Fandom Giveback: Writers Appreciation and Rec Post

[themorninglark]

Fandom Appreciation Post

This started out as a small rec post and then evolved into… what you see now, because in the end, I really wanted to give some love to writers who have shaped my fandom experience. Over the years and fandoms I’ve been in, I’ve been so fortunate to be surrounded and uplifted by some of the best people I’ve met. This is for everyone who has been a part of my fandom life. Thank you ♥

I have arranged this list in more or less chronological order for me (based on when this person and I crossed paths), and provided one rec from their oeuvre, though I encourage you to read more than one of their works because it’s all gold.

Justine/tothemoon
I don’t know what sports anime deity to thank that Justine was perhaps the first ever fandom writer friend I made when I got back into it circa 2014. At that time, we were both active in the Free! MH fandom and in Justine, not only did I find one of the most hardworking, humble, talented writers I’ve ever met, I also found a kindred spirit who shared many of my views and values. At a time when Free! fandom could honestly be a hot mess, she was always there for me, a generous, drama-free listening ear and a beacon of kindness. It was because of Justine that I started writing for Haikyuu!! too. She does magic realism and slice of life with equally shimmering prose and dedication to her characters and plots. To this day her fics still rank right up there among the very best works I’ve read, not just in fandom but ever.

Read: the river runs, Haikyuu!!, Iwaizumi & Oikawa, post-breakup relationship study (T, 11k)
It’s really hard to choose just one Justine fic to rec. This one is my favourite, though, and personal bias seems as good a reason as any. The premise sounds sad—and yes, it is sad—but there is so much generosity in it, so much tender open-heartedness. It’s about breaking up, but it’s also about friendship; it’s about moving on, but it’s also about getting to know yourself and the other person again. It just feels so real, raw, and honest.


Dani/Ad_Astra
Dani is one of those writers I read and admired long before I got to know her, and when I did, what struck me most was how down to earth she was. She was wise, super easy to talk to, very, very kind, and always encouraging. Dani is one of those people who makes you feel at home immediately, both as a friend and as a writer: her writing is just so easy to get into because she keeps it real, engaging, thoughtful, and funny. I am always in awe of humour because I find it painfully difficult, but it’s one of Dani’s greatest strengths.

Read: Denial is Not Just a River in Egypt, Free!, Makoto/Rin (M, 68k)
This fic made me fall in love with Makorin. 5? years after I first read it, I can still clearly remember scenes from it (the record shop!!). I think the best thing about it is that you can tell how much respect and love the writer had for Makoto and Rin, for their friendships and other relationships, and for the other characters. Everything about their relationship here is considered, thoughtful, and feels so natural.


Alma/lisettedelapin
I am so glad I met Alma. She is one of those people who makes your life brighter and happier just by being in it. She was one of my earliest Twitter friends, and was such a force of positivity, warmth, and beauty throughout much of my time in Free! fandom. Alma is an absolutely stunning writer with tremendous poise and command over her language, her images, turns of phrase that make you catch your breath, and most of all her writing is always so generous. You feel, when you’re reading an Almafic, that there is tremendous generosity towards every character and the story being told, and that she is extending an open hand to you so warmly, with that same generosity.

Read: tied to the shifting ground, Free!, Makoto & Haru & Rin (G, 10k)
Genfic is tbh probably my favourite thing in Free!, and especially MakoHaruRin gen ;-; I feel so much that these three are a whole that’s more than the sum of their parts, and this fic captures that so, so beautifully. This fic is the essence of postcanon MakoHaruRin, their doubts, their hopes, their walking on their separate ways yet connected by their hearts.


Isu/isuilde & Hal/doublelead
I’m cheating a little here because I really want to talk about The Rin and Makoto Show 😂 Isu and Hal are lovely people and fantastic writers—and tbh, finding that a writer you admire is just super down to earth and approachable is such a nice feeling—and they have both written many other excellent works individually, but I need to talk about The Rin and Makoto Show because it was one of the most definitive experiences of my entire fandom life, and still is. This fic blew my mind open and redefined what a reincarnation/youkai story could be for me. It is unbelievably good. This fic made me interested in multiple lives and reincarnation AUs. It also destroyed me so much I still can’t bring myself to reread it. But it’s so good.

