Advent-ures in fanfic planning

[blamebrampton]

Right ... a confession. This year I have read about four fan fics I have not beta-ed or written. In fact, I'm not sure I read all the ones I wrote. I am hopelessly behind and will never catch up, but will, in a week or three, have space again to do some reading as I run out of Agatha Christies. Therefore, I come requesting recs.

I really only read Potter, though I suppose a spot of Merlin or some incarnation of Sherlock Holmes would be fine, too. A few criteria:

* Reasonably British -- I can live wholly with American English spelling and even gotten, but if people have therapists and want to talk about their feelings at length, it sends me on a hideous flashback to the time my mother was going out with a Californian psychologist and I will have to hide with a blanket over my head (no -- the blanket was NOT a repressed desire to return to the womb, it was the first convenient and effective hiding place, as I explained at the time.) Similarly, proms, obsessions with going on a date and the urgent need to be married and with child scare me and are likely to see a spot of blanky-reaching.

* PG is fine. I am not a big reader of smut, I tend to sort of skim it with my eyes semi-closed. Fully closed in the case of some art works. Just call me Sister Brammers ...

* Plot is lovely! As are any or all of the following: comedy, drama, politics, thrills, mystery, character studies, classic romance of the minimally mushy kind, adventure and even stories that spend oodles of time talking interestingly about something else, whether it be a country, cat or catamaran.

* Dark themes are fine, but preferably no sexual violence, unless it is something that is integral to a non-exploitative plot. I know that I am probably safe with my flist, but just in case, sexual violence as an expression of true love sends me into a frothing rant, as does sexual exploitation of children (obviously consensual sex with added pain or chain is a different kettle of fish entirely, as are fictional 15-year olds with each other). Incest themes just force me me make wholly inappropriate jokes about Tasmania, which causes treacle_tartlet  to thump me, and since she is an old RL friend, this is not to be encouraged. Before I learned about fandom, I would never have imagined writing the last two sentences ...

* Creature-fics and mpregs will be treated with suspicion, as will AUs, but you could convince me.

* Feel free to self-promote!

Comments

[pionie.livejournal.com]

Gotten and the rest immediately throw me out of the world the author's created. Speaking as a Brit who has written in a US fandom, I know the necessity of getting a local beta, and I find I just want to comment and say, I love your story, everything about it, so please can I britpick for you in future? But it seems so widespread I decided it must be accepted in h/d fandom.
Anyway, I prefer not to read sex scenes either so maybe you'd enjoy http://community.livejournal.com/serpentinelion/257141.html which is a murder mystery in the style of Miss Marple, with lots of fun, a smart and witty Draco and really very little squinting required.

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

Having spent so many years reading and writing for so many different Englishes, I can now just automatically translate idiom in my head. But you are right that it would be a better world if this was not necessary!

That one is definitely on my list -- HP and Christie = perfection!