. Once I have a plan or an idea, I can pretty much make myself sit down and write whenever I have the time. Usually I do most of my writing on weekend mornings; I’m not really an evening writer.

However, I will say that since starting my new job, it’s been so much harder to find time to write. And also I haven’t had very many new fic ideas lately, so that’s been a bit of a struggle. For the first time in a while, I’m not sure what I’m going to write in the New Year.

10. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you:

I didn’t expect to write Jake/Charles this year! But once I knew I wanted to write a Christmas gift for @impossiblyizzy, I knew I had to write some Jake/Charles. It was really fun getting out of my comfort zone and writing a pairing that I don’t necessarily ship. I really enjoyed the process of engaging with and writing a pairing that doesn’t feel second nature to me; I feel like it made me think about the characters in new and deeper ways.

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

From Don’t Forget Where You Belong:

He turns to the other side, and realizes with a start he's looking into his own eyes. His doppleganger is standing beside him. And suddenly, Liam knows that he's seeing some sort of hologram of the real Liam. The one who belongs in this dimension. And he's sure that each of his band members are having a similar experience. He wishes he could talk to the other Liam, but he has to keep singing their song. Above them, the stars keep circling and twinkling.

As they approach the final choruses, the other Liam makes eye contact with him and smiles kindly. It's not nearly as creepy as it should be. Then, the other Liam joins in with singing. This is not the end, they sing in unison.

Thank you, Liam hears his own voice reverberate through his brain, although he knows it's not him who's saying it.

Welcome home, Liam replies without speaking. The other Liam reaches out to embrace him as they sing the final line of the song. As his fingertips touch Liam's shoulders, he breaks apart into a million bits of light. Slowly, the sound returns. A roar of applause and cheering. When Liam looks out off the stage again, it's returned to normal. He can make out the faces of some of the nearby fans again.

(It was so hard trying to write about an interaction between two versions of the same person! A pronoun nightmare! But I’m happy with how this turned out).

12. How did you grow as a writer this year:

I feel like I grew SO MUCH. Especially because of writing Don’t Forget Where You Belong. I’m continuing to learn patience while writing, being able to stick with an idea and sit on a WIP longer before needing the gratification of posting. I’ve also been continuing to learn how to cultivate a sense of internal satisfaction. With the complete dissolution of the B99 fandom after the finale (where did everyone go??) and my shift to writing genfic in a fandom where I’m a complete unknown, I’m a much less popular writer this year than I was the year before. And that’s okay, it’s not like I’m shooting for popularity, but it can be an adjustment to go from getting decent engagement to getting very little. And I feel like that really helped me work on being excited because I like my fic, whether or not anyone else does. DFWYB also helped me work on my plotting and pacing a lot. It necessitated more attention to those things than some of the other fics I’ve written.

13. How do you hope to grow next year:

I want to work more on editing in the future. I’m still very much a one-draft writer, where I only do cursory editing before posting. Although tbh, I really can’t see myself changing my workflow too much as I do think it works well for me. I tend to edit a fair bit as I write and I like it that way. But I feel like I want to at least experiment with editing a bit more. Otherwise, I just want to keep being curious and ambitious and having fun while writing, because I feel like that’s what teaches me the most. I have a feeling next year might not be as productive, since I’ve had quite a few years of a lot of fic, partially fueled by the pandemic and my boring job. I’m in a bit of a different place now and I might need a little break, but we’ll see! I also kinda want to write a 1D hockey AU, so who knows?

14. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

@impossiblyizzy <3 <3 My beta for Don’t Forget Where You Belong, among other fics. They also leave wonderful thoughtful comments on my fics and convinced me to watch BBC Ghosts and are just an all-around lovely person.

Also my IRL friend Ruth, who has been on this 1D journey with me and who I called and read every chapter of my fic to! And who initially told me I should write DFWYB when I told her my idea.

And finally, I actually spent most of this year reading Downton Abbey fic, and definitely from afar I was inspired by the skills of many writers, including: Darci, Once_More_With_Feeling, ama, Jolie_Black, and DarthNickels.

15. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year:

I’m always unwittingly writing my real life into my fics. It’s how I process things and I usually don’t realize it until I finish the fic and I’m like….oh that’s what I’m really writing about. At its core, DFWYB is a story about dealing with change and searching for meaning and making tough decisions (and what things influence those decisions). And if that’s not relevant to (post?) pandemic life in your mid-twenties, I don’t know what is.

Similar themes of growing up and moving on and grief and forgiveness show up in Places We’ve Never Been, my Luke/Rachel Gilmore Girls fic. And I’m always drawn to more melancholy interpretations of Christmas, and so the themes of finding joy even when things don’t work out showed up in both my holiday fics this year.

I also finally(!) got to write about a location I knew about in my DFWYB ‘verse with my Christmas fic: London around the holiday season! I was there! I can picture what it looked like!

And of course the Toronto slang made into A Study In Slang.

16. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

I feel like I already said this, but definitely try to cultivate motivation and inspiration separate from the fandom and readers, because fandoms come and go in popularity (and your own interest), so you can’t tie yourself to others for encouragement. Write what you love! And you’ll be surprised that’s there’s almost at least one other person who loves it too, and I always find that more meaningful than a bunch of people who like my fic that I don’t really like.

17. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

I don’t know!! Maybe new 1D fic. Maybe a return to my Veronica Mars roots. Maybe nothing. Who knows? I’m excited to find out.

18. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

@lodessa @1mechanicalalligator @impossiblyizzy @benwvatt

#fee says stuff #my writing #writing year in review #2022 writing year in review

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