Keep Hoping Machine Running (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
thefourthvine) wrote2016-09-28 01:07 pm
thefourthvine) wrote2016-09-28 01:07 pm
Entry tags:
Yuletide 2016: Dear Writer
Dear Writer Person,
Hi!
I am, as always, going to provide you with all the details, because that's what I hope to get from my recipient. But if details aren't your thing, please tap out of this letter now. Just know that I really, really cannot handle child or animal harm or death, and I love you for volunteering to write in one of these tiny fandoms. See you on the 25th!
Or, if you want to know more, read on.
Me
I love so many things! Here is a small sample:
So that's the general stuff. Let's talk fandoms.
Basketball RPF, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Larry Bird
Request: I -- genuinely think Magic Johnson and Larry Bird might have soulbonded at the NCAA Championship in 1979. They certainly went from zero to intense, eternal focus pretty damn quickly. So what I want to know is -- what happened? Where did it go from there? How does that work, when you're playing against each other, when one of you doesn't even LIKE the other, when you're such incredibly different human beings?
If you go with the actual soulbond, there are lots of interesting possibilities here - Larry fighting the bond, the way it affected them and their game, how it drove them to play. Or you could talk about how they finally accepted the soulbond and what it's like now, being comfortable with it and each other, years after the fighting and the struggle finally ended. Just, anything.
And if you take the non-soulbond route (which is of course entirely welcome; this definitely doesn't have to be a literal soulbond), just what IS going on? They have SOME kind of bond, that much is clear, and I'd love to hear what it's like: forever friendship, repeating reincarnation as people obsessed with each other, multiverse-spanning romance, whatever. I just want more about this intense *thing* they have going.
I'm good with gen, slash, and poly. Just please no straight-up infidelity. There's always gen, or unmarried AUs, or setting the sex before the marriage, or spousal knowledge and consent (my favorite!), or spousal involvement. Or something else you come up with! LET THE MAGIC (hee!) OF BIRD AND JOHNSON GUIDE YOU, basically.
Okay, I am a trifle concerned that my request makes me sound like an exceptionally weird tinhat. No! No! I am merely reporting the truth, which is that Magic Johnson and Larry Bird appear to have a real-life soulbond!
...That didn't help my case. But I have solid evidence. The documentary A Courtship of Rivals (YouTube link to full documentary, but you only need to watch the first ten minutes to see the literal discussion of the soulbond) could not be clearer. These guys are bonded in some way. And I just find that fascinating. You could not have two more different guys (unless, like, one of them was a Vulcan - SHUSH NO WRONG FANDOM). You could not have a more intense rivalry. And yet it's abundantly clear they have a ton of respect for each other, a ton of very genuine love for each other, and they know each other so well - every appearance I've ever seen them in has just been so great for that. We have Magic, dude who loves people, hugs, and fame, and Larry, dude whose basic approach to life is "go away and leave me alone because I have a lot of very important scowling to do," and they love each other, and that is the greatest thing to me.
Basically, I adore these guys. And I am riveted by their great and weird relationship. Anything you write about them navigating that relationship while being their extremely awesome selves will be wonderful.
And if you're up for pairing fic, I would love that, any rating.
To pick this fandom up, watch that documentary. Marvel at its dedication to pushing the soulbond storyline!
The Devil Went down to Georgia (song), Johnny/Devil
Request: Yeah, I want Johnny and the Devil to fuck.
But, I mean, I have a lot of excellent reasons that are extensively supported by the canon! Johnny’s got that ego, which is clearly bigger than Hell itself, and he’s got enough cockiness and attitude he could bottle it by the gallon and still have enough left to star in every Tom Cruise movie ever. I think the Devil would be into that, I really do. Also, I suspect that after the whole gold fiddle thing, the Devil spent a lot of time fantasizing about taking down Johnny, who is probably on the very short list of People Who Patronized The Devil And Got Away With It. Plus the Devil clearly has a pretty stressful job, with quotas to meet and tight deadlines, and he needs to let off steam from time to time. And, I mean, Johnny was willing to bet his soul against a fiddle made of gold – this is clearly a dude who is bored and really likes a challenge, and what better challenge than seducing the Devil?