Read: The Rin and Makoto Show, Free!, Makoto/Rin, mortal & youkai reincarnation AU (E, 41k)
JUST READ IT


Cam/charcoalsuns
Before I knew Cam as a writer, I was fortunate enough to know her as first, one of the most thoughtful, thorough, generous readers and commenters I have ever been lucky enough to have, and then as a friend. Cam pays attention to so many little things and details, and this shows so much in her writing as well. There is a lot of love for the particular, for the small things that make a character them, for the subtle ways in which people relate to each other and make a life worth living. Reading Cam’s writing is like meeting an old friend you didn’t even know you knew, but when you encounter the words, it’s like, oh. There you were, all along ♥

Read: found: wanting, Haikyuu!!, Tsukishima/Yachi (G, 5.2k)
This is the fic that opened my eyes to everything Tsukishima could be, all the hesitations and complexities in his character. I remember at the time I read it, Tsukki was one of those characters I could appreciate intellectually but didn’t really click with on an emotional level. This fic gets under his skin and opens him up, but always gently, always with care and respect.


Winny/pomme/manta
I can’t remember how I met Winny. If Winny can remember how she met me, she has permission to thwap me over the head and be like LARK HOW COULD U FORGET!!!, but honestly Winny always has permission to thwap me over the head about anything haha. What I love most about Winny’s writing is the amount of care she pours into it. It’s so obvious that she cares deeply about every character and ship she writes, every detail, but in such a refreshingly unfussy way. She isn’t interested in making things snazzy or pretty, she’s interested in making them feel right, in a way that is true to the character, the ship, the emotion she wants to convey. So there is a heart-truth in all of her writing that just really shows when you read it. And that is the kind of person Winny is. She cares about the characters she’s writing, and she cares about her friends, and her readers.

Read: breaking pattern, breaking ground, Haikyuu!!, Ennoshita/Akaashi, orchestra AU (T, 12k)
I was just thinking about how much I loved this fic the other day. Out of the blue. I was walking down a tunnel into a plane and looking at the blue skies outside and the white wings of the plane and thinking about how Winny even took pains to name the music school in this AU something suitable, Shirobane (“white feathers/wings”). I remember helping her come up with names. That’s the amount of care Winny pours into her fics, and this one also shows her love for music in the most open-hearted way. It’s just a joy to read, and a fantastic Ennoshita POV.


Mandy/nautilics
Mandy!!!! what can I say about Mandy! I remember first getting to know Mandy through initial interactions on Twitter, then beta-ing her lovely KiyoYachi Kiki’s Delivery Service AU for her during one of our first HQHols (at that time I had not learned how to be a good beta and I was probably very rude to Mandy about many things but she never yelled at me gdkjfhg). You may know Mandy as an artist of some of the cutest warmest art out there, and that same warmth shines through her writing. Reading a Mandy fic is like curling up with a blanket and a mug of hot chocolate. Except when it’s knifey and involves the Miyas, which makes you feel like your hot chocolate’s suddenly been laced with whisky or something, and you love it even more for that.

Read: journey, tectonic, Haikyuu!!, Datekou gen, underwater research lab AU (G, 10k)
There is just so much affection in here!!! for Datekou, who often don’t get enough love compared to the other HQ teams, for their team dynamics and each of them as individuals, for dear sweet Moniwa trying his best. It’s funny, it’s silly, it’s longing and wistful and surprises you with Feelings when you least expect it in the midst of team shenanigans, and the underwater setting is so immersive and gorgeous.


Megan/museicalitea
When I think about Megan the first thing I think of is how frightfully intelligent she is, and then, how ready she is to be silly and to laugh and capslock and meme with you anyway. And the thing about Megan’s writing is that you always feel like every word is well considered, that she has arranged every part of the fic with her baker’s eye for detail and precision (sifting out setting like flour, placing characters and events like icing and chocolate, layering themes to make the most wondrous cake), but at the same time, it’s often funny and full of heart in a way that’s impossible to achieve if all you have is intellectual precision. Megan brings a rare mix of qualities to her writing, and that’s what makes it stand out for me.

Read: Insomnium, Haikyuu!!, Konoha/Bokuto, ft. magic realism dreaming (G, 19k)
This is a breathtaking fic. Megan worked on it for a long time and poured so much into it, and it really shows. It is brimming with love for Konoha, and the way it’s built up, Konoha’s dreams and hopes contrasted with Bokuto’s, the way they play off each other (and also off Akaashi, the team dynamics in here are superb) is so sincere and natural. The premise is magical, but the story is incredibly real.


Carole/Crollalanza
Carole was one of the first HQ friends I ever made, if not the first, because I got to know her shortly after I posted my first ever HQ fic and we started chatting on Twitter. And how fortunate for me, because Carole is one of the most welcoming, unpretentious, just super down to earth people I’ve met, and she has such an open mind about engaging with anything that interests people on her TL. I have seen this across multiple fandoms (our Shokugeki rowboat!!) and characters (Inarizaki!), and that heart is one of the best things about Carole’s writing. Carole is one of those indefatigable writers who works patiently and relentlessly and produces astonishing word counts. Her work is full of humour and she’s good at plot, which is another thing that gets me all HOW DO U DO IT???? I’m constantly floored by so much that Carole does.

