Day 19: 19 favorite fics
Feb. 23rd, 2011 01:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fluffernutter8This was the hardest one ever. I cannot even tell you how much I cut out, even with the bits of cheating I did. I hope all the links work. Comment if they don't. Also, most of the fics tend to fall into certain shippy patterns. What can I say, I'm a shipper at heart.
Harry Potter was my first fandom, but very few fics really had an impact like this one did.
1. The Test of Time by Alchemilla (links don't seem to want to embed for this and it took me two hours to try to figure out that it was their fault that I couldn't post this last night when I wanted to. Sorry about that.)
This was my first fanfic. WAY too old for me, but 11-year-old me didn't know that. Looking back on it, if this hadn't been a good fic- which I still think it is, seven years later- I probably wouldn't have gotten into fic. It's really not up to date (it goes off canon after Goblet of Fire) but I like the way the character's lives turn out (it's actually weird that this was Harry/Ginny before Harry/Ginny was really a thing at all) and even though the wizarding world is a little dark, it all turns out okay. Even though it took forever for it to be done.
Also check out Memento Mori, Anything's Possible, and the works of little0bird.
Buffy fanfic is kind of my passion. I find it easiest to write, and there's really a lot to read. It's amazing to me that years after Buffy ended, there's still fantastic fic being written. Here I tried to have a good mix of old and new, some oneshots and some chapterfic, fluff and angst. The one thing is that they are all B/A cause they're my OTP. Other ships are dealt with, but that's the main one.
2. Bittersweet Legacy by Vatrixsta Cruden
Buffy as a vampire fic can suck, it can be truly terrible. This one is amazing. It starts off with something horrible occurring, there's more horrible stuff in the middle, but between there's amazing characterization and dialog. I love Buffy and Angel in here. (Also everyone else, in their OMG so random orgies of pairings.)
3. Demangent by Ducks (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
theantijoss) and Vatrixsta (jade_okelani)
Guys, it's Buffy and Angel being best friends and honest with each other. I LOVE THAT. This fic, by two of the best, most prolific B/A writers ever, makes me laugh, plus it's really hot (and it's not the New Orleans). It just makes me really happy to read.
4. Swan Song by AriaAdagio (Diane)
This is my favorite post-Gift fic. Angel's pain kills me every single time. The first few times I read it there were actual tears. Since we didn't actually see very much, this is what I assume happened after the fade out end of ATS S2. (Although judging by his reaction and behavior the next season...never mind that now.) Especially since this ends up with a happy, Buffy/Angel ending. After all the hurt and the trouble- not just in here, but in canon- they deserve it.
5. Harpy's fic (I decided that all her fic is connected because, existing in the same verse, it's basically a series. Also, it would have made me chew off all my nails to have to decide between them)
She's basically my queen of B/A fic. I love her Angel- wise, poetic, heroic even though he always blames himself for his mistakes, never forgetting that he's over two hundred years old, as many, even the writers sometimes do- and her brave, smart, thoughtful, responsible Buffy. Her Giles, her Willow, her Xander are true to the show, but somehow give off a nicer vibe. The way she uses commas (sometimes as a substitute for a period) would annoy me with any other writer, but for some reason she just makes it beautiful. Reading her work makes me want to curl up in her prose and her 'verse.
6. Ten Observations on Being in Love with a Human-kairosimperfect
I named myself "Fluffernutter" not because I enjoy peanut butter and far too sticky deformed marshmallows, but because I love fluff. Especially for Buffy and Angel, who deserve it after everything they've been through. But while I love shameless, married-with-children, just plain happy fluff, my favorite is fluff tempered with reality, the fluff that acknowledges and embraces the troubles of the past, but shows how they are overshadowed by a joyous, normal (or nearly normal) present. This is the perfect story for that. It's a real life with real problems, but it's a sweet one.
7. Shadow of a Dream by Molly
Just a warning: this is unfinished, much to my annoyance. That said, this is the way I would have wanted S6/S3 to go. Buffy gets healthier, she's adorable with Connor, she and Angel get to be in a functional relationship and the LA and Sunnydale gangs mend fences amongst themselves and bond together to fight evil. Even characters who I didn't love during this season- Cordelia, Spike, Xander- get a second chance here. It ends with an awful cliffhanger (no, really, I could basically feel the ground slipping from beneath me as I saw that "To be continued..." at the end) but until then, it's really great with characterization and fixing the season. (We can debate whether or not the season needs fixing another time.)
8. Domestication by Indie
This is an AU of epic proportions. A full other world, that at the same time is still connected to ours. Favorite characters and minor ones show up in different ways, and as always, Buffy and Angel's love conquers all.