I just – I listen to this song and I think, “These dudes should bang.” So. There we are.
When I told my lovely wife, Best Beloved, that I was requesting this, she said, “So ‘rosining up his bow’ is a metaphor?”
To which I said, “No, no! Not at all. It’s more like...foreplay.”
I mean, these two guys would clearly be up for a rematch, but they’ve already covered fiddle playing. So, hmmmm. What else could they do? Wait, I know! Let’s see who can make the other beg first!
Or whatever. I’m not saying it has to be that. No, no, let your imagination go wherever it takes you. I’m just saying that these two have unfinished business and my personal theory is that that business is going to end in a lot of sex, with Johnny besting the Devil (in some way – I think he’s probably got, um, some tricks up his sleeve) yet again. This is my hypothesis.
If you want to pick up this canon, it is a 3.5 minute song, available on YouTube.
Oh, and a possibly relevant footnote: I’m Jewish, and I have no personal religious beliefs relating to the Devil at all, so blasphemy is not going to be a problem here.
Mars Evacuees series - Sophia McDougall, Any
Request: I have so many potential ideas for this, I don’t even know where to start.
I’d love a future adventure for the Plucky Kids of Mars. How do they get back to space? (Because you KNOW they’re going back to space.) What happens in space? Do they ever meet an alien race and have it go really well? Do they ever go back to Mars? What’s their future look like? Who do they grow up to be? How do their adventures (and the books about them) affect them as adults? (Or this can be about any single Plucky Kid, too, if you like. Or just a few!)
I’d also love a worldbuilding story. I’d love to know what it’s like on earth if you’re not a Plucky Kid of Mars. Earth has clearly changed a lot. There’s still countries, but also a much more powerful planetary government, seems like? Valerie Muldoon has clearly been up to quite a lot of whack-a-mole science, so there are probably some fairly different varieties of humans. Also, there’s aliens living there now. What is it LIKE? I would love to know.
And this is probably the most out-there one, but I’d really love a look at Stephanie Dare, mother, one-time bank teller, space war hero, and fighter spaceship pilot. We know from the climax of Space Hostages, she is fucking badass. How did her life go? Like, how was it before the war, being a someone who had that fighter spaceship pilot yen in her and no real outlet for it? How did she get to be the space war hero and extreme badass that she currently is? That would be a fascinating story, and I’d love it.
Also, I love the Goldfish extremely, so a future encounter with it would also be super great, in any of these stories (or in its own adventure, if you prefer!).
Pairings: I am mostly gen here, but if you do the adult versions of the Plucky Kids, I’d love some Alice/Josephine.
Okay, so I read these books this year and LOVED them. Then I read them out loud to my kid and loved them even more. They’re space adventures! With science! And humor! There’s danger and heroism and greatness! It’s kind of like if someone took Robert Heinlein’s juveniles, removed all the boring, gross, sexist, racist, or badly written bits, and replaced the now entirely-empty book with a really good story along similar lines. It’s optimistic middle-grade space adventure done RIGHT.
I requested “any” because I really do mean ANY. I love every single character in these books (even if I am deeply worried about Dr. Muldoon’s apparent lack of ethics), except Rasmus Trommler. I love Carl’s boundless enthusiasm, Josephine’s keen brain, Alice’s determination, Noel’s kindness, Thsaaa’s seriousness. I also love Stephanie’s heroism and torn allegiances, Christa’s complicated face turn, Lena’s intelligence and spacetoaster love for her sister, Dr. Muldoon’s worrying approach to applied science, the Krakkiluks' deeply unfortunate romantic soliloquies, the rebel Emalas’ valor, and the Goldfish’s very sincere commitment to curriculum-aligned fun.
I love the way the books are realistic about how people work and how science works and how intelligent races as a whole work. I don’t think there’s a story that could be written in this canon that I wouldn’t want to read. (Unless, well, rocks fall and everyone dies, that kind of thing.)
So please do whatever you fancy with these characters. I just want morrrrrrrre of them, and space, and joy.
Murder Most Unladylike Series - Robin Stevens – Daisy Wells, Hazel Wong
Request: Please write the amazing continuing adventures of Daisy and Hazel!