Read: the three she loved, Haikyuu!!, Karasuno third year gen (Kiyoko, Daichi, Suga, Asahi) (G, 3.8k)
If I didn’t already mention I love genfic…….. I love genfic. And any Karasuno third year genfic that includes Kiyoko automatically gets bonus brownie points, plus the fact that it’s from Kiyoko’s POV. The love she feels for all three of them is so genuine here, and the way her POV is fleshed out feels so believable.


renaissance
My friend renaissance is probably one of the first HQ writers I read, and then starry-eyed admired for a long time, before we got to know each other. She is another hugely frightfully intelligent person who turned out to be so easy to talk to, once we started talking. We’ve had many conversations about writing, about characters and books we love, about music, and what shows throughout is how passionate she is about whatever she does. She is dedicated to honing her craft as a writer, constantly self-reflective, and most of all fearless about having a vision for a piece of work and sticking to it. There is a poise and confidence in her writing that makes you feel, from the moment you venture in, that you are in the hands of someone who knows what they are doing.

Read: so darkness i became, Haikyuu!!, magic/witchcraft AU girls gen (T, 10k)
It is really hard for me to pick just one fic by renaissance to rec, and this is maybe an odd one (she is best known in HQ fandom for Ennofuta, and has written many notable fics for HP, YOI and other fandoms). But this fic is criminally underappreciated, and I think of all the renaissance fics I have read, this is the one that really showcases the boundlessness of her imagination and what she can do when let loose. It is immersive, magical, atmospheric, strange and wonderful all at once, and features some of the most on point characterisation of all the HQ girls (also criminally underappreciated) I’ve ever read. Together they make an amazing coven, and this is an amazing fic.


San/tookumade
I met San when I wrote her a fic for HQHols, and in that same HQHols read a great KuroDai that she’d written, but tbh, she barrelled into my life (or rather, we barrelled into each other’s lives) so naturally that it felt like I’d known her a long, long time. San is one of the warmest, kindest, most welcoming people you will find in any fandom. She will mercilessly enable all your bad ideas, encourage your good ideas, and cheer you on even on days when you feel like you’re the only one yelling into your lonely void. Her writing has that same warmth and good humour to it. It’s so gentle and thoughtful. (And that tookumade is okay too I guess.)

Read: Breathe Together, Haikyuu!!, Iwaizumi/Oikawa, established relationship study (G, 5k)
I have a real soft spot for established relationship fic ♥ I feel like fandom tends to lean more towards getting together, so a good established fic that just shows the little ins and outs of their daily lives and the intimacy that only a long time together can build up is a gem. This is a series of lovely vignettes about all the different ways and places that Iwaoi hold hands, and it is at turns sweet and bittersweet, poignant and determined.


Alex/asofthaven
I think I also met Alex through a HQHols, and I believe it was through reading the fic I rec below 😌 Alex is such a ray of sunshine—she is kind, thoughtful, and pours a lot into the things she loves. Her writing is that rare thing where the use of language is so deft and so lowkey assured that you don’t notice what she’s doing until your breath is caught in your throat, but it’s never the writing that calls attention to itself, only what it makes you feel. Alex is really good at building an atmosphere and capturing team dynamics, and most of all, doing it with so much heart and groundedness that you don’t even notice she’s doing it. You’re just completely immersed in her writing, whether she’s doing a mafia AU or a slice of life fic.

Read: Mountaintops and Raindrops, Haikyuu!!, Nekoma gen (G, 3.7k)
Team genfic is just ;^; one of my favourite things about HQ!!, and I love Nekoma, so this was right up my alley. I remember diving for it when that HQHols collection was revealed, and being like WHO IS THIS WRITER WE GOTTA BE FRIENDS!! all the team dynamics are so good, the shenanigans are fun, but most of all the way we see Nekoma through Kenma’s POV is so fond. And that makes me even fonder.


Ewa/ewagan
I can’t remember how I met Ewa, which means I also can’t remember when, which means her position on this list is a total crapshot :’D I’m guessing it was through mutuals, maybe some event or something—a HQHols or a SASO? but anyway, I always tell Ewa she has Akashi Seijurou vibes to me, and that sort of sums up Ewa for you. She is so smart and so capable and can do a million things well. She will also take the scissors out on you if you’re asking for it. But under the police officer uniform is someone who is fiercely supportive of her friends and writes with a lot of care always. There is a gravity about a lot of Ewa’s writing that manages to linger in your mind without feeling heavy, and she is so good at grey feelings, in-betweens, and open, bittersweet endings.

