Yuletide 2025 Letter

[starfishstar]

Dear yule goat,

Hello! Thank you so much for writing for me! I look forward to reading whatever you create. :-)

Some general notes, then fandom-specific notes: 


General notes: I’m starfishstar on AO3 and on DW.

Likes: A focus on character interactions, be that friendship or romance or family. Found family dynamics. Humor and banter. UST (all the UST) as long as it resolves by the end. Happy or hopeful endings: angst and complexity are fine – I like stories that are realistic! – but I do need at least some degree of hope. Basically, if you love these characters, I'll love anything you want to write about them.

DNW: Just the big ones: please no major character death, non-con/dub-con, or graphic violence.

Treats: Very much yes please! (And btw I'm a big fan of the yearly Yuletide Madness Drabble Invitational. Any drabble treats will be accepted with great delight!) 



FANDOMS

Call Me By Your Name (2017)
Characters: any (i.e., any combination of Elio, Oliver, Elio's parents, and/or any others as well)

My Yuletide forever fandom, managing to squeeze into Yuletide for another year! 

I'll say pretty much the things I always say, because my love for these characters and this world never really changes: I find this film an achingly beautiful portrait of being on the cusp of adulthood and falling in first love, and what exquisite agony both of those things can be. Tell me any story of Elio/Oliver: the longing before they confess their feelings, the stolen moments once they’ve come together, the bittersweetness as the summer rushes to its close. Or tell me a story of after that summer, whatever your version is. (Do they stay together? Find each other again 20 years later? Something in between?)

I love Elio's parents, too, how they give him space to grow while also being there to catch him if he falls. I'd enjoy seeing their dynamic with Elio – or with Oliver. (I kind of headcanon that Oliver grew up with quite strict, stern, non-accepting parents, and getting to experience the warmth and understanding of the Perlman parents, even secondhand through Elio, is a balm to him – while also being baffling and perhaps overwhelming, because it's something he has no experience with.)

Fandom-specific DNW: Plot points/characters from “Find Me”; treating female characters dismissively (i.e., please either don’t include Marzia in the fic at all, or let her be a fully developed character in her own right).

"Jewltide" bonus prompt: I'm Jewish, and I love that these characters are Jewish and that it's part of what draws them to each other. For all that he has more hang-ups in other ways, Oliver is more confident and open in his Judaism than Elio's family is, and that's new and exciting for Elio. If you're Jewish, or can write about Judaism knowledgeably/sensitively, I'm always hungry for a fic that involves Judaism being an important point of connection between them. Celebrating a holiday or tradition together? Sharing favorite family foods? Discovering unexpected differences between the traditions they grew up with (Oliver in the US, Elio in Italy)? Or anything else that acknowledges their Jewishness as a shared identity and something that draws Elio to Oliver – there's a parallel there, of them being both queer and Jewish, and that both of those are identities that set Elio and Oliver somewhat apart from many of the other young people around them and also connect them more tightly to each other.



Soulmate Goose AU Suggestion - shitty-check-please-aus (Tumblr Post)
Characters: any

I am so tickled that this is a Yuletide fandom. I don't even know quite what to make of this fact, but I love it! Please do absolutely anything you want with the amazing concept of the Soulmate Goose AU. Crossover with another fandom, absolutely. Check Please! is the obvious one (and I adore Check Please!) or any of my other nominated fandoms, or really any fandom at all that you think would benefit from the addition of a soulmate goose (and truly, isn't that any fandom at all?). Or if you just want to explore some Soulmate Goose AU worldbuilding or Soulmate Goose POV...yes please! Or Soulmate-Goose-AU-specific OCs? I am here for all of it. OMG Soumate Goose AU FTW. 


Graceling Realm Series - Kristin Cashore
Characters: any (any of the nominated characters, or any additional characters)

I chose "any" characters, to leave you free to explore whatever you love most about this world! But if you want some ideas:

-- any combination of Bitterblue, Katsa, Po, Giddon, along with any others of their friends and supporters and chosen family. (For example: Helda!) I love these characters, how they banter and tease but are always looking out for each other. I love the big-sibling, little-sibling relationship Bitterblue has with both Katsa and Po, how she looks up to them, and is sometimes baffled by them, and wants to be close to them. How does their friendship evolve as Bitterblue continues to grow into her own person in her young adulthood? I'm also a big sap for Giddon's undying devotion to Bitterblue. And of course I'll always love Katsa and Po and their wild, glorious (and sometimes dramatic) mostly-shared life, how they go off on their own various adventures, but always find their way back to each other.

-- Giddon/Po – out of nowhere, a few years ago while diving back into canon as I wrote a Po & Giddon friendship fic, I found myself surprised by some seriously shippy feels for them. The period in Bitterblue (as in, the book) where Giddon learns Po's secret, and is incandescently furious with him, but they gradually work through it... How much more intense might that be (the Grace reveal and their subsequent falling out) if Giddon and Po's feelings for each other were more than platonic? (I love Katsa/Po undyingly, but for this Giddon/Po prompt I don't mind how you handle it; this relationship could be instead of the canonical Katsa/Po, or potentially it could be in addition, since Katsa and Po are implied to have an open relationship.)

