Day 13

In your own space, set some goals for the coming year. They can be fannish or not, public or private. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.


I'd like to do more long works this year. I signed up for the 200,000 word challenge at getyourwordsout and would like to do several Big Bang length stories.

Day 11

In your own space, talk about your creative process(es) — anything from the initial inspiration to how you feel after something’s done. Do you struggle with motivation or is it a smooth process? Do you have any tricks up your sleeve to pull out when a fanwork isn’t cooperating? What is your level of planning to pantsing/winging it? Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.


MY writing process… hmmm. I’m a pantser. I get an idea and go with it. Sometimes a photo, a line in a song or poem, or a bit of canon give me a tiny idea and I go with it. I tend to write short one shots for the most part but I have written longer fictions. If I don’t need to research then I write and go where it takes me.

If I need to research, I hunt and read and read and hunt all the info I can about whatever I am researching. For example, I wrote a story set in the era right after the Civil War up until 1876 – I researched preserving foods, making hardtack, the typical soldier's life, the particulars of the area where it is set from 1864 – 1876, the Battle of the Little Big Horn, World War I (since the ending spanned decades), Civil War aftermath for Southern soldiers, appendicitis in 1865. You get the idea. I am a stickler for historic details. They set a story in time and place like nothing else can. Even modern settings. If I don’t know a place, I look at photos and read about it. If I do know a place, I do the same thing. Many times I do the research as I write, even in long fics.

Do I plan long fics? Yes, in a large, sweeping sort of way. I kind of know where I’m going from the beginning but getting there is not planned. Sometimes I brainstorm with my hubby. He is great with plot advice or to help me see if something will or won’t work. I am not the world’s best plotter… give me a plot and I can build you a lovely story though. That is why I love prompts with a lot of plot.

I also like to play with words… I prefer simple words that paint the picture plainly and vividly to lots of flowery prose about things that distract from the actual tale. I don’t want the story lost in the description.

I guess that’s about it.

Day 9

Commit an Act of Kindness. In your own space, share what you’ve done, talk about what you’ve done, or simply leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

I couldn't decide if this counted but decided it does. I've done 17 fics for Fandom Stocking and hope to get a few more done by deadline. I love to write stories for people!

I decided to be mindful of doing nice things for the people around me - which is mostly my hubby - anyway, I shall do more! It can make someone's day sometimes just to hold a door open!

Day 7

Stretch yourself a little and try something new. Go play in a new fandom or with a new pairing. Try working in a new medium. Or check out some fanworks that are new to you. (The recs from Day 2 might be a good place to start.) Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.


I signed up a week or two ago for the Cap-IronMan Remix and I got my assignment today. I have no idea what I'm doing! This is a first for me. So there you have it. I need to do a little research and get to it!

Day 5

In your own space, promote three communities, challenges, blogs, pages, Twitters, Tumblrs or platforms and explain why you love them. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

1. Infinite Cap is a new Captain America community that I started on DW. I'd love to see it grow so I am promoting it.

2. Get Your Words Out is a writing challenge that has many levels for you to choose from, but it is a challenge that requires really doing the work of writing and also accountability. You choose to either track your words for the YEAR or your number of days writing, then you choose a level and commit to it. You report in every month. They run writing challenges for inspiration, have a lot of writing information and tips. I highly recommend it.

3. DeviantArt because ART! You can find lots of pretty things to nudge you along in your writing. Sometimes a picture inspires a thousand words or more!

Day 3

In your own space, share a favorite piece of original canon (a TV episode, a song, a favorite interview, a book, a scene from a movie, etc) and explain why you love it so much. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

I LOVE heroes and good guys. I've never been one who liked villains or the bad boys. I liked the nice ones, the ones who made sacrifices for the good of everyone, so Captain America blew me away. I was completely lost when I saw saw this exchange between Abraham Erskine and tiny Steve Rogers in Captain America: The First Avenger:

Steve Rogers: Can I ask a question?
Abraham Erskine: Just one?
Steve Rogers: Why me?
Abraham Erskine: I suppose that's the only question that matters.
Abraham Erskine: [Displaying a wine bottle] This is from Augsburg, my city. So many people forget that the first country the Nazis invaded was their own. You know, after the last war, they... My people struggled. They... they felt weak... they felt small. Then Hitler comes along with the marching, and the big show, and the flags, and the, and the... and he... he hears of me, and my work, and he finds me, and he says "You." He says "You will make us strong." Well, I am not interested. So he sends the head of Hydra, his research division, a brilliant scientist by the name of Johann Schmidt. Now Schmidt is a member of the inner circle and he is ambitious. He and Hitler share a passion for occult power and Teutonic myth. Hitler uses his fantasies to inspire his followers, but for Schmidt, it is not fantasy. For him, it is real. He has become convinced that there is a great power hidden in the earth, left here by the gods, waiting to be seized by a superior man. So when he hears about my formula and what it can do, he cannot resist. Schmidt must become that superior man.
Steve Rogers: Did it make him stronger?
Abraham Erskine: Yeah, but... there were other... effects. The serum was not ready. But more important, the man. The serum amplifies everything that is inside, so good becomes great; bad becomes worse. This is why you were chosen. Because the strong man who has known power all his life, may lose respect for that power, but a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows... compassion.
Steve Rogers: Thanks. I think.
Abraham Erskine: [Gesturing toward the wine] Get it, get it. Whatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. That you will stay who you are, not a perfect soldier, but a good man.

Day 1

In your own space, talk about your Happy Place—the things that give you joy, calms you or keeps you sane. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

My happy place is my house, where I live with my hubby of 38 years. It's where our daughter lived with us and it contains all my stuff. My favorite rooms are my study and my living room (or den). The study is where I have PC... yes, still use a desktop because I prefer typing on it. That PC is my window to the world. It's where I travel and have conversations with my friends, interact with fandom and where I write. The study is also full of books - everywhere. The den is where we watch tv together and eat our dinner every night. We stopped eating at the table when Sara died so we eat and watch Jeopardy every evening!