2025 Deadline Has Passed - What Next
Dec. 18th, 2025 10:17 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yuletidemods posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
yuletide_adminThe deadline has passed, and the main collection is temporarily closed. ETA - now open again!
Congratulations to everyone who has posted! Pat yourself on the back, take a breath, and then please check wordcount, formatting, html; check that you've uploaded the correct version, and that all your text is actually there. You can get to what you've submitted from your Statistics page, or from your Works in Collections. Your story should be marked as "complete" rather than one or more of multiple chapters yet to come.
To all who didn't make it this year: it happens, and we hope you enjoy the collection reveals.
To all who are still working on beta jobs, treats, or pinch hits: thank you and good luck!
Pinch hits coming!!
Post-deadline pinch hits will be available soon atyuletide_pinch_hits. This next round will be due at 9 AM UTC, 22 December.
See what time that is in YOUR timezone
See countdown
Beta requests
We have outstanding beta requests on the Yuletide Discord (please see the #hippo-want-ads channel), and more betas are always welcome at the Dreamwidth beta post.
There is also an Away from Keyboard post up on the participant community, for you to (optionally) let your author know if it'll be a while before you can read your gift.
If there seems to be an issue with your posted work, we'll contact you via the email address associated with your AO3 account. Please check you can access that!
Schedule, Rules, & Collection | Contact Mods | Participant DW | Participant LJ | Pinch Hits on DW | Discord | Tag set | Tag set app
Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
Congratulations to everyone who has posted! Pat yourself on the back, take a breath, and then please check wordcount, formatting, html; check that you've uploaded the correct version, and that all your text is actually there. You can get to what you've submitted from your Statistics page, or from your Works in Collections. Your story should be marked as "complete" rather than one or more of multiple chapters yet to come.
To all who didn't make it this year: it happens, and we hope you enjoy the collection reveals.
To all who are still working on beta jobs, treats, or pinch hits: thank you and good luck!
Pinch hits coming!!
Post-deadline pinch hits will be available soon at
yuletide_pinch_hits. This next round will be due at 9 AM UTC, 22 December.See what time that is in YOUR timezone
See countdown
Beta requests
We have outstanding beta requests on the Yuletide Discord (please see the #hippo-want-ads channel), and more betas are always welcome at the Dreamwidth beta post.
There is also an Away from Keyboard post up on the participant community, for you to (optionally) let your author know if it'll be a while before you can read your gift.
If there seems to be an issue with your posted work, we'll contact you via the email address associated with your AO3 account. Please check you can access that!
Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
Submit programming for VidUKon 2026!
Dec. 17th, 2025 06:31 pmfrayadjacent posting in vidukon_cardiffProgramming suggestions for VidUKon 2026 are now open! We will be accepting submissions until Monday January 19 2026 at the end of the day everywhere.
Please submit your content suggestions, whether for shows, panels, or something else, in this google form. Most fields are not mandatory, so if you only have a vid show idea but not a panel or vice versa, that’s fine. Multiple ideas, if you have them, are welcome, but please submit them separately, just to make our lives a bit easier.
If you have an idea for something new that’s not quite a vidshow or panel, we’d love to hear that too.
As ever, we welcome programming ideas from first-time VJs and panellists as well as from veterans - if you’d like to give it a try but you’re not sure where to start, please get in touch! We’re happy to chat it through with you. You’re also very welcome to VJ as a pair or a group.
As the con has grown, so has the number of programming submissions. In the likely event that we have too many programme items to choose from, we will emphasise items that form a coherent and complementary programme, as well as trying to give new VJs and panellists a chance to shine. Last year we had to turn down many excellent suggestions, so if you're still keen on your submission from last year please feel free to resubmit, or submit a new one if you prefer.
Part of the reason we have had to turn down so many great programming submissions is because our standing programming, e.g. Vidder's Choice, Premieres, etc, now run much longer and take up more of the con time than they used to. For this reason, we have decided not to run one of our usual standing vidshows, Festivids, this year. This will free up time for one more curated vidshow or panel than we were able to do last year.