I’ve been wondering about the fact that they’ll be coming of age during WWII, in England (I’m assuming Hazel will stay to finish her education at university); what do they do? Bletchley Park? Drive ambulances? Parachute into occupied territory and organize resistance units? Women in WWII is one of my interests, and obviously I adore Hazel and Daisy, so that would be a combination of delights for me.
Also, after the fourth book, I am definitely into the Daisy/Hazel pairing. I’d love to see them as adults, in university or after, figuring this out, navigating their relationship/friendship/whatever they end up having.
Most of all, wherever they are, I would love, love, love to see them still solving mysteries, detecting, and be their brilliant, dedicated selves. Mysteries at university! Mysteries at Bletchley Park! Mysteries in occupied France! Mysteries in small suburban towns! Mysteries when Daisy and Hazel go to visit Hazel's parents! Whatever setting you choose, in whatever part of their future you choose, I am here for it.
Okay, so, I have a special fondness for series that level up, and this series levels up AND HOW. Like, the first three are adorable middle-grade detection shenanigans, and then BAM along comes book four and just really complicates and deepens the whole thing. And it’s so great. Daisy and Hazel are at the age where people change and develop and grow as humans, and there they are! Changing and developing and growing as humans! I love that the author commits to that, and doesn’t let the characters or the series get stale. Book four is what tipped this series over from “fun read” to “NEED FIC NOW” for me, because – I’m trying to avoid spoilers here, but it’s sort of impossible, so this will be a bit spoilery – the developments with Daisy that Hazel documents without understanding them suggest that more development and change is coming, and I just really need to know how it ends up.
That, I think, is why I’m mostly interested in future fic for these two – I would love a glimpse of them as they people they’re becoming in canon. It’s going to be a hardish road to get there, I think, and so I want to flip to past the end of the series and see how it all ends up.
I love Hazel for her kindness, her honesty, her intelligence, and her ability to figure out the squishy human sides of things, as well as for her self-doubt and outsider feelings. I love Daisy because she’s so damn smart and so completely clueless at the same time – she can solve every puzzle except feelings, and that. That is my favorite.
Any of that that you can show me in their future, I will love.
Hi!
I am, as always, going to provide you with all the details, because that's what I hope to get from my recipient. But if details aren't your thing, please tap out of this letter now. Just know that I really, really cannot handle child or animal harm or death, and I love you for volunteering to write in one of these tiny fandoms. See you on the 25th!
Or, if you want to know more, read on.
Me
I love so many things! Here is a small sample:
- Happy endings. (Um, I mean of the everyone lives happily ever after kind. Although I am also a big fan of orgasms, not gonna lie.)
- Humor.
- Slow burn romances and slow build sex scenes.
- Action and adventure.
- Snappy dialogue.
- Classic fan fiction tropes, whether played straight or inverted. (Soulbonds! Werewolves! Bodyswap! Arranged marriages! Fake dating! Amnesia! And so on.)
- Families (found, biological, synthetic, hologrammatic, whatever) being good to each other.
- Robots, spaceships, aliens, space opera, military science fiction.
- Urban fantasy, magical politics, dryads in backwards Dodgers caps, parking spells, secret libraries full of Starbucks-sipping, bluetooth-headset-wearing magical theory students.
- People who have problems with feelings.
- Animal and child harm or death. These are my only deal-breaker squicks; I can't handle them at all.
- Embarrassment and humiliation.
- Rape.
- The abuse of women.
- Infidelity.
- Zombies or cannibalism.
- Character death or characters with cancer.
- Pairings with big power imbalances -- teacher/student, doctor/patient, huge age gaps, etc -- or a male/female power imbalance with the woman on the less powerful end.
So that's the general stuff. Let's talk fandoms.
Basketball RPF, Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Larry Bird
Request: I -- genuinely think Magic Johnson and Larry Bird might have soulbonded at the NCAA Championship in 1979. They certainly went from zero to intense, eternal focus pretty damn quickly. So what I want to know is -- what happened? Where did it go from there? How does that work, when you're playing against each other, when one of you doesn't even LIKE the other, when you're such incredibly different human beings?
