Dear Yuletide Writer

11/11/08 - Letter is forthcoming. Letter is uh, verbose. Watch this post for updates.

11/13/08 - Um, hi, I'm running a stage production right now. It'll be over on Saturday. I promise I'll get something up by Sunday?

11/17/08--Hi, I suck at getting this out in a timely fashion! Uh, it's only a week late?

Here we go:

Dear Yuletide Writer,

I've essentially done my yuletide requests back to front from how I usually do them. You see, I love writing for yuletide but in past years I've been stumped for what to ask for, in a "wait, someone writes me things in this challenge?" way. So in the past I've requested fandoms not for their rarity or obscurity, but for their track record. I figured these fandoms (things like Bujold's Vorkosigan novels or Diane Duane's Young Wizards) had turned out good stories in previous years of yuletide, so someone could write a good story in the fandom again, and fandom would be better for it.

This year I, uh, decided to break the obscurity factor.

Of the three fandoms I've selected, two had never previously even been nominated for yuletide, and the third has, so far as I know, one story written for it, and I know because I wrote it for niqaeli in a previous yuletide. (After stacking my offer list to try to pull her requests, because I'm a dorkface.)

You should probably know that about me, if you're going to write me. Hi, I'm Juls. I'm a dorkface.

Anyway, this year, I'm requesting things that hardly anyone else has ever thought to request, because I want them and am unlikely to get them any other way--the original purpose of yuletide, so I hear, before people turned it into a ballbuster challenge of "spin the random request, acquire and write in a new fandom!" Because there is no track record for these fandoms, nor, one could say, fandoms for these sources, I'm instead trusting that if you have the good taste to have enjoyed the fine literature for which I've requested stories, then certainly you are up to the task.

I think I should here quote from a previous yuletide letter I wrote: in someone's commentary on the Etiquette of Yuletide, there was mention of the struggle some authors have between fulfilling exactly a detailed request, and writing a good story. It is my feeling that this should never be an issue. If you are struggling between writing a crappy story to my specifications and writing a good story that throws them out the window, for God's sake, write me a good story.

You can do it, Yuletide Writer. I believe in you.

The other thing I did backwards from how I've previously done requests is that I made the official sign-up a bit vaguer than usual, to give you, the writer, creative space. I figured if you wanted more detail you'd end up here, and I could provide. If you would like a list of stuff I like that is not fandom-specific, try this yuletide letter. Aside from the examples from that year's fandoms, it should still be accurate to my tastes. The most key line from it is things that pass Bechdel, because that was totally the theme of my requests this year. Self, I said last year, self, it is unreasonable in the extreme to ask for something that passes the DTWOF test when the canons for the fandoms you requested do not, and by and large you asked for stuff about male characters. So this year I rectified that, and something that passes Bechdel would be awesome.

If you would like to hear what I think about the fandoms I requested this year, pray, continue to read below the cut. (Oh, and everyone else who's not my writer: please feel free to get pimped into my tiny non-existent fandoms, so that when my totally awesome yuletide story gets posted, you will be able to read it and know what it's all about!)

( 1. Margaret Wander Bonanno - The Others novels )

( 2. Matt Ruff - Sewer, Gas and Electric )

( 3. James Schmitz - The Witches of Karres )

So, you know, I think that's all I have to say. I hope somewhere in the teal;deer was a gem of inspiration for you. I am excited about yuletide! I can't wait to read what you write me.

Love and kisses,
Juls

ETA: 12/2/08 I just saw my request list go by on the pinch-hit list... and go begging, because lo, my fandoms are tiny... I just want to say to whomever took the pinch-hit, thank you, thank you brave adventuresome person, I love you extra lots for taking my request on.