Read: allegory, Shokugeki no Soma, Tsukasa/Isshiki, a nine course menu of feelings (M, 4.2k)
This is still one of my favourite Ewafics, partly because I’m so proud of how we sailed the Tsusshiki ship last year (and I couldn’t have asked for a better captain), but mostly because it just really captures how much she can do with language. Ewa also knows her food and cooking very well, which makes this the perfect fandom for her to let loose. This is a gorgeous, sumptuous read, a feast for your senses as well as your knifiest shipfeels.


Ny/nylie
Ny and I got to know each other through shared love for rarepairs—particularly IkeDai (you have no idea how much I had to stop myself from capslocking IKEDAIIIII). I’m constantly blown away by how gorgeously she writes the little things, how attentive she is to dynamics and details that make you go—oh, yes, it’s just like that, that’s exactly how it is—and her lovely turns of phrase. Ny is so supportive, generous about sharing what she loves, and gentle and constant with her encouragement. I appreciate her so much.

Read: Happenstances, Haikyuu!!, Kageyama/Suga, post-canon multiple realities (G, 2.7k)
Forks in the road and alternate realities are among my favourite, favourite things to read and write about, and this fic just absolutely nails everything I love about them. The choices we make, the things we say or don’t say, how differently things can turn in a second. The Kageyama voice here is incredible too. I don’t find him an easy character to write, so I was so impressed.


Eliza/nein
Eliza!! without her, I wouldn’t have written some of the fics in my AO3 I’m proudest of, most of all the AkaKen mafia AU which was the longest oneshot I've ever produced, a birthday present for Eliza, that only exists because she said she wanted a mafia AU. But Eliza has also challenged me with title prompts, ideas, and her overflowing enthusiasm to learn, grow, and constantly be open to new things, and as a resident potato in a burlap sack, it has been so refreshing to have someone like her. Eliza’s writing is clever, sharp and pointy and delightful and then hitting you with the feels, a pleasure to read, and filled with the same kind of relentless curiosity about the world that Eliza herself is.

Read: Perihelion, Haikyuu!!, Aone/Futakuchi/Kamasaki reincarnation/soulmates AU (T, 4.3k)
If The Rin and Makoto Show blew my mind open for what a reincarnation AU could be, this one picked up the pieces of my brain and proceeded to transport them to the next galaxy over. It spans hundreds of years, into the distant future, into a scifiverse and into incarnations of selves you could never have imagined for these three, and yet still feels so very them. You will never see reincarnation fic the same way again. The possibilities of what the trope can do are just… beyond imagination in this fic.


Celia/sheelia
What I like best about Celia’s writing is that it’s like poetry, but it’s poetry always in service of the story. Celia herself is a poet, and you can tell by the amount of care she pours into her words, how breathtaking some of her turns of phrase and descriptions are. In the medium of prose, she holds the reins of these words with a light and sure hand, and there is a steady magic about her writing that makes you feel at home yet also completely enchanted. She writes some of the loveliest slice of life fics I’ve read, but she is equally at home whether writing something set in space, a Murakami-inspired AU, or post-canon adulting facing the future.

Read: half moon, Haikyuu!!, Kuroo/Kenma (G, 4k)
This is a gorgeous Kuroken with Celia’s trademark beautiful writing, but what I like most about it is the maturity of it. Kuroo and Kenma are older here, and they have lived their lives, they have fallen apart and come back together and there is a real ebb and flow to the way they interact here, the passage of time so palpable, the way things change. I love themes like that in fic. This one does them so well.


Katie/amillionsmiles
When I first got into VLD way back in S1, Katie’s was the first fic I read, and thank god for that, because I was absolutely gobsmacked speechless by how good she was and when I reached out to her and got to know her, I found that she was just the loveliest person. Katie is funny, kind, easy to talk to right away like you’ve been friends for a long time, and felt like a kindred spirit right away. She is on this list because without the inspiration of Katie’s incredible fics, I would probably not have written for VLD, and at that time, it truly was an important fandom to me. I have written some works for it that I’m still proud of, it was the only zine I’ve ever participated in, it gave me a community I loved and the opportunity to reconnect with old friends. Every now and then you feel a little tired, a little jaded, a little I don’t really feel like writing, and then you read a fic so good it just lifts you up and gets you excited all over again. Katie’s writing was that, for me.

