Dear Chocolate Box Writer

[partypaprika]

Dear Chocolate Box writer,

I’ve included some thoughts below on my preferences and fandoms. Please don’t stress too much if you’re inspired to write something else (although I’d prefer if you didn’t delve into my DNWs). I’ve given some specific prompts, but feel to take a general theme from my general likes if that’s more inspiring!

 

I'm not active on LJ/Dreamwidth anymore, although you're welcome to poke around here. I'm slightly active on tumblr and you can also check out my pinboard. I'm on ao3 as partypaprika.

General likes:

-Hurt/comfort

-Conflict

-Slow burn

-Pining and UST

-Sacrifices, especially if characters are making big sacrifices on behalf of someone that they care deeply about

-Angst (ideally ending in a HEA)

-Having dysfunctional relationships

-Enemies being forced (either directly or by circumstances) to work together

-Enemies to lovers

-Opposites attracting or coming to understand each other

-Marriages of convenience, fake dating, etc.

-People being thrown together in wildly unexpected situations

-Magical realism and magical powers

-Time travel, time loops, time do-overs etc.

-Modern royalty AUs

-Secret identities and identity porn

-Settings that have a sense of mystery: cemeteries, forests, abandoned temples etc.

-Epistolary and non-linear storytelling

-Canon divergence

-Mythology

-Hidden displays of affection

 

General dislikes:

-Major character death

-Noncon

-Incest

-Painplay

-Torture

-Humiliation kink

-A/b/o

-Dom/sub

-Mpreg

-Knotting

-Coffee shop AUs

-High school AUs

 

Kate Daniels Series

Canon: A ten book urban fantasy series (but it goes by super quickly!) that follows a PI in post-magical Atlanta where unreliable magic and creatures are the norm. She solves mysteries, kicks ass and has a past that she’s hoping stays there (spoiler: it doesn’t). She becomes involved with the local shapeshifter pack and their leader, Curran Lennart, also known as the Beast Lord (also known as a giant pain in Kate’s ass). The series introduces a fantastic cast of characters including Kate’s two proteges – Derek Gaunt and Ascanio Ferara who both have pretty difficult pasts.

Kate Daniels/Curran Lennart – I love Kate and Curran so much—they have such an amazing back and forth and they care so deeply about each other. I would love to see more of the cut scenes from when they were getting together. I love their banter and chemistry—give me more of the two of them flirting or fighting or making out (or all three!).

I also would love to see future events of the series like new case fic that Kate has to take on that she and Curran tackle together. Or, in a world with magic, what kind of crazy things (or rather more crazy) happen to them that they have to work through? Maybe one of them loses their memory or they’re reverted to their teenage selves. Or they switch bodies? It can be as fun and light or angsty and dark as you would like!

A few other prompts: Kate and Curran didn’t meet until much later—maybe during the Midnight Games, how does that go? I also love the two of them rescuing each other, so maybe is able to kidnap Curran and Kate has to come to his rescue.

Derek Gaunt/Ascanio Ferara – I love their incredibly acerbic and antagonist relationship. They’re both always trying to rile each other up. Everyone notices. At one point, Kate says when they’re being out of the norm: “Neither of them had belittled the other’s wit, fighting ability, or sexual prowess in the last half hour. If I were less badass, I’d be worried.”

I would love to see the banter hiding something deeper between the two of them. They always know how to get under each other’s skin—is that because they’re trying to make the other notice them more?

They also both have so many hidden facets—Ascanio comes off as so flippant at times but then he’ll turn around and be incredibly astute about someone’s emotions or identity. Derek has so much darkness in his past and Ascanio’s got some issues of his own—I’d love to see them emotionally stripped down and able to reassure and help each other.

A few other prompts: something is up in Atlanta and they both get roped into investigating (and end up making out while investigating). Undercover couple while investigating! A spell gone wrong means that they can’t be out of each other’s proximity—they drive each other crazy (and make out).

 

The Song of Achilles – Madeline Miller

Canon: A retelling of the life of Achilles and Patroclus through the eyes of Patroclus. From a rocky start, they grow up together and navigate the heavy weight of Achilles’s destiny, the attraction between them and the Trojan War.

Achilles/Patroclus – I absolutely love the intensity of their relationship and the weight of their feelings between them. I’d love to see what happens after the events of the book—what happens after their reunion in the underworld?

I would also absolutely be down for a reincarnation story or a completely AU story about the two of them. Do they meet in another life and find out who they are and what they mean to each other? There are also so many interesting AUs that you could do with them with other famous wars and battles or something completely unrelated to warfare: a celebrity AU or a mob AU where they’re both sons of mob bosses.

A few other prompts: I’d love to see a cut scene from their time up with Chiron or a stolen moment while they were camped outside of Troy. I’d also love to see a reunion with Briseis in the afterlife.

Guns of the Dawn - Adrian Tchaikovsky
Cristan Northway/ Emily Marshwic

Canon: It's a book about (kind of) napoleonic era land war, combined with the never-ending decimation of WWI, and then a dash of magic. The story focuses on a woman who watches as the war depletes her country's resources and men, ultimately getting drafted into the war effort herself where she must face what it means to be at war. This book nails some of my favorite tropes: competence, people being thrust into extreme situations, a slow burn romance that happened very organically. I loved it.

Cristan Northway/Emily Marshwic – I love the two of them so much. Emily, who changes from an idealistic and sheltered young woman to a pragmatic hero. Cristan, selfish and pragmatic, who falls in love with Emily (and later works to help her in what ways that he can). I love how opposite they think that they are, but how much they realize that they have in common.

I'd love really love more of just about anything post-canon with the two of them. I would love to see an exploration of what Cristan and Emily do after going back to town after the events of the book. How does Emily begin to reconcile her war self with her peacetime self and how does Cristan help Emily adjust, even as they both know that the war has irrevocably changed them and their relationship? They also will likely have to deal with confusion and censure over their relationship--Emily is the golden hero whereas Cristan is hated. How do they support each other when there are issues in public?

A few more prompts: Emily takes Cristan to meet the Survivor’s Club—how does that go? They decide to keep their romance hidden and meet in secret—how does that go? Emily is targeted by Denland for her war hero status, what do Emily and Cristan do?