Hey guys. I’m still bowled over by my nominations. Seriously I’m really honored, thank you so much. This is my first TEA experience, so I’ve been watching what other authors are doing for this stage. Self-promo is difficult for me, but I figured I’d do a masterlist of my nominations and maybe talk a little bit about each fic. I hope that’s alright.
I’m going to put a cut here so I don’t clutter up anyone’s dash 🙂
Smut: Comedy – Once Upon a Lifetime
Synopsis: Belle French’s life revolves around books. During the day she works as a librarian, and in the evenings she writes stories of her own. Everyday she watches Mr. Gold lock up his shop and everyday she swears that she’ll wave or do something, but she never does. If this were one of her stories then Mr. Gold would have noticed her watching him, and one day their eyes would meet and he would confess that he liked her as well. The problem was, life wasn’t a story. If it was, then Belle would have written herself a happy ending a long time ago.
Status: Completed
About: I’m going to link to this review by the1ultimatefan first because it’s a very nice review. This fic was written as a oneshot but I’ve had a few requests for a sequel and it’s gone on my ‘to write’ list. What I’m looking forward to exploring further is how Belle has all these feelings, and fantasies, and she wants to do everything but she’s also not ready. So she’s caught in a battle of her own mind, trying to run before she can walk.
General: Best Post-Ep Fic – Right Kind of Wrong
Synopsis: Following on from the events of 6.07 – Heartless. Hope can be found in even the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light. Storybrooke has faced many challenges, with good always beating evil but they did that together, and now they are split apart. The story must play out but the ending might not be what anyone expects.
Status: Completed
About: Season six made for some difficult viewing. After 6.07 – Heartless I had to fix it and this fic just poured out of me. What I liked most was linking the world behind the mirror, to the nightmare realm of the sleeping curse. I thought that was interesting. I used all the filming spoilers we had at the time and, I have to be honest, I do like what I did them. I know that’s probably a bit egotistical to say. It explored a few different theories, brought in old canon like the author’s alternate world. I’m not sure what else to say.
General: Best Holiday Fic – All Hallow’s Fall
Synopsis: Belle and Gold have been together for a few months when Halloween approaches. After some pumpkin carving goes wrong, and Gold is injured, they work together to ensure that Bae’s spooky sleepover goes ahead as planned.
Status: Completed
About: This is second in the Right Wrong Number series. It follows on from Transposing Digits, which was also nominated (see below), and it’s pure family fluff really. Kind of tooth-rotting sweet. I hope it made people smile 🙂
Special: Best Drama – Painting Layers of Love
Synopsis: Belle French lives alone and she likes it that way. She’s lived alone ever since the terrible car accident which killed her mother and claimed her eyesight. Belle spends her days painting, in complete solitude, until one day she wakes up and hears movement outside. Somebody has moved into the cottage next door. She had grown comfortable in her solitary existence until Mr Gold crashes into her life. Now her future is uncertain, like a blank canvas, waiting for her to apply the paint and decide what kind of story she is creating.
Status: Work in Progress
About: I have to be honest if any of my fics actually won their category, I would hope it would be this one. This is my biggest fic, not the longest (yet) but the hardest one to write. It’s the one that means the most to me. rowofstars made the cover art and they also made an aesthetic, posting an incredible review along with it. Also theoneandonlylittlebird wrote this stunning post recommending this fic for the TEA’s. I actually cried when I read it. The amount of support this fic has, is already overwhelming and I’m so grateful. I hope my masterlist has proven that I will finish things but I swear anyway, my solemn promise that I will finish this fic.
Special: Best Season Rewrite – The War Within
Synopsis: Alternate Season Six. Storybrooke is visibly under threat once more from Hyde and the Evil Queen. However, not all threats are visible as an old forgotten foe has been manipulating events from behind the scenes. The very nature of darkness is revealed as everyone struggles with the most difficult beast of all – acceptance.
Status: Completed
About: This was my first completed multi-chapter fic. This fic itself is novel length at 70k but there’s a sequel and a couple of miscellaneous oneshots which take the series over the 100k mark. Alternate season six written before season six stared airing, picks up where season five left off. I really liked exploring the potential of the dangling plot threads and pushing the theme of acceptance – both of others and ourselves. It also gave Rumbelle a true loves kiss and a happy ending so that was nice.