Read: tonight i can write the saddest lines, Voltron: Legendary Defender, Shiro/Keith, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind AU (T, 10k)
(If VLD or Sheith aren’t your jam, Katie has also written this one amazing Tsukishima brothers HQ genfic, which I was really really sorely tempted to rec here instead and am really cheating by even mentioning at all but) this is the fic of Katie’s that is seared into my memory. Funny I should say that, for a fic about erasing memories, that plays fast and loose with timelines and what maybe happened and didn’t happen, but reading it was an unforgettable experience. The writing is gorgeous, as Katie’s writing always is, but more than that, this is one of those fics that reaches relentlessly into a part of you and does that gentle heart disembowelling thing with so much sheer love that you don’t even mind the pain.


Linn/snowdrops
Linn!! is so, so passionate about what she writes. I think that’s what strikes me the most about her writing, just how much she cares. About the characters, about the ships, about the words that she is so carefully stitching together, and how much she strives to make something real and memorable. Sometimes when I read Linn’s writing I get this really strong feel that the writer has been so open-hearted, so willingly vulnerable about diving into her feelings and her own life experiences to breathe life into her fics. And Linn is the kind of person who will be just as straight-shooting and open-hearted with you when it comes to sharing the love of a thing.

Read: caesura, Haikyuu!!, Kuroo/Yaku (G, 4.6k)
I really appreciate fics that give the characters space to breathe. This is one of them. There is a real groundedness about it that feels very KuroYaku, very appropriate for the characters, but also very true to life and just so real for two boys on the cusp of young adulthood who have no idea what’s going to happen next in their lives.


Bent/thimble
Bent’s writing is so good. Painfully good. Unreal good. The kind of good that makes you want to carve out your heart with a spork and give it to her. I met Bent during SASO, which is where I’ve read most of her writing, and in a few hundred words she can tie all your internal organs into knots and then sweetly walk away and you’ll thank her for it. But Bent doesn’t just do knives and suffering, which is what makes her so devastating; she can take you round the sharpest corner turns to a sudden luminosity, longing, and connection in a dark place. I think that’s what strikes me most about Bent’s writing, that even in the darkest places, there are people who find each other.

Read: everything we’ve ever learned, Fire Emblem: Fates, Camilla & Leo (G, 1k)
This is actually notably less murdery than a lot of Bent’s writing—or at least, all the murder was already there in canon—but I want to rec it because of what I was saying, about connection in dark places, and I think this fic is just a perfect example of that. I love sibling fic so so much, and the Nohrsibs in particular always get me in a place, and here Bent captures how Camilla and Leo grieve, alone and together, how much she loves him, with so much raw tenderness.


Meg/strikinglight
I can’t believe Meg is the last person on this list. I can’t believe I only got to know Meg more recently than any of the other people here and then proceeded to make No More Friends ever because we have been SITTING ON THE KITCHEN COUNTER IN OUR BURLAP SACKS LIKE TWO POTATOES!!!! Real talk though, Meg is one of those people I just clicked with right away, and I’m so grateful for that, and for her. She is a stunning writer, with a way of turning images and phrases that makes you want to bury your head in your pillow and just askjdhfskj, but also reach out and touch your screen because wow what does such beauty feel like. She is also so, so good at being kind—being kind to the characters, to the ships, to the story she hopes to share with you, and to her fellow writers. Meg is the just best Haiji-windmill cheerleader. I can’t count the number of times I have been motivated by just throwing her a screencap of whatever I’m working on and having her yell at me about it. I feel like this paragraph has been woefully inadequate to sum up Meg, so I hope you will read her fics and get to know just how wonderful she is through them.

Read: maybe you’ll take the long way home, Yuri!!! on Ice, Phichit/Yuuri (T, 2.9k)
Meg has written so many achingly gorgeous, thoughtful, keysmash-worthy fics, but I have to rec this one because it was the first Meg fic I read, and I still remember being in a Phichuuri mood, wandering onto AO3 like… anything good here? and then being blown away by how good this was. I was not expecting to go spelunking into a fic tag and come up with treasure this good. The prose is gorgeous, Phichit is a ray of sunshine, and there is so much warmth here but also that bittersweetness that comes with a first love and its natural conclusion—and yet, also that feeling that you don’t regret any of it. Meg does it so well.

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There are so many other people I wish I could have mentioned, many other fics and writers I have read that were an inspiration to me. If I have ever left you a fic comment or said something to you about your writing, or expressed appreciation for your presence in some way, please consider yourself part of the extended version of this list that could go on forever, and know that I am thankful for you!