Yaaaaaay I got such a tasty gift this year, for Sinbad (TV) [see icon :D ], with pining-Gunnar and ingenious-Sinbad, and Undercover In A Brothel, and descriptions of the both of them that go right to my id!

A Mutually Beneficial Negotiation (5925 words) by Anonymous Edited to add: by aurilly
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Sinbad (TV)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Gunnar/Sinbad (Sinbad)
Characters: Gunnar (Sinbad), Sinbad (Sinbad), Cook (Sinbad), Rina (Sinbad), Anwar (Sinbad)
Additional Tags: Mutual Pining, Taverns, Brothels, Undercover As Prostitute
Summary:

An opportunity for a big trade forces Gunnar to face the feelings he's been hiding since his run-in with the Kaimar.

Sinbad has been waiting for just such an opportunity.

------
I think it can be read and enjoyed whether you know the show or not, even though it references a canon episode. What happened is, quiet northman Gunnar used to be a member of a violent Viking shock-troop, before he lost everything and exiled himself, ending up with Sinbad and the others on their little wandering ship. And there's an episode in which a secret society of Justice-Mercenaries find him and are about to execute him for his crimes, and he's like "legit, go ahead". Because of who Gunnar is now (remorseful & willing to die to atone, and also putting everything on the line to protect and save Sinbad), the justice-mercenaries absolve him, and invite him to join them in their justice-mercenary ways. But he doesn't, because he wants to stay with Sinbad. ♥

So in this story, Gunnar is digesting the implications of this--with all his guilt and remorse, how could he have turned down an actual opportunity to make amends for his bad deeds??? (Of course, weeeee know. And Sinbad knows, and he lets Gunnar know. :D :D :D )

Hello, Writer! We got matched, or you selected me as a pinch hit, or maybe you're writing a treat. In all cases, thank you for being willing to write for me! I'm happy you're here.

(Also, let me say: you'll notice it's not uncommon for me to ask for some of the same fandoms from year to year. If you've written for me previously, please do not ever think this is because I don't still love your gift! It's just that these fandoms are so small and I love them so much--I crave another cake, to go with my previous delicious cakes. In my cake hoard. :9 )

If you already have an idea, please feel free to write it. I want you to have a good time with the process and not stress out. Anything that you have fun with, I'll have fun with.

But if some more info about my preferences might help and inspire you, here's some!

( Some of my general preferences: )

If you'd find it helpful to hear more about the fandoms I've asked for, here are some details about this year's, in alphabetical order: The Exorcist (TV), 镇魂 Guardian (TV), Shetland, Sinbad (TV), The Sting (1973).

( The Exorcist (TV) )

( 镇魂 Guardian (TV) )

( Shetland )

( Sinbad (TV) )

( The Sting (1973) )

Have fun writing, and thank you! *\o/*

A Three Icon Meme has been going around, reawakening a fun little journal game where someone points to three of your icons and you talk about them.

Over here, torch picked three of mine:



This was made by the generous and talented muccamukk, showing Sinbad and Gunnar from the sadly short-lived "action-adventure fantasy family saga" TV series, Sinbad. It was a lovely show, filmed in Malta--it didn't have the highest budget, but they did a good job putting the money they had on screen.

Also, eye-candy-wise, phwoar. :D Sinbad, our hero, is on the left; Gunnar, a melancholy ex-Viking, is on the right, gazing soulfully at Sinbad as is his wont. And thanks to muccamukk's clever choice of frame, the slash symbol is even in there. What more could I need?



My newest icon, courtesy of trascendenza! I totally needed some Invisible Man (the early-2000s TV show) icons in my life--especially just in time for the Invisible Man Watchathon trascendenza is hosting! Masterpost, and keep an eye on the tag watchathon. \o/

This ep of Invisible Man, "Flowers for Hobbes", is AMAZING and very likely my favorite. At this moment, Darien is holding an injection syringe in his mouth, so he can take his jacket off, so he can GIVE HIMSELF A SHOT THAT WILL SAVE BOBBY'S LIFE BUT KILL DARIEN. He doesn't just bluff, either--he gives himself the shot. And right before he does, he says that line to Bobby (who is currently out of his mind), "I'm pretty sure there's one thing about me you don't know." YES, DARIEN, BUT NOW HE FINDS OUT, AND WE DO TOO. ;______; ♥_____♥



Sebastian and Charles, from the old "Brideshead Revisited" miniseries, looking out to sea with their arms around each other. I made this one myself, and though I don't have much in the way of aesthetic skills, I ended up very happy with it--I find the color palette of that shot pleasant and soothing, and I liked how I cropped it, including the amount & angle of the umbrella.

I don't use it much if ever to refer to Sebastian and Charles per se--more often it's about a virtual hug, being there and looking out at things with someone.


Let me know in the comments if you'd like me to pick three of your icons for you to talk about in your journal!