-- Fire/Brigan, or Fire with anyone else in her world. I love Fire, and the arc of (sometimes painful) self-discovery she embarks on over the course of the novel, and the sacrifices and love she's able to give those around her despite everything she's been through. I think Fire and Brigan have an unbelievably gentle, mature, beautiful relationship – in some ways my favorite in the whole series, for the work they put in together to finally end up where they end up. I'm also always here for fics about Fire and her motherly relationship with Hanna!

-- Raffin/Bann – there can never be enough! We only get little glimpses of them and I want to know more about who they are, separately or together. Raffin, the reluctant future king, who doesn't want to rule but knows he should, because he'll be so much better than the alternative, his brutal father. And Bann, friend and confidante and lover to a future king... Can they ever be public about their relationship? How do they balance the equality of their partnership with the imbalance of their public roles? Or just give me happy Raffin/Bann content of any stripe :-)

-- Or surprise me by showing me the perspective of a secondary character I hadn't thought to fall in love with yet...but now I will.



John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme
Characters: Finnemore | The Storyteller (or any others!) 

I put "Finnemore | The Storyteller" as a requested character just because it seemed like a good starting point for matching with someone who's interested in roughly the same Finnemorean things as I am, but I'm not even tied to your fic necessarily including The Storyteller. If you want to do something else, go for it! 

I love the silly word play of Finnemore's faux-olden-timey tales. I love every glimpse into John Finnemore's amazingly creative brain. He's truly one of my favorite writers, in any genre – I love his humor and I love his kindness and I love the fiendishly clever and intricate complexity with which he constructs a plot. I will never say no to another "Since You Ask Me..." tale. At the excellent suggestion of someone on the nomination coordination station post, I nominated "The Sleepiest Member of the Storyteller's Club," figuring it could be fun to tell more tales about the bizarre traditions that go on at Finnemore's club. (Series 1 Episode 1, "It was the evening of the annual club game of Hey-Ho-Rumbelow, in which we line up six of the shortest member of the club, and attempt to knock them down with the fattest member. All without waking the sleepiest member...") I also threw Mr. Floofywhiskers in there, for some additional Storyteller-adjacent possibilities, and Patsy Straightwoman, because by definition she could fit in almost anywhere... But truly, do anything you want! It doesn't have to include the Storyteller. If it has even a glancing touch of Finnemorean sensibility, I will enjoy it unreservedly. :-)


Seraphina - Rachel Hartman
Characters: any (any of the nominated characters, or any additional characters)

It was a delightful surprise to find the Seraphina series still in the tagset this year. (I was one slot short of being able to nominate this myself.) The characters in the tagset are Seraphina, Tess, Glisselda, Kiggs, and Orma, and I will be delighted with any combination of these characters, or any of them with other characters as well. A few possibilities, if you want them:

-- I'm interested in Seraphina & Tess and their deep failure to understand each other. Now that they've each had a chance to grow and begin to find their footing in the world, might they be able to re-approach each other and find a way to really be sisters to each other? Feel free to also include Jeanne in this. So far at least, we've never gotten to see all three sisters find a way back to each other.

--  I will always want to know more about the Seraphina/Glisselda/Kiggs polyamorous triad that is very heavily hinted at, at the end of Shadow Scale. What is their daily life like, behind the royal facade? Where do they find little moments where they can just be themselves with each other, rather than royals and saints and public figures? Or just give me Seraphina & Kiggs & Glisselda bantering together in the behind-the-scenes of running a kingdom.

-- And I've always loved Seraphina & Orma, with their awkward, dragonish, but very loving familial bond. Orma is such a good uncle – he doesn't always understand Seraphina, yet he always looks out for her. Give me unreservedly happy endings for Orma?

-- Or any other characters (from all four books) who capture your imagination!


Boyfriend Material - Alexis Hall
Characters: any

I don't think I can even explain why I love this book so very much. It seems to hit my perfect sweet spot of being silly to the point of absurdity, yet also utterly earnest in the places where it matters.

Some favorite things: How Luc and Oliver are both complicated, messy people who mess up a lot of things in their lives but try really hard to do better...and to do right by each other. How the book treats its central relationship with care while also having maintaining an unhinged level of silliness that has me laughing out loud even on repeated re-reads. Alex Twaddle being so wonderfully, goodhearted-ly, posh-ly dumb. Luc trying to keep it together in the face of Alex being...how Alex is. Straight-laced Oliver and eccentric Odile somehow turning into great friends. Odile and Judy (and Judy's dogs), platonic life partners FTW! Give me all the romance and all the silliness. :-)

FWIW I would say I'm Husband Material agnostic – don't love it, but don't hate it. (Feels more like: I see what the author was trying to do, but I don't think it was executed very well. And I want better for Luc and Oliver than tired romcom plot devices like "get themselves into a massive pickle because for some reason they're suddenly incapable of talking honestly to each other for five seconds"...) So feel free to follow plots/facts from Husband Material, or follow your own headcanon post-Boyfriend Material, as you prefer!


