Fanfiction has been mentioned several times on the site, and one of the best Smart Podcast Trashy Books episodes I’ve been a part of was our episode on shipping: 320. Deep Diving into our OTPs with Amanda, Elyse, and Sarah.
I started reading fanfiction in high school. It was a good way to read romance, about characters that I loved, without having to spend my meager allowance. I even wrote some, but they’re long since abandoned.
When Sarah asked for me to talk about some of my favorite fanfics in recent history, I jumped at the chance. However, fanfiction is incredibly subjective, as whatever ship I’m into might not be one that you’re into. That’s okay!
The fics below are either Draco/Hermione related fromĀ Harry PotterĀ or Rey and Kylo Ren related fromĀ Star Wars. Sorry not sorry.
Completed
The Politician’s WifeĀ by pir8fancier (Draco/Hermione)
This story is set twenty-three years after the fall of Voldemort. Our main characters are Ministry employees, middle-aged, and the majority of them not very happy.
This is an older fic, but what I really loved about this is that the characters have aged and they’re dealing with the realization that their life isn’t what they thought it would be. It’s quite different than the over the top, rather smutty fics I tend to read.
Everything to ProveĀ by crossingwinter (Rey/Kylo Ren)
āThe show,ā he says. āItās probably best if they donātāif we donātāā
And Rey follows his line of thought at once. For all the program is one that doesnāt seem melodramaticāthe height of drama in previous seasons came from someoneās cake falling over and that was about itāshe does not doubt that the producers and cameramen would leap at the opportunity to make there be something out of nothing in their relationshipāespecially if there was something out of something.
āYeah,ā she agrees. āYeah, probably. We can pick baking stations that areā¦ā but she doesnāt want to complete the thought. She likes baking next to Ben.
āOr we can just be careful?ā he suggests, sounding quite as pained by the prospect as Rey feels.
āYeah, careful. I can do careful,ā Rey says at once and her lips are on his again and heās laughing now, and sheās laughing, and she didnāt think laughter would be part of all this. She didnāt think it could be. But here she is, laughing and kissing and holding a man who, at some point, sheās going to want to beat.
She does her best not to think of that now.
Itās a friendly competition, after all.
Itās not life and death.
Itās baking.
I need to give a shout out to my lovely friend, Kay Taylor Rea. She’s the one who sent me this fic and if you’re ever looking for recommendations, you need to follow her on Twitter. She’s fantastic.
This is a Reylo fic set in an alternate universe (AU) of a baking competition. It’s only one chapter and not too heavy on the angst, but has an adorable secret relationship element.
Ongoing/Abandoned
WildĀ by MoonandWinter (Draco/Hermione)
They had expected her to take an office job at the ministry, to settle down and live a quiet life. It seemed they all forgot she was, in fact, a Gryffindor who craved knowledge. Draco felt a shame unlike anything before. On his shoulders sat the disgrace he and his family earned. A chance encounter one could very well call fate brings these two together. What happens next, no one could have predicted.
This one hasn’t been updated since last February, but such is the downside of reading fanfic. My favorite tag for this fic is “Angst and Fluff and Smut,” which ticks all my dang boxes.
Steer from the Passenger SideĀ by NewerConstellations (Rey/Kylo Ren)
Kylo suddenly hears cursing outside the window of the diner. Cute, feminine cursing.
Pulled over on the side of the road in front of the diner is a green Jeep with wood panelling, and yelling at the car as if it has done something personal to her is a small slip of a girl in cut off shorts and cowboy boots.
He canāt do anything but stare.
As she stretches to reach under the hood, one long leg sticks out behind her for counter-balance, like a ballerina on the stage. Kylo licks his lips as he tracks the length of tan, smooth skin leading up to her round ass sitting above the grill like a cupcake on a platter. Then sheās quickly back up to standing again, whipping her long, brown hair over her shoulder to reveal a gorgeous, smooth face.
Heās absolutely mesmerized.
——
Orphan Rey has never seen a sunset that wasn’t set over sand. She fixes up an old Jeep Woody and heads to California on Route 66. When the Jeep breaks down outside of Albuquerque, tall, dark stranger Kylo Ren offers to pay her for a lift. As the temperature rises between them, they run west to escape their ghosts, together.
I first heard about this fic after seeing some gorgeous fanart going around on Twitter by one of my favorite Reylo fanartists. (I own some of Elithien’s art and it’s gorgeous.) It’s a road trip romance and has a guaranteed HEA, according to the fic’s tags.
