The Rec Center #182
Hi folks! This week we’ve got multifandom recs, Star Wars fanart, an ESSENTIAL Twitter game about being Beyoncé’s assistant, an article about how women are making bank with visual novels, and more. — Gav
new stuff
“Fame, backlash, and money: Meet the young women making games for millions of fans” by Cass Marshall at Polygon
“Episode is slowly becoming a platform where young women pursue their own game development dreams, and build their own empires.”
“Banned From The Chinese Internet, LGBT Fanfiction Writers Find New Home On U.S. Website” by Gita Jackson at Kotaku
More in-depth reporting on the influx of Chinese users to AO3 after the post we shared last week!
older stuff
“When Anthony Bourdain Went to Narnia” by Helen Rosner at The New Yorker
This week people celebrated Bourdain Day, in honor of the June 25th birthday of Anthony Bourdain, so it feels like the perfect time to revisit this piece about the time Helen Rosner showed (with the author’s permission!) the classic fic “No Reservations: Narnia.”
tumblr & beyond
Finn/Poe fanart by themightynyunyi
THE twitter story of the week is this choose-your-own-adventure game where you’re Beyoncé’s assistant.
when you start a new tv show and you’re not sure who should kiss who yet
“I tease apart ways to make this canon work for me”
fanfiction
Just a grab-bag this week! Thanks so much to everyone who sent in a rec. <3 — Elizabeth
“Open Doors” by ChocoChipBiscuit. 3K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: Dragon Age; Ship: Isabela/Aveline Vallen
Recced by: Rhovanel
Backstory: Isabela is a flirtatious, cunning, and sarcastic pirate captain; Aveline is a straight-laced captain of the guard; but they might have more to offer one another than first meets the eye.
Rec: This is a wonderful character study of Isabela, so beautifully and vividly written, about doubt and trust and love in all its different shapes and forms. It’s charming, poetic, deeply moving, and makes my heart bigger and better every time I read it.
Content warning: Minor vomiting scene
“each the others world entire” by quixoti. 13K words, rated Explicit.
Fandom: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia; Ship: Mac/Dennis
Recced by: anon
Backstory: Mac and Dennis through the years (starting at ages 17/18) kissing and being generally terrible people.
Rec: The perfect mixture of them being awful to each other and /romance/. Be still my beating heart.
Content warnings: everything you would expect from the show (e.g., homophobia, violence, alcohol-abuse)
“Partial Harmonics” by Feather (lalaietha). 41K words over 11 works, rated Gen to Mature.
Fandom: The Losers (2010); Ship: Cougar/Jensen, Aisha/Cougar/Jensen
Recced by: Summerfly
Backstory: Sequence of post-movie fics centering around Jensen pulling Cougar’s ass out of the fire for a change, and how Aisha in particular reacts to that.
Rec: Everyone’s voices are just spot-on. I love the gradual growth and inclusion of Aisha into JensonandCougar.
Content warning: Graphic depictions of violence, i.e. a truckload of folks get killed in Typical Losers Fashion
“new classic” by dinnerdrudgery. 3K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Hockey RPF; Ship: Mitch Marner/Auston Matthews
Recced by: Lotts
Backstory: Very little background knowledge is needed for this story! It’s the second in a series but not technically a sequel.
Rec: A sweet love story about two boys jam-packed with 1950s images, from fixing cars to sharing milkshakes. The use of 50s slang in the dialogue is particularly brilliant.
Content warnings: N/A
“The Muggles Have a Word for Them” by Kelly Chambliss. 8.5K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: Harry Potter; Ship: Rolanda Hooch/Aurora Sinistra
Recced by: Jean Lamb
Backstory: Portraits get bored, and like a spot of matchmaking. The Fat Lady is no exception.
Rec: It was really sweet, and I like the Victorian phrasing.
Content warnings: N/A
“Stars Lost in the Sea” by smiles. 70K words, rated Mature.
Fandom: BTS; Ship: Seokjin/Yoongi
Recced by: sinblossoms
Backstory: Time travel, magic, gorgeous descriptions of a small village in 1933 Korea, bootleggers, amnesia, and the two men who quietly fall in love in a desolate lighthouse.
Rec: Yoongi and Seokjin are the two eldest members of BTS who easily slipped into and share many of the domestic roles together in the group and smiles captures that relationship beautifully, while throwing it into a dreamy, fairytale-like world. Any Yoonjin fic written by smiles is highly recommended, but the emotions and setting in this one make it essential reading.
Content warnings: N/A
FINAL THOUGHT
Have a wonderful weekend, and for anyone celebrating the 4th of July next week, have a safe & fun holiday! — Elizabeth
Have a favorite one-off rec? Please send it our way! We’ll use it in a future list. Other fanworks—comics, vids, zines, etc—are strongly encouraged as well. And if you have any interest in doing an entire rec list, explainer, or ship manifesto, please get in touch! elizabethandgav at gmail dot com.
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