FK Fic Fest

From Fanlore
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Challenge
Name: FK Fic Fest
Date(s): 2010 - present (annual)
Moderator(s): brightknightie
Founder: brightknightie & amilyn
Type: fan fiction gift exchange (until 2018), prompt fest (from 2019)
Fandom: Forever Knight
Associated Community: FK Fic Fest (LJ), (Dreamwidth)
URL: AO3 FK Fic Fest Collection
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

FK Fic Fest is a LiveJournal/Dreamwidth community that, since 2010, has run an annual ficathon for Forever Knight-based fan fiction. For the first two years, the moderators were brightknightie and amilyn. Since then, the former has been sole moderator.

The community debuted on LiveJournal on 11 October 2009 with the intention of holding a fan fiction gift exchange in the spring of 2010, with the stories to be made available starting in the week of 18 May 2010. This date was selected as the fourteenth anniversary of the first airing of the series finale, "Last Knight".[1] Participants were hand-matched by the moderator(s).

In 2011, in advance of a second exchange, FK Fic Fest became jointly a Dreamwidth and LiveJournal community, with admin posts made on both sites. At that time, stories were posted to the community (the member deciding whether LJ or DW), with admin posts providing cross-links for readers. However, an archive for FK Fic Fest stories was also created within Archive of Our Own (AO3). From 2012, stories have been uploaded directly to the archive, with only admin posts and story announcements being posted to LiveJournal and Dreamwidth. In 2017, the community became Dreamwidth only.

Until 2020, stories had to be a minimum of 1000 words in length; this was then reduced to 500 words.

In 2019, FK Fic Fest was run challenge-style with a common prompt of "ten years" in honour of its tenth anniversary. It has since continued as a prompt fest with a slate of prompts chosen each year by the members of the community.

Rules

In the first year that FK Fic Fest was run, players submitted a slate of three prompts. Of these, one had to be gen in nature, one had to involve a pairing, while the third was a wildcard. Participants also provided a short list of things they preferred to write, and another of things they did not want to write, plus their faction affiliation (i.e. preferred characters). The moderator then hand-matched writers to recipients.

In 2012, the ficathon was expanded to allow participants to create visual works of art in fulfilment of their prompt. In the event, everyone wrote fiction. However, a picture was created in 2013 by one of the players.

In 2014, for the first time, crossovers were allowed (as an optional fourth prompt), provided more than half the content was FK related.

In 2015, anticipating the possibility of a small turnout, the mod set a contingency challenge prompt in case fewer than nine (9) people signed up. (In that case, those who had signed up to participate in a gift exchange could choose to drop out without penalty, while anyone who wished could choose to join in the challenge.) In the event, there was a quorum sufficient for a gift exchange. A contingency prompt was also announced in 2016, but thereafter the notion was dropped.

In 2018, the number of prompts was again increased. Players could now submit up to 5 prompts. The (optional) extra prompt was another wildcard, which could be gen, pairing, or crossover.

In 2019, FK Fic Fest was run to a common prompt of "ten years" in honour of its tenth anniversary. There were therefore no sign-ups and no assignments. However, there was a deadline, with reveals starting the following day.

In 2020, because of the small number of probable players, FK Fic Fest was again run challenge-style, but with three prompts voted on by members of the community. As well, to try to attract more writers, the minimum length was reduced to 500 words. After the due date, reveals started on a daily basis. The same format was followed in subsequent years.

Icons

As FK Fic Fest is run on LiveJournal and Dreamwidth, where userpics are normally employed by members for visual identification, a set of such icons was created by brightknightie for use by the moderators. She also created the ficathon's logo, and the header for the community's site.

Used by any moderator speaking for the community as a whole.
Used by brightknightie as co-moderator (2010-2011)
Used by amilyn as co-moderator (2010-2011)
Used by brightknightie as sole moderator (from 2012).

2010

There were 20 participants, who produced 22 stories with a minimum 1000 word count.[2] In addition, the moderators wrote drabbles as "party favours" for those who completed fully-formatted uploaded stories by the posting deadline.[3] As surprise last-minute gifts for brightknightie, several of the participants wrote additional stories, mostly quite short.[4]

The stories were posted, two a day (except for longer fiction), from 18 to 29 May. The party favours and gifts to brightknightie were posted 30 May.

FK Fic Fest Stories

Party Favours

These are true 100-word drabbles. Collectively posted here.