Those are my current fic loves and the beauty of fanfiction is that there is always some rabbit hole for you to go down. Many authors have multiple works or you can take a peek at fics they’ve read and loved. Seriously, say goodbye to free time.
What fandoms do you read fanfiction for? Who are you favorite writers or pairings?
Sorryā I should have said that this is Spillow (and a little of Willow/Angelusā I don’t know what that one is called?)!
@25 THANK YOU FOR MENTIONING THAT ONE I love that fic so much and I’d kind of forgotten about it.
I’m an avid James Bond/Q shipper (“what do you see?” “a bloody big ship.” – yeah, me too, James). Kryptaria is considered one of the best writers for that pairing, and though she had various co-writers over time, her work with BootsnBlossoms is among the best fic I’ve ever read period. I’m a sucker for dom!Q, so Bal-Chatri is among my favourite fics ever, but Mercenary is excellent too.
Back when I was reading Harry Potter fic, my favorite was FernWithy.
Nobody and I mean NOBODY does Lupin/Tonks like she does: angry and tender and her comprehension and investigation of what makes Lupin tick is phenomenal.
Her exploration of what Tonks can actually do was also fascinating.
Iāve always had so many books on my TBR that I never dipped my toe into fanfic, knowing that Iād probably end up drowning in it and neglecting all the books Iād actually paid money for. However, thanks to your rec above, Amanda, I sat down 2 days ago and read The Politicianās Wife. OMG, I could not put it down, cried several times, and was blown away by the depiction of the breakup of a marriage that was well-intended at the time, but in reality, should never should have taken place.
I should add that Iāve always been in the āanyone but Ron Weasleyā camp, and felt quite vindicated a few years ago when I heard an interview with JK Rowling in which she admitted that that relationship was one of her biggest regrets about the series and was solely driven by some things going on in her personal life at the time. I donāt care whether itās Harry, Draco, or even Neville that Hermione should have ended up with, it just should not have been Ron.
Anyway, once again SBTB has introduced me to something I never would have found on my own and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I read so much fanfic in the 2005 – 2010 era! Long live livejournal! My favorites were Doctor Who (Rose/10th Doctor) and Harry Potter (Mainly Harry/Ginny and Lily/James, but I was ok with Ron/Hermione).
The only LotR fanfic that I have enjoyed is “Don’t Panic” and “OK, Now Panic” by Boz4pm. It’s a very slow burn romance that was written as a result of the challenge: Write a “good” self-insert-style fic. I re-read most of it recently, and still enjoyed it, but be warned, it’s quite slow and LONG! The only problem I had with my recent re-read is I found the protagonist to be a bit selfish at times, but, well, she’s NOT perfect!
I’d welcome some LotR recommendations.
I really loved earlgreytea68’s AU Chaosverse (Rose Tyler/10th Doctor). I haven’t re-read recently, but just loved it at the time: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earlgreytea68/pseuds/earlgreytea68/works?fandom_id=27785
She writes Sherlock fanfic now, which I haven’t read.
There was a really cool AU Rose/10 fic where Rose met the detective from the show “Blackpool” (also David Tennant) and they got together. I should track that down!
With Harry Potter, I tended to stay with canon couples, but one non-canon one I enjoyed was copperbadge’s “Stealing Harry” universe. I second @Bea’s recommendation of fernwithy!
Gosh, I’m sure there were more. I just loved that period of time with fanfic!
@MaryK psssst the Sherlock fanfic is good, notably the baseball AU, it’s so clever!
@Lindsay, I don’t doubt it! I love her writing style! I just haven’t gotten into Sherlock fic, but if I do, I’ll definitely read hers š
@Laura – thank you for Post Tenebras Lux – I started on it even though the pairing seemed so off-putting and it turned out to be the most wonderful read. Read it compulsively and finished it in less than 24 hours.
Iāve been reading fanfic for years and years but exclusively HP – I think Iām in the minority for genuinely enjoying Ron/Hermione pairings because I think his character is unnecessarily assassinated in canon. Yes, heās childish and immature but heās also beyond loyal, everyone forgets him throwing up beetles for Hermione in the second book. Everyone forgets that he told Sirius āhe would have to go through them firstā in Prisoner of Azkaban (unlike the movie which gave all his good lines to Hermione). I cold honestly rant about this for years, about how badly Ron has been treated by the fandom and by JKR herself.
