We Are Made of Star-Stuff

In your own space, share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme. (Or a few!) Tell us what makes it work for you, and why it appeals to you so much. Talk about what you like to see in fanworks featuring that theme most. Feel free to include recs and examples!


Okay, let's do this alphabetically:

Age difference - 100% consensual and not underage.

Angst - I swear it's good for the soul.

Arranged Marriages/Marriage of Convenience - I like them when they turn real 😊♥️

Aristocracy/Royalty

AUs - Of any type, coffe shops, college, modern, pirates, you name it.

Bonds - romatic, sexual, telepathic...

Consent - consent is sexysexysexy

Competence - Yaass!

Enemies to Friends to Lovers/Friends to Lovers - I could read this trope a thousand times and not get tired.

First times - Not just the sexual kind. It can be the first time going out on a date, first time telling each other a secret, the first time reading a book, etc.

Hurt/Comfort

Historical/Period settings

Magical/Fantasy themes/Sci-fi

Polyamory/Threesomes - I say it's better to add one than waste time on played out love-triangles ;)

Slow burn - I'm all for the pining and the build up of a relationship, the pay-off is always wonderful.

Soulmates - There are so many ways this trope can be done, I specially like it when it's turned over its head.



I'm also a fan of horror and creepy settings.

Tbh there are many, many more that I enjoy, a lot, like: found families, huddling for warmth, pining, topping from the bottom, up against the wall, tattoos, stranded or trapped together, snark, banter, etc.


Oh, the UST, the pining, the angst! ;)

In your own space, share a favorite piece of original canon (a TV episode, a song, a favorite interview, a book, a scene from a movie, etc) and explain why you love it so much. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

While I dabble in several fandoms, and even have a main one where I spend most of my energy, today I've chosen to gush about two shows that are very important to me, and also very dear to my heart because of representation.


SENSE8


I started watching Sense8 because I found the concept interesting and I stayed for the diverse cast, the LGBT+ representation, the relationships between the characters, both romantic and platonic. Despite of the dangers the sensates might face, the drama--and beautifully shot action sequences-- I find that the characters always have each others backs, they see the good and focus on that.

Sense8 speaks to us about love, acceptance, empathy and equality, and that is what made me a fan.


JANE THE VIRGIN


Jane the Virgin is such an endearing show, its heart is big and in the right place. It has the plot devices of a telenovela, but it's aware of them and plays with them in clever ways. The Villanueva women are strong, funny and they love and support each other. These three generations of latina women are a familia and show us what unconditional love looks like. Important topics like feminism, reproductive rights and immigration have been touched upon, and I couldn't be more thankful for having this show on my TV.


P.S. Both shows have a great cast with amazing chemistry.

Recommend a fannish or creative resource. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Reference for Writers has some helpful tips and writing advice.

If you're writing or plan to write about poc, then Writing with Color might be helpful.

For Merlin writers, if you're looking for the spells used, there's Language and Magic for Merlin by nyxelestia, and the always helpful wikis: Merlin tv show and Merlin wiki.

Clever Girl Helps for all those things you need to research. At least once.

In your own space, post recs for at least three fanworks that you did not create. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.




MERLIN

🔱 When Death Is Only the Beginning. (How the Bainbridge Scholars Were Mistaken.) by rotrude | Arthur/Merlin | NC-17
Summary: Cairo, 1928. Merlin Emrys is a special librarian and aspiring archaeologist. One day his brother, Will, brings him a new find of his: it could lead them to the fabled city of Amunhaptra, resting place of the pharaohs, and to some unforeseen adventures.

*I love this AU. It mixes two of my favorites: The Mummy and Merlin. It's very enjoyable, well written and such a brilliant take on the movie.

🔱 Stars Above, Stones Below by Destina | Arthur/Merlin | NC-17
Summary: After the disastrous end of his betrothal to Gwen and the regret of his offer to Princess Mithian, Arthur swears off finding a wife until he's ready to wed. When Merlin offers himself to Arthur as bedmate, Arthur suggests they hand-fast in secret for a single year of mutual pleasure without obligation. As their year together unfolds, and secrets and betrayals unravel around them, Arthur and Merlin learn there is no such thing as uncomplicated pleasure. Everything they thought they knew can change in the span of a single year.