We will endeavour to let submitters know whether their item has been selected as soon as possible after the deadline, to allow plenty of time to prepare.
Please submit your content suggestions, whether for shows, panels, or something else, in this google form. Most fields are not mandatory, so if you only have a vid show idea but not a panel or vice versa, that’s fine. Multiple ideas, if you have them, are welcome, but please submit them separately, just to make our lives a bit easier.
If you have an idea for something new that’s not quite a vidshow or panel, we’d love to hear that too.
As ever, we welcome programming ideas from first-time VJs and panellists as well as from veterans - if you’d like to give it a try but you’re not sure where to start, please get in touch! We’re happy to chat it through with you. You’re also very welcome to VJ as a pair or a group.
As the con has grown, so has the number of programming submissions. In the likely event that we have too many programme items to choose from, we will emphasise items that form a coherent and complementary programme, as well as trying to give new VJs and panellists a chance to shine. Last year we had to turn down many excellent suggestions, so if you're still keen on your submission from last year please feel free to resubmit, or submit a new one if you prefer.
Part of the reason we have had to turn down so many great programming submissions is because our standing programming, e.g. Vidder's Choice, Premieres, etc, now run much longer and take up more of the con time than they used to. For this reason, we have decided not to run one of our usual standing vidshows, Festivids, this year. This will free up time for one more curated vidshow or panel than we were able to do last year.
We will endeavour to let submitters know whether their item has been selected as soon as possible after the deadline, to allow plenty of time to prepare.
Reading Wednesday 12/17/25 | Has anyone listened to the Queen's Thief audiobooks?
Dec. 17th, 2025 12:42 pmumadoshiWhat I Just Finished Reading: Legendborn (Tracy Deonn) and Season of Love (Helena Greer), both of which fall into the category of "I enjoyed this but I don't feel any urge to pick up the sequel".
And not that recent, but I did finish Anne Lamott's Almost Everything: Notes on Hope not terribly long ago.
What I am Currently Reading: Llinos Cathryn Thomas' Advent novella All is Bright, one chapter per day. Andscruloose and I are a few chapters into the audiobook of System Collapse.
What I Plan to Read Next: Very possibly The Dark is Rising, with solstice nipping at our heels.
Bonus TV note:scruloose and I have finished season 2 of Silo!
When we finish System Collapse, that'll be the end of Murderbot listening until sometime after the new book comes out. Listening to the audiobooks together has cut way into our shared TV watching, but does have the advantage of being easier to drop in and out of if we don't have a lot of time in an evening, so I've been trying to see what our iteration of Hoopla has thatscruloose might be into. It does have Gideon the Ninth, which they might get a kick out of, but that's a significantly longer book, and we already had to check Network Effect out twice to get through it.
Last night it occurred to me that the Queen's Thief books are on the shorter side, and lo, Hoopla has them all! Have any of you listened to them? Any comments on how their reader is? It remains possible that finding out that I really like the Murderbot audiobooks isn't a sign of anything other than that I like that narrator in particular. ^^;
And not that recent, but I did finish Anne Lamott's Almost Everything: Notes on Hope not terribly long ago.
What I am Currently Reading: Llinos Cathryn Thomas' Advent novella All is Bright, one chapter per day. And
scruloose and I are a few chapters into the audiobook of System Collapse.What I Plan to Read Next: Very possibly The Dark is Rising, with solstice nipping at our heels.