For more amazing B/A fic, check out the Sublime and IWRY archives, at least for starters. And if you want more, leave me a comment and I'll try to get you set.
Bones is my favorite show. There has not been a single episode where I can't find one redeeming quality. But I stopped reading- or even looking for- fanfic. It's still on, still popular, so there's a lot of fic out there, and a very small percentage of that is good. So even though it's my favorite show, there are proportionally fewer fics that I love, especially from the past, like, three years.
That's not saying that there is no good fic. There is, if you look.tempertemper recs some great ones. Anything by ama_blue, billpickle, obrien_blue, zerodetorres...they're great, and so is_missmargaret_, who I've recced below.
9. You're Lovely to Me by bertie456
I love this because it's exactly the kind of style I would (and tried to) write, with each chapter based on a random prompt, but it's written much better than I ever could. The characters are right on target, and I've actually absorbed pieces of it as part of my personal canon. Every time I watch Mummy in the Maze, I think of chapter 27 and the 911 operator. Each chapter is unique, ranging from humor to angst, but they're each worth reading. And even though it hasn't been updated in a while, the oneshot nature means that it's not a problem.
10. pour a little salt we were never here and Somehow We're Always Waiting by_missmargaret_
I put these two together because it would kill me if they were separate. It's an amazing, gutting look into what would have happened with a minor change in the plot of season 3. After reading this, I'm unendingly glad that it didn't happen. I am actually am afraid that this might have happened because Margaret makes it so accurate, makes everyone's choices so them and everyone's voices so clear and fitting that I actually hear the characters in my head. And I always thank whoever is on her playlist at the time for inspiring her to write such gorgeous prose.
Veronica Mars is one of my latest fandoms, but the fic is excellent and there are a million archives and challenge comms. I love the Veronica Mars characters and I love seeing more of them.
11. Full Circle bygertinator
As much as I love abused, screwed up, trying so hard Logan (defensive, closed off Veronica I don't like as much, but what can you do?) I also love, therapized, less screwed up Logan. The AA scenes in here are some of my favorites, but I also love Felicia, Keith and nice!Trina. The case is well arced, and it all comes (don't tell me you don't see this joke coming...) full circle. I also include here the WIP sequel Triangulations because Logan and Veronica being happy and stable and doing good deeds while still snarking makes me smile. Also Duncan being totally shut down? Awesome.
12. Nightfall byutsusemia
This is bookmarked on my firefox as “Nightfall- Tissue warning!!!" This is what I hope doesn't happen to Logan and Veronica (dealing with issues, happy wedding and some undoubtedly adorable children is basically what I hope for all my ships) but what I can see happening. These two break up, but always come back to each other. I don't want to give anything away, but let me just say that there's Japanese poetry, nostalgia, cancer and that my tissue warning isn't in vain. (Seriously, I had to stop reading because I was afraid that my tears would short out my laptop.)
13. Like a Rolling Stone [1] [2] byannie_oakley
I kept getting linked to this from different rec lists and communities, and kept thinking that although The Time Traveler's Wife is one of my favorite books and Veronica Mars is one of my favorite shows, I was sure that there was no way that the two could meet in a way deserving of all the fuss. But then finally I just gave in and decided to give it a try.
The fuss was well deserved. The writing style is extremely reminiscent of Niffenger's in the original while remaining true to the bicker and banter style of Logan and Veronica. I find the idea of Logan and young Veronica very charming, while at times it's just painful (mean!Logan after Lilly's murder, while older Logan comes to visit...salt, meet wound. I think you'll be great friends). There are many moments that I love and could mention and basically quote, but I don't want to spoil.
14. King Among Runaways bytmt_catalyst
I have a weakness for “what if Lilly never died” fic (also “Logan and Veronica liked each other before Lilly died” fic) as long as LoVe happiness wins anyway. This is a great one for that. It's got casually snarky Logan and V, Wallace...and it's well written too.
There's a theme in this kind of AU fics where Lilly sends our lovely duo to couplehood with her happiest blessings. I think it was probably more in her character to get annoyed that Logan, “her boy,” is happily moving on so quickly, and to try to get him back, which is what happens here. It's still a WIP, but it was update in September, which isn't so long ago as to give up hope.