*Secret marriage is one of my favorite tropes and this fic is beautiful.

🔱 King of May by Emjayelle | Arthur/Merlin | PG
Summary: Right at the edge of Fort Albion—location: middle of bumfuck nowhere—there’s a saloon named Avalon, and behind its bar, Spring serves the drinks.

*Magic realism, wonderful imagery, dream-like atmosphere.

🔱 Destiny can happen earlier than expected by lao_paperman | Gen | G
Summary: On this day the prince of Camelot gave a neckerchief to the most powerful sorcerer who ever walked the earth… oops!

*Beautiful, cute art.

MCU/MARVEL

🔱 there are thieves, who rob us blind by sleeponrooftops | Bruce Banner/Tony Stark | R
Summary: There are people here,” Bruce says, cringing. There are very few people he can tolerate—Betty, always; Peter, mostly; Wade, sometimes—and then Tony steps in, excited about Russian poetry and words that linger on his soul and James Joyce, and Bruce just doesn’t know what to do with him besides fall in love.

*Angsty, sweet, heartfelt. It stayed with me long after I read it.

🔱 Tale As Old As Time, Song As Old As Rhyme by Ajayd | Peter Parker/Wade Wilson | NC-17
Summary: Peter Parker gradually falls for Wade's dubious charms. They have a lot of hang ups and kinks to negotiate, but with sex this hot, Peter can't help wanting more. Erotica with significant plot and relationship development.

* Funny, angsty. I love how Peter and Wade's relationship develops.

DCU

🔱 fought our fight in my head by alby_mangroves | Dick Grayson/Midnighter | PG-13
Summary: Midnighter lets Dick catch up to him in a dark alley. This could go two ways.

*This piece of art is absolutely gorgeous <3

🔱 there's a lot in your mind by ohmcgee | Dick Grayson/Midnighter | NC-17
Summary: "You don’t fuck? Or you don’t fuck guys?"

*Pretty much Dick/Midnighter PWP. Their dynamic is spot on.

THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES
Recently I started reading fic in this fandom, and I've enjoyed it a lot. Sorry, Anne Rice!

🔱there was no sacred place by firstaudrina | Lestat de Lioncourt/Louis de Pointe du Lac
Summary: It's in the moment between wishing and knowing that Lestat realizes the approaching figure is Louis.

*A quiet, intimate glimpse at Louis and Lestat's relationship.

TEEN WOLF

🔱 take two and hit to right Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski | NC-17
Summary: Stiles enjoys ogling the very handsome shortstop of the varsity team while in class. One day, when he cannot have the seat he prefers to watch the baseball diamond, he starts a conversation on his desk (including cartoon characters and eventually sharing secrets).

Unfortunately, Stiles' first meeting with the hot shortstop - crowd darling Derek Hale - doesn't go well. When Hale turns out to be Stiles' desk pen pal, will they be able to move past first impressions?

*Before I left the Teen Wolf fandom I got thr chance to make art for this awesome, funny, fic.

THE HOBBIT
🔱 Thranduil fanart by wifihunters at tumblr.

*My beautiful elf king! Gorgeous.

Day 14
Go forth and commit an act of kindness.

DONE. ☺️

Day 15

In your own space, write a love letter to Fandom in general, to a particular fandom, to a trope, a relationship, a character, or to your flist/circle/followers. Share you love and squee as loud as you want to.

To Fandom,

dear fandom in you I have found a place where my imagination can run free and my ideas can come alive. Where I can find the wonderful work of others who share similar interests and where I've also met some amazing people. I love fandom and I hope this year is a good one for all of us.🤓☺️


To the Merlin fandom,

You are one of the nicest, most wonderful and thankfully still active fandoms I've had the fortune to come across. Thank you for still being here and producing work I love. 💕 Thank you to everyone who keeps this fandom alive. You are MAGICAL. ✨✨

To the Hannibal fandom,

I love you fannibals dearly. You're smart, wonderful people, and I love how most of you will go down --like me-- with the show and Hannigram. 🍴🍷❤️


And to all of my other fandoms (I dabble here and there): Thank you for existing. 🙌🏻

Day 12

In your own space, post a rec for fannish spaces and resources - comms, challenges, twitters, tumblrs, etc. Tell us about where you hang out.