If you go with the actual soulbond, there are lots of interesting possibilities here - Larry fighting the bond, the way it affected them and their game, how it drove them to play. Or you could talk about how they finally accepted the soulbond and what it's like now, being comfortable with it and each other, years after the fighting and the struggle finally ended. Just, anything.
And if you take the non-soulbond route (which is of course entirely welcome; this definitely doesn't have to be a literal soulbond), just what IS going on? They have SOME kind of bond, that much is clear, and I'd love to hear what it's like: forever friendship, repeating reincarnation as people obsessed with each other, multiverse-spanning romance, whatever. I just want more about this intense *thing* they have going.
I'm good with gen, slash, and poly. Just please no straight-up infidelity. There's always gen, or unmarried AUs, or setting the sex before the marriage, or spousal knowledge and consent (my favorite!), or spousal involvement. Or something else you come up with! LET THE MAGIC (hee!) OF BIRD AND JOHNSON GUIDE YOU, basically.
Okay, I am a trifle concerned that my request makes me sound like an exceptionally weird tinhat. No! No! I am merely reporting the truth, which is that Magic Johnson and Larry Bird appear to have a real-life soulbond!
...That didn't help my case. But I have solid evidence. The documentary A Courtship of Rivals (YouTube link to full documentary, but you only need to watch the first ten minutes to see the literal discussion of the soulbond) could not be clearer. These guys are bonded in some way. And I just find that fascinating. You could not have two more different guys (unless, like, one of them was a Vulcan - SHUSH NO WRONG FANDOM). You could not have a more intense rivalry. And yet it's abundantly clear they have a ton of respect for each other, a ton of very genuine love for each other, and they know each other so well - every appearance I've ever seen them in has just been so great for that. We have Magic, dude who loves people, hugs, and fame, and Larry, dude whose basic approach to life is "go away and leave me alone because I have a lot of very important scowling to do," and they love each other, and that is the greatest thing to me.
Basically, I adore these guys. And I am riveted by their great and weird relationship. Anything you write about them navigating that relationship while being their extremely awesome selves will be wonderful.
And if you're up for pairing fic, I would love that, any rating.
To pick this fandom up, watch that documentary. Marvel at its dedication to pushing the soulbond storyline!
The Devil Went down to Georgia (song), Johnny/Devil
Request: Yeah, I want Johnny and the Devil to fuck.
But, I mean, I have a lot of excellent reasons that are extensively supported by the canon! Johnny’s got that ego, which is clearly bigger than Hell itself, and he’s got enough cockiness and attitude he could bottle it by the gallon and still have enough left to star in every Tom Cruise movie ever. I think the Devil would be into that, I really do. Also, I suspect that after the whole gold fiddle thing, the Devil spent a lot of time fantasizing about taking down Johnny, who is probably on the very short list of People Who Patronized The Devil And Got Away With It. Plus the Devil clearly has a pretty stressful job, with quotas to meet and tight deadlines, and he needs to let off steam from time to time. And, I mean, Johnny was willing to bet his soul against a fiddle made of gold – this is clearly a dude who is bored and really likes a challenge, and what better challenge than seducing the Devil?
I just – I listen to this song and I think, “These dudes should bang.” So. There we are.
When I told my lovely wife, Best Beloved, that I was requesting this, she said, “So ‘rosining up his bow’ is a metaphor?”
To which I said, “No, no! Not at all. It’s more like...foreplay.”
I mean, these two guys would clearly be up for a rematch, but they’ve already covered fiddle playing. So, hmmmm. What else could they do? Wait, I know! Let’s see who can make the other beg first!
Or whatever. I’m not saying it has to be that. No, no, let your imagination go wherever it takes you. I’m just saying that these two have unfinished business and my personal theory is that that business is going to end in a lot of sex, with Johnny besting the Devil (in some way – I think he’s probably got, um, some tricks up his sleeve) yet again. This is my hypothesis.
If you want to pick up this canon, it is a 3.5 minute song, available on YouTube.
Oh, and a possibly relevant footnote: I’m Jewish, and I have no personal religious beliefs relating to the Devil at all, so blasphemy is not going to be a problem here.
Mars Evacuees series - Sophia McDougall, Any
Request: I have so many potential ideas for this, I don’t even know where to start.