  • "The Hard Way" by brightknightie
  • "Adrenaline Rush" by amilyn
  • "Conditional Love" by brightknightie
  • "Impending" by amilyn
  • "Full House" by brightknightie
  • "Impossible" by amilyn
  • "Old Scars" by brightknightie
  • "To Catch You When You Fall" by amilyn
  • "Mnemonic" by brightknightie
  • "Outside is Frightful" by amilyn
  • "If You Love, Let Go" by brightknightie
  • "Appreciation in Instants" by amilyn
  • "Just Desserts" by brightknightie
  • "Statement of Faith" by amilyn
  • "The Dying of the Light" by leela_cat

Presents for brightknightie

These were solicited and posted by amilyn to thank brightknightie, who had done the lion's share of organizing the ficathon.

  • And the Weight of Night Upon My Shoulders by skieswideopen (500 words)
    A cure for vampirism seems to be available, but there's an impassable moral obstacle.
  • The Cup by natmerc (100 words.)
    A cure for vampirism seems to be available, but there's an impassable moral obstacle.
  • Dream in Darkness, Dream of Light by greerwatson (100 words)
    Nick/Marian Blackwing
  • Dreaming Spires by greerwatson (568 words)
    Nick and Helen Ruskin-Slater.
  • Heart's Blood by leela_cat (200 words)
    A cure for vampirism seems to be available, but there's an impassable moral obstacle.
  • Long Distance Friend by merfilly (100 words)
    Sequel to "1966".
  • A Modest Proposal by greerwatson (221 words)
    A cure for vampirism seems to be available, but there's an impassable moral obstacle. Nick & Feliks Twist, mpreg.
  • Full of Grace by amilyn (800 words/eight connected drabbles)
    Natalie suggests a new route to a cure.
  • July 22, 1916 by wiliqueen (1228 words)
    Prequel to "Cherry Blossoms" flashback.
  • New Here? by twilight2000 (794 words)
    Charles DuChamps and Nick, 1952. Backstory to "Blood Money".
  • Can I Get You a Cuppa? by twilight2000 (1090 words)
    Sequel to "New Here?"
  • One of the Few by greerwatson (1100 words)
    Gordon & Katherine Barrington. Backstory to the flashback in "Forward into the Past".

2011

There were 18 participants,[5] who produced 20 stories with a minimum 1000 word count.[6] The stories were released at a rate of two a day (except for longer stories), starting on 17 July 2011.

FK Fic Fest Stories

Listed in the order released:

Party Favours

As in the previous year, the moderators wrote a 100-word drabble for everyone who completed a fully-formatted, queued story before the deadline. Collectively posted here on 29 July 2011.

  • "While the Other Survives" by brightknightie for twilight2000
  • "Breakfast in Bed" by amilyn for greerwatson
  • "No Place Like" by brightknightie for leela_cat
  • "A Good Decade" by amilyn for merfilly
  • "Rapprochement" by brightknightie for waltd
  • "The 27th Airborne" by amilyn for friendshipper
  • "Only the Medium" by brightknightie for lastscorpion
  • "For All Time" by amilyn for pj1228
  • "As Many Facets" by brightknightie for gnosticdiva
  • "We'll Have to Get Together and Talk" by amilyn for deire
  • "Red in Tooth and Claw" by brightknightie for lafenris
  • "Possession is Nine-Tenths of the Law" by amilyn for foxy11814
  • "Catharsis" by brightknightie for malinaldarose
  • "Music of the Night Sky" by amilyn for brightknightie
  • "Not Strangers" by brightknightie for sure_i_am
  • "Investigative Reporter" by amilyn for lastscorpion

2012

There were 13 participants,[7] each of whom produced a story at least 1000 words long.[8] All stories were submitted on time, so no pinch-hitters were needed. From 30 July to 6 August, they were released two a day, organized so that readers would get stories of different types summing to more or less 6K words. The three novelettes (over 10K words) were released over the weekend.

FK Fic Fest Stories

Listed in the order released:

Party Favours

As in previous years, there were 100-word drabbles for everyone who completed and posted a story by the deadline. These were written by three authors (who uploaded their drabbles to AO3 in separate collective posts). The party favours were released on 7 August 2012 after all the stories.[9]

  • "Stellar Drift"[36] by amilyn for Deire
  • "Served Cold"[37] by amilyn for foxy11814
  • "Dark Days"[38] by amilyn for hearts_blood
  • "Matchmaking"[39] by amilyn for waltd
  • "Spinning Yarns"[40] by amilyn for malinaldarose
  • "Home Fires"[41] by amilyn for skieswideopen
  • "The Long Game"[42] by amilyn for twilight2000
  • "Long Ago and Far Away"[43] by skieswideopen for brightknightie
  • "We All Fall Down"[44] by skieswideopen for Greer Watson
  • "Backwards and In Corsets"[45] by skieswideopen for MelissaTreglia
  • "The Fix is In"[46] by Amy R. (brightknightie) for Amilyn
  • "Entropy"[47] by Amy R. (brightknightie) for Natmerc
  • "Unsinkable"[48] by Amy R. (brightknightie) for PJ1228
  • "Allotted Span"[49] by Amy R. (brightknightie) for mayhavefakedit