Murderbot (TV)
Characters: any combination OR subset of Dr. Bharadwaj, Dr. Gurathin, Dr. Mensah, Murderbot – and other characters welcome as well! 

I requested the above four characters as the ones whose interactions most interest me, but you definitely don't have to include all of them! Any subset of them is welcome, as are additional characters (e.g., Ratthi, or Mensah's children). NB: I'm pretty much only interested in genfic ("&" relationships, not "/") for this fandom. And I definitely see Murderbot as asexual and very VERY not up for anything as squishy and gross as sex with humans. :-) (Oh, and please do use Murderbot's correct pronouns of it/its!)

Some of the dynamics that most interest me:

-- Bharadwaj & Gurathin – The gentle, caring friendship they have on the show really moves me. All those little touches, the times Bharadwaj leans on Gurathin for comfort or is there with an arm for support when he needs it. I don't read it as romantic, but rather a deep friendship that goes beyond even the need to talk about or define what it is. (Though I'm also not opposed if you want to find an organic way for them to hook up; this does seem like the kind of world where everybody potentially gets with everybody. I've read fics where Bharadwaj and Gurathin have sex, in a friends way more than a "and now we're a permanent couple" way, and I can see that happening. ...Bonus if Gurathin feels guilty, because he's afraid he's using Bharadwaj as a replacement for the unattainable Mensah, and Bharadwaj gently guides him to a more expansive view of what both love and sex can be...)

-- Murderbot & Gurathin – Endlessly fascinating, of course! The way they're foils to each other, seeing themselves as diametrically opposed only to have it become gradually, unavoidably clear as the season goes on that they're deeply similar in ways they're not terribly happy about admitting. The arc Gurathin goes through over the course of the 10 episodes, and the place of beautiful, understated, compassionate understanding these two reach by the end...! I don't even know if I have prompts to offer, just, these characters, as they are, and anything you have to say about them. 

-- Murderbot & Mensah – Murderbot and its favorite human <3 <3 <3 Excited to read anything about them! The mutual respect between them; the way Murderbot claims to find all humans irritating, yet comes to hold this particular human in such high esteem. The way Mensah offers Murderbot grace and understanding, and even genuine affection, before anyone else is ready to. Open to anything here – post-season-1 Murderbot sending back communications to Mensah as it goes off to check the perimeter? Interactions when they meet up again later?

-- Mensah & Gurathin – Yes, Gurathin has an unrequited love for Mensah that's approximately the size and weight of a planet, but I'm drawn to the possibility of them also finding a way to be true, deep friends in addition to that. Mensah and Gurathin grieving and processing together after Murderbot's abrupt departure?

-- And how about some bonus Ratthi? In the books, Ratthi and Gurathin are often shown being good buddies, hanging out together, haring off to join Murderbot on strange escapades together. That's a little harder to imagine with the show version of these characters (Gurathin having so much more weight of trauma and emotion attached to him, and Ratthi having his goofiness dialed up to 11) but I'd like to see it! Can you make a plausible case for show-version Gurathin and Ratthi being buddies?

And just to mention, the one character I'd rather not read about is Leebeebee. And I'm not much of a fan of the show version of Pin-Lee and Arada, so I'd be less inclined to read them as main characters, though obviously it's fine if they're present as part of the general mix of the whole PresAux crew!

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Yuletide Mini-Challenges: I love the whole concept of these and may have gone a little overboard opting in to just about every mini-challenge I could...
– Yuletide Madness Drabble Invitational: I love drabbles and find that sometimes great things happen when forced to work within such a constrained form. Feel free to write me a drabble (or multiple) in any of my fandoms! 
– MultiLingYule: Another perennial favorite; write me a fic in German or Icelandic?
– Unconventionyule: I don't think I'd seen this particular mini-challenge before, and I already love it. Surprise me with any kind of unconventional format in any fandom! 
– Queering the Tide: For Po/Giddon in the Graceling Realm series.
– Family Matters (for stories about siblings): Seraphina & Tess (& Jeanne) from the Seraphina series
– Chromatic Yuletide: Bharadwaj, Gurathin, and Mensah from Murderbot (TV)
– Femslash Festivus: Seraphina/Glisselda or Seraphina/Glisselda/Kiggs from the Seraphina series
– Three Turtle Doves: Seraphina/Glisselda/Kiggs from the Seraphina series
– Season’s Treatings: celebrating Chanukah, with Elio/Oliver from Call Me By Your Name (2017) (or any other fandom where you can make it make sense!)