I’d love a future adventure for the Plucky Kids of Mars. How do they get back to space? (Because you KNOW they’re going back to space.) What happens in space? Do they ever meet an alien race and have it go really well? Do they ever go back to Mars? What’s their future look like? Who do they grow up to be? How do their adventures (and the books about them) affect them as adults? (Or this can be about any single Plucky Kid, too, if you like. Or just a few!)
I’d also love a worldbuilding story. I’d love to know what it’s like on earth if you’re not a Plucky Kid of Mars. Earth has clearly changed a lot. There’s still countries, but also a much more powerful planetary government, seems like? Valerie Muldoon has clearly been up to quite a lot of whack-a-mole science, so there are probably some fairly different varieties of humans. Also, there’s aliens living there now. What is it LIKE? I would love to know.
And this is probably the most out-there one, but I’d really love a look at Stephanie Dare, mother, one-time bank teller, space war hero, and fighter spaceship pilot. We know from the climax of Space Hostages, she is fucking badass. How did her life go? Like, how was it before the war, being a someone who had that fighter spaceship pilot yen in her and no real outlet for it? How did she get to be the space war hero and extreme badass that she currently is? That would be a fascinating story, and I’d love it.
Also, I love the Goldfish extremely, so a future encounter with it would also be super great, in any of these stories (or in its own adventure, if you prefer!).
Pairings: I am mostly gen here, but if you do the adult versions of the Plucky Kids, I’d love some Alice/Josephine.
Okay, so I read these books this year and LOVED them. Then I read them out loud to my kid and loved them even more. They’re space adventures! With science! And humor! There’s danger and heroism and greatness! It’s kind of like if someone took Robert Heinlein’s juveniles, removed all the boring, gross, sexist, racist, or badly written bits, and replaced the now entirely-empty book with a really good story along similar lines. It’s optimistic middle-grade space adventure done RIGHT.
I requested “any” because I really do mean ANY. I love every single character in these books (even if I am deeply worried about Dr. Muldoon’s apparent lack of ethics), except Rasmus Trommler. I love Carl’s boundless enthusiasm, Josephine’s keen brain, Alice’s determination, Noel’s kindness, Thsaaa’s seriousness. I also love Stephanie’s heroism and torn allegiances, Christa’s complicated face turn, Lena’s intelligence and spacetoaster love for her sister, Dr. Muldoon’s worrying approach to applied science, the Krakkiluks' deeply unfortunate romantic soliloquies, the rebel Emalas’ valor, and the Goldfish’s very sincere commitment to curriculum-aligned fun.
I love the way the books are realistic about how people work and how science works and how intelligent races as a whole work. I don’t think there’s a story that could be written in this canon that I wouldn’t want to read. (Unless, well, rocks fall and everyone dies, that kind of thing.)
So please do whatever you fancy with these characters. I just want morrrrrrrre of them, and space, and joy.
Murder Most Unladylike Series - Robin Stevens – Daisy Wells, Hazel Wong
Request: Please write the amazing continuing adventures of Daisy and Hazel!
I’ve been wondering about the fact that they’ll be coming of age during WWII, in England (I’m assuming Hazel will stay to finish her education at university); what do they do? Bletchley Park? Drive ambulances? Parachute into occupied territory and organize resistance units? Women in WWII is one of my interests, and obviously I adore Hazel and Daisy, so that would be a combination of delights for me.
Also, after the fourth book, I am definitely into the Daisy/Hazel pairing. I’d love to see them as adults, in university or after, figuring this out, navigating their relationship/friendship/whatever they end up having.
Most of all, wherever they are, I would love, love, love to see them still solving mysteries, detecting, and be their brilliant, dedicated selves. Mysteries at university! Mysteries at Bletchley Park! Mysteries in occupied France! Mysteries in small suburban towns! Mysteries when Daisy and Hazel go to visit Hazel's parents! Whatever setting you choose, in whatever part of their future you choose, I am here for it.