15. I'm the Hero of the Story [1] [2a] [2b] bymonroeslittle
I just read this the other day, but it was so good that it made it on the list fast. I'm not usually a huge fan of amnesia fics (mostly they tend to come out really cheesy and people who were strong before become weak) but this one is good because:
a. it's well written. The dialog isn't all “oh no, I can't remember things! Significant other, please hold me even though in my current state, I don't really remember you! No, I got a memory flash! No, I don't really like you! No, I really love you!” I like the short sentence style and the little paragraphs.
b. Logan is really good and really well balanced.
c. It gives Veronica an opportunity to step back and take a look at herself and her life. Here we (and she) sees what she could have been without Lilly's influence, and while there are good parts, there are also bad. And it gives her a chance to correct the bad parts of her the way she was before.
d. Keith and Wallace's desperation is well shown and realistic.
e. Piz gets shown up. I stuck out my tongue and did a little victory dance.
f. Lilah.
g. Happy ending of happiness.
16. Wreck of the Day bylit_chick08
I read and reread this around six times in two days. I think Veronica is spot-on, trying to be normal and move on, and I love Logan like this because I think that he absolutely would give anything to help a child, especially one who was half Veronica. (I generally have quite a positive view of my characters, particularly my abused boys.) I could be happy with just the last few scenes, but the torment at the beginning and Keith's resistance are very well done. But it ends up on a happy note, which I love, and Logan is awesome.
17. Snapshot bycrimsonclad
This fic makes me unbelievably happy. Logan and Veronica without angst, not even the little residual reminders that so often haunt even their fluff, but without losing themselves. The outline and premise are creative and original, and written in a way that pulls back for parts and zeroes in and makes you go "awww" for others. When I readsynful_trixxie's Finite Erasure- which killed me dead adn made me want to vomit a little, and not necessarily in a good way, even though it's a fantastically written fic- and couldn't get to sleep, this is what put me out with a smile on my face.
I have a million and six more recs for VM right now because I'm on a huge fic kick, so leave it in comments if you want more.
I loved Gilmore Girls, but the ending makes me upset. Fic has a lot of uses: fun little ins to people's heads, missing scenes, character studies. In this case, fic is used to show what should have been.
18. Ode to the Avocado by cuppa joe
I really like Rory/Logan and the end of GG TOTALLY screwed them over. This kind of fixes everything, but not in a “Rory and Logan meet at some journalist convention and fall in love all over again and all the problems go away” sense. The writing is funny, everyone is in character and it brings you the same up and down roller coaster of the show, just with a less heartbreaking payoff.
19. Lorelai's Heart by cuppa joe
The Rory here is more cold than I usually like her to be, but writing in a diary and the fear of relationships are very in character. Her conflict is tearing and painful, and communicated in a way that reminds me of a good old fashioned Rory rant. Logan is fantastically sweet and then sympathetic and I just want to hug him.
Harry Potter was my first fandom, but very few fics really had an impact like this one did.
1. The Test of Time by Alchemilla (links don't seem to want to embed for this and it took me two hours to try to figure out that it was their fault that I couldn't post this last night when I wanted to. Sorry about that.)
This was my first fanfic. WAY too old for me, but 11-year-old me didn't know that. Looking back on it, if this hadn't been a good fic- which I still think it is, seven years later- I probably wouldn't have gotten into fic. It's really not up to date (it goes off canon after Goblet of Fire) but I like the way the character's lives turn out (it's actually weird that this was Harry/Ginny before Harry/Ginny was really a thing at all) and even though the wizarding world is a little dark, it all turns out okay. Even though it took forever for it to be done.
Also check out Memento Mori, Anything's Possible, and the works of little0bird.
Buffy fanfic is kind of my passion. I find it easiest to write, and there's really a lot to read. It's amazing to me that years after Buffy ended, there's still fantastic fic being written. Here I tried to have a good mix of old and new, some oneshots and some chapterfic, fluff and angst. The one thing is that they are all B/A cause they're my OTP. Other ships are dealt with, but that's the main one.
2. Bittersweet Legacy by Vatrixsta Cruden
Buffy as a vampire fic can suck, it can be truly terrible. This one is amazing. It starts off with something horrible occurring, there's more horrible stuff in the middle, but between there's amazing characterization and dialog. I love Buffy and Angel in here. (Also everyone else, in their OMG so random orgies of pairings.)
3. Demangent by Ducks (
theantijoss) and Vatrixsta (jade_okelani)Guys, it's Buffy and Angel being best friends and honest with each other. I LOVE THAT. This fic, by two of the best, most prolific B/A writers ever, makes me laugh, plus it's really hot (and it's not the New Orleans). It just makes me really happy to read.
4. Swan Song by AriaAdagio (Diane)
This is my favorite post-Gift fic. Angel's pain kills me every single time. The first few times I read it there were actual tears. Since we didn't actually see very much, this is what I assume happened after the fade out end of ATS S2. (Although judging by his reaction and behavior the next season...never mind that now.) Especially since this ends up with a happy, Buffy/Angel ending. After all the hurt and the trouble- not just in here, but in canon- they deserve it.