I also love Drarry (Draco/Harry) and quite unusually, Draco/Luna. I guess I always feel like Draco deserves a happier ending. I havenāt read fanfic in years though so I donāt have good recommendations to offer unfortunately.
@Lindsay
I totally agree about Carry On. I was a huge Harry/Draco shipper back in the early the early 2000s – I have so many favorite fics. I have a lot of them saved on my Kindle and occasionally Iāll reread them!
Different fandom, but one of my favorite AUs was published with the serials filed off by an author who went on to be much more famous for other original fiction. Iāve never seen it anyone mention it though so it doesnāt seem to common knowledge. (I only know because I happened to start reading the published novel and recognized it prose!)
My formatting turned out crap, but the links work?
I’m adding this comment to clarify and credit, because I don’t see a way to edit my previous one (sorry).
Jaime/Brienne, A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones:
Fever, by Lady in Red
https://archiveofourown.org/works/1124643/chapters/2266936
Summary: As a professional bull rider, Jaime Lannister cheated death, eight seconds at a time, for more than a decade. When his luck finally runs out, Brienne Tarth becomes his unlikely savior. A slow-burn romance set against a backdrop of dangerous sports and pop culture geekery in a Westeros-flavored United States.
Review: MOAR please. One of the best Braimeās out there, and really captures the flavor of Brienneās canon societal issues whilst still set in a modern world.
Beast and the Beast, by SigilBroken
https://archiveofourown.org/works/1025410/chapters/2041291
Summary, by me: Brienneās a competitive swimmer. Jaime is too ā he just also happens to need a live-in accountabilibuddy. Excellent character work with a competitive athletes and general Lannister family misery.
Elizabeth Bennet/Fitzwilliam Darcy, Pride & Prejudice:
An Ever-Fixed Mark, by AMarguerite
https://archiveofourown.org/series/629375
Summary: One would think that having the name of oneās soulmate appear on oneās wrist on oneās sixteenth birthday would make matrimony much less complicated. It mostly does not. And not at all for Miss Elizabeth Bennet of Longbourne.
Notes: Just read the whole series, including the AUs because it will convert you to my new crackship, Duke of Wellington/Elizabeth Bennet.
DO IT.
Also, read the rest of her work. Itās tone-perfect regardless of setting.
Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark, Hunger Games:
Pure, by Katnissdoesnotfollowback
https://archiveofourown.org/works/8803510/chapters/20183401
Summary: Iām a survivor. At least thatās what someone once told me. He was probably right, which explains a lot about me. Survivors are selfish and despicable, although I think he meant it as a compliment. Problem is, what Iām surviving for is sometimes hard to tell anymore.
Notes: read the trigger warnings, yāall. Also, I really recommend the authorās ongoing work, Outside Chance, which features Olympic competitor Katniss and Paralympic contender Peeta Mellark.
Veronica Mars/Logan Echolls, Veronica Mars:
Slipstream, by cheshirecatstrut
https://archiveofourown.org/works/3873007/chapters/8656243
Summary: Veronica decides to be red satin, and creates a slipstream of shifting realities. Many things change, but a few are fated.
Notes: A very mind-bending read with a solid LoVe arc and tremendous character work.
Pro-tips: Download these works for on the go reading on your favorite reader or tablet! Just click the āDownloadā button on the upper right of a world and pick your format.
@Eve: Don’t worry! I unapproved the old one as well.
@Kristin – I am so glad you mentioned KL Morgan! Her Labyrinth fanfiction was phenomenal. So good in fact that a professor who taught creative writing held her fanfiction up as one of the best examples of good storytelling. I had the privilege of getting to know her when we were both writing fanfiction, and she actually started on a continuation of the Labyrinth fanfiction, though I don’t think she finished. I’ve lost touch with her over the years, but what a fantastic writer. If she ever decided to go commercial with her writing, I’d hoover up everything she wrote.
I got my start in commercial fiction by first writing fanfiction as a hobby and stress reliever. I wrote in the HP, Labyrinth, LotR, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Stargate: Atlantis ‘verses. It was fun and excellent practice for learning how to world-build, stay consistent, and challenge one’s self to writing stuff that later served well when writing for the commercial market. I once wrote a novel-length LotR fanfiction in which I made Grima Wormtongue the romantic lead while never giving him the “summer makeover.” I kept him deceitful, morally ambiguous, doubtfully redeemable. My personal challenge was to take this character, stay true to the book and movie canons as he was portrayed and still convince readers that he could carry off the romantic lead role if not necessarily the heroic one. That practice did me a lot of good in later books when writing a difficult character, and I thoroughly enjoyed telling that story.
