The Guilt List Meme

[quaggy]

Okay, that's not really the name, but it might as well be for me. I'm seriously suffering from a lack of motivation to write. I mean, this goes far deeper that your usual run of the mill writer's block. I have two unfished memes waiting for me to get back to them! MEMES!!! So, I'm doing this in hopes of exorcizing some demons and that my fic writing muse will return to me. Lord, knows I would have enough to keep her busy.

I snagged this from zinke and caz963 by the way...

When you see this, post an excerpt from as many random works-in-progress stories as you like. Who knows? Maybe inspiration will burst forth and do something, um, inspiration-y.

Out of curiosity, I went back to check the last time I did a meme like this. It was two years ago and out of the nine snippets I posted, three still haven't seen the light of day. The Untitle Santos fic now has a name (you'll see it below), but it is no where close to being done. As for the Perspecitve series, "What Was Said" was posted as For The Best, but the other two aren't even in my active pile! Who knows if I'll ever get to them!

But that was then, this is now. For this meme, I've limited myself to the fics that I keep in my "active" (heh, yeah right) pile. These are the ones giving me the guilt trip every time I open My Documents folder. Yes, I have even more than that in the works, but either I've left them on the back burner or they are still in the early, early planning stages. And we are not even touching my orginial (as in non-fanfic) work! Sigh. Please come back, Writing Muse! I need you!

This is actually a multi-fandom post, but let's start with the major one. I may flirt with other fandoms, but West Wing will always be my one true love.


Found

This is a future fic set in the Expecting universe. I actually hope to finish this one sooner rather than latter. I just need to figure out the end bit. Since I have more of it done than the others, I'm going to post a larger snippet than the rest.

My son, who generally makes more noise than a herd of elephants, is trying to be stealthy. I can tell because he’s only slammed the kitchen door twice. Now, there are times in every teenager’s life were some stealth is in order. Breaking curfew. Report card day. Stuff like that. But it’s the middle of a July afternoon and James wasn’t supposed to be home for another two hours. This doesn’t look good from any angle.

Mary! Mary, where are you?” he calls out in what in his mind, I’m sure, is a whisper, but is better classified as a dull roar. Okay. Trying to be stealthy and calling for his sister. Yeah, defiantly not good. I think I’m going to just sit here for a moment and listen in. Get a feel for the terrain before I engage the enemy, so to speak. Donna would call this spying. I call it a necessary parenting tool. Donna and I are outnumbered by teenagers. We need every bit of help we can get.


Less Traveled By

I really like this AU. Someday I'll finish it, I swear!

She was the last person Toby expected to see in the hellhole that was the Newark airport during the holidays. No one had heard a word from her since the before the election of President Vinick three years ago when she had just disappeared from campaign headquarters one morning a month before the election, leaving only an all-too-brief letter of resignation on Bingo Bob’s desk. Will was furious and vowed that she would never work on another campaign. Toby always had suspected that Will was nursing delusions of grandeur and found satisfaction in further proof he was right.


Nobody Ever Tells Me Anything

This was previously known as the untitled Santos fic. I recently dusted it off and put it in the active pile in hopes it might tempt the muses, but no dice. (Hey, it worked with Hobbesian!) Just a sentence or two this time, since I've teased it before.

So, I did something sort of dumb. I asked Donna about Josh. If he was dating anyone. That sounds much worse than it actually was... Okay. It was exactly as bad as it sounds. But my intentions were good.


Destination

This one is a bit of a challenge since I'm experimenting with POV and narrative voice. Either it's going to work as brilliantly as I hope or it's going to be a disaster and this is the only time it will ever see the light of day. It's just too soon to tell.

They do go to the beach, but only once to say that they did. They both agree that they aren’t really beach people. She spends most of her time under a large beach umbrella, slathered in the strongest sun block she could find, while he complains about sand getting into places where sand should never ever be. They go home after only a few hours to shower and take a nap. That evening she wears a long sundress, he’s in a linen suit and they eat dinner at a nice restaurant overlooking the ocean. Both agree this is much more their style.



Alright, now we move on to Avatar: The Last Airbender. I've got a lot in the works because the series finale was really inspiring. Finishing them, of course, will be the real trick.


Afterwards

This fic is LONG. Possibly the longest fic I've ever written by the time it's done. (I don't know why I'm surprised, this always happens to me when I attempt something like this.) It's already reached epic lengths (for me), so it's tough to pick just one bit. Still, I think this is my favorite part so far. Well, probably. There's a shippy part with Katara & Zuko that I really like too.

Materializing from nowhere, Katara slips her arms around you, as if she could read your thoughts. You don’t question her sudden appearance. It is almost reassuring that she is here to witness your utter humiliation. You feel her press something into your hand.

“Try again,” she urges. “Yue will give you strength.”

You open your mouth to object, but she has that confident, hopeful look on her face. The one that always makes you want to do the impossible. Because even though she can bring entire armies to their knees, you are still your little sister’s hero.


More

Sometimes, Aang drives me crazy, which is a shame because he's the lead character. This fic is mainly a place to vent my frustrations.

I had to keep hiding and running away and I was scared and I just wanted Azula to HOLD STILL so I could go help Zuko before it was too late. Right then, I would have done anything for a full moon.


The List

Eh, I don't have much to say about this one except it's pretty shippy.

“I’m just saying the woman had no appreciation for art!” Sokka exclaimed and then added under his breath, “Besides, I wouldn’t exactly describe Mai as either compassionate or nurturing.”


Promise

This is a Zuko Alone post-ep and totally not shippy at ALL! If you don't watch the show, it won't make any sense, so I'm not going to bother to explain.

As he stand there he cannot imagine ever feeling this sad again, but in years to come, he will think of this time with his grandfather beside him and the sun on his face as happy memory.



And now for the other fandoms...

Meeting In The Park

This is a post-series fic for Witch Hunter Robin, a show I doubt most of my f-list has even heard of! Oh well, I do write mainly for my own amusement.

How ironic. Under the florescent lights of Raven’s Flat, they had both looked so Western to her eyes, but here in the middle of Central Park, they both looked Japanese. The trademark of a mixed heritage, she supposed.


Friends Like These

This is a Harry Potter fic that explores the beginning of James and Lily's relationship. (Something I feel Rowling neglected woefully.) I have it all mapped out, but somehow I have a feeling this will be the last fic I finish... if I ever do!

She really had no right to be mad, she reminded herself as she unclenched her fists. Her mother had always said that eavesdroppers never hear good spoken about themselves. (Though that never seemed to deter Tuney.)


And that's all I've got.


Comments, criticisms, encouragement, prayers to the Writing Gods are always welcome.