5. Harpy's fic (I decided that all her fic is connected because, existing in the same verse, it's basically a series. Also, it would have made me chew off all my nails to have to decide between them)
She's basically my queen of B/A fic. I love her Angel- wise, poetic, heroic even though he always blames himself for his mistakes, never forgetting that he's over two hundred years old, as many, even the writers sometimes do- and her brave, smart, thoughtful, responsible Buffy. Her Giles, her Willow, her Xander are true to the show, but somehow give off a nicer vibe. The way she uses commas (sometimes as a substitute for a period) would annoy me with any other writer, but for some reason she just makes it beautiful. Reading her work makes me want to curl up in her prose and her 'verse.
6. Ten Observations on Being in Love with a Human-
kairosimperfectI named myself "Fluffernutter" not because I enjoy peanut butter and far too sticky deformed marshmallows, but because I love fluff. Especially for Buffy and Angel, who deserve it after everything they've been through. But while I love shameless, married-with-children, just plain happy fluff, my favorite is fluff tempered with reality, the fluff that acknowledges and embraces the troubles of the past, but shows how they are overshadowed by a joyous, normal (or nearly normal) present. This is the perfect story for that. It's a real life with real problems, but it's a sweet one.
7. Shadow of a Dream by Molly
Just a warning: this is unfinished, much to my annoyance. That said, this is the way I would have wanted S6/S3 to go. Buffy gets healthier, she's adorable with Connor, she and Angel get to be in a functional relationship and the LA and Sunnydale gangs mend fences amongst themselves and bond together to fight evil. Even characters who I didn't love during this season- Cordelia, Spike, Xander- get a second chance here. It ends with an awful cliffhanger (no, really, I could basically feel the ground slipping from beneath me as I saw that "To be continued..." at the end) but until then, it's really great with characterization and fixing the season. (We can debate whether or not the season needs fixing another time.)
8. Domestication by Indie
This is an AU of epic proportions. A full other world, that at the same time is still connected to ours. Favorite characters and minor ones show up in different ways, and as always, Buffy and Angel's love conquers all.
For more amazing B/A fic, check out the Sublime and IWRY archives, at least for starters. And if you want more, leave me a comment and I'll try to get you set.
Bones is my favorite show. There has not been a single episode where I can't find one redeeming quality. But I stopped reading- or even looking for- fanfic. It's still on, still popular, so there's a lot of fic out there, and a very small percentage of that is good. So even though it's my favorite show, there are proportionally fewer fics that I love, especially from the past, like, three years.
That's not saying that there is no good fic. There is, if you look.
tempertemper recs some great ones. Anything by ama_blue, billpickle, obrien_blue, zerodetorres...they're great, and so is_missmargaret_, who I've recced below.9. You're Lovely to Me by bertie456
I love this because it's exactly the kind of style I would (and tried to) write, with each chapter based on a random prompt, but it's written much better than I ever could. The characters are right on target, and I've actually absorbed pieces of it as part of my personal canon. Every time I watch Mummy in the Maze, I think of chapter 27 and the 911 operator. Each chapter is unique, ranging from humor to angst, but they're each worth reading. And even though it hasn't been updated in a while, the oneshot nature means that it's not a problem.
10. pour a little salt we were never here and Somehow We're Always Waiting by
_missmargaret_I put these two together because it would kill me if they were separate. It's an amazing, gutting look into what would have happened with a minor change in the plot of season 3. After reading this, I'm unendingly glad that it didn't happen. I am actually am afraid that this might have happened because Margaret makes it so accurate, makes everyone's choices so them and everyone's voices so clear and fitting that I actually hear the characters in my head. And I always thank whoever is on her playlist at the time for inspiring her to write such gorgeous prose.
Veronica Mars is one of my latest fandoms, but the fic is excellent and there are a million archives and challenge comms. I love the Veronica Mars characters and I love seeing more of them.
11. Full Circle by
gertinator As much as I love abused, screwed up, trying so hard Logan (defensive, closed off Veronica I don't like as much, but what can you do?) I also love, therapized, less screwed up Logan. The AA scenes in here are some of my favorites, but I also love Felicia, Keith and nice!Trina. The case is well arced, and it all comes (don't tell me you don't see this joke coming...) full circle. I also include here the WIP sequel Triangulations because Logan and Veronica being happy and stable and doing good deeds while still snarking makes me smile. Also Duncan being totally shut down? Awesome.