There two communities where I hang out almost every week:

camelot_drabble despite the show ending years ago the Merlin fandom is still active and producing awesome works. This community focuses on dabbles and drawbles and each Friday there's a new prompt challenge.

comment_fic in this community you can find several prompts following the theme of the day, and there's a huge possibility you will find one that inspire you. I'm hosting there this week! If you're interested come join us!

I also like:

avengers_2k for anything related to The Avengers. Here you can find fics, fanmixes, art, etc. If you're a fan of the MCU I recommend this comm.

batfic every time I feel like reading Batman/Batfam fic I go to this community and without a fail there's always a fic that catches my attention.

femslash100 I used to post a lot to this comm, and I want to get back to it because I feel like there is not enough femslash out there. They have great prompts and challenges and so many drabbles to read you'll be busy.

Writer's block and lack of inspiration can be a hindrance when trying to write, Unlocking Writer's Block is a great place to visit to try and wake the muses from their slumber. Here you'll find writing exercises, prompts, resources and tips.

Day 10

In your own space, share your love for a trope, cliché, kink, motif, or theme. (More than one is okay, too.) Tell us about it, tell us why you love it, give us some examples and recs.


Okay, tbh I'm someone who absolutely loves tropes and clichés despite of how overused they are, specially if there's a big twist or the author/artist has found a new way to make them work.

🌟 Soulmates: I like the possibilities of how two individuals can be destined to be together, the issues that may arise, and the connection they have.

🌟 Enemies to lovers or friends to lovers: for some reason I've always liked couples that bicker (in a silly sarcastic way) but really love each other, and seeing their journey from disliking each other to falling in love can be very amusing. I also like when friends are oblivious to loving each other until something changes and they see what was in front of them all along.

🌟 Arranged marriages: I usually like my arranged marriages in royalty or magical settings. I also like this trope because of the journey the couple has and how they mayfind a middle ground and can make it work in the end.


My favorite themes in fic/art are: magic, loyalty, friendship, found families, fantasy, horror, sports, the afterlife, period pieces, spooky settings, creepy and cute creatures, slow burn, sci-fi, apocalyse/post-apocalypse, bonding, history, reincarnation, and I'm sure I'm forgetting others.

Day 04

Comment to someone you haven't ever interacted with before or introduce yourself to someone you've interacted with and friend/follow them.

Done, done, done! 💅🏻

Day 5

In your own space, post recs for at least three fanworks that you did not create.

I always have such a difficult time narrowing it down to just a couple of works from all the ones I love. There are so many amazing fanworks out there. How can I choose? Yeah, I'm doing more than three 😉

⭐️ Inception
The Steinway!verse by toomuchplor

The alternate universe where Arthur's a pianist and Eames is a lyric baritone and their love is so lieder, omg.

This series is fantastic. It was one of the first Arthur/Eames fics I read and I go back to it from time to time to refresh my memory, and every time it's as amazing as the first.

⭐️ Supernatural
Wednesday Addams!Castiel by artsiel, powerfulweak

This series is exactly what it says, Castiel as Wednesday Addams, what's not to love about it?

⭐️ Merlin
Spirit of the Game
Despite working summers at one of Albion's oldest grounds, Merlin gave exactly zero fucks about cricket or cricketers until the day one of the visiting 1st XI, striding past in his whites, paused and crouched down to adjust his shoelaces.

Sports+Merthur+enemies to friends to lovers trope. Yes, it should read at least once because missing it would be a total shame.

This Silly Ol' Dance Is Perfect for Two by SlantedKnitting

Arthur is young, gorgeous, talented, and captain of one of the best football teams in England; his life should be perfect. But he can't keep a girlfriend for more than a few months, and it's not just because he isn't ready to settle down. When his most recent girlfriend dumps him, he has a rough night at the pub and has to be dragged home by his neighbour, Merlin. Merlin is an archivist, a Ph.D student, and he hates football almost as much as he hates Arthur. They both have their own reasons for not wanting to spend time with each other, but after that disastrous night, remaining silent neighbors doesn't seem like much of an option anymore.
Modern AU.

