Whumptober 2022 Wrap-Up – Blogmas 2022

December 13, 2022 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

For my final challenge of the year, I decided to do things a little bit differently.

Since I was going to be working on Whumptober while also trying to fix up some other things, prep for Nanowrimo, and also work my stressful job, I decided to allow myself the ability to do something a bit different. I gave myself permission to write drabbles. If you don’t know what a drabble is, it is a piece of writing that is exactly 100 words. I ended up writing several double and triple drabbles (or 200/300 words) to some of the prompts, which was both a challenge and a test, and I think some of those fics ended up being some of my favorites.

As with my other challenge write ups, I’ll be following my Whumptober 2021 Wrap Up set up, to break down the event in a few different ways. I’ll be touching on some of my favorite fics, as well as the ones that did amazing.

Challenge Overview

Before we get into the major breakdown, let’s go over the full challenge.

Over the course of the challenge, I wrote 31 fics between October 2nd and December 5th, 2022.

My total word count for the event was 25,163 words, focused on 9-1-1, 9-1-1 Lone Star, The Old Guard, and The School of Good and Evil, with minor crossovers and mentions of CSI:NY and Criminal Minds.

As it’s been a bit over a month since the end of the challenge, I’ll be putting up the top three for each section below. However, since there are some that are more popular than others, I’ll be noting the ones that repeat and then including the next ones until I have three fics per section.

Most Popular by Hits

I’m not really sure what inspired “Overlooking the Head,” but I’m glad that I wrote it. In a way, it was a subtle way of telling the people who had been attacking me that I actually did like Chimney Han, I just didn’t like him in one specific storyline (shock of all shocks). This is something I’d been thinking about for a while, so I’m glad I got it down and posted.

“A Different Kind of Heat” is my ode to the differences of climates. I’m someone who really doesn’t do well in humidity, especially in Texas, where I was one of the people who nearly collapsed that year. I just don’t like the heat. Yes, TK would know better, but it worked for the story, so I’m happy about it.

I think I have a thing for dropping Buck down staircases, as seen in “Staircase Tumbling.” Why Buck? Because it’s Buck, and if the writers won’t give us what we want, it’s up to fic writers to do it for them. I really enjoyed coming up with this one, which was written while I was at my writer’s club at my library. I enjoyed it a little too much, haha.

Most Popular by Kudos

I already have talked about “Staircase Tumbling.”

I was alwasy going to write a sequel to “BuckBookTok” and thus “BuckLifeTok” was born. I very much enjoyed bringing this to life, especially since I got to once again play with the tsunami and what damage it left behind to LA and the 118. I have a final fic in this trilogy in the works, it should be posted soon.

“Family Crashes” was very much inspired by the frankly ridiculous amount of traffic I could see from my office window when I have to go into LA for my in office day. The Buckley parents appearing just kinda forced themselves into the show, even though I didn’t plan on them. It worked in my opinion.

“Avoiding a Family Fight” was written not because I didn’t like the Buckley parents, but instead to get my temper down about being forced to do things because “family”. I very much enjoyed bringing this fic to life, even if certain people didn’t understand or get my full intentions at the time.

Most Popular by Comments

I already have talked about “Staircase Tumbling,” “Family Crashes,” and “Avoiding a Family Fight”

I decided early on to include Lou Ransone at least twice during this challenge, with “Gun to Temple” being his first appearance during the month. I think I really enjoyed this one, to the point that I would love to keep going with this fic if I so chose. Maybe one day I’ll do something else along these lines. (No, Remy, no getting more ideas, you have too much to work on right now as is!)

“Long Shift Surprises” was born from one of my Buck and Audie fics getting nominated for a fanfiction awards thing, but because I had two fics nominated in the same category, I had to choose one or the other. Since I went with the other, I wrote another Audie fic to balance it out. Sleepy Buck and Audie for the win!

The thing about “Potentially Scarring Questions” is that it was born out of people asking invasive questions about others. That’s it, that’s the inspiration. For men, that’s always bothered me, so this came to be. I enjoyed bringing this one to light and I’m very happy with my results.

Most Popular by Bookmarks

I already have talked about “Staircase Tumbling,” “Family Crashes,” “Avoiding a Family Fight,” “Potentially Scarring Questions,” “Overlooking the Head,” “Gun to Temple,” and “BuckLikeTok.”

