[ANSWERS] Questionnaire: 15 Questions for Fanfic Writers

[merricatb]

Posting this as part of Fannish 50 for 2025. Shoutout to maevedarcy for putting it together.

 

Which of your fics is your pride and joy?
Shakespearean Proportions. It's my longest one by a lot (and my only multiple chapter fic thus far) and it feels like a culmination of the rest of my work even though it can probably be read as a standalone.

What are your top three most commonly used tags on AO3?
POV Wolfgang Bogdanow, Future Fic, and a tie between Missing Scene and Canon-Typical Violence. Not that I have a ton of fics or even tags for that matter, but that totally tracks.

What’s something you learned while researching a fic?
Not for a fic, but in my previous writing life I had to figure out how much blood is in an adult goat.

Is there a character or ship you’d love to write for, but haven’t yet?
Sun x Mun. She was my fave before the Rajalagang brainrot took over and it just hasn't happened yet.

What makes a fic ‘successful’ in your opinion?
That people read and enjoy it. I'm in a small fandom so it's nice to see a lot of the same names pop up in kudos or comments on multiple fics. I took a very long hiatus from writing and fanfiction brought me back to my old love which I also consider a success.

What makes you happiest? New fic comments, kudos, bookmarks, user subscribers, story subscribers, or Tumblr asks?
I haven't had any Tumblr asks so I can't speak for that, but comments definitely. Nothing quite brightens your day like someone not only acknowledging your work but telling you outright that they enjoyed it. And part of the fun of fandom is the engagement, which doesn't happen with anonymous hits unfortunately.

Does anyone you know in real life know you write fanfiction?
Yes, although I definitely don't talk about it with people I don't know very well.

Did you do anything special to celebrate finishing a fic?
Does posting it to AO3 and driving myself crazy with anxiety count? Doing something special to celebrate is a way better idea and I should totally start that tradition.

What’s a story you’d love to write but haven’t even started yet?
A different take on one I've already written. But I don't want to say which since that would potentially spoil both.

Do you ever prep your fics with outlines or warmups before you start writing, or do you just dive right in?
No there's zero organization. Dive into the deep end baby!

How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?
About a billion. And then I sleep on it and read it again with fresh eyes before letting my beta reader have at it.

A character you enjoy making suffer.
I wouldn't say I enjoy making him suffer…but Wolfgang Bogdanow.

A character you want to protect.
Wolfgang Bogdanow…strange coincidence how there's overlap.

What is your favorite fic to get comments/messages on?
I love getting comments on any of them, but probably Shakespearean Proportions again since I poured so much into it and was so anxious about posting a long fic.

What fic took you the longest to write?
I'd say my only multiple chapter fic because it's the longest but I think technically Meet the Husband. I just couldn't get them to stop flirting before it was time and I had to write Herr Sidekick first instead to give them a cool down period. And they still flirted with each other in the end.

 

Comments

[maevedarcy]

omg Sun x Mun!!! I hope you write something for them at some point. Also, I too love making Wolfgang suffer.

[merricatb]

But only because we love him lol. Sun and Mun have such a great dynamic. And him calling her Ms Bak even when they’re together long term is sooo cute.

[maevedarcy]

I love Mun calling her Ms. Bak because it's a nice reference to how he calls her in Korean, using always a polite register. I love that detail!

[merricatb]

Yessss! And of course her calling him Detective.

I've heard of older French couples calling each other vous instead of the familiar tu and that's so sexy to me lol.

[switchbladeeyes]

Not for a fic, but in my previous writing life I had to figure out how much blood is in an adult goat.

Okay, but what's the answer?? You can't leave us hanging!

I'm in a small fandom so it's nice to see a lot of the same names pop up in kudos or comments on multiple fics.

I agree that this is a nice thing about being in a small fandom.

About a billion. And then I sleep on it and read it again with fresh eyes before letting my beta reader have at it.

Yes, exactly. This is the way lol.

[merricatb]

Okay, but what's the answer?? You can't leave us hanging!

Oh goodness I guess I should've expected the follow up especially from the vampire loving lot of you LOL. I had to go look it up and it was a mule not a goat, and the answer is about a gallon which is around half as much as a full grown person.

Yes, exactly. This is the way lol.

Nothing like fresh eyes to show you just how bad something you thought was perfect the night before actually was.

[switchbladeeyes]

That's way less than I would have thought in a mule because they're so big!

[merricatb]

I think the reasoning was that it was a very small, very old one. My writing friend had spent some time working on a farm so I deferred to her expertise lol. I was surprised to see how little blood was in an adult human, personally. It seems like there'd be more.