I had such an amazing, fantastic Yuletide this year! I can scarcely believe it. Along with my assigned story, I received three (3!) treats, and they are all SO GOOD. Soooo goooood. Tailored perfectly to my interests, all in-character and well-written and well-paced and slashy and so emotionally satisfying.

Honestly, true story, as I was reading them on Christmas Eve, I kept stopping and looking up at the ceiling and just beaming with that inner bubbling feeling of utter squee. They make me so happy!

(And, I've never yet done an actual pimping post for any of these sources, but if you want to see them and cannot otherwise, please do drop me a line!)

1) SINBAD A scattering of pictures on tumblr.
First off, the assigned story, which is a Gunnar/Sinbad story for "Sinbad", the short-lived 2012 UK TV series, a show with a tone that reminds me of the Merlin-Xena-Hercules constellation sometimes...not quite historical, but magical-mythico-folklorish, with occasional purposeful anachronisms. Sinbad is a street urchin who ends up bereaved and cursed, and in the course of trying to save himself, he meets some other outcasts of one kind or another who basically become his found family. Especially the melancholy, protective ex-Viking. :D

The story posits that Gunnar (said Northman) is a literal berserker, a bear-shifter. The spot-on voices and characterizations of the whole crew! The layers of details in setting and worldbuilding! The pining! The mystery of why Gunnar doesn't shift back, and how he does, and the very satisfying answer!

The Beast Within (16058 words) by Anonymous
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Sinbad (TV)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Gunnar/Sinbad (Sinbad)
Characters: Gunnar (Sinbad), Sinbad (Sinbad), Rina (Sinbad), Anwar (Sinbad), Tiger (Sinbad), Cook (Sinbad), Nala (Sinbad)
Additional Tags: Animal Transformation, Mutual Pining, Nonverbal Communication, Post-Canon
Summary:

There had not been time, Gunnar told himself afterward; there had not been any other way. But it was not true. There was always a choice.

(Or: Gunnar is a werebear. Sinbad has some issues with this; and, as it turns out, so does Gunnar.)

2) REJSEHOLDET A bunch of pics/gifs on tumblr.
A treat of nearly 10K words, if you can believe it, for Rejseholdet aka Unit One, the Danish cop show from the early-mid 2000s perhaps most notable for having Mads Mikkelsen in it (super-hot, natch). Whose character, the ambitious, aggressive Allan Fischer, has such wonderful partner and slash chemistry with the sensitive, secretive empath Thomas La Cour.

This story starts pre-canon and ends post-canon, and follows the entire arc of Fischer and La Cour's relationship, from awkward first meeting through to the finally-settled intimate relationship they had gradually been reaching for but took years to figure out. The characterizations are so so solid, and watching them learn to understand their inchoate need for each other is a sheer delight!

For All This Time (9881 words) by Anonymous
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Rejseholdet | Unit One
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Allan Fischer/Thomas La Cour
Characters: Allan Fischer, Thomas La Cour, Mille Fischer, Helene, Victor Fischer, Ingrid Dahl, Ida, Torben Ronne
Additional Tags: Getting Together, Partners to Lovers, First Kiss, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Canon Het Relationships Mentioned
Summary:

1996-2005. Repression, true love, crime, coffee and football.

3) THE STING (1973)
The classic Paul Newman/Robert Redford con-artist movie, if you needed telling. :D One of my very favorite movies of all time, a festival of competence kink, with Newman melancholy and worrying and gravely handsome, and Redford callow and eager and luminous, playing con men who meet and mesh (and make such heart eyes at each other oh god), and prevail over the forces of evil.

You guys I got a Henry/Johnny PRETEND RELATIONSHIP STORYYYYYY. So perfect for two grifters, to have to fake a closeted affair to draw a blackmailer out of the woodwork so they can nab him. And of course, it turns out Henry has a secret that makes the prospect of getting handsy with Johnny no hardship--except for the fact that he knows it's just for the con and will all be over soon. (OR WILL IT. :D ) It crackles with the energy both of the con and of desire, underlaid with secrets sizzling just under the surface.

truth deceived (7047 words) by Anonymous
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Sting (1973)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Henry Gondorff/Johnny Hooker
Characters: Henry Gondorff, Johnny Hooker, Original Characters
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Case Fic, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, Yuletide Treat
Summary:

Henry and Johnny catch a blackmailer—by pretending they've got something to be blackmailed about. Except, of course, no one's doing as much pretending as anybody else thinks they are.

4) SHETLAND
The source I fell for most recently, a Scottish drama about a police detective-inspector who lives and works in the Shetland Islands. Jimmy Perez is a thoughtful, kind, determined, melancholy man who lives to protect his communities and look after his daughter Cassie. And he has a fascinating relationship with his daughter's biological father, the more cynical/shades-of-gray figure Duncan Hunter. Jimmy and Duncan get along like grownups, which feels really rare for TV--co-parenting the best they can, communicating with each other, being supportive (even when they conflict).