“Stuck” is another Lou Ransone fic, but it was also brought upon thanks to so many people deciding what was and wasn’t going to be in Seasons five and six (and being so wrong about it). I’m also very happy with how this one came out.

I came up with “An Atypical Effect to a Head Injury” simply because of how many times it seems like Buck has been hit on the head. No, seriously, that’s what did it. This got a lot of love for being so short and I’m happy with that. Plus, injured and surly Buck is always fun.

I’m not surprised that “Taken Away” has been bookmarked a good amount of times. It’s one of my incomplete fics that I really need to get back to by the end of the year (see yesterday’s post). I just have to find my notes first and I’ll be able to really knock it out…

Length

I already have talked about “BuckLikeTok,” “Family Crashes,” “Staircase Tumbling,” “Avoiding a Family Fight,” “Potentially Scarring Questions,” “Overlooking the Head,” “Gun to Temple,” and

Considering they are best paired together, I’ll be talking about them together. “Firestarter” and “Only Embers Left Behind” are both part of my “Immortal Genius” series, with Buck taking the forefront for five total fics. Here, Buck is dealing with an arsonist and ends up being in the wrong place at the wrong time… but his immortality keeps him alive. For me, I wrote it to show that Buck was finally starting to accept his lot in life, leading into the finale of his arc. They aren’t the most popular, but I’m okay with that. I write what I love, damn it.

“Crutch Time” was just good clean fun. I hated being on crutches when I sprained my foot and I’m still salty about it, and that was in like 2008 (I can hold a grudge). It’s another Audie fic, one that I absolutely had a great time writing since it practically wrote itself.

My Favorites That Didn’t Get a Mention

I had a great deal of fun with working on “Almost Dead on My Feet,” only because it presented me with the challenge of remembering how to timeline. Something that I’ve struggled with this year. I enjoyed it a lot and I’m glad that it came out alright, even if it didn’t get a majorly great reception (my 9-1-1 Lone Star fics rarely do).

“An Unlikely Friendship” was the final Ransone fic of Whumptober, this time dealing with the aftermath of his attack in 5×02. I tried to make it clear that he and Buck were friends that might become more, though I’m not sure how much of that came through. I did like it, and I enjoyed the challenge I gave myself with it.

Wrap Up

While I wasn’t successful in completing Whumptober in October, I do think I am hapy with the quality of many of the fics that I posted. Several of them are fics that I very much enjoy and I’m happy to see that they have gotten love over the past few months.

If you want to read any of them, they are all up on my AO3 account! Just look for any that are part of the “Remy’s Whumptober 2022” series. They are all in prompt order.

Until next time!

Whumptober Wrap Up – Blogmas 2021

December 5, 2021September 19, 2022 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

September 2022 Edit

Hey everyone, before you read this post, I just want to give a quick disclaimer. I was a member of the 118 Discord up until May 2022, when I left due to a… difference of opinion on something that happened in the 9-1-1 fandom and how people might handle it, as well as seeing that the mods had become people I was no longer comfortable with supporting in any way. It’s my personal belief that the 118 Discord is have become a dangerous place and probably will never be a safe place in fandom again, unless you cast aside your ability to have an opinion and only follow their personal opinions and beliefs about this fandom. You can make your own opinions. I won’t be removing the references to that discord from this post, as that would be disingenuous (unlike their handling of many things in fandom), but I want it clear that I do not represent or support them in any way. These fics mentioned here were written before this all came to light. All reference to the discord have been removed from the fics, both tags and author notes. As a added point of clarity, this post has remain unedited beyond this note, a brief note at the end of the post, and the links to the stories. My comments written here do not reflect how I currently feel about the discord or any named members.

Thanks so much for your understanding.

This has taken me an extra five weeks to do… because HOLY SHIT.

When I decided to do Whumptober back in September, I figured it would go the way of Febuwhump. I would be good for about half the month, then taper off and be behind until early December, if I was lucky. But the 118 Discord was absolutely amazing and inspiring, and wow, did I get shit done. In fact, I finished writing everything several days early!