12. Nightfall by
utsusemiaThis is bookmarked on my firefox as “Nightfall- Tissue warning!!!" This is what I hope doesn't happen to Logan and Veronica (dealing with issues, happy wedding and some undoubtedly adorable children is basically what I hope for all my ships) but what I can see happening. These two break up, but always come back to each other. I don't want to give anything away, but let me just say that there's Japanese poetry, nostalgia, cancer and that my tissue warning isn't in vain. (Seriously, I had to stop reading because I was afraid that my tears would short out my laptop.)
13. Like a Rolling Stone [1] [2] by
annie_oakleyI kept getting linked to this from different rec lists and communities, and kept thinking that although The Time Traveler's Wife is one of my favorite books and Veronica Mars is one of my favorite shows, I was sure that there was no way that the two could meet in a way deserving of all the fuss. But then finally I just gave in and decided to give it a try.
The fuss was well deserved. The writing style is extremely reminiscent of Niffenger's in the original while remaining true to the bicker and banter style of Logan and Veronica. I find the idea of Logan and young Veronica very charming, while at times it's just painful (mean!Logan after Lilly's murder, while older Logan comes to visit...salt, meet wound. I think you'll be great friends). There are many moments that I love and could mention and basically quote, but I don't want to spoil.
14. King Among Runaways by
tmt_catalystI have a weakness for “what if Lilly never died” fic (also “Logan and Veronica liked each other before Lilly died” fic) as long as LoVe happiness wins anyway. This is a great one for that. It's got casually snarky Logan and V, Wallace...and it's well written too.
There's a theme in this kind of AU fics where Lilly sends our lovely duo to couplehood with her happiest blessings. I think it was probably more in her character to get annoyed that Logan, “her boy,” is happily moving on so quickly, and to try to get him back, which is what happens here. It's still a WIP, but it was update in September, which isn't so long ago as to give up hope.
15. I'm the Hero of the Story [1] [2a] [2b] by
monroeslittleI just read this the other day, but it was so good that it made it on the list fast. I'm not usually a huge fan of amnesia fics (mostly they tend to come out really cheesy and people who were strong before become weak) but this one is good because:
a. it's well written. The dialog isn't all “oh no, I can't remember things! Significant other, please hold me even though in my current state, I don't really remember you! No, I got a memory flash! No, I don't really like you! No, I really love you!” I like the short sentence style and the little paragraphs.
b. Logan is really good and really well balanced.
c. It gives Veronica an opportunity to step back and take a look at herself and her life. Here we (and she) sees what she could have been without Lilly's influence, and while there are good parts, there are also bad. And it gives her a chance to correct the bad parts of her the way she was before.
d. Keith and Wallace's desperation is well shown and realistic.
e. Piz gets shown up. I stuck out my tongue and did a little victory dance.
f. Lilah.
g. Happy ending of happiness.
16. Wreck of the Day by
lit_chick08I read and reread this around six times in two days. I think Veronica is spot-on, trying to be normal and move on, and I love Logan like this because I think that he absolutely would give anything to help a child, especially one who was half Veronica. (I generally have quite a positive view of my characters, particularly my abused boys.) I could be happy with just the last few scenes, but the torment at the beginning and Keith's resistance are very well done. But it ends up on a happy note, which I love, and Logan is awesome.
17. Snapshot by
crimsoncladThis fic makes me unbelievably happy. Logan and Veronica without angst, not even the little residual reminders that so often haunt even their fluff, but without losing themselves. The outline and premise are creative and original, and written in a way that pulls back for parts and zeroes in and makes you go "awww" for others. When I read
synful_trixxie's Finite Erasure- which killed me dead adn made me want to vomit a little, and not necessarily in a good way, even though it's a fantastically written fic- and couldn't get to sleep, this is what put me out with a smile on my face.I have a million and six more recs for VM right now because I'm on a huge fic kick, so leave it in comments if you want more.
I loved Gilmore Girls, but the ending makes me upset. Fic has a lot of uses: fun little ins to people's heads, missing scenes, character studies. In this case, fic is used to show what should have been.
18. Ode to the Avocado by cuppa joe
I really like Rory/Logan and the end of GG TOTALLY screwed them over. This kind of fixes everything, but not in a “Rory and Logan meet at some journalist convention and fall in love all over again and all the problems go away” sense. The writing is funny, everyone is in character and it brings you the same up and down roller coaster of the show, just with a less heartbreaking payoff.
19. Lorelai's Heart by cuppa joe
The Rory here is more cold than I usually like her to be, but writing in a diary and the fear of relationships are very in character. Her conflict is tearing and painful, and communicated in a way that reminds me of a good old fashioned Rory rant. Logan is fantastically sweet and then sympathetic and I just want to hug him.
