lunabee34

Go HERE to read this year's entries (they're still trickling in).

And here's my entry:

The Grey and Tender Rain. I am once again holding on to my title of shortest story in the collection. LOL

Check out these awesome meta posts endeni made about Vala's character: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5. I've only read the first part so far, but this is really thoughtful meta with tons of citations from canon--a great resource on her character.

Thanksgiving week has been awesome. Mom and Dad are home safe. She didn't get sick while she was here at all, not even a weensy tummy rumble. Whooooo! And now I know exactly what to get her for Christmas (she's got to get rid of so many of her dishes, which frankly I think the tupperware that's older than me deserves a proper burial anyway). She just kept thanking me for being so attentive to detail and saying how comfortable she felt here and how grateful she was that I was willing to accommodate her new diet, and it all just broke my heart a little. I mean, what was I going to do? Poison my own mother? Sheesh.

Fi did so much playing outside yesterday that when Josh was doing her breathing treatment last night, she fell asleep. And then we couldn't wake her up to give her a bath or brush her teeth or give her any of her other medicine. LOL She slept through us putting on her pajamas and then slept for 13 hours straight. The very first thing she said to me this morning when I opened her door was, "Now I can run again!"

How has everyone else's week been?

I wrote Lost in Translation for green_grrl who requested people thinking J/D are a couple when they're not. I appear to have written the shortest fic in the ficathon. Let us all pretend it is because the story contains the soul of wit, yes? LOL

I received a wonderful story, The Red Sands of Bedrosia, written by the fabulous antares_dw. I requested that the story contain one change from canon, and Antares came up with a fascinating way to change the mission to Bedrosia (you know, the one where they all spend some time in cages being poked with cattle prods and the SGC adopts Brendan Gaul Nyan). You should check it out; it's definitely worth the read. :)

There are some other great stories in the ficathon, and more yet to be revealed. Get over to jd_ficathon and get your SG-1 on!

I hope you all enjoy the wonderful fanworks posted for this fest. I am so excited that so many people participated in so many creative ways. Thanks to everyone who played in the Gateverse sandbox this past month. Please let me know if I have inadvertently left anything off the master list, and everyone remember to leave feedback for these amazing works. :)

Fic

Hallmark Occasions by sallymn; SGA/SG-1; greeting cards for all your Gateverse occasions

Second Chances and its sequel A Year in the Future by tamoline; SGA; Kate/Elizabeth; reincarnation

One Big Happy Family by mific; SGA; McShep; OT4 Team; Everyone/Everyone; Warnings include character death and rape

Five Children Daniel and Hathor Never Had by lunabee34; SG-1; Daniel-centric gen; 500 words; drabble set

Here at the quiet limit of the world by cirque; SG-1; Cassie-centric gen; canonical character death

The Better Part of Valor Part 1 by Louisa; SGA; Teyla/Vala; Negotiation is just a more subtle form of thievery

Untitled Rodney-centric fic by sallymn; SGA, SG-1; response to the off-world festival prompt

Podfics

Podfics of 5 short fics: Here Is a Secret that Everyone Knows by Sabinelagrande, Slip the Surly Bonds of Earth by thedeadparrot, Booty by Arduinna, Quartet by GloriaMundi, and The (Almost) First Defenestration of Atlantis by Telesilla by mific

Rec Sets

SGA Kids, School, College, Pirates, Cowboys, Other Historical Settings, Dragons, Crossovers, and Sholio's Long Road Home Rec Set by leesa_perrie

Banners

Banners for the fest by mific

Art

and Teyla never, ever asked him to babysit again by busaikko; SGA; Radek babysits Torren

Custom Greeting Cards by leesa_perrie; greeting cards for those SGA occasions

Icons

SGA, SG-1, and Hallmark Occasions inspired icons by sallymn

Three SG-1 Team icons by mfirefly10

Tok'ra icons by roeskva

We're also helping to promote tokra_kree / tokra_kree which is holding signups beginning tomorrow through June 15th. Tok'ra Kree! is a Stargate challenge for Tok'ra-centric fanworks. Fic, art, and videos welcome as long as the focus is on the Tok'ra. Fanwork can be gen or any pairings. Any rating, any category including crossovers/fusions. Theme for Round Two: Rewrite an episode (SG-1, SGA, or SGU) to include Tok'ra.

The fest is over, but the prompts remain. LOL Please don't hesitate to use the prompt posts (DW Prompt Post / LJ Prompt Post) for inspiration at any point in the future. The more Gateverse, the merrier.

Random fills since my last progress report include:

One Big Happy Family by mific; SGA; McShep; OT4 Team; Everyone/Everyone; Warnings include character death and rape

Podfics of 5 short fics: Here Is a Secret that Everyone Knows by Sabinelagrande, Slip the Surly Bonds of Earth by thedeadparrot, Booty by Arduinna, Quartet by GloriaMundi, and The (Almost) First Defenestration of Atlantis by Telesilla by mific

and

Tok'ra icons by roeskva

I am writing about Daniel and Hathor's babies! It is glorious! LOL We still have more than half a month to create some awesome fanworks for the Gateverse, so join your fellow fans who have already filled a prompt.

