I was so excited to claim a story in this year's spn_j2_bigbang that I set my alarm for 5:30am and slept with my phone next to my ear in case I got the lj to text before my alarm went off. It turns out that I had impeccable timing (for once!) and got the text not more than 10 seconds after the alarm went off. I've got a full Big Bang plate this summer with artwork for 2 stories for the stargate_summer challenge, at least 1 (and perhaps another) for spn_j2_bigbang and a potential signup for the tardis_bigbang coming up.

I've been reading in a mix of fandoms lately, here's a smattering of some of my recent favorites:

So Wise We Grow by captanddeastar. Star Trek (2009) Kirk/Spock, 82.082 words, PG-13. "Commander Spock, we have located your son," the Vulcan lady on the screen says, which would be great, except Jim can tell by the look on Spock's face that he's never heard of this kid before in his life. "If it is expedient, the child will be sent to join you on the Enterprise within the week."

Kidfic, which I totally love as a trope anyway, is so much better when its a Vulcan kid with a Vulcan dad. This is one of those great, they start out as best friends and slowly fall in love stories. It;s long, wonderfully paced, thoroughly enjoyable, and guaranteed to make your day.

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Ghost Story by mad_maudlin. Torchwood, Jack/Ianto, 70.098 words, PG-13. I called out. "Would you like to hear a ghost story?"

For a moment Jack didn't move, and I knew he'd recognized my voice. After a moment he said, flatly, "I don't believe in ghosts."

"It's a complicated story," I admitted, and pulled the watch from my pocket by the chain. "And it starts with 'Long ago and far away.'"

An ingenius fix it fic for Children of Earth, it's a great twist on the someone is a timelord trope, and a fabulously intricate retelling of many of the events we love to hate in Torchwood.

Story title: Terraform
Author name: gilascave
Pairing: Jared/Jensen
Summary: Jensen works for the Terraformation Department, monitoring a planet almost ready for settlement. Jared is a bartender new to the station, who decides to make Jensen his own personal project. Will he succeed, or is Jared hiding a more sinister purpose? And with Jensen's own secrets to hide, will it ultimately matter?
Art Notes: I have a thing for sci-fi stories. Terraform satisfied my sci-fi love in so many ways. I love the universe zortified created, and her characterization for Jared and Jensen is wonderfully unique and layered. I loved the complexity of this story, and how smoothly put together it is. And I also just love, how very much of a love story it is too. I highly recommend checking it out!

As for the art I had a great time doing this one. It was probably the most challenging, being set so far in the future, so I spent a lot of time searching for the right clothes, and the right background. In the end, I am just super pleased with how the art turned out. I was captivated by the haunting loneliness of that first scene with Jensen, and I just wanted to capture all of those feelings as best I could.

( art inside! )

Story title: In Harm's Way
Author name: gatorgrrrl
Pairing: Jared/Jensen
Summary: Dr. Jared Padalecki just wants to live a quiet life. There's only one problem: He's caught the attention of CIA Officer Jensen Ackles (a.k.a. Tom Delaney), who has discovered that Jared is the perfect man for the job. What is the job? Infiltrating the inner circle of Alain Laurent, terrorist banker extraordinaire, who's been in Jensen's sights for months, but always just out of reach. But as Jensen draws Jared into his web of deception, they both discover that in the game of espionage, all is not what it seems and that sometimes, being someone else can help you discover who you really are.

Art Notes: I cannot say enough good things about how spectacular this story is. It's long, incredibly well developed, has fantastic scene setting and real, dimensional side characters, and best of all it's SPIES. This universe just drew me in immediately, and I knew i have to make something really big for the art. This is such a big story, and I love it to death. I can only hope that my art does it some justice.

( art inside! )

I have been holding off on Torchwood until next week, when I can watch it with some friends of a friend (two girls who are so ripe for fandom it's not even funny. In fact I suspect they already are in fandom and I am trying to figure out how to drop that hint.) But these cut tags are killing me!

To make up for it I've been making my way through the tardis_bigbang entries and have a couple recs:

For Captain and Cardiff by blackhemlock. Gen-ish Jack/Ianto, 43.000 words, PG-13. "At midnight, a nationwide security alert was sent out... Torchwood London, demands all agencies' cooperation in issuing an arrest warrant for Ianto Merric Jones, 24, of Cardiff." Torchwood Three's Archivist has gone rogue. But, he does have a very good reason, and he looks stunning in his new suit.

A fun adventure story in which Ianto is competent, saves the day, and meets the Doctor.

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Guard Them, and Him Within by etharei. Jack/Ianto, 38.000 words, NC-17. Ianto Jones finds himself far from home. But there are guns, aliens, and more Strange Happenings than one can shake a stick at, so sometimes it’s like he hasn’t left. Of stories within stories, and the adventures of small characters.

This is such a fantastic sci-fi story in the best possible sci-fi tradition. It features time-traveling Ianto, one of my very favorite plots, but instead of being cliched, etharei really made the story her own, and the result is utterly original in concept and execution. The world building is fantastic, thorough, and spooky, and the mythology is so cool. I also love the original characters, which is high praise for any work of fan fiction.

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And Indeed There Will Be Time by kaydeefalls. Jack/Ianto, 43.000 words, R. In 1919, Harriet Derbyshire was killed while investigating the disappearance of Torchwood Four in Dublin. In 2009, UNIT pulls a dying man out of the Irish Sea with a one-word message: Torchwood. Martha joins up with Jack's team in Cardiff to track down the errant branch of the organization – before a time-traveling race of aliens can change the course of history as we know it.

