Dear Creator,

Hello, dear artist-or-writer! I’m ridiculously excited about this exchange, and I hope that you are too! In this letter, I’ve tried to give a clear overview of my likes, dislikes, and general wishes. Hopefully there’s something here that inspires you. ♥

In regards to “tricks” and “treats”: I’m interested in both! I haven’t divided my prompts into those categories, but there should be something you can use for either in each fandom. And do feel free to take a fluffy-seeming prompt for a “trick”, or carve out some fluff in a darker-sounding scenario for a “treat”.

AO3 Handle: straightforwardly
Previous Letters: 2015, 2016

General Likes

canon settings.
canon divergence AUs.
exploring the relationships between characters.
quiet / subtle / low-key romances.
hand-holding, casual touches, any focus on hands.
dysfunctional or otherwise complicated relationships, especially if the people involved genuinely care about one another.
worldbuilding.
emotional hurt/comfort.
trapped together / huddling for warmth scenarios.
winter/autumn settings and atmosphere. (for more detail, see art likes.)
enemies (reluctantly/forced to/willingly) working together, enemies becoming friends, enemies becoming lovers.
any time-related shenanigans: time travel, time loops, peggy sue, etc.
castles, shrines, abandoned ruins, dark forests, places with a deep sense of atmosphere and/or history.
subtle, creeping horror.
ghosts & hauntings.
unusual formats (e.g., epistolary, interactive fiction, non-linear storytelling, & so on.)

Art-Specific Likes

physical affection: kissing, hugging, hand-holding, cuddling.
winter/autumn settings & motifs (e.g., snow, autumn leaves, pumpkins, fog, tea, etc.)
anything that plays with lighting— shadows, candles, fireplaces, campfires, lanterns, etc.
characters wearing their culture’s traditional clothing.
displays of magic (when canon-appropriate).
cool color palettes (especially whites/blues/greys).
black-and-white or neutral color schemes with pops of another color.
anything from my general likes or fandom prompts which might inspire you.

General Do Not Wants

porn without plot.
eye injuries.
zombies / any of the rotting undead.
hopeless endings & unrequested character death (of the requested characters).
detailed descriptions of/focus on pregnancy; marriage and childbirth in general.
kid!fic, and anything to do with the next generation, canonical or not.
crack!fic, A/B/O, and complete AUs.
characters being humiliated.
for art: color palettes comprised entirely of reds/oranges/yellows— please let there be some neutral or cool colors to balance it out.

The Kalevala

Requested Characters: Aino, Kyllikki, Louhi’s Daughter, Louhi’s Second Daughter, Louhi

Looking at my request, you might think that I love the women of the Kalevala a whole lot… and you would be completely and 100% correct. Whatever you make for me, I want the focus to be on either gen or femslash (mentions of canon het are fine; I just don't want that to be the main focus). If you write about Louhi’s daughters, please do feel free to give them names. Ships I’d always be up for are Aino/Kyllikki, Kyllikki/Louhi’s Daughter, and Aino/Louhi’s Second Daughter.

Also, I don’t have a clear idea of where everyone and everything is other than Northland being north/further away from everything else, so feel free to wave geography if you’re writing fic about Aino, Kyllikki, post-marriage Louhi’s Daughter, and/or post-gull-ification Louhi’s Second Daughter. I’m not going to notice.

Prompts: Strange encounters with the supernatural— especially ghosts, and anything from Finnish folklore. Anything that spares the young women I’ve requested from their canon fates, or takes their canon fates and makes it better. Ghost!Aino, befriending Kyllikki, helping/saving either of Louhi’s daughters, and/or wreaking vengeance on the men who menace them. Louhi’s daughter coming back as a ghost or Something Else, and rescuing her sister.

Any of the deceased women coming back as ghosts or Something Else, and doing something for the others, or meeting each other. Water spirit!Aino meeting Louhi’s second daughter after she’s been transformed into a gull, and helping her get her body back. Or maybe she can’t get her body back, but becomes an air spirit instead, or she transforms herself into an air spirit and meets Aino in that form. Any of my Aino/Kyllikki prompts from my femslashex letter.

Anything about Louhi and her magic, or her passing on her knowledge to either/both of her daughters. Louhi’s daughters and their relationship with one another, learning magic together, missing one another, rescuing each other. Maybe they had adventures together before the first daughter got married? Or maybe Louhi takes them on an adventure, exploring the uninhabited parts of Northland.

