Challenge #9: In your own space, promote at least one canon that you adore (old, new, forever fandom).

I really debated going with Harry Potter on this one, as it feels so obvious, but it really is my forever fandom. And the entire reason I got into this fandom, was because of the books. They are certainly not perfect (and neither is their author) but they really are wonderfully crafted, beautifully inspiring, immensely captivating, and just all-around magical. One thing I've noticed in a lot of more recent fics and fans is what feels like a like of knowledge, understanding, and/or respect for canon, and while I can absolutely understand how and why we might want to push back against some aspects (lack of POC representation, the retconning and extra canon stuff, etc) it does sort of baffle me how people can immerse themselves in a fandom without really knowing or enjoying the rich canon tapestry we've been given with HP. When I read fic, I want to recognize the characters and the setting and the magic that made me fall in love with the series, and I never fail to geek out when it's clear that authors share that knowledge and love of canon through the little references and details in their fics. I'm actually planning on doing a low-key re-read of the series later this year with the idea of reading one book a month. I did this a couple of years ago and I figured its time for a refresh, as it's always super interesting rereading the books now with all of my experiences reading and writing fanfiction.

Challenge #10: In your own space, talk About A Creator/Someone Who Inspired You.

There are SO many amazing creators who have inspired me over the years, and I was struggling to think of how to possibly narrow it down. But then I thought about the realization I've come to over the past few years that one thing that I find particularly inspiring is when I beta. I'm blessed to be friends with a number of amazing people who, beyond being wonderful humans, are also insanely talented. Getting to work with them on their ideas is so much fun, and seeing their passion for their stories reminds me why I love fandom and writing so much myself. Part of the reason why these friendships formed in the first place is because we tend to share similar headcanons or enjoy the same kinds of themes/stories/content, which makes the process extra enjoyable. I think I'm a fairly decent alpha/beta, and it also gives me the warm fuzzies to be able to provide feedback to help bring their visions to life. Many of the people below I beta'd for multiple times throughout the year, and all but one of them had a fic in hd_erised. So while I was betaing for them for that fest (and proofing and doing other Erised modly duties) I was also writing my  Advent Fic which is the second longest fic I ever wrote. And part of that was possible because I was so excited and inspired by the content I was betaing. 

Thank you so much to the lovely, wonderful, talented: dracospungen, firethesound, icarusinflight,kedavranox,nerdherderette,shiftylinguini,thistle_verse, &writcraft for allowing me the pleasure of betaing your fics in 2019 and for inspiring me! 

♥

It was my birthday yesterday and I wanted to take a quick moment to thank everybody who reached out to me! I got a number of really lovely, sweet, touching messages from fandom friends, and they truly meant the world to me! <3

I also wanted to specifically point to the two beautifully creations that were gifted to me yesterday! Art AND Fic! I'm so lucky. :D

First we have the magnificent julchen_in_red, who created a seriously STUNNING piece of paper fanart based on my 50 Reasons ficlet, To Show Off New Lingerie (Drarry), which you can see on their tumblr, here! I am SO in awe of their amazing skills, and am beyond touched that they created something based on one of my fics!!

And then the fabulous shiftylinguini wrote this wonderfully sexy bit of Draco/James Sirius, forget what I need, give me what I want (and it should be fine) that was just as clever and engaging and hot as one would expect from such a talented writer!

Everybody should definitely check both of those pieces out and give them both ALL the love because they are kind and talented and supportive and wonderful and definitely made my birthday that much brighter. ♥

My birthday was this weekend and I had a wonderful day, thanks, in no small part, to you wonderful people in fandom!

I didn't want any big ~thing~ for my birthday, so the day itself was pretty chill. My roommate and I got brunch, did some shopping (I bought a lot of makeup and some Christmas presents), went for sushi, and watched Chicago! Roommate has a very bizarre dislike of musicals, so getting her to watch it with me was quite the achievement. :)

To be honest, IRL birthdays just aren't a big deal for me. I don't have anything against them at all, but it's been a long time since they've really felt special or any different from a regular day. But fandom has a way of making things amazing. Honestly, the best part of my birthday was hearing from so many of you guys. Your emails and messages and gifts and well wishes really meant a lot, and I'm so thankful to know you all! <3

( On to the thanks! )

Thanks again to every single one of you who thought of me on my birthday and reached out. I feel truly lucky to be a part of this community! Also, apologies if I left anybody out! ♥

It's my birthday! Which might be obvious to many of you, because you are all wonderful human beings who have been flooding my flist and inbox with gifts and well wishespromo. I'm off to do some shopping and whatnot, and I'll be back to make a proper birthday post later on. In the meantime, I thought I'd pimp the wonderful Love Meme over at lokifan's journal because it could not have come at a better time. Seeing all of the love over there has been amazing, and I've been just beyond moved by the beautiful word on my thread.



If you have some time, I really suggest dropping a comment or two in somebody's thread and making their day a little lovelier.

♥ ♥ ♥

Day 13: In your own space, talk about a creator. Show us why you think they are amazing.

Last year I wrote this post about firethesound.

This year, there are about a million people I could make this post about, but I'm going to go with dicta_contrion.

( Long rambling about the awesomeness that is dicta-contrion )