So, my plan is to break this down in a few different ways. I’m not going to talk about every fic that I ended up writing for the challenge, but I will hit on a few that became my favorites. Trust me, there’s a bit to get through.

Challenge Comparison

Before we get into the Whumptober data, I wanted to actually compare it to Febuwhump. Both were month long challenges, but wow did things go differently.

During Febuwhump, I wrote 28 fics between February 1st and May 9th. During Whumptober, I posted 31 fics between October 1st to the 31st. (Technically, I started writing in early September, but the posting dates are what counted.)

My total word count for Febuwhump was 30,373 words, focused primarily around The Old Guard, with several crossovers with Criminal Minds.

My total word count for Whumptober was 41,922 words, primarily focused in the 9-1-1 fandom, though I did cross over with 9-1-1: Lone Star, Digimon, Sword Art Online, The Old Guard, and Criminal Minds.

Now, I will point out that the 9-1-1 fandom is much larger than The Old Guard fandom, which explains why my total hits and kudos are so skewed towards the former. But it is interesting to see that I wrote over 11000 words more, with only three extra days to show for it. But I’m not too surprised.

Most Popular by Hits

The most popular fic I wrote during the month by far is actually one that I’m not happy about. I wrote a fic for day five called “Two Directions,” which is an Anti-Ana fic. Now, I wrote it prior to the premier of the latest season of the show, when the character Ana Flores was nothing more than a cardboard cutout of a character. By the time the day came around to post it, it was the day after the third episode, where Eddie breaks up with her. Now, the fic itself doesn’t exactly paint her in the best light (though it’s nowhere near as mean as several that I’ve read in the fandom). But I’m not exactly proud that I wrote it the way I did. I ended up putting a pretty detailed note at the beginning explaining my intentions with the fic, and how it was written early. I’m glad it was popular, but it’s not one of my favorites.

The next three on the list for top hits are all within about a hundred hits of each other. “Rude Wake Up Call” was written for day two, and it’s the shortest fics I ended up writing, as I was still getting back into really writing. This one is one that I actually enjoyed writing, and it’s one that will soon (hopefully) get a second chapter.

“Maybe He Should Skip Leg Day” was a fun one from day ten, that I really enjoyed figuring out how to make work. I really enjoyed the narrative behind this one, without even trying. I think I wrote this in about two hours? And it worked, without too much trouble. I also did a good deal of research with this one to make it at least semi accurate. Did I succeed? I think so.

And of course, let’s not forget about “The Most Valuable Collectable” from day twenty eight. But I’m going to wait to really talk about that one.

The fifth fic on this list was one that I never expected to get so damn long, but it did. When I started day twenty three’s “Taking Something Precious,” I figured it would be maybe just over a thousand words. I didn’t think I would nearly hit three thousand, with plans for another chapter. I also wasn’t planning on writing SEAL!Buck, but that’s what happened. It was absolutely crazy, and I have to thank the Discord for encouraging me to finish it once I realized where it was going. This one is a ride, and I really want to hop back on.

Most Popular by Kudos

The top two fics for this category were “Maybe He Should Skip Leg Day” and “Taking Something Precious.” Since I already mentioned them, I’m going to move past them.

When I was writing “The Most Valuable Collectable,” I’ll be totally honest, I ended up scrapping it and restarting. I realized the way I wrote the villain was wrong, and would present a commentary that I wasn’t comfortable with. I ended up changing it, and it mostly worked, though I think if I had some more time, I would have done things a little (okay, a lot) differently.

The night before I posted day twenty nine’s “Seventy Hours, and A Moment More,” I felt like something was missing from it. So I jumped into a couple sprints on the discord… and added nearly 1500 words and an entire subplot. What had been this simple little fic expanded into something else, and I’m really happy about it. It was worth all the extra trouble I ended up going through in editing.

“‘No’ is a Complete Sentence” from day seventeen ended up being one of the most talked about fics, both on AO3 and on Discord. Apparently me leaving it where I did was a problem? I have the second chapter mostly written, I just need to sit down and finish the thing. I want May to be strong, instead of some weak character that many of the people in the comments kept portraying her as. This one is one of my favorites, BTW.

Most Popular by Comments

The top fic for this category was “‘No’ Is a Complete Sentence.”