Yes, merthur+sports again! This one is brilliant. I love how vulnerable Arthur is in this one, and how Merlin ends up helping him and they become friends and something else too eventually.

⭐️ DCU
You could've made a safer bet by
likewinning
It's hard to call someone a dick when that's their name. Or, the one where Dick and Midnighter are roommates, and everyone eats too many Fruit Loops.

Omg, Dick/Midnighter makes me weak at the knees and this AU is so perfect and still true to their characters.

⭐️ Marvel/MCU
Money Honey by DoreyG

"So,” Scott says one day, sending him a glance that can best be described as flirtatious, “how rich actually are you?”

This one's short but soooo good. I stumbled upon it and gave it a chance despite never reading or considering Scott Lang/Hank Pym as a pairing. I don't regret it one bit.

⭐️ Hannibal
Provenance by drinkbloodlikewine, whiskeyandspite

A delightful AU about a rare book dealer, an owner of a high-end coffee shop, and murder. This does involve Hannibal Lecter, after all.

I'm just gonna say: I LOVE IT

⭐️ In the Flesh
There are Stars Inside You by owlinaminor
“We can create a world of divine love as much as we can imagine.” – Allen Ginsberg

Or, how Simon Monroe’s novel found a cover and his heart found a companion, all thanks to one brilliant move by Amy Dyer, the beautiful genius.

I don't usually favor AUs in this fandom 'cause I love the canon setting so much, but this fic is lovely.



🌟That was it for today. I almost want to rec about twenty more fics xD 🌟

⭐️ Also, if you have any sports AUs recs for any of these fandoms (or Star Wars, Star Trek, Shadowhunters/TMI...), please share away ☺️

Day 2

In your own space, share a book/song/movie/tv show/fanwork/etc that changed your life. Something that impacted on your consciousness in a way that left its mark on your soul.

After much consideration--I struggled so much because I feel there's a ton of works that have moved me, changed me, shaped me, that never leave me and I'll always love--I finally picked just one. My choice was a very sentimental one and one that brought me joy. Little me loved this to pieces.

The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling

When I was a kid I struggled a lot with reading on my own because of my dyslexia, my mother would sit with me and help when the words and letters shifted and I got mad. She'd read aloud for me to follow the words with my eyes and even when I got frustrated she kept doing it. I did feel safe with her reading along with me, it eased my anxiety over it. There were also comics, and bright colored books and audio-books involved. One day she borrowed a book from my brother, it was The Sorcerer's Stone. I remember complaining because I had seen the movies, obviously I did not need to read the book, I already knew what was going to happen. She told me to try it. Despite liking books--since I have a memory there was always someone reading aloud to me--some days the idea of reading one with all those pages and words seemed terribly daunting for little me. I felt like someone would come out from the shadows to laugh at me for stumbling and tripping on the words. But after some grumbling I listened to her.

Today I'm glad I did because that book changed something in me. It was the first long book I read entirely on my own, I took it calmly, little by little and by the end I felt like I could also belong at Hogwarts. I wasn't like the other kids, I felt inadequate and awkward, but if Harry, Ron and Hermione found their place, so could I.

I'll always love HP because to this day I still take a bit longer than the average person reading a paragraph, but that's okay, being different can be magical, and we all have our things that makes us unique.






Day 03

In your own space, set some goals for the coming year. They can be fannish or not, public or private.

Fannish goals:

📝 Write more than last year.

📝 Read more fics and comment more often, leave kudos, etc!

📝 Being more active in my fandoms. Making art, graphics, fanmixes, writing fic, helping others, etc.

📝 Don't sign up to every fest, because then it sucks when I have to pull out because of lack of time or I miss a deadline :/ I vowed to only sign up if I know I will be able to complete my work.

📝 Meet more people who share the same interests.

Personal goals:

📝 Don't skip a single meal.

📝 Read thirty books.

📝 Begin to draw again.

📝 *Maybe return to ballet :o