2013

There were thirteen players, one of whom (for the first time in the ficathon) created an illustration rather than write a story. Although only ten completed their assignment by the deadline, the others delivered thereafter; so no pinch-hits were required. The stories and illustrations were released two a day from 29 July to 4 August, organized so that readers would get stories of different types each day. For release, the illustration was paired with the longest of the stories.

For the first time, no party favours were written for the players.

Stories and Illustrations

Listed in the order released:

2014

There were nine players, one of whom chose to write a crossover story. Although not all assignments were completed by the deadline, the remaining one was delivered thereafter; so no pinch-hits were required. The stories and illustrations were released one a day from 11 to 19 August.

Stories

Listed in the order released:

2015

There were thirteen players, two of whom chose to write crossover stories. Although not all assignments were completed by the deadline, all were delivered before the end of the exchange, and no pinch-hits were required. The stories and illustrations were released one a day from 24 August to 5 September.

Stories

Listed in the order released:

2016

Assignments were sent out on 26 June 2016, with stories due at midnight on 24 September 2016. The deadline was extended, and all were delivered by the noon the following day; so no pinch-hits were required. Though art was an option, all participants wrote fan fiction, one of which was a crossover. Stories were released at a rate of one per day, starting on 26 September 2016.

Players

The following 9 people signed up to play:

BrightKnightie, Dlyt, Greerwatson, LastScorpion, MelissaTreglia/Gnosticdiva, Merfilly/sharpest_asp, Nicholas_Lucien, PJ1228, WaltD.

List of Stories

The following are the stories that were produced for FK Fic Fest 2016:

2017

Because of commitments later in the year, the moderator decided to hold FK Fic Fest earlier. Sign-ups opened, therefore, on 11 March running to 24 March. Assignments were sent out on 26 March, with stories due at midnight (PST) on 27 May. Stories were released at a rate of one per day, starting on 29 May 2017.

Players

The following 10 people signed up to play:

Batdina, Brightknightie, Dlyt, greerwatson, LastScorpion, MelissaTreglia, Merfilly, Nicholas_Lucien, PJ1228, WaltD.

List of Stories

The following are the stories that were produced for FK Fic Fest 2017:

2018

Sign-ups opened on 2 April running to 20 April. Assignments were sent out on 22 April, with stories due at midnight (PST) on 23 June. Stories were released at a rate of one per day, starting on 25 June 2018.

Players

The following 8 people signed up to play:

Brightknightie, Dlyt, Greerwatson, Merfilly, Nicholas_lucien, PJ1228, Purselover2, Waltd.

Stories

2019

In honour of the tenth anniversary of FK Fic Fest, all players wrote to the prompt "ten years" (or "ten" + "years"). There were therefore no sign-ups or assignments. The prompt was officially posted to the DW community on 5 May 2019; and stories were released at a rate of one per day, starting on 15 July 2019.

Players

The following 6 people wrote fic:

dlyt (who wrote two stories), greerwatson, PJ1228, Brightknightie/Amy R., abby82, Nicholas_Lucien.

Stories

2020

Once again, FK Fic Fest was run challenge-style. However, this year players had three prompts from which to choose. Stories came due on Sunday, April 20. As in previous years, they were released throughout the following week, at a rate of one per day.

Although the minimum length had been reduced to 500 words, in fact all participants wrote stories that exceeded the previous minimum of 1000 words.

Prompts

On 12 January, a poll was run to find out (a) how many people planned to take part, (b) when the 2020 game should be played, and (c) the type of fest preferred. Of the respondents, about half recommended reducing the minimum length, and about half liked the idea of playing challenge style again. Respondents also showed a clear preference for three prompts. On the basis of the results, the mod decided to play challenge-style with three prompts, a 500-word minimum, and a due date on Sunday, April 19 (the weekend after Easter and Passover).

The nomination period for prompts began on 26 January and ran for two weeks. Prompts were to be no more than ten words in length (not counting citations appended to prompts that were quotations). A total of 22 prompts were submitted.