The story is a quiet, tender scene set after the end of the most recent season, season 3. Jimmy, as could have been predicted, is hollowed-out by serious Empty Nest Syndrome, and Duncan looks after him in a comfortingly bossy, intimate, straightforward, comforting way. Just what I needed, and Jimmy too. ♥

Okay (1007 words) by Anonymous
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Shetland (TV)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Duncan Hunter/Jimmy Perez
Characters: Duncan Hunter, Jimmy Perez
Additional Tags: Sharing a Bed, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Compliant, empty nest feels, Feels, Angst
Summary:

Cassie has left and Jimmy doesn't feel okay. Duncan helps.

On the Shoulders of the Sea (2235 words) by Dorinda
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Sinbad (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Gunnar/Sinbad
Characters: Gunnar (Sinbad), Sinbad (Sinbad)
Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Sunburn, Huddling For Warmth
Summary:

Gunnar suffers, and Sinbad discovers it's not only from the sun.

Another one of the pocket stories, for the pairing in the icon above, in which melancholy-Gunnar gazes longingly at Sinbad (in other words, THE SHOW). :D

Yuletide nominations are open! (Link goes to the Dreamwidth version of the admin post giving all kinds of helpful links and info.)

You can nominate up to 3 fandoms with a maximum of 4 characters each. Sooo, what are you nominating this year?

As for me, I have two definites, and I'm mulling on the third:

* Sinbad (TV), which was the sadly short-lived UK TV series from 2012 (and for which I wrote the Gunnar/Sinbad treat Bare Wood last Yuletide).

Characters will be Gunnar and Sinbad...I could add two others according to the rules, but I'm not really aiming to focus on anyone else, although I do like the rest of them and would enjoy them in a Gunnar/Sinbad story, since they are all such found-family. (Well, except I'm not very interested in Tiger. No offense, Tiger, but I wish we could just have had Nala the whole time instead.)

* Rejseholdet | Unit One, which was a Danish TV crime procedural from the early 2000s, perhaps most notable these days for having Mads Mikkelsen in it, but it's also really enjoyable across the board. Atmospheric, terrific characters, strong female lead, etc. And Fischer (Mikkelsen's character) has such great chemistry and slashiness with fellow detective La Cour.

Characters will be Allan Fischer and Thomas La Cour. movies_michelle idly mentioned the other day that she'd enjoy seeing them Undercover As Gay, and then my brain imploded (in the good way). She certainly knows the sort of thing that Dorindas enjoy! :D

I'm not sure about who else...probably Ingrid and IP, who'd be my next favorites. I do love Gaby (and her friendship with Ingrid) on the show but am not too interested in her in fic per se (although you know, she and Ingrid do seem well suited for femslash).

This reminds me, I should do a post or posts soon about Sinbad and Rejseholdet|Unit One! Just to give people a glimpse of the shows/characters, if they don't know them already (and with fandoms this small they very well might not). Because they are delightful and provide slashy goodness!


As for a third nomination, I'm not really sure. Almost Human, perhaps, although I'm thinking/hoping someone else might nominate it before I do? It's definitely nowhere near as small on AO3 as Sinbad and (especially) Rejseholdet|Unit One.

What else might I want to nominate so I can offer it, hmmm... Invisible Man? Peacemakers? Elfquest? Maybe one of my beloved movies, like Spy Game or The Sting?

SO MANY CHOICES. SO VERY MANY TEENY TINY SLASHY CHOICES.

Hello! We got matched! (Or you chose me for a pinch hit!) You're willing to write something in a tiny fandom of my heart, and I am delighted. If you already have an idea you want to write, go ahead and have fun with it. If more thoughts about my preferences would be helpful, ( here are some! )

If you're the sort of writer who'd like to hear a few more thoughts on my chosen characters, here are some details about my fandoms this year (in alphabetical order):( I Spy, Invisible Man (TV 2000), Peacemakers, Sinbad, Trapeze )

Have fun writing, and thank you! *\o/*

(P.S. When I say "other canon characters are welcome", I don't mean that original characters aren't welcome, because they are. Suit yourself!)

Hello! Welcome! And thanks for being my writer!

What I want most is for you to have a good time writing the story, so if you have an idea of your own, please do go for it. Optional Details Are Optional, and letter details are the most optionalest of them all.

But if it would be useful, here are some of my general preferences:

I prefer slash if I can get it, but for me slash doesn't automatically equal porn. For me it's about the depth of the bond between the characters, the discovery of a startling and unexpected intimacy. I like a subtle, nuanced, gradual approach, the characters getting closer maybe even despite themselves, and figuring things out as they go.

Some of the tropes and approaches I enjoy: happy or at least hopeful endings, words that camouflage deeper/unspoken meanings, showing over telling, extreme competence (but with honest weakness), characters with a protective shell that the other character finds their way into even just a bit, hurt/comfort, chosen families, partners against the world.

And here are further thoughts on the fandoms I requested, in alphabetical order...

( 1. I Spy )

( 2. Peacemakers )

( 3. Sinbad (TV) )

( 4. The Sting (1973) )