back to life

I wrote two stories for Yuletide, one for icepixie and one for ineffabilitea, who both provided me with awesome prompts.

New York Is a State of Mind, but Cicely Is a Way of Life (6005 words) by Snacky
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Northern Exposure
Rating: General Audiences
Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Joel Fleischman/Maggie O'Connell
Characters: Joel Fleischman, Maggie O'Connell, Ruth-Anne Miller, Ed Chigliak, Chris Stevens, Marilyn Whirlwind
Summary:

In which Joel and and various Cicelians meet in a dream, a moose gives advice, Maggie's in denial, Ed visits the Big Apple with a purpose, and Joel makes his long-awaited return to the great state of Alaska.

From Angels Unaware (3961 words) by Snacky
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Virgins - Caryl Rivers
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Peggy Morrison/Sean McCaffrey
Characters: Peggy Morrison, Sean McCaffrey, Constance Wepplener Masters
Summary:

Peggy, Sean and Con meet up for a weekend at Virginia Beach, three years after graduation. But things are not the same.

When I was signing up for Yuletide, I was browsing the Dear Yuletide Writer letters, and I saw both of these requests, and immediately got inspired for both. I added both fandoms to my offer list, hoping I'd get matched with one. I figured it would be for Virgins, since there was only one request and one offer (mine).

Instead I got matched with icepixie and I was SO EXCITED to write the NX fic. NX was one of those shows I watched from the very first episode (it started airing in the summer of 1990, and I remember watching it when there was nothing else on, in my tiny apartment with no cable *g*) to the very last, and I loved every single minute of it. This was pre-internet for me, so all the fanfic I scribbled in notebooks has been (luckily) lost to the sands of time, but the minute I saw this request, I knew the story I wanted to write.

I wanted to bring Joel back to Alaska and revisit Cicely, check in with all the characters, and see what had changed and what remained the same. I wanted to write it like an episode of the show, with a main story and subplot, and I wanted all the character involved. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to write something that long (I am a slow writer, heh), so the B plot got scrapped, and the focus remained on Joel coming back to Cicely.

I was kind of nervous about how it worked, after cutting a big chunk of it, but I think it ended up okay! I got some really nice comments, and my recipient loved it, so in the end it was a success. One thing I added was a soundtrack, since music was such a big part of the show. I knew I was doing that from the beginning, and I really had fun with fitting it to the story.

So while I was in the middle of writing that, I saw ineffabilitea's requests come up on the pinch-hit list. I had been planning to write her a treat for Virgins, but when I saw the pinch-hit I jumped on it. Of course, then I panicked because I hadn't finished my first story yet and omg why did I pick up a pinch-hit, was I crazy? But I so wanted to write a fic for this tiny fandom of my heart. I had loved that book so much when I was young, and to find someone else who loved it too? I just wanted to share that.

So that fic came pretty easy, once I knew where it was going. I wanted to write something that fit with the tone of the book, that would sound like one last story for those crazy kids, and I think it worked. Sneaking in Sister Justinian was my favorite part, and that was based on something that actually happened to me, meeting an old (very old) teacher at the beach. :D

I have to thank lilydale for her Hem expertise, crantz for hosting the soundtrack, rthstewart for providing the Virginia Beach locale, and musesfool for her excellent beta work on both stories. I really suck at commas, and she whips me into shape. :D