Some of my favorite fanfic writers are/were KL Morgan (Labyrinth), Danse Macabre (Labyrinth), ScatteredLogic (Labyrinth, HP), Hereswith (PotC, Ivanhoe), The Stars Hold Nine Serpents (HP), Nika Dixon (Stargate: Atlantis), Pat Foley (Star Trek: Original Series).
I also love fanfiction for the community it creates and the longstanding friendships it fosters.
Again, thanks so much for devoting time to it!
Most of the fanfic I’m likeliest to read is Lois McMaster Bujold. A favorite writer is Gwynne, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gwynne/pseuds/Gwynne, who is always delightful.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/4168539 is a behind-the-scenes Byerly fic that’s wonderful.
For AUs, I’m particularly partial to https://archiveofourown.org/works/13569879 , although the others in the series are excellent.
Love the fanfic recs! My pairings were Ronan/Keller (SGA), Penny/Sheldon (TBBT), Sam/Freddie (iCarly), Katnis/Peeta (Hunger Games), Ron/Hermione & Draco/Ginny (Harry Potter), Victor/Sierra (Dollhouse), Puck/Rachel (Glee) and Michael/Maria (Roswell). I primarily read on FF.net, Paradox (https://sheldon-penny.livejournal.com/), and Roswell Underground (RIP). Some favorite authors were Fearthainn (Draco/Ginny), NikaDixon (Ronan/Keller), KnkyKty (Puck/Rachel), smc17 (Puck/Rachel), and Belmione (Katnis/Peeta).
I actually logged into my ff.net and LJ account for the first time in ages for this post. Ah memories…
@Tan – I couldnāt agree more about Ron! Heās my favorite character in HP and I will never be over the way the movies assassinated his character. Every remotely āsmartā line was given to Hermione… leaving Ron to be nothing more than the comic relief. Then when JKR said all that about Hermione and Ron, I actually felt really hurt. Readers should be able to ship whomever they want, and I fully support that, but once the books are written, Iām a believer in the author stepping away and letting readers have their experience. If itās not on the page, itās not on the page.
Anyway, rant over… but Iām glad to see some fellow Ron love on here. š
@Eve Meyer – Slipstream is sooo good! She really nails Veronica’s voice. And now I have to immediately find Elizabeth Bennet and the Duke of Wellington fanfic because apparently that is exactly what has been missing from my life.
My favorite Reylo fic is Sealed to Me by glitterature. It’s not AU – it picks up after Last Jedi. So enjoyable, such a satisfying end.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/13021761
And I’m still following Landscape with a Blur of Conquerors by diasterisms even though I’m starting to worry that she may never be able to wrap it up. https://archiveofourown.org/works/11442951
Oh – and every week I check out The Rec Center which is an online newsletter with fanfic recommendations.
https://tinyletter.com/elizabethandgav/archive
@Grave Draven – does that Grima Wormtongue fanfiction still exist somewhere? And if that’s my catnip, which of your series do you recommend I start with?
[ok, one last try to get this posted, this time without fancy links, just URLs – maybe that will make this go through]
I’ve been reading fanfic for 25 years, all the way from classic Trek to lately Nirvana in Fire (the squee post on this site finally got me to watch it). Here’s a more or less random selection of fandoms with some stories for each.
Hobbit/Lord of the Rings:
Sanskuth (linked above) is amazing.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/3163292
Growing Dwarves (and Kingdoms) by Lumelle is a very long story where Thorin, Fili and Kili survive, and Bilbo stays. Also, the dwarves think Bilbo is female, and Thorin needs to get married…
The Hobbit fandom got unexpectedly creative with headcanons regarding gender and sexual expression of dwarves, if that sounds at all appealing to you, you can try https://archiveofourown.org/works/834420 The Affairs of Dwarves by sam_ptarmigan, the one in which Bilbo learns that you ought not to meddle in the (love) affairs of dwarves, for they are subtle and involve group sex.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/3802358
They Say of the Elves by Brancher is a much shorter, non-explicit story about Legolas and Gimli.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/2064171
Comes Around again by scarletjedi is a time-travel fix-it where Gimli dies after a long life with his husband Legolas in the Undying Lands, and wakes up again as a young dwarf, but with all his memories intact, just before The Company sets out to reclaim Erebor.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/961984
The Captain and the Queen by evocates is a BoromirLives! story where Arwen finds him three years after the coronation and works on bringing him back. Aragorn/Arwen/Boromir eventually.