Prompts located here: DW Prompt Post / LJ Prompt Post

I am beyond excited and gratified at the response to the fest so far. Check out the prompts on LJ and DW. I'm so pleased that all three franchises are represented as well as a variety of characters, genres, and scenarios.

We also have our first fills!!!!! I will, of course, link them all in the master post at the end of May, but the inaugural fills deserve special recognition. :)

First, three gorgeous banners made by mific under the cut:

( banners )

And Hallmark Occasions by sallymn for sholio's Custom Greeting Cards Prompt. Check out the awesome. :)

I'll continue to put the random spotlight on prompts and fills from now through the end of May. Thanks to everyone for kicking this fest off to a fantastic start.

100 Things Crowley Would Do Before the World Ended by Shewhoguards; Good Omens; long; PG
Just like all the best fics centered around Azriphale and Crowley, this one is funny, more than a little heartbreaking, and pretty much entirely about how this duo needs each other.

Cut and Fucking Paste by crimsonclad Trek Reboot; Kirk/Spock; short; R for language
This is really funny and a nice take on the whole "mindmeld opens up possibilties" for Kirk trope.

Light Unshone by liadan14 HP; Charlie/Draco; Adult; Medium
After the war, the Weasleys are grieving, Draco's trying to survive, and somehow Draco and Charlie find a way to make life after Voldemort work at a dragon preserve in the Scottish Highlands.

Close Enough by Helenish; HP; Harry/Ron; Adult; long
Nobody writes HP like Helenish. I wish Helenish wrote HP all the time. There is so very little Harry/Ron out there (which shocked me to my very bones when I first started dipping my toes in the HP waters), and this is such a fine example of how amazing that pairing can be. This is set after the War and features a relatively fucked up Harry and clueless Ron.

Careful Where You Touch by dira; SG-1; Sam/Vala; PG; short
Vala understands the rules that govern how she and Sam must behave in public, but the secrecy is sometimes painful. Vala and Sam come out to the team. Yay, teamfic!

If You're Quick, For a Kick, You Can Pick Up a Christening by executrix; Firefly; Mal/Simon; medium
This is wedding fic as only Exec could write it, laugh out loud funny and deeply sweet. Wash shrugged. “Good things get better, bad get worse. Wait, I think I meant that in reverse. If you have problems, it doesn’t take them away. And there are special separate problems. There was that whole you could set your watch by Mal getting hysterical thing, but I guess he can’t make a thing out of it considering that he’s marrying you. I guess if you do make an honest man out of him, that could be a problem, unless you have some smart vocational ideas?” Simon shook his head. “I can recommend the married state heartily,” Wash said. “I mean, when you first came here, I didn’t think of you as someone I’d want to spend the rest of my life with, but then, I’m not the one who has to. Also, when you’re married, they can’t make you testify against your…against the person you’re married to.”

Froodian Slip by executrix; Firefly/Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy XOVER; short
I've never read Hitchhiker's Guide, and this fic makes me wish I had because I know this story would be even more awesome. Exec has a gift for character voices and this fic is no exception. If you want some wry humor, this is the fic for you.

Stealth Nanny McPhee by ariadne; H50; Steve/Danny; short
I don't even watch this show and I'm in love with this story. If you like sweet and happy with awesome dialogue, you won't be disappointed.

in a shadowed forest by possibly_thrice; Good Omens; long; PG-13; pairings not listed by the reccer
Who wants to read the best Good Omens fic of ever? You do! P3 is probably the writer in fandom I am most jealous of. Everything she writes is absolutely pitch perfect in every way. The dialogue is always spot on; you can hear the characters speaking their lines as you read. The language is always gorgeous--beautiful imagery and turns of phrase, lovely detail, description so fine that you are immediately placed in the setting. I cannot think of another writer in fandom who so consistently turns out writing for which I can think of no descriptor but perfect. So this is what happens on the day the world ends, and it is by turns hilarious, haunting, cutting, heartbreaking, and full of wonder. Much like the story on which it is based. I feel like the runner ought to be sliding into home here, but I just want to reiterate how much I love P3's writing. From Discworld to Good Omens to Star Trek 2009, everything she writes is fascinating and interesting and achingly, achingly beautiful.

Syndicated Sci-Fi Show by cluadiapriscus; SG-1/SPN XOVER; Gen; PG; long
In the midst of "Changing Channels," the brothers Winchester find themselves on another planet with SG-1. This is really funny (and at times poignant). Because Sam and Dean think this is just another crappy and fake TV show they've fallen into, they can provide interesting commentary on the plotholes and general cheesiness our beloved show sometimes devolves into.