I wasn’t exactly happy with day four’s “Do You See Me?” So much so that I’m considering adding a second part. It deals with a scene from one of the second season episodes, and it’s something that I really thought was going to happen (congrats writers, you got me). But I’ve read someone else’s take on the scene, and it was far better then my own. This is life.

“Left Behind” from day six was… personal. Something that wasn’t addressed in the show was exactly what happened between the end of season two, and the beginning of season three, primarily focused on Buck. When I first saw the show, I assumed that the 118 had his back the entire time that Buck was on medical leave, but I’m not entirely sure that was the case. When I wrote this one, I was pretty stubborn. (My thoughts on this have changed a bit more since writing this fic, and it’s something I want to talk about in a full post one of these days.)

Two fics ended up tied for the fourth position on the list. One I’ve already talked about (“Taking Something Precious”). The other…

When I started brainstorming the prompts for Whumptober, day twenty two was one of the first I came up with. “Hiding Behind a Screen” was inspired by another fic, but I took it in a different direction. I was never a fan of Abby in the show, especially of how her relationship with Buck was shown. When it came to this fic, I thought about it, and her reaction during the final episode of season one. It’s, not very nice to her, but I really did enjoy writing it.

Most Popular by Bookmarks

I’ve already discussed every fic on this top five! They are: “Seventy Hours, and A Moment More,” “Taking Something Precious,” “Maybe He Should Skip Leg Day,” “‘No’ is a Complete Sentence,” and “Left Behind.”

Length

Two fics in this category were already mentioned: “Taking Something Precious” and “Seventy Hours, and a Moment More.”

Alright, the first one is kinda cheating, because I did just write the second chapter. But I’m counting it, because I posted it on my birthday. Day twelve’s “I’m Begging You (to Come Back to Us)” is a crossover fic, one of like six I wrote for this challenge. I had a random thought one night on the Discord, and this idea popped in my head and wouldn’t leave. What if Buck decided to play a video game from Japan, and ended up trapped in it. Thanks, Sword Art Online, for not getting out of my head. While it didn’t end up popular, it was actually kinda fun to write a character that had interactions with the main characters of SAO, without actually talking to them. Outsider POV was fun to do in those scenes!

“Just Keep Swimming (Until the End of Time)” from day eleven was a labor of love, because I had to publish a fic before this, which I barely managed to do before Whumptober started. This was the biggest crossover I did, as I tied 9-1-1 into my Immortal Genius series. Having to writing about drowning was… terrifying. I had a plan originally, but someone ended up writing something to that effect, so I had to move it. It’s a whole thing. But I loved this one, and I really want to jump back into this world.

Prior to Whumptober, Sadie from the Discord and I both wrote 9-1-1/Digimon fics in celebration of Odaiba Day. I ended up using day three as the sequel to that fic, and I loved it. “Unwelcome Guests” features more Digimon as well as problematic parents. I had way too much fun thinking about how the different characters would react to Digimon, and it was worth it. This had actually been requested, and there will be a third fic to go with this… someday. That will hopefully feature more of the 118.

My Favorites That Didn’t Get a Mention

These last five are the ones that I really think deserved some more love, because I’m proud of them.

“Gettin’ Taken For a Ride” was a funny but serious take on kidnapping. I trapped Buck inside a trunk and sent him over a cliff. No, that’s not a joke. It ended up being one of my favorites, because I added in the surprise villain in the last paragraphs. This one will be betting a follow up for sure.

Okay, “Revenge, Just Add a Cactus” is seriously just a fic I wrote to tease the hell out of SadieYuki. She has had a tag on AO3 that is “Chase Mackey can Suck a Cactus”, and I just couldn’t help it. The damn thing wrote itself. I wrote most of it in like an hour, and laughed my way through every moment.

“Just a Little Nick” was my required response to Buck getting cut while on blood thinners. This one… I just kinda ran with it. I’m not too happy with it, because it’s been done before, but I got to throw in a joke to Eddie’s cooking. Or lack there of. Speaking of which…

“Cooking is a Public Health Hazard” was my ‘kitchen scene’. Basically, in 5×03, Ana leaves Eddie’s kitchen looking like a bomb went off. It’s insanity to see, if you haven’t. Most of the fandom wrote scenes that made fun of it. I… had a lot of fun writing this one, mostly because the excuses some of the fandom gave pissed me the hell off.