Okay, so, I have a special fondness for series that level up, and this series levels up AND HOW. Like, the first three are adorable middle-grade detection shenanigans, and then BAM along comes book four and just really complicates and deepens the whole thing. And it’s so great. Daisy and Hazel are at the age where people change and develop and grow as humans, and there they are! Changing and developing and growing as humans! I love that the author commits to that, and doesn’t let the characters or the series get stale. Book four is what tipped this series over from “fun read” to “NEED FIC NOW” for me, because – I’m trying to avoid spoilers here, but it’s sort of impossible, so this will be a bit spoilery – the developments with Daisy that Hazel documents without understanding them suggest that more development and change is coming, and I just really need to know how it ends up.
That, I think, is why I’m mostly interested in future fic for these two – I would love a glimpse of them as they people they’re becoming in canon. It’s going to be a hardish road to get there, I think, and so I want to flip to past the end of the series and see how it all ends up.
I love Hazel for her kindness, her honesty, her intelligence, and her ability to figure out the squishy human sides of things, as well as for her self-doubt and outsider feelings. I love Daisy because she’s so damn smart and so completely clueless at the same time – she can solve every puzzle except feelings, and that. That is my favorite.
Any of that that you can show me in their future, I will love.
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(Also, Letterman is super engaged but also letting them go.)
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I can really see why you were so captured by them. They're super passionate and composed, but in such different ways. I really loved listening to them talk about the ways they related in competition, but then the different ways their friendship developed. It was so familar but also so personal.
Also, if the documentary doesn't talk about Johnson's first meeting with Bird's mom, you should definitely find that clip.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghKHK0br8cE
(this one has worse video quality but possibly better sound? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-_XhuzIrqY -- edit: actually no the sound goes funny briefly in the middle)
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YES
YES
DAISY
YES
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(It is KILLING ME that I cannot get the new short story. I curse publication restrictions.)
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(Anonymous) 2016-09-30 12:07 am (UTC)(link)no subject
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(Anonymous) 2016-10-03 12:10 am (UTC)(link)no subject
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Hmmmm. Vids. Fic. Yes, I should go look for these things for Lucifer, clearly.
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(Anonymous) 2016-10-11 07:18 am (UTC)(link)no subject
Here is what I had for the fandom, in case you feel inspired!
Request: There are so many stories that would delight me in this fandom. I would adore some worldbuilding – what was the deal with supers before the lawsuits? Clearly they worked for some kind of government agency, since the government covered their lawsuit costs and helped them disappear, but what agency? Why? What did the recruiting and training process look like? And if that was how it was in the US, what was it like in other countries? What is this super-y world even like? We get glimpses, but I’d really love some details. If you go this route, no need to use my requested character at all.
OR I would love fic about Helen’s pre-canon life. Helen clearly has a military background (given the stuff she says when she’s flying) and pilot training (given the stuff she does when she’s flying), so – how did that happen, exactly? She doesn’t seem that old in the bits at the start of the movie, but she’s clearly had quite a lot of life already. And something made her better able to give up being a super and hide who she is, even though she is AMAZING at supering. (I am always stunned by how well she uses her powers and how good she is at the whole superhero gig.) I just want to know MORE.
Okay, so one of the things about being a parent is that you watch certain things over and over and over. My son has gone through not one but TWO Incredibles phases, and as a result I have spent many, many hours of my life watching the movie. And it holds up! It does! Pretty much! Except I find myself wondering about the world it’s set in. There’s insufficient worldbuilding. (This is essentially my feeling about every single canon that has ever existed. I really love worldbuilding.) And since the wondering intensifies with each viewing, that is QUITE SOME WONDERING at this point.
I’m pretty flexible in terms of characters. If you go the worldbuilding route, almost any character is fine. So if you’d rather tell me the story of how superheroes are recruited, trained, and handled with Frozone, go for it! If you want to tell the story from Mr. Dicker’s perspective, do that thing! Basically feel free to pick whoever you want, except Bob. I like Bob! I do! I just have spent so very much time watching him, and honestly I feel I have adequately experienced his perspective already.
If you go the Helen backstory route, obviously Bob is either on the horizon or already there, and that is entirely fine with me. My love for Helen extends to her entire life and everyone in it, so include whoever the heck you want and I will be delighted.
Mostly, no matter what you write, I’m hoping to get some of the details the movie leaves out. (There’s so many of them!)
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(Anonymous) 2016-10-13 02:28 am (UTC)(link)no subject