Space Race and some extras

[extrapenguin]

Space Race was very busy for reasons unrelated to the actual exchange, but I had the pleasure of receiving a wonderful gift!
Adrift (3666 words) by draconicsockpuppet
Chapters: 2/2
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Zhao Yunlan/Ye Zun
Characters: Zhào Yúnlán, Yè Zūn
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Space Opera, Crack Treated Seriously, Animal Transformation, Worldbuilding, SID Ensemble Cast
Summary:

In the midst of investigating a derelict spaceship that's been knocked off course, Zhao Yunlan finds a prisoner who's been trapped for ten thousand years. Unfortunately for everyone concerned, the prisoner is also a goose.

And the fic I wrote is the longest thing in the collection, which is just wonderful when one is the mod of a flash exchange and also pissing on five unrelated forest fires at the same time. Oh well!
Eddies in the Stream of Time (5735 words) by ExtraPenguin
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Shěn Wēi/Zhào Yúnlán, Yè Zūn/Zhú Jiǔ
Characters: Zhào Yúnlán, Shěn Wēi, Lǐ Qiàn, Zhú Jiǔ, Yè Zūn
Additional Tags: Alternative Universe - Archaeology in Space, Alien Planet, Space Archaeologists Investigating The Ruins Of An Alien Civilization, Alien Character Visits Ancestral Homeworld, Time Travel, Archaeology
Summary:

Doctor Zhao Yunlan leads an archaeology expedition to a hitherto uninvestigated set of well-preserved abandoned buildings. The biologist contingent is very interesting. As are the buildings. And the artefacts they hide within them.

It sort of shows that it was written over a weekend – I think the fic could've done with another 5k, with an extra scene at the start to show some weilan chemistry (it works because we know they like each other already), and just some general meat on the bones about e.g. the alien world, but it is what it is.

I last-minute swapped out a scene, because I don't actually like the fact that Zhao Yunlan renamed Shen Wei as soon as he learned his name, but some of the dialogue was nice enough that I preserved it for posterity:

"Shen Wéi," he said. "It's written like this-" He scribbled 沈嵬 on the loose dirt with no heed for stroke order.

"Wéi?" Zhao Yunlan asked.

"It's because I come from the mountains," Shen Wéi explained.

"If you come from the mountains, then why were you named after the boulders?" Zhao Yunlan smiled. "Let me add some strokes and raise you to the lofty heights you deserve." He drew a 委 next to the 嵬, resulting in a very lopsided 巍, but it served its purpose. "See? Shen Wēi."

Shen Wei prostrated himself again. "Thank you for your favor, Lord Kunlun!"

"Surely you didn't call on me just to receive a new name," Zhao Yunlan fondly said.

With a few more weeks, I probably could've figured out a way to make the replacement bit sound as nice as "If you come from the mountains, then why were you named after the boulders?" but time pressure is time pressure and I axed that up against the wire. I also preserved this piece of outline-dialogue as an example of what my detailed outlines look like, namely, scriptfic:

[in wormhole space]
SW: You said we'd meet again ... but I wanted to meet a third time. Everyone else considered me pond scum and you were nice to me ;_;
ZYL: Oh, my dear devotee. You can't just say stuff like that; it makes me want to kiss you.
SW: *yanks ZYL in and kisses him*
ZYL: <3 but what happened?
SW: I woke up on Haixing. A – friend – helped me to get an identity and learn the necessary things. Cheng Xinyan?
ZYL: Oh, yeah, I know her.
LQ: Uh, maybe we should go back to the present?
*go back, wait, ZJ there*
ZJ: [something villainous, threatens ZYL]
ZYL: *eyeroll* I am a card-carrying member of the League for Dixing Liberation, could you please go do something more constructive than threaten people who agree with you?
ZJ: ??? but ... use Hallows to help?
ZYL: Bud, if you have a plan, tell me. I'm all ears.
YZ: *appears* My favorite minion! *pats ZJ on the head* Hi gege, I hate you!
ZYL: why does your brother hate you
SW: idk
ZJ: because you betrayed him and left him!
SW: ??? wtf no I didn't
YZ: you did!

...and, last but not (necessarily) least, I wrote something for the AU square of my Guardian bingo!
He Who Eats the Sun (887 words) by ExtraPenguin
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: 镇魂 | Guardian (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Shěn Wēi & Yè Zūn
Characters: Yè Zūn, Shěn Wēi
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Mythology
Summary:

The ten Suns should take turns, but one day they arrive on the sky together and refuse to leave. Ye Zun eats the extras.

It's sort of a mashing together of the Hou Yi legend and a just so story for the existence of lava. As a writing experiment, I also tried to write it in a tone you might find a myth told in, instead of the standard Western literary novel writing style. I'm not sure whether I succeeded, but it was fun!

Comments

[phyrry]

Yay sausage making! I always like reading about other peoples' writing processes so thanks for sharing.

"If you come from the mountains, then why were you named after the boulders?"
Wow, that is a fantastic line! Stinks that you had to cut it, but maybe you'll find a place to work it in somewhere else.

It sort of shows that it was written over a weekend
That is indeed the problem with flash exchanges. On the other hand, it gets the bunny done and shipped so it stops chewing on the furniture (and the writer's brain). I'm extremely Done with having a drive full of unfinished stories, so anything that gets one finished and posted is all to the good.

(My heart still wants to write plotty longfic, but my brain says, "Be more picky about which plots you spend months on! Flash exchange the rest!" And so I shall.)

Scriptfic and narrative summary are like the hammer and axe of writing; they'll get the rough shape blocked out fast, but then you have to go back and do the detail work. Invaluable tools.

Thanks for modding Space Race, and for the lovely giftfic!

[extrapenguin]

Wow, that is a fantastic line! Stinks that you had to cut it, but maybe you'll find a place to work it in somewhere else.
Yeah, I'll see if I can work it in somewhere. Maybe spaceship rental, hmm...

Thanks for modding Space Race, and for the lovely giftfic!
♥

On the other hand, it gets the bunny done and shipped so it stops chewing on the furniture (and the writer's brain). I'm extremely Done with having a drive full of unfinished stories, so anything that gets one finished and posted is all to the good.
I have less of a problem with an unfinished fic collection, but yeah, getting things Done is the best. And being picky about longfics is a good idea!