'Verse War Z Day 1: Firefly and 'Verse War Z Day 2: Sleeping Beauty by lyrstzha; Multifandom project
Lyr is doing this thing where she's bringing the zombie apocalypse down on all her fandoms, and it is glorious. The Sleeping Beauty one in particular is very finely done; I love Lyr's wry humor and the way she shows that what begins in even the deepest of love can be twisted and perverted to other ends.

Comrades in Arms by friendshipper; SGA; Rodney and Ronon-centric gen fic; G; short
Canon is really uneven in the way it characterizes the relationship between Rodney and Ronon. In some episodes, I get a wonderful vibe of teamy goodness in which it seems clear that they have deep affection and comraderie; in others, they barely seem to tolerate each other (and this is even without throwing in the whole love triangle with Jennifer). What I like about this story is that it bridges the gap between those two characterizations; it cannot deny that Ronon finds Rodney irritating and taxing at times but focuses instead on that loyalty and affection that is the foundation of their relationship. Lovely, lovely character work here.

Sea Change by penknife; Gateverse; G; gen; short
A look at the reactions of several characters (including O'Neill, Jackson, Lorne, and Sheppard) to the repeal of DADT. This is by turns sad, hopeful, bittersweet, and full of joy. This is the fic about the end of DADT that seems the most real to me, that seems to capture the mixture of fear, anger, and joy that the law's repeal must generate for gay soldiers. What I love most about this fic is that none of the characters are alone, none. Even the ones who choose not to come out do so within a support system of friends who care about them.

Visiting Hours by teand; SG-1; Cam-centric gen; G; short
This is teamy goodness at its best (Vala in particular shines in this fic). Cam is stuck in the hospital, and his team takes turns keeping him company. O'Neill even gets in on the action. Wheelchairs overwhelmed their occupants. You sat in a wheel chair -- in, not on. Cam thought the difference was telling. A person in a wheelchair lost their identity. They became merely the-person-in-the-chair. Cam had fought the chair with everything he had until he finally fought his way out. Here and now, he realized he could barely see the chair for Vala. Who was most definitely sitting on it. Vala Mal Doran had been a Goa'uld host for centuries. The wheelchair didn't stand a chance. Forget that the author is wrong about how long Vala was a host, and those are pretty much the best lines of ever.

Sting by abusing_sarcasm; Glee; Kurt/Karofsky; Adult; medium
Wow. Wow. Wow. This is a future fic set 17 years after they've all graduated high school. Karofsky's come to terms with his homosexuality and has become a successful FBI agent who's comfortable in his own skin. Enter Kurt, potential art forger extraordinaire, and suddenly Karofsky is dealing with both his guilt over the way he treated Kurt when they were kids and the attraction that has survived nearly two decades. This is a fun read, and I really liked seeing a grown up Karofsky who is able to understand his childhood motivations and to feel guilty for his actions without letting that define him.

There, There by charlottesometimes; HP; Neville-centric gen with a backdrop of Harry/Draco; Adult; medium
In this AU, Neville has never really found the confidence that grows from OotP to DH. He is consigned to waiting out the war with a Draco who may or may not be on their side. While he waits, everyone else does the thrilling heroics, and Neville becomes increasingly more isolated and alone. Neville isn't treated badly in this fic, per se, but he's dreadfully ignored by everyone. This is what Neville's life might be like if he remained that bumbling outsider--always longing and never having, not even reaching the point at which he might be rejected. This is very sad but ends on a nicely hopeful note.

I Never Promised You a Rose Garde by googlebrat; HP; Neville-centric gen; G; short
In this fic, Neville visits his parents after the war and sets the garden at St. Mungo's to rights. This is so bittersweet--a Neville who is resigned to his parents' condition and yet who is inexplicably hopeful that where any life remains, richness can once again be cultivated. I am a sucker for an Neville with his hands in the dirt and his feet on the ground and his heart on his sleeve. Absolute perfection.

Cultivating Trust by unbroken_halo; HP; Neville/Draco; medium; Adult
Again, here's a Neville who is in his element, who has been called by Narcissa Malfoy to heal the grounds of Malfoy Manor. I adore the magic in this story; it makes absolute sense to me that more than people are effected by magic, and I love the lengths that Neville goes to to protect Draco and Scorpius. Nice slow-building romance.

Say It With Flowers by swtalmnd; HP; Percy/Neville; medium; Adult
Neville woos Percy with the language of flowers. This is a Neville who is absolutely thrilled with his life and his work and absolutely besotted with Percy who is pretty disappointed with his life actually. The war is over and rebuilding the Ministry has turned out to be rather thankless. Enter a Neville who appreciates Percy for who he is, and what you have is a very sweet courtship fic--like a wonderful vanilla milkshake on a hot day.