On 8 February, the first round of voting started, with people being permitted to choose any two of the nominated prompts. Those that received no votes were then eliminated, leaving 16 prompts for the final ballot. Voting in the second round began on 11 February, with participants allowed to pick a first, second, and third choice. The mod then weighted the results: 5 points for a first-place vote, 3 for a second-place one, and 1 for third-place. A total of 13 community members took part in the final ballot.

The three prompts chosen for the 2020 FK Fic Fest were "cold case", "do over", and "when the price of your heart's desire is your heart" (this last being a paraphrase of a quotation from Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan novel, Memory).

Players

The following five people wrote stories:

dlyt (who wrote two stories), greerwatson, PJ1228, Nicholas_Lucien, and brightknightie.

Stories

2021

As in the previous year, FK Fic Fest was run challenge-style with three prompts from which players might choose. Once again, the minimum length was 500 words. Stories came due on Saturday, May 15, and were released throughout the following week, at a rate of one per day.

Prompts

On 17 January, a poll was run to find out (a) how many people planned to take part, (b) when the 2021 game should be played, and (c) the type of fest preferred. On the basis of the results, the mod decided to play challenge-style with three prompts, a 500-word minimum, and a due date on May 15; the same post called for prompts to be nominated. Prompts were to be no more than twenty words in length (not counting citations appended to prompts that were quotations). A total of 16 prompts were submitted.

On 22 February, the first round of voting started, with people being permitted to choose any two of the nominated prompts. Those that received no votes were then eliminated, leaving 11 prompts for the final ballot. Voting in the second round began on 1 March, with participants allowed to pick a first, second, and third choice. The three prompts for the fest were (a) the one with the most first-place votes, (b) the next remaining prompt with the most total votes of any kind, and (c) the next remaining prompt with the most points (where a first-place vote gives 3 points, second 2, and third 1). A total of 11 community members took part in the final ballot.

The three prompts chosen for the 2020 FK Fic Fest were "It's not what you are, it's what you do with it," (paraphrased from Mary Renault's book The Charioteer), "interrupted by a disaster", and "a moment of truth".

Players

The following seven people wrote stories: Dlyt, LadyLC, merfilly (three stories), PJ1228 (two stories), greerwatson, Nicholas_Lucien, and Brightknightie.

Stories

  • "Moments of Truth"[84] by Dlyt (10,902 words, released 17/May/2021)
    A murder investigation is just one of the loose ends left by a recent deadly fever affecting only vampires. (Sequel to the episode "Fever".)
  • "Games Vampires Play"[85] by LadyLC (5140 words, released 18/May/2021)
    Futurefic: Vachon's plans for Tracy's 25th Conversion Day party go awry; so Nick steps in and provides space for the party at the winery he now co-owns with LaCroix.
  • "What He Is"[86] by Merfilly (545 words, released 19/May/2021)
    A series of snapshots depicts the evolution of Lucius to Lucien to LaCroix.
  • "Pawns"[87] by PJ1228 (9298 words, released 20/May/2021)
    While investigating the murder of a TTC worker, Nick and Tracy are trapped in a collapsing subway tunnel.
  • "Stone Cold"[88] by greerwatson (3090 words, released 21/May/2021)
    An old, cold case. Years later, Jenny Schanke investigates the events of "Last Knight", the series finale.
  • "Difficult Lesson"[89] by Merfilly (659 words, released 22/May/2021)
    Addressing just HOW Janette handled leaving Toronto before the third season began.
  • "Moments"[90] by Nicholas_Lucien (6015 words, released 23/May/2021)
    A current case triggers memories of an event from Nick's past that will test his interactions with Natalie.
  • "Say Otherwise"[91] by Brightknightie (3373 words, released 24/May/2021)
    Postscript. Recovering in hospital after the events of "Trophy Girl", Tracy insists she's fine with what she had had to do. No one asks what she means by "fine".
  • "Crisis Response"[92] by Merfilly (553 words, released 25/May/2021)
    An earthquake stirs LaCroix's memories.
  • "Passions of the Heart"[93] by PJ1228 (6292 words, released 26/May/2021)
    When Nick tries to find a common link between the victims of a serial killer, he discovers that the killings aren't random at all.

2022

Once again, FK Fic Fest was run challenge-style with three prompts. Stories came due on Saturday, May 28. As in previous years, they were released throughout the following week, at a rate of one per day. The minimum length was 500 words.

Prompts

On 20 February, a poll was run to find out (a) how many people planned to take part, (b) when the 2022 game should be played, and (c) the type of fest preferred. All respondents preferred challenge style again, with three prompts.