Kyllikki deciding to come north after her initial refusal to Leminkäinen’s mother, and coming across/being taken in by Louhi, and forming a mentor/mentee relationship with her, or becoming friends with either or both of Louhi’s daughters. Or— I didn’t mention Louhi/Kyllikki in my list of pairings, but I’d be up for it specifically within this context, with Louhi as the older, experienced woman who’s opening up Kylliki’s world for her.

Kyllikki meeting Louhi’s daughter after she marries Ilmarinen, and the two women forging a friendship, or maybe more. Kyllikki dancing, alone or with any of the other younger women I’ve requested. Aino and Kyllikki running away together after Kyllikki’s marriage/before Aino dies in some sort of handwaved timeline. Aino and Kyllikki running away together, and later stumbling upon Louhi’s second daughter in gull-shape. Aino and Kyllikki running away together and coming to Northland where Louhi (& her daughters?) live.

For art specifically, I’d love to see portraits of the characters, or scenes inspired by any of my above prompts.

Original Works

Requested Characters: Forest Goddess, The Forest King, Forest Spirit, Forest Witch, Winter Witch, Winter Goddess

Please bear with me on this one; I’ve never made an art-only request before, so I’m not sure how best to phrase my prompts here. I was absolutely enchanted by the possibilities when I saw these characters in the tagset— they’re all archetypes that I’m weak for in general, and I think they could make for some gorgeous art. I’ve no preferences in regards to race, body type (well, I’d rather the Forest King and the goddesses be tall, but other than that, none), etc.

I do love long hair an awful lot, though, on both men and women.

For the Forest Goddess, The Forest King, Forest Spirit, and Forest Witch, I’d love it if you incorporated the forest itself into their designs somehow. Deer skulls (especially for the witch) or antlers (especially for the Forest King or Forest Goddess), moss, vines, deep greens and browns— anything like that. (...A moss-covered unicorn hanging out with any of these characters would also be pretty excellent.)

Similarly, I’d love to see winter incorporated into the designs of the Winter Witch and Winter Goddess. Snow, frost, furs, whites and icy blues? I also adore foxes (especially red foxes and arctic foxes), and would love to see one included if that’s in your skillset. Maybe it’s the Winter Witch’s familiar, or an animal sacred to the goddess?

The goddesses, Forest King, or Forest Spirit looking inhuman in some way would also be a plus. If you’re interested in drawing more than one character, then I’d love to see a meeting between the Winter Witch and the Winter Goddess, or the Forest Witch and any of the inhuman inhabitants of the forest, or the two witches meeting (maybe when winter comes to the forest?), or the two goddesses meeting, or a meeting between the Forest King and the Forest Goddess.

Roguelight

Requested Characters: The Archer

Roguelight is a free indie platformer. It can be found here.

I was incredibly charmed and fascinated by this game when I played it earlier this year. The graphics, the atmosphere, the interplay between darkness and light, the image of this archer girl slowly descending further into the dungeon, guided only by the light of her arrows— I loved it all. I’d be interested in anything that explores her journey, especially if it captures the same atmosphere as the game. Worldbuilding is also always a plus.

Prompts: Why is she descending into this dungeon / cave / whatever it actually is? I have a vague idea of her village somehow being threatened by what’s down there, but if you have a different take on it, feel free to show me! What are those creatures she fights? What is that thing at the end, and why does breaking the cocoons kill it? Where does the fire she lights her arrows with come from? Is it magic?

I’d also love anything that focuses on the archer’s mental/emotional state as she descends. Does it get wearying and/or suffocating to be surrounded by such total darkness? Or maybe show me a moment where she takes a brief rest before continuing on. I’d also be interested in those moments where she runs out of arrows, and has to grope around in the darkness to find more before something attacks her. (Why are there arrows lying around there, anyways? Did they belong to others who tried and failed to descend?)

As far as I know, the main character doesn’t have a canonical name. I’d prefer it if you avoided giving her one, whether that’s by only referring to her by her pronouns or as the Archer.

Stand Still Stay Silent

Requested Characters: Lalli Hotakainen

I… kind of love Lalli a whole lot? Pretty much anything focused on him would make me ridiculously happy, whether it’s about Lalli alone or Lalli with others. In terms of shipping, Emil/Lalli is my OTP for this fandom, and I’m always up for more fic about them, but I’m also 100% fine with gen. Just don’t pair either of them with anyone else. I’m also always, always, always interested in fics revolving around Lalli’s relationships with Ensi (!!!), Tuuri (also !!!), Sigrun, and Onni.