Events: Best RSS – Conspiracy Afloat
Synopsis: When Mr. Gold buys Storybrooke marina, one of the marina’s few permanent residents, Belle French, swears he won’t get away with it. She sets sail and anchors in a remote cove and that night Belle witnesses a murder. At first light she returns to the marina to report it … but nobody believes her. Gold’s purchase of the marina now takes on even more sinister implications, and her growing attraction towards him only complicates matters. Vowing to investigate herself, if the sheriffs won’t, Belle soon starts to unravel a town-wide conspiracy.
Status: Completed
About: rowofstars made the cover art for this. I had a couple of really nice reviews; my giftee little-inkstone wrote this lovely comment. However, I would like to link to the latest comment by woodelf68 because their reaction was everything I hoped when writing. Also, it was very flattering that to quote them “I was about to decide it wasn’t for me until I reached the last couple of sentences of the first chapter. Then I couldn’t have stopped for the world.” – which I think is the best comment an author could ever get.
Events: Best Revelry – The Beauty and the Tragedy
Synopsis: When Mr. Gold calls in Lord French’s marker, bankrupting his estate, it leaves Lady Belle with nowhere to go until Mr. Gold offers her a deal. She enters his service as a maid and true love blossoms between them. Belle dreams of forever but there is a room, which is permanently locked, that stands in the way. [NSFW]
Status: Completed
About: I actually wrote two fics for Rumbelle Revelry this year. This fic was the one I pinch-hit for and I confess I’m quite proud of it. I enjoyed the other fic I wrote but I think this one came out much better. I don’t often feel proud of my own work but the imagery, and the tone, and how it flowed, I felt really worked. I know that’s quite egotistical to say, and I’m sorry for that. Yeah so basically I really liked this one. If somebody was new to my masterlist, this is one of the fics I would want them to read first.
Events: Monthly Rumbelling (Non-Smut) – Transposing Digits
Synopsis: The phone in the library had always been silent, until one day it started ringing. Belle French answers it and discovers that life really can turn on a dime – or in this case a wrong number.
Status: Completed
About: This is the first in the Right Wrong Number series. I did a ‘for your consideration’ post about nominations, and I didn’t include this one on my list. I’m thrilled, and honored, that people liked it enough to remember it and nominate on their own. To be honest I only didn’t include it on my list because my list had 10 fics on it already, and I felt that was egotistical enough. This fic is basically pure family fluff. The sequel All Hallow’s Fall was also nominated (see above). Like I said with that one, I hope this made somebody smile 🙂
Events: Monthly Rumbelling (Non-Smut) – Under My Skin
Synopsis: When aspiring novelist Belle French rents a laborers apartment, at a peaceful picturesque Californian farm, she thinks she’s found the perfect writing retreat. She hopes for a few months free of distractions. However, what she didn’t count on was her neighbor – Lachlan MacAldonich.
Status: Work in Progress
About: Just like with Transposing Digits, this fic wasn’t on my ‘for your consideration’ post, and I’m absolutely stunned that this fic got nominated because I’ve only posted the first chapter. I’m thrilled and so grateful that people like it so much, and I do promise it will get finished. This is a Lachbelle fic and what I like exploring here is that it’s set within the California Solo movie but Belle isn’t Beau’s friend, and she doesn’t take Beau’s role. I’ve not read another fic that does that, though it’s certainly possible it’s out there (please feel free to send links, I love reading Lachbelle). I have another fic planned in the future for Lachacy and I look forward to exploring the differences in their relationship with Lachlan.
Character: Best Lacey – Fall All Over Again
Synopsis: Before the first Dark Curse the Evil Queen had a paranoid moment, which meant in cursed Storybrooke, Gold and Lacey were married. Therefore when Belle falls over the town line – Lacey returns. Everyone is shouting at her, and everything is wrong, so Lacey does something she never did once in 28 years of marriage, she turns to Gold for protection. In turn Rumplestiltskin does something that Gold never did in 28 years of marriage – he tells Lacey that he loves her. Belle loved him, so can Lacey fall for him all over again or will the curse mask true love forever? [NSFW]
Status: Work in Progress
About: This is my first Lacey fic but definitely not my last, I have so much fun writing Lacey. What I really liked exploring in this fic is how ‘we are both’ applies. Lacey is Belle, just with some parts of her personality suppressed and others exaggerated. At her core she’s the same person and believes in the same things, she just has a different backstory and different experiences. I think there’s two chapters left of this fic but I look forward to exploring the verse more in the future.