Bonus TV note:
scruloose and I have finished season 2 of Silo!When we finish System Collapse, that'll be the end of Murderbot listening until sometime after the new book comes out. Listening to the audiobooks together has cut way into our shared TV watching, but does have the advantage of being easier to drop in and out of if we don't have a lot of time in an evening, so I've been trying to see what our iteration of Hoopla has that
scruloose might be into. It does have Gideon the Ninth, which they might get a kick out of, but that's a significantly longer book, and we already had to check Network Effect out twice to get through it.Last night it occurred to me that the Queen's Thief books are on the shorter side, and lo, Hoopla has them all! Have any of you listened to them? Any comments on how their reader is? It remains possible that finding out that I really like the Murderbot audiobooks isn't a sign of anything other than that I like that narrator in particular. ^^;
Subject Line: S.W.A.T.: Fan Fiction: Many Emotions
Dec. 17th, 2025 09:30 amdarkjediqueen posting in fan_flashworksTitle: Many Emotions
Rating: R
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Fandom: S.W.A.T.
Relationships: Donovan Rocker/Molly Hicks
Tags: Established Relationship, Angst, Hostage Situation
Summary: There were so many emotions.
Word Count: 3,444
Rating: R
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Fandom: S.W.A.T.
Relationships: Donovan Rocker/Molly Hicks
Tags: Established Relationship, Angst, Hostage Situation
Summary: There were so many emotions.
Word Count: 3,444
( Many Emotions )
Starsky & Hutch: Fanfiction: A Favor Returned
Dec. 17th, 2025 01:37 pmlucy_roman posting in fan_flashworksTitle:A Favor Returned
Author:lucy_roman
Rating:Teen and up
Summary:Starsky makes a mess, Hutch tries to clear it up
Pairing:Starsky/Hutch
Word Count:740
( A Favor Returned )
Author:
lucy_romanRating:Teen and up
Summary:Starsky makes a mess, Hutch tries to clear it up
Pairing:Starsky/Hutch
Word Count:740
( A Favor Returned )
Fandom-dropping update: A secret fourth strategy
Dec. 17th, 2025 02:33 amerinptahIn that last post about pruning my tag-wrangling assignments, I mentioned the “got 1 fic, the fandom tag got canonized, then nobody ever used it again” fandoms.
Then it occurred to me that there’s an even smaller type: the “nobody used it again, and the original author deleted, so the fandom tag is still around but has 0 works” fandoms.
If there’s an automatic way to find how many of these you wrangle, I don’t know what it is. So I just did a pass through my fandoms with 0 unfilterable/unwrangleable tags attached, and double-checked the work counts.
You know how AO3 will give you a “Retry later” error if you try to load too many pages in a row? Yeah, it made me take at least four breaks while I was going through this process.
The payoff is, now I’m down to 1338 fandoms. Knocked a full 62 empty tags off the list.
(Their tags are still canonical, but they won’t show up on the Unassigned Fandoms list, until/unless some user posts another fanwork that makes them 1-use again.)
Check In: Day 16
Dec. 16th, 2025 06:16 pmglitteringstars posting in writethisfanficA goofball missed a day. Whoops!
Anyway, have you written today? If so, how'd it go?
Anyway, have you written today? If so, how'd it go?
Hotel rooms for VidUKon 2026 | Find a roommate here!
Dec. 16th, 2025 07:30 pmcondnsdmlk posting in vidukon_cardiffNext year's con is taking place Friday 5 June to Sunday 7 June 2026 in Birmingham. As in previous years, we'll likely schedule some virtual-only pre-con programming on the Thursday evening.
For folks attending in person, the VidUKon 2026 hotel is the Novotel Birmingham Centre, about 1km from Birmingham New Street Station and accessible via tram. We did not receive a special rate for congoers, so we recommend booking directly through their website.
Rooms can accommodate up to three guests (one queen-sized bed and a pull-out sleeper couch). Room rates are subject to change (so the earlier you're able to book, the better), but current approximate rates for two nights B&B on 5 & 6 June are:
Single occupancy – £213 (non-refundable) / £245 (cancel free of charge)
Double occupancy – £245 to £281 (non-refundable) / £277 to £319 (cancel free of charge)
Triple occupancy – £367.05 (non-refundable) / £399 (cancel free of charge)
If you’re interested in staying at the hotel but would like to find someone to share a room with, comment on this post or take a look to see who has already commented!
