The Yuletide cometh

[nineveh_uk]

I appear to have committed Yuletide nominations. I'm not entirely certain that I'm going to sign up, but there's a couple of weeks yet to decide. If I do then I'm taking a different approach this year and instead of signing up for things that I really care about, will go for some new fandoms and try to take a more casual approach to it. Yes, I want to write a good fic, but I've never really loved any of the fics I've written for e.g. Wimsey fandom for Yuletide because they've never been for prompts that deeply inspired me. I suspect that I might find it easier and more fun to lower the stakes a bit.

On the other hand, one of the fandoms I'm considering writing for is Deutschland 83, which hardly represents an easier option, so possibly I'm just coming up with a new way to create stress for myself and RUIN YULETIDE.

Anyone else thinking of signing up this year?

Comments

[gramarye1971]

I am! Writing and requesting in non-Western fandoms, as I usually do, but I'll be keeping an eye out for other letters for treats.

I also understand where you're coming from regarding fandom choices. I've mostly stopped offering/requesting fandoms for which I'm more picky about concept and execution -- Dark Is Rising, specifically, but one or two others as well -- because I don't want to feel like I'm throwing together something that doesn't thrill me just to meet a deadline, or worry that I'm too hard to satisfy. Yuletide needs to be as low-pressure as I can make it for myself, these days.

[nineveh_uk]

Low-pressure is the goal (and it is a laudable goal even if I don't meet it). I'm also planning to be low-key in my requests - not that I don't care, but picking things for which I'll be happy with a wide range of responses. I have in fact received only really terrific Yuletide fics myself in the past, but there is always the worry. So again I think that asking for broad stuff with a range of prompts and thoughts and trying to convey my general preferences is the way I want to go.

[antisoppist]

I shall continue to browse the prompts and the pinch hit list on the off chance that someone actually wants any of the unwritten things in my head and do them as treats. Not that this has ever happened. I can't sign up because then I would have to ask people to write me the unwritten things in my head and that would be embarrassing.

[nineveh_uk]

That happened to me once with the Campion/Amanda fic, it was great because I had the thing half-written and assumed there would be no audience, and then someone wanted that very thing! But mostly it doesn't happen, and of course I never ask for the Fic of my Dreams as it would be embarrassing. Hence this year's requests for fandoms for which I haven't really got a fic of my dreams and will be happy with lots of things. Unless they contain my bete noires, obviously :-)

[quillori]

I am. Every year I half resolve not to do it again (mostly as the fic deadline approaches), and then when it comes time to sign-up again, I think, well, this year I'll finish my assignment early and it won't be stressful at all... Given I've just wasted a good bit of time trying to narrow my nominations down, I assume this year will in fact be like all previous years, despite what I swore last December.

[nineveh_uk]

I like to think that I may fail in the resolution, but at least I'll fail differently! I tried just looking at prompts last year and nothing grabbed me, but of course I hadn't nominated the things I wanted, which doesn't exactly help.

Good luck with your lower-stress approach, and when it inevitably fails.

[ankaret]

I am in the middle of a writing project so think I will probably just offer to write fairy tales, five minute fandoms, a couple of childrens' TV programmes that I know back to front and maybe Pern. I have been utterly burnt out on Marlows for years and nothing else I'm fannish about really fits.

[nineveh_uk]

Pern would be fun! I know that really I ought to be focussing on existing writing projects, but I'm crap at that, so I'm thinking that really, if I do sensible offers I can do a Yuletide fic in one day on a rainy weekend and that is fine.

[white_hart]

I'm sure I will spend my Christmas break browsing the archive as normal, but I think signing up to do Yuletide on top of Michaelmas Term and departmental review would be the action of a maniac. I really ought to try to write something sometime, but not to a deadline, I think.

[nineveh_uk]

That sounds like a sensible approach. I suspect that mine is a stupid one, but never mind!

[white_hart]

Well, it's good to have some distraction from work. I may knit something complicated instead ;-)

[nineveh_uk]

Sounds a good plan! As it chucked it down with rain on Saturday I found myself feeling quite nostalgic for sitting on the sofa in rubbish winter weather doing something creative.

[el_staplador]

I continue to Not Be In The Mood for Yuletide. Last year I hung around on IRC and betaed a few things, and I don't see myself doing much more than that this year, either.

[nineveh_uk]

There is no point if you're not in the mood, you might just as well spare yourself the strife and enjoy the end product, whicg is what I've done for the last few years.

[bookwormsarah.livejournal.com]

I sign up every year, partly because it means that I will start, complete and finish at least one story in a year... I don't nominate, because I rather enjoy the challenge of selecting fandoms I may not have considered before. I think this must be my seventh or eighth year!

[ylla.livejournal.com]

I don't nominate

Are you bribable? ;)

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

Not submitting nominations yourself is the hardcore version of Yuletide! I may be planning to do something new, but it will at least be new things I pick in advance.

[ylla.livejournal.com]

I am, but I'm having nomination angst!

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

I admit I found myself going "what do you mean, I can only nominate three fandoms??" Of course, there is always the option of signing up under a different hat and submitting a second set...

[ylla.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought of that, but I don't think I could bring myself to do it anyway!

My problem seems to be that I want to request different things from the things I want to be able to offer - plus wavering over something that I know (from the character list) that at least two other people nominated last year, but will Ruin Yuletide for me if it turns out no one does...!

[sonetka.livejournal.com]

I keep thinking about it and then chickening out because I'm absolutely terrible at writing stories from prompts and also because Thanksgiving can put a real crimp in my writing time; even when I'm at home (and I won't be this year) it is absolutely amazing what a time suck it can be. (This is the reason I don't do NaNoWriMo either). So no, but I am looking forward to seeing what everyone else comes up with!

[nineveh-uk.livejournal.com]

I envy those who write easily to prompts. Or rather, who write easily to prompts that they have been given, rather than picked up because they struck a chord. At the moment I think I'll do it, but consciously with an attempt to take a different approach and no Wimsey, which I get precious about.

Thanksgiving does not seem well-timed for Yuletide for anyone not a student stuck away from home.