Prompts: Worldbuilding! Any exploration into Finnish magery. Encounters with murder-ghosts, trolls, beasts, and normal ghosts. Encounters with other not-explicitly-canonical-but-mythology-based creatures. Anything in the vein of canon. Canon-typical horror, and also, CANON-TYPICAL HORROR. ♥ Horror where there’s a subtle, unsettling sense of wrongness. I’m also very much fascinated by the Manalan Rakki, so… maybe something with that? Bonus Emil would also be great, if you’re setting it post-canon.

Maybe something about Lalli’s early life in Saimaa? Training with Ensi. Maybe Tuuri tries to drag him along in a scheme to go out and explore? (After all, just because Onni won’t go with her, doesn’t mean that she has to give up, right?) Or— something about Lalli’s life in Keuruu. He and Onni and Tuuri settling in, after whatever happened in Saimaa— especially if they’re still shocked and grieving. Lalli scouting in the forest or in the ruins of some town, and coming across— something. Or maybe the people who died when he made his scouting mistake come back as ghosts, and he has to deal with that. (With or without Onni’s help.) (Maybe he tries to deal with it on his own, until Onni realizes something’s wrong and forces him to accept his help?)

I’d also love anything set during the canon expedition, or post-expedition, or during a post-canon expedition! A book-hunting mission we didn’t see. Making their way to the pick-up point. (Maybe with bonus cold, hunger, and/or exhaustion? :D) Something set at the pick-up point, where they don’t really have anything to do but wait for the ship, and there’s not much to distract themselves with? (From Tuuri-related grief, from the fight with Emil, from boredom…) Lalli exploring the interior of the pick-up point, and finding things? (Maybe with bonus Emil or Sigrun? Or Mikkel, since it’s Danish?)

You’re also very much welcome to take inspiration from my SSSS requests for the Darkest Night Exchange! I’m still pretty excited about all of those ideas. (Though, again, I’m not up for having Lalli or Emil die permanently in this particular exchange.)

Or, if none of the above prompts strike you, I’m pretty much always weak for Emil/Lalli fluff. Language barriers, moments where they understand one another without words, hair-fixing, casual touches, falling asleep near or on each other? Yes, yes, and yes. *_*

In regards to Tuuri’s death: I’m fine with any nearly any take on it. That includes her dying like in canon, something set before she dies, canon divergences where she was never infected, and her dying but being resurrected somehow. The only thing I absolutely don’t want to see is a fic where she was infected, but then received a miracle cure of some sort.

I also really don’t want to see any non-canonical infections, whether it’s Tuuri getting infected at a different time, or someone else who was never infected.

Slavonica

Requested Characters: Czesia

Slavonica is an ongoing webcomic inspired by Slavic mythology. It can be found here.

I adore Czesia. I liked her from the start, admittedly, but the last page of “The Warlock’s Apprentice” turned that mere liking into full-force, stars-in-my-eyes love. I love her cleverness, her kindness (especially in regards to how quickly she agreed to help Sambor when he came to her), and her practicality; and I’m fascinated by the contrast between her kindness and the violence of the solution she found for Sambor’s problems. I do see that as having being born out of practicality rather than out of any innate desire to do violence, but the ease with which she does it still fascinates me.

In regards to Sambor: I don’t want to see him shipped with Czesia. I do like him and his relationship with her an awful lot, and would love any story which included those things, but I want their relationship to be strictly platonic. That being said, I’m deeply intrigued by the idea of Czesia/Mojmira (and would be up for any of the things I requested in my femslashex letter), and am also 100% up for gen about Czesia alone, or anything about her friendship with Luba!

Prompts: I really would love to see Czesia dealing with more of the supernatural! Ghosts, strange things in the forest, any creatures or gods from Slavic mythology (I’m not very familiar with that particular mythology, but I’m definitely interested!), anything! Maybe something’s attacking/harming the village, and she deals with it? Maybe she and Sambor can work together! Or maybe the wizard’s ghost comes back to haunt them. Or maybe she comes across something (or someone) when going down to the forest?

Or— I have no idea where the Snake King story is going, but I’m pretty sure things are going to get worse before they get better. And Luba is Czesia’s friend. So maybe Czesia tries to help her? Rescue missions for Luba’s sister, rescue missions for Luba herself? Or, since the Snake King is Luba’s story, Czesia doesn’t have to do everything— maybe she just helps Luba find a key piece of information, or gives her the right encouragement and/or tools so Luba can go save the day herself. Maybe through a confrontation with the snakes Luba ran into?

Trick or Treat 2017 Letter

The Kalevala

Original Works

Roguelight

Stand Still Stay Silent

Slavonica