The Novotel Birmingham Centre is pretty central, close to lots of food options, and the city itself is easy to get to, with a direct train line from London (90 to 130 minutes). The train from Birmingham Airport to New Street Station takes about 40 minutes.
Birmingham is a great city, filled with lots of cultural landmarks. Not only did it give birth to legendary heavy metal band Black Sabbath, Tolkien grew up there too! Check out Visit Birmingham to learn more about the city. Or even better, Video Game Cultures hosted their 2024 conference there and put together a great guide to Birmingham. It really is an excellent resource, so do check it out.
Lastly, if you have ideas for con programming, watch this space! We plan to put a call out for suggestions soon.
For folks attending in person, the VidUKon 2026 hotel is the Novotel Birmingham Centre, about 1km from Birmingham New Street Station and accessible via tram. We did not receive a special rate for congoers, so we recommend booking directly through their website.
Rooms can accommodate up to three guests (one queen-sized bed and a pull-out sleeper couch). Room rates are subject to change (so the earlier you're able to book, the better), but current approximate rates for two nights B&B on 5 & 6 June are:
Single occupancy – £213 (non-refundable) / £245 (cancel free of charge)
Double occupancy – £245 to £281 (non-refundable) / £277 to £319 (cancel free of charge)
Triple occupancy – £367.05 (non-refundable) / £399 (cancel free of charge)
If you’re interested in staying at the hotel but would like to find someone to share a room with, comment on this post or take a look to see who has already commented!
The Novotel Birmingham Centre is pretty central, close to lots of food options, and the city itself is easy to get to, with a direct train line from London (90 to 130 minutes). The train from Birmingham Airport to New Street Station takes about 40 minutes.
Birmingham is a great city, filled with lots of cultural landmarks. Not only did it give birth to legendary heavy metal band Black Sabbath, Tolkien grew up there too! Check out Visit Birmingham to learn more about the city. Or even better, Video Game Cultures hosted their 2024 conference there and put together a great guide to Birmingham. It really is an excellent resource, so do check it out.
Lastly, if you have ideas for con programming, watch this space! We plan to put a call out for suggestions soon.
Torchwood: Fanfic: Devastating Discovery
Dec. 16th, 2025 01:38 pmbadly_knitted posting in fan_flashworksTitle: Devastating Discovery
Fandom: Torchwood
Author:
badly_knittedCharacters: Ianto, Meriel, Jack, Nosy.
Rating: PG
Word Count: 787
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Meriel is having a bit of a meltdown
Content Notes: None needed.
Written For: Challenge 500: Flood.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
due South: Fanfiction: Finding Hope
Dec. 16th, 2025 10:24 amlucy_roman posting in fan_flashworksTitle:Finding Hope
Author:lucy_roman
Rating:Mature
Summary:Ray finds something to help lift his depression
Pairing:Fraser/RayK
Word Count:250
( Finding Hope )
Author:
lucy_romanRating:Mature
Summary:Ray finds something to help lift his depression
Pairing:Fraser/RayK
Word Count:250
( Finding Hope )
Tag wrangling diaries: This fandom-dropping process
Dec. 15th, 2025 11:02 pmerinptahAbout a month ago, TW chairs announced a new limit: each wrangler should have a maximum of 450 assigned fandoms. Of the 400+ wranglers in the committee, only 3 actually had more than 450 fandoms, so for most people this was going to make no difference in their lives at all.
So, hey, I’m one of the 3! Figured I’d write about it.
To be clear, the limit is for admin reasons. There hasn’t been any allegation of “you’re falling behind in wrangling because you have too many fandoms to keep up with.” Not to me, and I have no reason to believe it’s happened to either of the others, either.
The thing is, my habit for a while now has been “check the Unassigned Fandoms list for webcomic fandoms with less than 5 works, pick them up, tidy up whatever tags they have, and then just…keep them.”
