Dear Yulegoat (or other ruminant), [This greeting is now traditional, I've used it since at least 2009] Yuletide again? Hardly seems possible since it's still March 2020, or so it seems. Once again I'd note that you may well have written for me in Yuletide before (in which case thanks a lot for doing so!), but last year I changed the name on my AO3 account and now I'm Larilille. In previous years I was known as Senji. I've continued, since last year, exploring myself; and once again I'd appreciate seeing characters I can identify with in one way or another. I'm a polyamorous pansexual trans-feminine non-binary pixie gamer filker geek with ADHD, so that's a lot of stuff to identify with! I have no major overarching DNWs but there are a couple in the requests themselves. Likewise I'm not adverse to something that's not a traditional story -- if your fannish inclinations lead you to Interactive Fiction or a CYOA story, or whatever, then feel free! One additional note, since I've enjoyed crossover and au fics in the past, is that I do not want crossover with anything written by JK Rowling. Cyteen Series - C. J. Cherryh Character: Sam Whitely I was going to start this off by saying that Sam Whitely is in some ways the token "normal" person in Reseune, but I got barely halfway through that sentence before deciding that he isn't. It's only because we're seeing him in a context full of Political Psych that he doesn't look like a genius. He almost certainly doesn't think he is. But he's the only one who can make Ari II relax, his architectural skills are sufficiently respectable that he managed to persuade people other than Ari to let him build Alpha Wing, and he appears to have an absolute eye for design. Whilst he's a minor character I think we see quite a bit of his personality and skills. He's in many ways another outsider in Ari's coterie, and in the Reseune Lab environment. What I'd like is something that either puts a spotlight on Sam, or that uses Sam to be a spotlight on the rest of the books. Sam has a canonical pairing, but there's lots of room for before, after, as-well, affairs, or many other kinds of things, if you want. Machineries of Empire Series - Yoon Ha Lee Characters: Worldbuilding Oh, I mean wow, what do I even say here? Anything. Anything from the big scale (these people know how to hack the universe to produce special effects by doing weird shit with calendars behind it's back) to the character interactions (Jedao telling Cheris not to trust Jedao; Kujen and Jedao double crossing each other so much that it's more like a lacecross) to the details that are minute on the scales of Empire (the fate of the Mwennin when the uncaring hexarchate had a reason to oppress them). And none of that made any sense to you did it? But whatever, anything you write for this will just be so amazing anyway. Really. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome Characters: Nancy Blackett Really, I just love Nancy (also I love Titty and Susan; but that's not this letter OK); so pretty much anything you write with her in would make me very happy. But the question I've been asking myself for years, and that I have to put in writing here now that I'm requesting this fandom, is whether Nancy is a tomboy or a trans boy. I can't ask for an answer to that question, but exploring it might be interesting. The Company Wars - C. J. Cherryh Characters: Bet Yeager, Capella, Signy Mallory Note: I don't expect a fic to include all three of these redoubtable women, or indeed more than one of them. If you think you can squeeze them all in though then feel free to wreak havock. Amusingly I'm writing this with my yuleletters from 2009 and 2016 in front of me and I can see some of my own trans egg feelings coming through in how I think about these characters. All three of them are strong and interesting characters who I probably can't do justice to in a short letter like this but: Bet: Despite frequently dire circumstances Bet manages to be always moving onwards; overcoming the problem of the moment without worrying about the next one. Capella: Capella is a bit of a snake but despite the fact that she seems to be almost entirely self-centred and a bit of a weasel, somehow she ends up being the most sympathetic character in the book. For me at least. (Yes, I really did just describe her as a bit of a weasel-snake; that's kind of amusing) Signy: Signy either gets a lot of screen time for a minor character or a shortage for a major one; but she seems have been hardened by the war around an inviolable core of ethics, and it would be interesting to see that played with. If you're thinking about Signy you might want to listen to this filk as well... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=424ZIx-mx_U The Hinder Stars Series - C. J. Cherryh Characters: Jen Neihart, Ross Monahan This couple just delighted me when I read the book. I'd love to see anything with them in it. There's this particular tension where Ross starts out looking for a normal dockside fling which might extend into a relationship and Jen starts out on a bit of a mission; but they kind of grow closer together into an actual relationship (however you might catagorize it). Larilille.