This is also a time-traveling Ianto story, and like Guard Them, and Him Within, it is brilliantly executed. Utterly unique in the plotting, this felt exactly like the best of the Who/Torchwood episodes. It was gripping, wonderfully characterized, and I love this Ianto with all of my heart. He's smart, and competent, and adaptable even in the toughest situations.

This is just one of those perfect stories for me, it was fantastically plotted; I loved each and every one of the characters, and it was wonderfully inventive. Stories like this, that use canon as a jumping off point and then take it to a whole new level are the reason I love fanfic.

Story title: A Loose Bolt in a Complete Machine [sequel to The Advantages of Mind Reading]
Author name: theemdash
Pairing: Jack/Daniel
Summary: SG-1 returns to Tekhne, a planet they visited a year before (shortly before Daniel Ascended). They return at the request of Gerard, a man who is seeking asylum on Earth for himself and his brother. Once SG-1 arrives on Tekhne, they find that they're going to have to break Gerard's brother Jacob out of a political prison. Things go south when the revolutionaries choose this ill-timed moment to attack the capitol, and SG-1 is pinned down in the middle of it. The revolutionaries capture Daniel and Jack's priorities shift from rescuing Gerard's brother to rescuing Daniel. . . .

It's a story about firefights, Ascension, figuring out your place after a long absence, and of course, being able to IM someone's brain.

Art Notes: NSFW content! I love Jack/Daniel so much. Like, when I first got into SG-1 I am pretty sure I read every single Jack/Daniel story out there, so when I saw the stargate_summer challenge come up I jumped at the chance to take part in anything that could earn me more Jack/Daniel. And this story is so fun! Exactly the kind of long plotty adventure fic I love the Stargate fandoms for.

( art inside! )

Story title: Caught Inside
Author name: topaz119
Pairing: Steve/Jensen/Chris, Jared/Jeff (some interim Jensen/Jeff and Steve/Chris)
Summary: Steve's been gone for a year now, but every time they talk, he tells Jensen he'd love it on Maui, that there's always room for him. Jensen takes him up on the offer, finally, but there's a strange guy in the house and playing the odd-man-out isn't exactly what Jensen had in mind. There's not much left for him in LA, though, so he lets Steve talk him into staying for a while and finds himself stuck between what he wants and what he has.

Art Notes: This story is SO GOOD you guys. Surfer AU! In Maui no less! With Jeff and Sandy and Daneel and Jared and everyone being so awesome well drawn that there is no way my art could ever do it justice. I gave it a shot though, so here goes. With all of the pictures, click to embiggen!

( art inside! )

Whew, I just got back from 2 weeks in Vietnam (which was such an amazing country, I hope I can go back soon). I doubt I'll ever be able to catch up on my friendslist, but I'm going to give it a shot anyway. Have I missed any exciting new fic?

- Art has been acheived for both of my spn_j2_bigbang stories and OMG you guys, I lucked out BIG TIME! Check out these amazing summaries:

RPS2.
Author: zortified
Artist: insane_songbird and theantimodel
Title: Terraform
Summary: Jensen works on the Hermes V station, monitoring the planet below as it is terraformed for human settlement. His life changes when the planet's settlers begin to arrive, but even more so when the station's new bartender arrives. Soon Jensen begins to suspect there is more to Jared than he's telling -- but what is his secret, and what will happen when Jensen discovers the truth?

RPS114.
Author: gatorgrrrl
Artist: theantimodel
Final title: In Harm's Way
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: Jensen/Jared
Summary: Dr. Jared Padalecki just wants to live a quiet life. There's only one problem: He's caught the attention of CIA Officer Jensen Ackles (a.k.a. Tom Delaney), who has discovered that Jared is the perfect man for the job. What is the job? Infiltrating the inner circle of Alain Laurent, terrorist banker extraordinaire, who's been in Jensen's sights for months, but always just out of reach. But as Jensen draws Jared into his web of deception, they both discover that in the game of espionage, all is not what it seems and that sometimes, being someone else can help you discover who you really are.

Sci-Fi and Spy AUs! And I got to read them FIRST! And trust me they are both amazing. I literally cannot wait until the whole world gets to read them.

- I have been bizarrely obsessed with the uncensored version of Justin Timberlake (and Adam Sandberg)'s Mother Lover. Seriously, there's something weirdly hot about Justin singing about fucking.

Sharing the Love: Mother Lover - mp3

- Supernatural season finale: OMG OMG OMG. Sam! Dean! I can't believe we have to wait until next fall!

Semi-related: my straight male friend who I watch SPN with every week was the first to call out how gay Dean and Castiel are for each other. I told him that was supposed to be my line, but he totally agrees that this is the best and gayest show ever. Oh show!

SONG MEME

1. Reply to this post and I'll assign you a letter.
2. List (and upload) 5 songs that begin with that letter.
3. Post them to your journal with these instructions.

crookedhalo gave me the letter L (even typing that phrase gives me Sesame Street flashbacks!)

right click, save as

1. Lessons Learned From Rocky 1 to Rocky III - Cornershop

2. Lollipop (remix) - Lil Wayne ft. T-Pain

3. Look Out Young Son - Grand Ole Party

4. Love and Sex and Magic - Ciara ft. Justin Timberlake

5. L.A. - Christian Kane

I signed up as an artist for this year's spn_j2_bigbang. I am so full of ideas just from the prompt, I can't wait to start working on the art.

Unrelated: I just got word that my friend was able to get pro-registration at comic con for me so it looks like I'll be down there. Anyone else planning on being down there? I'd love to meet up!