( I’ll take tiny fandoms in other areas of personal interest, too... )
Harry Potter : Fanfic : Associates
Dec. 15th, 2025 07:15 pmdigthewriter posting in fan_flashworksTitle: Associates
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: PG
Length: 200
Content notes: Pairing: Neville/Charlie
Author notes: Unbetaed
Summary: Modern AU. Neville and Charlie work in the same office. Charlie has a crush on Neville.
( Associates )
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: PG
Length: 200
Content notes: Pairing: Neville/Charlie
Author notes: Unbetaed
Summary: Modern AU. Neville and Charlie work in the same office. Charlie has a crush on Neville.
( Associates )
(Less Than) 48 Hours to Deadline
Dec. 15th, 2025 03:03 pmyuletidemods posting in yuletide_adminThe assignments that you received when signing up, and pinch hits #1-96, are due at 9pm UTC 17 December (see countdown). It's nearly here. For most people, it'll be Wednesday. Please check the links!
Other important notes
Please check your story immediately after posting to ensure it is showing up okay.
Schedule, Rules, & Collection | Contact Mods | Participant DW | Participant LJ | Pinch Hits on DW | Discord | Tag set | Tag set app
Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
When you post your story, please make sure...
- It is at least 1,000 of your own original words and marked as complete. You can update and edit your story after the deadline, but any version you upload must be a complete story that could be read in that state, with a beginning, middle, and end, and no placeholder text.
- It is not posted as a draft. If your work is still in Draft status on AO3 at the deadline, it will not count as fulfilling the assignment, as no one but you can access it. To check if your work is a draft, go to your assignments. If you see a work title and the 'Fulfill' button, your work is a draft and you have not yet fulfilled the assignment. You can also check your drafts at the 'Drafts' sidebar link from your main AO3 page. Fully-posted works can be viewed from your Stats page and from Works in Collections. You can also reach out to mods to check!
- It features *all* requested characters or follows exceptions specified in the additional tags ("My gift must feature..."). Please see this post for a reminder of how the additional tags work. Regarding Worldbuilding: if your recipient has not selected characters beyond that tag, whether to flesh out the world using original characters or canon characters is up to you. If they have vetoed specific characters, obey those DNWs.
- It does not contain Do Not Wants. Please check that your story does not contain any of the Do Not Wants (DNWs) listed in your recipient's Optional Details. If you have any doubt about the meaning of your recipient’s DNWs, please contact the mods.
- Its title and other metadata are not placeholders. Please don't call your work Placeholder Title or Yuletide 2025 Work - upload a title that reflects the unique work. You don't need to write a summary or append detailed tags, but please make sure that if you do include that information, the information is real.
Other important notes
- Stay anonymous! Yuletide is a secret exchange. Don't give away publicly what you're writing or who you're writing it for. Don't add your work to an existing series on AO3, or a personal works collection. Don't identify yourself in your author's notes by, for example, linking to your tumblr or dreamwidth.
- No AI! This is a creative writing challenge - do not use ChatGPT, Claude, or any other similar generative text tool to write any part of your story, summary, or notes.
- Please don’t use author’s notes to apologise for your story, to go into detail about the difficulties you had writing it, or to promise a fix or a continuation.
Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
Guardian: fanart: The Gondolier of Dixing
Dec. 16th, 2025 08:13 amchina_shop posting in fan_flashworksTitle: The Gondolier of Dixing
Fandom: Guardian (TV)
Rating: G-rated
Notes: Beginner art (colour pencil, ink, a little digital messing about). This is my second attempt, in which Chu Shuzhi looks less like a hobbit. ;-)
Summary: What if Dixing were flooded and became a city of canals?
( The Gondolier of Dixing )
Fandom: Guardian (TV)
Rating: G-rated
Notes: Beginner art (colour pencil, ink, a little digital messing about). This is my second attempt, in which Chu Shuzhi looks less like a hobbit. ;-)
Summary: What if Dixing were flooded and became a city of canals?
( The Gondolier of Dixing )