worldbuilding exchange letter

[tielan]

Dear Worldbuilder o' Mine...

A couple of things
I've asked for some of these fandoms before, maybe multiple times or repeatedly. This is not because any previous gifts I've received were lacking, but because I enjoy reading about these fandoms and characters and stories, and I love the variations on them that other people come up with.

We've matched on my favourite characters for each fandom, but if the story you're telling would be better served by adding other characters to it - original or canon, then by all means, bring them in. You're not limited to who's in the list.

You also don't need to write all the scenarios/characters we matched on. (Maybe this is obvious, but maybe not.)

I like:
respecting/showcasing women's capabilities
character studies through interaction
female friendships and working relationships
characters showing intimacy/friendship in ways appropriate to them
stories of adventure and drama
slices of life


I DNW:
incest
rape/non-con
PWP
omegaverse
cheating partners
humiliation as humour

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Black Jewels (Anne Bishop)
characters:
Any/No characters
Original Character(s)

scenarios:
WB: Apprenticing in a Queen's court
WB: Landen Culture
WB: Terreille after the witch storm

I'd particularly love to hear about lighter-Jewelled Blood and landens, and how society works (as in works in the traditional way, not with the abuse of power that the Witch-storm was supposed to clean up) with such a distinct power imbalance between unJewelled/lighter-Jewelled and darker-Jewelled Blood. If you want to use the influence of characters in 'The Invisible Ring' or 'The Shadow Queen'/'Shalador's Lady', then that's also an option.

My favourite characters from the novels are Surreal, Wilhelmina, Cassidy, and Jared (from The Invisible Ring), but obviously you can use whoever you like. One of my favourite sequences in the novels is the way Jared interacts with the landens on the trip through Tereille, later echoed in the way Cassidy's court deals with James and the landens who were okay living under Cassidy but wanted out when they realised she was being replaced.

For this fandom, I love stories about disparate groups working together (eg. landens and Blood) and finding middle ground and making peace of a kind.


Jupiter Ascending
characters:
Caine Wise
Diomika Tsing
Jupiter Jones

scenarios:
WB: effects on Earth of the movie's events
WB: effects on the galaxy of Jupiter inheriting Seraphi's estate
WB: The Aegis

I love continuations of where the movie left off - with Jupiter contemplating her options for herself and the universe. Even if it's just a snippet or a slice-of-life as she tries to reconfigure the universe and the Regenex economy, that would be awesome.

Also: how does this space military work? Is it volunteer based? Are there military worlds? Military races? Like splice-breeding, but for the military? So many questions, so few answers...

So Earth now has an owner who's one of its own. What kinds of things would Jupiter change about the place? Does she change anything, or does she just work outside of Earth and leave her fellow Earthlings to live their lives in ignorant peace?


Marvel Cinematic Universe
characters:
Helen Cho
Jane Foster
Pepper Potts
Maria Hill

scenarios:
WB: Aliens hiding on Earth
WB: Effects of fall of S.H.I.E.L.D on non-Hydra agents
WB: Jane Foster and the Aether
WB: Negative effects of superpowers and superpower usage
WB: Non-US superheroes
WB: Pepper Potts and lingering effects of Extremis
WB: Procedures and Legalities in dealing with superpowered peoples

This is the 'women dealing with the world as it is' MCU option.

Maria, Jane, Pepper, and Helen are all 'mundane' women - well, maybe Pepper had Extremis (before Tony took it out), and Jane had the Aether (before it was taken from her) - but in all situations, they're dealing with things that are WAY out of the norm. Worldbuild with them, and through their eyes - close to the Avengers and witness to their influence on the world.

What kind of changes did the Aether and Extremis have on Jane and Pepper respectively? Are there nightmares? Odd dreams? And what if the effects linger in unexpected ways? (Pepper discovers her coffee doesn't cool if she keeps handling it and thinking, 'why did I let my coffee get cold?')

I love Maria Hill as the ordinary person who has to deal with all the superpowered shit going on. Keeping up with the Avengers, managing former SHIELD agents who are trying to work out what's going on, or maybe even further back, before the movie series, dealing with aliens who just want to hide out on Earth. (An MIB scenario, for instance.)

What I said about Maria applies also to Helen, although in more of a physiological/physical/psychological way - dealing with the unusual, unexpected, and complicated biology of the various Avengers. From Bruce's peculiar change into the Hulk, to the effects/remnant of the palladium poisoning that Tony experienced, to what was done to Natasha in the Red Room.

Give me superheroes who aren't from America, who aren't aligned with American interests. Were they exposed to commercial radiation dumps around their hometowns? Did they volunteer to be a mad scientist's lab rat, like Steve did? What about the way their upbringing changes the way they think? America and Americans have a certain mindset (eg. manifest destiny, the specialness of America, America being objectively better than anywhere else in the world), what about other countries who indoctrinate their children with other nationalistic themes?


Pacific Rim
characters:
Mako Mori
Raleigh Becket
Stacker Pentecost
Tamsin Sevier

scenarios:
WB: Growing Up in a Shatterdome
WB: Life between Pacific Rim and Uprising

Growing up in a warzone isn't easy. I'm most interested in Mako's experience, because non-white women's voices and experiences are rarely prioritised in the stories our society tells, but if you want to throw a little Chuck Hansen in there, that's good. I'd love to see Mako's interactions with the various Jaeger pilots, particularly as she grows and learns and becomes a Ranger with the skill and strength to pilot a Jaeger...before being denied.

I feel like I should have added another worldbuilding scenario for Tamsin and Stacker's relationship to each other that doesn't circle around Mako. If those two and their friendship (I headcanon them as lesbian/gay, so I really love them as platonic soul mates) is your jam, then by all means, write that!

In terms of life between PR and UPR, I enjoyed the stories about rebuilding the world, putting it back together (or not, as Duke shows in UPR). How are Mako and Raleigh treated after PR, and how do they cope together? I like Mako/Raleigh as a pairing/relationship and would prefer that angle, but Mako & Raleigh as close and intimate friends is great. I just want to see them together, keeping company, and dealing with the aftermath of the kaiju. Bring in Duke and/or any of the Uprising Crew, but go light on using Newt, please.

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Hopefully this gives you something to start with for the worldbuilding that you're writing. However, if nothing I've suggested has struck you, then just keep in mind my likes/DNWs and the characters/worldbuilding we've matched upon, and go for your life!