And finally, “Here’s to California Beaches” is my first attempt at writing what the 118 Discord called the pairing “Four Alarm Fire”. Basically, it’s the pairing of Buck/Eddie/TK/Carlos. Together in a poly relationship. I wrote it as pre-4AF, and I had fun with it. Plus I threw in a joke from when I was growing up…

Wrap Up

It’s hard to wrap up 31 fics, especially ones that I really loved working on. This is just a decent sampling of what I wrote, but there are others that are also available on my AO3 page. I’m really happy with how this all came out. In a way, it proved that I can write, and I can write a lot. I felt so good by the end, and I can’t wait to work on more. (Which I’m doing this month).

I hope you enjoyed this wrap up! ~~I’ll absolutely be doing another one at the end of the 118 Advent.~~ (September 2022 edit: Per note above, I will not be participating in any sort of fandom event set up by the 118 Discord. This statement had been stricken through to reflect this.)

Until next time!

How Do I Deal With Writer’s Block? – Blogtober 2021

October 16, 2021October 16, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

I’d be lying if I didn’t say that writer’s block is a thing.

As I sit here typing this post, it’s 1AM. I’ve been working on Whumptober stories for about four hours. In that time, I’ve managed to finish one, start another, and plot out two more. That would be great… if not for the fact that I now am only ahead by two stories. Which means, tomorrow, in the midst of doing my Saturday duties (cleaning and laundry), I have to try to knock out at least two stories.

Easier said than done, honestly.

So, for the past week or so, writing has been hard. I just feel like the words I’m putting down on the pages aren’t good. Or if they are decent, I don’t have confidence in them. I’m just feeling drained at writing. Which makes sense, since I feel like I’ve been writing for a month solid right now.

But I anticipated this, which is why I wrote ahead so much.

But how am I dealing with it? Better than expected. Bet you didn’t think I’d say that.

Yes, I’m feeling like I’m behind, but at the same time, I know I’m ahead. I have four stories 100% completed for the back half of the month, not counting Days 16 and 17. I’ve mostly plotted out each story that hasn’t been written (barring one that I have to change, as someone ended up writing the exact thing I was planning on earlier on during the month, and I don’t want to unintentionally copy someone).

But I’m also taking time for myself. I’m watching more One Chicago and making plans for November. I’m finally about to break my PS3 and PS Vita out of their hiding holes as a reward for finishing, but I’m doing planning ahead of time. I’m letting myself be active on Discord, making friends with people across the country and world. I’m part of an active fandom across three sites, and I feel like I have things to contribute. And I’m planning a driving trip into Los Angeles to get away for a weekend day, just to drive through the city.

But I also have ways to get out of writer’s block.

One of the biggest is that I’m not writing my Whumptober prompts in order (unless I’m down to the wire, which I’m not yet). Instead, I’ve put all the remaining prompts in a jar and randomly choosing. Depending on the prompt, I either sit down and write it, or just plan it and return the number to the jar. I’m actually only nine away at this point, and this method has really worked well for me this time. In fact, the only two that I’m being “forced into” writing together are Days 18 and 21, on account that they are basically two chapters. I’m almost done with Day 21 as it is (it’s on my list for tomorrow).

Another thing is, I’m not binding myself to just working on Whumptober. Already once this month I managed to put out a random fic that wasn’t related to Whumptober, which ended up being hilarious. I’m not going out of my way to write something that isn’t Whumptober based, but I’m just letting myself be a bit free.

The final big thing is that I’m not holding myself to any real expectations. I told myself at the beginning of Whumptober that I’d try to finish on time, but if I can’t, I’m cool with that. I’m honestly happy with how much I’ve done already. If I get it all done, then I will probably celebrate. If not, that’s fine. I’ve done my best, and no one can really argue with me on that. I mean, at this point I’ve almost written 30k words. That’s better than I think I’ve ever done. So I’m cool.

Writer’s block used to be a major issue for myself. I’d stress daily about it, make myself feel sick because I wasn’t writing, and then not bring out my best writing. At least right now, I’m happy. And really, isn’t that all that matters?

Until next time!