Discworld:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/246123
Harry Potter and the Improbably Use of Chaos Theory by debit
Look, it’s Granny, Nanny and Greebo being pulled into the HP universe. You know that Granny can’t be having with a wizard gone bad, right? Nanny brings scumble, and Greebo meets McGonagall.
Harry Potter:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/59676
Transfigurations by Restonant
Harry/Draco with great worldbuilding. Written after Goblet of Fire, so goes AU there.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7548181
Slithering by astolat
Another Harry/Draco, this time set after the war ends in book 7.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/979182
Cartographers Craft by copperbadge is set after year 6, and is Harry/Sirius (in this case, a magical copy of 16-year old Sirius).
https://archiveofourown.org/works/987408
Stealing Harry by copperbadge is an AU where Sirius didn’t go to Azkaban, and ends up taking Harry in when Harry is 8. Pairing is Sirius/Remus, and this has a lot of great worldbuilding.
http://www.mediageek.ca/arsenicjade/writing/comcall.html
Care of Magical Creatures by Arsenic Jade is a Remus/Hermione and later Remus/Hermione/Snape story set after the war (so Hermione is an adult here).
Marvel:
I second the rec for the Infinite Coffee and Protection Detail series by Owlet: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1752638/
https://archiveofourown.org/works/3771769
Winter’s Children by Neery has the Winter Soldier stumbling across a failed Hydra experiment: a bunch of tow-headed, asthmatic, allergic, immuno-compromised little Steves.
https://archiveofourown.org/series/28656
Remember This Cold by Lise is a very long series that moves into Steve/Loki. Which is an unlikely pairing, but Lise makes it work. If you like characters getting hurt, Lise in general is a good rec.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/603307
Say Goodbye to Yesterday by Melonbutterfly is a time-loop (think Groundhog Day) story that ends with Loki/Tony (written after Avengers, before later movies came out)
https://archiveofourown.org/works/2626499
Slipping off the Page into Your Heart by Sineala is a Steve/Tony story with soulmates and identity porn (meaning that Steve does not know that Tony is IronMan).
https://archiveofourown.org/works/1108212
And because Thor/Loki is maybe not for everyone, here’s a gen story that features both of them: Bargaining by proantagonist, which is pretty much *the* “Loki working through all his issues” story. Has hints of Loki/Sif.
Merlin:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/7155737
Emblazoning by astolat> is a great Arthur/Merlin/Morgana/Gwen story. Actually, if you like Merlin, you should read all of her stories.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/91885
The Student Prince by FayJay is a modern AU where Arthur is the Prince of Wales and Merlin is his room mate at university.
Vorkosigan Saga:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/33383
A Deeper Season by sahiya & lightgetsin is Miles/Gregor story that grew into a long series
https://archiveofourown.org/works/15973937
A Friend in Need by Lanna Michaels is a short-ish Gregor/Ivan story that kept me grinning.
Ladyhawke:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/140163
A Woman’s Whole Heart by seren_ccd is a short story set after the movie, where Isabeau tries to resume her old life.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/2845766
Dawn and Dusk and Forever In Between by eirenical is also set after the movie, but this time it’s Isabeau/Etienne/Philippe.
X-Men:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/267128
Replay by Unforgotten has Charles attempting a time-travel fix it. Erik/Charles.
https://archiveofourown.org/works/10158014
Heroes, Just For One Day by Yahtzee is set at the end of the movie “Logan”, and it’s Logan/Rogue and that’s all I’m going to say
Yentl:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/8890321
Begin With Love by sophiahelix: look, it’s Anshel/Hadass. I never knew I wanted that before I fell over the story.
… there are so many more, but I’ll stop for now.
Gosh, umm.. well I started out as a Cherik shipper. Expanded my horizon to all things Marvel (can I just say Clint&Coulson!), Supernatural (Sam/Gabriel), Sherlock, LOTR (all of the Faramir: Aragorn is your dad..), The Hobbit, Hannibal (for all the dark smut OMG), Firefly!, Buffy (Spike/Xander you were meant to be), X-files (profiler Mulder!) and…. you know what, I kinda read A LOT of fan fiction …
[…] After our discussion of fanfic, I think you all need more recommendations. My wonderful friend Kay has a thread of recs for Femslash February! Lots of great fandoms are included. […]