The nomination period for prompts began on 6 March and ran for two weeks. Prompts were to be no more than thirty words in length (triple the previous maximum). A total of 18 prompts were submitted.

On 13 March, the first round of voting started. A total of 9 community members took part in the final ballot. By ranked-order eliminations, the three prompts chosen for the 2022 FK Fic Fest were "hidden witness," "when everything changed," and "You can't have a better tomorrow if you're thinking about yesterday all the time" (the last being a quotation from Charles Kettering).

Players

The following eight people wrote stories: Calliope24, dlyt, Merfilly, TheFruitBat, greerwatson, PJ1228, brightknightie, and Nicholas_Lucien.

Stories

  • "97 Years"[94] by Calliope24 (5583 words, released 30/May/2022)
    In 1413, Nick and Janette begin their 97 years together.
  • "Knight Crossing"[95] by dlyt (4597 words, released 31/May/2022)
    Nick and Natalie find a cure. That’s a good thing, right?
  • "Any Regrets?"[96] by Merfilly (500 words, released 1/June/2022)
    After the events of "Last Knight", Janette and Natalie discuss the point they are at.
  • "Guilt and Atonement"[97] by TheFruitBat (9886 words, released 2/June/2022)
    After being treated in a way no one had dared to in his entire immortal life, Lacroix is about to take revenge on the one who wronged him. Crossover with Harry Potter.
  • "Limner"[98] by greerwatson (2104 words, released 3/June/2022)
    An elderly monk illuminates a manuscript with a fine painted demon.
  • "Food for the Soul"[99] by PJ1228 (6219 words, released 4/June/2022)
    Nick and Schanke investigate the murder of a music teacher.
  • "Amaranth (love-lies-bleeding)"[100] by Amy R. (5468 words, released 5/June/2022)
    Surviving that flaming stake through his heart took everything Lacroix had — including his memory. Recovering his memory will cost him even more.
  • "Paper Trail"[101] by Nicholas Lucien (4427 words, released 6/June/2022)
    A vampire cannot leave identifiable proof of their existence in the mortal world - that is the Code. When the Code is violated, the Enforcers come.
  • "Urs in Time"[102] by dlyt (6521 words, released 7/June/2022)
    This series of vignettes shows Urs working in the background and what impact she may have had on the other characters.

2023

As in previous years, FK Fic Fest was run as a prompt challenge with a minimum story length of 500 words. Stories came due by noon on June 25. They were released one per day, starting on June 26.

Prompts

On 30 January, a poll was run to find out (a) how many people planned to take part, (b) when the 2023 game should be played, and (c) the type of fest preferred. On the basis of the results, the mod decided to play challenge-style with three prompts, a 500-word minimum, and a due date on 25 June; the following post called for prompts to be nominated. Prompts were to be no more than thirty words in length (not counting citations appended to prompts that were quotations). A total of 26 prompts were submitted.

Ranked-balloting was used, and ten people voted. In the end, the vote was too close to call for three, and the mod chose to go with four prompts instead. These were: "(urban) legend", "the first week", "this experiment went horribly wrong", and "Evil is a point of view" (the last being a quotation from Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire). All stories submitted to the collection on AO3 were required to incorporate at least one of the prompts.

Players

The following nine people wrote stories: dlyt (4 stories), TheFruitBat (2 stories), Nicholas_Lucien, PJ1228, WaltD, Calliope24, LittleBlackaPony, Brightknightie, and greerwatson.

Stories

References

  1. ^ The reason for choosing this date is stated in the first post on the FK Fic Fest community.
  2. ^ A linked alphabetical list of the 22 stories from FK Fic Fest 2010 can be found in the Closing Ceremonies post.
  3. ^ This restriction is explained in the collective "Party Favors" post for the drabbles.
  4. ^ Collected in two posts, [1] and [2].
  5. ^ Fourteen of the players had taken part in the 2010 FK Fic Fest, and five were new. One player had to drop out.
  6. ^ A linked alphabetical list of the 20 stories from FK Fic Fest 2011 can be found in the Closing Ceremonies post.
  7. ^ After making the matches, the moderator sent out prompts to the recipients on 27 May 2012. However, it then turned out that LiveJournal had failed to post one of the sign-ups. A week's extension was made in the successful hope of eliciting another person so that there could be a match for the additional player.
  8. ^ A linked alphabetical list of the 20 stories from FK Fic Fest 2011 can be found in the Closing Ceremonies post.
  9. ^ A list of all party favours and their locations can be found here on the FK Fic Fest LiveJournal site.
Retrieved from "https://fanlore.org/w/index.php?title=FK_Fic_Fest&oldid=2474995"